Steven Hyden
Verified
The Ween Of American Rock Critics. 7x author. My book on The Strokes out 9/8/26. Indiecast co-host. Writing at Evil Speakers: stevenhyden.substack.com/
Is this you? As a journalist, you can create a free Muck Rack account to customize your profile, list your contact preferences, and upload a portfolio of your best work.
Claim your profile
Articles by Steven Hyden
Ask A Music Critic: Should A Music Critic Actually Know How To Play Music?
Rick Beato, possibly getting indignant about Steve Lukather. Thank you for reading Evil Speakers. Every now and then I like to respond to reader questions like this one. Please feel free to reach out with any pithy or thought-provoking questions via the DM’s! And don’t forget to preorder my book (due September 8) “Is This It: The Never-Ending Rise and Fall of The Strokes (and Rock ‘n’ Roll)” now.
Catalog Club: Deerhunter's "Halcyon Digest" (2010)
Thank you for reading (and listening to) Evil Speakers. Look for my regular column on Thursday. To all my paying subscribers — thank you for making this newsletter viable. In part three of “Catalog Club: Deerhunter (2007-2013)” I talk about the album that signifies Deerhunter’s peak in terms of their prominence in indie rock, where they worked with the co-producer of Gnarls Barkley’s St. Elsewhere and Animal Collective’s Merriweather Post Pavilion and kind of flirted with mainstream acceptance.
Through The Past, Bluesily: The Rolling Stones and Jack White Ride On
Jack White and Mick Jagger in Martin Scorsese’s “Shine A Light” (2008) Thank you for reading Evil Speakers. Look for part three of “Catalog Club: Deerhunter (2007-2013)” on Monday, discussing 2010’s “Halcyon Digest.” Also you can preorder my book (due September 8) “Is This It: The Never-Ending Rise and Fall of The Strokes (and Rock ‘n’ Roll)” now. This is an essay about the recent albums “Foreign Tongues” by The Rolling Stones and “Frozen Charlotte” by Jack White.
Catalog Club: Deerhunter's "Microcastle" and "Weird Era Cont." (2008)
Thank you for reading (and listening to) Evil Speakers. This is part two of “Catalog Club: Deerhunter (2007-2013).” Look for my weekly column on Thursday, discussing recent albums by The Rolling Stones and Jack White. To all my paying subscribers — thank you for making this newsletter viable. In the first installment of this series, I argued that Deerhunter is the greatest pure indie-rock band of the 21st century. Part of that assertion derives from a dichotomy that we’ll call “weird” vs.
Something Is Vacant When I Think It's All Beginning: A Beck Survey
Beck Hansen circa 1993, not to be confused with the singer from Hanson. Thank you for reading Evil Speakers. Don’t forget to check out my interview with Charlotte Cornfield. Part two of “Catalog Club: Deerhunter (2007-2013)” goes up Monday, covering 2008’s “Microcastle” and “Weird Era Cont.” Also you can preorder my book (due September 8) “Is This It: The Never-Ending Rise and Fall of The Strokes (and Rock ‘n’ Roll)” now.
In Conversation: Charlotte Cornfield's Canadian Excellence
Thank you for reading (and listening to) Evil Speakers. Look for my weekly column on Thursday. Also you can preorder my book (due September 8) “Is This It: The Never-Ending Rise and Fall of The Strokes (and Rock ‘n’ Roll)” now. To all my paying subscribers — thank you for making this newsletter viable. Charlotte Cornfield’s latest album, Hurts Like Hell, is one of my favorites of 2026 so far.
Miles Hewitt Makes Songs For The End Of The World
An interesting factoid about Miles Hewitt is that he studied poetry at Harvard. It was interesting to me, anyway. I assumed that the talented 31-year-old singer-songwriter would volunteer this in conversation, especially since his background suggests far greater knowledge of what good constitutes “good lyrics” than the music critic interviewing him. But “Harvard” did not come up in our 32-minute conversation until just over 21 minutes in, and only because I was the one who brought it up.
Catalog Club: Deerhunter's "Cryptograms" (2007)
Thank you for reading (and listening to) Evil Speakers. Look for a special bonus post this week — an interview with an artist who made my mid-year list, and a favorite of many ES commenters. Also, my weekly column on Thursday. To all my paying subscribers — thank you for making this newsletter viable. Welcome to Deerhunter month! In this series I will be talking about possibly the greatest pure indie-rock band of the 21st century. What do I mean by pure?
Jukebox Jury #5: Maybe Partying Will Help
Thank you for reading Evil Speakers. Look for the beginning of “Catalog Club: Deerhunter (2007-2013),” covering 2007’s “Cryptograms.” on Monday. Also you can preorder my book (due September 8) “Is This It: The Never-Ending Rise and Fall of The Strokes (and Rock ‘n’ Roll)” now.
10 ‘Under The Radar’ Indie Albums From 2026 So Far You Need To Hear
Half of 2026 is now over. Many records from the year so far have been praised. But some records have not been praised enough. Here are 10 worthy releases from the first six months of 2026 that are worth checking out if you missed them upon release. Jim E. Brown – Dirt The year’s funniest indie album, bar none. A self-described “19-year-old boy who suffers from various degenerative conditions and alcoholism,” Jim E.
My Favorite Songs Of June 2026
Thank you for reading Evil Speakers. Look for my weekly column on Thursday. Also you can preorder my book (due September 8) “Is This It: The Never-Ending Rise and Fall of The Strokes (and Rock ‘n’ Roll)” now. To all my paying subscribers — thank you for making this newsletter viable. Here are 20 songs I enjoyed from June of 2026. I have written about many of these songs already, and some of them I’ll be writing about in the future.
Catalog Club: The Rolling Stones' "Steel Wheels" (1989)
Thank you for reading (and listening to) Evil Speakers. Look for a playlist of my favorite songs from June 2026 tomorrow. And my weekly column on Thursday. To all my paying subscribers — thank you for making this newsletter viable. We have reached the end of the eighties, and the end of another Rolling Stones era. In this decade, they put out five albums — after 1989, they put out just five studio records in 37 years, including the forthcoming Foreign Tongues due next month.
Parable of the Two Sons: Justin Townes Earle and Jakob Dylan
Justin and Jakob, righteous journeymen with famous names. Thank you for reading Evil Speakers. Look for the fifth and final part of “Catalog Club: The Rolling Stones (1980-89)” on Monday, covering 1989’s “Steel Wheels.” Also look early next week for a playlist of my favorite songs from June 2026. Don’t forget: You can preorder my upcoming book (due Sept. 8) “Is This It: The Never-Ending Rise and Fall of The Strokes (and Rock ‘n’ Roll)” from BN.com this week and get 25 percent off.
Poll: Is Anthony Fantano Really "The Most Relevant" Music Critic Ever?
Anthony Fantano, embracing his inner Steely Dan sideman Thank you for reading Evil Speakers. Look for my weekly column on Thursday. Also, you can preorder my upcoming book (due Sept. 8) “Is This It: The Never-Ending Rise and Fall of The Strokes (and Rock ‘n’ Roll)” from BN.com this week and get 25 percent off. Just enter the code “PREORDER25” at this link by Friday June 26.
Is This It: The Never-Ending Rise and Fall of the Strokes (and Rock ’n’ Roll)
Steven Hyden. Da Capo, $30 (288p) ISBN 978-0-3068-3661-9 A celebrated group’s failure to live up to expectations embodies rock’s decline in this wry, heartbroken homage.
Catalog Club: The Rolling Stones' "Dirty Work" (1986)
Thank you for reading (and listening to) Evil Speakers. This is part four of my series this month called “Catalog Club: The Rolling Stones (1980-89).” Look for my weekly column on Thursday. To all my paying subscribers — thank you for making this newsletter viable. We have arrived at the episode you have either been dreading (if you’re a normal person) or looking forward to the most (if you’re a total sicko like I am).
Let's Officially Establish (Finally) The Patio Music Hall Of Fame
This is the coziest looking back porch I could find after looking at Google Images for seven minutes. Thank you for reading Evil Speakers. Look for part four of this month’s series “Catalog Club: The Rolling Stones (1980-89)” on Monday, covering 1986’s “Dirty Work” along with Mick and Keith’s solo records from around that time. To all my paying subscribers — thank you for making this newsletter viable. Some time maybe three years ago, I started doing this silly thing.
Poll: What Are Your Most Anticipated Albums of 2026's Second Half?
John Ross of Wild Pink (Photo: Rafael Vasconcelos) Thank you for reading Evil Speakers. Please look for my weekly column on Thursday. And don’t forget to celebrate ’80s Stones month. To all my paying subscribers — thank you for making this newsletter viable. While 2026 is not technically half-over yet, I wrote about the year’s best albums so far (according to my own subjective taste, of course) in last week’s column.
Catalog Club: The Rolling Stones' "Undercover" (1983)
Thank you for reading (and listening to) Evil Speakers. This is part three of an ongoing series called “Catalog Club: The Rolling Stones (1980-89).” Look for my weekly column on Thursday. To all my paying subscribers — thank you for making this newsletter viable. In this episode we discuss 1983’s Undercover, which was later described by Mick Jagger as “not a special record.” And most people agree with that.
My Favorite Albums Of 2026 So Far
My New Band Believe … not the band that made one of my favorite albums of 1969. Thank you for reading Evil Speakers. Look for part three of “Catalog Club: The Rolling Stones (1980-89)” on Monday, discussing 1983’s “Undercover.” In this column, I count down my favorite albums of the year up to this point. There are 35 albums in all. The first 25 are listed alphabetically, followed by the top 10 unveiled in order of personal preference.
Poll: What Are Your Favorite Albums Of 2026 So Far?
Aldous Harding — reading her reviews would make her feel better. Thank you for reading Evil Speakers. Look for my column on Thursday where I discuss my favorite albums of 2026 so far. Also, don’t forget to celebrate ’80s Stones Month. To all my paying subscribers — thank you for making this newsletter viable. On the latest Indiecast, I posed a question to Ian I’m not sure we were able to answer. Is 2026 (so far!) a year with no “big” albums?
Catalog Club: The Rolling Stones' "Tattoo You" (1981)
Thank you for reading (and listening to) Evil Speakers. Look for my weekly column on Thursday, which this week will cover my favorite albums of 2026 so far. To all my paying subscribers — thank you for making this newsletter viable. When it comes to Rolling Stones albums, origin stories matter. And by that I mean the manner in which these albums are made often becomes part of the fabric of how they are discussed and remembered and even beloved — or not beloved.
Narcissus, Icarus, and Lazarus Walk Into A Bar: A John Mayer Survey
John Mayer, before everything (fame, famous actresses, semi-cancellation, Dead & Co., and all the rest), circa 1999. (Source: Facebook.) Thank you for reading Evil Speakers. Look for part two of “Catalog Club: The Rolling Stones (1980-89)” on Monday. To all my paying subscribers — thank you for making this newsletter viable.
The Best Kurt Vile Songs, Ranked
For nearly 20 years, Kurt Vile has been one of the most reliable names in indie rock.
My Favorite Songs Of May 2026
Westside Cowboy (Photo: Clémentine Schneidermann) Thank you for reading Evil Speakers. Look for my weekly column on Thursday. To all my paying subscribers — thank you for making this newsletter viable. Here are 20 songs I enjoyed from May of 2026. I have written about many of these songs already, and some of them I’ll be writing about in the future. (And some I don’t have current plans to write about, but who knows what the future has in store?) I have made playlists for three different platforms.
Catalog Club: The Rolling Stones' "Emotional Rescue" (1980)
Thank you for reading (and listening to) Evil Speakers. Look for my favorite songs of May 2026 playlist this week, followed by my weekly column on Thursday. To all my paying subscribers — thank you for making this newsletter viable. As an overture for this series, please enjoy and consult this playlist of ’80s Stones favorites — 36 songs over about a two and a half hours — curated by me, in three different formats.
Carnival Man: Tobin Sprout In Conversation
Catalog Club Carnival Man: Tobin Sprout In Conversation 0:00 Current time: 0:00 / Total time: -54:42 -54:42 Paid episode The full episode is only available to paid subscribers of Evil Speakers Carnival Man: Tobin Sprout In Conversation I rang up the indie-rock icon on Zoom to talk about his career in and outside of GBV Thank you for reading (and listening to) Evil Speakers. Look for part one of “Catalog Club: The Rolling Stones (1980-89)” on Monday.
Every Member Of Guided By Voices (Except Robert Pollard), Ranked
Also: An alt-country live scene report with Mildred, Brown Horse, and Sluice and a new (old) John Prine live album GBV in the mid-’90s: Four of these guys made the list. But not the one on the far right. Thank you for reading Evil Speakers. Look for a special audio interview tomorrow related to this column. To all my paying subscribers — thank you for making this newsletter viable. The story of Guided By Voices is commonly understood to be synonymous with the ongoing artistic life of Robert Pollard.
Poll: Give Me Your Top 5 Punk Albums (Here's Mine)
Or give me your top three or top four or whatever you think is the most "punk" number Thank you for reading Evil Speakers. Look for my weekly column on Thursday, followed by a special related audio interview post on Friday. To all my paying subscribers — thank you for making this newsletter viable. On the latest Indiecast, Ian Cohen and I talked about Rolling Stone’s recent list of the 100 greatest punk albums of all time.
Catalog Club: Acetone's "York Blvd." (2001)
Catalog Club Catalog Club: Acetone's "York Blvd." (2001) 0:00 Current time: 0:00 / Total time: -32:37 -32:37 Paid episode The full episode is only available to paid subscribers of Evil Speakers Catalog Club: Acetone's "York Blvd." (2001) A great nineties band meets a sad end at the beginning of a new century Thank you for reading (and listening to) Evil Speakers. Look for the subject of June’s “‘Catalog Club” series at the end of this post.
A palate cleanser for Memorial Day Weekend 🌭☀️🍔✨
Playback speed × Share post Share post at current time Share from 0:00 0:00 / Transcript A palate cleanser for Memorial Day Weekend 🌭☀️🍔✨ My chat with music critic and all-around great guy Steven Hyden I left legacy media to build something different: independent, honest political analysis that isn’t owned by corporations or parties. I call balls and strikes—no matter who’s at bat—because what’s missing right now are referees, not cheerleaders ⚾.
Jukebox Jury #4: Exile On Deepfake Street
Takes on The Strokes, The Stones, Noah Kahan, Kevin Morby, Car Seat Headrest, Kurt Vile, Futurebirds, Rosali, Turnover and (nine) others Mick Jagger in 2026, living in the uncanny valley. Thank you for reading Evil Speakers. Please enjoy my “Summertime at Twilight” playlist this holiday weekend. The final part of “Catalog Club: Acetone (1993-2001)” arrives on Monday. To all my paying subscribers — thank you for making this newsletter viable.
Thomas Dollbaum Is A Budding Countryish Indie Rock Star
Thomas Dollbaum, it might seem, is the beneficiary of good timing. His excellent new album, Birds Of Paradise (out Friday), is composed of countryish rock songs set in the seedier corners of his native Florida. Dollbaum, 32 and currently living in New Orleans, has an MFA in poetry and sings in a conversational drawl that conveys southernness despite his lack of a pronounced accent.
Poll: Let's Create The Ideal Summer Soundtrack
Also: I made a "Summertime At Twilight" playlist for your Memorial Day weekend Thank you for reading Evil Speakers. Look for my weekly column on Thursday before enjoying your holiday weekend. To all my paying subscribers — thank you making this newsletter viable. I love listening to music in the sunshine, and Memorial Day weekend is the unofficial start of “listening to music in the sunshine” season. As the leading proponent of patio music, I talk about this sort of thing semi-constantly.
Catalog Club: Acetone's "Acetone" (1997)
Thank you for reading (and listening to!) Evil Speakers. Look for a special Memorial Day weekend soundtrack dropping this week, along with the weekly column on Thursday. To all my paying subscribers — thank you for making this newsletter viable. The last we talked about Acetone, the Los Angeles trio appeared to have reached an ending of sorts.
Did "Liberal Poptimists" Actually Try To Kill Rock? (Not Really.) (But Sort Of.)
“The organizing principle of any society, Mr. Garrison, is for war — war against rock. I will also be sharing this with Billy Corgan after our meeting.” Thank you for reading Evil Speakers. Look for part three of “Catalog Club: Acetone (1993-2001)” on Monday, discussing 1997’s self-titled. To all my paying subscribers — thank you for making this newsletter viable.
36FTVQ: "Dave's Picks Vol. 58"
Thank you for reading (and listening to) Evil Speakers. Look for my weekly column on Thursday. To all my paying subscribers — thank you for making this newsletter viable. For this latest installment of 36FTVQ, Rob Mitchum is back to talk about the new Dave’s Picks album, which presents the show before the one featured on the first Dick’s Picks album, a true full-circle moment for our conversations about the Grateful Dead.
Catalog Club: Acetone's "I Guess I Would" (1995) and "If You Only Knew" (1996)
Thank you for reading (and listening to) Evil Speakers. Look this week for the return of 36FTVQ with special guest Rob Mitchum, on the new “Dave’s Picks 58.” Also my weekly column on Thursday. To all my paying subscribers — thank you for making this newsletter viable. Before we begin, I want to thank everyone who listened to part one of this series, especially the people who commented about how they never listened to Acetone before.
Don't Laugh (I Love You), Man: A Ween Survey
Gene and Dean’s yearbook photos, circa 1988. (Source: Reddit.) Thank you for reading Evil Speakers. Look for part two of “Catalog Club: Acetone: 1993-2001” on Monday. Also (some time) next week: A new edition of 36FTVQ on the new “Dave’s Picks” release and the recent Gillian Welch/David Rawlings ‘“Reckoning” tour. To all my paying subscribers — thank you for making this newsletter viable.
Poll: What Are The Greatest Guitar Solos Ever?
Thank you for reading Evil Speakers. Look out for my weekly column on Thursday. To all my paying subscribers — thank you for making this newsletter viable. This week I opened up the Evil Speakers chat for the first time to paying subscribers — long overdue in my book. After the big reaction to last week’s poll question about greatest living American songwriters, I was wondering what else my readers might want to discuss.
Catalog Club: Acetone's "Cindy" (1993)
Thanks for reading (and listening to) Evil Speakers. Look out for my weekly column on Thursday. To all my paying subscribers — thank you for making this newsletter viable. Do you ever get the feeling that we’ve run out of cult bands? Surely there is a finite supply of these brilliant, tragic and unsung outfits. At some point we are going to run out of underground heroes to write books about or to center documentaries around. And, maybe, we have already reached that point.
My Favorite Songs Of April 2026
Thanks for reading Evil Speakers. Look for the start of “Catalog Club: Acetone (1993-2001)” on Monday. To all my paying subscribers — thank you for making this newsletter viable. Here are 18 songs I enjoyed from April of 2026. I have written about many of these songs already, and some of them I’ll be writing about in the future. (And some I don’t have current plans to write about, but who knows what the future has in store?) I have made playlists for three different platforms.
The Losers' History of The Black Keys
The Black Keys circa 2004’s “Rubber Factory.” (Photo: Fat Possum Records.) Thank you for reading Evil Speakers. Look for a playlist of my favorite songs from April 2026 on Saturday. To all my paying subscribers — thank you for making this newsletter viable. Every now and then, I’ll have a nice and flattering encounter online with someone who remembers something I wrote years ago. Recently, that something was “The Winners’ History Of Rock ‘n’ Roll,” a seven-part series I did for Grantland in 2013.
Poll: Who Are The Greatest Living American Songwriters?
Randy Newman: NOT one of the greatest living American songwriters, according to people who are wrong. Today the New York Times Magazine published a big feature on their choices for the 30 greatest living American songwriters. Let me repeat: That’s living (sorry, Brian Wilson) American (sorry, Joni and Neil) songwriters. The paper of record apparently polled “more than 250 insiders” as well as six of their own music critics to come up with their list.
Catalog Club: Al Green's "The Lord Will Make A Way" (1980)
Thank you for reading (and listening to) Evil Speakers. Look for my weekly column on Thursday, and my monthly playlist of favorite songs some time after that. To all my paying subscribers — thank you for making this playlist viable. Back in the Call Me installment of this series, I asked that you stop listening to me and go watch an incredible Al Green performance from 1974. Well, now I’m about to ask you to stop listening to me again.
Mildred’s ‘Fenceline’ Is The Indie Sleeper Of 2026
To hear the guys in Mildred tell it, their band didn’t form so much as fall in together. Back around 2022, three of the four members — singer-guitarist Henry Easton Koehler and Jack Schrott, and singer-bassist Matt Palmquist — were living together in a house in Berkeley and bonding over beers and Silver Jews songs. They were all around 30 years old, give or take a few years, and working day jobs or pursuing academic degrees.
Mildred’s ‘Fenceline’ Is The Indie Sleeper Of 2026
The world of the 1960s music scene was a strange place to be. Almost overnight, Britain emerged as one of the frontrunners of the new musical sound, …
Guitar Solo Ghosts: A 2020s Alt-Country Survey
Brown Horse, purveyors of all-American alt-country from Norwich, U.K.. [photo: Deva O'Neill] Thank you for reading Evil Speakers. Please check out my interview with Mikaela Davis, whose new album “Graceland Way” drops Friday. And look for the conclusion of “Catalog Club: Al Green (1972-1980)” on Monday. To all my paying subscribers — thank you for making this newsletter viable.
Mikaela Davis, Queen Of The Jamband Harpists, In Conversation
Thank you for reading (and listening to) Evil Speakers. Look for my weekly column on Thursday. To all my paying subscribers — thank you making this newsletter viable. When it comes to making music relevant to my personal interests, Mikaela Davis covers a lot of bases. But she does it in an unexpected way. For starters, she plays the harp — not the harmonica, but the big stringed instrument. She came up as a classically trained player who pivoted to a singer-songwriter career in college.
Every Foo Fighters Album, Ranked
This week, Foo Fighters will release their 12th album, Your Favorite Toy. The news prompted a startling moment of self-discovery: Is it possible that I have opinions on every Foo Fighters album? Alas, not only opinions, but also the wherewithal to RANK these records? Shockingly, the answer to both questions appears to be a resounding yes. What have I been doing with my life? That last question will have to wait for another day. For now, let’s talk Foos! 11.
Show More
loading
Actions
Get in touch with Steven
Contact Steven, search articles and posts on X, monitor coverage, and track replies from one place.
Learn more about Muck Rack