Category: Blog

Categories
Concert Review

My Whole Love of Wilco

First, Nick Lowe is cool.  As Jeff Tweedy said when Lowe came out to accompany Wilco for two songs (including one of his own), “It’s okay to like Nick Lowe.”  He was a perfect opener.  He played solo, just him and his pretty, old Hummingbird.  Sure, this is the guy that people mostly (if not only) know for “Cruel to Be Kind,” and that seemed to be the main criticism of him I was hearing.  But I scoffed at these doubters – these fools would doubt anyone that Wilco choose to play with them.  His guitaring was smooth, his lyrics were smart, and he was cool.  Supreme.

Now, Wilco.  "Who’s your favorite band" can be a pesky question if you don’t have a ready answer.  Wilco’s been mine since early high school.  This span of favoritism has included weeks without their music and days of listening only to them, but even when I’m not listening to Wilco I know that I’d like to be.  With 75 of their songs on my iTunes, adding up to more than five hours and 19 albums (and EPs, Singles, Compilations, etc.), they surely outnumber any other artist.  (This doesn’t even include Loose Fur or any other side projects.)  Plenty of their 4+ minute songs have over 30 plays, and the star ratings… plentiful.  I love them.

So, hooray for Raleigh.  We hosted Wilco’s new album (The Whole Love) release party, and we got a shout-out for housing their merchandiser, Kung Fu Nation. Many of my Wilco-friends thought The Whole Love has restored their faith in the band, and it’s their favorite album since (blablabla yadayadayada), etc.  Yes, the new album kicks ass, but for me, so do the old albums–all of them.  Songs from their Wilco album already feel like classics, and hell, so do half the songs from their newest album.  They proved their range of greatness with a killer set and a magnificent encore.  There’s nothing like knowing every song.  This is their set list as recorded by me (comment corrections if necessary):

1. Art of Almost

2. I Might

3. Rising Red Lung

4. Ashes of American Flags

5. Bull Black Nova

6. I Am Trying To Break Your Heart

7. One Wing

8. Dawned On Me

9. Born Alone

10. Impossible Germany

11. Say You Miss Me

12. Whole Love

13. Pot Kettle Black

14. Handshake Drugs

15. War on War

16. Black Moon

17. One Sunday Morning

Encore

Shot In The Arm

Jesus, Etc.

36 Inches High (Song by Nick Lowe, with Nick Lowe)

I Love My Label (with Nick Lowe)

Red-Eyed and Blue

Walkin’

I’m The Man Who Loves You

One hell of a night.  Tweedy called it out himself.  Honestly, though… it could’ve been a little louder (and I had great, close seats).  I’ll be glad to see them as many times as I can.  They produce a poster for every single concert they put on.  If that’s not some indication for how much they care about their shows, I’m not sure what is.  You can always count on bits of Tweedy’s character in between songs. This evening was not filled with rants between each song, but there were a few gems to prove how personable he can be (plAAAtinum).

Categories
Music News and Interviews

World Beer Festival Giveaway @ LBLB

Over these next two weeks Local Band – Local Beer will be doing a special giveaway for World Beer Festival!  Winners will receive two tickets for the festival that takes place on October 8th!  There will be two giveaways TONIGHT and two next week – that gives you four chances to win!

The festival features over 300 beers from 100 different breweries, music by local bands, and education sessions by industry experts!

The festival will take place October 8th at the Durham Bulls Athletic Park.

To win, come down this week or next (or both) to Local Band – Local Beer.  This weeks artists are Cellar Seas and The Toddlers, next week features Temperance League, The Demon Beat, and the P-90’s.

Local Band – Local Beer is held every Thursday at 10pm at Tir Na NOg in downtown Raleigh!

Come and win!

Categories
Non-Music News

EOT69 Shack-a-thon 9/27/11

This week’s EOT features news from Shack-a-thon, Over the Edge, Selma’s Poetry Corner and more.

Listen to episode 69.

Categories
Weekly Charts

CMJ Loud Rock from WKNC’s Chainsaw 9/27

1. Anthrax – Worship Music (Megaforce)

2. Chelsea Grin – My Damnation (Razor and Tie)

3. Absu – Abraxas Connexus (Candlelight)

4. Textures – Dualism (Nuclear Blast)

5. Chimaira – The Age Of Hell (eOne)

6. Opeth – Heritage Sampler (Roadrunner)

7. Hatesphere – The Great Bludgeoning (Napalm)

8. Kittie – I’ve Failed You (eOne)

9. Kyng – Trampled Sun (ILG)

10. Slot – Break the Code (Neurodisc)

Categories
Concert Review

Fleet Foxes at Raleigh Amphitheater, 9/21/11

What to say about the Fleet Foxes concert? I don’t think I have ever been that wet in my entire life. There was a torrential downpour the entire concert, or what there was of a concert.

I arrived at the Raleigh Amphitheater toward the end of The Walkmen, the opening act. At this point the rain was fairly mild and I had a rain jacket and a towel so I was prepared. By the time Fleet Foxes started, the downpour began. They began by playing songs from their new album, Helplessness Blues. The rain made for a unique atmosphere. People wearing trash bags, people without shirts or shoes. Everyone was soaked. But people made the most of it, and at one point there was a parade of fans dancing and singing through the venue in the rain.

I enjoy all of Fleet Foxes’ albums but I have a special connection to their self titled album, so when they started playing songs from that one I was in bliss. They played “Your Protector” and “Ragged Wood.”  Then suddenly, in the middle of “Ragged Wood” a speaker blew out. Fleet Foxes tried to continue playing but they had to stop. Then they said they had to take a break until the storm passed. So in the downpour we waited in limbo, not knowing whether the storm was going to pass at all. At that point, my rain jacket and dress were soaked through and I was dripping water. The storm started to get the best out of some people and fans began to gradually trickle out. My friends and I were stubborn and did not want to be defeated by Mother Nature, so us and other fans just stood in the rain hoping it would let up so we could hear some Fleet Foxes.

Fleet Foxes had to cover up all their equipment and were also just standing on the side of the stage hoping the storm would pass. After a while, the rain let up but they announced that they had to wait for the lightning to stop in order to play. Looking up at the sky I saw that there was lightning every five seconds or so, so it did not seem hopeful. A tech guy then came up to a microphone and stated that another storm was coming so Fleet Foxes would not be able to play again. The lead singer of Fleet Foxes then came onto the microphone and explained that they were sorry and if they could play, they would. He also complimented us Raleigh fans on being awesome for standing through the storm. He claimed they would try to make it back to Raleigh soon, and he sounded sincere.

Later on their Twitter they wrote “Raleigh: you were the most amazing audience we’ve ever had the honor to hang with, sticking it out in that crazy storm tonight.” And “Seeing you people in Raleigh tonight made me more proud to be a part of this than any other thing we’ve done. #thankyou #fucknature”

So in the end, the Fleet Foxes concert was definitely an experience, although the experience didn’t include as much music as I had hoped for.

Categories
DJ Highlights

Local Beat Preview 9/23/11

This evening on the Local Beat we are having another jam-packed show with three hours of local music goodness.

One of my favorite bands in the area, Mandolin Orange, is starting off the program at 5 p.m. to chat about their new double album that is being released at Cat’s Cradle on Saturday, Sept. 24. The album is entitled Haste Make/Hard Hearted Stranger and was recorded at two different studios in the past year. According to their website,

“Haste Make was recorded with Jeff Crawford and James Wallace in winter 2010/2011 at Arbor Ridge Studios West in Franklin, NC and at Arbor Ridge Studios in Chapel Hill, and was produced by Jeff Crawford and Mandolin Orange. Hard-Hearted Stranger was recorded in summer 2011 at Rubber Room Studios in Chapel Hill and features Andrew and Emily alone, produced by Andrew Marlin.”

The Tenderfruit are opening for Mandolin Orange at 9 p.m. and tickets are only $10.

I will try to coerce Emily and Andrew to play some live tracks for us on the radio so you don’t want to miss out on that treat.

6 p.m. brings in ‘80s Chapel Hill dream poppers, The Veldt, who are playing a show at the Southland Ballroom this evening at 9:30 p.m. You might remember these guys from their amazing 1994 release Afrodisiac or the follow up LP in 1998, Love at First Hate (or maybe you don’t). Regardless, they are local legends and it is going to be an absolute thrill and honor to have them on the Local Beat, especially since they rarely ever perform live. We will be talking about the history of the band, their scene, their connection to CBS’s hit show, Survivor, and all things in between. Doors at the Southland Ballroom are opening at 8 p.m. with music starting at 9:30. Brooklyn-based Your 33 Black Angels and Chapel Hill group 100 Yorktown are starting the show and tickets are only $10. In addition, the band is encouraging everyone to film the concert and email the footage to theveldtrocks@gmail.com for an upcoming DVD.

The last hour of the program will feature yet another local music festival, our fourth on the program in the last three weeks. Sara Waters, co-coordinator of Shakori Hills Grassroots Music Festival, is stopping by to chat about this fall’s festival, which will take place October 6-9 in the woods and fields of Pittsboro, N.C. Shakori Hills has long been a staple in central North Carolina, with two festivals each year. We are going to play music from bands and musicians featured at this fall’s event. Sara and I are also going to talk about the history of Shakori Hills, some fun things going on at the festival this year, and be giving away free tickets. You don’t want to miss this final hour.

As always, “The Local Beat” starts at 5 p.m. and runs through 8 p.m. every Friday evening on WKNC. Listen live here and be sure to follow us on Twitter, Facebook, and ReverbNation!

Categories
Non-Music News

EOT68 Pullen Park 9/20/11

Pullen Park- Nick speaks with a Raleigh Parks and Recreation planner to get the specifics on what to expect when the Pullen Park amusement area reopens later this fall.

Fiesta del Pueblo- Mark visits the State Fairgrounds to see what Fiesta del Pueblo, a local hispanic and latino cultural festival, is all about.

Teen Center- Nate takes a look at the Teen Center to see what they do and how local teens benefit from its actions.

News (not)- Guy McGimp, a not-so-knowledgeable news man, gives his versions of world events, whether it’s right or not.

Shack-A-Thon- Chris gives us the complete low-down on Shack-A-Thon, an annual campus event on the Brickyard that garners a lot of attention from the student body.

Listen to episode

Categories
Weekly Charts

CMJ Loud Rock from WKNC’s Chainsaw 9/20

1. Anthrax – Worship Music (Megaforce)

2. Chelsea Grin – My Damnation (Razor and Tie)

3. Absu – Abraxas Connexus (Candlelight)

4. Arkona – Solvo (Napalm)

5. Chimaira – The Age of Hell (eOne)

6. Opeth – Heritage Sampler (Roadrunner)

7. Mastodon – Black Tongue (Reprise)

8. Kittie – I’ve Failed You (eOne)

9. Textures – Dualism (Nuclear Blast)

10. Dirge Within – Absolution (Big Time)

Categories
Miscellaneous

Chainsaw Rock Presents: The DeathPod

What happens when you mix the wide-ranging audience of podcast with the insanely powerful, heavy, and brutal forces of Metal? Well, the Mistress of Destruction and I have our own ideas about the chaos and anarchy that could ensue! Just remember, it is up to those who subject themselves to the ridiculously awesome DeathPod to misbehave themselves. At least, that is what our undead legal department in tattered suits advised us to disclaim.

Originally, the Mistress of Destruction came forward with the idea to promote a Chainsaw podcast that contained many regional bands that were either unsigned or belonged to smaller labels. The goal of the DeathPod is to bring forth metal music that absolutely destroys the local scenes, in addition to allowing listeners to headbang on the job, in the middle of class, or while rocking children to sleep.

With that goal in mind the Mistress and I set off, and after many grueling, gory, and archaic nights our first DeathPod was weaponized and ready to be unleashed upon the masses.

We proudly present:
RBT from Raleigh, N.C.
Coils Of The Serpent from Boone, N.C.
Escher from Raleigh/Durham, N.C.
Akris from the Washington D.C. area.
Lions Of Tsavo from Austin, Texas.
Bridesmaid from Columbus, Ohio.

So why wait? Go ahead and listen to the DeathPod.

If you are a fan of a band or are a member of a band that wants to get involved, then please post on the Facebook page or get in contact with the Cannibal at chainsaw@wknc.org.

DeathPod episode 1

Categories
Music News and Interviews

This Week in Giveaways

There’s lots of exciting shows to look out for this month – and we’ll have giveaways to most of them!

9/21 – Wild Beasts and Bobby @ Cat’s Cradle

9/22 – Matt Pond and Rocky Votolato @ Kings Barcade

9/22 – Bassnectar with Two Fresh and DJ Laura @ Ritz Theatre at Disco Rodeo

9/22 – Megafaun and Perry Owen Wright @ Cat’s Cradle

9/22 – The Head and the Heart, Thao with the Get Down Stay Down, The Devil Whale @ Lincoln Theatre

9/23 – Widespread Panic with DJ Logic @ Raleigh Amphitheatre

9/23 – The Antlers with Yellow Ostrich @ Kings Barcade

9/24 – Mandolin Orange Record Release Party @ Cat’s Cradle

9/27 – Wilco with Nick Lowe @ Raleigh Amphitheater