Rolling Stone

THE SPRAWLING, 13-member collective known as Brockhampton made a lot of noise starting in the late 2010s, thrilling fans with their restless reinvention and their unique take on alternative rap. But all things come to an end, and on Nov. 19, the group played what was billed as its last show ever, at Los Angeles’ Fonda Theatre. The high-energy set, running nearly two hours, was emotional for fans, says photographer Carlos Gonzalez: “What stood out is that every member of the band got their moment to shine.… The band definitely delivered a fire set, and the fans were there for it.”…

WHAT’S NEW, WHAT’S NEXT, WHAT’S NUTS THE BREAST PUMP was waiting for Meg Remy at her Toronto home when she returned from the hospital with her twins. A friend had given it to her, even though Remy wasn’t initially sure if she’d use the machine. But with two newborns to feed, she charged it up, flipped the switch — and out came a guttural womp. “The minute I heard it, I was like, ‘What is this fucking sound?’ ” says Remy, 37, bandleader and creative force behind the always-inventive, always-evolving pop outfit U.S. Girls. She recorded the pump’s singular pulse and sampled it for “Pump,” the final song on U.S. Girls’ new album, Bless This Mess. The song’s verses are basically a “straight-up reportage of my experience in the hospital,” as Remy…

BROOKE SMITH will forever be known for her role as Buffalo Bill’s unfortunate kidnap victim, Catherine Martin, in The Silence of the Lambs. But before she “put the lotion in the basket,” Smith was a part of a hardcore punk scene that congregated at dingy New York clubs like CBGB and Great Gildersleeves for shows by Agnostic Front, Cro-Mags, Bad Brains, and other underground icons. “I was attracted by the anger of the music,” says Smith. “And the outsiderness of it all. You recognize your tribe when you meet them. I just felt, ‘This is where I’m supposed to be.’ ” From the very beginning, she brought her camera along with her and captured intimate photos of performers and fans. The pictures sat in boxes for decades before she uncovered…

CHRISTINE MCVIE always came on like the grown-up in the room, which admittedly might not be hard to do when the room is Fleetwood Mac. But McVie was the emotional glue in a band that has spent the past 50 years breaking up over and over — the most stable, sensible, down-to-earth member of rock’s most unstable, senseless, lost-in-space circus: the universally beloved piano woman who wrote great song after great song, the one all the others got along with. Christine kept singing like the songbird who knew the score, and that’s because she always did. That’s why the world is still in shock and grief after the news of McVie’s death at age 79 arrived out of the blue on Nov. 30. As she told ROLLING STONE’s Andy Greene just…

BOOK 1. ‘Andy Warhol and Friends’ A selection of shots from Steve Schapiro, who photographed Warhol and his friends (including Edie Sedgwick and the Velvet Underground & Nico) throughout 1966, a pivotal year for the pop artist. NOVEL 2. ‘How to Sell a Haunted House’ This horror tale about two adult siblings dealing with a parent’s death — and a house full of puppets — is a searing look at grief, trauma, and how the things that haunt us aren’t always supernatural. PODCAST 3. ‘What Makes This Song Stink’ Philly guitar hero Pat Finnerty found fame by eviscerating songs like 3 Doors Down’s “Kryptonite” and Train’s “Hey, Soul Sister” on his YouTube series. Now, he’s adapted it into a podcast, where he and guests like Kamau Bell carve up tunes by Maroon 5, Santana, and perhaps Finnerty’s favorite…

“I HAVE NEVER FELT pressured to do anything in my career,” says Sheryl Lee Ralph, 66, who recently produced a Broadway play on top of winning an Emmy for her portrayal of Barbara Howard on the hit ABC sitcom Abbott Elementary. “Except excellence.” A onetime Dreamgirl with experience acting for luminaries such as Sidney Poitier, Ralph spent decades crafting quintessential roles. But a lack of mainstream recognition nearly led her to quit 15 years ago. “I wasn’t feeling seen,” she says. During a chance encounter with a casting director, Ralph was given a much-needed reality check. “Do you know who you are?” the director said. “You can do anything!” Now, her role on Abbott Elementary feels less like work and more like celebration. “The way people respond to me, I just love…