WKNC 88.1 FM - North Carolina State University Student RadioPhian interviewed TOW3RS last Thursday before they played Local Band Local Beer at Tir Na Nog Irish Pub in Raleigh.
You can hear two TOW3RS songs during the interview: Eee! and Bounty.
TOW3RS was also joined by Lazer Dan and Blair from Tir Na Nog, and they had a special prize for anyone who could come by the studio dressed like a French broad.
You can find out more about TOW3RS on Bandcamp and Facebook.
Until a week ago, I’d never had an opportunity to go to a music festival, so you can bet that I was pretty stoked when I found out I was going to Merge 25.
I figured that it was going to be awesome, but it wasn’t until I discovered the lineup that I truly flipped out. Among many other artists, two of my favorite bands of all time, The Mountain Goats and Telekinesis were playing at the three-day festival spread out across venues in Durham and Carrboro. I attended on Saturday at Cat’s Cradle, and I didn’t know then that I was going to see one of the best performances of my life.
I was a bit busy helping out the Merge staff in the morning, but I did get the opportunity to see The Love Language, the North Carolina natives who certainly rocked it on stage. They played a bunch of fan favorites including “Heart to Tell” and “Calm Down”, but “Lalita” was definitely my favorite. Something that I’ve always admired about The Love Language is the amount of soul that they put into their performances. This was my first time seeing them live, and they certainly did not disappoint. Frontman Stuart McLamb puts his heart into every verse he sings and every chord he plays; it’s the kind of passion that inspires people to achieve their own greatness. The Love Language is an icon of the North Carolina music scene, and their sound makes me proud to be from NC.
Later in the day, I caught the very end of Caribou’s set, and managed to get a rather decent spot, dead center, but about eight rows back to see what we’d all been waiting for- Neutral Milk Hotel. I assumed that Neutral Milk Hotel live was going to be an amazing experience, since the filming and photography of their performances was prohibited. It must be pretty special, right?
Well, it was pretty special, to say the very least. I’d never seen them live, and I didn’t know what to expect. The crew feverishly raced to assemble Neutral Milk Hotel’s set in a reasonable amount of time after Caribou’s performance. The stage was littered with all sorts of horns, in an almost Beirut-esque ensemble. There was an accordion, and even saws. After the stage was readied in what I’m sure was record time (shout out to the Cat’s Cradle and Merge employees), Jeff Magnum walked out on stage alone, gripping his guitar. By the end of the first song, the whole band was on stage. They dived straight into “Holland, 1945”, a definite fan-favorite, judging by the volume that the crowd shouted the lyrics back at the band.
The setlist slowed down a bit after that, with favorites such as “Two Headed Boy” and “In An Aeroplane Over The Sea.” People were singing, dancing, and even a few were crying during the unreleased “Little Birds.” I’ve never been to a show where I’ve seen people more connected with each other. The crowd felt like a single being, with everyone intertwined by the shared experience of witnessing such a performance. I couldn’t imagine a better way to end my first festival experience.
Phian interviewed Raleigh group Kurtzweil last Thursday before they played Local Band Local Beer at Tir Na Nog Irish Pub.
They played two of their songs live in WKNC’s studio during the interview: Waiting For You and Sunblinded.
Keep up to date with Kurtzweil on their website, Facebook and Bandcamp!
WKNC Radio 200
Rank–Artist–Recording–Label
1–A SUNNY DAY IN GLASGOW–Sea When Absent–Lefse
2–TOTAL CONTROL–Typical System–Iron Lung
3–PARQUET COURTS–Sunbathing Animal–What’s Your Rupture?
4–HONEYBLOOD–Honeyblood–Fat Cat
5–CRAFT SPELLS–Nausea–Captured Tracks
6–TIGERS JAW–Charmer–Run For Cover
7–GULP–Season Sun–Everloving
8–DAN MELCHIOR UND DAS MENACE–Hunger–Castle Face
9–LANDLADY–Upright Behavior–Hometapes
10–EULA–Orderly [7-Inch]–Bloodmoss
11–COLD BEAT–Over Me–Crime On The Moon
12–LULUC–Passerby–SUB POP
13–KUTOSIS–Dream It Away–Jealous Lovers Club
14–PETER MATTHEW BAUER–Liberation!–Mexican Summer
15–BEVERLY–Careers–Kanine
16–DEAD STARS–Slumber–Old Flame
17–ALVVAYS–Alvvays–Polyvinyl
18–WHITE LUNG–Deep Fantasy–Domino
19–TURN TO CRIME–Can’t Love–Old Flame-Mugg And Bopp
20–XENO AND OAKLANDER–Par Avion–Ghostly International
21–WHITE REAPER–White Reaper–Polyvinyl
22–FIELD MOUSE–Hold Still Life–Topshelf
23–WUNDER WUNDER–Everything Infinite–Dovecote
24–HOW TO DRESS WELL–What Is This Heart?–Weird World
25–JOYCE MANOR–Never Hungover Again–Epitaph
26–MATT KIVEL–Days Of Being Wild–Woodsist
27–DIRTY LUNGS–Dirty Lungs–Communicating Vessels
28–BLACK BANANAS–Electric Brick Wall–Drag City
29–EPHEMERALS–Nothin Is Easy–Jalapeno
30–FUTURE LOVES PAST–Our Solar System [EP]–Self-Released
Top Adds
Rank–Artist–Recording–Label
1–BEAR IN HEAVEN–Time is Over One Day Old–Dead Oceans
2–COLD SPECKS–Bodies at Bay [EP]–Mute
3–FAT WHITE FAMILY–Touch the Leather Redux [Single]–Hate Hate Hate
4–HOORAY FOR EARTH–Racy–Dovecote
5–DEADMEN–Crystal B/w Sunday Afternoons [7-Inch]–8 Gang Switch
Seeing Neutral Milk Hotel has always been on my bucket list. I thought I was never going to get that chance since they disbanded in 1999. But last year I was happy to learn that the band was back together, and touring again – coming to Raleigh for Merge Records’ 25th anniversary celebration.
The lineup for Merge 25 was stellar – Caribou, Destroyer, The Mountain Goats, Mikal Cronin, The Love Language, Mount Moriah, Superchunk, Hiss Golden Messenger – to name only a few of the bands that performed during the three-day event.
I was only able to see Caribou and Neutral Milk Hotel on Saturday, since I was busy in the afternoon helping out the Merge folks make sure the festival went smoothly.
About 20 minutes before Caribou came on, I slipped into the crowd alone and found myself a spot about four or five standing rows from the stage. I hadn’t heard a whole lot of Caribou, just their song “Leave House,” but I really liked it and was looking forward to hearing some of their other music.
Four men dressed in white sauntered on the stage and launched right into “Leave House.”
(read more after the jump)
I was captivated by the familiar song, swaying to the beat. As I looked at the other members of the audience around me, their faces all held the same, happy expression I was sure mine did. A guy behind me kept blissfully screaming “Oh my God!"
The music shifted between uptempo beats and dreamlike riffs, punctuated occasionally by lyrics. The sun began to set on the outdoor stage as the band played "Sun.” Dusk was upon us by the time Caribou left the stage.
Margaret Cho took the stage as Caribou cleared off to announce that Neutral Milk Hotel would be coming on next. She reminded the audience that photography was forbidden at the band’s request.
I was pretty disappointed that we wouldn’t be able to take pictures, but figured that would have to be the price I’d pay for finally seeing Neutral Milk Hotel.
By way of apology for the no-photography rule, Margaret Cho bared her tattooed buttcheeks, which depicted two ladies that “look like they’re talking” when she jiggled them. She invited the audience to take a picture of her butt instead. I, uhh, declined that opportunity.
I watched in wonder as the people onstage scrambled to set up Neutral Milk Hotel’s set. An accordion sat on its own table, flanked by a set of three different sized saws resting against an amp. A lighted lamb statue sat near a drumset with a picture of what looked like a saint in the bass drum. Many different horns were brought out, many of which I don’t know the name for.
Sometime after Caribou I was able to move forward two standing rows, putting me just two rows of people back from the stage. Everyone squeezed together, trying to avoid touching each other’s sweaty arms.
Then, right at 8:30, Jeff Mangum walked out on stage alone, carrying just an acoustic guitar and began to play.
As the set progressed, band members entered and exited the stage, playing their parts. A shiver ran down my spine as Julian Koster picked up the banjo and began to play “King of Carrot Flowers parts 2-3.”
The audience sang along loudly with the most popular songs, and fell into a somber silence during “Little Birds,” a slower, unreleased song.
When it was all over after the encore, most people stood staring into space, seemingly digesting what they’d just seen. It was definitely a show to remember, and a fitting way to mark an item off my bucket list.
I couldn’t help but think of a line from “In The Aeroplane Over The Sea:” “How strange it is to be anything at all.”
There’s an undeniable charm that comes from seeing an angsty college band play a show in the soggy, rundown quarters of a musty basement. Moldy walls hug the pseudo-tortured souls inside as cigarette smoke slips in from under the door frame.
When I finally arrived at Area 15 in Charlotte, the building seemed like less of a venue and more of an abandoned screen printing shop. In fact, the street level is a small business incubator housing miscellaneous companies from real estate agents to fitness consultants. The actual show is in the basement of course, down the stairs past some abandoned rooms filled with discarded furniture. But that’s what you would expect of an Alex G and Elvis Depressedly tour.
I identify Alex Giannascoli quickly by his iconic shoulder-length black hair and slouched shoulders. He is sitting in the back of the venue, behind some merch strewn out on a lawn table. Although he is next to his bandmate Sam Accione and chatting occasionally with fans who approach him, the 21-year-old songwriter seems distant from everyone in the room.
I’m nervous initially when I introduce myself to Giannascoli, but his warm, inviting smile quickly puts me at ease in the first few seconds and we fall into a comfortable conversation. I can see soon that he’s just a normal college kid, slightly surprised by his own success, but mostly just taking life as it comes to him.
Giannascoli began uploading his songs online under the name Alex G when he was 17. His raw, emotional lyrics eventually caught the attention of Mathew Lee Cothran – frontman of the band Elvis Depressedly occasionally recording under solo project Coma Cinema. Cothran already had an established internet presence at the time and was signed to indie label Orchid Tapes, so getting the word out about an incredibly talented new artist was in his field. Giannascoli credits Cothran with his renown.
“Mat definitely helped me the most, you know Mat,” he motions to another room where I assume Cothran is waiting. I nod and his eyes brighten as he talks to me about his mentor. “He posted about me on his band’s website and that got me a lot of recognition.”
Mathew Lee Cothran
Over the next few years, Giannascoli released music on his bandcamp at a steady rate, gaining increasing recognition for his work as more people were exposed to it. DSU, his first full 12” vinyl was released this summer through Orchid Tapes and made reviews on Pitchfork, CMJ, and The Rolling Stone.
I ask Giannascoli if he’s ever felt like giving up on music, but he’s confused with the question. I rephrase it asking him if he’s ever lost faith in his ability to produce something good. He immediately rejects the idea.
“I never let myself think of it as a career,” states the song-writer. “I make music for me because I really enjoy it. I would just record songs every time I felt like I needed to personally. I never had any intention other than making noise I like, in order to avoid disappointment.” He thinks about it for another moment. “It’s kind of like having a girlfriend or boyfriend. If you love them, you don’t want to think about marrying them because if it didn’t work out, you would be so disappointed.”
Giannascoli first started playing guitar when he was 15 in a band with his friends called Skin Cells. I ask him about the first show they played in his high school’s library, put on by its own radio station The Screaming Females.
“We were pretty bad, but it was our first show,” recalls Giannascoli. He looks over at Accione who was in Skin Cells with him to trigger his memory. “I remember I couldn’t get my guitar in tune. I had just learned guitar and I switched with one of my friends right before we played. But it went alright I guess, for a first show.”
Sam Accione
Giannascoli’s success with his last album keeps faith in the DIY, bedroom recording music scene. Just as he looked up to Cothran, many emerging song-writers look up to him now. I ask Giannascoli if he has advice for young artists.
“Make some good music, send it to a lot of blogs, play a lot of shows.” He considers it more. “You have to do it because you love the process, if you do it for any other reasons, you’ll get discouraged.”
Giannascoli performs a short set later mainly playing songs off DSU. The small crowd screams the lyrics to Animal along with Giannascoli. He ends his set with Message, the final songoff of his album Rules, closing with the somber lyrics But I’m just stuck here by your window / Oh look how you have changed.
Giannascoli said if he DJ’d for his college radio, his DJ name would be “Spicy Boy” and he would play Jessica Lea Mayfield, Lucinda Williams, The Knife, and Aphex Twin on his first show.
All of his music can be downloaded off sandy.bandcamp.com
Phian interviewed Durham group The Pinkerton Raid before they played Local Band Local Beer at TIr Na Nog Irish Pub last Thursday.
You can also hear four of their songs during the interview: A Beautiful World, Just A Boy, Sins of the Fathers, and April Flower.
The Pinkerton Raid will be playing locally again at Motorco Music Hall in Durham on Friday August 8th.
You can catch the Pinkerton Raid on Facebook, Twitter, and Bandcamp.
WKNC is giving away tickets for Slightly Stoopid w/ special guest Stephen Marley and G Love & Special Sauce at Red Hat Amphitheater on August 8th. Just be the correct caller when the DJ asks for it, and you could win yourself some free tickets!
Slightly Stoopid truly has a unique sound which the band describes as, “A fusion of folk, rock, reggae, and blues with hip-hop, funk, metal and punk.“ This may sound hard to believe, but after listening to a few of their songs it is clear that Slightly Stoopid really do have an eclectic sound that’s bound to keep you entertained all night long.
Stephen Marley is the son of Bob Marley and, like his father, he has had much success with his reggae career, already earning 5 Grammy awards for his work in his brother’s band, Ziggy Marley & the Melody Makers. Stephen has been involved with reggae for his whole life, and now it is your chance to experience his work live. Who else better to hear reggae from than the son of Bob Marley, right?!
G. Love & Special Sauce is another band that brings a unique sound to the stage. It’s often classified as alternative, hip-hop, and blues. Their edgy riffs and laid back style will probably leave you saying, “Dude, these dudes are gnnnarly.”
So be on the listen for DJs giving away these tickets!
Good Luck!
David Gray will be coming to The Red Hat Amphitheater in downtown Raleigh on August 11, and WKNC has tickets for you! Just be the correct caller when the DJ asks for it, and you could win yourself a night of great music. David Gray has been rocking out for over two decades now with successful albums like “White Ladders” and “Life In Slow Motion”. With much critical acclaim, Gray has become known as one of the best singer-songwriters in popular music.
Recently, David Gray released his new album “Mutineers”, which shows off his gift and experience in making music. There are plenty of great indie/soft rock melodies overlaid by the unmistakable voice of David Gray. Definitely give this album a listen if you haven’t already, OR even better, win some tickets and hear it live! So, Please Forgive Me if I missed anything. Don’t Sail Away to Babylon before you get a chance to win these tickets. If you want to stop hearing these horribly bad puns, then you better stop reading this post and you better start listening for WKNC DJs giving away these tickets!
For more info on David Gray and his new album Mutineers visit:
Good Luck!