Music – Page 16 – WRVU Nashville

15 Songs by Jason Mraz You Have “Absolutely Zero” Reasons Not to Know

November 1, 2015 Madeline Goetz

You’ve heard “I’m Yours” and “I Won’t Give Up,” and maybe you even remember “The Remedy,” but my guess is most of you reading this haven’t truly come to appreciate the musical prowess of Jason Mraz—and trust me, you need it in your life. Exploring Mraz’s lesser-known tracks is the best way to hone an understanding and admiration for his touching, idiosyncratic lyrics and tremendous vocal range.

The gaping hole in your soul shall be no more—I’ve compiled a playlist of 15 songs that will fill the void you didn’t know was there and change the way you think of Jason Mraz, the world, and perhaps even yourself. Most of the featured tracks are recordings of live performances, because Jason Mraz’s music is best experienced live. Since I can’t give you all tickets to his show tonight in Australia, I’m giving you the next best thing. Enjoy!

CHVRCHES gives impressive second Nashville performance

October 29, 2015 Sara Keller

Courtesy of Lance Conzett, Nashville Scene

I feel like I seem to always go to concerts when I’ve gotten minimal to no sleep the night before. This past Tuesday, was no different; when I had finally wrapped up my (incredibly poorly written) lab report at 6 AM after working through the night, I was pretty hesitant about seeing Scottish band CHVRCHES at Marathon Music Works that rainy evening. After a brief hour and a half nap and more cups of coffee than I would like to admit, I decided to forego another couple hours of sleep and make my way to Marathon around 9 PM.

I Just Love Earth / Flood Out Your Wrist: Playboi Carti & 21 Savage

October 28, 2015 Linzy Scott

Listen to “Peepin,” Atlanta icon Gucci Mane’s commemorative track for THEBURRPRINT.COM, and you’ll hear two of the city’s youngest and brightest rising talents. Playboi Carti and 21 Savage represent some of the best of the “New Atlanta” wave, a sorta shaky label that seems to get more and more nebulous. A better descriptor would probably just be “underground rap” but even this conjures up images of dusty cyphers and grimy dudes with backpacks and NYC golden-age obsessions. It’s best to just say that this versatile group is solely doing their own thing on their own time, which is fine because they’ve kept the city laced with talent for a while now. I’m gonna name names now: Key!, Rich The Kid, Two-9, Peewee Longway, Tk N Cash, K Camp, Bankroll Fresh, and Hoodrich Pablo Juan have been making hits for a minute now and frankly, it’s glorious. Add them to Father and the rest of Awful Records and you start to realize how bountiful good rap is in the city (same city that has Young Thug btw). These artists may not be running the radio game as well as the gawds Future, Migos and Rae Sremmurd (yet) but their presences are definitely felt.

“Perfect”: The “Style”-ish Single That Has Fans Swiftly Crafting Conspiracy Theories

October 20, 2015 Madeline Goetz

“And if you’re looking for someone to write your break-up songs about / Baby I’m perfect,” sings Niall Horan of One Direction, all but confirming that “Perfect,” 1D’s latest single in which the not-so-subtle lyrics appear, was written in regard to Harry Styles’s and Taylor Swift’s 2012 relationship.

Hank Williams Biopic Presented at the Belcourt

October 19, 2015 Laura Hillsman

Photo courtesy of Carolyn Sloss

Just this past Saturday, the biopic I Saw the Light was presented at the Belcourt Theatre. The movie follows the life of famed country music star Hank Williams from his marriage to his first wife Audrey through his untimely death in the back of his car on his way to perform in Canton, OH. Given the iconic status Hank Williams occupies in the realm of country music it is no surprise that I Saw the Light was screened here, in the home of country.

WRVU Unplugged: But Why?

October 16, 2015 Gracie Gonzalez

At the airport - photo provided by Ben Fensterheim — At the airport

It’s taken a while for this post to come to fruition but it’s finally here. After struggling to find Ben’s email address and then communicating online from different sides of the Pacific Ocean, I’ve ultimately compiled sufficient information to write this article. Keep reading to find out more about Ben Fensterheim’s show “But Why?”

Good Country People: Elvis Depressedly’s Quiet Growth

October 7, 2015 Linzy Scott

The south is strange and everyone’s always known it. Maybe that’s why some of the best music has always bubbled up from it. People have their own ways of dealing with things, which isn’t exclusive to the south of course, but southern people don’t like change, as the cliché goes. As music generally does, southern music takes on a lot of the characteristics of the environment it’s created in. Think of the twang of old country, the sparse emptiness that can stand in for anything from countryside desolation to sheer heartbreak. Screwed and chopped rap, pitched to the point where every lazy bass rattle thumps with its own measured certainty. The unabashed euphoria of D4L, of New Orleans bounce music, of Soulja Boy and the great tradition of the barbecue. There’s a reason NYC rappers shunned melody in rap for so long while Future and Young Thug practically warbled their way into other dimensions. The south is aware of its strangeness, and it doesn’t make amends of concessions for it.

So, Wanna See a Concert for Free?

September 29, 2015 Julia Anderson

The title says it all – we are hosting a ticket giveaway for the Bo Burnham show at the War Memorial Auditorium on Monday, October 19! This is right after…

Oh Pep! In-Studio

September 27, 2015 Alex Justice

Sammy Spencer and Julia Anderson with Oh Pep!

On Thursday afternoon we were graced by a lovely in-studio performance with Australian folk duo, Oh Pep! Bringing a sweet Aussie attitude and an affinity for fried avocado tacos to the WRVU airwaves, Olivia Hally and Pepita Emmerichs talked their upcoming album, adventures touring and their three, foot-stomping shows at Nashville’s Americana Festival. They broke down their carefully woven tracks and instead used just a guitar and fiddle/violin.

Pumpkin Spiced Playlist

September 23, 2015 Madeline Goetz

Lattes, candles, lotions and liquor—as soon as the leaves begin to change, store shelves are mercilessly spiced with the flavors of fall, and we’re all hit with the pumpkin plague, ready or not. To help make the farewell to summer less jarring, I’ve created a playlist packed with autumn aesthetics that is certain to lull you into apple-cider serenity for the next three months—or at least the next 89 minutes.

WHAT A TIME TO BE ALIVE

September 22, 2015 Linzy Scott

In a twitter blur, the world became aware of an approaching collaborative album between Future and Drake, two rappers who have been collectively running this year. Now, it’s important to note the considerable difference in each rapper’s dominance this year. Future has put in a decidedly inhuman season of being literally the best rapper today whose not named Jeffrey Williams. Seriously if you don’t know by now, you need to listen to the canon (56 Nights, DS2, Beast Mode, Monster). Drake has also been doing well in his own lane, releasing an album (IYRTITL), questionably silencing ghostwriter allegations, and a few songs and remixes here and there. I’m going to come clean though, I haven’t paid much attention to Drake of late, simply because Future and Young Thug exist. But, regardless, Drake, well he’s out here.

Taylor Swift Covers Come Just In Time For Fall

September 21, 2015 Laura Hillsman

Just kidding, technically it’s not fall until Wednesday. It’s pretty darn close though.

So here’s the deal: in October of last year Taylor Swift released her most recent album, 1989. It was a runaway success, selling the greatest number of albums in its first week since The Eminem Show released in 2002 according to MTV. Swift has since gone on an incredibly successful tour which will be swinging by Nashville on the 25th. I’d remind all Taylor Swift fans to buy tickets, but let’s face it-at this point they’re over $200 and you probably should have picked them up months ago. However, I’m not here to write about Swift’s upcoming show. Instead, I want to talk about the recent 1989 cover craze.

RTJ Let the Cat out of the Bag

September 20, 2015 Roshan Poudel

Winners of WRVU’s 2014 Album of the Year Contest, rap duo Run the Jewels has been no stranger to critical acclaim since the release of Run the Jewels 2 last year. Killer Mike and El-P have not dropped any new material since then, but are set to release a remix album sometime in September. Meow the Jewels, the idiosyncratic remix of Run the Jewels 2 fans have been waiting months to listen to, will feature the duo rapping their lyrics over cat noises. Just this week, Run the Jewels gave a little sneak-peak into the album with “Oh My Darling Don’t Meow”, a play on “Oh My Darling Don’t Cry”.

WRVU Unplugged: Without Vocals

September 18, 2015 Gracie Gonzalez

Maybe you’ve had the pleasure of knowing Bradley Wheaton. You might be aware that he’s a junior in Arts & Sciences, studying Sociology. What you may not know is that Bradley is the creator and host of WRVU’s show Without Vocals. If you haven’t tuned in yet, get yourself in the mood by imagining this:

You’re driving alone through west Texas, heating lightning in the distance. 300 miles of nothing…somewhere between despair and unseen beauty, an epic expression of soul.

Now, Bradley’s job is to provide a soundtrack for your lonely voyage – and he knows exactly how.

Best Coast Brings California Vibes to Exit/In

September 17, 2015 Sara Keller

Bethany Consentino, Bobb Bruno (far right) and band members — Bethany Cosentino (center), Bobb Bruno (far right) and band members bringing California to Nashville

Although I had heard of Best Coast prior to coming to college, ironically, it wasn’t until I left the west coast that I started to listen to them. Whether it was an actual appreciation for their music or just the nostalgia I felt about my Southern California hometown that piqued my interest, I do not know. Best Coast is technically a duo between lead singer/guitarist Bethany Cosentino and guitarist Bobb Bruno with a few other band members brought in seemingly just for touring. Formed in Los Angeles in 2009, almost every other song they make is an ode to the stereotypical Southern California lifestyle.

In Loving Memory: Summer 2015

September 15, 2015 Roshan Poudel

Fall is almost here and we have nearly been in school for a month. As we come to terms with all this change, the staff writers here at WRVU have decided to give one last ode to the albums we were jamming to on those bygone summer nights. In case you missed it, here are some albums we had our turn to enjoy and would now like to share with you.

Celebrating the End of Classes with Smallpools, Grizfolk, and Vinyl Theatre at Exit/In

April 22, 2015 Zach Blumenfeld

Last night Smallpools played Exit/In for the second time in the past six months, this time promoting their new album LOVETAP!

At 3pm yesterday, I turned in the final assignment of my college career. Partially to celebrate and partially to distract myself from the terror of facing the adult world, I headed over to Exit/In with my friend Sparling to see Smallpools rock the joint. My sister loves the band and had turned me on to their music, so making her jealous was another great reason to go to the show.

We arrived at 7:30 to find the half-full floor dominated by people without the over-21 hand stamps. Any illusion I had of being able to escape feeling old vanished immediately. Pitying the venue for what promised to be a slow night of alcohol sales, I grabbed a Shiner Bock and snagged a spot in the crowd just behind a couple of girls taking selfies. Naturally, Sparling and I photobombed as many as we could.

The Perfect Sounds of Main Attrakionz & Friendzone

April 20, 2015 Linzy Scott

If you’re up for seemingly no reason at all at 3AM or any approximate time, you probably should be listening to Oakland rap duo Main Attrakionz. If it’s 3AM (or around that time) and you’ve already made the necessary and vital steps of queuing up some Main Attrakionz tracks, you should especially give attention to the Main Attrakionz tracks that feature them rapping over looped-out masterpiece beats from Bay Area production duo Friendzone. If you’ve made all these steps then why not make the easy effort and commit to listening to only Main Attrakionz and Friendzone for the rest of your natural life?

Four Months of Music: A Retrospective

April 14, 2015 Rachel Sapp

As the school years comes to an end and finals begin to ramp up, it’s natural to think about everything other than academic responsibilities at hand. Naturally, it’s a time to dwell on memories, friendships, and, of course, our time here at WRVU. For me, this last blog post has got me thinking. While it’s incredibly sad I’ll be missing all my WRVU goings on for the next eight months, I’m beyond amazed at all the new stuff that’s been released in 2015.

As an ode to WRVU and this semester, I’ll be highlighting my ten favorite tunes of the semester, starting from the bottom (because Drake). If you happen to like electronica, check out some of the dopest of beats from early 2015 below.

Tidal Opens for Business

April 5, 2015 Travis Villatoro

“TIDAL for all.” That’s the slogan for Jay Z’s new high-fidelity music streaming service, Tidal. But with a $19.99 a month service fee, it probably isn’t for everyone, especially those…

Should You Torrent That?

April 3, 2015 Julia Anderson

Since the dawn of the digital age, the music industry has succumb to a new form of shoplifting – online piracy. While pirating music is not a new concept along with the Internet, downloading music without paying for it is occurring at a much greater magnitude than the pre-internet days. As an Economics major, I wonder how much this phenomenon affects the music industry. So I ask the question: Should you really be torrenting?

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