Artist Record Label 1 CEREMONY In The Spirit World Now Relapse 2 OH ROSE While My Father Sleeps Park The Van 3 BODYWASH Comforter Luminelle 4 CHK CHK CHK (!!!) Wallop Warp 5 ROYAL CANOE Waver Paper Bag 6 (SANDY) ALEX G House Of Sugar Domino 7 ROYAL TRUX Pink Stuff [EP] Fat Possum 8 GRINGO STAR Controlled Burn Baby Robot 9 OH SEES Face Stabber Castle Face 10 HARMALEIGHS, THE She Won’t Make Sense Nettwerk 11 METZ Covers [EP] Sub Pop 12 FLORIST Emily Alone Double Double Whammy 13 JEFF THE BROTHERHOOD Magick Songs Dine Alone 14 CRUMB Jinx Self-Released 15 BLACK BELT EAGLE SCOUT At The Party With My Brown Friends Saddle Creek 16 ADA LEA What We Say In Private Saddle Creek 17 FRENCH VANILLA How Am I Not Myself? Danger Collective 18 CHRISTELLE BOFALE Swim Team [EP] Father/Daughter 19 PART TIME Spell #6 Burger 20 STRANGE RANGER Remembering The Rockets Tiny Engines 21 TEEN BODY Dreamo Broken Circles 22 SLOW PULP Big Day [EP] Self-Released 23 MARIKA HACKMAN Any Human Friend Sub Pop 24 MOLLY BURCH First Flower Captured Tracks 25 PHANTASTIC FERNITURE Phantastic Ferniture Polyvinyl 26 INFINITY CRUSH Virtual Heaven Joy Void 27 LOMELDA M For Empathy DDW 28 MISS JUNE Bad Luck Party Frenchkiss 29 JULIA SHAPIRO Perfect Version Hardly Art 30 FRANKIE COSMOS Close It Quietly Sub Pop
FCC violations: Plastic Boogie, The Cruel Millennial,
Feeling ants in your pants? Feeling like if you don’t get up and dance immediately that you’ll burst into a million colorful pieces of confetti? Not to worry, there are plenty of boogies to be had throughout this album.
This 7-member ensemble from Melbourne, Australia shows no fear of exploring different genres. Their first two albums 12 Bar Bruise and Eyes Like the Sky were energetic blends of surf and garage rock. Over the next six years, King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizards continued to expand their sound, releasing several albums that included psychedelic rock, soul, folk, jazz, and heavy mental themes. King Gizzard has something for everybody.
Fishing for Fishies, released in April of 2019, is King Gizzard’s 14th album, and is a bizarre culmination of unique talents and creativity. Fishing for Fishes was a highly anticipated album. After all, if the band could release 5 stunning albums in one year, who knew what would happen when they took a whole year off? Well, the result was a true gem that sounds a little like blues rock in the age of robot. The drums are crisp and tight. The vocals are heavily filtered and electronic. The guitar is fluid and upbeat yet maintains a beautifully forlorn bluegrass feel.
Several quirky messages are sprinkled into this album such as ‘don’t kill fish’ in the title track Fishing for Fishies and ‘we all have a false sense of reality because of corrupt media’ in the sixth track Real’s Not Real.
Though I think King Gizzard’s earlier surf and garage rock phase was their best era, I can tell the boys had tons of fun making this album.
Similar sounding artists are Aphrodite’s Child and Mahivishnu Orchestra. If you love Doctor Who or are empathetic to fish, then I recommend giving this album a spin.
It’s time to talk local. It’s time to talk classics. It’s time to talk local classics. Basically, it’s time to talk Pie Face Girls, Raleigh legends. The trio has pumped out newer tracks and continues to absolutely crush the game, but this is a retro review after all, so we’re gonna get as retro as we can with these local celebrities. 2014.
The geniuses of PFG gifted us with First in early 2014. Hard to believe this album is almost 6 years old, and even harder to believe that these lovely folks have stuck around oak city for all that time! We’ve been riding this rollercoaster of jams ever since this initial release, and although the group just keeps getting better, their debut is nothing to stick your nose up at.
First screams Pie Face Girls. It’s just so them. The cover is essentially looking at you and asking you what you’re staring at. It’s not anything other than what Pie Face Girls really is. We get the message without any frill. If you check out this album online, you’ll also see that it contains four songs, none of which are child friendly per se. Three out of the four titles could not be spoken in full on air and I’m pretty sure all of them violate FCC regulations – but what a perfect illustration of PFG this is. They rock and they know it. Each of these sweet tunes has the essentials: Klay, Dani, and Tiffany rocking our worlds with earth shattering beats and perfectly yelled vocals telling us what we need to hear. The shortest track, F*** You I’m Pretty…? Sheesh what a tune. First of all, gold star for that title. We love to see it. Second of all, hello perfectly performed grungy drum moments. Hi scary bass riffs that prepare me for battle. NICE TO MEET ALL OF YOU. This song makes you wanna jump up and down in ugly pants and fight to destroy oppressors. Same goes for the whole album, honestly. This energy is what Pie Face Girls does best. They kill it every time and this first album is no exception. LONG LIVE PFG!!!
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.
Anthony Fantanto was asked to leave Pinecrest Elementary School after starting a live stream and loudly shouting that the performance was derivative of the the nearby Westwood Middle School ’s recital.
Artist Record Label 1 ORTHODOX “I Can Show You God” [Single] Unbeaten 2 ENTRAILS “The Pyre” [Single] Metal Blade 3 KNOCKED LOOSE A Different Shade Of Blue Pure Noise 4 CREEPING DEATH “Ripping Through Flesh” [Single] Entertainment One 5 SIGNS OF THE SWARM “Crown of Nails” [Single] Unique Leader 6 AWAKE FOR DAYS “Break Your Chains” [Single] Self-Released 7 AS I LAY DYING “Blinded” [Single] Nuclear Blast 8 AMON AMARTH Berserker Metalblade 9 ASCENDING FROM ASHES Glory Darkscale Media 10 RITUALIZER “Speed Of Sound” [Single] Self-Released
Um hello, if the Secret Place is an actual place then it’s a place I wanna be! This Zephyr Bones album is only two years old, but it definitely has that classic indie sound that can be hard to come by these days. This is a great album that will absolutely stand the test of time for several reasons; perhaps I shall make a list:
That cover art. Sheesh. Wowza. What a cotton candy dream. Of course the album cover doesn’t affect sound quality but it’s what caught my eye in the music library and helped The Zephyr Bones stand out against thousands of other artists we have music from at KNC. If you aren’t looking for a specific artist’s work when you’re shopping around for some new music – then what will catch your eye? That cover babie! Before you even hear it, you see it, and the artwork for Secret Place is the perfect illustration. You can’t tell what it is. The landscape drawn out appears strange and feels hidden, as a secret place should.
Lets hear it for the boys! Indie rock has always gotta be rooted in ‘rock.’ I know it. You know it. The skater kids know it. Fortunately, Secret Place fits the bill! It’s definitely on the right shelf in the music library. The foursome combine all the right elements in just the right way, making a mellow, beachy sound that isn’t missing any of the great parts of rock we all love. These guys seriously know what they’re doing.
I’ll take those tunes with a twist – a modern twist. A great album sets out to do something different, which is not an easy task when so much music already exists. The Zephyr Bones do a great job of showcasing their individuality in Secret Place. Psychedelic soundscapes back up their already solid foundation and gentle vocals bring everything together in a way that just works.
If you’re looking for some indie rock to set a relaxing mood that isn’t lacking in genuine talent, this is the album for you.
Streaming: I know a lot of people love to hate streaming services, but they’d be lying if they didn’t agree that platforms like Apple Music, Spotify and Tidal are convenient, accessible and technologically up to date. These platforms allow for instant sharing of music and with smartphone capabilities, you can really take music everywhere you go.
Festivals for everything: Like streaming, people love to hate music festivals, but I think that’s just because they haven’t been to one. I was definitely a jealous 14 year old, Tumblr surfing girl who dreamt about going to something like Coachella. Nowadays, a lot of music festivals are popping up in a large, grassy field near you and with big artists too. Just this year, the first annual Dreamville Fest was put on in Raleigh’s Dorothea Dix Park.
Rap groups, artist collectives: Rap groups and general collectives of artists are such a spectacle in themselves showcasing different talents, styles and sometimes genres under one umbrella. The perfect example is Odd Future of course, a group of wild teens from California who represented the confusion, chaos and fun of being in the spotlight of the music industry. Artist collectives are fun to watch, to listen to and they always make the coolest merch. The hysteria that falls over everyone when a new group bursts on the scene is always an interesting thing to experience—the most recent being Brockhampton or Earthgang.
Diverse and inclusive artists: I love seeing more and more color and diverse backgrounds of the artists that I discover and personally listen to. Their differences, struggles and personal tastes really shine through in their music. The first example that comes to mind is Jai Paul, an electronic artist whose Indian descent shows well in his work. Lil Nas X has recently come out as gay, Sam Smith has come out as non-binary and these instances show how much more comfortable artists feel about revealing their true selves to the world. However, the music industry still has a long, long way to go in terms of gender and race diversity, but I think it’s headed in the right direction.
Hip-Hop is taking over: Move over Bruce Springsteen, hello Kendrick Lamar. I’m a hip-hop fan, so it’s pleasing to see rap achieve such a big step up in the music world, though it had great influence for decades now. According to Nielsen Music’s 2017 report, R&B/Hip-Hop are the most consumed genres of music in the US. With trap beats and rapped lyrics infiltrating genres like country, rock and pop, this statistic comes as no surprise.
Carrion was the first Parkway Drive song that I had ever heard and I immediately got chills during the intro. From there, I went back into the band’s entire discography. This band will forever be one of my favorite bands not only because their music is kickass, but also because they are genuine guys. I met them at the Carolina Rebellion in 2018 and they were all super cool! They said that they liked my $5 Walmart sunglasses, and they also put hearts around their signatures on my poster.
Parkway Drive is from Byron Bay, Australia and they formed in 2003. The band has released six full-length albums: Killing with a Smile (2006), Horizons (2009), Deep Blue (2010), Atlas (2012), Ire (2015), and Reverence (2018).
The band got their name, Parkway Drive, from the street where their home rehearsal space was at. The home was also a venue for live shows because there was a lack of venues for punk rock and hardcore punk bands to play at. Parkway Drive played their first show at the Byron Bay Youth Centre.
The band flew to the United States where they recorded Killing with a Smile with Killswitch Engage guitarist Adam Dutkiewicz in just two weeks. Then the band got signed in 2006 to Epitaph Records. They went back to Dutkiewicz studio to record Horizons. The band hit the studio again to record Deep Blue, and according to Parkway Drive’s vocalists, Winston McCall, this record would be the rawest and heaviest record to date.
And as they say, the rest is history! The band has steadily been going up and getting bigger and bigger as each year passes. They went from playing at small house venues, to selling out big name arenas. Parkway Drive has “IT;” this edge to them, you can hear it in their music and you can see it in them when they perform live. They have this energy that puts their audience in a trance and you can’t help but jam when they play. They have that special combination that assures that the band will be even bigger! You can tell that they love what they are doing and that they’re playing for their fans. Having a band that is so genuine make it so far is honestly a breath of fresh air. Keep grinding, Parkway Drive. I can’t wait to see where you all go from here.
One of my favorite memories of seeing Parkway Drive was back in 2016 when one of their guitarists lost his shoe and a crowd surfer caught it and threw it back deeper into the crowd. The guitarist found this funny! And then out of nowhere, we had toilet paper being thrown around the crowd. It was awesome!
What is your favorite Parkway Drive song? Mine is Crushed.
