Music Review: Garry Tallent
In 2016 Garry Tallent finally stepped up from his role as the quiet bassist of the E Street Band and released his first solo album. Break Time was an unexpected delight, drawing on the musician's love for '50s rock-and-roll and various offshoots.
Aug. 15 2019 @ 11:40pm
Music Review: Clairo
When the opening gambit of the busily buzzed Clairo's debut album recalls end-theme movie music, it's not a stretch to expect more post-Lorde whisper-pop.
Aug. 15 2019 @ 11:37pm
Music Reviews: Drake
Other than making himself annoyingly unavoidable courtside during televised Toronto Raptors playoff games, Drake has kept a low profile in 2019, giving the world a break after dominating streaming music services with last year's bloated "Scorpion." But though he's not flush with new music, the Canadian rapper and singer is still finding a way to top the charts. "Care Package" is an excavation of his back pages, a high-quality compilation of singles and semi-rarities once found on his SoundCloud page that never made it onto any of his five previous official albums.
Aug. 15 2019 @ 11:36pm
Kermit the Kona?: Small Hyundai crossover hops into the world
2019 Hyundai Kona Ultimate AWD: So you want a little all-wheel drive ...
Aug. 10 2019 @ 11:29pm
Study shows one way to ease transition to middle school
A new study from education researchers has come up with a deceptively simple, yet surprisingly effective way of helping students cope with the infamously stressful transition from elementary to middle school:
Aug. 10 2019 @ 9:13pm
His mission: Make 10,000 human connections
Every day, Rob Lawless, 28, introduces himself to a stranger. Some days, he sits down with two new people. Most days, he meets with four. Why? Lawless, a self-described, full-blown extrovert, is on a mission to make friends. The process is one he loves so much that he's turned it into a full-time job.
Aug. 10 2019 @ 8:37pm
Music Reviews: Delbert McClinton and Self-Made Men + Dana
"News travels fast when somethin' good comes around," Delbert McClinton sings over the horn-stoked R&B of his new album's first track. In this case, it's the imminent arrival of a master showman: "Heatin' things up and coolin' things down / Mr. Smith is back in town."
Aug. 2 2019 @ 1:22am
Music Reviews: Jaden Smith
This is hardly the first time that the children of Jada Pinkett Smith and Will Smith have made music. Willow's 2010 pop-hoppy "Whip My Hair" went double-platinum, making her the youngest artist to do so. Brother Jaden that same year flirted with guest features (including Justin Bieber's "Never Say Never"), and dropped his own kitchen-sink-filled debut album, SYRE, in 2017. This is, however, the first time the siblings have released new music in which they seem so sonically and spiritually aligned. That is to say, goofy.
Aug. 2 2019 @ 1:21am
Music Reviews: "The Lion King: The Gift"
When Beyonce repeatedly intones "You're part of something way bigger" on the sweeping opening song "Bigger," she could be singing her own personal mantra. For an artist who prizes significance higher than the art itself, she's made a lot of great art.
Aug. 2 2019 @ 1:17am
Weight loss before bariatric surgery can carry risks
Requiring prospective bariatric surgery patients to lose weight before they can undergo the procedure may not be necessary or safe, University of Pennsylvania researchers found in a new study published recently in the journal Obesity Surgery.
Jul. 26 2019 @ 9:37pm
Music Reviews: Blood Orange
Dev Hynes says he always makes a little mixtape as a party favor to give to friends after each album he puts out, and following last year's "Negro Swan," he decided to make this one public. In the year of the R&B Mobius strip (including Solange's fairly improvisatory "When I Get Home"), the collagist behind 2016's brilliant "Freetown Sound" assembled one of the best. Go figure.
Jul. 25 2019 @ 10:27pm
Music Reviews: Winkle
The full name is Don Lee Van Winkle, and he started in a popular Philadelphia band, the American Dream, whose 1970 debut was produced by Todd Rundgren.
Jul. 25 2019 @ 10:26pm
Music Reviews: Purple Mountains
It's a big bummer that David Berman's marriage to his wife, Cassie, fell apart and that the former leader of the Silver Jews seems to be going through a midlife crisis so grim that he's written a breakup album full of songs with cheery titles such as "All My Happiness is Gone" and "Maybe I'm the Only One for Me."
Jul. 25 2019 @ 10:25pm
Philadelphia police to fire 13 officers over offensive Facebook posts
Philadelphia Police Commissioner Richard Ross announced Thursday that 13 officers would be fired for making racist or offensive Facebook posts, an unprecedented wave of terminations resulting from a scandal that has attracted national attention.
Jul. 19 2019 @ 2:41am
Pacifica Hybrid is efficient, roomy, practical
2019 Chrysler Pacifica Hybrid Limited: A second chance at a first impression.
Jul. 13 2019 @ 10:39pm
How to grow favorite tropical fruits from scraps
Temple University horticulturist Benjamin Snyder is something of a Dr. Frankenstein. For years, the greenhouse manager of Temple's Ambler campus has experimented with growing fruits and vegetables from food scraps. Imagine homegrown papaya, harvested from a pot in your south-facing window.
Jul. 13 2019 @ 9:02pm
Here's what that 'Betsy Ross flag' meant to her and other American revolutionaries
Nike has canceled the release of a Fourth of July-inspired sneaker featuring the famous Betsy Ross-sewn, 13-star version of the American flag.
Jul. 4 2019 @ 4:42am
Cheesesteak cheesecake tastes better than it sounds
I'll admit it: I was disgusted when I first saw the words "cheesesteak cheesecake." (You probably are, too.) But that was last week, before I'd baked one myself and fed it to a room of colleagues who cleaned their plates.
Jul. 2 2019 @ 11:08pm
Student loans canceled? You are still on the hook for taxes
Good news: If you have private student loans from the now-defunct ITT Technical schools, your loans have been canceled.
Jul. 1 2019 @ 1:01am
New Jersey man charged with illegal purchase of $6,800 tiger-skin rug
A New Jersey man was charged this week with buying a $6,800 tiger-skin rug in violation of federal wildlife conservation laws.
Jun. 30 2019 @ 12:00am