Allyson Polsky McCabe
ALLYSON POLSKY MCCABE teaches writing at Yale.
The Book Critics Circle Awards
By Allyson Polsky McCabeThe winners of the NBCC awards were announced last night at the New School to the anticipation, and sometimes surprise, of a standing room-only crowd.
Being Patti Smith
By Allyson Polsky McCabeWhen Patti Smith arrived in New York in the summer of ’67, she was self-consciously outside society. She slept in graveyards, shacked up with Robert Mapplethorpe at the Chelsea, and shamelessly pilfered art supplies to nurture Mapplethorpe’s creative spirit.
Decoding Lez Zeppelin
By Allyson Polsky McCabeEvery band wants you to believe that it’s all about the music. And every band’s success depends on sustaining that illusion.
A SPOTLIGHT BENT THROUGH A PRISM
Teri Gender Bender of Bosnian Rainbows
By Allyson Polsky McCabe
Gender Bender earned a reputation for being wild and unpredictable at shows, often climbing the rafters, hanging upside-down above the stage, sometimes even urinating on the floor.
WOMEN OF THE YEAR:
The Renaissances and Reunions Of 2013
By Allyson Polsky McCabe
In a year in which the pop charts have been dominated by the manufactured likes of Katy Perry and Miley Cyrus, we have also enjoyed an unprecedented, and unexpected, resurgence of women from the indie scene. For me, this has been a lot like getting a call from an old friend who’s been out of touch for a while and remembering how much you like her.
CONSIDER THE CRITIC
Dispatch from the CMJ Music Marathon
By Allyson Polsky McCabe
With five days and nights of nonstop performances, the 34-year old CMJ Music Marathon touts itself as “one of the world’s foremost platforms for discovering new music.” But with over 1,400 shows to choose from, it’s easy to succumb to fatigue, followed by ennui.
Nick Cave's Great Gamble
By Allyson Polsky McCabeInspired by John Berryman’s The Dream Songs, Cave intersperses vivid images with a narrative record of life on the road—from backstage to onstage and after the shows, a catalogue of the most and least glamorous aspects of touring and performing.
BOY
Carla Bozulich’s Foray Into Pop
By Allyson Polsky McCabe
After five-plus bands, countless collaborations, and decades of relentless touring, Carla Bozulich has managed to remain both prolific and, perhaps intentionally, obscure.
