Cover art for the upcoming album "MG Ultra" by Machine Girl
Experimental digital hardcore and drum and bass duo Machine Girl has announced their upcoming LP, “MG Ultra.”
The album is planned for release October 18. The project was teased alongside the single “Until I Die,” which will be the first track off the album.
The project follows the two-part soundtrack for the FPS platformer video game “Neon White,” which was entirely produced by Machine Girl.
Sonically, there’s a lot of resemblance to the aformentioned soundtracks, with the addition of the harsher-sounding digital hardcore aspects that are heard in some of Machine Girl’s prior albums, such as “The Ugly Art.”
The album appears to be shaping up as some type of amalgamation of all of the differing sounds that the band has dabbled in, feeling like a kind of “updated” version of their earliest works.
Cover art for the single “Until I Die” by Machine Girl
In addition to the album’s announcement, the band also plans on launching a North America tour beginning on Halloween at the Brooklyn Steel in New York.
Among the scheduled tour dates includes a show at the Lincoln Theater here in Raleigh, a show I’m personally quite excited for. The last time the band had performed in the area was back in May of last year, where they served as the opener for hyperpop duo 100 Gecs, a show of which I was an attendee.
Overall, I’m definitely looking forward to this addition to Machine Girl’s discography, as well as what feels like a whole new chapter for the band with a unique sound.
We’re witnessing the musical changing of the guard and it could not be a more excitingly bittersweet time to love music.
The 2024 line-up for the Outlaw Music Festival was nothing short of legendary rolling into Raleigh’s Coastal Credit Union Music Park at Walnut Creek; Celisse, Alisson Krause & Robert Plant, Bob Dylan and Willie Nelson all taking the stage.
But as best laid plans are apt to do, the line up fell through.
The danger, you see, is in relying on octo- and nonagenarians for your entertainment is the general precarity of old age.
Friday, June 21st Willie Nelson’s team released a statement announcing the country singer’s departure from four of the ensuing tour dates due to medical concerns.
In his place, son Lukas Nelson and the Nelson Family Band stepped in with an abridged tribute set.
But it wasn’t necessarily a bad thing to let the younger Nelson take the stage in his father’s wake.
If anything, it reaffirmed what we already knew about Willie’s songs — they’re timeless country-western staples for a reason.
And more importantly, Lukas Nelson is far too talented to stay in his father’s shadow.
Freed from the albatross of an elderly father, Nelson’s voice quite literally soared through the shortened tribute set – simply put, he sounded like his father for a new age.
Waffling between original compositions and Willie-standards, Nelson was able to effortlessly bridge the divide between new fans and old, bouncing between the soulful growl present on Promise of The Real track “Find Yourself” to his father’s signature warble on songs like “Blue Eyes Crying In the Rain.”
Speaking of soul, I would be remiss not to mention one of the freshest faces amongst the lineup: Celisse.
The Oakland born singer and guitarist easily won over unsure and unfamiliar audiences with more than just sweet talk and charm, she won them over with her sound.
Bombastic in every sense of the word, her belt and her shred equally silenced the normally rowdy “lawnies” of Coastal Credit Union – her cover of Bill Withers’ “Use Me” met with earthshaking applause and shouts.
For a woman who has been making music for well over a decade, touring as supporting acts for some of the biggest acts in folk and easy listening rock both old and new – Brandi Carlisle and Joni Mitchell, to name a few – I have a sneaking suspicion that Outlaw Music Festival is only the beginning of her just desserts.
So yes, Bob Dylan and Robert Plant were once-in-a-lifetime, bucket list artists to see, but perhaps more importantly, I walked away with not just hope, but a feverish excitement to see what the next wave of Americana, Soul and whatever-the-hell-else-you-want-to-call-it will be.
Long story short, it is sad to see the old god’s fade away, but my god, I cannot wait to see the nebulous eruptions of the new.
From Brittany’s slightly dubious tell all to an ill-fated romp in the Hamptons, he’s has had a tough go of it as of late.
And my, what a sight to see.
Celebrity implosions, especially of such long standing figures, are always a spectacle – but I’ve yet to see one that reeks of desperation quite like Timberlake’s.
From the hallowed halls of the Mickey Mouse Club to Gen X thirst trap World Tours, Timberlake has a knack for keeping himself in the spotlight.
For better or worse, the common man has a half-baked notion of what — or rather, who — he is.
But there’s something that feels different about this latest scandal.
Perhaps it’s because I had the pleasure of seeing him at PNC Arena a week before his DUI.
Or maybe it’s the comical coverage of the incident — considering the pouty celebrity mugshot, perp walk and the beautifully oblivious cop making the arrest.
Either way you spin it, there’s something distinctly and pitifully funny about Timberlake’s snafu.
Rockstars and rappers go through their own legal issues and brushes with the law, but when it happens to a pop star, people pay attention.
Even more so to someone of Timberlake’s caliber.
For people 35 and over, he’s been a tried and true standard for a large part of American pop-culture.
From childhood to adulthood, he’s been a prominent spotlight feature, and he’s desperately grasping at the edge of the stage as he’s being played out.
As far as the soundscape of popular culture goes, he’s by and far left behind.
His stage show proves it to, sadly: asses really only left seats for old standards like “Sexy Back,” “Suit and Tie” and “Cry Me A River” — even more so for the throwback reliant DJ opener.
Not to besmirch the opening band, but there’s something wrong with your act if more people are amped for a DJ playing the dancehall classics of yesterday than your set.
Consistently, he’s released albums every four to five years since 2002. Yet, his sound hardly changes.
Since he’s left NSYNC, the only evolution I can truly see is a semi-annual media scandal of either infidelity or inebriation.
When your entire career is based upon the affection of young girls, what happens when those girls grow up?
What happens when you grow up?
Somewhere within the pandering, paltry pastiche of the “Forget Tomorrow” world tour and the relatively tame release “Everything I Thought I Was,” you’ll find the answer.
It was a good show, don’t get me wrong.
Justin Timberlake is an entertainer first and foremost, to which he most certainly delivered.
But as the times catch up with the now 43-year old, fading pop star, the whirling dervish of past and present controversy seems to loom large over him.
From Britney to Janet, inebriation, infidelity and unknown world tours, perhaps Timberlake should take to the mirror himself and truly reckon with his next steps.
Because let’s be fair, humoring an aging audience in flights of fantasy feels like a desperate cash-grab preying on the hardwired need of women past a certain age to feel relevant — to feel important.
In a world where artists are more accessible than ever, feeling more real than ever, the thin line between artifice and artistry has never been more apparent.
And artists who are unwilling to step beyond their predestined imagery are not only doing their audiences a disservice, they are doing one to themselves.
The official “Mirrors” music video from Justin Timberlake’s official YouTube Vevo page.
Rod Argent in 1961 asked his family, friends and classmates to start a band. At the time, they couldn’t have predicted their impact and longevity. This cornerstone of British 60s rock music, The Zombies, are still performing and recording music.
I had the privilege of interviewing Rod Argent who is a vocalist and keyboardist for the band. Here is a few questions I asked him regarding their newest album. Note that the interview has been edited for this blog.
Q: So, I wanted to talk about your new album. I think the biggest achievement of “Different Game” is it standing out from the rest of your music. I think a lot of older bands, stick to their guns, to a fault. And they’re kind of stuck where they used to be, like decades ago. Y’all experiment with the formula. How do you all have that forward thinking mentality when making new music, but also making sure it fits within like The Zombies catalog?
A: Well, we never worry about it sticking within The Zombies catalog to be quite honest. Because as I said, right at the beginning, we always do things the same way. I don’t know any other way of doing it. It’s just me playing around on a piano. You never know where the idea might come from. You could hit a chord sequence that you think, oh, that’s tasty. And oh, God, I really want to write something around that. And strangely enough, the very first song on the album, “Different Game”, my wife and I went to the bar festival in Leipzig, just before the COVID, actually.
The last performance on the festival was in St. Thomas’s church, where (Johann Sebastian) Bach was for the last 10 years of his life. And he wrote the massive thing called Mass in B minor. And I have to tell you, there were 2000 people in the church. It was packed. And it’s a huge musical piece that you’ve got two organs, one on each side of the church. You’ve got two choirs ,you’ve got soloists, and you’ve got an orchestral section as well. It was so loud. I mean, most people listening to classical music think of it as being relaxing and everything. This is the reality of how it used to be. This is like a rock and roll concert, and it is fantastic. And, and there was this one section in called the Sanctus in the Mass in B minor. And it just blew me away.
When we got back home, just for fun, I kept playing it. Then I sort of kept playing this little chord sequence, which was part of it. And then I suddenly found myself singing a tune over it over it. I wasn’t trying to do that.(…)You know, it’s me in the studio, where I am at the moment, just just having fun, really, and making something work.
Q: You talked about wanting to work with an orchestra at one point, which I find kind of interesting. You have one song in the new album(Different Game), which is mostly just strings(I want to Fly). When you’re talking about your inspirations and what you kind of aim for. I feel like this, album feels a very balanced. And It delves into so many sounds. When you all get together, will you all have like a general idea of what genres y’all want to touch on? Or is it more just like, what the band members were kind of feeling at the time?
“I Want to Fly” by The Zombies from YouTube
A: It was to some extent, the fashion of how we were recording and what we were recording. So when we recorded maybe two or three tracks, you naturally think, oh, for balance, it will be great. I really fancy writing a song that is much more stripped down, you know. And at one point, I thought it’d be great to just have a track with just piano and vocals on the album. And that was the original idea for it. I think what had happened, I can’t remember what track I’d heard. But I think I’d heard an Adele track where it was just piano and her voice. I thought this can really work.
And I was just thinking in terms of some of the tracks we’ve recorded, and thinking that will be a nice balance. So that sort of can dictate it to some extent. But we recorded that. And this is what goes on when you’re recording. I love playing on acoustic piano. And Collin’s vocal, I loved his vocal, I thought it was great. Then I thought you know what, it would be great to score some strings. And I scored that arrangement myself. I said, just leave it, let’s just leave it there and keep it really simple and stripped down. And in the end, we added a little bit of bass on it, very subtle bass. And that was it.
The Zombies have an extensive catalog and they continue to innovate. The Carolina theater is a beautiful venue and you will have the opportunity to see old and new members of the band. They will be coming to Carolina Theater on March 31st(Sunday).
If you want to check out the full interview, here is the Youtube and Spotify link.
Rod/The Zombies Interview on Off The Record by DJ Veil
Rod/The Zombies Interview on Off The Record by DJ Veil on YouTube
There is just too much music on WKNC. This is especially true of electronic music. Luckily, I’m one of the people who are putting in the automated music queue for Afterhours, so I can tell you what I like to help you sort through it. Here are a few of those that are recent additions to the WKNC rotation.
It is a shame Halloween fell on a Monday this year, but MICHELLE is here to excite the Monday nightlife and welcome November
MICHELLE is a R&B group from New York City. Their discography is filled to the brim with upbeat tracks and rich harmonies. This vocal-led group is extremely dynamic in rhythm, tone and musical composition. Each member has so much vocal control and range, allowing the group to create some stunning vocal lines. They will put on a fantastic show.
Superorganism – Nov. 3
Opener: Blood Cultures
Where: Motorco Music Hall, Durham
When: 8pm Thursday, Nov. 3
Price: $22/$25
Superorganism Tickets
Superorganism is a psychedelic indie pop band from London. I would also like to highlight their opener, Blood Cultures, an anoynoymus experimental indie pop project from Brooklyn. Both of these bands have such a unique aura.
To add to the excitement of this performance, Superorganism released their album, “World Wide Pop” this year and just released a remix album, “World Wide Pop- Reeeemix!” Oct.28. These two bands will certainly bring lots of new sounds to the stage.
Oso Oso – Nov.6
Opener: M.A.G.S and Anxious
Where: Motorco Music Hall, Durham
When: 8pm Sunday, Nov.6
Price: $19/$23
OSO OSO Tickets
Oso Oso is an alternative emo band from Long Beach, New York. Oso Oso has such a well versed discography, ranging from heavy rock to light alternative tracks. The openers M.A.G.S. and Anxious will complement his wide range of music wonderfully.
Opener, M.A.G.S is an indie garage rock and pop project from Buffalo, New York. Anxious is an dreamo band from Connecticut. This trio of artists have a wide variety of sounds, yet remain unified in their melancholy tone.
Sorry taps into an astral of genres to create there unique sound– ranging from bubblegrunge, punk, indie rock, and psychedelic. Hailing from London, this duo brings with them a weighty discography.
Their newest album, “Anywhere by Here” released Oct. 7. In my opinion, it contains some of their best work.
The freshness of their album will certainly contribute to an extremely energized show.
Last, but certainly not least, R&B artist Omar Apollo. He released his fourth full album, “Ivory” earlier this year. Although I think it was less successful compared to his previous work– it is clear his energy is ecstatic throughout this tour.
If this show reflects “Ivory”, it will have an excellent variety of high and low energy tracks. Each track in his discography is rich– he just has such a great voice.
Omar Apollo keeps achieving more with each and every release, this performance will be rich in talent, stage presence and musical variety.
"Strange Encounters" Cover art by Bendigo Fletcher
Bendigo Fletcher is a lovely Americana, indie folk band out of Louisville, Kentucky.
They have an upcoming EP, “Wing Dig” coming out Oct. 21. In anticipation to this release they have release two singles, “Pterodactyl” and “Strange Encounters”.
What I find to be so enchanting about this band is that they have glimpses of so many sounds within them.
They are still such a fresh band, their musical identity has yet to form fully. It is prominent in their latest album, “Fits of Laughter” that this band has so much versatilely. Upon listening to the first beats of the songs on this album it is difficult to believe they all emerge from the same artist.
This unpredictability and mystery to Bendigo Fletcher’s sound is what is so intriguing to me. They have the ability to expand far beyond the box of the modern indie folk sound.
I lot of this flexibility stems directly from the lead singer and songwriter, Ryan Anderson. His fantastical lyrics and rustically delicate voice are difficult to compare. Their track “Evergreen” is an excellent example of his uniqueness. Out of nowhere he pulls out a vocal technique reminiscent of classic rock bands such as the iconic Led Zeppelin. This stripped vocals this this chorus fits perfectly with his lyrics:
“For between death and the baby’s breath / We are all perennial majesty in the daily shine”
All to say I was excited to see what Bendigo Fletcher would be bringing in their newest releases.
The New Singles
I think a lot can be communicated in the first few beats of a song. The first couple measures dictate so much of what the song will set out to achieve.
Having a successful first few measures is like having a solid foundation to a building. Without a good foundation, why continue building? In other words, why continue listening to the rest of the song is the first five seconds are uninspiring?
I don’t believe these two tracks have successful beginnings. They sounded like any other indie folk band and any other indie folk song. This this very disappointing knowing the musical potential of Bendigo Fletcher.
However, “Strange Encounters” really built up my anticipation. The second half of the track is very intriguing– featuring clashing harmonies and great vocal work. This track, although not one of my favorites by them, certainly sets a good tone for the album to come.
“Pterodactyl” was less successful in my option, it holds a really low energy throughout it’s entirety and gives no musical hints to the album to come. It is a pleasant track, ideal for the fall season, just not my hope for Bendigo Fletcher.
Conclusion
I will be anxiously awaiting Oct. 21 to see what sounds they will bring to “Wing Dig”.
Regardless if they bring classic folk or classic rock into this release, it will undoubtedly be a great album for the fall and winter season.
I hope you all are having a great start to the chilly season, I hope to share more excellent fall music will you all shortly. Stay tuned.
Of course, your friends at WKNC will be celebrating. In a very similar fashion to last year’s WCRD, starting at midnight and going until midnight, there will be 24 straight hours of DJ sets on HD-1 and select sets on HD-2. All killer, no filler. There will also be a 24-hour live stream featuring various activities for the entire event.
The full schedule for the live stream, HD-1 and HD-2 can be found below.
The schedule for HD-1 is largely unchanged. You can expect Afterhours/Underground from 12 a.m. – 6 a.m., Daytime Rock from 6 a.m. – 6 p.m., and Chainsaw from 6 p.m. – 12 a.m. Some Specialty sets will be thrown into the mix as well.
DJs on HD-2 will have full reign to play whatever music they would like. Tune in at various times throughout the day for some fun sets.
WKNC will also be hosting a live stream to celebrate the festivities on the WKNC YouTube page. The live stream is going to be full of DJ-hosted events throughout the day. Button making, lego building, video games, board games, power points and a WKNC lore iceberg are a few of the things that can be expected throughout the stream.
The live stream of the HD-1 Studio will have to be muted per YouTube’s copyright policy. However, all DJ sets are available on the WKNC web stream. You can also find all the music DJs are playing on our spinitron page.
The tentative schedule of activities is listed below. This schedule is subject to change at the discretion of the DJs. The best way to keep up to date with the schedule is to check this blog post, which will be actively updated.
HD-1 Schedule
TIME
DJ
THEME
12 a.m. – 1 a.m.
carbon copy
PASSING BY AFTERHOURS EDITION SPECIAL EDITION #WCRD #AFTERHOURS Ummmmmm
1 a.m. – 2 a.m.
T-Time
The World Has Turned and Left Me Here / I’m gonna play doom metal
2 a.m. – 3 a.m.
plover
araki WCRDhouse / songs from movie soundtracks and scores that feel at home in the araki warehouse
3 a.m. – 4 a.m.
johnny ghost
The Outfit / Old school (mostly ’90s) techno & big beat
4 a.m. – 5 a.m.
DJ babycakes, DJ habanero & maddog
the sweet n spicy x doghouse afterhours crossover with some funkadelic house vibes
5 a.m. – 6 a.m.
chef
Fresh Beets and Spinnin’ Platters / I have a set of turntablists and beat-scientists like Kid Koala, DJ Qbert and DJ Shadow, which feels like it fits underground genre the best.
6 a.m. – 7 a.m.
Flowers McPowers
The Flowers McPowers Hour
7 a.m. – 8 a.m.
President Shrimpo
Fireside Chats / A Shrimpo sampler player, a real mix of all the stuff that gets played on fireside chats, with garage rock, post punk, and lighter indie rock!
8 a.m. – 9 a.m.
KONDE
UNCANNY VALLEY/ Video Game Music and/or Possibly Remixes of Video Game Music
9 a.m. – 10 a.m.
Hüttemeister & Michelangelo
Saloon Tunes
10 a.m. – 11 a.m.
Chell
The Testing Chamber / That new Wednesday song is awesome let’s listen to a bunch of songs like that
11 a.m. – 12 p.m.
banshee
Blanchin’ With Banshee / 00s chicano rap
12 p.m – 1 p.m.
toad maiden
SLIME CITY!
1 p.m. – 2 p.m.
maddog & leksipro
Leksipro and Maddog afterhours pilled. be there or be square
2 p.m. – 3 p.m.
DJ Zoink
More Songs About Buildings And Food
3 p.m. – 4 p.m.
last name utt
some songs are better than others / “grandpa mike’s record bin” – midcentury jazz classics from grandpa mike utt’s record collection (edited)
4 p.m. – 5 p.m.
space cadet & Hermajesty
Fire Dance With Me / Music from David Lynch Projects
5 p.m. – 6 p.m.
Zen
Passively Dynamic
6 p.m. – 7 p.m.
DMC WOODSTOCK & FULLMETAL RACKET
DIGITVL HVRDCORE / Digital Hardcore- the marriage of hardcore punk and hardcore electronic.
7 p.m. – 8p.m.
DJ SHEETZ
BEETZ WITH SHEETZ WCRD EDITION / epic bops and bangers from the one and only DJ SHEETZ including underrated gems from artists you know and love
8 p.m. – 9 p.m.
Uncle Paul
Penitentiary Rock
9 p.m. – 10 p.m.
Jedward
The Yearning & The Burning / The set will begin with some beautiful twee and slowcore music, then conclude with amped-up skramz and assorted emo. yearn then burn! it’s healthy!
10 p.m. – 11 p.m.
Wild Waste
Return to WKNC / It’s my first set back on the air in awhile! Tune in to hear a top selection of my favorite metal artists!
11 p.m. – 12 a.m.
Young Iowa
Headbang to the best metal and hardcore the Old North State has to offer
HD-2 Schedule
TIME
DJ
THEME
12 a.m. – 1 a.m.
JustinTime
The Impeccable Sounds of Brazil / Popular music in Brazil during the 60/70s. Antonio Carlos Jobim, Marcos Valle, Joao Gilberto, Astrud Gilberto, Luiz Bonfa
1 a.m. – 2 a.m.
Aloe
Sample Platter / a song followed by a rap song that sampled that song
2 a.m. – 3 a.m.
chalcopyrite
digital vibes / glitch pop. there’s some vocaloid in this?
3 a.m. – 4 a.m.
tetrapod
(╯°□°)╯︵ ┻━┻ / hyperpop and screaming
4 a.m. – 5 a.m.
Velvet Worm
The Bug Collection (Soul Edition) / soulful bug music
5 a.m. – 6 a.m.
plover
Araki WCRDhouse / only the hardest of noise
6 a.m. – 7 a.m.
Velvet Worm
The Bug Collection (Breakcore Edition) / breakcore bug music
7 a.m. – 8 a.m.
hypy
Speeed it UPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPP / 160+ BPM.
8 a.m. – 9 a.m.
Rodeo Romeo
Beta Decay / Chem Lab after hours
9 a.m. – 10 a.m.
Velvet Worm
The Bug Collection (Ambient Edition) / ambient bug music
10 a.m. – 11 a.m.
guppy
The Creek / Murder Ballads, so anything from old folk to some rock, punk, or alternative
11 a.m. – 12 p.m.
Velvet Worm
The Bug Collection (Percussion Edition) / buggy beats and drums
12 p.m. – 1 p.m.
denim poetry
A wide variety of Daytime music, ranging from early aught’s twee to 90’s grunge to 70’s prog.
1 p.m. – 2 p.m.
DJ Pon-3
Americana, Blues & Co(llege Radio Day) / Kick back with some sweet Americana jams.
2 p.m. – 3 p.m.
Malocchio
The Superego / bossa nova and other music defined by latin america
3 p.m. – 5 p.m.
The Loaf
Loafin’ Around (two hours)
5 p.m. – 6 p.m.
DJ Cranberry
Around the World (College Radio Day) / get your passports ready
6 p.m. – 7 p.m.
Erik++
Regular Point / Krautrock covers
7 p.m. – 8p.m.
Erik++
Regular Point / Variety set
8 p.m. – 9 p.m.
Erik++
Regular Point / reggae/dub set
9 p.m. – 10 p.m.
DJ Independent Fact Checker
Blue Check Power Hour / Malevolent music; Evil tunes; Suspicious songs; Dastardly dancing; maybe some rap live mixed in too if I can finesse it
Lunar / indie stuff that I was listening to during a lunar eclipse
Livestream/Production Schedule
TIME
HOST + EVENT
DESCRIPTION
12 a.m. – 1 a.m.
cowball, WKNC Iceberg
Creating one of those iceberg memes with various WKNC lore from over the years.
1 a.m. – 2 a.m.
cowball, Speed Build WKNC Studios in Minecraft
We’re gonna try to recreate the WKNC studios in Minecraft in a one hour time period.
2 a.m. – 3 a.m.
Zen, Zach’s Knick Knacks
Building a Lego set and doing bed time stories with the WKNC Training & Operations Manual!!!
3 a.m. – 4 a.m.
banshee, WKNC MSPAINT HOUR
MS Paint art in the style of Ringo Starr: Radio Edition 📻
4 a.m. – 5 a.m.
Zen, DJ Interviews
Interviewing DJs LIVE!!!!!!!
5 a.m. – 6 a.m.
6 a.m. – 7 a.m.
cowball, College Radio Zoom Call
Join WKNC as we do a live Zoom call with some other radio stations celebrating World College Radio Day.
7 a.m. – 8 a.m.
8 a.m. – 9 a.m.
cowball, Live Worm Making
WKNC’s General Manager creates one of her very own handmade worms LIVE to live in the studio!
9 a.m. – 10 a.m.
beepo, Live Promo Recording
We make DJ promos live bc ur right there!!!!!!
10 a.m. – 11 a.m.
maddog, amogus and emojis
First half we can be sussy little baka’s. Second half we can get #real about emojis😎
11 a.m. – 12 p.m.
SHEETZ, tier list hour
come in and make tier lists with DJ SHEETZ!!!!!!
12 p.m. – 1 p.m
cowball, Geoguessr: Radio Edition
DJs will play a custom Geoguessr quiz made by the General Manager that features various radio stations around the world.
1 p.m. – 2 p.m.
Banshee, button making 👉👈
we makin’ cool ass buttons!!!!!!
2 p.m. – 3 p.m.
President Shrimpo’s Presidential Hour
Live podcast discussing and ranking US presidents and failed candidates. It’s as shrimple as that!
3 p.m. – 4 p.m.
DJ PON-3, All The Colors
We just got a new shipment of our colored logo tees and we gotta sort them. Very fun.
4 p.m. – 5 p.m.
Malocchio
tba
5 p.m. – 6 p.m.
Chalcopyrite, aggie.io
wknc draws stuff, the whiteboard is now digital
6 p.m. – 7 p.m.
denim poetry, Animus Worm
worms, annelids, creatures with multiple sections that consume dirt and excrete dirt…. the video game based on these creatures except they have GUNS and GRENADES
7 p.m. – 8p.m.
Chalcopyrite, yume nikki stream
spooky scary little rpg!!!
8 p.m. – 9 p.m.
beepo, KONDE & Jedward, HDR & smash talk
really cool smash ultimate mod and tournament stories!!!!!!
9 p.m. – 10 p.m.
plover, Powerpoint Night
we share powerpoints!!!!!
10 p.m. – 11 p.m.
cowball, WKNC DJ Application Quiz
A game where DJs have to guess which DJ said what on their WKNC applications.
11 p.m. – 12 a.m.
cowball, Three Bears in a Coat
First, cowball makes a Family Tree for WKNC. Then, Three Bears in a Coat has an ending ceremony to wrap up the event!
Suave Punk is a great representation of modern indie roots. Suave Punk is Justin Kim, a fella who decided to sit down in his bedroom with a borrowed guitar, amp, and laptop and make some mystic music.
Since 2018 he has released an array of singles and an EP. Suave Punk’s discography is filled with heavy guitar riffs, relaxed vocals, and elements of shoegaze, grungegaze, and dream pop.
His most popular single, “Heat Death” caught my ears in 2021, and since I have been keeping up with his releases.
This new single “Ouroboros” did not disappoint; however, didn’t necessarily provide any new elements to his musical arsenal. I love seeing growth through releases, and although there wasn’t much experimentation in this track it’s clear his musical confidence is blossoming.
I really appreciated his lyrics in this track. He has a great voice and a great tone for the genre pocket he is fitting into. In his past work he really veils over the vocals with heavy strings and drumming, but I’m glad to see more of his lovely voice poke through here.
“I’m an ouroboros No matter which way I go I’m always trying again”
This theme of incessant self judgement fits excellently with the musical beats. The backdrop is repetitive, active, and grows throughout the track. This track is unified, succinct, and bold.
“You’re not safe from what you’re building You’re not safe from what you do”
This track is definitely one of my favorites from Suave Punk. It provides a glimpse into the mind of Justin Kim, who up until this release has been allusive and understated.
It is great to hear more confidence in his voice, sound, and themes– I am looking forward to the releases to come. I’ll be waiting for a full album, till then, keep rocking Suave Punk.
Wednesday is an indie rock band from our very own Asheville, North Carolina. Wednesday is made of Karly Hartzman lead vocalist and guitar, guitarist MJ Lenderman, bassist Margo Shultz, drummer Alan Miller, and pedal steel player Xandy Chelmis.
It feels incorrect to put this band in the box of “indie rock”; they have tapped into noise rock, psychobilly and in there latest album, country. “Mowing the Leaves Instead of Piling ’em Up” is a 9 track cover album that was released March 11 of this year.
I could write an entire review of this extraordinary album. It features covers ranging from “She’s Actin’ Single (I’m Drinking Double)” by Gary Stewart, to “Perfect” by Smashing Pumpkins. Each track taking on a new life through Wednesday.
Their discography truly never disappoints. They bring so much presence with each and every release.
The New Single
The first thing I noticed about this track is that it is a hearty 8 minutes and 30 seconds. I adore a long track. I especially love a long track with good placement, and although this is not in the context of an album, “Bull Believer” arrives with the announcement that Wednesday has signed to record label Dead Oceans.
Dead Oceans has released many influential artists including Mitski, Phoebe Bridgers, and Toro y Moi.
Musically, this song is weighty. One aspect I really respect and admire about Wednesday is the authenticity of Karly Hartzman’s vocals and lyrics. They have no intention of altering their sound for the eyes of the public. Especially in this track, the vocals are stripped and raw.
Stylistically, the vocal bring such rigidity and dominance. The conclusion of this track has an almost wail-like quality. Karly Hertzman is not only providing a voice that is powerful and real into the indie rock world, but begins to break down the expectations of female voices in the music industry. Wednesday captures beauty through sheer musical power.
I want to take a moment to appreciate the lyrics of this track. I adore Wednesday’s metaphorical nature. Their previous releases have had a level of elusiveness to them, and this track is no exception:
“Comfort fools us into faith Then fate pulls us away again A corpse with a spirit Got out of my bed today”
With each release Wednesday takes another step towards a stronger and stronger sound. Their musical prowess and experimentalism astounds me. They has achieved such a unique presence in their music. I look forward to new music to come under Dead Oceans; I sincerely hope this new label encourages more of what is happening in “Bull Believer”.
