Trying to recreate the success they enjoyed during the 70s and 80s and give their fans more music to enjoy, Electric Light Orchestra has just released their fourteenth studio album:…
In a heartfelt letter to her followers released on Instagram, BANKS opened up about the process of her latest release III. It’s an introspective work that delves into raw themes…
After over a year of teasing the album and not meeting his self-imposed deadlines, Kanye West has finally released his long awaited album Jesus is King. Fortunately, this time Kanye…
Starting back in the early 2010s, this weird-ass genre started popping out of the UK. It was taking the wonky aesthetics of EDM and pitching up the melodies and vocals…
In 1959, an iconoclast guitar player named John Aloysius Fahey released his first album, Blind Joe Death. He released the album independently on his own label, Takoma Records. Over the next…
The collaboration “I Need a Forest Fire” by James Blake and Bon Iver opens calmly, with a sustained note that plays quietly in the background as wispy melody fluctuates around…
Is He Real? is the latest project by Maryland rapper IDK. In this project, he takes a departure from the dark subject matter and more aggressive style of rapping on…
By the end of 2017, Claire Cottrill had gone viral with her lo-fi bedroom pop single “Pretty Girl” under the moniker Clairo. Her growing success quickly drew criticism from people…
Listen to WRVU Thursday and Friday afternoon and keep up with our social media for a chance to win tickets to SALES on March 30th at Basement East. Check out…
Hop Along is a part of the conversation. This past year saw the takeover of indie by women, and Frances Quinlan is another prime example of this. Her band’s most recent release, Bark Your Head Off, Dog, has consistently ranked across many major music publications’ best of 2018 lists, including the likes of NPR, Billboard, and Rolling Stone. Rightfully so, as the group’s third record is their most powerful yet. Quinlan’s unique style of world-building storytelling shifts to the forefront on this album, a necessary move given the extent and consequent of the issues she works hard to tackle and contextualize here. The line ‘strange to be shaped by such strange men’ appears on multiple tracks and is repeated like a mantra across the record, a tactic that is intentionally unavoidable and jarring (especially when put to words by Quinlan’s hair-raising voice). This powerful motif unites the project around a common theme of social reflection and reconciliation— one that is about as 2018 as you can get.
If you’re into Courtney Barnett or Sleater-Kinney, chances are you’re already a fan of Katie Harkin’s work. She got her start as the guitarist for English rock band Sky Larkin…
The worlds of folk and Americana music are, at best, in constant struggle between the future and the past. While some folk bands cling to what is familiar, the finest artists see the past as a springboard into fresh new sounds. This was the case with Bob Dylan’s iconic Newport Folk Festival controversy, as it was the case with Fleet Foxes’s breathtaking 2017 album, Crack-Up. Goes West by William Tyler joins this pantheon by continuing not only to push the envelope, but also to open it and slide a letter of his own inside.
Back on September 26th, myself and WRVU’s station manager Morgan Levy had the opportunity to sit down with Lillie West of Lala Lala before her gig opening for Mothers at the 5 Spot. In the parking lot across the street from the venue we talked about the band’s history, writing process, tour life, and anticipated upcoming album The Lamb, which has since been released. Her first LP, Sleepyhead, was put out on Bandcamp back in 2016 in what she considers to be a moment of “boredom.” You wouldn’t guess this by listening to the record, however, as its sound is anything but monotonous.
There’s so much music released every year, it can seem impossible to keep track of it all. That’s why WRVU Nashville has come up with a list of what we believe to be this season’s essential albums, for those who feel like they aren’t up to date, or for those who are simply interested in discovering something new.
From the opening track, BROCKHAMPTON shows that iridescence is a different beast from their previous endeavors, while still retaining the same backbone that propelled them to quick success and a dedicated fanbase. The SATURATION trilogy has concluded in both style and name, and I’m okay with that — iridescence is complicated and superb.
About a year ago, we saw the virality of the #MeToo movement, which led to the dismantling of many abusive and hugely powerful men. The movement felt cathartic; a beacon of hope for a…
Named after lead vocalist Jake Luppen’s supportive aunt Bambi (not the deer), Hippo Campus’ sophomore album is an experimental stew of distortion, questioning and answering, and the band’s individualism finally breaking…
I thought Eminem was done. We all did. I can remember listening to “Arose,” the last track off of Eminem’s Revival, released this past December. In this song, Em takes us back to 2007, where he recounts a play-by-play near death experience in the hospital after an overdose. This is truly an emotional track, with Bette Midler’s “The Rose,” sampled under Eminem giving goodbyes to his family and apologizing for not being there for Hailie and the other kids.
Ambient music has been called wallpaper music, and that’s what makes it great.
Alex strolls into his apartment building, walking stick carried nonchalantly over his shoulder whistling along with a piece of classical music. Sprawled across the vibrant early-70s décor are the words “SUCK IT AND SEE.” This is a point in Alex’s life when he will begin to impose more of his synthesizer-loving, retro-vibe-oozing will on his followers, and shake things up in the process.
Want to join WRVU Nashville for the 2018-2019 school year? Requirements: Must be a Vanderbilt student Training: 10 album programs, 5 in-studio sessions with a DJ, written and hands-on exams…