Howdy folks!

This will be the final issue. I’ve decided to move my attention and efforts to some new projects and, at 2 years and 25 issues, it seems like a fitting time to wrap up this newsletter.

Of Note was an idea I had many years ago, but it wasn’t until I was laid off in 2023 that I revisited the idea and made it real in 2024. My life has changed a bit since then and it’s time for new things.

For me, while my goal was to highlight great music writing and expand my own reading, Of Note was an exercise in execution. You’ve got to take the ideas in your head and get them out into the world. I have a habit of hoarding ideas and never starting until something feels perfect. But an idea will never be perfect in your head. It must grow up in the world.

For you, I hope it has provided some enjoyment and you’ve discovered some music writers you enjoy and will continue to support. Thank you for subscribing and for being a part of project.

What’s next?

• Of Note will continue to live via the Bluesky account, posting links and sharing thoughts. I still care about supporting music writers and sharing their work. Posting over there feels like a more manageable way to do that and I’m committing to being a bit more active there.

• I have joined the board of directors for the Experimental Sound Studio (Instagram announcement link), a non-profit recording studio, archive, and artist support organization focused on experimental music and sonic art. I’m so thrilled and I want to make sure I prioritize my time and energy with ESS first. If you don’t know about ESS, I encourage you to visit their website learn about all the great work and programming.

• I have some other ideas I’m working on as well. They will share the themes of experimental music and Chicago, but I won’t say much more at this point. If you’d like to hear more about those ideas when they happen, stay subscribed and I’ll send out an email with more info when there is more info.

Please continue to support these great writers:

• See-Saw ($4/month or $40/year): Evan Minsker’s digital punk magazine and podcast. Recommendations, reviews, interviews, and coverage of punk bands (especially international bands) you won’t find anywhere else.

• Don’t Rock The Inbox ($8/month or $80/year): Marissa R. Moss and Natalie Weiner’s country-focused digital magazine. Regular features, interviews, new music reviews and recommendations, and playlists. Nobody, and I mean nobody, has their finger on the pulse of country music like they do. They cover the breadth of the genre and don’t shy away from strong opinions.

• Hearing Things ($7/month or $70/year). Andy Cush, Dylan Green, Jill Mapes, Ryan Dombal, and Julianne Escobedo Shepherd founded this all-genre site that feels like something we lost when Pitchfork got bought and gutted. Their taste is impeccable. You’ll regularly discover music you’ve never heard of, but you’ll also get their takes on many of the buzz bands du jour. Features (including unique things like producers breaking down favorite production), essays, reviews, interviews, podcasts, and the essential weekly 5 Albums and 5 Songs newsletters. I’m an audiophile tier subscriber and I’ve joined them for several video call hangs and it’s a blast to talk to them in person.

• New Feeling ($6 CA/month or $70 CA/year): A truly unique digital music mag set up as a cooperative of music journalists in Canada. You have options to subscribe as a community member, organizing member, or advisory member, all with different roles and responsibilities in the collective. In addition to great long-form music features, many of the pieces focus on the business of the music industry and how to build the better future we all want to see.

• Good Experimental Music ($3/month or $30/year) Marc Masters has launched an independent version of his long-running experimental music column at Bandcamp that was canceled earlier this year. I’ve always really enjoyed his frank approach to writing about experimental music and his focus on sensations. He also finds things I never would on my own and at least once per column I would think, “Where does he find this stuff?!” (Seriously, Marc, where do you find this stuff?). The monthly recommendations column is free, but subscribing will get you additional posts beyond that.

• The Gig ($7/month or $70/year) Nate Chinen’s (former NYT and Jazz Times critic, now at WRTI) newsletter is perfect for jazz fans new and experienced. Nate is such an inviting writer and he will bring you into the world of jazz as a helpful guide. The newsletter isn’t exclusively jazz-related, sometimes covering whatever concerts Nate happens to be seeing that week and it’s fun to get his perspective on rock, classical, and experimental music as well. Subscribing gets you most of the posts, but there is a higher tier with even more exclusive content.

• No Expectations ($5/month or $50/year) Josh Terry is a local Chicago scene fixture and his delightful newsletter covers new albums, songs, the shows Josh is going to, and an interview on occasion. His essays feel like hanging with a buddy and his weekly playlists always seem to strike the vibe I need. I find myself favoriting a least one new song I hadn’t known about before each week. Subscribing gets you access to the posts and there is a higher tier that will get you a personalized playlist.

• Out + Back ($5/month or $50/year) Grayson Haver Currin has his own newsletter that features bonus content from his stories and interviews that don’t make it to the big magazine stories as well as some coverage of smaller artists and topics that don’t fit anywhere else. You can pay to subscribe, although right now it appears as if most stories are free.

• The Future is Ours to Make ($7/month or $80/year) Chris Richards started this newsletter after the WaPo destroyed its arts section. Chris ran one of the best music sections at the WaPo with some of the best live show reviews you’ll find. He’s continuing to write on his own and you’ll find record reviews, live show reviews, interviews, and essays. Subscribing gets you access to the posts.

• What’s Good? (Free) DJ Regular’s weekly post with his recommendations. Mostly songs and beats, but occasionally other stuff like music writing. The variety and energy he brings to these posts is infectious and gets me excited to explore. He packs a TON in each edition.

• Cabbages ($5/month or $54/year) Gary Suarez’s long-running hip hop site. Newsletters, podcasts, playlists, radio shows, honestly just a whole lot for what the cost his. Gary is an absolute workhorse who is not shy about his opinions (which are mostly good!). Subscribing gets you access to the posts, the podcasts, and a paid sub only newsletter.

• Tone Glow (Free) Tone Glow is a newsletter highlighting experimental music and film. It mostly features in-depth and thoughtful interviews with the artists, many of whom I’m discovering because of Tone Glow.

• Stereogum ($6/month or $66/year) The king of music blogs and one of the few survivors of the blog era is a full-fledged site. Reviews, interviews, news, columns, and more. A big thank you to managing editor Chris DeVille for doing the only Of Note interview last fall. It was the highlight of this whole project for me. Subscribing gets you access to the site and there are upgrade options to remove the ads and to even dictate the topic of a Bonus Number Ones post as well as get a Stereogum merch pack.

Thank you again for reading. I’m so grateful that you were a part of this.

Justin Anderson-Weber