Victoria Wasylak

"When punk icon Kathleen Hanna pictures her emotional baggage, she sees a “40-piece Samsonite set in multicolor” trailing behind her. At least she did until she wrote her new book, “Rebel Girl: My Life as a Feminist Punk.”

"There was a time when I thought nothing was more “Boston” than watching Pixies perform at Boston Calling in May 2015. Savor some Tasty Burger to 'Monkey Gone to Heaven,' hear a guy holler 'I saw you at The Rat!,' then beat feet out of City Hall Plaza and moan when the Haymarket T station clogs with people. Nights like that felt like the ultimate Boston experience — bonus points if you sported a Red Sox hat."

"The sold-out event will gather local Black performers to expand listeners’ understanding of folk music’s past and present. The approach reinforces a primary goal of the Folk Collective: demonstrating that the genre has no one look or sound, despite decades of whitewashing."

"The sterling work ethic that paved the way for First Aid Kit’s career also formed a deep rut of burnout. Four years and one pandemic later, Klara Söderberg and her sister, Johanna, have returned to the road, equipped with an uplifting new album and their healthiest dynamic as a band to date."

"Any worthwhile hardcore group can manifest a mosh pit with a barrage of quick riffs. But how many of those bands cram healing and historical figures into the fleeting seconds in between? Boston’s own Fiddlehead unfurl a unique approach to the genre, braiding searing riffs and reflections on grief — plus an overarching nod to a Roman philosopher — on their album “Death Is Nothing to Us.”"

"Go ahead, call Bad Rabbits’ new record a comeback. While many artists bristle at the word — which implies a creative lapse or nadir — the Boston band proudly claims the concept with the Friday release of “Garden of Eden,” their first studio record in five years. The trio of genre-twisters sees no shame in long pauses between chapters, especially when just a few years ago, there was an unspoken understanding among Bad Rabbits that the band’s pen had run dry."

"In the context of Batiste’s radical joy, it’s no hyperbole to say his Boston show was indeed spiritual — or at the very least, beautifully life-affirming. Consider these airwaves thoroughly purified."

"Saturday night’s performance presented a near-carbon copy of the winter setlist, save for a few additions, like an earnest rendition of the self-conscious “Ctrl” cut, “Normal Girl.” Some folks might equate the repetition to consistency. Others might call it disappointing déjà vu. But the fans gathered at the Garden didn’t call the familiar spectacle anything — they were too consumed with reciting lyrics like a creed."