34th Street Magazine is part of a student-run nonprofit.

Please support us by disabling your ad blocker on our site.

Music

'Hurry Up Tomorrow' is an Underwhelming Finish to The Weeknd Persona

Following 'After Hours' and 'Dawn FM,' Abel Tesfaye takes us through a 22–track send–off … but to what effect?

by AMBER URENA

Everyone’s a Winner! The 67th Grammy Awards Might Be The Most Predictable Yet

All of the major musical players of 2024 got their flowers. Well … almost all of them.

by KYLE GRGECIC

Bring Out the Pitchforks: Is Music Criticism Dead?

The era of hating professionally seems to be coming to an end—but this process can be stopped.

by AMBER URENA

FKA twigs is the Voice of a Detached, Uninspired Generation in ‘EUSEXUA’

The album gracefully balances club life and existential despair in an insightful reflection on the rave zeitgeist.

by JO KELLY

In Transit With Roy Blair’s 'Chasing Moving Trains'

The singer–songwriter’s first release in four years sounds stuck in the past, but for good reason.

by WILL CAI

Love in the Age of Sampling

In defense of borrowed brilliance and why you’ve definitely danced to it before.

by SOPHIA MIRABAL

Where to Find New Music (If TikTok Gets Banned For Real Next Time)

It’s not as easy as it sounds, unless you’re willing to do some digging.

by WILL CAI

GRWM: A Genre–Hopping Guide to Pregame Music

The music we get ready to is never just background noise.

by KATE HIEWON AHN

From Dorm Room to Dance Floor: Penn DJs Break out Beyond the Bubble

At Warehouse on Watts, these DJs showed off a little bit of madness, badness, and everything in between.

by NISHANTH BHARGAVA and SOPHIA MIRABAL

A Look Back at the Golden Age of Hip–Hop Sampling

Sampling's not “a longer term for theft." It’s art. 

by SADIE DANIEL

Sequels Suck and So Does Lil Uzi’s ‘Eternal Atake 2’

Where the original album blasted off, Uzi’s newest project crashes and burns.

by JETT BOLKER

Street’s Best Albums of 2024

From breakout hits to sleeper picks, Street brings you the hottest records of the year. 

by 34TH STREET MAGAZINE

(A Sampling Of) The Best Rap Albums From 2024

From the overground, the underground, and everywhere in between

by WILL CAI

Yeat Flatlines On ‘Lyfestyle’

The revolutionary rage artist’s latest album fails to capitalize on any of his greatest strengths.

by WILL CAI

On the Classical ‘Pause’

What is pop music’s problem with silence?

by SOPHIA MIRABAL

Ticketmaster Killed the Radio Star

When it comes to the contemporary concert scene, maybe we should shoot the messenger. 

by SOPHIA MIRABAL

Polyphonic Perfection: The Gesualdo Six Captivate Philadelphia

Full of passion and love for their craft, the UK–based ensemble brought early English music to life on Penn's campus.

by JO KELLY

Mount Eerie Offers Us No Quarter in his ‘Night Palace’

After a five–year musical hiatus, Phil Elverum’s synthesis of the personal and political arrives with mixed success. 

by NISHANTH BHARGAVA

Xiu Xiu’s Most Recent Release Is Not So Tough a Pill To Swallow

If there’s a best time to expose your friends to the evocative, experimental indie outfit, it’s now.  

by SOPHIA MIRABAL

Halsey’s ‘The Great Impersonator’ is a Letter to God and to Herself

Structured through homages to her musical inspirations, Halsey’s newest album is visceral, jarring and shockingly intimate. 

by AMBER URENA