Music News

WRVU Interview: Matt Signore, COO of Warner Nash

 

On October 19th, 2018, I was given the opportunity to speak with Matt Signore, the Chief Operating Officer of Warner Music Nashville, a sub-label under Warner Music Group. Mr. Signore offered unique insight to the culture and values of the company, as well as answers to questions about the internal operations of Warner Music Nashville and Warner Music Group as a whole.

Sunflower Bean’s Twentytwo in Blue, Reviewed

Sunflower Bean turned heads with their first full length album Human Ceremony, released back in 2016. Their debut’s breadth and urgency was illustrious of the band’s burgeoning appetite for a life beyond New York City’s DIY scene, and was ultimately successful in helping them realize the musician’s cliched dream of making it out of one’s hometown. After putting out music for only a year prior, the record was an impressive start for bassist and singer Julia Cumming, guitarist Nick Kivlen, and drummer Jacob Faber. The Brooklyn based trio were young and ambitious then— as they still are now, although their energy has become undeniably more harnessed— and these characteristics were central to Human Ceremony’s sound and thesis. The album was appropriately all over the place musically, with tracks ranging in style from shoegaze to surf rock to psych pop, and influences like the Velvet Underground and Black Sabbath obvious (in some cases on the same songs). Now, Sunflower Bean is back and more polished than ever on their sophomore release Twentytwo in Blue.

The Evils of Spotify: What Goes Around Comes Around

Alright, before you completely hate me for bashing your favorite source for enjoying your tunes, know that I am also a loyal Spotify listener. I even subscribed to their premium service (but I pay half price thanks to that sweet student discount ~cuz money is tight amiright?~). But it’s about time that you knew the truth of how Spotify treats the artists that they stream.

Don’t Underestimate Snail Mail

Snail Mail’s Lindsey Jordan is one of indie rock’s most promising young talents. 2016’s Habit EP, written while she was only an impressive fifteen years old, shocked critics with its depth and eloquence. The project tackled adolescence with the kind of careful reflection one would expect from someone sufficiently distanced from the melancholic woes of high school— except Jordan wrote it while she was still right there in the midst of it all. Habit beautifully chronicled youthful turmoil from inside the belly of the beast and did so successfully enough to land Snail Mail in-studio gigs with both Tiny Desk Concert and Audiotree Live, as well as a record deal with Matador. It’s clear that Jordan has a knack for putting the ineffable to words, and in combination with her excellent guitar skills and intricate style (she was taught by Mary Timony of Helium, Ex Hex, and Wildflag) it’s hard to imagine a future where she isn’t at the forefront of the lo-fi scene.

Upcoming Releases All the Cool Kids Are Excited About

In regards to emo and pop-punk, 2018 has not been off to a particularly bangin’ start. I imagine you’re probably thinking something along the lines of: that’s because those genres died, like, ten years ago. But that’s where you’re wrong. Whatever wave of emo is currently happening is still sputtering on, asphyxiating slowly resultant of its cultural irrelevancy. Despite the poor state of the scene at present, however, there are still a few upcoming releases everyone can look forward to, both in and out of the genre.

Courtney Barnett is as Unapologetic as Ever on New Single ‘Nameless, Faceless’

(“Nameless, Faceless” music video still, from Youtube)

Subtlety has never been Courtney Barnett’s thing. So far, that’s been to her advantage. Native to Melbourne and on the rapid rise to fame since the 2015 release of her debut LP Sometimes I Sit and Think, and Sometimes I Just Sit, Barnett has made a name for herself through witty, avant-garde lyricism and garagey guitar riffs. Her previous work resonates with a sort of comfortable honesty, regardless of the first-glance mundanity of the everyday occurrences she so often addresses. This past October’s Kurt Vile collab album Lotta Sea Lice saw the further development of this knack, and quietly allowed Barnett to temporarily side step the anxieties of following up Sometimes I Sit and Think’s success. Now ready to tackle those fears head on, her second full length solo project, Tell Me How You Really Feel, will be released May 18th on Mom+Pop, Marathon Artists, and Barnett’s own Milk! Records. In tandem with this announcement, first single “Nameless, Faceless,” as well as an accompanying music video, were put out ahead of the upcoming album. 

SOB x RBE: A Look at the Vallejo Rap Group that is Taking the Hip Hop World by Storm

The hype around the Marvel movie Black Panther has been ridiculous. So, it’s no surprise that when the undisputed king of rap, Kendrick Lamar, dropped a collaborative album with various artists with tracks from and inspired by the movie, almost everyone with an inkling of interest in contemporary hip hop lost it. But, amidst all the big names and music stars, from SZA to The Weeknd, there was one song, “Paramedic!” by an artist not nearly as well known, SOB x RBE.

Shakey Graves Releases The Sleep EP Ahead of Upcoming Album

Alejandro Rose-Garcia, better known by stage name Shakey Graves, has long since been an Austin icon. A self-proclaimed ‘Texas gentleman,’ his prophetic lyrics and unapologetic DIY sound have earned his catalog regard as one of folk-rock’s greats. His signature suitcase kick drum, perfectly homemade and casual, epitomizes the distinctive one-man band style of his past recordings and live performances. Undeniably, Rose-Garcia has come a long way from those early days of Bandcamp releases and solo shows. The 2014 drop of album And the War Came marked the beginning of his transition to a more polished sound and filled out live set, of which  he shared his thoughts on while opening for City and Colour in June of 2016. “There’s nothing wrong with needing a little help from your friends,” he explained. Although the recent re-release of The Donor Blues and Nobody’s Fool EPs one summer later seemed to indicate a potential return to his earlier bedroom style, upcoming record Can’t Wake Up suggests the contrary.

Eminem’s BET Freestyle: Some Thoughts on His Beard

(Photo via Twitter)

First and foremost, it would be downright irresponsible of me to make any substantive claim, analytical, theoretical, or otherwise, about Eminem’s BET freestyle without first addressing the obvious. Like the pristine river that guides an untamed eye across the canvas, through dark mountain valleys and up into the great blue unknown—that archetype of the transcendental, that ineffable sublime—Eminem’s beard is nothing. And yet it is everything.

BROCKHAMPTON Soars with SATURATION II

Members of Brockhampton (Photo by Ashlan Grey)

BROCKHAMPTON returned with a bang on their third release, Saturation II, off their own label Question Everything, Inc this past August 25th . The group has a sound as unorthodox as their origin story, the majority of the members having met on a popular Kanye West forum before ever meeting in real life. Coalescing under leader Kevin Abstract and taking up the all-caps moniker BROCKHAMPTON, the group of 15 moved to South Central Los Angeles in 2015 to be the next great American boyband. Following their two previous releases, Saturation II creeps, crawls, and roars its way into your sonic sphere with the youthful energy of a group of 19-23 year old men that have something(s) to say.

Let’s Not Act Like Lil Pump Doesn’t Know What He’s Doing

Courtesy of Lil Pump via Twitter

There’s no denying that Soundcloud has become the birthing ground for new hiphop artists. Some of the biggest names today, Chance the Rapper and Lil Uzi Vert to name two, began their record-breaking careers on the platform. Soundcloud’s accessibility has made it easier than ever to enter the game, but just as easy to be buried under a million other users (talented or not). How do you set yourself apart? Lil Pump’s Answer:

‘ESSKEETIT’