https://www.naterogers.work/about daily 1.0 2026-01-06 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/604fe51dd3dcfa704f970a02/ab82ed4b-0841-4515-af72-0f57163aacbb/nate+rogers+headshot+2023.jpg Contact https://www.naterogers.work/contact daily 0.75 2021-03-16 https://www.naterogers.work/writing daily 0.75 2026-01-06 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/604fe51dd3dcfa704f970a02/12d454dc-5d5e-4c2c-830c-54337d994fbb/Screen+Shot+2023-08-24+at+5.23.22+PM.png Writing - Think You’re a Good Person? That’s Up to the Cart Narc and His Camera. — for The Ringer Along for the ride with Sebastian Davis, who’s built an empire of weaponized righteousness on YouTube based on a simple idea: Putting your shopping cart back is a test of your character. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/604fe51dd3dcfa704f970a02/1615853741190-1SZRKPTP0PMICEMSLGVR/Dean+and+Britta.jpg Writing - At home, forever and ever, with Dean & Britta — for The Washington Post The indie-rock lifers are living out their L.A. quarantine as bandmates and as a couple, still navigating where the line is between the two. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/604fe51dd3dcfa704f970a02/0617049c-182c-4215-9731-0b9e9552e4a3/pono-music-stereogum-1736636826-1000x1000.jpg Writing - What If We Were Wrong About Pono? — for Stereogum A decade later, Neil Young’s portable hi-fi device lingers with a rough reputation — whether it deserved it or not. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/604fe51dd3dcfa704f970a02/1615853181433-99OF6YLK8EG6CS7ZQ66B/1611255152685-adohr-milk-2.jpg Writing - The Century-Old Neon Sign Tearing Up LA Conservationists — for VICE After hiding just out of frame for decades, an exceptionally rare and remarkable Depression-era neon sign was discovered outside of Los Angeles. Then the past came rushing back. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/604fe51dd3dcfa704f970a02/8a6619b9-d596-42f8-86e6-220f5553cad6/Screen+Shot+2024-11-01+at+2.48.50+PM.png Writing - The millennial messiah of Spotify, in exile — for The Los Angeles Times 12 years ago, Emily White became the source of a national debate about music ownership. Then she went into the belly of the beast. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/604fe51dd3dcfa704f970a02/f2a85402-dfb3-47c6-8396-947fb74f53bf/Screen+Shot+2023-12-06+at+3.21.33+PM.png Writing - How a beloved L.A. record store unearthed a long-lost Gram Parsons recording — for The Los Angeles Times With the help of Polly Parsons, Gram’s daughter, Dave Prinz of Amoeba brought a crucial tour in the country-rock trailblazer’s career back to life. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/604fe51dd3dcfa704f970a02/6003d663-4b76-4c2b-95db-8930597700a7/Screen+Shot+2025-09-23+at+12.12.19+PM.png Writing - The rubber bridge guitar changed the sound of music. But who owns it? — for The Los Angeles Times A guitar modification designed by Reuben Cox at Old Style Guitar Shop was a secret weapon in the music world — until Orangewood started manufacturing their own. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/604fe51dd3dcfa704f970a02/adaedd69-722c-422b-a522-1d53ba7b9aff/Screen+Shot+2024-12-04+at+11.48.31+AM.png Writing - Asleep at the Wheel in the Headlight Brightness Wars — for The Ringer The crusade against bright headlights has picked up speed in recent years, in large part due to a couple of Reddit nerds. Could they know what’s best for the auto industry better than the auto industry itself? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/604fe51dd3dcfa704f970a02/1619417810559-U9HMX2ZX3PH119A95G1A/00screamers1-superJumbo.jpeg Writing - Screamers, a Missing Link of Los Angeles Punk, Is Missing No More — for The New York Times An archival release marks the technical debut of a band that helped build a scene, 44 years later. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/604fe51dd3dcfa704f970a02/845af538-20c4-491b-b8c6-7de1aba87424/Screen+Shot+2023-04-12+at+4.46.47+PM.png Writing - Dril Is Everyone. More Specifically, He’s a Guy Named Paul. — for The Ringer Paul Dochney posted his way into the halls of internet lore. After 15 years of anonymity, can he emerge without compromising his act? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/604fe51dd3dcfa704f970a02/1625256792914-VZDAK72XBK1JF3C8X0W8/30molly-lewis1-superJumbo.jpg Writing - Whistling as an Art Almost Died Off. Can Molly Lewis Keep It Alive? — for The New York Times The 31-year-old has whistled at tournaments, in the studio for Dr. Dre and at her Los Angeles lounge show, Café Molly. Now she’s releasing her debut EP. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/604fe51dd3dcfa704f970a02/1656699560925-VF9X8CU17HWRXQNBGUVM/Screen+Shot+2022-07-01+at+11.18.54+AM.png Writing - Kate Bush, “Running Up That Hill,” and the End of Music Charts As We Knew Them — for The Ringer Thanks to ‘Stranger Things,’ one of art pop’s most reclusive figures has almost inadvertently found herself with a top-10 charting hit. Is it a fluke or a sign of the times? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/604fe51dd3dcfa704f970a02/1615856359598-FGNFEYW8N3ABH9BG42OW/Toody-Cole-2019-cr-Nate-Rogers-billboard-1500x845-compressed.jpg Writing - The Fire, Fury and Second Life of Dead Moon’s Toody Cole — for Billboard Now the last surviving member of the era-defiant Portland DIY group Dead Moon, 70-year-old Toody Cole is suddenly carrying on the legacy of her and her late husband Fred’s world on her own. But if you ask, she’ll still be glad to show you some of it. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/604fe51dd3dcfa704f970a02/1656699925349-9VU8MEXLDUIDFB9W7SDG/Screen+Shot+2022-07-01+at+11.25.08+AM.png Writing - ‘Fairfax is dead!’: A cartoon TV show sparks an argument over an L.A. hotspot — for The Los Angeles Times The Amazon Prime comedy ‘Fairfax’ takes a hyper-specific location and blows it up to represent an entire generation. But what do the people being portrayed think? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/604fe51dd3dcfa704f970a02/b2bdebda-0f26-44c4-bd41-8e2eadd3fb43/Screen+Shot+2023-10-18+at+11.57.44+AM.png Writing - After decades of legal battles, John Fogerty is finally free. Is it too late to find happiness? — for The Los Angeles Times A brotherly feud has lingered in the Creedence Clearwater Revival story, but at 78, Fogerty knows just whom he wants to play with: his sons. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/604fe51dd3dcfa704f970a02/1644969881444-Q8SMK2HT1KL0NNJ12FZI/TMU.jpg Writing - Jack White Is Getting Back to His First Love: Upholstering Furniture — for GQ Before the White Stripes became one of the biggest bands on the planet, Jack White had embarked on a slightly different path in life: running an upholstery studio. The original shop closed decades ago, but he never really left it behind. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/604fe51dd3dcfa704f970a02/1615856074100-6FIFEDQNQ0RQMKNBQYY8/ca-times.brightspotcdn-2.jpg Writing - At Vet Tv, ‘don’t expect anything to be politically correct, professional or honorable’ — for The Los Angeles Times The loud military satire behind a quiet television empire in the Southland https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/604fe51dd3dcfa704f970a02/f1c5bf7b-5ba4-44ef-bb26-5044dffb55f4/Screenshot+2026-01-05+at+6.29.18%E2%80%AFPM.png Writing - Black Flag’s Latest Reboot Has Everyone Talking (Even Greg Ginn) — for The New York Times At 71, Ginn has remade his hardcore institution once again — this time with zoomer-aged bandmates. Is it a punk statement or karaoke? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/604fe51dd3dcfa704f970a02/6deb5ebd-7bbd-42e2-926a-2c7318aa76e7/danevans_pitchmonkey__1_.0.jpg Writing - Ballad of Ray Suzuki: The Secret Life of Early Pitchfork and the Most Notorious Review Ever “Written” — for The Ringer In 2006, Pitchfork panned Jet’s sophomore album not with words, but with a video of a chimp peeing in its own mouth. But who was the “author” behind the review? And what does finding that answer reveal about the early days of the publication? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/604fe51dd3dcfa704f970a02/ca96bae1-7d75-42fe-9c9e-e756e3f0f47f/Screen+Shot+2025-06-04+at+3.52.11+PM.png Writing - The Ballad of Bill Fox — for New York Magazine Pollard adores him. Jeff Tweedy calls him a hero. But he’s just wanted to be left alone — until now. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/604fe51dd3dcfa704f970a02/1663799336576-Z4E6IVSSV6ZXS709FLZF/Screen+Shot+2022-09-21+at+3.27.52+PM.png Writing - “You’ll Call Now”: The Making—and Meaning—of the Sears AC Commercial That Will Never Die — for The Ringer The ubiquitous ’90s daytime cable ad has been a shorthand for nostalgia and heat waves for decades. Why are we so helplessly drawn to its sweaty orbit? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/604fe51dd3dcfa704f970a02/0edac90d-0944-4a47-b05a-e99e9de9f7d8/Screen+Shot+2024-05-13+at+3.32.29+PM.png Writing - Jessica Pratt, out of the L.A. underworld and into a (gentle) wall of sound — for The Los Angeles Times The folk singer made her name with stripped-down recordings, but has now found a bigger approach on “Here in the Pitch.” It wasn’t an easy road to get there. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/604fe51dd3dcfa704f970a02/1621379427304-TTRBL1GHA3XBPWS79PH0/TJ7V6T4BORATTOK5AHQB4LB76U.jpeg Writing - Netflix wants to help you sleep. Why wellness is the next front in the streaming wars — for The Los Angeles Times Headspace’s partnership with Netflix is just the latest move in a booming meditation industry — but are the programs even TV? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/604fe51dd3dcfa704f970a02/1663799537661-OSSQVBU41OU3N063WWGJ/Screen+Shot+2022-09-21+at+3.32.03+PM.png Writing - Welcome to the ‘Hotel California’ saga: Missing lyric sheets, rare book dealers and a relentless Don Henley — for The Los Angeles Times Three dealers face charges for their tactics in selling Eagles lyric sheets, offering a glimpse into a dark side of the memorabilia industry. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/604fe51dd3dcfa704f970a02/205ae08f-5b71-4eea-b552-426ceefcd41e/Screen+Shot+2024-06-02+at+1.05.56+PM.png Writing - Funny or DIY — for The Ringer At a dive bar in L.A., Fred Armisen is living a not-so-secret life as a punk musician. But here’s the punch line: It’s no joke. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/604fe51dd3dcfa704f970a02/1615853321736-A13LR2RNPS76SOHHW88O/GettyImages-553928243-1604860446-scaled.jpg Writing - Why Is The Obscure B-Side “Harness Your Hopes” Pavement’s Top Song On Spotify? It’s Complicated — for Stereogum The rise of a previously obscure B-side is a tale of streaming’s raw power — and its ongoing mystery. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/604fe51dd3dcfa704f970a02/b08d2e30-e43e-4a8a-b8fc-8f9b0d7cf9cb/Screen+Shot+2024-03-22+at+10.18.46+AM.png Writing - Philip Marlowe perfume, anyone? Raymond Chandler’s estate revives its hero, for better or worse — for The Los Angeles Times The noir master died over sixty years ago, but contemporary writers are being invited to inhabit his world. It’s just one facet of a bigger picture. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/604fe51dd3dcfa704f970a02/20cf53fe-92b5-4a8e-b9e5-2fd1ed1a9b9b/Screen+Shot+2023-01-04+at+4.09.53+PM.png Writing - Is Live Music Broken? It’s Not Just Ticketmaster, It’s Everything. — for The Ringer The nightmarish experience Taylor Swift fans went through earlier this year has sparked debate over monopolies and how tickets are sold. But it’s more than just Swift’s upcoming tour—the entire concert industry is facing unprecedented challenges. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/604fe51dd3dcfa704f970a02/1638382487780-F3JM3SQTZ8AN4VI44J88/Screen+Shot+2021-12-01+at+10.14.30+AM.png Writing - The Meters’ Leo Nocentelli Gets a Solo Career, 50 Years Late — for The New York Times In the 1970s, Nocentelli recorded a folk album drastically different from his band’s funk music. Barely anyone heard it — until it ended up at a swap meet. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/604fe51dd3dcfa704f970a02/1615852587890-E7XUL8E2TZH3Q0HAN6OY/nico2_1.0.jpg Writing - “Hopefully He Won’t End Up Robbing Banks Again”: The Wild Life of Nico Walker — for The Ringer After a bestselling debut novel, ‘Cherry,’ and a major motion picture adaptation by the Russo brothers, one of the literary scene’s brightest new stars is trying to prove that his success wasn’t a fluke. But first he has to adapt to life outside of a cell. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/604fe51dd3dcfa704f970a02/1631816588620-EYZNPM5TG9BBVNZ4UE0O/Screen+Shot+2021-09-16+at+11.22.05+AM.png Writing - Music Copyright in the Age of Forgetting — for The Ringer In the post–“Blurred Lines” legal landscape, artists like Lorde are treading extra carefully when their music ends up sounding similar to someone else’s. But our brains can’t be trusted to notice when we steal an idea—and the problem is likely getting worse. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/604fe51dd3dcfa704f970a02/1615856575981-U4XLAKWDHSDI1KACINUS/ca-times.brightspotcdn-3.jpg Writing - Want to experience Larry David’s Los Angeles? There’s a tour for that — for The Los Angeles Times Led by L.D.-aficionado Adam Papagan, “Curb Tour Enthusiasm” is a geographical journey into the mind of L.A.’s definitive curmudgeon — and an accidental love letter to low-key Westside establishments. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/604fe51dd3dcfa704f970a02/1615855285194-YQFVRKZTQR2ADJIMPX5F/ca-times.brightspotcdn.jpg Writing - ‘Stealing Home’ revisits Dodger Stadium’s nefarious origins — for The Los Angeles Times Author Eric Nusbaum digs up the unsteady foundation of one of Los Angeles’s most unifying cultural centers. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/604fe51dd3dcfa704f970a02/f5ca584f-1c3b-4109-9ca0-a9dc22673221/Screen+Shot+2025-09-23+at+12.16.09+PM.png Writing - Joaquin Phoenix’s Multiyear ‘I’m Still Here’ Performance Was No Joke — for The Ringer In 2009, one of the greatest actors of his generation insisted he was out, before it was revealed to be an extravagant stunt worthy of Andy Kaufman. What if it wasn’t all quite as fake as we were eventually led to believe? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/604fe51dd3dcfa704f970a02/0db12389-775a-4de3-aa30-d75bd68e281b/Foxygen-LP-1674143593.jpg Writing - Foxygen’s “We Are The 21st Century Ambassadors Of Peace & Magic” Turns 10 — for Stereogum On the nostalgia, puke, and Crosley turntables that made for a fiercely adored/reviled album, which defined an era by mining another. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/604fe51dd3dcfa704f970a02/c49a4d3f-7fac-4274-ae44-3c90dc54d64c/GettyImages-1089707560-1669914421-1000x657.jpg Writing - Christine McVie Was The Glue — for Stereogum In a band that seemed perpetually on the brink of collapse, the late keyboardist/vocalist was the perfect one to keep throwing water from the Fleetwood Mac boat. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/604fe51dd3dcfa704f970a02/1615857907268-7VJ8TV5ON6N97UE9ONZ8/Screen+Shot+2020-07-08+at+6.01.06+PM.png Writing - The Sunset Views of Beck’s L.A. — for The Ringer Once the shape-shifting, breakdancing king of fusion, Los Angeles’s golden child doesn’t seem to stand apart in today’s musical landscape as much as he used to. But as he heads into the cosmos on ‘Hyperspace,’ where he comes from tells a tale larger than music. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/604fe51dd3dcfa704f970a02/4210e2ef-406f-4820-a3a6-b3d9c779f6c0/Screen+Shot+2025-08-15+at+12.17.40+PM.png Writing - Brian Wilson Was Los Angeles — for The Ringer The endless summer and eternal bummer of the Beach Boy’s music, for better and worse, made him the defining artist of his hometown. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/604fe51dd3dcfa704f970a02/1615857823062-K88X70LPCIA4B0W1Y1LK/Screen+Shot+2020-07-08+at+5.59.55+PM.png Writing - Mel Brooks at the End of Comedy — for The Ringer Well into his 90s, Melvin Kaminsky has his fingerprints all over this year’s Oscars via ‘Jojo Rabbit’—and all over the comedy world at large, depending on where you look. If Taika Waititi wins big on Sunday, though, expect the scoffing to sound much the same as it did in 1969. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/604fe51dd3dcfa704f970a02/c175591d-1bc3-4017-9ef9-9fd0e30a9a0c/31mag-LOR-01-superJumbo.jpg Writing - Letter of Recommendation: Classic Rock — for The New York Times Magazine https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/604fe51dd3dcfa704f970a02/7a1a93cf-fd05-4487-9eb8-242cd5f936de/https___assets.lareviewofbooks.org_uploads_Lonesome+Dove+2025-1.jpg Writing - We Killed the Right Animal: Reading ‘Lonesome Dove’ During ‘the Best Time to Be Alive’ — for The Los Angeles Review of Books Larry McMurtry’s barn-burner, which turned 40 this year and is currently experiencing a renaissance, is supposed to be a lesson in how brutal the Wild West really was. Some days, though, it doesn’t seem so bad. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/604fe51dd3dcfa704f970a02/1621378941213-YOXII3X97M8WCRAF8TEO/The-Green-Album-1620834349-870x870.jpg Writing - Weezer’s “Green Album” Turns 20 — for Stereogum On the agony and ecstasy of Rivers Cuomo, and the album that redefined one of rock’s most fiercely adored bands. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/604fe51dd3dcfa704f970a02/1615856885065-BVAW2BJQJ2NIM8Q31FEH/taylor_isolation_getty_ringer.0.jpg Writing - Into the Mild: Taylor Swift, Bon Iver, and the Myth of the Isolation Album — for The Ringer The cottagecore aesthetic of ‘Folklore’ fits it neatly into the lineage of musical exile narratives, both good and bad. It’s a story we love to indulge in—even if it rarely gets at the true meaning of being alone. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/604fe51dd3dcfa704f970a02/8081180a-d017-47d2-8aef-412084d8de72/Screen+Shot+2023-01-24+at+4.37.10+PM.png Writing - David Crosby Never Cut His Hair — for The Ringer The Byrds and Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young member was a fearless captain of folk rock who embraced mutiny. He also wasn’t afraid to go down with the ship. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/604fe51dd3dcfa704f970a02/1615857449377-0VDF6IDIAA88FR9B8IFL/White-Pepper-1588182587-640x640.jpg Writing - Ween’s “White Pepper” Turns 20 — for Stereogum On the album that almost made the mainstream run brown. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/604fe51dd3dcfa704f970a02/3d126ed1-2836-4fc3-99b4-22d8a795627b/Press-Photo-4-Ty-Segall-Fantastic-Tomb-Credit-Dene%CC%81e-Segall-1747942332-1000x727.jpg Writing - Ty Segall On How Piano Lessons, Glyn Johns, The C.I.A., And More Inspired His New Album Possession — for Stereogum Five items that helped build album number sixteen — or whatever number you want to give it. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/604fe51dd3dcfa704f970a02/1625256988918-5OQKCVIFWB6CT21MZXJU/Steve-Sharp-process-interview-ilo-01-800x792.png Writing - The Process: Steve Sharp, “Vista Peace Vigil” — for The Believer An interview with Steve Sharp, who has been protesting for peace at the same spot in Los Angeles every week for nearly two decades. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/604fe51dd3dcfa704f970a02/1615858214319-NN6FS57RH5L6G1YJDDDM/Cut-Worms-scaled.jpg Writing - Cut Worms :: The Aquarium Drunkard Interview — for Aquarium Drunkard https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/604fe51dd3dcfa704f970a02/1615859002134-BH0YAT6Y7PA87BL7B8YA/PurpleMountains_byDCBerman_0382_1290_957.jpeg Writing - David Berman :: The Aquarium Drunkard Interview — for Aquarium Drunkard https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/604fe51dd3dcfa704f970a02/1615859298912-GQNQ8WTNCE1JIN7SKJ8Q/Cate-Le-Bon-2019-cred-Ivana-Klic%CC%8Ckovic%CC%81.jpg Writing - Cate Le Bon :: The Aquarium Drunkard Interview — for Aquarium Drunkard