Beginning Sunday, October 18, the Cherry Bounce alternative music festival will return to downtown Raleigh. The main stage will be set up on Hargett St. in front of the Raleigh Times on Saturday, October 24.

Here is the schedule for the week-long event:

Sunday, October 18
Angie Aparo at Deep South

Monday, October 19
Brian Corum of Lonnie Walker at The Raleigh Times

Tuesday, October 20
Veelee, Naps, Americans in France and Gray Young at Slims, hosted by Music.MyNC.com

Wednesday, October 21
Mount Weather at The Busy Bee

Thursday, October 22
Gross Ghost, The Poles and Free Electric State at Tir Na Nog, hosted by WKNC

Friday, October 23
Rooster for the Masses, Colossus, The T’s and The Infamous Sugar at Berkley Cafe hosted by New Raleigh

Saturday, October 24
Peggy Sue, Schooner, Sky Larkin, Old Avenue, Fin Fang Foom, The Hood Internet and Man Man on the main stage on Hargett St.

Adid of Inflowential at Flying Tiger Sound recording for Hear Here

Its official, the Hear Here Finale Show has a lineup and a solid one it is.  Colossus, Inflowential, and the Love Language will all be playing October 3rd at the Pour House in downtown Raleigh.  Tickets are going for $7 but unlike the August 29th show in Carrboro, the compilation will not be included with the price of admission.  Copies of the album will be available for $5 once inside.

Hear Here is a local music compilation album of 17 different Triangle based artists featuring all new unreleased material sponsored by Terpsikhore Records, Flying Tiger Sound, and WKNC 88.1.  For weeks WKNC has been slowly releasing tracks over the airwaves during Local Lunch (Mon-Fri 12-1pm) and the Local Beat (Fri 5-8pm) and many local blogs have been posting leaked songs from Hear Here on the internet.

The album is set to be released this Saturday at the Cats Cradle with Annuals, The Never, Hammer No More The Fingers and Birds of Avalon bringing up the bill.  Tickets are going for $10 with a copy of the album included with admission.  Organizers plan on selling out, so go ahead and get your tickets early.

The October 3rd show in Raleigh is the finale of the compilation release.  Doors will open at 8pm with Colossus starting up at 10pm.  Inflowential and the Love Language will come on sequentially.

Bill Fisher of Colossus recording at Flying Tiger Sound for Hear Here

It’s hard to believe 2009 is half over.

There have been tons of albums out in months one through six that our DJs have released over the airwaves, some of which resulted in countless requests and songs that got stuck in our heads for days on end. It’s hard to narrow them down, but a few of the WKNC music directors have made their picks for the top five albums of the year so far in their respective formats.

Local Music Director Adam Kincaid selected…

Bombadil's Tarpits and Canyonlands

1. Bombadil: Tarpits & Canyonlands
2. Colossus: Drunk On Blood
3. The Love Language: The Love Language
4. Lonnie Walker: These Times Old Times
5. Embarrassing Fruits: Community/Exploitation

With honorable mentions for…

Americans in France: Pretzelvania
Hammer No More The Fingers: Looking For Bruce

Disagree with Adam’s picks? Send him an email and let him know which albums you would have chosen.

Daytime Music Director Jenna St. Pierre selected…

Cotton Jones' Paranoid Cocoon

1. Cotton Jones: Paranoid Cocoon
2. Dirty Projectors: Bitte Orca
3. Animal Collective: Merriweather Post Pavillion
4. Harlem Shakes: Technicolor Health
5. Screaming Females: Power Move

With honorable mentions for:

Akron/Family: Set ‘Em Wild, Set ‘Em Free
Phoenix: Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix

Are there albums you think should have been on the list? Email Jenna to discuss.

Underground Music Director Damion Sledge chose…

Saigon and Statik Selektah's All In a Day's Work

Saigon and Statik Selektah: All in a Day’s Work

If you have Underground albums to add to the list, email Damion.

Stay tuned for the next six months of albums on WKNC, and we’ll see which ones come out on top in December!

Ok so it is June… but it isn’t my fault that May kicked ass. I mean seriously. I graduated from NC State, saw my family, and went to some of the best local shows I have been to in a while.

I had planed to attend several big shows in the weeks following graduation, however, I was sadly only able to make it to 3 shows featuring 8 bands. But what great shows they were.

Click on any picture to go to the full Gallery

May 15th: Cat’s Cradle: Hey Euphony, Whole Wheat Bread, MC Chris

This show was a mystery for me going in, because I was not familiar with any of the acts; also, I had never been to Cat’s Cradle before.

Hey Euphony kicked off the night with a high energy, pop punk set. Hey Euphonyis based out of Durham. The crowd seemed to like them and I am personally looking forward to taking a closer look at the material on their myspace.

Now on to reason I was interested in the show- Whole Wheat Bread

Whole Wheat Bread is based out of Jacksonville, Florida. The band plays what they like to call "Crunk Punk Rock" - an awesome blend of hard punk rock with hip hop style.

The newest addition to the band, bassist/back up vocalist, Johnny Rock took a quick break at one point. In the mean time, guitarist/vocalist, Aaron Abraham and drummer Joseph Largen gave the crowd a taste of Whole Wheat Bread's Hip Hop side. At one point, Aaron Abraham blew up the crowd with a free style rap about The Golden Girls.

While perhaps 3/4 of the crowd had never seen Whole Wheat Bread in concert or even heard of the band before, when it came time to end the set, there was an over whelming demand for an encore. Perhaps one of the greatest things that this band has going for it is the infectiousness of the energy that they put forth on stage. They got great response from the crowd the entire performance, they got the people to dance on stage and on the floor, and they rocked the place like they were the headliner. Whole Wheat Bread is an act that I recommend everyone go see the next time they pass through.

MC Chris (AKA MC Pee Pants from Aqua Team Hunger Force) finished off the night to a packed crowd. MC Chris performs "nerd core" hip hop. It was suspected by audience members that MC Chris was lip syncing his show. Regardless of the truth of those suspicions, I was not impressed by MC Chris's performance. It was just him, on the stage with his laptop playing his music while he "sang". The most entertaining part of his set was when he called out a heckler in the crowd.

May 20th: Cat’s Cradle: Maylene and The Sons of Disaster, Clutch

I had looked forward to this concert for months because Clutch has been one of my favorite bands for the last few years. Native to Maryland and with more than 10 albums to their credit, Clutch passes through the Triangle roughly once a year; and unfortunately does not allow photography at their shows. This year’s show, while fun, was a bit of a disappointment from previous times I had seen them. The mosh pit broke out fast, but disappeared just as quickly as it had started, the lead singer didn’t have much to say to the crowd, and it was difficult to see the band due to an unusually tall audience. I dare to say metal/hard rockers Maylene and The Sons of Disaster put on a better, higher energy performance.

May 27th: The Pour House: Black Skies, Caltrop , Colossus

This show featured some of the best Raleigh has to offer in hard rock and metal, and I hate myself for not realizing what pocket I had put my camera in. It wasn’t until Colossus took that stage that I realized that I hadn’t left my camera at home.

Black Skies is from Chapel Hill and was celebrating the vinyl release of Hexagon (5/26/09).  I look forward to seeing more this band in the future because I’m not entirely sure about how much I enjoyed the performance. Part of it was the stage presence of the band, part of it was the annoying buzz that was feeding into the mix from a bad cable. However, I do encourage people to check out their music none the less.

Caltrop, also from Chapel Hill, is the embodiment of local music history with members having been part of Hazerai, Pegasus, El Sucio, The Ladderback, and Valient Thorr. Caltrop produces a hard rock jam band feel that just oozes potential. The band’s LP, World Class, lives up to  its’ title fully.

To finish the night, Colossus performed to a disappointingly small crowd, but kicked ass anyway.

To quote Colossus's Myspace: "The five Mini-Colossoi are slaves to the power of the lord Poseidon, and must do his bidding. He commands us to rock unsuspecting American youth in your bars and houses, drinking your beer and crushing your skulls with thundering beats, baroque polyphony, galloping basses, and soaring vocals, all of which testify the awesome power of the mighty Poseidon." This is certainly something that Colossus excels at. Their sets are high tempo, they get the crowd into the performance with thier intense energy, and they even sing 'happy birthday' and toast thier friends in the middle of the show. They make it abundantly clear that they love to perform.

So in 3 weeks time, I saw 4 local bands and 4 non-local, nationally touring bands. Beleive me, the local bands certainly held their ground and put forth some great acts; and not all of the national acts were that great. Going to these shows made me think about the nature of concerts, and to a certain extent, music itself. Perhaps the biggest difference between great music/concerts/bands and everything else, is the experience one walks away with. A show by a great act makes the audience walk away pumped up,  or full of memories and opinions of what they just experienced; a show by a not so great act does not. Part of why this is, is the reason people go to the show in the first place, and part of it is the showmanship of the band. When I went to see Hey Euphony, Whole Wheat Bread and Clutch, I walked away feeling as though I had experienced something. However, if I hadn’t stayed for Colossus, and had simply gone home after seeing Black Skies, I may not have felt the same way.

Part of what causes this differentiation in experience lies on the individual at the show, and the other part lies on the shoulders of the band. Colossus, Whole Wheat Bread, Hey Euphony, and Maylene and the Sons of Disaster showed up to perform; not to simply play a gig, but to rock out and have an awesome time. Now this isn’t to say that the other bands didn’t; perhaps the crowd just wasn’t into it, or came to see someone else.

It is for this reason that I ask everyone that goes to support local music, to be active at it. Don’t just go to a show to have a couple beers, hang out, or just b.s. around: Go to the show to have an experince. Get into the music, the people on stage, and the people around you. For the love god, dance, hand bang, jump around, or whatever else comes to mind. Just don’t stand there with a stick up your butt and bounce your head like a bobble head doll. One thing that bands like Colossus, Red Collar, and other local bands excel at, is bringing the audeince to the edge of thier comfortable “chill” zone and pushing them into having an awesome time.

After what was probably the most eclectic Local Beat I’ve hosted last week (Lemming Malloy, Colossus, and Caltrop),  we’ve got a jam-packed lineup this week.

At 5:00, self-described rock orchestra Easy Company will be stopping by to play a few songs in studio and to talk about a show they’re putting on June 6th at the Halle Cultural Arts Theatre in Apex.  If you thought Lost in the Trees was a crowd with an 11-person band, these guys have 17 members!  Not sure how many are coming in for the interview and performance, but this is a situation where the throwaway line “crazier things have happened” may not necessarily apply.

Easy Company Show flyer, c/o the band's Myspace page

At 6:00, resident Wednesday Local Lunch DJ Cioffi will be interviewing Raleigh-based progressive/experimental band Pivot.  They’re playing the Brewery June 5th and will be by to talk about that.

Lastly, at 7:00, Friday Local Lunch DJ Mikey P will be interviewing Lonnie Walker about the new album, These Times Old Times, their release show/party at Schoolkids Records on Hillsborough Street and the Ahpeele warehouse on Capital Blvd.  They’re also going on tour with Brooklyn-based Motel Motel in June, so Mikey will ask him about that as well.

So as you can see, we’re cramming about as much as we possibly can into luxurious post-baseball 3-hour Local Beat this Friday, 5/29.  Be sure to tune in at 88.1 FM or wknc.org/listen.

My my my, the hits just keep coming on the Local Beat.  If you thought DJ Stevo was gone for good, then you thought wrong.  He’s only expressing his love for the North Carolina music scene in a different way now, through his brand new label, Neckbeard Records.  And as part of the Neckbeard Records launch, they’re throwing a free show at the Local 506 on Friday night.  The lineup is Gray Young, I Was Totally Destroying It, and Lemming Malloy–who will be releasing their album on Neckbeard that night.  So some combination of Stevo, Lemming Malloy, and others will be stopping by right at 5:00 to talk about what the band and the label has been up to — and what they have in store.

Then at 6:00, we’re going to switch directions completely–Colossus will be stopping in to talk about their show next Wednesday (5/27) at the Pour House.  They’ll be playing alongside Black Skies and Caltrop in what promises to be a pretty epic local metal show.  It’s not confirmed yet, but Caltrop may be joining them.  It remains to be seen.  What is certain, though, is that we’ll be having a good time and getting to know our favorite bands a little better.  And baseball is over, so we get the full 3 hours again!  Be sure to tune in at 5:00 at 88.1 FM or wknc.org/listen.

Check It. WKNC has nominated local metal awesomeness, Colossus, for Song Joust Records’ Battle of the Bands. If Colossus wins, then they will receive a sweet record deal.

Voting is easy, just click here, and then play Colossus’s The Operative. Colossus’s nomination should appear on page 9 or 10 depending on your browser.

Now do your duty and help Colossus represent the Triangle!

On 1/22/09, Colossus band members  Sean Buchanan and Bill Fisher dropped in during Local Lunch for a quick interview.

The day started off with Colossus's Sean Buchanan and Bill Fisher stopping by the studio for a quick interview and exclusive debut of two tracks from their next album.

Colossus brought WKNC a belated Christmas gift in the form of 2 exclusive, not yet released, songs from their next album that is set to hit the streets in a few months. Colossus played at WKNC & Tir Na Nog’s Local Beer, Local Band on Thursday, January 22nd, with Double Barrel Benefit 5 alumni, Tooth.

Check out Murdoc’s Picture Blog and exclusive review of Colossus’s next album!

You can listed to the songs Kill More Better and The Mountain in the interview below.

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At first, I thought I would try something else for this week’s post…so I forgot my camera at home and went speeding off to Tir Na Nog’s first metal night featuring Tooth and Colossus. Thankfully my brother came through for me and brought his camera (but he didn’t get there until Tooth’s last song). So grabbed the camera from him and snagged as many good shots as I could.

Being a DJ that started out wanting to be a part of the WKNC Chainsaw Rock crew, Tir Na Nog’s first metal night really got my blood pumping. If you sadly missed this show, then you missed one of the most awesome Local Beer, Local Band nights ever. This may have been one of the slightly more tame metal shows I have attended (since it lacked blood, boobs, and a mosh pit), but it was one of my favorite Local Beer, Local Bands none the less.

Tooth: Durham based Tooth released their EP Animality just before playing at WKNC’s Double Barrel Benefit 5 last year, and have been spreading their punk metal style around the Triangle since.  According to their bassist, Ryland Fishel, the band has been working on their second album and have recorded some tracks that are set to be released on vinyl soon.

Tooth's front man JME Guptill, and bassist Ryland Fishel. No that isn't a reflection of camera flash, it is Ryland building up an energy blast for the last song of their set.

Richard James on Guitar and Noah Kessler on Drums

Ben Wilson on guitar and Ryland Fishel on bass.

Tooth's Hollerer, JME Guptill, as the face of horror.

Tooth's big finish

Colossus: Raleigh based metal at its finest. Colossus mashes elements of thrash metal with power metal elements to create hard rock masterpieces. Colossus singer, Sean Buchanan, and guitarist, Bill Fisher, dropped by WKNC’s Local Lunch for a quick interview and to debut two tracks off of their upcoming album that is yet to be named. WKNC also received an exclusive advanced copy of the album to review and play.

The day started off with Colossus's Sean Buchanan and Bill Fisher stopping by the studio for a quick interview and exclusive debut of two tracks from their next album.

Bill's skill is only matched by the intensity of his facial expressions.

Nicky Nixon shredding an awesome solo that made the strings burn, hence the look on Sean's face.

Benjamin Smith (drums) broke his snare not long after this picture was took. They borrowed one from Tooth to finish the show.

Guitarist Nicky Nixon and Bassist Rylan Wilshire during Colossus's new single, Kill More Better. Killer More Better is based off of the Max Brooks book, World War Z.

The only thing missing from the end of this show was pyrotechnics. However, it did feature the giving of one the most awesome contracts ever.

Click any picture to view the full gallery.

Click here for the WKNC review of Colossus’s next album.

Click here to listen to the Local Lunch interview with Colossus.

Local metal act Colossus is at it again with another very solid CD release. Colossus’s thrash metal music mixed with power metal lyrics combines to produce a 5 track record about killing zombies, cannibalizing one’s fallen enemies, and kicking ass. The album is full of awesome guitar solos, and hardcore headbanging. The album is yet to be named, but it is well worth putting on your list of CD’s to keep an eye out for in the coming months.

Colossus singer Sean Buchanan and guitarist Bill Fisher dropped into the WKNC studio last week for a quick interview and to debut 2 new singles from the upcoming album. Click here for a taste of metal awesomeness.

Colossus will be bringing metal mayhem to Local Lunch on Thursday, January 22nd, for an interview.

Colossus’s Rylan Wilshire & Sean Buchanan will be in studio for the interview at around 12:30pm. Afterwords, Colossus will be playing with WKNC Double Barrel Benefit 5 alumni, Tooth, at WKNC & Tir Na Nog’s first Local Beer, Local Band that will feature Metal music.

For more details about the show, check out the WKNC Rock Report, and don’t forget to tune in for the interview!

Colossus... And The Rift Of The Pan-Dimensional UnderGods

Raleigh metal act Colossus is back in the studio to record a new EP, as yet unnamed.   The album is being recorded outside Chapel Hill at Warrior Sound Studio.  According to guitarist Nicky Nixon the album will have five songs that “address a number of topics, including humans eating human corpses, human corpses reanimating and attempting to eat living humans, fish eating whale carcasses, and yet another song about cannibalism.”

No word on when the EP is set to release, but you can catch Colossus live at Tir Na Nog January 22nd, as part of WKNC’s Local Beer Local Band night along side Durham band Tooth.