Less than three weeks ago, The Bad Penny connected with our favorite new rocksteady/punk band Big Special, who famously played their first headlining gig at Dublin Castle in 2023 and haven’t looked back since. Now playing for crowds running as high as 2,300 attendees and the like at the O2 Forum in Kentish Town, they’re still pushing their second album, the consummately wryly titled National Average, which came out July 4.
Continue readingArchive for the Videos Category
On Tyranny: Charlie Nieland on How LGBTQ+ Artists Can Push Back Against ICE, MAGA
Posted in Interviews, News, On Tyranny, Sound Off, Videos with tags Charlie Nieland, homophobia, On Tryranny on 11/09/2025 by Kurt OrzeckSongwriter/producer Charlie Nieland–whose works regularly deal with his emotional, romantic and artistic struggles deserves–miraculously makes his art all that much more enriching for his students, classmates and the land as well. But when The Bad Penny caught word that had become more politically active as of late, we redoubled our efforts to interview him about how American Authoritarianism is already impacting artist communities, whether they know it or not.
Much to our delight, Charlie agreed to take part in The Bad Penny‘s latest episode of our “On Going” series.
Listen to our compelling conversation, become part of the effort to save and strengthen democracy across the world – and pick up Charlie’s latest works, Shame; and the just-released Stories From the Borderlines:
Here’s a taste of a new Charlie track:
Hope over to his Bandcamp page to dig deeper into him.
Furthermore, check out The Bad Penny‘s ongoing On Tyranny series, which we launched in the spring, here. Recent installments include interviews with Moonspell, The Grasshopper Lies Heavy, Deaf Club, Cosmic Reaper, Ted Hearne, Terzij de Horde, Chairmaker, MyVeronica, the Gunshy, Planet on a Chain, Necrofier, Cheap Perfume, Bobby Conn, Truculent, Spiritiste and many more.
Best New Music Vidoes (October 2025): Imogen Heap, Slowthrust, Rattboys, Matt Pond PA
Posted in Lists, Videos with tags Black Cross Hotel, Das Kope, EVRO, Geologist, Imogen Heap, Infinity Dream, PinkPantheress, Ratboys, Slowthrust on 11/09/2025 by Kurt Orzeck1. Imogen Heap‘s “I AM __.”
2. Slowthrust‘s “Midnight Slay”
3. Infinity Dream‘s “Lost Embrace”
4. Ratboys‘ “Light Night Mountains All That”
On Tyranny: With Authoritarian Takeover Now Complete in U.S., ‘We’re Just Focusing on Survival,’ Queer Artist Nic Pugh of Midniter Says
Posted in Features, Interviews, On Tyranny, On Tyranny, Videos with tags Midniter, Nic Pugh, SugarTank! Records on 10/27/2025 by Kurt Orzeck“It’s just too much,” kindhearted musician Nic Pugh says on Monday, Oct. 27, in the latest installment of The Bad Penny‘s increasingly popular “On Tyranny” series. In it, musicians open up about how they are damaged, targeted and made to feel unwelcome in Authoritarian America.
While mostly disconnected from politics in the past, the artist behind indie-electronic pop project Midniter explains how he arrived at the decision to speak his mind about Authoritarian America. It’s no easy task, with Trump and Steve Bannon’s “flood the zone” theory of controlling the U.S. media now in its 10th month.
“Right now, I don’t feel like there’s necessarily a benefit for me having an interview other than the fact that I just feel I need to do it,” the queer indie electronic artist/singer/songwriter notes. Pugh’s efforts to raise awareness about social issues goes beyond making music; he founded SugarTank! Records with Nic Holman, who are in the riot-grrrl-inspired quartet Dreamboat. The label’s primary goal is to support and celebrate LGBTQ+ artists and allies in the artists’ hometown of Charlotte, North Carolina.
Continue readingBest New Music Videos (September 2025): clipping., Automatic, Pupil Slicer, Smokey Brights
Posted in Lists, Videos with tags Automatic, Big Bill, clipping., Duna Aurora, Kinneret, Monte Booker, Peter McPoland, Pupil Slicer, Smokey Brights, Today Is the Day on 09/30/2025 by Kurt OrzeckWe hear ya here at The Bad Penny: We cover too much metal, not enough metal, etc. One common denominator across all genres is that artists are capable of creating captivating, innovative, original, hilarious and harrowing music videos regardless of genre. With that in mind, here are the clips we enjoyed the most in the month of September, two thousand whatever.
1. Peter McPoland’s “Last Looks”
The Bad Penny (beta) 