The backstage pass to your favorite music
★★★★ In the past decade, Lana Del Rey has proven to be a prolific writer who releases albums faster than most of her peers. Since signing to a major label, she's now released seven albums, including two this year alone. Chemtrails Over The Country Club - which came out last March - was our least…
Read More
★★★★ In the past eight years, Kelly Clarkson has positioned herself as a modern queen of Christmas music. Her 2013 holiday album, Wrapped In Red, was dazzling and fresh, especially for the five original songs it featured. Since then, Kelly has released a handful of festive singles, yet it was still a small surprise when…
Read More
I had high hopes when Garbage officially announced their new album, No Gods No Masters, in March this year. After teasing the project for a few years, and suggesting that it would be "cinematic" and "poppier" than usual, I could tell that album #7 would be a special one. The three singles did not disappoint,…
Read More
You don't need to remind Evanescence fans how long it's been since the band put out an album of all-new material. We've all patiently waited a full decade for this moment to come, and now that this glorious day is finally here, it may feel more like a dream than reality. We actually have a…
Read More
Lana Del Rey has been a major force in the pop world for nearly a decade, and deservedly so. Born To Die, Ultraviolence, and Honeymoon are each masterpieces in their own right. While Lust For Life had mixed reaction among fans, we at Hidden Jams loved it. In contrast, her last album, 2019's Norman Fucking…
Read More
It's been nearly a full decade since Smith & Burrows released their first album. When Editors frontman Tom Smith joined up with Andy Burrows for a holiday album, fans of both men may have been shocked but pleasantly surprised. Funny Looking Angels remains a charming and unique take on Christmas, but only being relevant for…
Read More
Exactly one year and one day ago, Alicia Keys gently kicked off the ALICIA album era. Though we didn't know it at the time, "Show Me Love" - her amorous collaboration with Miguel - ended up being the lead single, and the first of many on the long road to ALICIA. After the thumping "Time…
Read More
Sara Bareilles has kept us all guessing a lot in the last decade, continuing to surprise us as she ventures into uncharted territory time and time again. She's expanded from pop music to writing books -- Sounds Like Me: My Life (So Far) In Song -- and composing music for musicals -- Waitress; see also…
Read More
It was three full years ago when we first heard "Love Is An Art," the title track from Vanessa Carlton's newest album. But stretching back even farther than that live performance, another song on the album - "Patience" - was first previewed back in 2012. Indeed, Love Is An Art is the culmination of years…
Read More
After the short 15-month gap between The Weeknd's Beauty Behind The Madness and Starboy, the wait between Starboy and After Hours - more than three years - has felt like a long time. Sure, we got his 6-track EP, My Dear Melancholy, to tide us over, but it's clear that The Weeknd wanted put more…
Read More
One week ago, Editors released their new greatest hits compilation, Black Gold: Best Of Editors. Fans who ordered CD on vinyl options from Editors' official store also got a special treat: The Snowfield Demos. Back before Editors even went by that name, they were briefly known as Snowfield. In summer 2003, they put out an…
Read More
Since breaking into the scene with Queen Of The Clouds in 2014, Tove Lo has forged a unique style and presence in pop music. Her new album, Sunshine Kitty, doesn't stray from her signature style, but it does add new elements to it. It's a blend that makes the album at once familiar to Tove's…
Read More
Lana Del Rey began the Norman Fucking Rockwell era almost an entire year ago when she released both "Mariners Apartment Complex" and "Venice Bitch" in September 2018. They came just over a year after her 2017 album, Lust For Life, and indicated a continuation of some of the sounds we heard on that record. While…
Read More
It's been nine years since Natasha Bedingfield released her last album, Strip Me. And although many may think of her new album, Roll With Me, as a comeback, Natasha doesn't see it that way. Indeed, she never stopped making and playing music. She was writing and recording songs regularly, even though fans only got to…
Read More
It's been four years since Of Monsters And Men released their last album. Following Beneath The Skin in 2015, the Icelandic band made their comeback with "Alligator" this May. Already, the single promised a new, more energetic sound for the group. On Fever Dream, Of Monsters And Men expertly blend their familiar folk rock style…
Read More
Last February, Editors revealed they would be releasing The Blanck Mass Sessions, an album of reimagined takes on the songs fans first heard on their 2018 album, Violence. While Violence offered a masterful blend of Editors' rock and electronic sides, the songs didn't always sound so balanced. The band first sent their recordings to Blanck…
Read More
It's been six long years since Sara Bareilles released her last pop album, The Blessed Unrest. After gracing the world with songs like "Brave" and "I Choose You," Sara took an unexpected turn into books and theater. In October 2015, Sara released a memoir, Sounds Like Me: My Life (So Far) In Song. She also…
Read More
It's been over five years since Avril Lavigne released her eponymous fifth album, the longest gap between records in her career. But that time off was necessary, and far from a simple break. Early in 2015, Avril revealed she was battling Lyme Disease and had been bed-ridden for months. It took her years to recover,…
Read More
Today, just one year after releasing his second album, Zombies On Broadway, Andrew McMahon In The Wilderness dropped his impressive new album, Upside Down Flowers. This marks Andrew McMahon's third album under his Wilderness moniker. Although his previous bands, Something Corporate and Jack's Mannequin, each stopped after their third albums, with Upside Down Flowers, Andrew…
Read More
After a year and a half of singles and hype, today Muse released their 8th studio album, Simulation Theory. In an interview with Rolling Stone earlier this year, frontman Matt Bellamy stated that by releasing singles as they recorded them, he felt their album would be stronger in the long run. "I think it’ll be…
Read More
Coming off of heightened success and a few tumultuous years, Ghost is back with a new album, Prequelle! After their 2015 LP Meliora, their Popestar EP in 2016, and a live album called Ceremony And Devotion last December, Tobias Forge has returned with a brand new lineup of sorts. Papa Emeritus is out as the leader, and Tobias…
Read More
It's been six long years since Hoobastank released their last album, but finally they're back in action. The band began recording the new music in fall 2016, but a few returns to the studio to record additional tracks delayed its release. Produced by Matt Wallace, Push Pull is the long-awaited followup to Fight Or Flight, and…
Read More
It's been 5 long years since Janelle Monáe released her last album, 2013's The Electric Lady. But it's clear that her new record, Dirty Computer, was well worth the wait. From the dual lead singles we got in February through the very last track on the album, Janelle truly outdid herself. February brought a double-whammy…
Read More
Billie Joe Armstrong is best known as the frontman for Green Day, but he's always churned out extra music with his various side projects. He started playing with Pinhead Gunpowder in the early 1990s; he and his Green Day bandmates formed two side bands in the 2000s: The Network and Foxboro Hot Tubs. Billie Joe…
Read More
Editors are a unique band that have long balanced two opposing sides that make up their repertoire. In 2005, they launched their career with energetic, guitar-driven music, a band-oriented sound that fit with modern British rock of the time. But after a second album in that same style, Editors were ready to explore new territory.…
Read More
Not including the hiatus Fall Out Boy took after releasing Folie á Deux and their greatest hits compilation, this is the longest fans have waited for an album from the band. M A N I A was first announced last April, but five singles and a four-month delay later, the album came out exactly three…
Read More
Evanescence has a skill for making fans wait for new music. A full five years passed between their second and third albums; it's now been six years since Evanescence graced our ears. While we've enjoyed plenty of side projects from frontwoman Amy Lee in the interim (Aftermath, an album of film score she composed, and…
Read More
Over the last 15 years, Kelly Clarkson has proven herself, again and again, to be a powerhouse vocalist and beloved pop star. And although she's churned out hit after hit among her first six studio albums - not to mention an acclaimed holiday record - she's also had to fight for creative freedom every step…
Read More
Gwen Stefani returned to her solo career with her first album in a decade last year when she released This Is What The Truth Feels Like. After a brief reunion with No Doubt in 2012, her third solo record was a welcome return to her pop throne. It came after a flurry of inspiration hit…
Read More
Lana Del Rey is back and she's cooler than ever. Pop's resident sad girl has been hyping her noticeably cheerier new album since February, and she promised some big changes that would delight her fans. Her newest record, Lust For Life, is her most diverse yet, combining the best elements of her previous three albums.…
Read More
As with all great art, Paramore's new album After Laughter is an expression of real life and real feelings. It reflects what's been going on in the three band members' lives, from the personal to the public. We can only guess at what has happened in their personal lives, but a few things we do know for sure.…
Read More