Paying for Music, and the Value of Rap

February 23, 2016

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When you find something you like, usually you want more of it, and this basic relationship finds a lot of relevance in music. It’s become an even greater part of many music lovers’ lives with the onset of the eras of downloading and streaming. Whereas before, our parents and grandparents had to really make that journey down to a physical place selling physical copies of the new Luther Vandross and part with their pocket change, the only thing that’s stopping us now from having Sonic Youth’s entire discography is an internet connection.

Truett In-Studio 2/19

February 23, 2016
brooklynbasementrecords.com

As you may know, last Friday, Ron Pope & The Nighthawks played at Mercy Lounge. But you may not know that Ron Pope brought with him Truett, an up-and-coming blues-rock artist and a fellow Georgia native. I had the opportunity to interview Truett the morning of the Nashville show. He told me about how he and Ron go way back, first meeting when he was practically still a kid. Truett’s sister made the introduction, because she and Pope went to same high school. Recently, Truett signed to Brooklyn Basement Records, the label Pope owns with his wife.

2015 AOTY Winner

February 21, 2016

WRVU AOTY

As mom used to tell me, the best things in life are worth waiting for. The 2015 Album of the Year Tournament Crowning of the Champion is no exception, and I am happy to announce that we have our results. After careful consideration and several rounds of voting, your 2015 AOTY Winner is……….

Icelandic Indie-Rockers, Kaleo, Start Tour In Nashville

February 19, 2016

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Whether it be the unnaturally warm February weather or the surprisingly (or should I say unsurprisingly) sold out show for a relatively new and developing band, everyone in the jam-packed Mercy Lounge sensed that something big was happening. Chatter was made up of conversation on who is who in the Nashville music scene and the next show people would be attending. Not lost in the conversations was an overwhelming sense of confidence that Kaleo was about to blow up, summed up by a Kentucky native to the right of me who said it was worth the drive and she didn’t think she would see the quartet in such a small, intimate venue ever again. With such a buzz preceding them, the band definitely delivered. Starting with “No Good,” a song picked up for the new HBO original series, Vinyl, the crowd was immediately moving to the blues/rock riffs and grungy vocals.

WRVU Unplugged: VU Backstage

February 19, 2016
Allan Boudreau-Fine in the studio. Photo by Jamison Stoike.
Allan Boudreau-Fine in the studio. Photo by Jamison Stoike.

Sometimes the Vanderbilt music scene can seem a bit dull compared to our neighbors at Belmont, but Allan Boudreau-Fine begs to differ. Boudreau-Fine, a sophomore, hosts VU Backstage, a weekly look into the thriving Vanderbilt music scene. I met with him this week to chat about WRVU’s only radio show focused on campus music.

And one of the most well-deserved Grammys goes to…

February 18, 2016
LOS ANGELES, CA - January 26, 2014 Winners of the best R&B Album Snarky Puppy and Lalah Hathaway (at the mike) at the 56th Annual GRAMMY(R) Pre-telecast show at Nokia Theater L.A. Live in Los Angeles, CA. Sunday, January 26, 2014. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)
LOS ANGELES, CA – January 26, 2014 Winners of the best R&B Album Snarky Puppy and Lalah Hathaway (at the mic) at the 56th Annual GRAMMY(R) Pre-telecast show at Nokia Theater L.A. Live in Los Angeles, CA. Sunday, January 26, 2014. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)

Snarky Puppy earned their second Grammy on Sunday for their ninth album “Sylva,” an instrumental masterpiece of composition. Michael League, bassist, bandleader, and the group’s main composer has been aiding in the redefinition of big band jazz-fusion on a mainstream level for over 10 years. An art form that has been slowly escaping the public’s ears, Snarky Puppy is successfully bringing big band music back into the spotlight.

House Music Will Never Die

February 16, 2016

As my mother once told me, “Disco never died in Europe.” Although it is glaringly obvious that our transatlantic cousin continent has embraced electronic music more than we ever have, I was still taken aback by her statement. When I initially decided to study abroad, the last thing I expected to find was a time capsule of a 1970s discothèque in the heart of Prague. But there I was, wading through a crowd on that iconic glowing Tetris floor while loops of reverberating vocals flooded the club. Disco had, in fact, not died at this one hole-in-the-wall locale. It seemed surreal, but moms are typically always right — my case was no exception.

The Only Tom Petty Album You’ll Ever Need

February 16, 2016

The creative lyricism of Tom Petty was thrust upon me at a young age. My mother used to sing “Free Fallin” as she reminisced about living in California in the 80s. When I was about 15, I imported all eight CDs of the complete Tom Petty collection onto my iPod. But, not all Tom Petty albums were created equal. For me, Full Moon Fever takes the cake. Released in 1989, Full Moon Fever was Tom Petty’s first official solo album – he previously performed with a band as “Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers.” This album is about love, break-ups, loneliness and achieving international stardom. Most of these we can all relate to. The point is, no matter where you are in your personal life, Tom Petty’s got you covered.

1. Free Fallin’ 

This is the #1 song to play at max volume while you’re driving down a deserted highway. It arouses feelings of nostalgia and the lyrics are perfect for a sloppy sing-along. Watch out for the awesome guitar solo at 3:19.

Heads up, the John Mayer version sucks. This is a prime example of a cover that should never have been attempted. Stick to the original.

“All the vampires walkin’ through the valley, move west down Ventura Blvd. And all the bad boys are standing in the shadows and the good girls are home with broken hearts”

Why You Should Be Listening to Remixes

February 16, 2016

my rig

My favorite thing about electronic music is that possibilities for creating different instrumental tracks are endless. One thing that I do on a daily basis is find different remixes for a song and listen for new combinations of beats, chords and synth effects that mix well with the main melody. It’s definitely interesting, and it’s taught me a lot about different sound effects that I can incorporate into my own music.

Above all, listening to remixes is a lot like listening to a song for the very first time. Oftentimes, I will hear a song and wish that it were a little faster or slower, with a little more bass, or a few extra beats here and there. Remixes can make these ideas into reality, and it’s really cool to hear someone make variations to a song in the exact way that you had envisioned. Other times, a remix can show you a version of a song that you never expected would work. Either way, it’s a lot of fun.

Below are 10 of my favorite remixes/ covers (in no particular order)

The Problem of Dropping Names

February 14, 2016

Screen Shot 2016-02-13 at 2.11.09 AMThe cover art of T. L. O. P., the album that has stirred up so much controversy in its short life. Source

Kanye West’s new album has been in the news many times in the past couple of weeks. First, there was the issue of what it would be called. He changed album titles a few times before settling on T. L. O. P., which stands for The Life of Pablo. Then, there was the question of when it would be released.

Today, the album is in the media for a very different reason. After premiering at Madison Square Garden on February 11 during the Yeezy Season 3 fashion show, the album has been a hot topic due to a reference to another celebrity. In his song “Famous,” West had a couple of questionable lines that featured Taylor Swift. The lyrics say, “I feel like me and Taylor might still have sex/ Why? I made that b***h famous.”

In Defense of Trap Music

February 12, 2016

Following the release of the Rites lineup, one of the most common complaints I heard was that Future had no business being invited to perform. Many of these critics complained that his lyrics left something to be desired. Others found the songs repetitive. Even then, others found him too simplistic and not deep enough. People have a right to their opinion, but in this instance I think many critics of Future and trap music in general are doing themselves a disservice by ruling out the genre. All the things that give trap rap a bad name are the same things that give it a valid place on the musical spectrum. Let’s take a look.

Alex Turner and Miles Kane back with The Last Shadow Puppets revival

February 10, 2016
Miles Kane (L) and Alex Turner (R) in cringeworthy tracksuits. Source
Miles Kane (L) and Alex Turner (R) in cringeworthy tracksuits. Source

I think it is safe to say that we all had that one band at one point in our lives that really got us into music. The one band that made us go, “Wow, so that’s how listening to music is supposed to feel.” For me, it was Arctic Monkeys. When I was in high school, I used to go to my local library to rent CDs and burn them onto my computer (sorry, iTunes). One of the first albums I obtained was Arctic Monkeys’ first full length debut, “Whatever People Say I am, That’s What I’m Not” (among other gems, including “Is This It?” by The Strokes and “The Queen is Dead” by The Smiths). That album, and the subsequent ones that I devoured later, became the soundtrack to my high school experience; my go-to answer to the feared “what’s your favorite band?” question.

Sun Seeker: Live at Grimeys

February 10, 2016
Sun Seeker at Grimey's
Sun Seeker at Grimey’s (from left: Alex Benick, Asher Horton, Ben Parks, Austin Edwards)

Sun Seeker, whose newest single, “Georgia Dust,” has become a Third Man Records favorite, played some of their undeniably catchy and easily lovable tunes at Grimey’s last Saturday.

WRVU Unplugged: Wax Poetics

February 7, 2016
Josiah Williams in the studio. Photo by Jamison Stoike.
Josiah Williams in the studio. Photo by Jamison Stoike.

When Josiah Williams, a trombone performance major from Downer’s Grove, Illinois, isn’t performing in a Blair ensemble, you might find him reading something like this:

She’s all states, and all princes, I,
Nothing else is.
Princes do but play us; compared to this
All honour’s mimic, all wealth alchemy.
Thou, sun, art half as happy as we,
In that the world’s contracted thus.
Thine age asks ease, and since they duties be
To warm the world, that’s done in warming us.
Shine here to us, and thou art everywhere;
This bed they center is, these walls, thy sphere.
(John Donne, “The Sun Rising”)

Josiah’s love of poetry informs one of WRVU’s most unique shows: Wax Poetics. I sat down with the DJ this week to discuss his show, how it started, and what he’s discovered along the way.

“Some Things Last a Long Time”: An Evolution of a Song

February 7, 2016

The art of spotting a sample has faded to technology. Now all a good ear has to do is a quick google search or peruse a blog to reveal the mystique of an eloquent beat. But an infectious hook, loop, and vocal can haunt me for an afternoon. Or a few days. Or this past week. Red Pill’s 2015 release Look What This World Did To Us has been on regular rotation on my Spotify feed. Rum and Coke especially speak to my Friday nights’ struggles between a girlfriend, a graduate student’s bank account, and a bar tab. Yet that’s not what this post is about. On the self-titled track “Look What This World Did to Us”, Red Pill tells a Bukowskian tale with an acerbic tongue. Familiar to early Atmosphere, the track speaks of a guarded regret singular to the loss of youth.

How Much Should We Rely On Discover Weekly?

February 3, 2016

spotify

When a friend told me about Discover Weekly on Spotify, I thought it was one of the better ideas of online music services. A playlist tailored to your music preferences, including songs from artists you probably don’t know? Every week? All the work of finding new music now done by a computer for you. How unbelievably convenient!

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