What’s going on Butcher Crew?! It’s ya girl, The Saw, and today I am sharing with you my playlist that I listen to while I’m in the shower. I take my showers very seriously and I like to set a vibe while I’m showering. It is one of the only places where I can self-reflect and relax. It’s also a place where I have my one-woman concerts. I have the worst singing voice, but in the shower, you best believe that I sound like Ariana Grande.
These songs are some fun sing along songs that I like to dance around to while showering, this is probably the favorite part of my day because it’s just straight vibes.
Olivia Newton John – Hopelessly Devoted To You
Mac Miller – Self Care
Frank Ocean – In My Room
Tyler, The Creator – 2SEATER
The Internet – Special Affair
Smino – Amphetamine
$not – GO$HA
$uicideBoy$ – O Pana!
Isaiah Rashaad – Tity and Dolla
Saweetie & Doja Cat – Best Friend
Megan Thee Stallion – Body
Drake – Hotline Bling
TLC – No Scrubs
Seether – Careless Whisper
Staind – Outside
Ariana Grande – Positions
Lady Gaga – LoveGame
These have been my go-to songs while I’m jamming out in the shower. I like to keep it light and playful while I’m showering. Gotta get the right vibes. (:
Madlib is known for his production work on major albums with MF DOOM, Freddie Gibbs, and more. His newest project with fellow producer Four Set, “Sound Ancestors,” just released and so far this is my favorite track from the new album.
2hrs – Tobi Lou
This phenomenal and emotional single from Tobi Lou encapsulates a lot of the loneliness, frustration, and exhaustion we can all relate to.
MLK Dr – Smino
A gorgeous, colorful music video pairs so well with this smooth new track from Smino in honor of Martin Luther King, Jr. Day.
Good Vibes (Za) – Wale
A groovy track perfect to relax you or get you dancing, with realness in the lyrics that adds a great depth.
Pomegranate – Kota the Friend
My favorite track from Kota the Friend’s newest release, “Lyrics to GO, Vol. 2.” A simple and short song with beautiful vocals and visual descriptions.
To listen to this week’s Friday Favorites and every song from the past weeks, check out my playlist on WKNC’s Spotify.
2020 was a year of pure isolation, distress, and chaos. Throughout this year of disconnect, we all remained connected through the power of music. Here are my top ten songs from this year!
10. Obsession by The Cairos: Let’s just say that I played this song on repeat during a three hour long road trip. Am I proud? Absolutely. For me, this song has two moods. Either break something or scream the words in a dark basement with five of my closest friends.
9. The Zone . Leave Me Alone by Lorine Chia, J. Kelr: I play this song and immediately I am on a rollercoaster of emotions. When it begins, I feel like I am in a neon lite club. Then, I am on a hammock on a beach! All I have to say is three minutes and fifteen seconds. You will thank me later.
8. Pools by Glass Animals: This song, along with any Glass Animals song, will always and forever be my favorite. Every single member of this group was definitely an alien in their past-life. I had the honor of seeing this group (pre COVID-19) at Okeechobee Music Festival. To sum it up, the best experience of my entire life. This song has many different interpretations on its meaning, so let me know what you think it’s about!
7. We Left (Night Version) by RÜFÜS DU SOL: Sound and color. These magicians use the inspiration of our beautiful world and translate it into mesmerizing sounds. I plan on doing an entire blog post surrounding RÜFÜS DU SOL, so definitely check them out! Fun fact: This is one of the first songs they ever created as a group!
6. Intrinsic by Odd Mob: If I were traveling through hyperspace, this song would be blasting in my space craft. Words to describe this masterpiece: weird, alluring, and memorable. This song is a rollercoaster that only goes up. Definitely give it a listen!
5. Another Sky – The Magician Remix by Scenic, The Magician: This song makes me feel like I am in the opening scene of a movie. Specifically, in a 1961 Lincoln Continental driving down a highway at 3:30 in the morning. Very cliche of me. I know. Can’t complain though, because it is true.
4. Because You Move Me by Tinkler, Helsloot: If you are looking for the perfect bop your head and wiggle your toes beat, this is the one for you! Randomly play this song in front of your friends and every single one of them will be moving some part of their body. Tinkler is always one step ahead of the electronic music game. He combines various sounds and genres to create a “sound-driven journey”.
3. Bunny by Tourist: Beautiful. Majestic. Unique. Lush. Emotional. All words and feelings that consume my soul while listening to this song. All I can say about this song is sparkles, sunlight, and serenity.
2. Never Cage a Butterfly by tiedye ky: This song was released a few months ago in tiedye ky’s game changing album called “Baby Blue and the Super Moon”. This entire collection was such a dominating contribution to the 2020 evolution of electronic music. This song mixes the use of live instruments (specifically electric guitar) and synthesizers in unbelievable ways. If you are trying to get ahead of the electronic music scene, I highly recommend listening to this entire album!
1. 2nd Street by Kaskade: I personally believe that Kaskade is one of the most innovative house artists of our time. With him being one of my favorite artists that I saw at Okeechobee Music Festival 2020, I decided to learn more about him, his music, and vision for the music scene. I also plan on doing a blog specifically for him so be on the lookout for it! In the meantime, enjoy this journey that this song puts your through.
Though I’m an Apple Music user (my dad has a family plan, don’t just me), I still turn to Spotify for discovering new music. Not only are their curated playlists fantastic, but there’s also a strong contingency of users who make their own amazing public playlists. This is how I find music to play on WKNC! Here’s a list of my favorites:
1. Discover Weekly – Spotify
Discover Weekly is one of the best resources Spotify has to offer. Everyone’s is different based on the music they’ve been liking and listening to, so it’s a great way to find new music that sounds similar to the stuff you’ve been into. The only downside is that it’s hard to diversify your taste if you solely rely on Discover Weekly.
If you’re looking to time travel a bit I would highly recommend this curated playlist from Spotify. This is a great playlist for anyone into early psychedelia. It includes classic psychedelic tracks from some of the best, such as The Who, Cream, and The Doors.
If you’re looking for more of a surfy vibe, this playlist made by a Spotify user is the place to go. It’s heavy with songs from modern surf bands such as The Growlers, Allah-Las, and Babe Rainbow. Older groups are featured too, like Buffalo Springfield and The Yardbirds.
This is another great playlist if you’re searching for a vintage sound. At a whopping 89 hours and 19 minutes long, you will never run out of fresh music with this playlist. It has pretty much every artist you can think of from the 60s and 70s, including hits and deep cuts.
I was first drawn to this playlist by its cover, which has a picture of Khruangbin on it, but what I found inside what so much more. This playlist has tons of underground artists as well as popular ones, like Tame Impala, King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard, and Orions Belte.
I cannot tell you how much I love this playlist. Though a lot of it is actually not instrumental, it has a very 50s pop vibe that’s irresistible. This playlist has led me to discover artists like The Ventures, The Lively Ones, and Santana.
This playlist, which is just over 10 hours long, is another fantastic dive into classic rock. It has some of my favorite tracks on it from some of the most notable rock artists, including The Rolling Stones, Led Zeppelin, The Grateful Dead, and Fleetwood Mac.
New year, new show! This semester, I decided to branch off from Daytime Rock. The Tangerine Hour (which is on Fridays at 11:30am, and you should totally listen to) is my new show dedicated to deep cuts from the 60s and 70s. If you’ve read any of my blogs, you know that I’m a geek for that era, especially the music. I wanted to explore the songs and artists that didn’t quite make it out of the Age of Aquarius, but are fantastic nonetheless. It’s been SO FUN to dig into weird, obscure artists and explore songs that were relatively forgotten by the mainstream, even if they were released by popular artists. Here’s an inside look at some of the tracks I’ve played already and what you can expect to hear in the upcoming weeks!
1. Pretty Big Mouth – Count Five
Count Five was a band that peaked around 1966, as they were only able to release one album, “Psychotic Reaction,” before they broke up. Only one of their songs made it onto the charts. Despite their relative lack of notoriety, “Pretty Big Mouth” is a great song.
2. Paul – The Pyramids
The Pyramids were one of the last successful surf rock bands to emerge in the early 60s. Their one hit, “Penetration,” is heralded as a classic, but the rest of their discography was forgotten. “Paul” is a fantastic instrumental, especially if you’re into that California sunny surf vibe.
3. Eddie’s Rush – Ultimate Spinach
Ultimate Spinach is a weird band. Their psychedelic song, “Mind Flowers,” is usually what people remember them for, but in 1969 they transitioned to performing the blues and garage rock, as such was the trend. “Eddie’s Rush” is another great instrumental from their last album.
4. Psycho Daisies (Single B-Side) – The Yardbirds
The Yardbirds are one of my favorite bands, simply because their history is fascinating. Three of the greatest guitar players of all time, Jeff Beck, Eric Clapton, and Jimmy Page, passed through the band at some point or another. “Psycho Daisies” is off “Roger the Engineer,” the only album that featured Beck as the sole guitarist.
5. Path Through the Forest – The Factory
The Factory is another band that didn’t quite make it out of the 70s, but “Path Through the Forest” is a superb psychedelic rock ballad.
6. Ease Back – The Meters
The Meters were possibly one of the best funk bands to walk this earth. Their work served as the foundation for the birth of hip-hop in the 80s! “Ease Back” is from their self-titled album, “The Meters,” released in 1969.
7. Soul Sanction – Booker T. & the M.G.’s
Another classic funk band, Booker T. & The M.G.’s showed the world how powerful Southern soul could be. With Booker T. Washington’s cutting organ lines, “Soul Sanction” is absolutely unreal.
8. Let Me Ride – Ginger Baker’s Air Force
Ginger Baker was most known for his role as the drummer in Cream, but god, do I wish he had done more with Ginger Baker’s Air Force. Branching off of the classic rock sound, Baker aimed to combine funk, soul, blues, and African music in his new project. Unfortunately, they only ended up releasing one album, “Do What You Like.”
9. Paranoia – Yesterday’s Children
Another band lost in the explosion of music in the late 60s was Yesterday’s Children. Combining heavy metal, glam rock, and that signature garage sound, they’re a true hidden gem.
Like what you see? Make sure to tune in to the Tangerine Hour every Friday!
You know those times when all of a sudden it feels like you’ve been hit with a wave of new, really good music out of nowhere? It’s the best feeling in the world. Finally, you can get yourself out of the same five-song rotation and expand your music taste, treating your ears to the soothing sounds of something new. I just recently happened upon this feeling for the first time in a while, and I would like to share it with you all. So, here is what I’ve been listening to lately.
“My Cousin Greg” by Houndmouth You might know this band from the song “Sedona,” but if you dig deeper into their discography you can find that they actually have an array of songs that match “Sedona’s” energy. “My Cousin Greg” is like one of those songs that starts out smooth but eventually gets more and more exciting as it goes on. Perfect for any car ride with friends.
“Evil Ways” by Santana I heard this song for the first time in a while last weekend while I was in Wilmington. It was a beautiful day and I was driving to the beach with friends when this song came on. The sun was shining through the Spanish moss and illuminating the car as a wild guitar riff spun through the car. And now I think of that every time I listen to this song.
“Blue Magic” by Kelly Hogan and Bill Taft This is one of those songs that is perfect for laying in bed at 3 AM and staring up at the ceiling. It has an echoing guitar with a vocalist to match it perfectly. It sounds very similar to “White Rabbit” by Jefferson Airplane.
“Miracle” by Jurassic Shark Jurassic Shark is a nice little surf rock band that came out with the album “Miracle” back in 2014, however I’ve only just recently been getting into them. My favorite song off of the album is “Summer.” The sound of the song definitely lives up to its name.
“Above Water” by Felly This song encapsulates the feeling of trying to make it through the first week of classes. No matter how stressful it gets to keep everything up to date, you just have to keep your head above water.
Well I hope you guys enjoy the tunes, -The DJ Formerly Known as Chippypants
Ever at a loss to find new music? Fret no more sweet readers, because this week I’m going to cover some of my favorite rap and hip-hop Spotify playlists. When I first started at WKNC, I actually did an Underground show every Saturday night. It was super fun and I’m absolutely stoked that we’re extending Underground to play all day on Mondays too! These playlists are where I dug around to find new music, back then and now:
“QUARANTINA” was gifted to us in the Spring of 2020, right as COVID was starting to get really bad. The members of Flatbush Zombies, Zombie Juice, Meechy Darko and Erick the Architect, made this playlist filled with uplifting rap and r&b tunes to help out our anxious spirits. It’s a sample platter of different eras and genres of hip-hop from artists like Outkast, D’Angelo, and Mac Miller.
This playlist is one of the best Spotify has to offer. It’s filled with the perfect mixture of underground and notable artists, including Freddie Gibbs, Deem Spencer, and LUCKI. Extremely lo-fi and very lyrical, it’s a great playlist to turn to for some nice ambiance music.
A bit more on the mainstream side of things, this playlist features artists like J. Cole, Joey Bada$$, and Kendrick Lamar. Nevertheless, the songs it does include from those big names are some of my favorites.
WARNING: This playlist is only for people who can handle time traveling back to the 90s.The name says it all, but this Spotify curated playlist is a fantastic collection of some of the biggest hits in West Coast rap. If you’re into songs like “It Was A Good Day” by Ice Cube and “I Got 5 On It” by Luniz, you’re gonna love this one.
You might recognize Raleigh-based rapper Lesthegenius on this playlist. With more of a softer tone, “black creativity” is something really worth sitting down and enjoying. It’s a beautiful collection of thoughtful r&b, soul, and rap.
Since my seventeenth birthday I’ve collected songs about the age I was turning for every birthday and made a playlist each year to assist the transition between my ages. There’s something comforting about knowing that the artists you identify with have also gone through the same things you are currently going through. This playlist is a collection of all the songs about being between the ages of seventeen and twenty-three. You can listen to the playlist here.
Seventeen by MARINA
Edge of Seventeen by Stevie Nicks
Anthems For A Seventeen Year-Old Girl by Broken Social Scene
Seventeen by Kevin Abstract
Dancing Queen by ABBA
8TEEN by Khalid
Eighteen by Joyce Manor
18 by One Direction
I’m Eighteen by Alice Cooper
Reinventing the Wheel to Run Myself Over by Fall Out Boy
This track from Sullivan’s new album, “Heaux Tales,” is my favorite. If you love this song, check out my review of the album also on WKNC’s blog.
The King of Carrot Flowers. Pt. One – Death Cab for Cutie
Death Cab’s new “The Georgia EP” was released last week and features very well-done covers in the classic Death Cab style. I particularly like their Neutral Milk Hotel cover as their style complements the original song and definitely does it justice.
Atomic Vomit – Steve Lacy
Steve Lacy’s recent album, “The Lo-Fis,” is filled with groovy alt-R&B, with this song in particular being especially appealing. I love the beat and vocals on this track and definitely recommend it.
Good Days – SZA
SZA recently confirmed a new album release coming in 2021, and delighted fans with the drop of “Good Days” which seems to blend together her style from 2017’s “Ctrl” with her older projects such as “Z.” We’re all looking forward to her newest project.
He Said (feat. Miguel) – dvsn
R&B fans will love this slow-jam from the very new release by dvsn on “Amusing Her Feelings.” To listen to this week’s Friday Favorites and every song from the past weeks, check out my playlist on WKNC’s Spotify.
