Categories
Weekly Charts

Chainsaw Charts 7/15/25

ArtistRecordLabel
1CANUT DE BONno esperan por nadieSello Cototo
2CAVE SERMONFragile WingsSelf-Released
3DORMANT ORDEALTooth And NailWillowtip
4UNAUSSPRECHLICHEN KULTENHäxan SabaothIron Bonehead
5BLOOD ABSCISSIONI IDebemur Motri
6DEAFHEAVENLonely People With PowerRoadrunner
7BLACK CURSEBurning in Celestial PoisonSepulchral Voice
8HYPERDONTIAHarvest of MalevolenceDark Descent
9VESPERALLa mort de l’âmeSelf-Released
10JULIE CHRISTMASRidiculous and Full of BloodRed Cree
Categories
Weekly Charts

Afterhours Charts 7/15/25

ArtistRecordLabel
1ALIA LAINis this the pulse of mechanical ruinsSelf-Released
2IO-NULL (.DRN)µnerves [EP]Self-Released
3NAMISOUPFern [EP]Pyramid Blood
4DANIBREAKSNXIETY [EP]Self-Released
5DREXGODself rehabilitationSelf-Released
6MARUMARIHidden Tracks And Rarities 2001-2005Carpark
7ALIGHTEDWillow’s Apothecary [EP]Wandering Astray
8MARC MELIAPieces MonophoniquesVLEK
9WAVETAPPERStardustSVPACYBERIA
10MISO EXTRAEarcandyTransgressive/PIAS
Categories
Weekly Charts

Underground Charts 7/15/25

ArtistRecordLabel
1MXNXSTXR AND DESTRUCTO“What You Need” feat. Thundercat & Channel Tres [Single]All My Friends
2AESOP ROCKBlack Hole SuperetteRhymesayers
3AJ TRACEYDon’t Die Before You’re DeadRevenge
4BAMBIIInfinity Club II [EP]Because
5BUTCHER BROWNLetters From The AtlanticConcord Jazz
6CHEW“Horseheads” feat. Day Tripper [Single]CorpoRAT
7DUCKWRTHAll American F*ckboyThem Hellas
8FLY ANAKIN(The) Forever DreamLex
9KOKOROKOTuff Times Never LastBrownswood
10LORD SKOPIFFStimulated
Categories
Weekly Charts

Jazz Charts 7/15/25

Jazz Charts

ArtistRecordLabel
1MIKE CASEYValenciaSelf-Released
2MAFALDA MINNOZZIRiofonicMPI
3JEFF RUPERTIt Gets BetterRupe
4VANISHA GOULDShe’s Not Shiny, She’s Not SmoothCellar
5KANDACE SPRINGSLady In SatinSRP
6LEON ANDERSONLive At Snug HarborOutside In
7HIROMIOUT THERETelarc/Concord Jazz
8SILVANO MONASTERIOSThe RiverSelf-Released
9RODNEY JORDANMemphis BlueBaxter
10OJTGround LevelJazz Daddy

Jazz Adds

ArtistRecordLabel
1DANA AND ALDENSpeedoConcord Jazz/Concord
2ROBERT GLASPERLet GoConcord
3TOM GERSHWIN“Let Be” [Single]Self-Released
4TYREEK MCDOLEOpen Up Your SensesArtwork
5LAKECIA BENJAMIN“Noble Rise” [Single]Ropeadope
6TESSA SOUTERShadows And Silence: The Erik Satie ProjectNoanara
Categories
Weekly Charts

Top Charts 7/15/25

Top Charts

ArtistRecordLabel
1JADE BIRD“Dreams” [Single]Glassnote
2GRAHAM HUNTTimeless World ForeverRun For Cover
3MAMALARKYHex KeyEpitaph
4STEREOLABInstant Holograms On Metal FilmWarp/Duophonic
5SUBSONIC EYESingapore DreamingTopshelf
6APRIL MARCH“Surfing Castafiore” [Single]Bong Load
7CASINO HEARTSA Walk In The Grass [EP]Self-Released
8CLEOPATRICKFake MoonNowhere Special/Thirty Tigers
9DAUGHTER OF SWORDSAlexPsychic Hotline
10DISCUSTo Relate ToSun-Rom
11FLORRYSounds LikeDear Life
12MEI SEMONESAnimaruBayonet
13PANCHIKOGinkgoNettwerk
14PHOEBE RINGSAseuraiCarpark
15SASAMIBlood On The Silver ScreenDomino
16SCOWLScowl On Audiotree Live [EP]Self-Released
17AMENRADe Toorn & With Fang And Claw [EP]Relapse
18AMERICAN AQUARIUMThe Fear Of Standing StillLosing Side
19BACCHAENext TimeGet Better
20BEAUGirl Cried WolfImmortal
21BICEPCHROMA Singles [EP]Chroma
22BKTHERULA“Adult Swim” [Single]Warner
23BLACK CURSEBurning in Celestial PoisonSepulchral Voice
24BONE HAUSIn MourningSelf-Released
25BUG CRUSHSomehow I Go In Circles All The Time [EP]Self-Released
26CAMP COPERunning with the HurricanePoison City
27CANUT DE BONno esperan por nadieSello Cototo
28CASH LANGDONDogsSeasick/Well Kept Secret
29CASSIE RAMONESweetheartCD-R
30CAVE SERMONFragile WingsSelf-Released

Top Adds

ArtistRecordLabel
1ANIMAL COLLECTIVE“Love On The Big Screen” [Single]Domino
2SPRINTS“Descartes” [Single]Sub Pop
3GREET DEATHDie In LoveDeathwish
4SMUTTomorrow Comes CrashingBayonet
5HORSEPOWERHorsepower [EP]Rose Garden
Categories
Miscellaneous

I went to Ocracoke Island

Ocracoke Island – the death place of the one and only Captain Blackbeard.  

I had the privilege of spending the 4th of July week in Ocracoke Island, NC.  There, I got to enjoy the beach, local artisanal shops, tourist trap shops, some of the local restaurants, and even the holiday parade.  

Categories
Music Education

Music and Storytelling: Concept Albums

A concept album can be loosely defined as an album that follows a central narrative or theme. I say loosely because there is no strict consensus on what qualifies as a concept album, but generally the criteria are based on an album’s ability to uniformly achieve its narrative. In a concept album, the album as a whole often means something different than the individual songs. The album is made to work together and the songs build on one another, adding context or closure to problems brought up in previous songs. 

The first concept album is widely cited to be “Dust Bowl Ballads” by Woody Guthrie. The album chronicles the Dust Bowl era of The Great Depression. Some of the songs are Guthrie embodying a character, while others are him reporting on the situation from outside. The central story throughout is of the mass migration of people from the region affected by the Dust Bowl to California. 

Since the release of this album in 1940, the concept album has grown and changed a lot. 

Categories
Music Education

Defining Genre: Electronic Body Music

In 1980s Germany, in dark basements and sweaty clubs, a new genre was being developed. This genre was a patchwork of musical influences. It was the constructed child of industrial and dance music, with many other genres claiming paternity from the funky rhythms of disco to the experimental instrumentation of synthpop. This Frankenstein’s monster was called Electronic Body Music. EBM combines heavy basslines and repetitive drum machines with distorted vocals and experimental synths. Some bands included samples from war movies or science fiction movies with dark themes, using the voice clips to create an oppressive feeling and to give the idea that the music was something that could control you. 

EBM found its origin in Germany, where the electronic music scene was constantly evolving. One of the German bands that helped to start the genre was Deutsch Americanische Freundschaft (stylized as DAF). DAF used EBM to explore themes of power, violence and sexuality, which would turn out to be enduring themes of the genre. Despite controversies faced by the band for their heavy use of militaristic aesthetics and the dark lyrical contents of their songs, this danceable industrial music quickly grew to dominate the club scene internationally. Soon after DAF appeared on the scene, bands began to pop up in other European countries. Notable examples include Front 242 in Belgium and Nitzer Ebb in England. In North America there was the hugely influential Canadian band Skinny Puppy. 

The aesthetics of the scene surrounding EBM were leather twists on the uniforms of factory workers and the military. The fashion took cues from the punk scene of the 70s and eventually would develop alongside the goth scene, which resulted in a meshing of subcultures. Many later EBM bands fully embraced a much more goth look. The outfits of the bands that pioneered the genre were purposefully provocative. The genre often involved topics of hyperviolence and machismo, with a sardonic twist on both. The twist was the idea that machismo taken to its fullest extent would be realized as violence, while also satirizing this elevated masculinity into an almost homoerotic affair by many of the bands involved. 

The scene would continue to grow and influence music, spawning numerous offshoots and subgenres. Examples of the subgenres that grew from EBM include aggrotech and futurepop. Along with creating new genres, EBM strongly influenced the direction of existing ones. Industrial music and EBM had an open exchange of ideas, and as a result EBM massively influenced the industrial bands of the late 80s and early 90s such as Ministry and Nine Inch Nails. 

Categories
Concert Preview

Locals Only! July Preview

It’s July, and it’s time for a new Locals Only!, WKNC’s FREE monthly live local music event in partnership with Neptunes! Join us on Thursday, July 10 for some good sounds and cool bands! Let’s see who’s playing.

Categories
Weekly Charts

Chainsaw Charts 7/1/25

Chainsaw Charts

ArtistRecordLabel
1COFFIN CURSEThe Continuous NothingMemento Mori
2DECEASEDChildren of the MorgueHells Headbangers
3GIGANAnomalous Abstractigate InfinitessimusWillowtip
4ORANSSI PAZUZUMuuntautujaNuclear Blast
5SMIQRARgyaġdźé!Self-Released
6VILDHJARTADar Skogen Sjunger Under Evighetens GranarCentury Media
7CALLOUS DAOBOYS, THEI Don’t Want To See You In HeavenMNRK Heavy
8BLIND GIRLSAn Exit ExistsPersistent Vision
9SCIMITARScimitarium ICrypt of the Wizard
10TOWERLet There Be DarkCruz Del Sur

Chainsaw Adds

ArtistRecordLabel
1BAANNeumannSelf-Released
2LIFEMy Heart the Dreaming MemorySelf-Released