The Dark Art of Mastering Music Shedding light on the elusive studio practice that’s all but necessary to make music sound great. Images by Nicole Ginelli by Contributor Longform May 19 2016 According to many Metallica devotees, the official version of the band’s 2008 record Death Magnetic is not…

First Words By AMANDA HESS Every time I send an email, I see myself staring back at me. I always have a slight, knowing smile on my face, even if the content of my email is confused, distressed or brimming with unrestrained glee. I chose the image (maybe unconsciously) because it seemed professional…

When Chicagoan Chance the Rapper delivered his verse on " Ultralight Beam ," the opening song from Kanye West 's The Life of Pablo , there was a lot going on—sly homage was being paid to West; rappers were being put on notice ("This is my part/Nobody else speak"); and, most importantly, Chance was…

When Chance the Rapper ’s Coloring Book arrived last week, it was with many trappings of the modern major-label album rollout. He announced the release date on "The Tonight Show" only a week ahead of time, keeping with the recent appointment-listening approach surrounding new albums from Beyoncé ,…

Modern Love By DAVID BEACH To celebrate our daughter coming into our lives, my husband and I decided to host a party during which Sadie would be blessed by a Catholic priest and be given a Hebrew name by a rabbi. We had the priest from my side of the family. Now we needed a rabbi. Russell was barely…