Peter Lehman He seemed to be defined by an absence, which then materialized as a dark, quiet persona who always kept his eyes covered in public, inviting people to project their thoughts, fears and melancholy onto him.
The Ghost of Roy Orbison Goes on Tour
A Long Strange Trip: Exploring How Yoga-Narasimha Landed on the Grateful Dead’s First Album Cover
Deepak Sarma He did suggest that I try to interview living members of the band but, alas, I am still pursuing that unreachable lead.
Sifting Through Hip Hop, Literature and Religion: 7 Questions for Alejandro Nava
Alejandro Nava Besides resurrecting ancient poetic traditions of the bard or griot, and adopting the creative vernacular of black folklore, radio DJs, church preachers, street corner poets, and Jamaican artists, hip hop strikes a more ominous and apocalyptic tone.
Operation Mindcrimes: Heavy Metal Prophecy or Sign of the Times?
David Feltmate We should not be looking at this moment as somehow unique. In fact, it contains far too many similarities with past eras.
Religion in Hip-Hop, Part 1: Exploring the Religious History of Kendrick Lamar
L. Benjamin Rolsky Lamar’s words may indeed be best understood through a method that foregrounds uses or functionality over content, but to read these words is to build an archive for millennial religiosity and spirituality in the twenty-first century through a nearly ubiquitous art form and commercial industry—hip-hop.
Rock ‘n’ Roll Lazarus
Jill Marshall In the Gospel and Bowie’s interpretation of it, the act of coming back from the dead is dramatic and controversial.
Meaning to Life: Coltrane
Something spiritual in the shrieking sax?
The Ruling Class: Jeff Tweedy Singing about Jesus
Jeff Tweedy Yeah he’s back jack, smokin’ crack, find him if you wanna get found…
Bonnaroo Spirituality and Collective Effervescence
Scott Muir Bonnaroovians overwhelmingly endorse the notion that the festival is a sacred collective experience.
On Bonnaroo’s 15th: The Sacred and the Psychedelic Tradition
Scott Muir While 65% of the 655 individuals I surveyed at 10 such festivals report that they rarely or never “attend religious or spiritual services/gatherings,” participants overwhelmingly affirm the notion that these festivals are themselves sacred social events.