I’m pregnant and in a metal band: how do I protect baby’s hearing?
I’m an audio engineer and an electric violinist for a metal band, and just found out that I’m pregnant. It’s early days, but do I need to cancel gigs after a certain point? As an engineer, I experience up to 105db at work, but generally staying under 90db. As a musician, though, I’m onstage next to drum kits and loud amps, including my own, for an average set of 50 minutes. Is there anything I can do to keep them safe without cancelling gigs?
How do I address problematic issues within my favorite shows and pop culture?
One of my friends will find a way in which they feel a show is bigoted (e.g. “Steven Universe is racist”) and suddenly it’s the only thing they can talk about re: that show. They’ll interrupt any conversation about it with “but you shouldn’t like that, it’s bigoted.”
I understand the importance of keeping social justice topics in mind while consuming media, and obviously I can’t tell them to stop because this is important to them, but sometimes I just want to gush about my favorite lesbian aliens. Help?
From Mr. Rogers to Afropolitans in space: What we’re watching, reading, and listening to right now
We haven’t been talking a lot about what we’ve been consuming media-wise lately. And that’s no good since I know we’re all watching, listening, and reading things that aren’t just terrible news media. You’ve got to spend some time in other worlds sometimes, be they fictional fantasies, crime dramas very much not set in reality, and enjoying whatever it is we love most.
Aromanticism: What if romantic love goes extinct?
A musician I adore named Moses Sumney has a new album called Aromanticism. It’s an exploration of our cultural fixation on romantic love, something that Moses says he’s never experienced.
I’m reminded of this article: Have Smartphones Destroyed a Generation? And all the news about how teens aren’t having as much sex.
And then I think about this old post I wrote about how my grandchildren will shock me…
What’s the etiquette on taking a baby to an all ages show?
The types of show I’m used to attending are generally held in much smaller indoor venues, like bars and church basements. So far as the kid is concerned, as long as he’s riding in the baby carrier with ear muffs on, I think he’ll do just fine. I’m more worried that we’d be crossing some social line with the other concert goers…
How do you meet career demands while still staying true to yourself?
I am a young (woman) musician embarking on a career in music performance. So much of the job, particularly for women, involves looking sexy. I am also an introverted person who is dealing with quite a bit of social and career anxiety (making me even less inclined to “put on a show”). Those of you in similar positions, how do you conform to the industry expectations of how you should look and act without making yourself uncomfortable?
Why I’m totally ok being the 40-year-old at the music festival
Here I am, almost 20 summers after my first big music festival. It’s time to confront that I may be the equivalent of the old guy at the club, and why I’m totally ok with that. Here’s why.
Time capsule dance off: Can you beat this 1989 Vanilla Ice cassette tape jam?
We, at the Empire, think you really need to see this amazing video that my little brother found in his own archives… The year: 1989. Joey is all amped up on Christmas and sick beats, thoroughly enjoying his new Vanilla Ice cassette tape, and showing off his sweet, sweet moves (check out my drive-by cameo on rollerblades).