Category: Podcasts

Dan giving Chas a purple nurple in the WKNC studio

Gray Young called the studio during the latter part of the Battle Rockets conversation to let us konw that they’d been locked in the stairwell and unable to get in.  So we went and rescued them and brought them in for the second half of the interview.  They dispelled the self-contrived rumours that they’re playing with U2 in October.  We discussed both bands’ future plans, which include WE Fest.  Check out the interview with the entire cast of characters below.

Now, onto the show that night. 

The lineup at Slim’s Downtown was this:

Battle Rockets

The Proclivities

Gray Young

Battle Rockets were entertaining and have quite a bit of energy, and it’s always fun to watch that level of energy coming from a two-piece.  The Proclivities were–and have been for a little while–sans drummer, so they had D.A.R.Y.L. fill in and rocked out as a two-piece (a very dapper two-piece, might I add).  Although the lack of a real drummer was sort of the elephant in the room (at the risk of using their song lyric), they were obviously having a good time, and so was I.  Matt Douglas was chatting the crowd up as well, as per usual.  Lastly, Gray Young took the stage around midnight.  I must say, I’ve seen Gray Young several times over the past year or so, and every time I’ve seen them they’ve been exponentially tighter (and on this night, louder).  It has been really fun to watch these guys as they play more shows together, and I can’t wait to see them again at the May 22 Lemming Malloy CD Release/Neckbeard Records Debut show at Local 506.  That’s all for now, be sure to tune in to the Local Beat this week, details to follow in another blog post soon…

In today’s digital world, it’s great to see a band that cares so much about the physical release of an album. I love having something I can hold in my hands when I buy my music—the thrill of driving to my local record store, thumbing through the collection, talking with the clerk as I pay, peeling off that damn sticky tape before prying open the cover, admiring the pictures in the liner notes—owning the physical CD gives me more of a connection with the artist.

In the 1960s, the single was the primary means by which an artist released their music before bands like the Beatles and the Beach Boys demonstrated the artistic importance of the album. In 2007, Prabir and the Substitutes demonstrated their respect for the physical release of an album by intending for the duplicate copy included with their EP, Share, to be given to a friend. The group might not save the physical album from certain doom, but they’re putting up a valiant fight.