Hank Shteamer
@darkforcesswing.bsky.social
writer, usually about music. contact: hshteamer.writes@gmail.com hankshteamer.com
It's #Shfl newsletter time! Check out @darkforcesswing.bsky.social on math rock, #JoshuaLevine on proto-punk, #ChrisCatchpole on Conny Plank and reviews from Chris, #RickAnderson and #MeganIacobiniDiFazio, as well as the Robert Hampson piece of mine I mentioned earlier -- and some reviews too! (1/4)
New on Shfl, July 2026
Hank Shteamer on Math Rock, Chris Catchpole on Conny Plank, Ned Raggett on Robert Hampson, Joshua Levine on Proto-Punk, plus a stack of new recommendations
news.theshfl.com
Twenty years ago, Warning released the saddest metal album of all time. Their new follow-up is subtler and more patient but every bit as powerful: open.substack.com/pub/darkforc...
A Patient Infusion: The Quietly Momentous Return of Warning
After 20 years, master songwriter Patrick Walker follows up a cult doom-metal classic. The results are more patient but no less seismic
open.substack.com
Been thinking more about the current Rush tour (shocker!) and I'm wondering out loud: Has there ever been a more momentous band-member swap in rock history? I'd argue no. I honestly don't believe that anyone has ever subbed in for a player as iconic and beloved as Neil Peart.
Had a blast with one of my oldest pals (and the guy who turned me on to Rush ~35 years ago) at the Rush tour kickoff: darkforcesswing.substack.com/p/a-garden-t...
'A Garden to Nurture and Protect': Brotherhood and Gratitude at Rush's Tour Kickoff
Sitting in for an irreplaceable icon, Anika Nilles set out to make Rush's music "feel right for the fans." On Sunday night, she helped to make that dream come true.
darkforcesswing.substack.com
Campaign video for the Sonny Rollins Bridge Please share the video Please sign the petition: www.change.org/p/rename-the... Tag #SonnyRollinsBridge youtu.be/9fo-Lz7lJJw?...
Sonny Rollins Bridge
YouTube video by Sonny Rollins Bridge
youtu.be
No one album (or 12 or 100!) could ever sum up his greatness but here are some starting points as we begin to take stock of this incalculable loss: www.nytimes.com/2026/05/25/a...
Sonny Rollins: 12 Essential Albums
nytimes.com
A few thoughts on my surreal visit with Rush in Toronto: open.substack.com/pub/darkforc...
"A Good Word to Hear": My Surreal Visit With Rush
As I told Geddy Lee himself, "That was f--king mindblowing"
open.substack.com
PSA if anyone is in need: Some friends are subletting a room in Brooklyn for the summer (through early fall). Amazing apt/location. Pls fwd to anyone who might be interested newyork.craigslist.org/brk/sub/d/br...
Seeking subletter for room in beautiful Prospect Heights apt Jun-Oct - sublets & temporary - apartment sublet rent -...
Enjoy Brooklyn in an ideal summer apartment with a huge deck. We are looking for a third roommate who would love to spend all or part of the season with us. This is the best apartment in Brooklyn —...
newyork.craigslist.org
Watch 30 glorious minutes of John Carter and Bobby Bradford dueting and conversing c. 1980 open.substack.com/pub/darkforc...
All Fair Game: Listen to John Carter and Bobby Bradford in Duet
A 1980 mini doc provides an up-close look at this remarkable and unclassifiable tandem in action
open.substack.com
When I asked Melvin Gibbs's collaborators to describe him as a player and a thinker, they reached for poetic comparisons drawing from science, nature and myth open.substack.com/pub/darkforc...
Working With Melvin Gibbs Is Like 'Playing With an Aurora'
And other takeaways from the reporting of my new Times feature on the bassist's essential new book, 'How Black Music Took Over the World'
open.substack.com
Spoke to @melvingibbs.bsky.social about the inspirations for /ramifications of his revelatory new book: www.nytimes.com/2026/04/07/a...
How Did Black Music Take Over the World? Let Melvin Gibbs Explain.
nytimes.com
New weekly jazz listings post is live now. Follow JGI New York and stay tuned! www.instagram.com/p/DU08kRogMz...
Create an account or log in to Instagram - Share what you're into with the people who get you.
instagram.com
In 2008, I got to sit down w/ Walter Becker to discuss his then-new solo album, a bunch of Steely Dan odds and ends, and a lot more for Time Out NY. Big thanks to the venerable Expanding Dan Substack for posting the full audio of the chat: expandingdan.substack.com/p/walter-bec...
Walter Becker lets the mask slip
"There is a level of perfection that Donald wants to hear in his music that I ran out of patience to do," Becker says in a candid, never-before-heard interview from 2008.
expandingdan.substack.com
Ralph Towner and Sunn O))) are polar guitar opposites: the respective epitomes of acoustic intimacy and amplified sonic weight. But where it counts, maybe they’re some strange sort of kindred. darkforcesswing.substack.com/p/ralph-town...
Ralph Towner and Sunn O))): Kindred extremes
Acoustic intimacy and amplified sonic weight — superficially opposing but spiritually aligned visions of guitar-as-higher-purpose
darkforcesswing.substack.com
Had a great time talking with the Sunn O))) guys (and friends) about Seattle lore, recording in the forest and stacking up 180 tracks of guitars: www.nytimes.com/2026/01/13/a...
130 Tracks of Guitar Per Song? Sunn O))) Is Back, and Going Big.
nytimes.com
I saw more than 100 live shows this year. Here's a rundown of the 25 most memorable ones: darkforcesswing.substack.com/p/best-of-20...
Best of 2025: 25 greatest gigs
The live music that made my year
darkforcesswing.substack.com
A few words on my favorite reissues and historical releases of the year: darkforcesswing.substack.com/p/best-of-20...
Best of 2025: New old music
Reissues and historical titles ranging from adventurous jazz to progressive punk
darkforcesswing.substack.com
Here are my 10 favorite albums of 2025, with a few words on why that's the case: darkforcesswing.substack.com/p/best-of-20...
Best of 2025: Overall top 10
The new releases that defined my year in listening
darkforcesswing.substack.com
Extended 2025 jazz list, with 25 additional favorites from the year beyond the top 10: darkforcesswing.substack.com/p/best-of-20...
Best of 2025: Jazz (on record)
The annual top 10 list, plus a bunch more I dug
darkforcesswing.substack.com
Co-sign! One of my fave reads of the year
John Lingan@johnlingan.bsky.social · 11mo agoMy book BACKBEATS: A HISTORY OF ROCK AND ROLL IN 15 DRUMMERS makes a great gift for the percussionist, music fan, or discerning reader in your life. johnlingan.com for reviews, a playlist for the book, and purchase links. And below are 15 playlists for each chapter. Rock on.
Jabali at 85. Two more sets at Smoke tonight with @ethaniversonpiano.bsky.social, Mark Turner, Ben Street
New interview with the Messthetics on the humbling and inspiring experience of covering Sonny Sharrock's 'Ask the Ages' in full, which they'll do again on Friday in D.C., along with James Brandon Lewis: darkforcesswing.substack.com/p/like-tryin...
'Like Trying to Get to Saturn': The Messthetics on Covering Sonny Sharrock's 'Ask the Ages'
Ahead of a full-album cover show with frequent collaborator James Brandon Lewis, the genre-blending trio discusses adapting and inhabiting the 1991 avant-jazz classic
darkforcesswing.substack.com
This week's drum-centric newsletter, in which I make the case for why Tyshawn Sorey's phenomenal trio (at the Vanguard this week!) are the best band in jazz, and delve into the genius of @jimwhitedrums.bsky.social, who plays TV Eye on Monday: darkforcesswing.substack.com/p/gig-of-the...
Gig of the Week: 11/17/25
Two spellcasting drummers are playing in town within the coming days, and you should really go see both
darkforcesswing.substack.com
