Category: Blog

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Non-Music News

Eye on the Triangle Preview: 9/14/09

Are you a Raleigh or Durham resident? Do you feel like there’s a distinctive divide between the two cities? Is Durham trying to be something it’s not? Is Raleigh overdoing it? Why is the airport called Raleigh-Durham and not Durham-Raleigh?

Are you interested in SPARKcon’s arts? What about music?

How about opinions on the University’s athletics program? Do you want to hear what other students have to say about it? Would you like to listen to a story from a fellow student about something awesome?

If you answered ‘yes’ to one or more of these questions, then you should tune into Eye on the Triangle Monday night from 7 to 8 p.m. to learn about the latest news, arts, music and various opinions on issues that matter to you.

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Non-Music News

EOT03 Student Government 9/7/09

Eye on the Triangle’s Labor Day show hopefully gave some of you something to listen to on your drive back from your various vacations. For those of you who missed it, you can listen to the segment’s podcasts. This week’s episode covered a variety of topics, some of which will continue to come up throughout the year, so stay tuned.

VIP:

In this week’s VIP, Saja Hindi interviewed Student Body President Jim Ceresnak, a newcomer to the Student Government scene, about what it was like to be a student leader during a time of uncertainty at the University, following the resignations of the University’s top officials. Ceresnak also spoke about the year ahead and the projects he hopes to push for the student body. To get an insider’s look on Ceresnak and his past, check out Technician’s profile on the new student body president when he first got elected.

Adam Compton interviewed the student body’s vice-president, more commonly known as the Student Senate president, Kelli Rogers for EOT’s VIP segment. Rogers, unlike Ceresnak, has been working in Student Government on what may have seemed to be the logical path to Student Senate president, from student senator her freshman year to Student Senate pro temp last year, to more involvement in between.

HEAR THIS:

This week, we gave you an extended version of Hear This, filled with interviews from Zach Terry about the Bike MS Benefit Show at Cat’s Cradle and information about Snuzzfest benefit concert at the Local 506. The Bike MS Benefit Show (to battle Multiple Sclerosis) featured Last of the Great Side Show Freaks, Tomahawks, Lafcadio and Zach Terry. Snuzzfest is a benefit concert for Snuzz who is uninsured and has to have lymphoma treatment. It featured, among others, Tres Chicas and the Desmonds.

WOLFPACKER OF THE WEEK:

Jacob Downey sat down with Russell Spencer Gentry, a junior in anthropology and history who is preparing for his role in the production of Amadeus in Thompson Theatre Sept. 18 to 20 and Sept. 23 to 27.

SOUNDBYTES:

And in this week’s Soundbytes, Caitlin Cauley and May Chung interviewed students around campus to see what they thought about the health care debate. The responses may seem somewhat surprising.

Tune into next Monday’s show at 7 p.m. about the Raleigh-Durham divide, and email us at publicaffairs@wknc.org if you have any ideas, gripes or want to suggest someone for the Wolfpacker of the Week.

Listen to episode three.

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DJ Highlights

SPARKcon Sets Fire to Mystery Roach

Listen to Mystery Roach, Saturday September 12 from 8-10am on WKNC for a discussion with Aly Khalifa and Mary Ellis, two minds behind SPARKcon.   Aly is one of five “bobbleheads” that facilitate the event.  He, along with four others work with the organizers of each individual SPARK to help ideas become reality.  Mary is is the lead organizer of MusicSPARK, the musical aspect of the festival.  MusicSPARK will feature a large, diverse group of  94 Local Bands in 15 Raleigh Venues.

In all, SPARKcon will include more than 1200 performers from gaming to dancing to street painting to poetry reading.  Check the full schedule for details.

IdeaSPARK will kick off SPARKcon Thursday night at 6:00pm at the Marbles Kids Museum with
Pecha Kucha, a rapid fire presentation of ideas where each presenter has 6 minutes and 40 seconds to communicate their SPARK using 20 slides and discussion.  After that, head down to The Pour House, where WKNC will be hosting Local Beer Local Band as part of MusicSPARK.  The show will feature local acts: Bright Young Things, Animals, The Jackets, and Starmount.

Talk to you Saturday morning, and see you at SPARKcon.

-La Barba Rossa

Categories
DJ Highlights

Local Beat Preview 9/11/09

This Friday’s Local Beat has to be one for the ages.  My fourth week on the show is gearing up to be the best so far with special guests Superchunk, Ryan Gustafson, and the Pneurotics.

Mac McCaughan and Laura Ballance of local legend Superchunk are calling in at 5pm to talk about their new book based on their label Merge Records: “OUR NOISE: The Story of Merge Records, the Indie Label that Got Big and Stayed Small”.  The book is set to be released Tuesday, September 15 via Algonquin Books.  Mac and Laura will be traveling across the state to promote the new book and play some tunes of their own at the following bookstores:

 

  • September 15th –  The Regulator Bookshop, 7:00 pm (Durham, NC)

  • September 17th – Bull’s Head Bookshop, 3:30 pm (Chapel Hill, NC)

  • September 17th – Quail Ridge, 7:30 pm (Raleigh, NC)

  • October 2nd – Malaprop’s, 7:00 pm (Asheville, NC)

    • Local blog Triangle Music did an excellent short review on the book which you can read here.

    You have been hearing Ryan Gustafson’s solo work on WKNC for a couple of weeks now, but at 6pm on the Local Beat Ryan is stopping by to chat about his CD Release party tonight at the Local 506 with two amazing bands, Mount Moriah and Mandolin Orange (show is $5 and starts at 9:30pm).  His album, Donkey LP, has certainly proven to be one of my favorites this summer and Spencer Griffith of The Indepdent Weekly gave the album an admirable review which you can check out here.

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    The final hour of the show brings The Pneurotics on to chat up another new album and another Local 506 release party; this one their own.  The album is titled Second Skin and is set to be released Friday, September 18th at the 506 with The Travesties and Rat Jackson taking the stage as well (show is $8 and starts at 9:30pm). 

    So tune in to the Local Beat every Friday evening from 5pm-8pm.  If you are out of the area be sure to listen online!

    Categories
    Concert Preview

    Center Stage goes Off-Center

    One of the greatest things about WKNC is our ability to partner with North Carolina State University campus departments. Way back in May, we were approached by Center Stage to help promote a new venture called Off-Center. Since we’re a little off-center ourselves, nestled way down at 88.1 on your radio dial, we were thrilled. No doubt Center Stage does an excellent job of bringing national acts to campus; check out the schedule for yourself. With the re-opening of Thompson Hall, though, came the unique opportunity to create something new.

    We have long wanted to expand the Center Stage series to include artists for which Stewart Theatre might not be the best venue: young artists or ensembles early in their career, some of the many fine artists who call North Carolina home, and some of the hard-to-describe performances that may not attract huge audiences, but that our faithful patrons know can provide an evening of exhilarating entertainment.

    Next weekend, Sept. 18 and 19, Center Stage launches its Off-Center series with Double Barrel Benefit 6 alumnus Lost in the Trees. The Chapel Hill-based ensemble is often described as a folk orchestra, but you need to see them for yourself to really understand their sound. Lost in the Trees perform Friday, Sept. 18 at 8 p.m. in the Kennedy-McIlwee Studio Theatre. We could not have chosen a better kickoff ourselves.

    Raleigh’s ELM Collective, who plays Saturday, Sept. 19 at the same time and location, is groovy in a different way. The band boasts a global sound from four continents and a mission to blend culture through their music. Learn more about the band and flutist/physics professor Marco Buongiorno-Nardelli in the Winter 2009 Scope, a magazine from the College of Physical and Mathematical Sciences.

    Tickets for both shows are only $5 each for N.C. State students and can be picked up at the Ticket Central box office on the second floor of Tally Student Center. Members of the general public can enjoy Lost in the Trees and ELM Collective for $12-$15 each. Tickets can be purchased online, by phone at (919) 515-1100, or skip some of the processing fees by getting them in person at Ticket Central.

    Categories
    Concert Preview

    Lost in the Trees performing at NC State University!

    Native Chapel Hill band Lost in the Trees is coming to NC State University Friday, September 18th!

    The show starts at 8:00pm and will be at Kennedy McIlwee Theatre in Frank Thompson Hall on NC State’s campus. Tickets are $5 for students and $15 for general admission.

    Check out songs from this local band here and more events taking place on NC State’s campus here.

    Support local music!

    Categories
    Concert Preview

    Jay Clifford Performing at NC State!

    North Carolina State University Center Stage presents Jay Clifford at Stewart Theatre!

    The former lead singer/songwriter for the band Jump, Little Children that was born out of Winston-Salem, North Carolina will be performing at Stewart Theatre on Friday September 11th. The show starts at 8:00pm and tickets are free for NC State students. WKNC DJs will also be at Stewart Theatre before the show with 88.1 merchandise and will be passing out information about upcoming Friday on the Lawn shows.

    Come out to meet some WKNC DJs and support great local music!

    Categories
    Playlists

    Top 10 tracks selected by Hammer No More the Fingers

    This week we are lucky to have Hammer No More the Fingers sending us their list of what they are currently listening to!
    1. Caverns – Remasculator
    2. Deleted Scenes – The City that Never Wakes Up

    3. Pink Flag – King of Scene
    4. Birds of Avalon – I Never Knew
    5. Megafaun – The Fade
    6. Embarrassing Fruits – Details
    7. Deerhoof – Spirit Ditties of no Tone
    8. The Bronzed Chorus – Underpass Sunrise
    9. Johnny Action Figure – Young Rider
    10. My Morning Jacket – Wordless Chorus

      Categories
      Miscellaneous

      Opinion: N.C. State Football making a mockery of local music

      The following opinion is not reflective of that of North Carolina State University or WKNC 88.1. (Though it should be)

      Independent Weekly’s music blog, Scan, did an article on local band Airiel Down who recently just recorded a new rock n’ roll version of N.C. State’s fight song combined with the Red & White song.

      Listen: Airiel Down’s N.C. State Fight Song Airiel Down’s NC State Fight Song

      As a student at N.C. State and longtime fan of the football team, not to mention an avid follower of all things local music related, Airiel Down’s relationship with our football program does not come as a surprise. The fact that N.C. State endorses such an obtrusively meretricious band seemingly coincides with the recent state of our football squad: less than mediocre and still unabashedly brazen. And also much like N.C. State football in more recent years, Airiel Down is arrogant, flashy, and has all the makings of a solid generic-sounding rock band, yet lacks talent and foresight. I am not surprised in the least that we play their song, “Gunslinger,” during every halftime (much to the dismay of my bleeding ears). But to have the ear-splitting and deprecating cover of the fight song displayed prominently for N.C. State fans to see and hear is almost too much. (It sucks)

      As those who follow all of the amazing bands in the Triangle know, we have some truly unbelievably talented bands and musicians in our area and while I hate to disparage any local band, Airiel Down is not among them. As someone who spends a great deal of time promoting the good local bands that play in our area and the amount of fantastic music that our local artists create, to have the university I attend choose one that is as strepitous as Airiel Down is not only a slap in the face to myself, the football team, and the entire student body but most importantly the local music scene here in the area that we all cherish and try to support. Here I am: a student at NCSU, local music director on the student-run radio station, and a knowledgeable local music supporter. I could have suggested 25 other bands that would have fit the same genre mold but accomplished significantly more in any realm the marketing department was trying to reach before Airiel Down. All those in charge had to do was reach out to me and ask. To have a band like this represent anything that I genuinely care about is a mockery and a shame for what I stand for and support.

      The fact that those in charge of marketing and media attention in our athletic program keep on committing the same judgment errors in not only the athletic aspect of things but also in regards to our student body – Cougar Magnum was recently invited to play on campus – says a great deal about the state of things happening within our university. I question every decision made and ponder at the future that beholds us all here. What scares me most about the decision to have Airiel Down represent our state’s music scene and our football squad to 57,583 screaming fans is that 1. people will stereotype every band in the area from this one exposure as pathetic and amateur or 2. someone might actually like it.

      You decide which is worse.

      On a side note, you gotta love the El Che shirt Michel Barbachan is wearing during the National Anthem rehearsal.  Nothing could be less American than that.  Stay Classy N.C. State Football.

      Categories
      DJ Highlights

      Local Beat preview 9/4/09

      Tonight on the Local Beat is going to be another three hours of musical goodness.  Check out the lineup for the show!

      At 5pm Reid Johnson from Schooner is stopping by to talk about the band’s recent adventures and play some brand new tunes for us off of their upcoming “Duck Kee Sessions” EP that just hit the internet.  Schooner is also playing tonight at the Pour House alongside the Magic Babies & Starmount for what should be a killer show.

      6pm is a huge thrill for me as I am bringing in one of my favorite local bands, and also one of the most elusive, the Carolina Chocolate Drops.  CCD is playing at the Cats Cradle tomorrow night for a rare local show that you are not going to want to miss out on.  I also think this may be their WKNC debut…

      At 7pm Zach Terry of the Whiskey Smugglers and Liz Ross of Lafcadio are joining me in the studio to talk about next Wednesdays show at the Cats Cradle.  The show is a benefit to battle Multiple Sclerosis and Zach is playing solo, being joined by Lafcadio, The Tomahawks, and The Last of the Great Sideshow Freaks (The Old Ceremony’s Mark Simonsen’s band).

      So drop a line to the Local Beat, every Friday evenings from 5pm-8pm.  Listen on the air or listen over the internet!