Rundown of Austin City Limits 2018

October 18, 2018
Source: Heather West

Austin City Limits is a 3-day, 2-weekend music festival held every year in October. Nearly half a million people traverse Zilker Park in downtown Austin during these weekends to hear some of the biggest artists in the biz. This year, ACL brought in an impressive lineup, including Paul McCartney, Arctic Monkeys, Travis Scott, The National, Metallica, and Odesza. Austin is hailed as “the live music capital of the world” thanks largely in part to this festival. Here are some interesting tidbits from Austin City Limits 2018:

Does the Song Remain the Same with Greta Van Fleet?

October 15, 2018

Raw, emotional, expansive, monumental, dynamic: all words to describe an era of classic rock that has seemingly come and gone. Although recent musical acts have channeled the soulful ten-minute-long guitar jams of the classic rock movement, none have transcended and embraced the purity of the music heard decades before.

Magic in Memphis: A Review of Beale Street Music Festival 2018

October 15, 2018

One of the nation’s best kept musical secrets lies a mere three hours away from Nashville. Beale Street Music Festival, located in my hometown of Memphis, TN, consistently has one of the best small-festival lineups each year for only a fraction of most festivals’ price. I got the great pleasure of being able to work press this year, and as a result fell even more in love with my favorite Memphis event of the year.

Lucy DK’s Premier Music Video is just as Dramatic as its Name

October 12, 2018

Dropping at this very moment, WRVU has the great pleasure of releasing Lucy DK’s premiere music video, “Drama”! Inspired by the stigma that surrounds women who challenge problematic aspects of relationships, this song encompasses the frustration women experience when labeled as “drama queen,” “crazy ex,” and “psycho bitch.” Especially prevalent for women of color, this stigma reduces the autonomy individuals have over their own relationships and image in society. This song serves as a rejection of toxic individuals from one’s life, and as an acceptance of one’s own emotions, experiences, and identity. The video takes features a dual narrative, encompassing how women who face this stigma are viewed in society. One narrative stars Lucy as an actress in staged production, where she is portrayed as psycho and met with audience disapproval. The second serves as a parallel to the first, but in a completely unstated setting. It stars her trying to navigate her own life and relationships in a completely real and vulnerable fashion.      

iridescence & Brockhampton’s Experimental Melancholy

October 10, 2018

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.

The First Ever Breakaway Nashville

October 8, 2018

This past weekend I had the absolute thrill of attending the first ever Breakaway Nashville. Typically held in Ohio, North Carolina, and Michigan, this was the first year the festival headed to Music City. The festival was Friday and Saturday and we were fortunate enough to attend each day, listening to a variety of different artists. And while the festival still has a few kinks it must work out (naturally, as it was the first one), I believe this is such a great step for the live music scene in Nashville. The festival featured one main stage silhouetted by the Nashville skyline, with 18 different artists as well as a Silent Disco tent that raged throughout the day with multiple acts. Here are some of the highlights of the festival.

What You Need to Know About Kamikaze

October 4, 2018

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.

Tranquility Base; or, How to Stop Worrying and Shake Up Your Vibe

October 2, 2018
Still from music video, dir. A. Brown, B. Chappell

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.

Pitchfork Festival 2018 Highlights: DAY 1

July 20, 2018
(photo: Meredith Mattlin)

The first day of Pitchfork Festival brought a whole host of heavy hitters. We were grateful for Pitchfork’s urban park setting, making for small walking distance between stages–it would have been hard to see our favorites without that. Despite the ominous weather forecast, there was a vibrant and energetic feel to the festival–we prayed for the rain to hold off, and ventured in to start off with Julien Baker.

WRVU takes Rhythm N’ Blooms

May 2, 2018
(photo: Xinyi Tang)

The frozen air immediately slapped me in the face as I stepped out of the car into Old City, Knoxville on my way to Rhythm N’ Blooms. In the same vein, watching the groups of festival goers walking around the neighborhood I wondered what conditions in the world would permit so many people to leave the comforts of their home to fare this kind of tortuous weather. I’ve always been fascinated by the culture of festivals. My fondest music memories as a teen involved violently moshing to the likes of post-hardcore bands Counterparts and Dance Gavin Dance. The collective being near-death experience that I shared with the concert goers gave me an emotional outlet; more importantly, being at hardcore shows gave me a sense of belonging in a community who also found value in these types of experiences. This near-death feeling — the screaming, fist throwing, violent thrashing — became a part of my conception of “a fun concert-going experience.” So needless to say, a festival that seeks to honor the identity and spirit of East Tennessee feel a little out of my traditional conception of “a fun concert-going experience.” However, after a weekend of exploring this new conception of “fun,” I quickly discovered the quirks of this intimate festival. Here is a list of rad things I encountered during my time at Rhythm N’ Blooms:

Your Summer Guide to Music Festival Conflicts

April 15, 2018

Music Festivals! They’re so much fun. All your favorite artists are there! You can’t wait to see them all. You start listening to them obsessively, imaging what it will be like when you obviously get front row at each show. The festival approaches, the schedule drops, and to your complete horror EVERYONE you want to see plays at the exact same time.

WRVU Up-And-Coming: Still Woozy

April 9, 2018

Among the droves of indie “bedroom pop” artists saturating the music industry right now, Still Woozy stands out as one of the best. The man behind this whimsical name is Sven Gamsky, a recent college graduate from Oakland, California. Writing, producing, and recording everything in his own garage, Gamsky is obviously a man of immense talent and creative aptitude. His music is reminiscent of fan-favorites like Clairo, Gus Dapperton, and Rex Orange County, but his combination of live instrumentation and his affinity for genuine emotional connection set him apart from the rest.

Sunflower Bean’s Twentytwo in Blue, Reviewed

April 4, 2018

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.

April Artist Retrospective: Sidney Gish; Ravyn Lenae

April 2, 2018
(courtesy of https://sidneygish.bandcamp.com/album/no-dogs-allowed)

As we start on a new month and this truly, unexplainably terrible Nashville weather seems to be slowly improving, I thought it might be a good opportunity to take a quick look at two artists who are leaving the youth™ movement in music at the moment. Both Ravyn Lenae and Sidney Gish have blessed our ears with some excellent music in the last few months, and exciting things are surely in store for them as they progress and develop their skills. I’m going to limit things to one standout track from each respective project, but both of these releases are great front to back.

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