By Karen Glauber

I’ve done my best to stay busy/distracted leading up to the election. My friends Nada Surf were in town, and I loaned singer Matthew Caws my Harris/Walz hat, which he wore onstage. As Trump becomes more divisive and extreme (insane), my stomach clenches into knots and I’m literally nauseous 24/7. His pledge about protecting women “whether they like it or not” was spectacularly offensive to all women.

When I was a kid, I was told I tested in the 99th percentile, although I’m by no means brilliant. Watching Trump and his followers, it’s become quite clear what that means. I know a few Trump supporters in the business, and I hope you all have a miserable Nov. 5.

I think it’s fantastic that Chappell Roan was on SNL over the weekend—this is what a pop star looks like!

The women are ruling the Pop charts, but in the world of Alternative radio, beabadoobee’s “Beaches” is the highest-charting female at #20. Gigi Perez’s “Sailor Song” is also on the upswing, ruling the chart with an incredible streaming story. Amanda Dobbins and Ayelet Schiffman will break this record. Also making their mark are St. Vincent’s “Flea” and Bishop Briggs’ “My Serotonin,” both on Virgin, spearheaded by Marisa DiFrisco and Marlee Erlich, two women I absolutely adore.

Ted Volk and I are also both obsessed with Suki Waterhouse’s “Supersad,” which sounds like a perfect Alt record. Suki is on Sub Pop, a label near and dear to me, which also has the new single from Tunde Adebimpe, the frontman for TV on the Radio, whose reunion tour in December is certain to be a big thrill for me. The single is called “Magnetic,” and it will make you seem infinitely hipper to say you like it. I worked Young Liars and the single “Staring at the Sun” for Touch & Go Records in 2003. It was a much more productive time—far fewer “shenanigans,” as Ted puts it.

While on the topic of Sub Pop, Father John Misty’s “She Cleans Up” should be his first big hit for Alternative. I’ve been a fan forever.

For comfort, Jimmy Kimmel’s nightly monologue has helped me stay relatively sane, and last night I was treated to Magdalena Bay’s appearance on the show, performing “Image.” Also, the new Cure album, Songs of a Lost World, is the perfect background music to help drown out the noise in my head.

I’ve spoken about “The Sons of The Lumineers” artists all year, like Noah Kahan, Zach Bryan, Michael Marcagi, etc. In 2025, we’ll have music from The Lumineers, Mumford & Sons and the continuation of the Head and the Heart, whose new single “Arrow” is phenomenal. I’ll be very happy to be back in that orbit again.

Props to Jack White for his touring this quarter—the date and city are announced 48 hours before the show, and the fervor is frenetic as people try to get tickets. It’s a fantastic lesson on how to get a city excited about a rock show.

Congrats to Lisa Worden on her January AlterEgo show. This is the first big 2025 event to look forward to, with a bill including The Lumineers, Glass Animals, Incubus, Cage the Elephant, The Offspring, Fontaines D.C., St. Vincent and The Head and the Heart, plus a special performance from Damiano David, whose single “Born With a Broken Heart” slays me more than anything he’s done with Måneskin. Damiano is all swagger, which I greatly appreciate.

Start to familiarize yourself with Mk.gee. Another Jersey boy like my beloved Jack Antonoff, he’s been selling out shows worldwide for the past few years (he is also every artist’s favorite artist) and will now be the musical guest on SNL on Nov. 9! Hopefully, we’ll all have a reason to celebrate that day. I’ll be servicing Mk.gee’s single on Nov. 11.

SONG TO HEAR: Patti Smith’s “People Have the Power.” Just play on repeat until the election is over, and please VOTE!