New in Expert Witness:

• The Goon Sax: We're Not Talking (Wichita Recordings) A-
• Mad Crush: Mad Crush (Upon This Rock) B+
• Flasher: Constant Image (Domino) ***
• Weakened Friends: Common Blah (Don Giovanni) **

New questions and answers west posted on Tuesday, December 4: Xgau Sez.

Events, interviews, and reviews of Robert Christgau's recent book, Is It Still Good to Ya? Fifty Years of Rock Criticism 1967-2017:

• Is It Still Good to Ya?: Robert Christgau in Conversation with Eric Lott: Event, December 10, 2018, 6:30pm, William P. Kelly Skylight Room, The Graduate Center, CUNY, 365 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10016.
• Brad Wheeler: A rock critic's 10 steps for better ears.

Note: We are currently experiencing a problem with accented characters stored in the Consumer Guide database being presented as garbage.

New in Expert Witness:

• Sons of Kemet: Your Queen Is a Reptile (Impulse!) A-
• Doctor Nativo: Guatemaya (Stonetree) A-
• Celestial Blues (Ace) ***
• Sons of Kemet: Burn (Naim) **

New questions and answers on Tuesday, December 4: Xgau Sez.

New in Expert Witness:

• L7: Fast andFrightening (Easy Action) A-
• Joan Jett: Bad Reputation (Blackheart) A-
• The Beths: Future Me Hates Me (Carpark) ***
• Lala Lala: The Lamb (Hardly Art) *

New questions and answers last Tuesday: Xgau Sez.

Also note that the website now has a RSS 2.0 feed. It is (for now anyway) updated manually as new articles and/or significant revisions are made to the website.

New in Expert Witness:

• Homeboy Sandman & Edan: Humble Pi (Stones Throw) A-
• Open Mike Eagle: What Happens When I Try to Relax (Auto Reverse) A-
• Atmosphere: Mi Vida Local (Rhymesayers) **
• 2Mex: Lospital (Water the Plants) *
• Red Pill: Instinctive Drowning (Mello Music) *

New questions and answers will be published on Tuesday, November 20: Xgau Sez.

Christgau's new book, Is It Still Good to Ya? Fifty Years of Rock Criticism 1967-2017, was published October 26 by Duke University Press.

Website was updated on Thursday, including all Expert Witness reviews from January to last week.

New in Expert Witness:

• Pistol Annies: Interstate Gospel (RCA) A
• Becky Warren: Undesirable (self-released) A-
• Mandy Barnett: Strange Conversation (Dame Productions/Thirty Tigers) A-
• Robbie Fulks/Linda Gail Lewis: Wild! Wild! Wild! (Bloodshot) ***

New questions and answers were published on November 6: Xgau Sez.

Christgau's new book, Is It Still Good to Ya? Fifty Years of Rock Criticism 1967-2017, was published October 26 by Duke University Press. Some recent reviews and discussion:

• Monsters of Rock Criticism: Greil Marcus Interviews Robert Christgau (Rolling Stone, Nov. 8, 2018).

Christgau also wrote a new essay about the new book:

• Why It's Still Good to Me: Robert Christgau Reflects on a Half Century of Rock Criticism (Noisey, Nov. 6, 2018)

New in Expert Witness:

• Rich Krueger: NOWThen (Rockink) A-
• Paul Simon: In the Blue Light (Legacy) A-
• The Chandler Travis Three-O: Backward Crooked From the Sunset (Iddy Biddy) *
• Rich Krueger: Overpass (CDBaby) *

New questions and answers will be posted on Tuesday, November 6, before the polls open: Xgau Sez.

Christgau's new book, Is It Still Good to Ya? Fifty Years of Rock Criticism 1967-2017, was released last week (October 26) by Duke University Press.

New in Expert Witness:

• Maria Muldaur: Dont You Feel My Leg: The Naughty Bawdy Blues of Blue Lu Barker (Last) A
• Blue Lu Barker: Remastered Collection (J. Joes J. Edizioni Musicali) A-
• George Jones & the Jones Boys: Live in Texas 1965 (Ace) ***
• Duke Robillard and His Dames of Rhythm (M.C.) **
• Willie Nelson: My Way (Legacy) *

New questions and answers were posted on Tuesday, October 23: Xgau Sez.

Christgau's new book, Is It Still Good to Ya? Fifty Years of Rock Criticism 1967-2017, was released today (October 26) by Duke University Press.

New in Expert Witness:

• Riton & Kah-Lo: Foreign Ororo (Last Gang) A-
• I'm Not Here to Hunt Rabits (Piranha) A-
• Next Stop Soweto Vol. 4 (Strut) ***
• Seun Kuti & Egypt 80: Black Times (Strut) *

New in Expert Witness:

• Hamell on Trial: The Night Guy at the Apocalypse: Profiles of a Rushing Midnight (Saustext) A
• Lyrics Born: Quite a Life (Mobile Home) A-
• Mudhoney: Digital Garbage (Sub Pop) ***
• Will Hoge: My American Dream (Thirty Tigers/EDLO) **

New questions and answers were posted on Tuesday, October 9: Xgau Sez.

New in Expert Witness:

• Noname: Room 25 (self-relesed) A
• The Internet: Hive mind (Columbia) A-
• Blood Orange: Negro Swan (Domino) ***
• Medhane: Ba Suba, Ak Jamm (Grand Closing) *

New in Expert Witness:

• Eminem: The Marshall Mathers LP 2 (Aftermath/Shady/Interscope) A
• Eminem: Kamikaze (Aftermath/Shady/Interscope/Goliath) B+
• Jean Grae & Quelle Chris: Everything's Fine (Mello Music) ***
• E-40: The Gift of Gab (HTS) **
• Rae Sremmurd: SR3MM (Eardruma/Interscope) *

New questions and answers were posted on Tuesday, September 18: Xgau Sez.

New in Expert Witness:

• The Mekons 77: It Is Twice Blessed (Slow Things) A-
• Tropical Fuck Storm: A Laughing Death in Meatspace (Tropical Fuck Storm/Mistletone) A-
• Ceramic Dog: YRU Still Here? (Northern Spy) ***
• Ike Reilly: Crooked Love (Rock Ridge) **
• Marc Ribot: Songs of Resistance 1942-2018 (Anti-) *

Also new:

• Remembering Rai & Rock Troublemaker Rachid Taha, in Rolling Stone.
• The Village Voice (1955-2018), in Artforum: memoirs by Gary Indiana, Molly Haskell, J. Hoberman, Vivian Gornick, Melissa Anderson, Robert Christgau, Michael Miller, and Greg Tate, introduced by Jennifer Krasinski

Also old, but new here:

• A Short and Happy History of Rock, from Stereo Review (March, 1969)
• The 50 Essential Albums of 1967, from Rolling Stone (September 19, 2017)

New in Expert Witness:

• John Kruth & La Società del Musici: Forever Ago (Ars Spoleteum) A-
• Clay Harper: Bleak Beauty (self-released) B+
• Sam Baker: Land of Doubtr (self-released) **
• Chris Butler & Ralph Carney: Songs for Unsung Holidays (Smog Veil) **

New questions and answers were posted on Tuesday, September 4: Xgau Sez.

New in Expert Witness:

• Hinds: I Don't Run (Mom + Pop) A-
• Bali Baby: Baylor Swift (Twin) A-
• Kali Uchis: Isolation (Virgin EMI) ***
• Primo!: Amici (Polyester) *

New questions and answers on Tuesday, August 21: Xgau Sez.

New in Expert Witness:

• Methodist Hospital: Giants (self-released) A-
• Rolling Blackouts C.F.: Hope Downs (Sub Pop) B+
• Stephen Malkmus and the Jicks: Sparkle Hard (Matador) ***
• Low Cut Connie: "Dirty Pictures" (Part 2) (Contender) **
• Young Fathers: Cocoa Sugar (Ninja Tune) **
• Okkervil River: In the Rainbow Rain (ATO) *
• Eyelids: or (Jealous Butcher/Schizophrenic) *

Also:

• Robert Christgau on Aretha, the Genius Behind a Voice Unlike Any Other

New in Expert Witness:

• Amanda Shires: To the Sunset (Silver Knife) A-
• Lori McKenna: The Tree (CN/Thirty Tigers) B+
• Sarah Shook & the Disarmers: Years (Bloodshot) **
• Ashley Monroe: Sparrow (Warner Bros.) *

The second batch of answers to Xgau Sez was posted on Tuesday, at the top of the usual page.

New in Expert Witness:

• Chicago Farmer: Quarter Past Tonight (chicagofarmer.com) A-
• AD the Voice: Maxi-Single (Statik Entertainment) A-
• American Aquarium: Things Change (New West) B+

Expect a second batch of answers to Xgau Sez sometime Tuesday. It will be posted at the top of the usual page.

New in Expert Witness:

• Elza Soares: Deus É Mulher (Deck) A-
• Tom Zé: Sem Você Não A (Irara) B+
• Iara Rennó: Arca (YB Music) ***
• Tom Zé: Tribunal do Feicebuque (Irara) ***
• Iara Rennó: Flecha (YB Music) *

We've done a partial update of the website. This includes a page for Robert Christgau's new essay collection to be published October 26 by Duke University Press: Is It Still Good to Ya? Fifty Years of Rock Criticism 1967-2017. The book contract requires that we embargo 70% of the book's content for three months before and two years after publication, so you will notice that a number of essays (59) will now link to the book page.

These changes are happening at a time when lots of things on the website are in process of being revamped, so it's quite possible for a partial update to introduce new bugs. If you encounter any problems, please notify the webmaster.

The first batch of answers to Xgau Sez have been posted. Some style issues are still up in the air, but that link will always get you the latest answers.

You can ask a question using this form.