May 01, 2012 By Laura Studarus

You have Morgan Kibby to thank for the can’t-get-‘em-out-of-your-head lyrics of “Midnight City.” A vital part of M83 since 2008’s Saturdays=Youth, Kibby has been responsible for her fair share of “lighters aloft” moments in the French/Los Angeleno collective, writing lyrics and providing vocals for the electonic/ambient/shoegaze/dance group. Currently touring M83’s 201l album, Hurry Up, We’re Dreaming, she has also been hard at work on her solo project, White Sea. More

Apr 27, 2012 By Laura Studarus

Singer/keyboardist Robert Alfons and drummer Maya Postepski don’t own up to the term “Goth” (who would?)—but as Trust they do make moody dance music, filled with buoyant beats, and dark lyrics about love, loss, and grinding it out. Under the Radar caught up with Alfons via e-mail to talk about music as the message, Ace of Base, and the deliciousness of Plan B. More

Apr 06, 2012 By Chris Tinkham Web Exclusive

Writer/director Whit Stillman lets out a chuckle when he's asked how Violet Wister, the college student played by Greta Gerwig in his latest film, Damsels in Distress, arrived at the idea that the 1920s dance, the Charleston, was named after a man, not the South Carolina city. Violet, the ringleader of a small group of coeds who run a campus suicide prevention center, is an unreliable protagonist prone to authoritatively stating untruths as if they were facts. Her ambition is to start an international dance craze, but in the meantime, she finds reassurance in dating boys whom she thinks are inferior to her and attempts to help her fellow students combat depression with tap dance and a particular brand of soap. Like Stillman's other social satires—Metropolitan (1990), Barcelona (1994), The Last Days of Disco (1998)—Damsels in Distress revolves around young, well-spoken, upper-middle-class types who oftentimes are lovably ridiculous and might not be whom they appear to be.

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Mar 30, 2012 By Chris Tinkham Web Exclusive

In The Kid With a Bike, the latest film from Belgian brothers Jean-Pierre and Luc Dardenne, an 11-year-old boy, Cyril (Thomas Doret), doggedly refuses to believe, after a month living in a state-run youth home, that his father has abandoned him permanently. The film germinated from the Dardennes' initial premise a boy who is abandoned by his father and is saved by a woman. They have likened The Kid With a Bike to a fairy tale, but it wouldn't be a Dardenne film if it weren't grounded in socio-economic realities of today. More

Feb 10, 2012 By Laura Studarus

Nika Roza Danilova—who writes and performs as Zola Jesus—first appeared to the music world with her 2009 debut full-length, The Spoils. Under the Radar caught up with the musician in a park near her West Hollywood home to talk about her new album Conatus, friendly neighborhood critics, and why calling her Zola instead of Nika might not be such a leap in logic. More

Feb 07, 2012 By Laura Studarus Web Exclusive

Ever since Shara Worden (who performs as My Brightest Diamond) donned a cheerleader uniform to tour with Sufjan Stevens, there’s been an approachable, yet otherworldly presence about her. Since her time with the Illinoisemakers, Worden has produced three albums of material—wrapping big ideas about life and death in a chamber-pop beauty. Her new album, All Things Will Unwind, follows suit. Under the Radar caught up with the songstress via e-mail to get her take on collaborations, going out on a limb, and what current artist is making the next generation dance. More

Feb 02, 2012 By Under the Radar Staff

For Under the Radar's 9th annual Artist Survey we emailed some of our favorite artists a few questions relating to 2011. Here's a survey from RACES. More

Feb 01, 2012 By Under the Radar Staff Web Exclusive

For Under the Radar's 9th annual Artist Survey we emailed some of our favorite artists a few questions relating to 2011. Here's a survey from Radiation City. More

Jan 30, 2012 By John Everhart Issue #39 - Best of 2011

While Hooray for Earth’s superb debut LP True Loves has frequently been hailed as the synth-pop record MGMT’s oft-maligned sophomore effort Congratulations should have been, Hooray for Earth’s Brooklyn-via-Boston frontman, Noel Heroux, is befuddled by the connection. More