I’ve spent the last two years, since I discovered Frontier Ruckus’ astounding record Deadmalls & Nightfalls, trying to figure out what, for me, and for so many other people, makes them stand out. Partially it’s Matthew Milia’s voice, which doesn’t sound like it should come from him; it’s haunting and eerie and grounded all at…
Tag: lead singers
because fuck you, that’s why
“[Y]ou should lie to people to get what you want; you can make things happen for yourself just by acting confident.” — Kathleen Hanna in Girls To The Front, on the start of her writing career “There was a point when I realized that you could get away with just about anything so long as…
antibalas & the brand new life @ cat’s cradle
I’ve had a bit of a week: I’ve shot gothic Americana, kickass lady punk, electro-synth indie pop, and last night, a double bill of great, great Afrobeat. To be honest, I was almost completely ignorant of Afrobeat as a genre or a movement until I started going to see my friend Seth’s project, the Brand…
the corin tucker band @ local 506
Corin Tucker can flat-out rock. That’s what I took away from last night’s show; it was an aural assault of highly danceable tunes from her airtight band off Kill My Blues, her latest solo release on Kill Rock Stars. It’s excellent, her show was excellent, and I’m kind of ashamed that I didn’t tell her…
delicate cutters @ motorco garage
I still believe in the record label; that is, I believe in finding the small labels curating a select roster of bands and, if you like the bands they have, trusting them to find you new ones. One of those labels, for me, is Skybucket Records out of Birmingham, who used to release the Dexateens’…
tift merritt @ carrboro town commons
No way to make my heart swell with love for where I live than a free show outside on a perfect fall evening, featuring three of North Carolina’s most beloved. Tift Merritt made me cry (for some reason, “Mix Tape” just destroys me) and made me laugh, Megafaun blew the crowd away by swinging between…
will johnson & anders parker @ haw river ballroom
If you have a chance to catch Will Johnson and Anders Parker on their current (mostly) living room tour, you need to do it — it was one of the most intimate, reverent, and fun evenings I’ve had in a long time. The third balcony of the Haw River Ballroom sounds just as good as…
bristol rhythm and roots 2012, day one
Started the Bristol evening with Lydia Loveless, finished with the Deep Dark Woods. That’ll do for a Bristol first night.
hopscotch music festival wrap-up; or, a love letter to the triangle scene
I thought all day yesterday about what I wanted to say in my personal (rather than the official SiC) Hopscotch wrap-up, and I flashed through plenty of things. It was a great weekend; it will be a great weekend as long as Grayson and Greg choose to keep it going. But ultimately, what I came…
phil cook & his feat – the weather station @ the FARM
Another beautiful show at the FARM, thanks to Elyse and Colie and Leland, Ampersand Booking, Phil Cook, Tamara from the Weather Station, and Ryan Gustafson & Josh Moore, who I heard put on an amazing set during a killer lightning storm (though we’d bailed for home before then). Rapidly becoming one of my favorite places…
brand new kind of photography 