Category: Music News and Interviews

Music news, interviews, features and giveaways

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Music News and Interviews

Carolina Grown Podcast: Jan. 3 w/ Ryan Gustafson

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For the first Carolina Grown of 2014, some of the finest North Carolina songwriters graced the show. One of which stands atop the new era of alt-country goodness while the other serves as a gatekeeper. For the first hour I was joined by Ryan Gustafson of The Dead Tongues to talk a bit about what he’s been up to for the past year since the release of Desert, and of course it’s been quite a bit.

Gustafson staked his claim as one of the area’s premiere songwriters back in 2009 with his debut LP Donkey, but in the four years between his first and second full-length he had his hands in many a pot. Gustafson played with the likes of Max Indian, The Love Language, Mandolin Orange and The Human Eyes all whilst working on instrumental work as well. But when Gustafson announced his return to songwriting with The Dead Tongues it felt like the region let out a collective cheer. Desert was one of the most well received albums of 2013 and Gustafson has stayed busy at work since the album’s release.

Throughout the hour I spoke with Ryan Gustafson about his songwriting origins, the lapse between full lengths, all of the roles he’s been filling around the area and importantly what’s to come from the songwriter in 2014. Amidst all of the conversation Gustafson performed two new songs in the studio as well as a track from Desert. Fans of the songwriter can dig deeper into his psyche and get a stripped down treat of some new and old favorites with this session. 

Check it out.

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Music News and Interviews

Giveaways for the week of 1/6 – 1/12

Keep it tuned to WKNC all week long for your chance to win tickets to any of these great shows below! Just be the correct caller when the DJ asks for it, and you and a friend could be hitting up some of the coolest local acts around.

Wednesday, January 8 – Songs: Molina – A Memorial Electric Co with Loamlands @ The Pinhook

Thursday, January 9 – Totally Slow with The Bastages and The B-Side Project @ The Pinhook

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Thursday, January 9 – Perfect Pussy with Whatever Brains and Davidians @ Kings Barcade

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Friday, January 10 – Mods & Rockers Revue with Archbishops of Blount Street and The Kinksmen @ The Pinhook

Friday, January 10 – Orquesta Gardel @ Kings Barcade

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Friday, January 10 – Cracker with Camper Van Beethoven @ Cat’s Cradle

Saturday, January 11 – Mipso with South Carolina Broadcasters @ Kings Barcade

Saturday, January 11 – Spider Bags with Midnight Plus One @ Cat’s Cradle Back Room

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Sunday, January 12 – Cate Le Bon with Kevin Morby @ Cat’s Cradle Back Room

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Local Music Music News and Interviews

January’s Local Artist of the Month: Hiss Golden Messenger

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Hiss Golden Messenger

is a true testament to the musicianship that resides in the Triangle. Both in a live setting and on the record, Hiss Golden Messenger is a roll call of many of the great musicians who come together under Durham songwriter M.C. Taylor and Brooklyn recordist Scott Hirsch to make something incredible.  The albums are a careful work of genius that brings together a wide-range of genres that together scream “North Carolina.”  Their most recent effort Haw brings together some of the best of the best to create their fullest, most beautiful album yet.  Seeing Hiss Golden Messenger at their show at Haw River Ballroom was such an incredible treat.  The Triangle came together for a night of music led by some of the giants of the local scene who brought to life this music that is so wholly North Carolina.

Taylor and Hirsch have released 4 albums as Hiss Golden Messenger including last year’s Haw.  Named for the river that strikes right through the heart of North Carolina, the album is their most adventurous to date as the duo expanded and enlisted the help of some old friends.  The band consisted of Megafaun’s Phil Cook, The Black Twig Picker’s Nathan Bowles, and William Tyler.  Each of these men is a great musician in their own right and came together to round out Taylor’s incredible vision perfectly.  Like their previous albums, Haw brought together wide array of different genres including folk, blues, country, and soul.  While Hiss Golden Messenger is a champion of an older country era, the music is universal and draws people that have never before been a fan of these genres.  As such, Haw was incredibly well received by people of all genres as it made the rounds on both local and national end of year lists.

On January 14th, their second album Bad Debt is being reissued after coming to an untimely end.  All copies of the original CD edition were destroyed in a warehouse fire during the London riots in 2011.  Bad Debt was written during the time of the collapse of the global economy.  Now after its symbolic demise, these songs will see the light of day 5 years later.  While we may not know what the future of the global economy may hold, these songs still hold weight as we look towards the not entirely cheery future.  But the future may be a bit brighter with Hiss Golden Messenger reminding us we aren’t alone in our struggles.

Tune in to hear our interview with Hiss Golden Messenger during Carolina Grown on January 17th as we discuss what lies ahead for them.

Check out a review and listen to a track off of Bad Debt on Pitchfork.

Hear the interview now.

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Music News and Interviews

Matthew E. White Interview

Matthew E. White stopped by to chat with WKNC’s DJ DiGiorno before his Dec. 14 show with Howard Ivans at King’s Barcade.

Listen here.

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Music News and Interviews

The Love Language Interview

Stu McLamb and Autumn Ehinger from The Love Language stopped by WKNC to talk with DJ DiGiorno about their Dec. 6 and 7 set of shows at King’s Barcade with Sylvan Esso. Catch their conversation, which includes recorded versions of the songs “White Rabbit” and “Hi Life.”

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After the interview, they stepped out of the studio and into the lounge, where they performed “Faithbreaker” and “Golden Age” as part of WKNC’s “The Lounge” video series.

And did we mention The Love Language is headlining the first night of WKNC’s Double Barrel Benefit 11 on Friday, Feb. 7 at Cat’s Cradle?

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Music News and Interviews

Sylvan Esso Interview

Sylvan Esso performs at the 2013 Hopscotch Music Festival

Local-ish indie rockers Sylvan Esso spoke with DJ C’est La Bri in advance of their Dec. 6 and 7 performances at King’s Barcade with The Love Language.

Sylvan Esso on WKNC

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Music News and Interviews

Carolina Grown Podcast: Texoma w/ Magnolia Collective & Kenny Roby on Dec. 13

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Last week’s Carolina Grown was easily the busiest to date, but when you’ve got so much to fit in for the last show of the year there’s no excuse not to go all out! The first hour of the show was comprised of three rootsy acts from the area that are coming in at various stages of their career. While Kenny Roby sits atop his local throne as one of the standout members of the Alt-Country scene thanks to his work in Six String Drag, acts like Magnolia Collective and Texoma are just finding their footing.

Throughout the hour I spoke first with Kenny Roby about the differences between approaching his songs as a solo artist as opposed to a member of a full band. Roby performed an intimate take on “Tired of Being In Love,” before the focus switched over to the folks in Magnolia Collective. We then spoke a bit about the inception of Magnolia Collective and how it’s grown from their humble start with weekly jams at Carrboro’s The Station. Magnolia Collective then performed a brand new track from their forthcoming full length, set for release sometime next year.

Lastly, we moved onto the newest band of the bill with Texoma. Texoma’s songwriter Zach Terry was one of the original members of Magnolia Collective and we spoke about the differences between working with such a large group as opposed to a “dust-rock” trio. Texoma recently released a self-produced self-titled EP, and having only been a band for 2 months we naturally discussed the difficulties and excitement that comes along with being in such a swiftly moving project. To close out the hour Texoma performed an unreleased track titled “Mary Anne.”

Check out all three performances and interviews.

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Music News and Interviews

Carolina Grown Podcast: Bridges on Dec. 6

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2013 has been a busy year for the Triangle’s music scene, there’s been a slew of fantastic new acts that have risen from relative obscurity to become one of the many promising bands throughout the state. Years like this one serve as a testament to the ever-expanding pool of talent that this state can produce, and acts like Bridges are a wonderful display of this. While Bridges began rolling out songs from their debut full-length Glass Mask this summer, the record is firmly backed by the comforting winter aesthetic. Bridges’ Brian Franklin writes all of these songs from the hazy guitar lines and melancholy melodies to the driving bass and raw drumbeats.

This fresh purveyor of bedroom pop joined me this past week on Carolina Grown to talk a little bit about the inception of this project and how it’s grown from a self-contained bedroom project to a full-fledged band. Franklin and I discuss the transition from solo arrangements to vivacious live shows and the difficulties in bearing your innermost thoughts and feelings before an audience, which when your music is as visceral as Bridges’ must be a bit of an emotional exercise.

To top it all of Franklin performed a few stripped down takes of some tracks from Glass Mask, including “Never Loved You” and “End of the Road.”  Check out the acoustic performances and full conversation with Brian.

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Local Music Music News and Interviews

Local Artist of the Month: Magpie Feast

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Throughout most of 2013 we’ve taken time each month to highlight some of our favorite local artists in the area. Our Artist of the Month feature is meant to shine a light upon the folks in the North Carolina music scene that deserve is most. Whether that be some of the scene’s longstanding champions like Bombadil and The Love Language, swiftly rising up-and-comers like Baobab or punk-rock renegades like Whatever Brains, we always try to focus on an act that stands for all that our scene represents.

That’s why we’re proud to present our final Artist of the Month for 2013 with Raleigh’s little-known Magpie Feast. Prepare yourself for a rootsy blast of foot-stomping tunes that are dripping with bluesy rhythms and passionate melodies. For years Matthew Southern has crafted rough around the edges Americana-leaning tunes that have flown quietly under the radar. Despite the lack of critical acclaim, Southern’s songs have grown from enjoyable trips into the songwriter’s psyche to memorable displays of his ever-increasing songwriting prowess.

Your standard Magpie Feast song feels reminiscent of a dirty southern take on Devendra Banhart. These tracks are firmly based in blues-rock stylings while interspersing traditional folk melodies, yet they somehow find their way into sprawling territory that gives this music a modernistic hue. Magpie Feast’s most recent release Out of the Womb sheds the lo-fi veil in favor of a much more dynamic and engaging approach, taking this already riveting sound and piling on layers to enrich the experience. 

On Friday, December 13 I’ll be joined by Magpie Feast to discuss the evolution of this promising and under-appreciated act and to find out where they stand amongst a crowded North Carolina scene. Magpie Feast will be performing some stripped down takes on tracks from Out of the Womb, so tune in from 6-7 for our last Artist of the Month feature before the new year begins!

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Music News and Interviews

The Love Language in the Lounge

The Love Language stopped by WKNC the other day to talk with us about their recent album “Ruby Red” as well as their tour and their upcoming Winter Formal with Sylvan Esso at Kings this Friday and Saturday night. They also stepped back into The Lounge for an intimate, stripped-down set to show off their latest effort. Stu and Autumn armed with only a guitar, a floor tom, a keyboard, and a tambourine were enough to have the freshmen in the neighboring dorm sticking their heads out their window as Stu’s strong voice escaped the building. Stay tuned for another song of their new album from the performance and be sure to check out our YouTube channel for all of our past performances!

(Source: https://www.youtube.com/)