In the studio with the Fountains of Wayne and their hired brass.

When the city was mired in rock revivalism, James Murphy busted out his disco ball.

Decades after her death-obsessed girl group, the Shangri-Las, was buried under litigation and changing pop tastes, Mary Weiss goes solo.

Backup band for the pre-K set.

When Arcade Fire came to town, they played five ecstatic, sold-out shows at, yes, a church on Washington Square Park. Behind the scenes of rock’s most down-to-earth anthem-makers.

Three citizen critics offer competing takes on noteworthy recent albums.

Q&A with the world-music advocate, sometime filmmaker, indie-rock godfather, and blogger extraordinaire.

Clap Your Hands Say Who?

The story this year was fragmentation—few megahits, but lots of local gems like the Hold Steady and the incomparable TV on the Radio. Though his comeback album disappointed, Jay-Z gave us a night to remember, and Sonic Youth kept rocking in the free world.

Three critics with different musical tastes offer competing takes on recent noteworthy kid-friendly albums.