Category: Local Music

General coverage of local music happenings

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Local Music

Now Spinning: To Live a Lie Records

To Live A Lie Records. DIY Record Label and Distro since 2005.
To Live A Lie Records. DIY Record Label and Distro since 2005.

Why would I take time out of my day to talk about an independent record label? It’s probably due to the similar urge that drives me away from big name grocery stores and into small locally managed markets and stores to buy produce – I want to know the people that live around me even better. 

To Live A Lie Records (TLAL) is a local Raleigh based record label (and record store) run by Will Butler. They focus on cultivating sounds from the grindcore, fastcore and a variety of other delightful hardcore subgenres. 

Now, I wouldn’t want to spread any words about a local business that I found boring, but To Live  A Lie harbors a truly unique sound coming from hardcore (HXC) around the world. In an interview, Butler mentions the reason he started this label was to help bands like his own to get their sounds into the wild (CVLT Nation interview). 

Who is TLAL?

Will Butler founded TLAL in Raleigh in 2005, which makes it a whopping 18 years old. Butler, as mentioned in an interview, started this label all on his own, working an “adult job” and putting money from that into this business (Idioteq interview). 

Some of the big bands that TLAL has worked with or works with are Crom, ACxDC (also known as Antichrist Demoncore) and Fading Signal (local Raleigh band), and their more recent projects include Realize (Arizona industrial metal) and Endless Swarm (blisteringly speedy grindcore). All of these artists and bands can be found on TLAL’s Bandcamp page.

I absolutely love the music this label continues to find and release. Butler has done a wonderful job of finding a niche genre and working with artists to produce high quality products year after year. One of the joys of looking through TLAL’s catalog is noticing where some of these bands come from. There are bands from Michigan, Indonesia, Turkey and more.

What does TLAL offer besides good tunes?

TLAL’s website might be a bit outdated and slow, but the content on there is wonderful. There are release updates and posts regularly by Butler. Sometimes there are touring dates posted. Generally, there’s an abundant wealth of information available to anyone that spends some time digging and pilfering the nuggets of gold littered throughout. 

Also, TLAL has a brick and mortar record shop in Raleigh, which I still need to go check out myself. I don’t know how much money I’d be draining out of my wallet if I stepped foot in the store, so I’m a little scared to visit. 

Butler’s To Live A Lie records has its place cemented in not only Raleigh HXC history, but also the history of the genres that TLAL releases. Independent record labels like this one support so many deserving artists because they actually care about the art and emotions being put into the records that are produced.

TLAL’s discography spans a deep 18 years, and I cannot wait to swim my way through the slurry of screaming sounds over the next few months. It’ll be like panning for gold when everything glitters and catches my eye.

Dig deep and eat up,

Ben

Categories
Blog Concert Preview Festival Coverage Local Music Miscellaneous

Hopscotch – This or That: Main Stage Guide

WKNC 88.1 blog
Promotional logo for Hopscotch music festival 2023, including date and location of the event.

It’s that time of year again, when thousands of music-lovers take to the streets of Raleigh to vibe with some seriously class acts, whatever the weather. Yes, 13 years after its debut, Hopscotch Music Festival is back (Sep. 7-9), with main stages at Moore Square and City Plaza, and dozens of stellar acts across the city.

With over 120 acts performing, even the choosiest of playlist-makers can find something to enjoy over the three day event. From rock to rap, post-punk to country, indie, folk, and more, diversity and inclusivity is truly the name of the game.

However, as with every festival lineup worth its salt, a dilemma lies in the inability to put oneself in more than one place at a time. City Plaza and Moore Square are only half a mile apart, but those steps rack up quickly if you’re planning on trekking back and forth between every few sets.

While the truly determined festival-goer could yo-yo between main stages and catch every set, the best intentions don’t always pan, out so it’s best to know your must-sees in advance. To help plan your musical voyage, here’s a look at the main stage lineups:

Thursday (Sep. 7)

Smooth Haze vs. Alt. Edge

Moore Square:

On Thursday afternoon, Moore Square opens the festival with a mellow haze of rock, jazz and psychedelics. A trio meant to be, Sam Evian, Mild High Club and King Krule embody that chill, late summer, “almost the weekend” feeling.

City Plaza:

Summer is also ending over at City Plaza, but with a bit of an edge, as brooding, post-punk takes the stage with Raleigh’s own Truth Club, followed by similar hints of angst from alt-rock groups, Palm, and Alvvays. Late-90s icons, Pavement, follow suit, closing the alt-rock set in style.

Friday (Sep. 8)

Urban vs. Country

Moore Square:

All things country take the stage on Friday at Moore Square. Sunny War brings modern folk-blues, and Neon Union epitomizes that all-American country sound. Cut Worms and Margo Price add pop and rock slants to the genre respectively, with a singer-songwriter angle.

City Plaza:

Raleigh native, Pat Junior, leads the urban parallel happening at City Plaza. TiaCorine builds on Pat Junior’s pure, simple, rhythm and flow with dreamy beats, while Digable Planets bring retro to the party in the style of 90s hip-hop and jazz. Rapper, Denzel Curry, completes the lineup with his signature emotional style.

Saturday (Sep. 9):

Emo vs. Indie

Moore Square:

Saturday is the host with the most with both main stages kicking off at at an earlier time of around 1pm. Max Gowan play emo, indie tunes to his hometown at Moore Square, before Quasi picks up the pace a little with alt-rock, indie hits. 90s emo heavyweights, American Football define the emo mood of the set with electric guitars and pining vocals.

Things get louder when Sunny Day Real Estate introduce prog rock energy to the lineup, and alt-rock, genre-changing, Dinosaur Jr. round off the set.

City Plaza:

Singer-songwriters start Saturday at City Plaza, with the soft vocals of Chessa Rich and the country twang of Florry. Anjimile adds a hint of melancholy to the mood, before ESG shake things up with post-punk and house.

Singer-songwriter, Soccer Mommy, brings rock and gentle vocals to the set, before the dreamy vocals and beats of indie sensations, Japanese Breakfast, close the festival.

More Info:

Having a better idea of the headliners might make planning a little easier, but with acts like these and almost 100 others playing smaller venues across the city, deciding where to be might just take a little more time. Check out the official website, Instagram, Facebook, X (f.k.a. Twitter) and the official Hopscotch app for more information on the lineup and the latest event updates to best Hopscotch your way around Raleigh next week.

Categories
Concert Preview Local Music

Upcoming Local Shows for March

Graphic with guitar and orange music notes
image made by author

Chatham County Line

When: Friday Mar. 3. Doors open 7pm, Show 8pm

Where: Cat’s Cradle, Carrboro, NC

Price: $20/$25

Chatham County Line is a local North Carolinian bluegrass band. This group blends characteristic native North Carolina bluegrass with soothing song writing and honest lyrics. Their sound is greatly inspired by the work of Neil Young and Gram Parsons– melding sweet guitar, mellow vocals, and rustic notes of harmonica and banjo picking.

Soul Glo

When: Saturday Mar. 4. Doors open 7pm, Show 8pm

Where: Cat’s Cradle Backroom, Carrboro, NC

Price: $17

Soul Glo is a hardcore punk and screamo band from Philadelphia. High energy, loud, and infused with political frustration, this band will undoubtedly put on an entertaining, heavy show. Soul Glo blends elements from screamo, punk, hip-hop and rap. Tracks such as “Driponomics” and “Coming Correct Is Cheaper” are great examples of the versatility and power this trio brings to their music.

Included in the show are performances from three openers: Cloud Rat, Backslider and Overgrown Throne.

The French Cassettes

When: Monday Mar. 6. Doors open 7pm. Show 8pm.

Where: The Pour House Music Hall and Record Shop, Raliegh NC

Price: $12-$15

The French Cassettes are an indie pop band from San Francisco. Their discography is filled with high energy tracks that evoke positivity and movement. Songs such as “Santa Cruz Tomorrow” and “Utah” demonstrate the richness this band brings to the indie pop genre. Their songs are anything but flat. The care and consideration that went into layering and building each track is prominent. The richness and high energy of their songs will provide for a great show.

Opener, Tino Drima, will add to the fun and light energy of this show. Tino Drima brings a dash of retro funk into the pop-rock genre. Together these bands will perform a fun, funky, crowd-pleasing show.

Sweet Pill

When: Saturday Mar.11. Doors 8pm, Show 9pm

Where: Local 506 Chapel Hill, NC

Price: $15

Sweet Pill is an emo punk band from Philadelphia. Their most recent album, “Where the Heart Is”, is characterized by bold vocals, complex guitar lines and unapologetically emo lyrics. Lead singer, Zayna Youssef, has a powerful voice that resonates energy from fellow emo-punk singer, Haley Williams. Sweet Pill is upbeat and bold– their performance will be energizing.

Opener Their / They’re / There holds a similar emo energy but takes a more indie rock approach. This is a great pairing of bands. Their / They’re / There will be an exciting, energetic opener and will transition beautifully to the heavier notes of Sweet Pill.

Runnner

When: Monday Mar. 13. Doors open 7pm, Show 8pm

Where: Cat’s Cradle Backroom Carrboro, NC

Price: $15/$18

Runnner is a folk, indie project by singer-songwriter Noah Weinmann. In his discography he has a collection of soft hits including “Ur Name on a Grain of Rice” and “Vines to Make it All Worth It”. His sound is gentle, refreshing and pleasant. The show will most certainly bring a meditative mood to Cat’s Cradle Stage.

Opener, waveform*, follows suit with a soft, pleasant indie sound with more of a moody and melancholy tone. Tracks “Favorite Song” and “makeup” by waveform* are great examples of the types of sound that may be heard at the concert.

Categories
Local Music

Local Artists for the Summer

When I attended Hopscotch in September of last year, I attended a few day parties to try and learn more about the local music scene since I was a fan of some bigger local artists like Wednesday and Indigo de Souza. I got to hear a lot of great artists, so over the year I’ve made an effort to listen to more North Carolina artists and attend more local shows. Now that it’s the summer I have more time to search for local artists, so here’s what I’m going to be listening to this summer from North Carolina artists. 

First is an artist I’ve been listening to for a while, Melaina Kol, an exciting new independent artist out of Youngsville, North Carolina. The person behind Melaina Kol is Logan Hornyak who first broke onto the indie scene when he released his album Black Bile in 2018. His latest album, “AMOSAT,” was released in November of 2021 and I have not stopped listening since. 

The music is infectious and dives into the genres of indietronica, bedroom pop and indie folk. The album opens with the beautiful track “Mi” which transcends you and immediately hooks you into the album. The opening track is followed by my favorite song on the album, “Little Trees” which reminds me of something off earlier Animal Collective albums like Strawberry Jam. I could imagine listening to this album in a field on a warm sunny day as the songs wash over me. 

The next album I’ve been listening to a lot is MJ Lenderman’s new album “Boat Songs.” The opening track is one of my favorite songs and it’s perfect for a summer drive, as is the rest of the album. “Hangover Game” is a driving tune, and gives listeners a taste for the listening journey they are about to embark on. This fun alt-country, slacker rock and slowcore album will have you laughing at some of the silly lyrics and dissecting the more serious themes on the album like Lenderman’s chase for fulfillment and happiness. The fuzz on the guitars and vocals make the songs feel comforting, like a warm hug. 

Another great band I’ve been listening to is Hiding Places from Asheville, NC. While they only have three songs out right now, the band has amazing potential and I can’t wait to see what they release in the future. Their songs are relatable and have great production which adds an interesting atmosphere to the tracks. My favorite song of theirs is “Heartbreak Skatepark.” The track is a perfect indie rock tune, the end has a great build up that draws you into the story of the lead singer’s heartbreak.
The last artist I’ve been listening to a lot and will be listening to throughout the summer is BEX, also from Asheville, NC. The Asheville-based singer’s new EP, “Move It Or Lose It” is filled with catchy indie rock songs, dreamy guitars and vocals and driving bass lines. If you’re a fan of the indie rock outlet Forth Wanderers, you might like BEX.

– Eilee

Categories
Concert Review Festival Coverage Local Music

Manifest Review: A Loud Festival That Shines in the Quiet Moments

Charly perfoming at Manifest
Charly performing at Manifest on 10/16/21 - photo by Erie Mitchell

I think it was partway through Sister Brother’s set, a ski mask-wearing punk duo with anti-capitalist vocal samples and attacking guitars when I realized just how good of a weekend this would be. For reference, Sister Brother was the third set I went to.

Manifest did not pull punches. This was an event that threw punk and metal bands at you and you had to hold on and enjoy the ride. I spent most of my time in the Local 506, the main venue of the three, and the intimate size combined with the sheer ferocity of the instrumentals meant I had to pull out earplugs at a concert for the first time ever. 

Bands blurred together, but saying that sounds bad, like things were getting stale. When I say blurred, I mean that one band perfectly picked up the energy level from the previous group while adding their own spin on the rebellious under (and over) tones. Of course there were individual highlights. BANGZZ lived up to its name by getting the whole crowd headbanging and kicking off the night with interludes talking about the importance of taking up space and respecting others. Pie Face Girls described themselves as a “comedy troupe first, band second”, and their stage banter was as hilarious as their songs were captivating, with groovy instrumentals and repeated vocals that wormed their way into the brain and didn’t leave in a hurry. And Sand Pact came from left field with an experimental electronic set paired with performative dance that brought a bit of the club with them.

Of all the pedal to the metal guitars and screaming vocals this weekend, the most memorable act I saw was Raleigh “conjurer of sound” Spookstina. Their set consisted of the artist crouching over their decks and playing a continuous wall of distorted sound for over half an hour, punctuated by a couple minutes of vocals and some plucking of guitar strings and, most notably, the rattling of chains. Some of the rattling was recorded, but a lot of it came from them picking up and dropping chains that were on the small triangular stage in the corner of the room. This crescendoed into one of the most surreal experiences of my life: Spookstina picked up what they later told us was a sewer ladder, walked into the audience, and started hitting it with a chain to a beat that apparently only they could hear. 

What really made that work was how close the audience was to the action, and that was a major part of the experience. Artists were just hanging out in the bar after the show and were happy to be interviewed by a college radio station. Indie folk band Honey Magpie didn’t have any merch at the merch table; my friend and I got t-shirts by talking to them after their set and paying the lead singer on Venmo. It was adaptable too. There were plans for an outdoor day party with an art market on nearby Graham Street, but when rain started coming down, they just moved everything inside the Local 506 and kept the fun going. There weren’t many people there during the day, but those who showed up between 1 and 7 p.m. got to experience some great sets. I didn’t expect to hear much country music at Manifest, but Charly out of Lumberton NC surprised me with an emotionally resonant and personal hour of music.

But Manifest, in structure at least, was still a music festival like any other, and this means that its greatest strength is in allowing for the creation of certain moments, pockets of infinite joy, where you stop and realize just how much fun you’re having. The alley in front of The Nightlight, maybe the most underrated venue of the weekend, is perfect for squealing with your friends about how insane a set was, and the distance between venues allowed festival goers to slow down and really sit with the experience they just had. History dictates that, barring another global pandemic, Manifest will return to Chapel Hill next fall, and I’m already counting the days.

Categories
Concert Preview Festival Coverage Local Music

Preview: Chapel Hill’s Manifest Aims to Break Barriers

Promotional poster for Manifest 5
Promotional Poster for Manifest 5 in Chapel Hill from October 15-16, 2021

In my training class to become a WKNC DJ, among the many pieces of advice our then station general manager gave us was to “not just play music made by four white guys”. This was met by laughs, but that line stuck with me because of how relevant it still is. When I was a daytime DJ I tried to have sets with a strong female representation, but four or so guys still made up most of the songs aired from 10 to 11 p.m. on Thursdays. And that doesn’t even take into account the “white” part of that; many genres such as modern indie rock are overrepresented by white artists and artists of color will often have their work labeled as R&B even when that label doesn’t fit the music, which can box in both exposure and creative freedom.

Enter Manifest. This is a festival that, according to the website, is “focused on dismantling patriarchy, misogyny, and white supremacy” with a diverse lineup that draws from a wide variety of races, sexualities and gender identities. Now dismantling vast social hierarchies is a lofty goal, but they’ve definitely got the lineup down. This is a festival that has seen acts like Skylar Gudasz and Hopscotch 2021 attendee Sarah Shook, and this year the acts range from Basura who make minute-and-a-half long death metal bangers to trans experimental artist KHX05 who brings a nervy and rebellious energy to her mixtapes and remix EPs. 

Manifest bills itself as mostly a punk festival, and there are a number of punk bands making an appearance. Gown is a hardcore metallic punk band that has seven members, three of whom play the cello, while Fortezza is an doom punk band out of Asheville whose long guitar solos and verses screamed over a lone drumbeat create a chaotic and apocalyptic feel to fit their hand-drawn album covers. The artists have a distinctly local flavor too. Of the 28 acts coming to Chapel Hill this weekend, 21 are from the Triangle area, and five of them won’t have to leave their hometown to make it there. 

This is the fifth iteration of Manifest, and it’s the fifth time in these exact three venues. The festival is mostly based around Local 506, a bar and club that, when not hosting live acts, is known for having themed dance parties such as the 80s-style one that I went to this summer. This is where tickets and wristbands are picked up and where WKNC is running the merch table. When not at the Local 506, festivalgoers can head to two other locations, one of which is The Cave. This is another bar/club hybrid, iconic in Chapel Hill for its alley location and will often host rock and punk rock bands. 

Now despite having essentially grown up in downtown Chapel Hill, I’ll admit I had to look up the last venue, Rosemary Street’s The Nightlight. It’s the only one of the venues not located on Franklin Street, and its website is at time of writing a single page detailing its closures due to COVID and in the spirit of Manifest, a link to a mutual aid fund. All of these are within a quarter mile walk of each other so it should be easy to go between any of the simultaneous shows being played.

Continuity is a major theme here, and not just in the venues. Manifest 5 marks the fourth appearance of Raleigh’s Fruit Snack at the aforementioned festival, a band whose members work at multiple venues in the Triangle and whose themes of anti-capitalism, openness about sex and dislike of the police fit right in with Manifest’s mission statement. It also features a ukulele player. Meanwhile, punk act Pie Face Girls has attended every single iteration since the festival began in 2016. This in combination with its many local sponsors including Orange County Arts Commission, Chapel Hill’s own Midway Market and this radio station gives this festival a strong feeling of community that puts those goals of social change front and center.

I’m personally quite excited to cover Manifest. While I won’t be able to see every artist (The Cave being 21+ is unfortunate but understandable) there are a lot of acts I really want to see and blog about, and a lot of artists I had never heard of before and really want to get to know as part of my ongoing efforts to further connect with the local music scene here. After all, homegrown music with a message is the new punk rock. And the old one too.

-Erie

Categories
Band/Artist Profile Classic Album Review Local Music Miscellaneous New Album Review

New Music Alert: Rehearsal

Rehearsal Album Art

One of my long-time favorite bands, Skegss, has finally released another album. Skegss is a group of three guys from Byron Bay, Australia. The group formed in 2013 when childhood friends Johny Lani and Ben Reed started playing together as a duo around local venues. They soon paired up with Noa Deane and Tony Cregan and released their the singles “LSD” and “Rock ‘n’ Roll Radio.” However Noa left the following year in pursuit of a surfing career, leaving Johny, Ben, and Tony to run the show. 

Since then they have released three EP’s and three albums. My personal favorite is their self-titled debut EP, however their two most recent albums are close contenders. Rehearsal is their most recent one to date and includes 13 surf-punk-garage styled rock songs on the album. It starts off with “Down to Ride” and “Valhalla,” which are both upbeat, fast paced songs that set a good tone for the album. However, my two favorites of the 13 are “Bush TV” and “Savor The Flavour.” They perfectly incorporate the iconic Skegss style and listening to them makes me feel like an angsty teenager again. Another honorable mention off the album is “Wake Up,” which is a bit of a slower song. That being said, I feel like this band doesn’t make slow, sentimental songs like this all that much, which makes it all the more meaningful. 

Fun fact about this band, they actually had their cover art for the EP “50 Push Ups for a Dollar” stolen by Lil Yachty and Reese for their single “Do It.” Go ahead and look it up, the comparison is laughably similar. 

That’s all for this week, hope you guys enjoy the music. 
-The DJ Formerly Known As Chippypants

Categories
Local Music

Support Local Music

 

Support local anything honestly.

Thank you for reading.

Just kidding, I won’t you hanging like that, but I did want to get my bottom line out there before anyone got bored of my rambling. I think supporting the local art scenes is very important; local markets, local businesses, etc., totally count to. You’re local scene can only thrive and grow with the support of… well… the locals. Which is you and me. It’s important to remember that as members of our community we should be trying to be apart of our community and helping it thrive.

So shop local, listen to a local band, go to a local show, attend local events, and get to know the people around you. Not to go on some weird tangent, but I think communities are important means of support for each other, if we aren’t looking out for our community who is? We’re a community here at NC State, at WKNC, and in Raleigh. Communities are everywhere and you need to give support in order to get it. Never forget that. So if you ever want to start a business someday, or make your own local living in some way, remember that’s only possible with community support, so as community members we should go out now and start supporting.

Even if you don’t plan to do something yourself through a lot of local businesses still have good visions and are benefiting our world (and community) by simply existing, so support them and let them carry out their missions. I’m not going to get political here but corporations shouldn’t run everything, local work is important and that is why we should all take part in supporting it.

Thank you for reading if you got this far~

– DJ Psyched

Categories
Local Music New Album Review

Album Review: Thirsty Curses – Thirsty Curses

Thirsty Curses self-titled album

BEST TRACKS: VHS Release, Red Marks, I Want to Wreck Your Car

FCC Violations: VHS Release, Smash-Hit, Slice of Paradise, You Don’t Have to Tell Me That You Love Me,

Recommended if you like: PUP, The Fratellis, The Front Bottoms

Thirsty Curses pummels the scene once again with a new, label debut album. Thirsty Curses is a local four-piece rock and roll band straight out of our own beloved city of Raleigh, NC. Their latest album, which is self-titled, was released last Friday! I had the privilege of listening to this album before it was released on streaming platforms and I was blow away by the raw energy and deep cutting lyrics encompassed in this release. I am so excited for you guys to finally be able to listen to it. There was also a record release show at School Kids Records last Friday and while I wasn’t able to make it (I had a Biochemistry test that I had to cram for ☹), I heard that it kicked ass and that the album was received phenomenally well. I wouldn’t have expected anything different from Thirsty Curses. They’ve been putting out good stuff since 2017.

There is some phenomenal songwriting on this album. In every song, the lyrics flow and swing together extremely harmoniously, creating a sense of continuity and balance that lets you just sink deep into the music. My favorite song on this album is track 1, VHS Release. Packed into this short, 2 minute 39 second song are several punky riffs, lighthearted drums, and some creative similes that outline heavy themes of being anxious and dissatisfied with your mediocre life, feeling lost about what to do next, and craving a clean start.

If you like drinking beer or if you’ve ever dressed up like a pirate for Halloween, you’ll probably like this album.

I feel hopeful whenever a local band comes out with an album this fresh and amazing. It shows that we don’t have to look far beyond our own backyards to find incredible talent. Fight the corporate machine, keep supporting local music.

-Safia

Categories
Local Music Music News and Interviews

The Local Beat: Goddamn Wolves

The Local Beat: Goddamn Wolves

Dj Beowvlf sits down with Goddamn Wolves as they play songs off their latest album, talk about their music journey and more! tune in for a great edition of The Local Beat.