Category: Blog

Categories
New Album Review

EP Review: “Devotion”- Planet 1999

Best Tracks: Spell, Party, Replay, Devotion 

FCC Clean 

I first found Planet 1999 on Caroline Polachek’s “IF U PLZ” Spotify playlist (also highly recommend this) with their single “Spell” in 2019. Planet 1999 is the first band to sign with PC Music and is often known for their ‘90s dream-pop sound. You may have also heard of them through Charli XCX– the band co-wrote and co-produced “February 2017” on album “Charli” with artists Yaeji and Clairo. This year, they finally came out with a full EP of their own- “Devotion.” 

“Devotion” is seven songs long and goes between melancholy and shoegaze-y songs like “Spell” and “Haze,” to upbeat, party songs like “Party” and “Replay.” This EP is SO pretty. The ethereal vocals and tonality remind me a lot of the Cocteau Twins, with their difficult-to-understand lyrics and ‘90s shoegaze sound. You can’t help but hum along and pretend you know the words :p

This EP is clearly very different from the typical Hannah Diamond, A. G. Cook, Charli XCX sound that PC Music is known for. It’s a lot more indie and dream-pop. I love this EP and am very curious to see more of the clear changes happening within PC Music. Even A.G. Cook just put out acoustic songs on his new 49 song album “7G”– who would have thought! Some of my personal favorites from the EP are “Spell,” “Party,” “Replay,” and “Devotion.” 

I highly recommend you check out the EP as well as their new singles– one of my favorites being “This Is For Me [baby blue] – Planet 1999 remix.” 

Xoxo, 

Gab

Categories
Band/Artist Profile

Artist Spotlight: Greta Van Fleet

Jake Kiska by Nicolas Padovani / CC BY (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0)

I was introduced to Greta Van Fleet by a close friend right before Christmas of 2019. We were both in awe of the (gorgeous) boys and their power on stage. Strangely enough, their music was what brought me to love classic rock as much as I do now.

Since their debut album, “From the Fires,” was released in 2017, they have captured the hearts of young and old audiences alike by reviving the spirit of 60’s rock. Originally from Frankenmuth, Michigan, the band is comprised of three brothers; Jake, Josh, and Samuel Kiska, as well as their childhood friend Daniel Wagner.

One of the most common things you’ll hear when listening to interviews with the group of four is how they deal with being compared to Led Zeppelin, one of the greatest rock bands of all time. It is impossible not to see the similarities. Josh, their lead singer, has the same powerful screech as Robert Plant. Jimmy Page’s prowess on guitar is reborn through Jake Kiska. Even their fringe vests, tight pants, and feathers mirror the Zeppelin era. However, Greta Van Fleet definitely injects a more contemporary feel in their music. Taking inspiration from both classic and modern rock, the blues, and soul, their sound is a mixture of upbeat tones and heavy rock.

Their on-stage performances are fantastic to watch. Instead of definitive breaks between songs like most bands, their set usually just comprises of one incredibly long ballad, made up of bits of their own songs and pieces of covers. A true standout is their 30-minute-long performance of “Lover, Leaver” that can be found on YouTube and Apple Music. Though it begins and ends like the original “Lover, Leaver,” in between you can also hear some of their other songs like “Safari Song” and “Brave New World,” as well as a cover of “Rollin’ and Tumblin’” by Muddy Waters. A great part about their live performances is how you can really see how intuitively connected and synced they are. Maybe it’s because three out of the four are brothers, but I’ve never seen a stronger bond between bandmates. Their guitarist, Jake Kiska, is especially a force to be reckon with when he commands the stage with his insane riffs.

Above all, Greta Van Fleet has made clear that their mission is to promote peace, love, and unity through their music. Their newest album, “Anthem of the Peaceful Army,” is a testimony to these ideals.

Discography:

  • From the Fires (2017)
  • Anthem of the Peaceful Army (2018)

Members:

  • Josh Kiska (Vocals)
  • Jake Kiska (Guitar)
  • Samuel Kiska (Bass & Organ)
  • Daniel Wagner (Drums)

My Favorite Songs:

  • Lover, Leaver (Taker, Believer) [Live]
  • Brave New World
  • A Change is Gonna Come
  • Mountain of the Sun
  • Edge of Darkness

-DJ butter 

Categories
DJ Highlights

21 Bands/Artists That Got Me to Age 21

^^^ all of my OG Vine readers will know and appreciate this meme. I couldn’t help myself.

Probably the only good thing that came out of the year 2020 for me was that I turned 21! 21 is a big milestone because this is the age that you can *legally* drink and buy nicotine!! Y’all don’t understand how happy I am that I don’t have to pay an underage fee at shows now, once they are up and running again. Yay on saving $5 and not getting X’s on my hands!!

Like I said before, 21 is a huge milestone, and I wouldn’t have been able to make it to the age of 21 without the help of some of my favorite bands and artists. COIVD-19 has been a hard time for everyone and has put a toll on my mental health. I LOVE to socialize so for an extrovert, like myself, it sucked not being able to hang with the homies!! But the introvert in me has loved binge watching One Tree Hill and That ‘70s Show. While having all this “me time,” I have been listening to more music than ever. I preach this a lot but music is a great outlet for both the listeners and the creators. I find it fascinating that music can help individuals in so many different ways. So today, I will be sharing with you the 21 bands and artists that have gotten me to the age of 21! This list is in no particular order of importance, all 21 of these musicians are equally important and loved by The Saw.

1.    Bent Life

2.    Boundaries

3.    Dying Fetus

4.    Whitechapel

5.    Miss May I

6.    Alice In Chains

7.    Upon A Burning Body

8.    Type O Negative

9.    Six Feet Under

10. Obituary

11. Saweetie

12.Mulatto

13.Tash Sultana

14. Snoop Dogg

15. Dr. Dre

16. Doja Cat

17.Isaiah Rashaad

18. Mac Miller

19.TLC

20. BROCKHAMPTON

21. Smino

Stay Metal, 

THE SAW 

Categories
Playlists

Friday Favorites 8/28/20

Happy Friday Everyone! Here is a playlist of eight songs I’ve had in rotation recently:

  1. Freeze Tag (feat. Kamasi Washington & Phoelix) by Terrace Martin, Robert Glasper and 9th Wonder: this dream team of hip-hop and jazz heavyweights have come together to bring us Dinner Party, an album certain to appeal to fans of either genre. My favorite track is Freeze Tag, which makes light of the state of relations between citizens and police.

  2. Children of Production by Parliament: as one of the forerunners of funk music, George Clinton and his band land the groundwork for the classic P-Funk (or Parliament-Funkadelic) sound. This track features intricate horn arrangements woven between syncopated drums that will surely have your head bobbing.

  3. smut by Dua Saleh: as I said in my “Slept On” feature, Dua Saleh is pushing the boundary of what it means to be a hip-hop/R&B artist in the 21st century. I find their confident swagger on this track to be irresistible.

  4. Lockdown (feat. JID, Noname & Jay Rock) by Anderson .Paak: JID, Noname and Jay Rock team up remix a summer 2020 jam. On top of Anderson .Paak’s stellar verses, the three add their own insightful commentary on injustice in America.

  5. Abeja by Mndsgn and Sofie: this instrumental is as catchy as it is calming. The simple loop that plays for four minutes is perfect for studying.

  6. Warmth in the Coldest Acre by Photay: another instrumental, but this one has a much greater sense of progression than the last. Beginning with a quirky percussion loop, Photay slowly adds elements until the track builds into a wall of sound that is full of character.

  7. The Light by Joey Bada$$: The Badmon is back with his new EP The Light Pack, his first solo release in three years. He sounds as hungry as ever on this new track, and it has me excited for whatever he does next.

  8. Jekyll by Hiatus Kaiyote: one of my favorite tracks from the “wondercore” quartet from Australia. Like many of their songs, it features more than one section – the first part is stripped-back piano ballad, the second builds momentum with an afrobeat-inspired breakdown, and the final part is a neo-soul denouement. Be sure to check out my “Slept On” feature for this band!

– DJ Mango

Categories
Music News and Interviews

Let’s Find Something New!

I have a horrible habit of listening to the same songs over and over again. I find some songs I like, I put them on a playlist, and I don’t look for new music for weeks. Working as a DJ for WKNC has helped to break me out of this habit a bit more, but with the help of the 2020 quarantine summer, I fell back into the same pattern of repetition. As March, April, May, June, and July all seemed to blend together into one insanely long month, I found that my playlist, which was very fittingly titled “doing nothing,” was not helping me feel productive or creative.

I was slowly growing out of my taste for rap and R&B after finding more of an interest in classic rock and the blues, but the comfort of my old music kept me from venturing into the depths of Spotify to find something new. You know when you watch the same episodes of a TV show or movie, even though you’ve seen them a thousand times, just to decompress? A similar phenomenon was happening to me and my music.

It’s easy to stay with the same music we listened to as teenagers, for these sounds have helped build our identities. We all have (hopefully) grown and changed since high school, but sometimes our music taste stays stuck in the past. Though this is not necessarily a bad thing, I think it’s important to keep discovering music and other new things we like as we get older. I love revisiting “AM” by the Arctic Monkeys every once in a while to get a rush of middle school nostalgia just as much as the next person, but I’m glad that I’ve moved onto new horizons.

It can be overwhelming and time-consuming to dive into Spotify blindly in search of new tunes, but the feeling of emerging victorious with a few new songs that bring you joy is a lovely feeling. Another strategy I like to use is going to the thrift store and finding a vinyl with the coolest record sleeve I can find. Asking a friend to make you a playlist is also a great way of finding new music, as well as listening to WKNC!

– DJ butter

Categories
Classic Album Review

Classic Review: Madvillainy

MF DOOM is a figure that takes many forms. Some of his known aliases include Metal Face, Viktor Vaughn, and Your Favorite Rapper’s Favorite Rapper. No matter the moniker, DOOM will rap about anything from his comically nefarious deeds (he is known to send imposters to his live performances) to what he ate for breakfast – all while wearing his signature Doctor Doom-inspired metal mask.

Like his partner in crime, Madlib is known under several titles such as Quasimoto and the Beat Konducta. As a self-described “DJ first, producer second, and MC last”, he has worked with industry giants like J Dilla, Freddie Gibbs, Kanye West and Erykah Badu, and is just as comfortable behind a drum set as he is an MPC. He is known for his distinctive production style that features samples of obscure records and boom-bap drums.

The two joined forces to create 2004’s Madvillainy, which is considered by many hip-hop heads to be essential to the hip-hop canon. A true watershed moment in the history of the genre, Madvillainy had a profound influence on the generation of artists that succeeded it: without it, we would have no Joey Bada$$, no Earl Sweatshirt, and no Tyler, the Creator.

After listening to the album, it is easy to see why it is so influential. Madlib’s dusty beats and DOOM’s stream-of-consciousness verses are indicative of the sound that is now commonplace in the alternative hip-hop subgenre. The album opens with “The Illest Villains”, an instrumental driven by vocal samples of various cartoons and movie trailers from the yesteryear. The balance of urgency and camp perfectly sets the tone for the rest of the project by characterizing our villains as a dastardly duo who, in spite of their unrivaled infamy, spend most of their time smoking weed (“America’s Most Blunted”) or trying to pick up women (“Operation Lifesaver aka Mint Test”).

I could write a dissertation on MF DOOM’s lyrical gymnastics and Madlib’s nuanced production choices on Madvillainy, but since the album was released 16 years ago, I’m sure it’s been done already. Instead, I’ll just say this: if you’re a hip-hop fan and you haven’t heard this album, what are you doing with your life? Even if you aren’t a fan of the genre, give Madvillainy a shot. It could change your mind.

Favorite tracks: Accordion, Raid, Figaro, All Caps, Rhinestone Cowboy

– DJ Mango

Categories
Classic Album Review

Metaphorical Music Review

My favorites: Lady Brown, Beat laments the world, Peaceland
Listen if you like: The Deli, Tomppabeats, Schlomo

Nujabes, also known as 瀬葉 淳, or Jun Seba was a Tokyo-born producer, DJ, and composer. Nujabes is mainly celebrated for his influence in the “anime beats” genre as he was the first artist to begin composing simple beat tracks, and with the development of the genre he has gained prominence among fans. His work ranges from sampling hip hop and jazz to producing his own atmospheric instrumentals. He also owned two record shops and founded his own independent record label in 1998, Hydeout Productions; his passion for music is obvious. 

“Metaphorical Music,” a breakbeat album created in 2003, is one of the best albums in his discography. because of the many different artists it features, rapping and singing over the incredible instrumentals created by Nujabes. His production dips into many different genre influences and this is exemplified beautifully in “Metaphorical Music”.  The album flows seamlessly between jazz notes, hip hop beats, and Eastern elements. The album begins with jazzy tracks overlaid with rap verses by Substantial, Pase Rock, and Cise Starr. My favorite of these is “Lady Brown”, a beautiful love song. The verse “She smells like a Happy Birthday/On a Thursday” is one of my favorites out of all the love songs I’ve heard. It’s really a great song. You can get a glimpse of Nujabes’ foray into “chillhop” (before the genre was even created) in his track F.I.L.O. which features artist Shing02. The album finishes with some more simplistic but exquisite instrumental tracks, like “Peaceland.”

Jun Seba tragically died in 2010 in a traffic accident. Following this, artists worldwide performed tributes in his musical style and many modern artists like Otakon and Logic have credited him for his influence in their work. His label posthumously released his album “Spiritual State,” another amazing work. Despite his passing he continues to bring music fans together through his touching, soulful works. 

Give “Metaphorical Music” a listen, with the newfound appreciation of Nujabes and his musical impact. 

– Miranda

Categories
Weekly Charts

Daytime Charts 8/25

Artist Record Label
1 DOUBLE GRAVE Goodbye Nowhere! Forged Artifacts
2 FONTAINES DCA Hero’s Death Partisan
3 BETHS, THE Jump Rope Gazers Carpark
4 LIME CORDIALE 14 Steps To A Better You Chugg/London Cowboys
5 ILLUMINATI HOTTIES FREE I.H.: This Is Not The One You’ve Been Waiting For Self-Released
6 BECCA MANCARI The Greatest Part Captured Tracks
7 NYALLAH Reflections [EP] Self-Released
8 JUNIOR MESA “Losing My Grip” b/w “Creep” [Single ]Nice Life
9 LOMELDA “Wonder” [Single] Double Double Whammy
10 STRFKR Future Past Life Polyvinyl
11 MADELINE KENNEY Sucker’s Lunch Carpark
12 DIET CIG Do You Wonder About Me? Frenchkiss
13 PROTOMARTYR Ultimate Success Today Domino
14 JR JR August And Everything Prior [EP] Love Is EZ
15 SOLOS SoloS [EP] Dowd
16 PUBLIC PRACTICE Gentle Grip Wharf Cat
17 PAINT Spiritual Vegas Mexican Summer
18 HALF WAIF The Caretaker Anti-
19 OCEAN ALLEY Lonely Diamond Self-Released
20 CHLOE MORIONDO Spirit Orb [EP] Elektra
21 PINEWOOD All Things With Symmetry [EP] Self-Released
22 PORRIDGE RADIO Every Bad Secretly Canadian/Secretly Group
23 ATTA BOY Big Heart Manners Self-Released
24 METHYL ETHEL Hurts To Laugh [EP] Dot Dash
25 SIMEN LYNGROTH Muse Self-Released
26 FRANCIS OF DELIRIUM All Change [EP] Dalliance
27 FLAT WORMS Antarctica God?
28 DEAD TONGUES, THE Transmigration Blues Psychic Hotline
29 MINI TREES Slip Away [EP] Self-Released
30 SQUARE LOOP Mom Come Pick Me Up Self-Released

TOP ADDS 

1 GIRL FRIDAY Androgynous Mary Hardly Art
2 BULLY SUGAREGG Sub Pop
3 DREAM WIFE So When You Gonna…Lucky Number
4 GANSER Just Look At That Sky Felte
5 DEHD Flower Of Devotion Fire Talk
6 HELVETIA This Devastating Map Joyful Noise
7 EYEDRESS Let’s Skip To The Wedding Lex
8 HARRY THE NIGHTGOWN Harry The Nightgown Topshelf
9 KATIE DEY Mydata Run For Cover
10 THIS IS THE KIT Off Off On Rough Trade

Categories
Weekly Charts

Chainsaw Charts 8/25

Artist Record Label
1 CRANIAL CONTAMINATION “Hive Mind” [Single] RealityFade
2 ABOMINABLE PUTRIDITY “Non Infinite Sequence” [Single] Self-Released
3 STILLBIRTH Revive The Throne Unique Leader
4 INGESTED Where Only Gods May Tread Unique Leader
5 UPON A BURNING BODY Built From War [EP] Seek & Strike
6 CURRENTS The Way It Ends SharpTone
7 MAKE THEM SUFFER How To Survive A Funeral Rise
8 BEFORE I TURN Lovelorn: Moon Self-Released
9 DESPISED ICON Purgatory Nuclear Blast
10 CARNIFEX “Cursed” [Single] Nuclear Blast

Categories
Weekly Charts

Afterhours Charts 8/25

Artist Record Label
1 AVALANCHES, THE “Wherever You Go” b/w “Reflecting Light” [Single] Astralwerks
2 CHRISTINE AND THE QUEENS La Vita Nuova [EP] Because/Capitol
3 CARIBOU Suddenly Merge
4 SASSY 009 KILL SASSY 009 Luft
5 KITTY Charm and Mirror [EP] Pretty Wavvy
6 COWGIRL CLUE Icebreaker Vada Vada
7 PARK HYE JIN How Can I [EP] Ninja Tune
8 GRIMES Miss Anthropocene 4AD/Beggars Group
9 BLOOD ORANGE Angel’s Pulse Domino
10 YVES TUMOR Heaven To A Tortured Mind Warp