Hearing Things

Five Songs is a weekly series for paid Hearing Things subscribers in which we each choose a new song we like—or don't!—and write about why it has our attention. This week, we've got a hard-won comeback from a rapper who fell on hard times; a singer who splits the difference between Patrice Rushen and Tevin Campbell; a monumental pop song about the power of womanhood, minus the corny empowerment slogans; and more.

Pummeling Art Punk Straight From Detroit Plus Must Hear experimental pop, emotive música Mexicana for the club, emo-pop to bring you out of your shell, and a follow up to an 11-year-old New Jersey hardcore hip-hop cult classic. Welcome to the latest installment of Five Albums, the weekly feature for paid Hearing Things subscribers in which we review a handful of new records catching our attention.

When Hana Stretton was small, she traveled up a snowy mountain on the back of a donkey. As the donkey trudged along, their front legs buckled, and Stretton tumbled over their head. She landed with the animal’s sad little face looking down at her and began to cry. She sobbed for hours, but not because she was hurt. She was desperately sad to ruin the donkey’s peaceful day. “I’m sorry, I’m sorry,” she pleaded as the tears flowed down.

Five Songs is a weekly series for paid Hearing Things subscribers in which we each choose a new song we like—or don't!—and write about why it has our attention. This week, we've got scuzzed-out rock'n'roll poetry from New Orleans, a well-earned note of triumph from one of the most exciting rappers of the last few years, a grime stepper that looks back and forward at once, and more.

A couple of weekends ago, at a party in Greenpoint, Brooklyn, I found myself in a semi-circle of smokers towards the back of the yard. We were all “music people,” talking about the recent past and grim future of our professional and social worlds.

Welcome to the latest installment of Five Albums, the weekly feature for paid Hearing Things subscribers in which we review a handful of new records catching our attention. As music journalists, the question we get most often from friends is how to stay on top of what’s happening now. This is our attempt to provide a practical answer. From Three 6 Mafia to sedate lounge jazz, you never know where Juicy J will end up next.

Credit History is an interview series where we ask our favorite artists to comb through their credit card statements and tell us about what they bought, from the necessary to the frivolous to the outlandish. From the time she was ready to “Smack a Bitch” on her breakthrough 2018 single of the same name, Rico Nasty has reserved the right to be angry on her records.

Five Songs is a weekly series for paid Hearing Things subscribers in which we each choose a new song we like—or don't!—and write about why it has our attention. This week we've got a worthy heir to Aaliyah, a perfect power-pop song for mid-summer doldrums, a spoken-word assault on household pests from the master of junkyard weirdness, and more.

Welcome to the latest installment of Five Albums, the weekly feature for paid Hearing Things subscribers in which we review a handful of new records catching our attention. As music journalists, the question we get most often from friends is how to stay on top of what’s happening now. This is our attempt to provide a practical answer.

Did you know Hearing Things members who sign up for annual subscriptions to our Audiophile tier receive an exclusive piece of merch every year? It’s true! For our 2026 merch drop, we wanted to go with something diehard music lovers would really appreciate, so we made a bunch of turntable slipmats! Of course, these aren’t just any slipmats. They feature a bubbly Hearing Things logo by our friend/genius designer Justin Thomas Kay and were produced locally, in Long Island, New York.