Lee Escobedo

Lee's Articles

5 Essential Nu-Metal Albums: How Slipknot, Korn, Deftones & Others Showcased Adolescent Rage With A Dramatic Flair

Around the turn of the millennium, adolescent rage was personified by an anarchic blend of rap and rock, which gave birth to a new genre: nu-metal. The genre was severely theatrical, melding the brash, guitar-forward instrumentation and screaming lyricism of metal with rap’s poetic delivery and drum machines. Nu-metal took cues from early '90s alternative scenes where thrash-inspired bands such…

Nov 8, 2022 - 06:44 pm

5 Essential Female Dance Albums Of The 2000s: ‘It’s Blitz’ To ‘Youth Novels’ And More

Far from the underground, the indie dance music released between 2000 to 2010 has become iconic and pivotal. At the beginning of the millenium, the genre showcased emerging artists from developing countries and NYC DIY circles, whose global sounds influenced contemporary mainstream pop. Albums from this era blended traditional pop and R&B with European house, industrial music and trip house…

Oct 24, 2022 - 03:23 pm

How Rihanna’s “Work” Reinvigorated Dancehall

Rihanna’s single "Work" announces itself the same way steam rises. It bubbles, gulps and bellows upward until it reaches the surface; we're already hot and sweaty by the time her voice arrives. The Barbados singer’s trance-like repetition of the word "work" grinds itself against the dancehall sound that first made her famous. Released in 2016 as the first single from…

Sep 26, 2022 - 05:19 pm

On ‘Reset,’ Animal Collective’s Panda Bear Mixes Anxiety & Hope: “It Could Be Medicine”

American art hit a reset in the mid-2000s, as musicians began to reinstitute experimentation and DIY ethos back into music. At the forefront of this artistic reformation was Animal Collective, a four-piece band whose jarring, melancholic sound collages were drenched in reverb. Animal Collective took cues from psychedelia, freak folk, Beat poetry, and performance art, creating a new sound that…

Aug 22, 2022 - 05:25 pm

Rapper Saucy Santana On Breaking Barriers, Blue Ivy & Becoming A “Freaking Superstar”

Even if you haven’t heard Saucy Santana, you've likely heard of him. The high-fashion rapper and queer rap icon seems to be on the lips of these days for more than just Twitter polemics. Saucy Santana's brand of feel-good, sex-positive rap proves that "gays run the world." Madonna made it official when she hand-selected Saucy to duet with her during…

Jul 15, 2022 - 01:48 pm

Adrian Quesada Reimagines The Soundtrack Of This Youth On ‘Boleros Psicodélicos’

Composer, guitarist and producer Adrian Quesada’s new album, Boleros Psicodélicos, is a hipper, more far-out version of the songs a drunken tio would hum to his wife. Fusing psychedelic sensibilities with Latin American balada music, Quesada's latest pays tribute to a deeply sentimental genre, while iterating on its sounds. These are desperate, sometimes erotic pleas for love, attention, and companionship;…

Jun 2, 2022 - 09:00 am

Erica Banks Hustled To “Buss It”: Meet The South Dallas Rapper Making Waves On TikTok And Beyond

If you were to visit Erica Banks' hometown in the quiet, welcoming South Dallas suburb of Desoto, Texas, you would be struck by the plainness of it all. Desoto is awash in beige and concrete. Shopping centers are filled with nail salons, wig shops and dollar store chains. Entrepreneurs have opened renovated storefronts out of shuttered Blockbusters, hardware shops and…

Apr 26, 2022 - 06:07 pm

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