It’s Hopscotch season in the Triangle! Hopscotch is returning to downtown Raleigh for its eleventh year on Sept. 9-11.
WKNC has partnered with NC State University Libraries to present our 2021 official Hopscotch Day Party, on Sept. 9, from noon to 3 p.m. Occurring outside of DH Hill Jr Library facing Hillsborough Street, this event is free and open to the public; you don’t need a ticket to Hopscotch to attend.
The party is not only a showcase of North Carolina electronic musicians but also of WKNC alumni talent; every performer has been involved with WKNC in the past. We’re excited to welcome back former DJs and staff to the campus.
The event will be live-streamed via NC State University Libraries’ Twitch channel.
Check out the official flyer below, and read on to get a short bio of each of the musicians, written by WKNC General Manager Maddie.
The lineup is designed in a way to start on the more chill and ambient side of electronic, and slowly turn heavier by the end of the showcase.
Starting off the showcase is midcentury modular. midcentury modular was a WKNC DJ for 3 years between 2011 and 2014, as well as working with our Daytime music block. As the name might suggest, midcentury modular makes modular synth music, exploring the various environments that can be created. Some of his work, like the release “snow,” is more sparse and desolate, while others, like the release “a weekend,” play around with beeps and boops to create a fun, uplifting atmosphere. I’ve always wanted to see a modular synth performance and I’m excited to watch his set.
Changing paces next is en-decay. Cyrus has been producing electronic music and DJing under the name en-decay since 2012, making glitchy, IDM-like music that also takes inspiration from various other electronic genres, such as industrial or ambient. They started working as a freelance DJ for events in high school then as an Afterhours DJ for WKNC for 2 years. They’ve collaborated with a variety of artistic groups such as Windhover, Sinetology, and Maison Fauna, planning and playing events and festivals around North Carolina. They’ve been uploading releases since 2017 to their Bandcamp page, so have fun browsing for a bit.
Next is JOB. JOB started DJing at WKNC in the spring of 2019. In the summer of 2019 he hosted a Sunday underground show called Clocking Out. He also helped record a few live sessions in The Lounge. JOB’s music consists of super fun and fast-paced mixes, consisting of artists like Toro y Moi, Azealia Banks and Ariana Grande. His bio on mixcloud simply says “girls + gays only”, if you can’t already tell what his musical vibe is based on the aforementioned artists. I am very much ready to dance to this set.
And lastly, we have Sand Pact. Hema of Sand Pact was involved with WKNC from 2014-2018, in which she worked as a DJ (first as DJ iCloud, and later as Gudiya), graphic designer, and promotions director, as well as began the WKNC zine. Hema invited Alex onto her DJ sets and the two began their love for playing electronic music together. I discovered Sand Pact a few years ago when I was trying to discover more Triangle-based artists, and I really dug their sound and entire aesthetic. They have a pretty harsh sound, consisting of various strange noises layered over industrial beats. I’m super happy to have them play this set, as I’ve been wanting to see how their live show looks ever since I first discovered them.
I hope you discovered your new favorite North Carolinian electronic musician, and are able to come out to our showcase.