Writer’s Workshop: Amanda Petrusich
Folks, today we’re kicking off another new periodic department here at Hidden Track and we’re really excited about it. Since it’s the collaborative vibe of lots of writers and commenters that make this site tick – most of whom are pretty tuned in to the music writing landscape – we decided to try out what we call Writer’s Workshop.
As you may have guessed, it’s about writing and the idea is to rap with some great music writers who actually know what they are doing. Thus, our guests will drop some knowledge, a few tricks of the trade, and their tales of sweat and blood.
Our first guest is the one and only Amanda Petrusich of Pitchfork, Paste, Spin, and New York Times fame. Amanda just published her new book, It Still Moves: Lost Songs, Lost Highways, and the Search for the Next American Music, and continues to make a name for herself as one of the music’s burgeoning young writers. So, without further ado, let’s dig in…
Ryan Dembinsky: Could you run through your standard protocol (if you have one) when you go to review an album? For instance, where do you listen to it? How many times? Do you look for particular elements or just wait to see what jumps out you?
Amanda Petrusich: I try to listen to every record I review at least twice before I sit down to write about it. I actually think it’s much easier to develop ideas about an album when you let it become a part of your life for awhile, even if it ends up being unwelcome. Twice is just a vague hallmark; I’ll do my best to listen until I think I have some larger notion of what a record is “about” – whether it’s a lyrical theme, a narrative, a certain guitar sound, whatever. Something needs to click. Trying to review a record when nothing clicks, that’s the real challenge.
READ ON for more of the premiere edition of Writer’s Workshop…
