Category: New Album Review

The newest albums, EPs and singles on the air at WKNC 88.1 FM HD-1/HD-2

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New Album Review

[Afterhours] End of Summer Album Roundup

There is one more week until the end of my favorite season of the year. Here are some of the best Afterhours albums from this season:

Porter Robinson – “Worlds”

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This NC artist takes a very different approach compared to his last album. A very light electro sound that was made to go against the grain of current EDM. Lots of indie & pop influence will be found.

Amp Live – “Headphone Concerto”

Some of the best production this year. A beautiful mix of live instruments with synthesizers. This album is broken up into three distinct parts. Many cool guest vocalist and several hiphop songs.

ODESZA – “In Return”

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Dope beatz from ODESZA with Deep Percussion and high synth melodies. More downtempo-chill songs but a nice variety from song to song. A very well put together album. I dig the positive vibes I get from the songs. It’s nice because downtempo songs are usually darker, sometimes even somber.

Chet Faker – “Built On Glass”

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Some of my favorite male vocals I have heard released this year. The instrumentals are as smooth as this man’s voice. This album draws a lot from Flume, Chet was even featured on the song “Left Alone,” but this record is a bit jazzier.

Tensnake – “Glow”

A top notch house producer who keeps getting better. By house, I mean the older Chicago style house. Tensnake also throws in some post-dub and many great guest vocalists. 

Slow Magic – “How To Run Away”

Light, midtempo, and catchy. Wordless vocals and guitar riffs chopped up into an ethereal swirl. Very vibrant synths and percussion.

Hippie Sabotage – “The Sunny Album”

This album is super chill, but NOT boring. The producers do a good job of keeping things interesting while still keeping the chill vibes and avoiding heavy drops with crazy wubs. Common theme here is big bass with unique drum beats and overall chill vibes.

Lone – “Reality Testing”

Jungle and house album with cool jazz influence. No lyrics, just smooth synths.

Mndsgn – “Yawn Zen”

This album favors murky, underwater sounds dripping with syrupy chimes. What really brings it all together is the trippy jazz undertones. No song is longer than 3 minutes and there are no vocals.

by Muta &  YeägerMeister

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New Album Review

The Grapes return to the music scene with the release of “Low”

There has always been a lot of mystery surrounding The Grapes. They certainly don’t go out of their way to advertise their presence in the music scene. When I first discovered them in the summer of 2012, I had to spend hours scouring the internet for information on this band. The most I could ever find besides their two (known) releases on their bandcamp page was a few music videos, and a live video from a performance at The Cave. The mysteriousness behind the music that I instantly fell in love with only added to their ultra-lofi/DIY image.

If you haven’t heard The Grapes before, I highly encourage you to check out their first two releases.. It was long thought that the band broke up for good in 2012, and having hardly any activity since a reunion show in the summer of 2013, it definitely solidified the rumor amongst their fans. However, the band quietly released a brand new album on September 1st, 2014.

With this latest album, featuring 11 brand new tracks, The Grapes take their music in a new direction. Instead of their usual two piece, nitty-gritty, loud and erratic lofi gold, this album is considerably slower, less noisy, and much more sophisticated musically. Lyrically, we follow the same well spoken (or sung) narrator as he lives his life in college, but still deals with all the same self-loathing and girl related issues he dealt with in high school. The Grapes always offer humor at the foreground of their lyrics, with dark emotional torment sitting right behind. This can be best found in tracks like “Teen Girl Song” and “Frat Boys”.

With the release of this album, the band also welcomes Chris Palmour to join the original members, Jeremy and Brett. I’m very excited to see where the band goes with the release of this album. I can only hope that it includes some shows this fall, but of course, they’ll probably be so secret I won’t even know about them.

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New Album Review

Fresh outta high school, Astro Cowboy releases Hedonism Colosseum

Wilmington indie rockers, Astro Cowboy, released their first full length album last weekend titled Hedonism Colosseum. Complete with a release party at Bourgie Nights in Wilmington on July 12th, the band handed out a hundred free copies of their album and also released it on bandcamp the following day. 

Hedonism Colosseum explores the feelings, relationships, drama, and juvenile joy of being in high school. As the band writes on their bandcamp page: 

“Remember when you thought that high school was going to last forever? When you thought that it was the apex of real? Every relationship, decision, and action you made, you thought was going to remain relevant and important for the rest of your life? This album is the result of those feelings.”

Hedonism Colosseum album art

The album features 10 brand new, original songs. It includes the heavier, punk influenced songs like “White Shoes“ and ”Suntan“ which share a similar sound with the band’s first EP Rat-Man Vann, but on more than a couple tracks, such as “Inhale” and “Goodbye, A.E.G.” the band takes instrumental explorations with intricate guitar riffs and drum fills that sound reminiscent of Modest Mouse’s The Lonesome Crowded West.  

All in all this is a very solid record, and my only complaint is that it’s not longer! Clocking in at 40 minutes, the end of this album leaves the listener wanting more. 

Astro Cowboy follows the release of their album with an East Coast tour supporting fellow Wilmington band, Museum Mouth.

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New Album Review

My Awaking to Tycho

My top three biggest regrets this last semester:

  1. Not brushing my teeth.
  2. Dropping out of school.
  3. Skipping the Tycho show at Cat’s Cradle.  

WHY DID I NOT GO TO THIS SHOW!!!  But seriously, Tycho’s last album “Awake” is probably the most inspiring album this year.

Going for a long drive? Listen to “Awake.” Studying? Listen to “Awake.” Crab fishing in Alaska and rough seas got you sea sick? Listen to “Awake." Most electo- trance -(poppy) music like this will be amazing all the time, but what makes the album beautiful is the distinction between all the songs.  Each one has a certain mood affiliated with it.

Please download this album as you swim through the introspective heat waves of the summer.

– Coyote

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New Album Review

ALBUM REVIEW: The Hotelier – Home, Like Noplace Is There

Release Date: February 25, 2014

Record Label: Tiny Engines

Genre: Emo, Pop Punk

I believe the cover can say a lot about an album. This one’s a familiar image, suburbia. Though, it’s not a comforting view. The words of the album title are painted in black across the vinyl panels of this weary-looking house. It’s almost definitely a sarcastic remark. The lawn is overgrown. The hedges are misshapen. The shutters are dirtied. This doesn’t feel like home.

Now, I know what you’re thinking, “Oh no, another pop punk album about the suburbs.” Well, if there’s one thing that sets this album apart from — those — it’s the writing. The lyrics on a song like, “Your Deep Rest” make that very clear. You don’t have to read too far into them to see the song is about loss, particularly the loss of someone you love. It’s a theme that permeates the whole album. In “Dendron” it’s summed up with the words, “Part of your charm was the way you would push me from all of the traps that I just couldn’t see. Figures the one that was there to have tripped you up would be the one was set there by me.”  For me, these aching moments of regret are the album’s highlights. Where you felt you could have done something more. You could have somehow fixed a hopeless situation.

The Hotelier’s sophomore album, “Home, Like Noplace Is There” was released a couple months ago. While this means I’ve missed the hype train, it also means I’ve had plenty of time to let this record settle. Well, this collection of nine songs has been on consistent rotation, and it still sticks. It’s the kind of emo/pop punk hybrid that hasn’t been a rarity in the past few years. But, it’s much more endearing than most. I think when people look back on the late 00’s and early 10’s era of DIY “emo” music there are only a few bands they’ll remember. Algernon Cadwallader, Snowing, TWIABP, and The Hotelier will be among the most prominent.

In a weird way, this album also shares elements with bands like Third Eye Blind, Blink-182, and Taking Back Sunday. But here, the emotions, the guitar distortion, and the vocals, are all much more raw. What I love about this album is its tendency to conjure up memories in me, like being in middle school, waiting endlessly in carpool lines, or just the feeling of being young and aching to have a purpose, dreaming of living an unhinged life, but still so scared to leave home. It brings back memories of hopping creeks and sneaking into construction homes. The failed relationships that can’t be resurrected, the regret of letting time make its move, the snare of depression. Things that feel so strange to look back on now… “Home, Like Noplace Is There” will surely be looked back on. It’s undoubtedly one of the best rock albums of 2014.

PS: Do yourself a favor. Read the lyrics with this one.

Favorite tracks: “The Scope of All This Rebuilding”, “Your Deep Rest”, “Among the Wildflowers”

-DJ Nasty Nate

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New Album Review

Album Review: Multi Viral by Calle 13

Written by DJ Cancel, host of the Arroz con Pollo show, which airs every Saturday from 5-6pm. 

To begin, here is some background information. Calle 13 is composed of two artists both whom were born and raised in Puerto Rico. The main vocalist is Residente, born René Pérez Joglar, and Visitante, born Eduardo José Cabra Martinez, is the beat maker. Residente’s half-sister, Ileana Cabra Joglar, is also credited as a vocalist for the band. With a first album self-titled “Calle 13,” released in 2005, Calle 13 proved that fame does not come from main stream media. Calle 13 gained fame the old fashion way by making great music. Though songs like “Se vale to-to,” “¡Atrévete Te, Te!,” and singles like “Querido F.B.I” won the duo a main stream media ban for being excessively vulgar, it also brought them into the spotlight. This gave the audience a chance to really listen to the music. Since then, their music has built an impressive legacy with a documentary titled “Sin Mapa,” two Grammys, and 19 Latin Grammys, a record tied only by famous artist Juanes. 

What does Calle 13 stand for? Political equality, keeping those in power in check, and giving power back to the people. What genre do they fit into? It depends on who you ask. Calle 13 calls it urban music. Most label it as hip hop, rock-rap, and even reggaeton. In all honesty, Calle 13 has created its very own genre. Their beats and flow change with every album they release; this brings me to their newest album. 

Multi Viral, Calle 13’s fifth and newest album, is a masterpiece. It is an album that has been developing since the beginning of Calle 13’s career. Calle 13 had help from Tom Morello, Julian Assange, John Leguizamo, Silvio Rodríguez, and more in this album. The duo finally found a way to express their thoughts in an eloquent and beautiful way without the need of appealing to anything but what they stand for. Hints of this can be seen in previous albums with songs like “Pal Norte,” “Latinoamérica,” and “La Perla,” but Multi Viral truly has it all. It includes inspirational songs such as “El Aguante,” and “Respira el Momento,” focused on people’s individual power to persevere. It includes songs like, “Gato Que Avanza, Perro Que Ladra,” “MultiViral,” and “Adentro,” charged with social and political commentary about government surveillance, the greed of the wealthy, and much more. 

Multi Viral is the greatest of all of Calle 13’s albums to date. Having followed their career myself, it is amazing to see how Calle 13 has matured and grown these past nine years. I recommend this album to everyone, no matter what language you speak. The beats, rhythm, and flow of the album will make you fall in love just as much, if not more, than the lyrics themselves. I will leave you with my favorite verse from the album translated into English from the song “Me Vieron Cruzar,” which means they saw me cross: 

Pero estoy preparado para // But I am ready for

Los días salados // The salty days 

Cualquiera que camine // Whoever walks 

Se tiene que haber resbalado // Must have slipped 

Cai con todo el peso // I fell with all my weight 

Pero si es fuerte la caída más // But if the fall was strong 

Impresionante será mi regreso // My return will be even more impressive 

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New Album Review

New Music

Burnt Ones // “Gift”

This album is full of fuzzy dreamy catchy and whatever other good vibe adjectives that you can possibly think of. Gift is sure to have a least one track on it that will appeal to any and all listeners out there.

Honeymilk // “Lean on the Sun" 

Coming out of Stockholm, Honeymilk contains a solid indie rock feel with their whining guitars and fuzzy vocals. Kinda sound like YUCK…but with lots of good flavors.

PINS // "Girls Like Us" 

Solid girl punk rock. Not too crazy, but still consisting of all female vocals and in your face guitar riffs. PINS is on the rise and rightfully so.

Mainland // "Shiner EP" 

Although this EP only has a total of four tracks, it is quite the head turner. Full of catchy rock melodies, this New York band is full of passion and definitely pushing their way into the music scene of today.

Desert Noises // "27 Ways" 

Absolutely fantastic group. Giving off a good foot stomping indie folk/rock feel, Desert Noises combines lots of tambourines and clapping to make their music simply infectious. 

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Local Music New Album Review

New Local Music

Diali Cissokho & Kaira Ba // The Great Peace

Some truly entrancing music from this Carrboro based outfit. Diali Cissokho hails from Senegal but moved stateside and teamed up with a crew of really talented local musicians to form this incredible band. Some ridiculously dancy tunes interspersed with some intensely emotional tracks. To hell with the language barrier, music is universal. Play it if you’re looking for something different!

Ladyfriend // Ladyfriend EP

This band is split between N.C. and N.Y, but you wouldn’t know that with how cohesive and smooth this EP is. Sort of like a mix between Love Language and Jamaican Queens, Ladyfriend combines surf-psych elements with experimental pop and some slight electronic instrumentation pepper throughout the mix as well. REALLY awesome stuff!

Ellis Dyson & The Shambles // Whiskey Business

The name of this EP is far more descriptive than I’d imagined. These whiskey-soaked tunes can easily lead to some foot-stompin’ hootin’ and hollerin’ (pardon, that’s the eastern North Carolina coming out in me). A bit of ragtime influence thrown in with some exciting folk-rock standards, there’s tons of potential here! Remind me a lot of an early Holy Ghost Tent Revival.

Sinners & Saints // Love & Misery

This Charlotte based duo is churning out some excellent folk-rock music. A lot of strong influences bleeding through on this release, very reminiscent of acts like The Avett Brothers. All around some really enjoyable tunes that range from poppy and anthemic to slower folk-leaning ballads.

Estrangers // Season of 1000 Colors

One of the most slept on local releases of last year without a doubt. Lots of comparisons can be drawn to The Love Language, but Estrangers add enough of their own flair to make it interested and unique (a little bit of classic 50s pop stylings and some sweet harmonies!) An excellent way to kick off Spring is by spinning these sun-soaked tunes!

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New Album Review

New Music

Nothing // “Guilty of Everything”

Hailing out of Philly, the band Nothing puts their rock music right in your face. Loud, but still structured very well to show all of their talent. Definitely worth a listen.

Bear Hands // “Distraction”

Confession time boys and girls; I LOVE BEAR HANDS. This album is absolutely amazing; upbeat, catchy and full of those wonderful Bear Hand lyrics. I’m not sure how many people are aware of this band, but after this album they definitely will be. 

Sacco // “Sacco”

Overall, Sacco is a soothing soft rock album/band that nobody can really complain about. Even though they do not really push the envelope for something new in the indie music world, they really contribute to the talent that exists in the music world today. 

Cataldo // “Gilded Oldies”

This is a beautifully constructed album. Cataldo has been gaining a steady following in recent years, and this album will definitely not halt that trend. Using diverse instruments and heartfelt lyrics, Gilded Oldies is an impressive album.

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New Album Review

New Local Music

Lost in the Trees // “Past Life”

Of course, Lost in the Trees exude excellence on their latest album.Past Life is a bit of a departure from their usual styling, instead of intricately composed classical instrumentation the band has leaned more towards their art-rock influences. A fantastic album that deserves hella spins!

RIYL: Radiohead, Blonde Redhead

Lilac Shadows // “No Dark/No Light”

Lilac Shadows have blown my expectations out of the water with this one. Delving much deeper into the psych-rock realm, No Dark/No Light is filled with exploratory indie rock jams that are as catchy as they are expansive.

RIYL: Deerhunter

Amigo // “Might Could”

Some simplistic yet enjoyable honky-tonk infused rock music. This Charlotte based group has a sound that’s got enough contemporary grit and traditional twang to draw in folks of all ages. Some wonderful stuff on this album!

RIYL: Drive-By Truckers

Curtis Eller’s American Circus // “How To Make It In Hollywood”

Ah, the zany folk rock antics of Curtis Eller are back once again. Eller’s got a brilliant mixture of traditionalism and innovation, providing a compelling twist to what could easily be a static genre. Eller’s songs provide enriching stories and immersive lyricism filled with just enough quirk to make it a riotous occasion.

RIYL: Off the wall carnival-esque antics. Srsly.

Naked Naps // “Ok, Bye”

A much needed dose of lo-fi high-energy punk rock for the local scene. Naked Naps combine early 90s indie rock sentiments with an almost twee-punk styling, all washed over with sweltering instrumentation.

RIYL: Whatever Brains