This Halloween night, the Martians are invading the airwaves and striking terror in the hearts of WKNC listeners everywhere.

This live, localized adaptation of the Mercury Theater production of H.G. Wells‘ War of the Worlds is the brainchild of Damian Maddalena, who, as La Barba Rossa, hosts WKNC’s Saturday morning 60s and 70s program, Mystery Roach.  Maddalena, along with his Two Cabbage Radio Players, have worked diligently to season the science fiction classic with local flavor.  Sound effects will be performed by Brian Donohoe, member of the local band Starmount.  AV Geek Skip Elsheimer lends his voice to the production, along with a motley crew of WKNC Djs, NCSU students and community members who share Maddalena’s vision and taste for the unusual: DJs Alex Steinbaugh, Caitlin Cauley, Jacob Downey, Liz Cervantes, and Mike Gray, along with grad student Dave Fallest and Magic Babies keyboardist Brandon Whitesell.

The invasion will take place at 7 p.m. on October 31.  You can get ready for Halloween debauchery to the sounds of the Triangle’s destruction, only on 88.1 FM or streaming online.

Tonight on the Local Beat is going to be another three hours of musical goodness.  Check out the lineup for the show!

At 5pm Reid Johnson from Schooner is stopping by to talk about the band’s recent adventures and play some brand new tunes for us off of their upcoming “Duck Kee Sessions” EP that just hit the internet.  Schooner is also playing tonight at the Pour House alongside the Magic Babies & Starmount for what should be a killer show.

6pm is a huge thrill for me as I am bringing in one of my favorite local bands, and also one of the most elusive, the Carolina Chocolate Drops.  CCD is playing at the Cats Cradle tomorrow night for a rare local show that you are not going to want to miss out on.  I also think this may be their WKNC debut…

At 7pm Zach Terry of the Whiskey Smugglers and Liz Ross of Lafcadio are joining me in the studio to talk about next Wednesdays show at the Cats Cradle.  The show is a benefit to battle Multiple Sclerosis and Zach is playing solo, being joined by Lafcadio, The Tomahawks, and The Last of the Great Sideshow Freaks (The Old Ceremony’s Mark Simonsen’s band).

So drop a line to the Local Beat, every Friday evenings from 5pm-8pm.  Listen on the air or listen over the internet!

You know the story.  Local music die hard, and WXYC alum,  Cy Rawls, was diagnosed with a malignant brain tumor in June of 2008.  Unable to pay his mounting medical bills, bands and friends from all over North Carolina, Virginia, and the US pitched in to throw some of the most amazing concerts, film viewings, and even bake sales, with all benefits attributed to a fund which paid for Cy’s medical bills.  Unfortunately, at just the age of 33, on October 3, 2008, Cy passed away at Duke Medical Center.

Thankfully, it did not end there.  Enter CyTunes, a nonprofit music download site that “features exclusive music from artists who have contributed tracks (both live and in-studio) to help raise money for cancer research in memory of Cy Rawls.”  There are 44 bands and artists in all (as of today) which include:

ALL PROCEEDS from CyTunes go to Tisch Brain Tumor Center, where Cy was a patient.  Please support this amazing organization, the bands that contribute to it, and the memory of Cy Rawls.

For more information, feel free to read these excellent articles by the Independent Weekly, and this write-up by Pitchfork.