WKNC 88.1 FM - North Carolina State University Student RadioMusic news, interviews, features and giveaways
Phian Interviewed Star Studies last Thursday before Local Band Local Beer at Tir Na Nog Irish Pub in Raleigh.
Five of their songs were played during the interview: Earthbound, Little Mama, Lover Lay Down, Deep Sea Blues and Peace of Mind.
You can check Star Studies out on their website, listen to more music on Reverb Nation, and like them on Facebook.
Phian interviewed Coytah before they played Local Band Local Beer night at Tir Na Nog Irish Pub in Raleigh.
Three of their songs were played during the interview: On My Way, My Design and Summer In Paris.
You can listen to more of Coytah’s music on Reverb Nation and like them on Facebook.
Grant Golden of “Carolina Grown” sat down with members of Dark Water Rising on Aug. 8. Listen back to their conversation.
Greg and Nathan from Hopscotch Music Fest LLC stopped by the station last week to chat with me about the state of the festival, its future, the triangle community, and music in general. You can listen to the extensive interview here.
Our conversation had me thinking on some of the highlights from my experiences at past years attending the festival. Many of the most fun times I’ve had at Hopscotch or in Raleigh, or at live concerts in general have been sparked by the somewhat spontaneous nature of Hopscotch’s design. By so excellently pairing such interesting and unknown artists together with local acts or more established groups the festival creates an atmosphere that breeds discovery.
But while there are great sets at single venues at the same time the range of diversity and general quality of the festival brings always brings up conflicts and scavenger hunt style show attendance hopping.
I remember at last year’s festival I went to CAM to see Horse Lords on a completely blind suggestion from a friend. Horse Lords have been described as “polyrhythmic krautrockers” that use intonation and repeating tropes in an entrancing psychedelic rock and roll kind of way. It doesn’t sound like the kind of thing that could be catchy or fun but IT WAS. The live performance had multitudes of energy and on top of that I got to have a conversation with Wye Oak’s Jenn Wasner in the crowd.
Its that kind of liberating feeling that any show you could walk into could be your next favorite band that has kept me coming to Hopscotch year after year and I hope you consider making some spontaneous choices this year as well.
Old Crow Medicine Show along with special guests, Shovels & Rope, will be coming to the Red Hat Amphitheatre on August 20th. WKNC will be giving away tickets for the show until Tuesday, August 19th. All you have to do is be the correct caller when the DJ asks for it and you could win yourself a night of great music. So don’t miss this golden opportunity! All of your friends will think you are so cool once you tell them you won free tickets from WKNC. That girl/guy will be highly impressed by your resourcefulness and finally agree to go out on a date with you. Basically, these tickets will change your life.
Old Crow Medicine Show is a bluegrass/americana band from Harrisonburg Virginia. They were discovered by bluegrass legend Doc Watson while the band was performing out on the streets of Boone, North Carolina. The band brings a classic, folk rock sound to the table that warms your heart and makes ya’ feel rightcha at home in ol’e North Caka-Laka. Old Crow Medicine Show makes me think of what southern country music should sound like. Plenty of harmonica solos, lots of banjo pickin’, a big upright bass, and overall great tunes. Even if you don’t like americana music, it’s hard not to like Old Crow Medicine Show’s sound. And with songs like “Down Home Girl” and “Caroline” you can’t help but admire the musical talent behind the music. But you know what they say, “Americana sound’s best when heard live”. I think that’s an ancient chinese proverb. Maybe not. But who knows, right? What is for certain is that you won’t regret a night with Old Crow Medicine Show!
(P.S. If you’ve gone to any NC State sponsored/related event you’ve probably heard Old Crow Medicine Show’s song Wagon Wheel “heeeeeeeeey mama rock me”)
Shovels & Rope is an Americana duo from Charleston, South Carolina. Their music is filled with mellifluous vocal harmonies, palpitating drums, and dulcet acoustic guitars. A little less bluegrass than Old Crow Medicine Show but still an excellent example of southern americana rock. Check out their song Birmingham to hear a great example of my (fancily worded) description for the band.
So be on the listen for DJs giving away these tickets all week!
Good luck!
dJ/dx and Me interviewed Oulipo last Thursday before they played Local Band Local Beer at Tir Na Nog Irish Pub in Raleigh.
They played three songs during the interview: Night Legs, Shine On You Crazy Bastard and Hanging Hook.
You can follow Oulipo on Twitter and Facebook, and buy their music on Bandcamp.
Coke Weed is coming off quite a busy last year. They released their third self-released, full-length Back to Soft back in July and toured heavily throughout the end of the year. The Maine quintet have laid pretty quiet throughout 2014 working on their next effort.
Back to Soft was born during the Mt. Desert Island Recording Sessions. The album features the signature, intricate guitar interplay with the enthralling backing of a solid rhythm section that we have come to expect along with the beautiful contrasting vocals of Nina and Milan. This album takes a more electric approach over the more acoustic sound of previous recordings.
Be sure to check out the interview I did with them shown above. It was recorded ahead of their show at The Cave last year on November 1st. We discussed the album, their experience on the road and at CMJ, as well as their influences, their writing and recording process, how they do it all on their own, and much more. They also performed stripped down versions of a few tracks, so be sure to check it out.
I have never been to Bar Harbor or anywhere in Maine for that reason, but I like to imagine that their breed of alt/psychedelic rock captures the beauty of the vast, coastal landscape. This show is an absolute must-see at Hopscotch. Be prepared to lose yourself in their warm, inviting music. The laid back sound of the music will catch you off guard as you will leave the venue wondering what happened in a completely unexpected, calm state. Consider it your own personal vacation during Hopscotch. Trust me, you’ll need it by Saturday night and you won’t want it to end.
Saturday, September 6th, 10pm @ Deep South
Paste Magazine premiere of new single mentioned in interview here.
dJ/dx and Me interviewed Ancient Cities last Thursday before they played Local Band Local Beer at Tir Na Nog Irish Pub in Raleigh.
You can hear three of their songs during the interview: Edie Sedgewick, Werewolf and Juice. Listen for details about their new music video and the answer to “what movie would Ancient Cities write the soundtrack for?”
You can see the music video on Ancient Cities’ website, and keep up with them on Facebook and Bandcamp.
dJ/dx interviewed Raleigh’s own GHOSTT BLLONDE live in the WKNC studio Monday, August 4th, including a first listen of their brand new track Dissonance, to be released August 19th!
Other songs played include “Home” and “Suzanne” with Jacki Huntington of Sea Gulls. Listen in for details on their upcoming release show, new EP, their Hopscotch performance, and favorite Gatorade flavors.
GHOSTT BLLONDE’s release show is this Saturday, August 9th at Nice Price Books & Records in Raleigh with FS (Greenville) and Black Santa (Goldsboro). They are also playing Hopscotch 2014 on the CAM Stage at 9:30 on Friday, September 5th.