Local Beat recap: 5/21/10

This past Friday on the Local Beat Russell Baggett of the recently revived Honored Guests was my honorary guest as we discussed the recent hiatus of the band and their comeback in recent months.  The Honored Guests just recently released a free online EP via Vinyl Records which you can download here.  In addition the band is currently finishing up recording it's "newest" album, a project that began about 4 years ago, and it should hit the streets in the fall.  Russell and I chatted about all of these things and more, while leaking some of the newest tracks from the upcoming full length.  Take a listen below:
The Honored Guests on the Local Beat 5/21/10

You can catch the Honored Guests June 26th at the Nightlight in Chapel Hill where they will be playing with local group Pros and Cons.

Local Beat Mini Exclusive: The Big Picture

Earlier today Johnny Tunnell (of the Never) dropped by WKNC to chat about one of the newest music projects in the area: The Big Picture. Started up about two years ago between the Tunnell brothers (Johnny and Joah) The Big Picture remained completely unknown until recently. Adding some new members to the band, Heather Tunnell, Nick Radford (Annuals), Leah Gibson (Lost in the Trees), and Alec Ferrell the group is playing only their second gig ever tomorrow evening at the Nightlight in Chapel Hill.  The show starts at 9pm and the Physics of Meaning and Josh Mease are also playing.

Johnny and I chatted for awhile (this isn't exactly a "Mini" exclusive, its almost 40 minutes long) but we did touch on the history of the band, the song writing, and an interesting way in which the band's music will be released this summer.  I am not going to share all, you will just have to listen but included in this interview are three songs recorded by the Big Picture, as well as one Big Picture cover of a Future Kings of Nowhere song.  Take a listen:
Local Beat Mini Exclusive: The Big Picture 5/5/10

Local Beat Exclusive: Luego 5/3/10

Earlier this afternoon on WKNC Patrick Phelan from Durham based Luego dropped by to debut the band's newest album, Ocho, which is scheduled to be released June 1st.  Patrick and I played several tracks off of the album and chatted about a variety of things related to the band and the album. Ocho is being released a mere eight months after the debut LP of Taped-Together Stories but the two seem hardly related.  Ocho relies much more heavily on background harmonies and a thicker and deeper sound that is stacked with layer upon layer of grooviness and cool.  The bluesy ruggedness and heartfelt emotion of Phelan's voice is still present but the album seems to be much more of a family affair and holds a certain friendly attire about it.  Jeff Crawford produced the album at his own Arbor Ridge Studios.  Take a listen to this first sample of the songs anywhere:
Local Beat Exclusive with Luego 5/3/10

The album has an album release party May 29th at the Nightlight in Chapel Hill. The Tomahawks, who share several band members with Luego, will be playing first and afterwards a "soulful themed" dance party will commence.  Needless to say, this album will continue to be played on WKNC as often as possible from here on out.

Luego's "Ocho" to be leaked on WKNC Monday

Eight months ago a relatively unheard of band in the area released one of the best albums from the Triangle in quite a long time.  I was so impressed I even listed it as my #3 album of 2009.  As is typical with most groups, a turnaround and rebound from such a great record is generally slow and and .  However, this is no typical band.

With just eight months passing since Taped-Together Stories was released, Durham band Luego is already setting to drop another full length album, Ocho. With quite a bit of hype and publicity garnering attention to this local music supergroup (read: Patrick Phelan, Jeff Crawford, Peter Holsapple, Nick Jaeger, Rob DiMauro, Cameron Lee, and Charles Cleaver among others) one would expect Ocho to be another milestone record for the area.

With that said the first time you will be able to head the record will be tomorrow at 1pm on WKNC.  I will be sitting down with band leader Patrick Phelan to discuss the quickness of the release, the recording process of the album, touring plans, and of course listen to the album itself.

Ocho is set to hit the streets June 1st following an album release party on May 29 at the Nightlight with The Tomahawks and a dance party afterward.  So be sure to listen in tomorrow at 1 p.m. for a listen on whats to come.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IARQ-30rQa0

Local Beat recaps: 3/26, 4/2, 4/9

Every now and then, I am reminded that I am student by a sudden kick in the groin from copious amounts of schoolwork and I am down for the count for a little while.  That has recently happened to my Local Beat producers and me who have spent the last three weeks either out of town or slaving through text books and notecards trying not to completely fail at graduating on time (I myself am already a year behind).  Because of this we want to apologize for running about four weeks behind schedule with our weekly Local Beat podcasts.  Fortunately, instead of having 12 interviews to edit, we have only missed three, and here they are below (also, check out the ReverbNation player at the bottom of the post to listen to and download all the songs played live):

March 26: Brett Harris
March 26 was the first live Local Beat I had been able to do in a month because of NC State Baseball broadcasts and Durham rock/pop singer Brett Harris dropped by for what turned out to be one of my favorite interviews in a long while as we talked about his brand new album Man of Few Words, an LP that could possibly break my top 10 for the year.  We talked in depth about the recording of the album, the multitude of artists that assisted him in recording, and compared everything to his past couple of EPs. Brett played two live tracks for us that you can watch in the videos below and download in the ReverbNation player at the bottom of the page.   Brett released the album at the Nightlight on April 2nd with Luego and Bright Young Things for what turned out to be an amazing show.  Check out our conversation:
Brett Harris on the Local Beat 3/26/10



The Local Beat w/ Adam Kincaid: Brett Harris "Unspoken (Live)" from Wolf TV on Vimeo.



Local Beat w/ Adam Kincaid: Brett Harris "Man of a Few Words (Live)" from Wolf TV on Vimeo.

April 2: Free Electric State
One of the hottest bands in North Carolina graced my program three weeks ago.   Free Electric State is blowing up in the local press and media for their blazing rock n' roll live shows and the hype surrounding their debut LP following in the heels of their first two song demo from '09.  And though FES is a relatively new band, most of the members are not knew to performing or songwriting and it certainly shows with this latest output.  We spent the hour talking about Caress and the differences in the band now from a year ago.  We also touched on the recording process and Duck Kee Studios and the involvement of Churchkey Records who is releasing the album.  The album release party was April 16th at the Pinhook with Beloved Binge and A Rooster For The Masses although the album itself will not be released until April 27th.   Take a listen to the interview below and also watch the newest muisc video for the song "6 is 1" from Caress as well:
Free Electric State on the Local Beat 4/2/10

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u6tImE9irIM

April 9: Mandolin Orange
Every now and again I hear a record that I cannot for the life of me stop playing and Mandolin Orange's recent release Quiet Little Room is just one of those.  Soft, quiet, simple, and yet catchy and beautiful all at the same time,  Andrew Marlin and Emily Frantz really outdid themselves on this debut full length.  Following their locally acclaimed debut EP they put out this past year Andrew and Emily spent late nights alone in the studio mastering and perfecting Quiet Little Room with Andrew's songwriting skills and Emily's finishing touch.  The couple came in to chat about the new record and the past year, but mostly to play plenty of songs for me and you.  Listen in below and be sure to check out the album release party coming up the May 1 at the Local 506 with friend Big Fat Gap and Ryan Gustafson:
Mandolin Orange on the Local Beat 4/9/10

Roman Candle at the Cradle Tonight

It takes a lot for me to leave the comfort zone that is Raleigh -- especially on a weeknight. I have a professor from Michigan who advises us against going to Ohio unless we have to ("but why would you have to go to Ohio, anyway?"). Well, Chapel Hill is my Ohio.  Big Ten rivalries aside, I've just mentally turned driving over to the 506 or the Nightlight or the Cradle into being a pain in the ass.  Spoiled, I believe, would be the word of choice.







Either way, tonight's an exception: Roman Candle is rolling back into town to play the Cradle.  My introduction to local music came only a few years ago, after Roman Candle had already packed up and left town.  Friends tell me of when some current Drughorse Collective members were in the band circa Wee Hours Revue, but alas, stories of that era are all I have.

We're lucky, though, that Roman Candle still relishes its Chapel Hill (errr, Carrboro?) days and makes sure to come back through the area.  In fact, in the past 6 months we've had the chance to see them in two somewhat unique settings: NC State's Homecoming concert on campus and at everyone's favorite Double Barrel Benefit 7.  And both times, they have been an absolute joy to watch, mixing their older tunes with those off of Oh Tall Tree in the Ear and openly gushing over how good it its to be back in the area.  At the homecoming show, they opened with "They Say" but countered with oldie-but-goodie "Baby's Got It In the Genes" as the DBB opener.

Tonight they'll be playing with The Parson Red Heads and The Ravenna Colt, both of whom I'm relatively unfamiliar with but excited to see.  And most importantly, you won't find a nicer group of people than the Mathenies, who actually graced us with an in-studio interview back in November.

So, long story short, what else are you doing on a Wednesday night? See you there!

(Oh, and be sure to check out Skip Matheny's "Drinks With" interview series with guests Arctic Monkeys, Alejandro Escovedo, Elvis Costello, Jason Isbell and many more...)

Local Beat recap 2/26/10

Because of WKNC broadcasting NC State Baseball once more this Spring, last Friday was the last live airing of the Local Beat for an entire month.  Nevertheless, it was a good one with three hours of some solid local music interviews.

Traffic on I-40 was terrible as Chapel Hill group Feeding the Fire got caught up and came in 25 minutes late.  However, when they finally did arrive we had a lot to talk about since they are releasing their first full length album since becoming a band back in 2003, titled DisInfoNation.  We talked about the writing and recording of the album, as well as the operation of their own record label, Own Life Records, and the album artwork of DisInfoNation.  The album release party is this Thursday evening at the Local 506 with fellow locals Big Fat Gap and the Rocket Surgeons.  Check out the interview below:
Feeding the Fire Live on the Local Beat 2/26/10

At 6 p.m. Wendy Spitzer came in to promote her debut full length album from Felix Obelix, A Tick of the Clock, A Beat in the Chest, which was released at the Nightlight in Chapel Hill Saturday night.  The concert featured The Strugglers and a really interesting writing activity in which you write a letter to yourself eight months from now.  That led to interesting conversation about her past projects that include a Time Capsule as well as a "Biggest Regret/ Best Decision" project from last year.  Wendy and I also mused on her unique singing style as well as the very different musical instruments in her band.  Take a listen:
Felix Obelix on the Local Beat 2/26/10

The Kickin Grass Band joined me for the last hour of the show to promote some of their upcoming shows and play some live tunes.  Our conversation ranged anywhere from organic farming, to Lynda's songwriting, and back to eating cats.  It was definitely an interesting hour.  All songs they played live are available for free download on the Local Beat ReverbNation page and you can listen to them in the music player to the right.  Below is the entire interview and some videos from the KGB in studio:
Kickin Grass Band Live on the Local Beat 2/26/10


Local Beat w/ Adam Kincaid: Kickin Grass Band "On the Short Rows (Live)" from Wolf TV on Vimeo.



Local Beat w/ Adam Kincaid: Kickin Grass Band "The Ghost of Nathaniel Carter (Live)" from Wolf TV on Vimeo.



Local Beat w/ Adam Kincaid: The Kicking Grass Band "Cloverleaf (Live)" from Wolf TV on Vimeo.



Local Beat w/ Adam Kincaid: Kickin Grass Band "Lay Him in the Ground (Live)" from Wolf TV on Vimeo.
As I mentioned, this is possibly the last live Local Beat for the next month.  However, be on the lookout for more Local Beat Mini Exclusives!

Sessions@KNC: Billy Sugarfix

Photo by Matt Moore

Amidst final exams, campus is silent.  It's freezing too.  Billy Sugarfix voyaged out to NC State's Caldwell Lounge early in December, accompanied by fellow musicians Sarah (shakers, vocals) and Justin (viola, vocals).  The trio graced us with a few adapted songs from Billy Sugarfix's "Summer Tempests" as well as some new material.  As usual, you can listen and download the live tracks right here!

Billy Sugarfix's next two shows are on Saturday, March 13 at The Evening Muse in Charlotte, and Saturday, March 20th at Nightlight in Chapel Hill.  Check the live tunes below!



Hearing Myself.mp3

Gunpowder Green.mp3

Bright was my Sweetheart.mp3

All the King's Horses.mp3

Humming Your Questions.mp3

Local Beat Mini Exclusive: Blag'ard

This morning I had Chapel Hill band Blag'ard come join me for a Local Beat Mini Exclusive to chat about their brand new album Mach II which is being released tonight at the Reservoir in Chapel Hill and at the Dive Bar tomorrow night in Raleigh.  The show tonight will feature a magic and burlesque show with Rosie Hellfire and Reverend Spider with Michael Rank and Marc Smith doing an acoustic opening.  There will also be free vegetarian chili to warm your bones.  The show at the Dive Bar is featuring Asheville art-rock act Solito. Both shows are free.

Blag'ard is a duo and this is their third release and their second LP.  We chatted about the making of the album, which was done mostly analogue, and partially recorded at Track and Field Studios.  It also came up in our conversation that Adam is the third drummer of the band to have a child while being in the band, a topic which is fairly interesting.  In addition Joe chatted about his website Pig Zen Space, a music download Web site with all proceeds going to the artist.

Listen below for more:
Local Beat Mini Exclusive: Blag\'ard

Local Beat preview 2/26/10

Sorry for the delay in this post, but a couple of tests had me bogged down this week. I promise not to carry that into tonight on the Local Beat which will be one hell of a show as we have three hours of awesome Local Music.

At 5 p.m. Chapel Hill band Feeding the Fire is coming in to chat about their new album, titled DisInfoNation, that is being released next Thursday, February 4, at the Local 506. Playing alongside them will be Rocket Surgeon and Big Fat Gap.

At 6 p.m., local favorite Wendy Spitzer is joining me to chat about her new release as well, from Felix Obelix, called The Tick of the Clock, the Beat in the Chest. Last time we had Wendy in I unfortunately was taken out by H1N1 and our old friend Stevo had to fill in. Hopefully I can redeem myself tonight. Felix Obelix just recently signed with Pox World Empire who will be releasing the album. The release show is tomorrow night, Saturday February 27 at the Nightlight in Chapel Hill. The Strugglers will be opening for the $8 show (a free CD comes with the price of admission) and there is a really cool letter writing activity that Wendy and I will definitely be talking about.

At 7pm one of our favorite bluegrass bands, the Kickin Grass Band is coming in to play some live tunes and talk about some upcoming shows.

Also, be on the lookout for our upcoming Local Beat Mini Exclusive with Bla'gard who is releasing a brand new album this weekend. More on that to come!

This is also the last live Local Beat for a month as N.C. State Baseball will be taking over WKNC's radio waves this Spring. Keep on the lookout for online material for the rest of the Spring!

Ticket Giveaways!!

Be sure to listen in to WKNC 88.1 this week for your chance to win  tickets to these up-coming shows:



Hot Tuna Electric @ Cat's Cradle Tuesday Sept 1st





Badfish @ Lincoln Theatre Sept 2nd



Jack Ross Show @ Nightlight Sept 4th





Yo Mama's Big Fat Booty Band @ Cat's Cradle  Sept 4th



Carolina Chocolate Drops @ Cat's Cradle  Sept 5th



Down with The Melvins @ The Fillmore in Charlotte  Sept 5th

Check out these local shows and other shows in your area on The Rock Report and listen in for your chance to win tickets!

Ticket Giveaways June 14th - June 20th

WKNC is giving away some great tickets to some awesome local shows this week including...



Sunday June 14th - Meat Puppets with Retribution Gospel Choir @ Cat's Cradle



Monday June 15th - Portugal, The Man @ Cat's Cradle



Monday June 15th - The Constellations with Eula @ The Pour House



Monday June 15th - Zee Avi with Matt Hires presented by Cat's Cradle @ Nightlight



Thursday June 18th - Future and Milhouse @ The Pour House



Saturday June 20th - Camera Obscura with Anni Rossi @ Cat's Cradle

Along with tickets to these shows WKNC is also giving away movie passes for the following moives:

Year One starring Jack Black and Michael Cera
Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen starrig Shia LaBeouf and Megan Fox
Sister's Keeper starring Cameron Diaz and Abigail Breslin

Be sure to tune into 88.1 FM for your chance to win!

Sessions@KNC? Yeah, we're back.

So we're officially back up and running, with one new session under our belt.

On Sunday, May 3, Mikey P, Mike Gray, and Eric (myself) met up with Simple, the aptly named minimalist band from Carrboro, NC, outside Caldwell Hall on campus.  Although it took a while to reason our way into the building, the superior sonic characteristics of Caldwell Lounge would help make this session a fun one. We set up a bunch of microphones and hit the big red button as the band hammered out a short, simple and solid set.

I recently got word from Chip, the band's guitarist and lead vocalist, that they plan on releasing five of the tracks late this summer as a live limited-release EP with fancy hand-painted covers or something artsy like that. Sounds awesome to me! So, if you're lucky enough to catch Simple at a show late this summer, look out for their release of these songs.  Their next performance is at Nightlight in Chapel Hill on June 5th at 10 PM.

Below you can check out one of my favorite songs from the session: "The Conversation."  It has a unique, ambitious, and more rockin' feel; you'll see what I mean if you've heard the rest of Simple's music.

The Conversation

And lastly, here are the other four tracks for FREE download!  Each song is zipped.

Signs in the Sky

Puppet

Take My Hand

Soldier

HFQ Block Party

The past weekend at the Nighlight in Chapel Hill were owned by Holidays For Quince, a local community record label that boasts some of the best bands in the triangle.  This was the first ever Block Party for HFQ and eleven different bands played the three nights. (just a quick note, all pictures below were taken by Mike Gray)

Night 1
Friday night was a first for many.  Not only was it the first night of the Holidays For Quince first ever block party, but it was also a debut CD release show for HFQ's newest artist, Liza Kate, in addition, it was the Nighlight's first evening with a liquor license.  Needless to say it was one hell of a show.

Embarrassing Fruits was first on the bill and kicked through most of their songs from their First Time EP.  The crowd was small at the start but by the end of their set the place had filled up.  Embarrassing Fruits is actually off of Trekky Records and not HFQ, which made it all the more apparent that this was as much of a community event as anything, and not just to highlight HFQ's amazing group of bands (a couple of bands from HFQ are playing at TRKFest in June as well).  Plus, you have got to love EF for their "non-ironic mustaches and vintages T-shirts."



It was only Mount Moriah's second show ever, but this mixmash of some of the Triangle's best local bands stole the night with some beautiful tunes and fantastic musicianship.  I think I found my new favorite band in the area and look forward to the next time they play.



Liza Kate went on next with a spectacular intimate set.  It being her CD release party I had only heard her earlier that night on the Local Beat and had never seen her before, but was pleasantly surprised with her beautiful whispery vocals over top reticent acoustic guitar.  Jenks Miller sat in for a few songs on electric and Heather McEntire sang on one song as well.  Overall, the intimate setting the Nighlight provides allowed for Liza to really connect with the crowd, and her witty entertaining comments during the breaks kept the crowd in.  Her new album off of HFQ, Don't Let The Dogs, is one of my favorites so far this year after only one listen through.



Max Indian went on last.  Being off of Trekky Records, like the Embarrassing Fruits, they too were welcome friends.  Having seen them only about 6 or 7 times before (and never not enjoying seeing them) I decided to skip out for the night and get some rest for the radio early the next morning.  (Sorry fellas).



Night 2
Night 2 was another fantastic night for local music.  In The Year Of The Pig went on first.  People, until you see them live, then the phrase "melt your face off" holds no meaning.  ITYOTP really can rock your mind (and ears) into oblivion.  Their smashing duo drums overtop distorted guitar and bass took this ITYOTP n00b to a whole new level.  After 30 minutes of mind bending music, I began to feel sorry for Dave Cantwell's drumset, but I suppose it was for a good cause.  Man, what a way to start the night.

Oh, and after their set they filled everyones bellies with some delicious homemade tacos.  

 (no pictures from ITYOTP as they played in complete darkness, very cool though)

Not be be outdone, the Curtains of Night went up next and kept the show heavy with their unique brand of female duo death metal.



The Moaners held the third slot of Night 2 and delivered on their usual bluesy americana vibe.  Their last song of the night, one which I did not recgonize, with Melissa on saw and Lauren on acoustic guitar was truly captivating.  Most of their setlist sounded like new material to me, so I either need to remind myself of their discography or even better, look forward to a new album sometime in the future.

 



Night 3
Night 3 was one for the ages.  Screaming Females to center stage to start the show.  Ive never seen a performance quite like this band from New Jersey put on.   Shredding guitar, pumping bass, head banging drums.  What a set.  If you havn't seen this band, they are a MUST.  After they were done some of the people I came with and myself sat in silence for a moment to take it all in.  Speechless.

Caltrop tore it up second with their overamplified driven sound and hard progressive rock.  Heavy metal heaven.  (Word is that they may begin recording an album soon, after writing songs all winter, and plan on touring in Europe- kickass!)

Last, but obviously the headliner for the whole 3 nights, was Bellafea who launched into their set with enthusiasm only they could muster for such an already overhyped crowd.  I had not seen them in ages but was pleasantly surprised to see them just as amazing as ever before.  Their punk rock attitude never ceases to entertain.  All hail Bellafea!

Local Beat preview 5/15/09

We have a wonderful show in store for you today (5/15) on the Local Beat.

 



At 5:00 Kim Gray and company will be coming in to talk about the Pick 'n Bitch festival this Saturday at the Pinhook.

 



 

At the top of the 6:00 hour, Liza Kate of Holidays for Quince Records will be stopping by to talk about her upcoming album, Don't Let the Dogs.  The album release show is tonight at the Nightlight in Chapel Hill alongside Max Indian and Embarrassing Fruits.  Then at 6:30, it will be the last time in 2009 that we will be preempted by NC State baseball.Be sure to tune in at 5:00 sharp on 88.1 fm or http://www.wknc.org/listen.

 

 

 

Screaming Females interview this Sunday 5/17

Photo by Michael Otley

Screaming Females will be playing this Sunday at the Nightlight with Bellafea and Caltrop, but first they'll be coming into the WKNC studio to talk about their new record Power Move, their DIY ethic, and their time on the road for the last month. Be sure to tune in at 4PM on Sunday May 17.