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Band/Artist Profile

Double Barrel Benefit 11 // Bombadil

Bombadil are an eclectic chamber folk-pop band out of Durham, North Carolina. Their name is derived from the J.R.R. Tolkien character Tom Bombadil from the Lord of the Rings. Tom Bombadil is a witty, peculiar character who speaks and sings in playful rhymes. The name “Bombadil” encompasses the quartet perfectly as they deliver their sophisticated pop feel of a bygone era in their eccentric suits.

The band began back in 2006 when the head of Ramseur Records stumbled upon a few demos and immediately signed them. Since then they have released an EP and four incredible full-length studio albums. Bombadil have been WKNC favorites since their very first release. With each subsequent release, Bombadil have found new ways to expand and develop their sound. Each member of the band is a multi-instrumentalist in addition to being a vocalist and songwriter. Each song is testament to each member’s ability to craft truly brilliant pop songs.

After a brief hiatus a couple years back, it is safe to say that Bombadil are back and better than ever. Their most recent effort, Metrics of Affection, earned them a spot as our Local Artist of the Month back in July. This year, we could not be more excited to have one of our long-time favorites on stage for Double Barrel at last.

-Michael D’Argenio, Program Manager

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Band/Artist Profile

Double Barrel Benefit 11 // Loamlands

    

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Recording a quality album in three days’ time is not an easy feat for most musicians. But when you’ve already been playing music together for four years, some pretty amazing things can come out of such an intense studio session. That’s the case with Some Kind of Light, the debut album from the Durham-based band, Loamlands. Kym Register and Will Hackney previously played together in local favorite Midtown Dickens. Their new project, a folk/Americana duo backed by a rotating percussion section that has featured members of Megafaun, Lost in the Trees, and Hiss Golden Messenger, builds on their past together. With thoughtful lyrics sung in both raw and melodic styles over southern guitar hooks, this pair creates music that is easy to enjoy and relate to. The accessible style makes their show a great experience for all music fans.

After seeing one of their first performances last spring, when they opened for William Tyler, it was apparent that these musicians are very comfortable together; the songs came across easily and the general atmosphere at their shows is one of support and mutual delight in playing for an audience. Their cover of “Stop Dragging My Heart Around” was one of my favorite memories from a live show last year. Loamlands plays the second night of DBB, Feburary 14th, at Raleigh’s Lincoln Theater – you won’t want to miss it!

-Kate VanVorst, DJ, LBLB Coordinator

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Band/Artist Profile

Double Barrel Benefit 11 // Daniel Bachman

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American primitivism is a deep rooted musical style pioneered by the likes of John Fahey, Robbie Basho, and Jack Rose. The genre is defined by a mix of avant-garde and blues finger-picking techniques that create a heavily textured, almost hypnotic effect with its repeating and ascending thematic lines. Its something thats become more and more mythologized in the past few years as it currently undergoes somewhat of a renaissance. Twenty-something, Bathetic Records artist Daniel Bachman likes to just call it “guitar music.”

The so-called guitar-prodigy relocated to Chapel Hill shortly after his performance at Raleigh’s Longview Center for Hopscotch Music Festival’s fourth year, as well as an amazing collaborative drone set in the Rose Garden with the group Pelt. A relentless tourer, the Fredericksburg Virginia native has made a name for himself among the most talented performers currently reviving complex acoustic guitar work–including Steve Gunn and Merge Record’s William Tyler.

Bachman will open night two of Double Barrel February 14th in Raleigh serving to appropriately christen the americana-folk-rock-packed power line-up at Lincoln Theater. On top of all that we heard he’s a big whiskey and PBR fan. Be sure to show early, watch some fast fingers and let your mouth hang open.

-John Kovalchik, Operations Manager

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Band/Artist Profile Local Music

Local Artist of the Month: Daniel Bachman

In a time where many artists are moving away from traditional instrumentation and moving towards electronics, acts like Daniel Bachman help keep music lovers rooted in the fundamentals. But that’s not to say that Bachman is an ordinary artist by any means. Daniel Bachman is a swiftly rising traditionalist in the music scene and when he made the move to Chapel Hill he was immediately embraced by the local community. There’s no wonder why either, Bachman’s acoustic fingerpicking is anything but simplistic. Using varied open tunings Bachman weaves together complex compositions filled with dense layers of melody, making his perplexing techniques seem effortless.

Bachman’s music is soothing and enchanting, making him an easy choice for our February Artist of the Month. Bachman’s most recent release Jesus, I’m A Sinner delves into American Primitivism, using bluesy fingerpicking techniques to convey his rustic instrumental aura. Whether Bachman is wielding a lapsteel, acoustic or banjo, he’s creating expansive and limitless music using minimal equipment. Bachman knows how to create an immersive environment within his music, making it easy to lose yourself in his rich sounds. With three LPs out within the past two years and another on the way for 2014, this young workhorse has no slowing down in sight.

John Kovalchic’s interview with Daniel Bachman will air on Feb. 14, the same day that Bachman is set to take the stage at Lincoln Theatre for Night 2 of our annual Double Barrel Benefit. Bachman will be performing alongside Mount Moriah, Bombadil and Loamlands. Tune in at 5:00 on Friday, Feb. 14 to hear our Artist of the Month segment with this immensely talented young guitarist.

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Band/Artist Profile

Double Barrel Benefit 11 // The Love Language

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The Love Language is a well-established band in the Triangle, and after signing to Merge Records in 2010, they struck stardom. Where the self-titled was excited and frantic with lustful hooks, Libraries swooned with Americana slides and sways and indie pop vigor. Their third album, Ruby Red, was released in July of 2013 to meet critical acclaim with its more polished, rock-oriented sound. The Love Language calls on a heartfelt earnestness in their performances, swelling up with the rises and falls of the most dynamic, unashamed sincerity that frontman, Stuart McLamb cultivates in his love letters of songs that reminisce past summers in jangly harmonies and naivety. For years, The Love Language has provided us with both songs we can dance, or erratically jump, to and others meant for holding hands with the past.

The Love Language has a long history with WKNC: coming in for interviews and in-studio performances, performing live for our video project, The Lounge, and even playing a solo set at our outdoor concert series, Fridays on the Lawn. We can’t think of a better band to headline the first night of our biggest event of the year!

-Bri Aab, General Manager

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Band/Artist Profile

Double Barrel Benefit 11 // Hammer No More The Fingers

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Hammer No More The Fingers catapulted into the local music scene in 2007 with the release of their self-titled EP release, one that received considerable airplay on WKNC and a heavy amount of recognition. They followed their EP with Looking For Bruce, a powerful sophomore album that garnered high critical praise, both at home and abroad. They were labeled by Stereogum as the “Band to Watch” in 2008, and by Spin as one of 25 “Must See Artists” at the 2009 CMJ festival.

Hammer No More The Fingers have been a staple of the tremendous local music scene, delivering consistently solid performances and playing alongside the best in established and up-and-coming artists. Their hooks and harmonies are irresistible, and their live performance will fuel you in ways that only their exuberant college rock can. It’s a feeling that is few and far between these days, but one that is not all lost.

Friday, February 7th at Cat’s Cradle, Hammer No More The Fingers will take the stage and give Double Barrel Benefit 11 a rock performance we all yearn for, one you will not want to miss.

-Zach Dorsett, Promotions Director

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Band/Artist Profile

Double Barrel Benefit 11 // TOW3RS

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Tow3rs began several years ago when musician Derek Torres decided to cover a Lonnie Walker track and upload the recording online. That cover dovetailed into a cassette offer from Lonnie Walker’s label, the NC-based Diggup Tapes, and eventually into a full length, the sprightly, experimental If All We Have Is Time, which mixed equal parts generational ennui and guitar-pop songcraft.

Since then, the band’s unique approach to indie pop has shapeshifted through several incarnations as the band’s presence has increased in the Triangle, with the Tow3rs moniker currently serving as a dance-inflected solo project for Torres himself. In recent months, the project has offered the odd single on Bandcamp, as well as the occasional split, including a recent Velvet Underground covers release for Digguptapes with fellow Triangle band Lilac Shadows, on which the band provided their inspired rendition of “Rock and Roll.

As Torres readies a new LP, the newer material reveals an evolving palette of sounds and influences, but with the same strong emphasis on pop songwriting. WKNC is very excited to have Derek perform with us!

-David Smith, Music Director

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Band/Artist Profile

Double Barrel Benefit 11 // Ghostt Bllonde

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Ghostt Bllonde surfaced in early 2013, scoring a dedicated following from their countless sweaty house show performances and frenetic onstage personality. In the summer of 2013, the band released their debut album, TrashPop//DoomWop, a collection of anthemic pop rock jams. It was a far cry from their initial demos, recorded on a CD-R on a beaten-up cardboard sleeve that made its ways around the WKNC halls last year. The new record showed the band was refining their fuzzed-out style into something more, sporting powerful hooks, solid production, and the iconic moaning of impassioned frontman Marc Kuzio. They were building their style into an organized chaos that was just as accessible as it was violent.

In January of 2014, Ghostt Bllonde headlined a show at King’s with Museum Mouth and fellow Double Barrel Benefit 11 band Hammer No More The Fingers. It culminated in half the crowd rushing the stage and turning the room into a massive dance pit for the final encore. For Double Barrel’s first night, the stage may not explode into a fifty-person throwdown, but you can always count on Ghostt Bllonde’s energy to inspire a fantastic show. Catch them at the beginning of the night on February 7th at Cat’s Cradle.

-Walt Lilly, Production Manager

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Band/Artist Profile

July’s Local Artist of the Month: Bombadil

July’s Local Artist of the Month: Bombadil

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Band/Artist Profile Local Music

Carolina Grown Preview: Magpie Feast w/ Texoma, Magnolia Collective & Kenny Roby

For the last official Carolina Grown of the year we’re gonna be going all out. And by that I mean we’ve got FOUR artists joining us throughout the span of our two hour show, making for the busiest week yet! From 5-6 we’ll be highlighting a few local artists that will be playing at Local 506 later on Friday night, Texoma, Magnolia Collective and Kenny Roby. After tackling some conversation and acoustic tunes with those three we’ll be onto our hour-long feature of Magpie Feast, our December Artist of the Month. It’ll be two hours filled with Southern-styled rock n’ roll goodness and an excellent send-off for what’s been a busy and wonderful first year of the show.

The first hour’s guests are some of the area’s staples when it comes to Americana music. Kenny Roby and Magnolia Collective have become figureheads of the local scene, serving as gatekeepers for the swiftly expanding roots rock scene. However, that doesn’t mean that you should write either of them off. Kenny Roby is winding down one of his best years in recent memory, anchored by the stellar release Memories & Birds back in April. Memories & Birds proves that this local icon still has plenty of gas in the tank and the same can be said for Magnolia Collective. While MagCo. is still in its early years as a project, the band’s members are no strangers to the scene. Magnolia Collective was born of Southern Rail jam sessions and has maintained that intimate vibe while slowly evolving into a cohesive and impressive unit of songwriters.

Texoma on the other hand marks a brand new start for some Triangle staples. Songwriter Zach Terry was one of the founding members within Magnolia Collective and before that was a member of the foot-stomping roots rockers The Whiskey Smugglers. As Texoma, Terry turns over a new leaf while staying firm to his alt-country roots. Texoma, Roby and Magnolia Collective will all be chatting and performing stripped down songs throughout the hour, so alt-country fans should most definitely stick close to their radios.

And if you’re a fan of the southern vibes then you’ll surely want to stick around to find out more about the elusive Magpie Feast. Though the band has been around for years now, little is known about this stellar blues-driven act. That’s one of the main reasons we’re aiming to shine our light upon this overlooked act, the other being their undeniable knack for barn-burning sing-along tracks that pack as heavy of a rhythmic punch as they do an emotional one. Expect some enlightening conversation and some brilliant renditions of the standout tracks from their latest release Out of the Womb.