Author Archives: Michael Edison Hayden


WILD BEASTS: SMOTHER (Review)

By Michael Edison Hayden | Published May 11, 2011

Emotions do not arrive in human beings, at any stage in life, in exclusive phases. Juveniles, for example, sometimes express feelings in primary shades like “blue” (sadness), or “red” (rage) but a lack of life experience often taints the accuracy of their reportage. Music media coverage this week has flocked, predictably, to the release of [...]

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BEACH HOUSE @ Webster Hall 5/6/2010

By Michael Edison Hayden | Published May 9, 2010

“Ever heard any songs of theirs?” — Girl waiting for a drink.
“I think so. Probably.  At least one or two.” — Her friend.
The sandy swirl on the cover of Teen Dream could be interpreted in one of two ways: A) This album is a vacation from one’s troubles. B) This album is a solitary walk [...]

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WASHED OUT with Small Black & Pictureplane @ Mercury Lounge

By Michael Edison Hayden | Published March 8, 2010

A line of graffiti scribbled on the men’s room wall at Mercury Lounge reads: “The cunts is everywhere … u wanna be.” It’s a humorous jab borne of economic frustration, representative of a younger generation bracing itself to inherit a nation plummeting into decline.  No sentiment could better set the stage for the self-proclaimed “chill-wave” tour [...]

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WASHED OUT interview with Ernest Greene

By Michael Edison Hayden | Published March 3, 2010

If you’ve given up your search for sincerity in new music, there’s good news: A change is taking place in the sometimes frustrating world of retro-chic. Newer artists like Memory Tapes, Class Actress, Bat for Lashes, and to an extent even Joanna Newsom, have eyed some of the more meaningful pop of 25 years ago [...]

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Wild Beasts @ Bowery Ballroom 2/26/2010

By Michael Edison Hayden | Published February 28, 2010

If, this December, when you were tracking the annual lists of ‘best’ albums, you had the patience to scroll past the ubiquitous mentions of Merriweather Post Pavilion, you might have come across the bi-erotic image of two androgynous lovers. The disembodied lips on the cover of Wild Beasts’ Two Dancers, like the classic covers [...]

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