It would have been possible to make a great small film about the genesis of N.W.A.: an intimate portrait of five kids who grew up in Compton and found their voices on the stage and in the studio. These guys, though, don’t do anything small. Straight Outta Compton unfolds over 147 minutes as an American epic—telling…

In a new Rolling Stone feature on the 100 all-time greatest songwriters, Minnesota native Bob Dylan comes out on top. “Dylan’s vision of American popular music was transformative,” writes Rolling Stone. “No one set the bar higher, or had greater impact.” Runners-up were Paul McCartney (#2), John Lennon (#3), Chuck Berry (#4), and Smokey Robinson (#5). Tom Waits has penned a poem in…

Last night, legendary Minneapolis club First Avenue experienced a partial collapse of the Mainroom’s interior ceiling. The Mainroom was hosting approximately 750 fans for a show by Canadian hard rock band Theory of a Deadman; the adjoining 7th Street Entry was hosting a tour kick-off event for local bands What Tyrants and Stereo Confession that was…

Here’s your first look at actor Tom Hiddleston as Hank Williams in the forthcoming biopic I Saw the Light. The film will hit selected theaters on Nov. 27, with a wider release to follow. Thom Yorke is writing music for an upcoming Broadway production of Harold Pinter‘s 1971 play Old Times. “I’ve enjoyed exploring through music the script’s themes of love and…

Raised in Minneapolis, Max Timander is best known to The Current’s audience as Stereo Confession’s guitarist/vocalist. But there’s something readers might not know: pre-Stereo-Confession, he blogged about music—and quite enthusiastically, at that. Chris Riemenschneider at the Star Tribune covered Timander’s blog in 2009 (headline: “He’s taking rock blogs to the Max”). “I really want to be a…

Showtime president David Nevins announced that Patti Smith is collaborating with the cable network to create a limited-run TV series adaptation of her 2010 memoir Just Kids. The book focuses on Smith’s relationship with photographer Robert Mapplethorpe and includes stories of their run-ins with Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin, and other luminaries.”The medium of a television limited series offers narrative freedom…

Morly: In Defense of My Muse EP Based on Katy Morley’s vast skillset, her music could have gone in several different directions. Her voice makes her a candidate for a singer-songwriter format, and her beat production could carry her to work with MCs on rap tracks, but she chose to say “screw it” and do…

“In 24 hours, I’m out,” said Jacob Grun. He stood in the Sound Gallery late last month, surveying the space on its second-to-last day. The recording studio has hosted artists from James Blake to Marijuana Deathsquads. The venue hosted rehearsals, recording sessions, and parties for local musicians. But on July 1, Grun received notice from the building’s owners;…

Björk says she’s ready to move on from promoting her critically-acclaimed, emotionally taxing breakup album Vulnicura. After canceling a series of European tour dates, the Icelandic singer-songwriter took to Facebook to tell her fans that the “intense” performances supporting Vulnicura have ended “for reasons beyond my control.” She says she’s now writing new music, and says she feels “the…

The Zombie Pub Crawl has announced the first round of its 2015 music lineup, headlined by surefire party-starter Girl Talk—a.k.a. mashup genius Gregg Gillis. The other headliners are Seven Lions, Sum 41, and Soulja Boy (commence the undead cranking), but the artists who are likely to generate the most buzz are the nominal sub-headliners: ’90s…