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Festival Coverage

Hopscotch Must-Sees: Torres

This is a personal artist spotlight on Torres by The Walrus.

Hopscotch is the festival that it is because of its uniquely diverse and maddeningly obscure lineup of artists; it is truly a music critic’s festival. Each year, I find myself discovering artists who may easily have slipped under my radar were it not for their introduction to me through the festival.  Often times, it is simply because I stumbled into their show, or I tagged along with a friend, or I was just trying to fit a show in between two others. Regardless, there is always an artist who shines amongst the masses with a wonderful breakthrough performance and it is what I have begun to search for each year. After much deliberation, my personal prediction for the dark horse of this year’s Hopscotch is Nashville-based Torres.

With her self-titled debut album, Mackenzie Scott exhibits a raw, gritty sound reminiscent of early PJ Harvey. Her voice evokes a sense of urgency that, when accompanied by her beautifully dark lyrics, elevates her songs to such a high level of significance. It is the significance of someone mustering all of their willpower to speak, to sing out, and to rid themselves of the emotionally draining fears that haunt their mind. Tracks such as “Mother Earth, Father God” follow you, gripping your mind with the haunting intensity that an artist can so rarely produce.

What makes Torres all the more mesmerizing is that it is Scott’s first album and she is only 22 years old. It is the promise of even more that has latched me to her music and her wonderfully sincere songwriting. For all of this, I will not be missing Torres during their Saturday night performance at Deep South.

Favorite Tracks: “Mother Earth, Father God” / “Jealousy and I”

Playing: Deep South, Saturday 11:00 PM – 12:00 AM

Categories
Non-Music News

EOT122 Beat Battle 8/6/13

In this edition of “Eye on the Triangle” we hear an interview with Crystal Taylor about The Underground’s Beat Battle Aug. 7 at Deep South and a Southbound 85, one of the bands performing at this year’s Packapalooza.

Listen to episode 122.

Categories
Festival Coverage

Hopscotch Must-Sees: Kurt Vile and the Violators

Wakin on a Pretty Daze by Kurt Vile
Wakin on a Pretty Daze

This is a personal artist spotlight on Kurt Vile and the Violators by DJ DiGiorno for Hopscotch.

Kurt Vile has become the unofficial king of Philadelphia. The mayor even recently declared August 28th as Kurt Vile Day in Philadelphia. His calming brand of guitar driven, lo-fi stoner rock has become a banner that they fly proudly. His soothing voice crooning over the wash of sound creates this warm, spacious atmosphere that you can reside in forever.  His music is slow, but in the best possible way. It’s reminiscent of those long, uneventful summer days that we remember fondly.

Kurt Vile began writing solo songs as a teenager.  In 2005, he formed The War on Drugs with Adam Granduciel.  They released their debut studio album Wagonwheel Blues in 2008.  After a tour with the album, Kurt Vile left the band to focus more on his solo efforts although he has been featured on some of their recent recordings. After leaving the band, Vile then released his debut solo album Constant Hitmaker in 2008 which is comprised of home recordings from 2003-2007. The record began to get some recognition as he began to start touring. In 2009, Vile released God Is Saying This To You… which again consisted of previous home recordings.

Vile was then signed to Matador Records in May 2009. By October, he had released his third album Childish Prodigy.  This was the first time he had gotten a chance to sit down in a studio and write a cohesive album as opposed to compiling various old home recordings.  Childish Prodigy was our first introduction to his backing band, The Violators. Vile was garnering attention increasingly as he joined artists such as Thurston Moore and Dinosaur Jr. on tour.  Vile released his fourth album Smoke Ring for My Halo in 2011 to critical acclaim.  The album made many end of the year lists and is considered his breakthrough album.

This past April, Kurt Vile put out his latest effort Wakin on a Pretty Daze.  The album received very positive reviews including Pitchfork’s coveted “Best New Music” award. Wakin on a Pretty Daze is one of Vile’s most beautiful and spacious albums to date.  With most songs surpassing the six minute mark, it is evident that this album has a complete disregard for time. The album is comprised of 11 songs and clocks in at about 70 minutes long. Vile takes you into his warm world where time is irrelevant. The subtle intricacies of his work demands your attention: the guitars fading in and out, the shifting of beats, or just the shuffling or leaving out of parts. The lyrics on this album are his most self-aware to date as he comments on his music and his life. It makes for a comedic as well as introspective listen.

Kurt Vile and The Violators always deliver an impressive live performance. Vile performs from behind his mass of hair as The Violators stay right in step and flesh out every corner of the song. The warm, timeless atmosphere of the songs are a great place to reside in on a late September night. This is an absolute must-see show for Hopscotch Music Festival.

Favorite Tracks: Never Run Away, Wakin on a Pretty Day, Shame Chamber, Baby’s Arms

RIYL: Ariel Pink, War on Drugs, Dinosaur Jr., Guitars, Chillaxing

Playing: Lincoln Theatre, Thursday September 5th 12:00 AM-1:00 AM

Categories
Festival Coverage

Hopscotch Must-Sees: Ryan Hemsworth

This is a personal artist spotlight on Ryan Hemsworth by Prism for Hopscotch.

Recently, I read New York Times pop music critic Jon Caramanica’s piece about his experiences at 2013’s Pitchfork Music Festival in Chicago. In the article, he makes a distinction between the first day (largely hip bread-and-butter indie rock) with the second and third day’s more electronic and experimentally focused bills. And he specifically cites 23-year old Halifax DJ Ryan Hemsworth as being responsible for finally kick[ing] this year’s edition of the Pitchfork Music Festival into gear, saying that his music made “bodies [get] to moving” for the first time that weekend.

I found this observation funny, because I had a completely similar experience with Ryan at this years’ South By Southwest music festival. After my then-underaged ass found my way into Pitchfork’s 1100 Warehouse showcase on Thursday, I caught Sky Ferreria and Zebra Katz’s sets amidst a crowd of bearded tweeting industry bros who gosh darn it were not going to dance for the effing likes of Sky Effing Ferreria. But when Hemsworth went up and immediately dropped what I think was his remix of Frank Ocean’s “Thinking About You,” the lame music crit crowd went wild for the first time, dancing for his whole set and into Disclosure, who followed him.

So while I’ve established that the man accomplishes things live, I should also mention that Ryan Hemsworth has been kicking around the internet for a few years at this point. His oeuvre includes his many diverse and amazing remixes (go YouTube his version of Craig David’s “Fill Me In” or maybe his snare-filled twist on ‘Show Me The Meaning Of Being Lonely’ from the Backstreet Boys) as well as a slew of originals and production he’s done for rappers such as Shady Blaze, Deniro Ferrar, and Main Attraktionz.

There’s a lot I could say about him, but I think the best thing to say is that if you enjoy dancing and contemporary sample-based electronic music, his headlining set at CAM will be where it’s at at Hopscotch. The conflict between him and Earl Sweatshirt at Lincoln will be tough for some, but I’ve seen the man live before and I know where the fun will be at. See you at CAM.

Best Songs: Frank Ocean – Thinkin Bout You (Ryan Hemsworth Bootleg)

Playing: CAM: 12:30 AM Friday night

Categories
Weekly Charts

Top 10 Afterhours Albums for 8/12

1 RUXPIN    ”This Time We All Go Together”    (n5MD)

2 MODERAT    "II"    (Mute)

3  GOLD PANDA    ”Half Of Where You Live”    (Ghostly)

4 Pretty Lights    ”Color Map of the Sun”    (8 Minutes 20 Seconds)

5 HERMITUDE    ”HyperParadise”    (Elefant Traks)

6  HECTIC ZENITHS    ”Hectic Zeniths”    (Self-Released)

7 BOB MARLEY AND THE WAILERS    ”Legend Remixed”    (Tuff Gong-UME-Island)

8 MINDELIXIR    "Lunology"    (Outside)

9 JON HOPKINS    ”Immunity”    (Domino)

10 PALENKE SOULTRIBE    ”Mar”    (Self-Released)

Categories
Music News and Interviews

Giveaways for the week of 8/12 – 8/18

Keep it tuned to WKNC all week long for your chance to win tickets to any of these great shows below! Just be the correct caller when the DJ asks for it, and you and a friend could be hitting up some of the coolest local acts around.

Monday, August 12 – Royal Bangs @ Kings

Wednesday, August 14 – Wild Cub with Natalie Prass @ Kings

Wednesday, August 14 – Daughn Gibson @ Local 506

Wednesday, August 14 – Chain and the Gang with WAUMISS @ Pinhook

Thursday, August 15 – Heaven with Midnight Plus One @ Pinhook

Friday, August 16 – Rapper Big Pooh with Supastition @ Kings

Saturday, August 17 – Tift Merritt @ NCMA

Sunday, August 18 – Julia Weldon with Willower and Counting Station @ Pinhook

Categories
Festival Coverage

Hopscotch Must-Sees: Big Black Delta

This is a personal artist spotlight on Big Black Delta by Walter-Ego for Hopscotch.

Like many others right now, I’m a little obsessed with the neo-80’s aesthetic. You can blame stylized Ryan Gosling movies or retro video games with thumping electro soundtracks, but there’s nothing quite like the sound of a cheesy John Carpenter synth. Luckily, Big Black Delta is in the Hopscotch lineup to scratch that itch.

Channeling the same kind of 80’s synthpop that Com Truise and Makup & Vanity Set do, Big Black Delta is the project of Mellowdrone frontman Jonathan Bates. Having worked with artists like M83, Bates isn’t afraid to make his own brand of space rock loud and violent. The samples and beats are bombastic enough to fill a cathedral of Robocops. The characteristics of his music translate perfectly into his vibrant live show, sporting multiple drummers and Bates’ own moves syncing with each dark pulsing thump. Look no further than the video for Side of the Road, as Bates’ dances across a cyber landscape and his band takes turns derezzing.

When Big Black Delta takes the stage of Memorial Auditorium on September 6th, it’s definitely going to be one of my highlights of an already excellent lineup.

Favorite Track: “Side of the Road” on Big Black Delta

Playing: Memorial Auditorium, September 6th, 10:00PM

Categories
Festival Coverage

Hopscotch Must-See: Earl Sweatshirt

This is a personal artist spotlight on Earl Sweatshirt by Muta for Hopscotch.

These bitches keep screaming “Odd Future is back!” or at least that is what I’ve been screaming since the Hopscotch lineup was first released. Earl Sweatshirt has often been sited as the best lyricist from the hip-hop group Odd Future Wolf Gang Kill Them All (OFWGKTA), which features other prominent artist such as Tyler the Creator and Frank Ocean.

It has been three years since the first self-made music video from Odd Future dropped for Earl Sweatshirt’s song “Earl” as well as Earl’s first mixtape by the same name was released. Since then, Earl has worked with The Alchemist, Action Bronson, Mac Miller, Riff Raff, and Flying Lotus to bring a style of hip-hop that I have heard no where else. Recently, Earl has been mixing the fun rowdiness from his youth (“Whoa” and “Rusty”) with the darker and more personal songs that really illustrate his artistry (“Chum” and “Between Friends”).

After a pretty full 2013 that has brought Earl all across the country to festivals like SXSW, I expect Earl has probably really found his stage presence and will bring an awesome show following up Action Bronson at Lincoln Theater.

Favorite Track: Flying Lotus – “Between Friends” ft. Earl Sweatshirt & Captain Murphy

Lincoln Theater, Saturday, September 6th, 12:30am

Categories
Festival Coverage

Hopscotch Must-Sees: ADULT.

This is a personal artist spotlight on ADULT. by Mason for Hopscotch.

If there’s one thing I most look forward to each year at Hopscotch, it’s getting freaky-deaky. I’m not always this way. On an average day, I’m that relatively reserved college student who just likes to keep his head down and keep to himself. But some bands manage to rile up the inner beast within me and make me do interesting things things. Future Islands in 2011 managed to leave me with a broken iPhone screen after a rousing performance of “Tin Man” moved me to slam what I was holding on the ground. After Danny Brown last year, I received a bloody nose after being kicked in the face by a stage diver… and for some reason, I kept dancing. I think I may have even screamed a genuine “THANK YOU!” at the face-kick perpetrator as he gracelessly thrashed overhead.

Yes, Hopscotch is the time of the year when I completely lose myself and awkwardly hobble up and down, and I know this September will be no exception thanks to ADULT.

The husband wife duo of Adam Miller and Nicola Kuperus got their start in Detroit, Michigan in the late 90s under the retired name “Plasma Co.” Since their premiere, they’ve released five albums.

Their most recent 2013 release of album “The Way Things Fall” comes after a five year hiatus, and it’s filled with beats that are going to make you move. The duo brings a mix of chaotic electronic clash and aggressive female vocals reminiscent of The Knife, Moderat, and Die Antwoord, and I can’t help but move when I hear it. If you want to take a walk on the wild side and dance your ass off, you must see this band.

Favorite Track: “Heartbreak”

RIYL: The Knife, Deerhoof, Gang Gang Dance

Categories
Weekly Charts

Top 10 Afterhours Albums for 8/05

1 Pretty Lights    ”Color Map of the Sun”    (8 Minutes 20 Seconds)

2  GOLD PANDA    ”Half Of Where You Live”    (Ghostly)

3 BOB MARLEY AND THE WAILERS    ”Legend Remixed”    (Tuff Gong-UME-Island)

4 RUXPIN    ”This Time We All Go Together”    (n5MD)

5  MAJOR LAZER    ”Free The Universe”    (Secretly Canadian)

6 HERMITUDE    ”HyperParadise”    (Elefant Traks)

7 GAUDI    ”In Between Times”    (Six Degrees)

8 JON HOPKINS    ”Immunity”    (Domino)

9  HECTIC ZENITHS    ”Hectic Zeniths”    (Self-Released)

10  QUENTIN QUATRO       “Disco Quatro” [EP]      (Insect Queen)