Where to Read (and Submit) Music Writing on the Web

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Where to Read (and Submit) Music Writing on the Web

As someone who describes herself as a music/humor blogger, I have a confession to make: I hate reading album and concert reviews. When a critic starts talking about a musician’s seminal influences and comparing songs to obscure releases I’ve never heard of and using words that end in “-esque,” I feel really dumb and old.

But I love essays about how music makes the writer feel. Because studies prove that music really does take a grip on your heart and mind in a way that few other things can, evoking memories and feelings that can be a full body experience. And there is so much great music writing to be had, on and off the web, to take you on that kind of multidimensional journey.

For the sake of readers who visit Midlife Mixtape, I thought I’d compile a list of my favorite sites for that sort of musical storytelling. And for the music-loving writers in the bunch, these are all sites that accept outside submissions, so you have a one-stop-shop list of places to submit your work. Let me know in the comments if there are any I’ve missed. Note: there are obviously lots of other great sites for the musically minded (Slicing Up Eyeballs and Large Hearted Boy are two of my faves) but the ones I list here accept submissions.

The Rumpus ( TheRumpus.net ) Founded in 2009 by author Stephen Elliott, this gem of a site features essays, reviews, interviews, advice, music, film, poetry and comics. The Music section has an ongoing feature called Albums of Our Lives where writers talk about the role that individual albums have played in their lives. One of my favorite things to read – and to submit to. Writer’s guidelines here.
KQED Pop (http://blogs.kqed.org/pop/category/music/). Skews Gen Y, but if you are a twenty-something and have something fresh to say about pop culture in general and music in particular, give them a try. Email pop@kqed.org to request a copy of blogger guidelines.
NPR Music ( http://www.npr.org/music/ ) Beyond All Songs Considered which you may hear on your local NPR affiliate, there’s just a ton of good music and storytelling on the NPR site. I am partial to the Nerds! section where editor Stephen Thomas writes about things like whether using Spotify makes you a bad person, and when is it ok to wear headphones in public. This is the one site where I don’t have submission guidelines…if you do, send ‘em my way huh?
The Weeklings (http://www.theweeklings.com/): I’m late to this year-old party but am playing catch up with its fabulous stuff. This daily online magazine of cultural criticism publishes one essay a day, 365 days a year. I love the Power Trio feature where writers give three songs that define an idea, like “3 Songs to Play When Westboro Baptist Church Shows Up at Your Event” by music editor Joe Daly. And a Dear John memory inspired by the Katrina and the Waves song “Walkin’ On Sunshine. Writer’s guidelines here.
The Toast ( http://the-toast.net ): Music editor @mallelis is fast becoming one of my favorite Twitter people. She also writes a very funny series comparing song lyrics for authenticity and feeling, like “What Girl Is Most Like a Child?” (Billy Joe’s Always A Woman lines up vs. Good Girl Gone Bad by KISS) and “Who is the Saddest Girl?” (Lullaby by Shawn Mullins vs. Ed Sheeran’s The A Team.) Plus I loved this essay by humorist Whitney Cummins, The Zen of Gen X: How We Went from Jaded to Sated. Trust me on this: very funny site. Submission guidelines here.
Caught in the Carousel ( http://caughtinthecarousel.com/ ) CitC founder Alex Green (and past Midlife Mixtape guest poster) is the most in-the-know music man I know, hands down. His recently glamified site covers all kinds of reviews so if you’ve got something you’d like to cover, pitch Alex at alex670(at)earthlink(dot)net.
Raised on the Radio (http://raisedontheradio.com/) The newest of the bunch, RotR is the brainchild of a slew of names you’ll recognize from their guest posts in the Midlife Mixtape Still in Rotation series: Lance, Linda, and Jen. The site is chock full of memories of albums, musicians, concerts, mixtapes and yes, and they’re looking for submissions. Read more here.
Ryeberg (http://ryeberg.com/) More of a moving pictures kind of person? Check out Ryeberg: video clip/s + written text = a Ryeberg. Details on how to become a “Ryeberg Curator” here.
Paste Magazine (http://www.pastemagazine.com/): They’ve just introduced a new feature called “Your Worst Concert Experience” in which “we share our readers’ lowest tales of shame and degradation from the sordid world of live music.” Send them your story at mailbag@pastemagazine.com.

What did I miss? And aren’t you glad that music gives us something to write (and read) about?