pop culture
Modern, popular, and iconic pop culture moments in music. From current events, to trending topics and more.
10 Weirdcore Tracks That Sound Like a Fever Dream. Top Story - August 2026.
With the popularity of liminal photography and films like 2026's Backrooms , weirdcore is having a moment. It's not quite horrorcore, but it's not clean and cheerful enough to fit into the pop categories, either. Some artists ditch the pop influences and veer off in another direction, creating music that sounds like the soundtrack to a child's nightmare. Whatever the case, this playlist contains weirdcore tracks from all ends of the spectrum--and if you're ready to get weird, sit back and let these songs plunge you into a feverish haze.
By Kaitlin Shanks2 months ago in Beat
Tears For Saint Dolly
The passing of Dolly Parton has, predictably, triggered an avalanche of synchronised grief, moving the public to lower its flags and elevate a pop culture icon into an unassailable saint. For over half a century, Dolly enjoyed a religious-type immunity from standard human scrutiny. Protected by an impenetrable, thick armour of rhinestone empathy and hillbilly charm, she became a universal surrogate mother to the marginalised. She lived and left behind a legacy built on a brilliant paradox: a deeply artificial facade that somehow manufactured the most authentic emotional validation of modern times.
By Alyson Smith 2 months ago in Beat
Ich Bien Ein Ausländer (I Am A Foreigner)
Ich Bien Ein Ausländer (I Am A Foreigner) is a song by the band Pop will eat itself. This phrase is repeated throughout and is and is an essential part of this powerful song. This contains a lot of German phrases but is essentially a review of this powerful song and why it’s words should be listed too.
By Mike Singleton 💜 Mikeydred 2 months ago in Beat
Six of The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame's Most Indefensible '80s Blind Spots
Because apparently "shaped an entire generation of music" isn't a strong enough résumé... Credit where it's due — the Hall has actually been doing a little cleanup work lately. The 2026 class alone is inducting Iron Maiden, Billy Idol, Oasis, Joy Division/New Order, Sade, Luther Vandross, Wu-Tang Clan, and Phil Collins as a solo artist on top of his existing Genesis induction. That's a genuinely stacked class. Somebody in Cleveland is clearly trying.
By Elton Reads A Book A Week (Elton Edgar)2 months ago in Beat
Six '90s Bands the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Keeps 'Forgetting' Exist
Because "rock's highest honor" apparently runs on a decades-long delay and a guilty conscience... Let's get the good news out of the way first: the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame occasionally remembers to do its job. Radiohead got in back in 2019. Nine Inch Nails followed in 2020. And after three separate nomination attempts and eight years of grieving Chris Cornell, Soundgarden finally walked the red carpet in 2025, with Jim Carrey — yes, that Jim Carrey — delivering the induction speech in a Fender-signed haze of nostalgia. So credit where it's due: the Hall can, on occasion, be shamed into fixing its mistakes.
By Elton Reads A Book A Week (Elton Edgar)2 months ago in Beat
Soleil Talks "Heart Strings," Upcoming Projects, and More
Soleil is a singer-songwriter, DJ, and vocal producer known for soulful storytelling, powerful vocals, and genre-blending performances that bridge the stage and the dance floor. Originally from New York and now based in Miami, she creates immersive musical experiences inspired by soul, R&B, blues, disco house, deep house, amapiano, afrobeats, baile funk, and dance music.
By Meikhel Philogene3 months ago in Beat
7 Worst Rock Bands of the 2010's
It has been nearly a decade since I published my lists of the 7 worst rock bands of the 2000's and 1990's, and I am pleased to announce that I have spent the intervening years becoming older, wiser and only marginally less interested in complaining about music. This time around, we are moving into the 2010's: a decade in which rock music continued its gradual retreat from the center of popular culture while pop, hip-hop and electronic music happily took over what remained.
By Matt Knight3 months ago in Beat
10 Eccentric Tracks from Obscure Shoegaze Bands. Top Story - August 2026.
In a lot of ways, making money as a musician is more challenging than ever. And yet, these obscure shoegaze bands are still at it. They might not have top-ten hits or millions of Spotify listeners, but they're still making music because they love writing songs and sharing their efforts with the world. Here's your chance to give back by streaming their tracks, following them on social media and, if you live in the area, checking out one of their live shows.
By Kaitlin Shanks3 months ago in Beat
