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AmeriKKKa’s Most Wanted

Ice Cube
Each Sunday, Pitchfork takes an in-depth look at a significant album from the past, and any record not in our archives is eligible. Today, we revisit Ice Cube’s 1990 debut solo record, a groundbreaking piece of hard and funky reality rap that introduced the tabloid decade.

What Is Not Strange?

Tashi Wada
The Los Angeles composer—son of late Fluxus composer Yoshi Wada—flexes his avant-garde instincts on a surprisingly song-driven new album, moving from abstraction into more expressive forms.
Pop/R&B

BRAT

Charli XCX
Best New Album
With her sixth album, Charli XCX transcends all narratives and delivers a hit. Brat is imperious and cool, nuanced and vulnerable, and one of the best pop albums of the year.
Electronic

I Hear You

Peggy Gou
Crowd-pleasing anthems come naturally to the Korean superstar DJ. If only her debut album had more of them.
Pop/R&B

The Year I Turned 21

Ayra Starr
The singer-songwriter’s second album is a well-curated coming-of-age tale. Full of summery R&B and glitzy amapiano, it moves beyond feel-good anthems and thoughtfully tackles the insecurities of young adulthood.
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Videos

  • Video

    IAN SWEET & Porridge Radio Collaborate on a New Single at Abbey Road Studios

    Abbey Road Amplify x Pitchfork London sees artists playing the Pitchfork London festival come to Abbey Road to work with their engineers and write and record a new song. The sessions are documented on film, with revealing interviews about the songwriting, recording and production process captured. Watch Jilian from IAN SWEET and Mercury Prize nominees Porridge Radio build and talk about their new single, Everyone’s A Superstar.

    A global music icon and the world’s first purpose-built recording studio, Abbey Road Studios has been home to countless landmark recordings and pioneering advances in music technology for over 90 years. The studios’ phenomenal history encompasses celebrated work by artists from The Beatles, Pink Floyd, Fela Kuti, Kate Bush, Oasis and Radiohead to Sam Smith, Florence + The Machine, Lady Gaga, Frank Ocean, Amy Winehouse, Brockhampton, Little Simz, The Smile, Dave and Adele, as well as scores to films from Raiders of The Lost Ark, The Lord of The Rings Trilogy and many of the Harry Potter and Star Wars movies, to Gravity, The Shape of Water, 1917, Black Panther, Tar, Barbie and Avengers: Endgame.
  • Video

    Alvvays - "Easy On Your Own?" | Pitchfork Festival 2023

    Alvvays perform "Easy On Your Own?" from their 2022 album 'Blue Rev' at the 2023 Pitchfork Music Festival.
  • Video

    The Smile - "The Smoke" | Pitchfork Music Festival 2023

    Thom Yorke, Jonny Greenwood and Tom Skinner of The Smile perform "The Smoke" from their album 'A Light For Attracting Attention' at the 2023 Pitchfork Music Festival.
  • Over/Under

    Olivia Rodrigo Rates Heartbreak, High Heels, and Going To Therapy

    Olivia Rodrigo rates the depths of heartbreak, the power of high heels, being a teenager and more on this edition of Over/Under.
  • Video

    Mdou Moctar - "Sousome Tamachek" | Pitchfork Festival 2023

    Mdou Moctar performs Sousome Tamachek at the 2023 Pitchfork Music Festival from Chicago.
  • Over/Under

    Issa Rae Rates Group Chats, Surprise Parties and Men Wearing Shorts

    In this episode of Over/Under, Issa Rae rates waking up early, surprise parties, group chats, being sober at the club, men wearing "short shorts," and more.
  • Video

    Hinako Omori: Abbey Road Amplify x Pitchfork London Sessions

    In the concluding episode of our Amplify x Pitchfork London series, in partnership with American music publication Pitchfork, talented UK-based electronic musician Hinako Omori builds upon a demo she has been working on. Using a combination of our microphones and Yamaha piano, Hinako expertly weaves together different fragments of sound to create a cohesive and uninterrupted piece, akin to that of a patchwork quilt, as she says. ABOUT ABBEY ROAD STUDIOS A global music icon and the world’s first purpose-built recording studio, Abbey Road Studios has been home to countless landmark recordings and pioneering advances in music technology for over 90 years. The studios’ phenomenal history encompasses celebrated work by artists from The Beatles, Pink Floyd, Fela Kuti, Kate Bush, Oasis and Radiohead to Sam Smith, Florence + The Machine, Lady Gaga, Frank Ocean, Little Simz, Amy Winehouse, Brockhampton and Adele, as well as scores to films from Raiders of The Lost Ark, The Lord of The Rings Trilogy and many of the Harry Potter and Star Wars movies, to Gravity, The Shape of Water, 1917, Black Panther, Black Widow, Tar, Bohemian Rhapsody and Avengers: Endgame. Since stereo was patented at Abbey Road in 1933, the studios have been home to numerous innovations in recording technology and continue to innovate today with Europe’s first music tech incubator, Abbey Road Red. Discover more at http://www.abbeyroad.com
  • Over/Under

    100 gecs Rate Korn, Giant Tattoos and Magicians

    In this episode of Over/Under, Dylan Brady and Laura Les of 100 gecs rate corn, Korn, cigarettes, magicians and more.
  • Over/Under

    Smokey Robinson Rates Children’s Music, Retirement and Gasms

    In this episode of Over/Under, Smokey Robinson rates retirement, weed, and his new record “Gasms.”
  • Video

    I. Jordan x Planningtorock: Abbey Road Amplify x Pitchfork London Sessions

    ABOUT ABBEY ROAD STUDIOS A global music icon and the world’s first purpose-built recording studio, Abbey Road Studios has been home to countless landmark recordings and pioneering advances in music technology for over 90 years. The studios’ phenomenal history encompasses celebrated work by artists from The Beatles, Pink Floyd, Fela Kuti, Kate Bush, Oasis and Radiohead to Sam Smith, Florence + The Machine, Lady Gaga, Frank Ocean, Little Simz, Amy Winehouse, Brockhampton and Adele, as well as scores to films from Raiders of The Lost Ark, The Lord of The Rings Trilogy and many of the Harry Potter and Star Wars movies, to Gravity, The Shape of Water, 1917, Black Panther, Black Widow, Tar, Bohemian Rhapsody and Avengers: Endgame. Since stereo was patented at Abbey Road in 1933, the studios have been home to numerous innovations in recording technology and continue to innovate today with Europe’s first music tech incubator, Abbey Road Red. Discover more at http://www.abbeyroad.com
  • Pass the Aux

    Boygenius Share Songs for Prom, Being Stuck on the Runway, and More

    In this edition of Pass the Aux, we give Boygenius a few specific situations and they tell us what music they would play. Phoebe Bridgers, Julien Baker and Lucy Dacus explain what they would listen to while driving to senior prom, stuck on the runway, doing chores and much more.
  • Over/Under

    Boygenius Rate Google Drive, the Ocean, and Topsheets

    In this episode of Over/Under, Phoebe Bridgers, Julien Baker and Lucy Dacus of Boygenius rate tweeting and deleting, Google Drive, forgiveness, topsheets and more.
  • Video

    Okay Kaya: Abbey Road Amplify x Pitchfork London Sessions

    Reeling off the viral success of her hit song, ‘Mother Nature’s Bitch’ and five albums deep into her career, the sixth episode in this series sees Norwegian-American musician Okay Kaya delve deep into her craft, explaining her various songwriting, production and recording techniques. ABOUT ABBEY ROAD STUDIOS A global music icon and the world’s first purpose-built recording studio, Abbey Road Studios has been home to countless landmark recordings and pioneering advances in music technology for over 90 years. The studios’ phenomenal history encompasses celebrated work by artists from The Beatles, Pink Floyd, Fela Kuti, Kate Bush, Oasis and Radiohead to Sam Smith, Florence + The Machine, Lady Gaga, Frank Ocean, Little Simz, Amy Winehouse, Brockhampton and Adele, as well as scores to films from Raiders of The Lost Ark, The Lord of The Rings Trilogy and many of the Harry Potter and Star Wars movies, to Gravity, The Shape of Water, 1917, Black Panther, Black Widow, Tar, Bohemian Rhapsody and Avengers: Endgame. Since stereo was patented at Abbey Road in 1933, the studios have been home to numerous innovations in recording technology and continue to innovate today with Europe’s first music tech incubator, Abbey Road Red. Discover more at http://www.abbeyroad.com
  • Video

    Yaya Bey: Abbey Road Amplify x Pitchfork London Sessions

    Abbey Road Studios has today revealed details of its second Amplify x Pitchfork London series, in partnership with leading American music publication Pitchfork.

    This series will feature a number of artists playing the Pitchfork London festival come into the studios to work with Abbey Road’s engineers to record something new. The sessions are documented on film, with revealing interviews about the songwriting, recording and production process captured, as well as insights into each artist’s journey. Abbey Road Studios’ Pitchfork London series launched in 2021 with sessions from Cassandra Jenkins, Iceage, L’Rain and Emma-Jean Thackray.

    The second series launches today with Yaya Bey’s film around the release of her new track "ascendant motherf*cker," taken from her new EP Exodus the North Star, out today on Big Dada records. Following a show opening for the legendary Roy Ayers in New York earlier this month, Yaya Bey was recently confirmed as part of this year’s Glastonbury Festival where she will play on the West Holts stage. Yaya’s new EP Exodus the North Star follows her critically acclaimed album Remember Your North Star which was named as one of the albums of 2022 by Pitchfork, The New York Times, The Guardian, GQ and NPR.

    ABOUT ABBEY ROAD STUDIOS
    A global music icon and the world’s first purpose-built recording studio, Abbey Road Studios has been home to countless landmark recordings and pioneering advances in music technology for over 90 years. The studios’ phenomenal history encompasses celebrated work by artists from The Beatles, Pink Floyd, Fela Kuti, Kate Bush, Oasis and Radiohead to Sam Smith, Florence + The Machine, Lady Gaga, Frank Ocean, Little Simz, Amy Winehouse, Brockhampton and Adele, as well as scores to films from Raiders of The Lost Ark, The Lord of The Rings Trilogy and many of the Harry Potter and Star Wars movies, to Gravity, The Shape of Water, 1917, Black Panther, Black Widow, Tar, Bohemian Rhapsody and Avengers: Endgame. Since stereo was patented at Abbey Road in 1933, the studios have been home to numerous innovations in recording technology and continue to innovate today with Europe’s first music tech incubator, Abbey Road Red. Discover more at http://www.abbeyroad.com
  • Moodbard

    Kali Uchis Breaks Down Red Moon in Venus’ Inspirations

    Fresh off the release of her newest record, Red Moon in Venus, Kali Uchis explains the kinds of images and feelings that make up her hypothetical mood board for the album.

Podcast