This will be my final article as I am going to be transitioning into the position of Head of Marketing for KRUI! I have loved my time as a journalist and having the opportunity to review all of the great music I have, but all things must come to an end. This last column will be a review of NE-HI’s debut album, which is titled -*drum roll*- “NE-HI”! I am so glad this happened to be my final review, because I’ll definitely be going out with a bang! Let’s get the bean rolling!

What is your favorite genre of music to listen to?

“I guess I would say rock and roll or indie rock…my favorite bands are Twin Peaks and NE-HI, which is a band from Chicago and I’m super stoked about them. I like The Rolling Stones and a lot of classic rock, like The Beatles…not like Def Leppard or ACDC, I’m not into that, but for example, The Rolling Stones, they’re really mellow and I like that. The Velvet Underground is really cool too!”

How long would you say you’ve been listening to this genre?

“Kind of…forever, really. My dad is super into The Beatles and The Rolling Stones, and this band called The Band, which was Bob Dylan’s backing band way back when, in the 60s, I guess. That’s probably what got me into the genre. I used to like rap a lot. My favorite rapper used to be 50 Cent, like ‘The Massacre’ was the first album that I ever bought with my own money, in third grade. I found out about Twin Peaks in high school, probably during my junior year, so around six years!”

How would you describe your music taste?

“I listen to a lot of everything. I’ve been listening to Frank Ocean a lot recently. I also like a lot of modern R&B like SZA, she’s really cool. I still like rap a lot! I work at a liquor store and while I’m there, they always play rap because that’s what’s popular, so I hear a lot of Migos. It’s not really my ‘thing’, like I don’t listen to it for enjoyment outside of work, but it’s kind of fun. Gucci Mane, Wiz Khalifa, that kind of stuff is outside my realm, but I can dig it.”

What are you recommending that I review?

“What I had in mind was NE-HI’s debut. It came out a few years ago and it’s just self-titled. It’s super good. I don’t know if you’ll necessarily like it, but I’m a big fan of their sound.”

How long have you been listening to this band specifically?

“In October, it’ll be four years. I actually saw them open for Twin Peaks here at some venue and I was kind of blown away. I just felt like it was really relaxing and like I was on a beach. It kind of feels like good summery music to me. It’s really laid-back, structured, and the guitars are really buzzy, kind of giving it a crunchy sound. The vocals for it…they’re not good singers per se, but I don’t think that really matters. I think the music really matters and it just sounds really fun to me when I’m listening to it. They also have their ‘tender’ moments on the album. It’s good and short, it’s only a half hour.”

Shoutout to my ~bro~ for letting me interview him during his final finals week, and congrats on graduating! I hope you do more than sit in a dumpster and eat garbage…

So, as he mentioned, NE-HI is a group from Chitown, made up of four people; Mikey Wells, James Weir, Jason Balla, and Alex Otake. The band formed in 2013 after coming together to score a mutual friend’s film and just decided to stick it out. It seems to be working for them, based on what I’ve heard!

NE-HI has released two EPS, one of which I will be reviewing right here in just a few moments, and four singles. If you want to check out their site, here’s the link!

I listened to this album while studying for finals because frankly, I knew I would have no other time to get through it. I think it’s partly the reason for me passing financial accounting, so shout out to these dudes for getting me through it! Per usual, I’m going to review my favorite song, my least favorite song, and then the album overall. Let’s start off on the right foot.

My favorite song in “NE-HI” was “Since I’ve Been Thinking”. It’s the first track and really kicked my experience off in the right direction. I absolutely love the guitar in the intro and the background throughout the song. There isn’t a lot of lyrics in this song, just a chorus that’s repeated here and there, but otherwise, a fairly vocal-less song. I think I like its’ simplicity. It kind of made me feel like it’d be in the background of a Lindsay Lohan movie circa 2006. I’ve posted the lyrics below, along with the link to the song. Seriously. Think about Lindsay Lohan and it’ll come to you.

“It’s been awhile
Since I’ve been thinking
At all
It’s been awhile
Since I’ve been thinking
At all
It’s been awhile
Since I’ve been thinking
At all
It’s been awhile
Since I’ve been thinking
Of you”

(and repeat)

My least favorite song on this LP was the third track, “Time Wanna”. I don’t know why, I just wasn’t feeling it. There’s literally no other explanation. It still has that summer-chick-flick-background-feel to it, but I gave it a 6.5/10 and every other song had an average of a 7.5/10, so…this one was the least favorite! There isn’t a music video or lyrics posted anywhere, so if you’re desperate to listen to it, get to digging!

Overall, I really, really enjoyed this album. It has a laid-back feel to it and I cannot shake the dramatic film scenes that it would work perfectly in from my head. If you’re interested in listening to the entire album, here’s the link. I really recommend that you do. It’s a short one, it goes by fast, and you won’t regret it!

Final notes from my interviewee:

“Whaddup? My name is Liam, follow me on Instagram @liambrekke. Deuces.”

(Here’s the link to his Instagram. Go like his “meatball” picture. If you know, you know.)

Side-note from myself:

If you or any of your friends want to join my marketing team for KRUI during this upcoming semester, do not be afraid to reach out! My e-mail is bvolfson@krui.fm :) I look forward to hearing from you!

HAGS (ﾉ◕ヮ◕)ﾉ*:･ﾟ✧ ✧ﾟ･: *ヽ(◕ヮ◕ヽ)

The post The Rolling Bean: NE-HI appeared first on KRUI Radio.

What is your favorite genre of music to listen to?

“I was raised on rock and roll; my dad raised me on classic rock, old school, everything, so I feel like traditional music is what I was always into, but then as I started venturing out on my own, I started getting into alternative music, so I would say that alternative is definitely my #1.”

How long have you been listening to alternative music?

“Probably since eighth grade or my freshman year of high school.”

How would you describe your music taste?

“People are really surprised when they hear my music, like weird Indie songs that they’ve never heard of, and then they see pictures of me at bass music shows and country concerts and think, ‘What?!’. I really just like music for the meaning that the artist is going for, not just for the sound. I feel like my taste in music is super broad because of that, like I can listen to anything and still get down to it and have a good time.”

What are you recommending that I review?

“Catfish and the Bottlemen’s first album, The Balcony. I don’t know if you’ve ever heard of them…they’re an alternative rock band from Wales, UK. They’re super cool, they’re great. I’ve seen them six times…in Chicago four times, Milwaukee and in Columbus. Anyway, the album is full of crazy emotions. It’s about heartbreak, love and kind of just growing away from people and growing as a person. It’s full of rock songs that just speak to you. The reason I got so into them is because I saw their show at Lolla in 2015, and the way that they performed just blew me away, so that night, I went home and Googled everything about them, found out they would be in Chicago again a few months later, and bought tickets instantly. That’s how it all began. Their stage presence is unreal. They put on a crazy show. After that, I got super into them and listened to this album from start to finish. It’s like a book or a story. They’re just a really lyrical band and that’s what I like about them.”

I had the pleasure of spending my morning in a Greyhound bus on the way from Iowa City to Minneapolis for the weekend, so I decided to listen to this entire album in one sitting. It was a good way to pass the time, as I could physically not sleep any more. After I finished, I did some research. As Ali mentioned, Catfish and the Bottlemen is a group from the UK who’s been around for over a decade now. Fun fact: when the band first got together, they were known as The Prestige!

The Balcony was released in the UK in mid-2014, right before the band was set to go on tour throughout the area. It was then released in the USA in the beginning of the following year. It consists of 11 tracks, taking up just a little over a half an hour of one’s time. Apart from this one, Catfish and the Bottlemen also have another album, a couple EPs and around a dozen singles. If you’re interested in reading more about them, here is the link to their website.

Like my first album review, I’m just going to choose my favorite and least favorite songs from The Balcony. It doesn’t mean they’re terrible or Ali is terrible or you shouldn’t listen to them, it’s JUST MY OPINION *vine reference*. Anyway. Here they are.

I figured I should start on a low note so I could end on a positive note, so the song I liked the least was “Cocoon”. I don’t want to use the term “dislike”, because I really don’t have a problem with it! There were other tracks on the album that I didn’t feel any type of way about, but this one just kind of made me have mixed emotions. In comparison to the other songs, this one is really weak vocally. I found that the lead singer really rips his vocal chords up in the chorus in most of the other songs, so I was kind of disappointed that he didn’t in this one. Otherwise, it’s a good jam! It just was a let down in comparison to the rest of the album. Listen to it yourself here.

My favorite song on this album is predictable…”Kathleen”. I feel like if you have ever heard of Catfish and the Bottlemen, it’s this song that you’ve listened to. I love Van’s voice in this track. It’s so intense and gravely and ughhhh just so good. The instruments used behind the vocals when the lyrics start remind me of that of “Paris” by Magic Man. If you haven’t listened to that song, definitely give it a go, but that’s another discussion for another review. You will not regret listening to “Kathleen”, believe me!

Overall, this album was a nice one to listen to while driving the most boring drive known to mankind. I sort of wish it was a little longer by a couple of tracks, but beggars can’t be choosers. Since Ali told me that this entire album was a story about a relationship, I could totally tell when listening to the lyrics. Something else that I noticed is that in nearly all of the songs, the sound before and after the chorus is soooo much more relaxed than the chorus itself, like there is a drastic change in the music during the chorus. It almost goes 0-100…the vocals grow more intense, almost yelling, the drums come in all at once, the guitar is nearly overwhelming. The songs almost do a complete 180 when the chorus hits. That made the album overall kind of monotonous…I knew what to expect in every song. I think if I listened to this album shuffled in with the rest of my music, I would definitely be fine, but having eleven of the same kind of songs in a row gets boring.

I am 100% adding the Catfish and the Bottlemen radio station onto my Pandora shuffle! I think that they are a really talented group, I just can be picky. I like change, I don’t like knowing what is going to happen when the next song starts. Maybe that’s just me, I dunno. You’re entitled to your own opinion! It just may not be the correct one. ;-)

If you want to listen to the entire album, which I think you should, just to see where I’m coming from, here ya go!

Shameless Instagram plug; follow me if you’re down, here.

The post The Rolling Bean: “The Balcony” by Catfish and the Bottlemen appeared first on KRUI Radio.

I got there around 11:00 because that’s when they were supposed to start, but they didn’t, so I got to silently observe for a while. The Yacht Club is definitely more of a bar scene. People were just hanging out at tables and drinking, not crowding around the stage like I expected.

The people there were what one would classify as “hipsters”, but I think that is typical for Mission Creek! I love hipsters, personally.They dress so stylishly, effortlessly. They also don’t seem to care what people think. Once Feel Free came on, people were dancing and swaying and moving their heads along to the beat. It was cool to see people just “feel free”!

Feel Free is made up of two guys. One has a beard, as shown above, and donned a black skull cap and a ying-yang sweatshirt. The other guy was just wearing a baseball cap and a hoodie. Nothing too special, which I like. Just do you, don’t wear a bunch of clothes to impress other people!

Anyway, the duo is from the Minneapolis / St. Paul area. They classify themselves as a “sound system”, and I completely agree with that categorization. When they first came on, I got Bassnectar type vibes from the sounds they were producing. They used a lot of “cartoon” noises. I don’t know, that’s just what I thought.

They had really solid beats in the background, then all of the sudden there would be a sound that reminded me of the Roadrunner running away from the Coyote, or bubbles and lasers. They also used a lot of tropical rainforest/animal noises. I honestly do not know a lot about electronic music or how it works. They just had a bunch of equipment set up in front of them! It’s cool that they’re so creative they can just make music out of literal sounds. I could never!

I don’t know exactly how many songs they played, because as I said, I don’t know anything about this genre of music and it seemed to me that they never completely stopped playing, so either they played one huge song or their tracks just flow together, one after another.

If you want to check out the duo’s Facebook, go ahead and click this link here.

These are my photos again, so if you want to look at more of my photography stuff, go to my photography Instagram here.

And lastly, if you wanna listen to some beats by Feel Free, here is their SoundCloud!

The post Mission Creek Festival: Feel Free @ Iowa City Yacht Club 4/8/2018 appeared first on KRUI Radio.

It was absolutely amazing, I had such a good time! No need to feel the rush of FOMO, because I’m going to tell you all about it.

So to kick it off, Dessa started about fifteen minutes later than expected, but it was no big deal because Monakr was killing it on stage!

She came out in an army green jacket and some combat boots, looking super cute, beer in hand, and announced that Monakr would be staying on stage and playing along beside her! I thought that was really cool because they had been doing so well before her.

Turns out they’re on tour with her this spring, so it makes sense!

I’m going to be honest, I was worried that I wouldn’t be able to understand the lyrics as I was standing right next to the synthesizer amp, but she must be extremely articulate because I got the gist of most of her songs!

The first song that Dessa performed was “Skeleton Key”. I’ve attached the link below for you to listen to in case you weren’t able to be in attendance tonight.

I really like the use of piano throughout the song! I feel like in this day and age, the only person who consistently uses the instrument is Sara Bareilles. It was a refreshing sound, that’s for sure!

As the performance went on, I may have accidentally stopped paying attention to my duty as a journalist and started to participate like I was a concert-goer, dancing, etc., so I don’t remember all of the song titles, but there are two others that really stuck out to me.

One of my favorites that she performed was “Dixon’s Girl”. It’s got kind of an Amy Winehouse sound to it in the background. See what you think!

The other song that I really liked was “Fire Drills”. I think it’s because it has a Middle-Eastern sound to it with the strumming of an oud (I believe it is, at least), which is a type of round guitar! It also demonstrates Dessa’s rap skills.

She’s not just a singer, she’s a rapper, too, and a good one at that! Her lyrics actually make sense and flow together really well. Give it a listen, you will not regret it.

So, yeah, those were my top two favorite songs of the evening, but you can check out the record label that Dessa’s signed with, Doomtree, on YouTube here to listen to more of her stuff!

While at her concert, I tried to categorize her…who did she sound like? Who did she perform like? Who did she share any similarities with? I’m telling ya, it was hard.

She is completely original. Her physical appearance kind of reminds me of Lady Gaga, but a more-down-to-earth Lady Gaga, you know? As far as vocals goes, sometimes she had a Miley Cyrus sound, but it wasn’t consistent, so I have come to the professional conclusion that Dessa is an utterly unique artist, which is hard to claim.

She was just her and didn’t want to be anyone else, and I think that’s hard to find today. She raps, she sings, she covers all types of genres, and most importantly, she has a good time.

She did say that she wasn’t a fan of labels. She doesn’t want to be known for “rap” or for “pop”, she wants to be known for being Dessa.

I have major respect for that.

Dessa as a human being is so funny. In the photo above, you can see her drinking what looks like beer. The story behind that is absolutely perfect.

While performing, instead of reaching down to grab her own alcoholic beverage, she reached out and grabbed someone’s drink who was standing in the front row. She took a big gulp, smiled, and handed it back. Turns out, it was not beer as she had expected, but apple cider. How funny! I hate when that happens, so I feel you, girl!

Another great moment during the show was when she called a photographer out (not myself, sadly) and made him come up on stage to take a posed photo because she recently dyed her hair blonde and washed it for the first time today, and it “felt like bread”.

She needed him to take this one shot of her pretending to perform so she’d look good for whatever type of media he worked for. It was hysterical!

By the way, might I add, I love her hair. Super cute. Anyway, yeah, she did quirky stuff throughout the entire show like toss her hoop earrings to the ground behind her, gave advice to “hetero-men dating hetero-women” about rap music, and took someone’s phone in order to record herself. There’s a photo of that moment below!

At the end of her show, there was a predictable encore, of course. Just in general, I’m kind of over the encore aspect of things, because everyone knows it’s gonna happen!

Soooo…just stay on stage and do another song. It’s like a surprise party, but you know it’s happening. It’s still fun but the moment is kind of spoiled.

Overall, Dessa put on a super fun show. The atmosphere was intoxicating because she had a real fan base. I guess she’s been here before!

I definitely will not miss out on her again. She’s a talented artist and a pure person. She’s not fake and trying to please everyone, she’s just doing her, which I think is so admirable and important. If you want to check out her Instagram, give her a follow here!

Little side-note; all of the photos in this column were taken by yours truly. I had to decrease the quality in order to upload them, so if you want to see more, check out my photography Instagram here! I would really appreciate it. :-) This was the first show I’ve ever shot and I hope to do more in the future! Maybe my next review…? Stay tuned!

PS. I just wanted to say. The lead singer/keyboardist of Monakr is super hot and looks like Adam Levine. That is all.

The post Mission Creek Festival: Dessa @ Gabe’s 4/3/2018 appeared first on KRUI Radio.

Sophie Payten, known by her stage name, Gordi, is an Australian musician who focuses on the folktronica genre. She rose to fame after performing in Sydney, and eventually gained the attention of American record label, Jagjaguwar, with whom she signed in early 2016. In that same year, she was included in the top 40 of best new bands in 2016 by Stereogum.

When on stage, Gordi is accompanied by a few other musicians, including a drummer, a brass section, and a keyboardist/synthesizer, while she takes care of vocals and guitar. In the past, she’s opened for big-name shows like Of Monsters and Men and Bon Iver, with whom she performed on the Jimmy Fallon show in September of 2016.

At the moment, she has released an album, three EPs, and nine singles. With her track record, it’s bound to be a great show.

Much like my column, “The Rolling Bean,” I am going to review one of Gordi’s songs and let you know what I think of it right here in this promo. Wild. The song is attached below; it’s called “On My Side”. Give it a listen and then continue to read!

As soon as I heard this intro, I immediately thought of folk music. Gordi stays true to her genre of folktronica, that is for sure! I really appreciate the use of vocals here and the simple drum beat. It gets your body moving! There actually isn’t much of an “electronic” part in this song. It seems to be all acoustic; no obvious synthesizer or wild electric guitar.

This is definitely a “windows-down-driving-through-the-back-roads-in-the-summer” kind of song…if you’re from the Midwest, that is! I don’t know if this would be a song to listen to on the metro for you city folks…sorry, it’s hard to relate to you when there are like ten farms surrounding my house.

I decided to watch the music video instead of just listening to the song, and I’m a little bit puzzled, to be honest. It’s not because there is too much going on, but because there is a lack of a storyline. The lyrics don’t match up to what’s happening in front of my eyes. There is some dude laying on the ground, covered in mud or dirt (or a combination of both), and Gordi comes to him and is washing him off with water(?).

It’s in a gasoline container so let’s hope for his sake (and her’s) that it’s not oil! Anyway, I wish the video had a little more sustenance to it. It’s really just four and a half minutes of her pouring water on him, and then they look out into the sunset. I’m not asking for a Katy Perry music video, but maybe a little something wouldn’t hurt!

Lucky for you, you’ll get to watch Gordi actually perform this song live instead of having to watch the music video! Make sure you go check her out on Friday, April 6th; you won’t regret it!

The post Misson Creek Festival Promo: Gordi @ The Mill appeared first on KRUI Radio.

What is your favorite genre of music to listen to?

“I would say I mostly listen to lo-fi indie. I’ve been listening to a lot of sensitive indie recently, kind of on the grungy side of things.”

What is “lo-fi” indie?

“I would say an example of lo-fi indie would be Neutral Milk Hotel, but a lot of music from the 90s-earlier 2000s would also fall under this genre, like LCD Soundsystem, Modest Mouse, Slowdive, bands like that. I’ve found that there has been a huge resurgence of lo-fi recently! I mean, you might even think of a band like Beach House as being kind of lo-fi. The best way to think about it is like on old radios, how you can turn the dial from lo-fi to hi-fi. Lo-fi gives you more of that buzzy, high static-y sound, whereas hi-fi gives a super clear sound. I guess contemporary examples of lo-fi are Broken Social Scene, Angel Olsen or Mothers, which is a pretty new band.”

How long have you been listening to this genre of music?

“I feel like I started delving into indie in my later years of high school. I entered the scene around 2008/2009, which was a prime time for indie music. I feel like this time period was the peak of when bands like Feist and Vampire Weekend started emerging. It was also during the hipster revolution, where everyone wanted to be a hipster, so it was super easy to access that kind of music.”

What do you think you would categorize your music taste as?

“I think, for me, when organizing the characteristics of my music taste, it’s easiest to think in terms of decades, so things that have a 50s flare, or a 70s flare, or a 90s flare. I guess it’s all of the odd-numbered decades in a way. I love 50s music because of jazz like I love Chet Baker, and because of true country, which was the genre of Johnny Cash and Patsy Cline. I like things that are rough around the edges but have a real emotional core. I guess as far as the 70s goes, I’ve been listening to a lot of Fleetwood Mac and Steely Dan for some reason this year. I don’t know why, but it’s kept me so solid. There’s so much of a revival of the 70s right now with bands like Tennis. And the 90s of course, we are just living in the 90s all over again right now.”

What are you recommending that I review in my column?

“I picked an album called ‘Tender Buttons’, by a band called Broadcast. It’s a cool, kind of moody girl band from the early 2000s. I think the album came out in 2004. It’s kind of experimental and it didn’t quite get the acclaim that I feel like it deserves. It’s got super weird lyrics. It reminds me of a band that’s currently out right now called Melody’s Echo Chamber, which is produced by Tame Impala. It’s a super cool album and I hope you like it.”

How long have you been listening to Broadcast?

“I found them like three or four years ago. It’s just been a staple album for me. To me, there’s a sense of refinement to it, like they never get too over the top, but they build such an emotional core through really strange lyrics and minimalist sound, and there’s also that lo-fi, grungy sort of element at the base of it.”

Broadcast was an English indie band that was founded in 1995 by Trish Keenan and James Cargill. The band released a total of three albums. Throughout the majority of the band’s career, they had other members who played instruments for various periods of time, but Trish and James stuck together until 2011 when Trish suddenly died from the swine flu.

“Tender Buttons” was the third and final album by Broadcast, which was released in 2005. There are a total of fourteen tracks on it, making the album 40 minutes and 34 seconds long. I listened to all of the songs and decided that I would review the album in its entirety, the song with the namesake of the album, my favorite and my least favorite. Let’s start with the namesake.

So the title of the album, as you know, is “Tender Buttons”, and there is a song with that title as well. I really, really like the intro to this song. It mixes the strumming of a guitar with the strokes of a cello. It’s really cool. You kind of move your body along to it…until the words start. I say “words” and not “lyrics” because Trish keeps a monotone throughout the entire song and just repeats random words. I noticed that she says words that being with the letter C nearly 30 times. I don’t know what the significance of the words are…they don’t make any sense together. The last few phrases she says are “Die. Cut. Die. Cut”, over and over again. It’s kind of scary if you listen to the words…so don’t. Here’s the link.

My favorite song on this album is “Tears in the Typing Pool”. I think it’s because it has a Lana Del Rey sound to it. Lana does try to have a lo-fi sound to her music, now that I think about it. She idolizes music from the 60s, so it makes sense. I noticed that this song is the only one out of out of the entire album that is acoustic and clear enough for me to understand the lyrics, which make more sense than in the previous song! I think it’s about an oncoming break-up. That’s just how I interpreted it, though. Give it a listen and see what you think.

My least favorite song on this album was “Arc of a Journey”. I hate to say that I disliked it because the first four minutes of it were fine, but the final minute of the song just really hurt my ears. Honestly. It was miserable to listen to. I don’t know what is happening but it sounds absolutely horrible. You’ve been warned! The instruments used in the good part of the song kind of remind me of a Postal Service song, who I like! I just didn’t like the ending! I can’t understand the lyrics in here, so I had to look them up. They don’t make sense, but they’re all about space and constellations so I guess they’re supposed to go together…I’m just not deep enough to interpret them. If you choose to listen to this, beware! After four minutes, your ears may or may not start to bleed.

After learning about lo-fi, I can confidently say that “Tender Buttons” falls into that category. It has a really grainy and static-y sound to it. Trish’s vocals are so muffled that I can’t really understand the lyrics, but I guess that’s the point of the genre. I appreciate the unique use of instruments throughout the album and the clashing of notes found in nearly every song. The sound is really unique; it’s not eerie but it’s not comforting either. As a side-note, there are a couple of songs that are completely instrumental in this album. No vocals at all! I wasn’t expecting that, but I liked it. This is the perfect album to listen to when hanging out with your best friend on a Friday night, doing absolutely nothing. Here is a link to the entire album if you want to give it a go

So…yeah. That was an interesting ride. I think that Broadcast has a really interesting sound, but I don’t think I’m as into lo-fi as I hoped I would be. For me, to get connected to a song, I have to understand the lyrics and they have to have meaning, but in this case, it was hard for me to understand what Trish was singing so I couldn’t feel as many emotions as I had hoped. That may not be the case for other people, it’s just what I found. On the other hand, the more I listen to this album, the more I like it. Also, just putting this out there: I am not liable for anything that may or may not have happened to you after that last song ended. Just saying.

If you want to read more about Trish Keenan’s legacy she left behind, read this article published by Pitchfork.

James Cargill recently dropped an album with his new band, Children of Alice, which is in memoriam of Trish, so if you want to listen to more music that is associated with this band, click here.

And, as always, if you want to follow me on Instagram, give me a follow here!

The post The Rolling Bean Promo: “Tender Buttons” by Broadcast appeared first on KRUI Radio.

No, but seriously. The crowd will be going wild, so why not be a part of it? A $15 ticket gives you access not only to them, but also Psalm One and Jamila Woods, so think about it.

Ancient Posse is a synthetic R&B duo based out of Des Moines. There isn’t a lot of information out there about the pair because they like to keep their personal lives separate from their professional lives, but what we do know is that it’s made up of Kamillah Camp-Bey and Steve Bergeron. They came together about four years ago, and ever since then, it’s been a complete partnership. They both sing, they both write songs, they both produce, and they perform together. Talk about “goals”!

As far as background goes, Steve has had years and years of musical involvement. He has been playing violin since he was a child, and can also play the piano. Comparatively, Kamillah had little experience in the music field. She performed in musicals throughout high school and wrote her own music, but never showed her true talents. Here’s a music video for their single, “Windless”, that’ll show you how truly gifted these two are when creating music together.

I really like the use of Kamillah’s vocals in the intro of this song. She has a mesmerizing voice, that’s for sure. Throughout the video, you can see her just letting loose, getting into the beat and dancing away. I wouldn’t call her moves “cute” or “adorable”, but it gives you that sense, you know? She’s just doing her!

Steve has an awesome range that pairs really well with Kamillah’s. I like how they split the vocals evenly; she has a part, he has a part, then they come together. Sometimes groups aren’t good about that; one person will be over-bearing and you, as the listener, don’t have the opportunity to hear what the other members bring to the table. Good for them!

The lyrics are pretty short (if you didn’t notice) so here they are.

come w me, moony one

have no fear

u can be whoever u want

’cause the water, it moves ur way

don’t let it escalate

take my hand bloodless skin

let it fill u don’t know how to fall

but u will

’cause the water, it moves my way

don’t let it escalate new hearts r windless storms

put ur hand in mine

I like these lyrics! They give good visual-aid if you don’t watch the music video. They’re short and sweet, but I think it’s appropriate for this song. If you did watch the music video, it’s pretty simple, not too intricate. I like the use of lighting and fog, it’s kinda funky.

I think Ancient Posse will put on a really good show, I definitely do not recommend missing this one! If you want to read more about this group or buy tickets, go ahead and get ’em here!

The post Mission Creek Festival Promo: Ancient Posse @ The Englert Theatre appeared first on KRUI Radio.

What is your favorite genre of music to listen to?

“Modern rock and rap, those are definitely my two favorites!”

Who do you listen to the most?

“I listen to Tame Impala, The Japanese House, Cage the Elephant, and then in rap, I listen to a lot of Chance the Rapper and Drake, obviously. I didn’t listen to Kendrick Lamar that much until his new album, but I really like him now, and I also recently started listening to Brock Hampton and I love them. I also like SZA, but she’s not really rap, she’s more R&B, I guess.”

How long have you been listening to modern rock?

“Not long, I mean, in high school I just listened to mainly what was on the radio and Lana Del Rey, but once I got Spotify during my senior year of high school, I started to branch out.”

How long have you been listening to rap?

“Forever. I have two older brothers, and one of them was really into Kid Cudi, so I got into Kid Cudi in middle school, and he liked ‘Graduation’ by Kanye West, so I remember listening to that a lot with him around that same time period.”

How would you define your music taste?

“It is the most spastic thing ever. The playlists that I create make no sense cohesively. The songs can vary from The Japanese House to Drake, from Tame Impala to Lana Del Rey or Cigarettes After Sex. I just like a random collection of music. I guess I don’t make very good playlists because whatever I’m listening to, I just throw it all together. They honestly don’t really make any sense.”

What are you recommending I review?

“The EP, ‘Swim Against the Tide’, by The Japanese House.”

How long have you been listening to this band?

“Probably a year and a half, or close to two years.”

Why do you like The Japanese House?

“She’s kind of got an electronic/psychedelic/rock-y vibe, but also lyrically, it’s really cool. She kind of reminds me of Radiohead. In interviews, she said she was inspired by them and one of her biggest inspirations for her music was their album ‘Rainbows’, which is one of my favorite albums ever.”

I’ve known Annie for a while, and for as long as we’ve been friends, she’s been raving about this band. She’s seen The Japanese House twice, she loves them so much! Above is a screenshot of an Instagram post from her first time at their concert. I can still remember how excited she was! I, on the other hand, have never listened to them, so I’m excited to learn more about them.

The Japanese House is an indie pop band hailing from England that is made up of just one artist; Amber Bain. I guess I would never have known that had I not researched it, as I always assume artists with names like “The ____” or “Owl City”, for example, are bands, but sometimes it’s really just one person! She is the singer, the guitarist, the synthesizer, the keyboardist and the producer. Talk about an independent woman.

The name of her self-driven musical career was inspired by a place in Cornwall that Amber and her family frequented when she was a child. She recalls that there were many Japanese tea houses throughout the property and that her experiences there helped her to decide to go with an anonymous title for her music, rather than using her own name.

The Japanese House has released four EPs, one of which I will be reviewing in this column. “Swim Against the Tide” was released on November 11th, 2016 and consists of four songs; “Swim Against the Tide”, “Face Like Thunder”, “Good side in”, and “Leon”. I will be doing a brief review of each song, and then an overall review of the EP.

“Swim Against the Tide”

I really like the intro to this song. I don’t know what it is, it’s just kind of soothing and funky at the same time. Remember in my last article how I said I was a “visual-listener”? This intro reminds me of the scene in Ratatouille when Remy’s brother, Emile, eats a strawberry and piece of cheese at the same time and Remy is describing all of the sounds and colors that he should be experiencing (but he doesn’t because he is an uncreative rat).

The chorus is nice and subtle. While listening to it, I was just amazed thinking about the fact that Amber does this all by herself. I wish I was that talented! The song overall is good. It doesn’t jump out at me like, “Oh my gosh, I need to listen to this over and over for the next hour”, but it is a good piece. I’ve linked it below if you want to give it a listen yourself.

“Face Like Thunder”

The second song on this EP sounds like a mix of Bastille and The 1975, which makes sense, because Amber has worked extensively with members of The 1975, and has even gone on tour with them a couple of times. Maybe I feel like they sound similar because all of the bands mentioned in this tidbit are British? I want whatever they’re having because there’s something over there that must be making their musicians sound this good!

Like the first one, this song is good but isn’t jumping out at me as being “the one”. You can decide after you listen to it. I did watch the music video for this one, which I try not to do because they can easily distract one from the lyrics and the musicality of the song, *cough cough Taylor Swift’s recent music videos*, but the videography of this one is beautiful. It’s really simple, and Amber isn’t lip-syncing so hard that you can read her lips. It’s like she’s just singing along quietly, not wanting anyone to notice it. I appreciate that. She’s a natural.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_peMDiN6f14

“Good side in”

I don’t know what is happening in the beginning of this song with the percussion, but I like it. It’s unusual, it’s different. It sounds like marbles rolling through a rain pipe, which I think is the point because the first lyrics are “and it started to rain”. So cool.

After the first verse, the instruments completely change…it sounded more natural in the beginning, just the plucking of a guitar or two, but then as the chorus started, the electronic side of The Japanese House was brought in. It seems to switch back and forth throughout the song, depending on if the bridge or chorus is being sang. I like change, it keeps me on my toes! This is my favorite song so far. You can’t help but bob your head along as you listen to it.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i_SWoseprUE

“Leon”

Here we are. The final song. Definitely has a The 1975 sound to it. She layers multiple vocal notes over each other, like at least three different parts. This is just like the first two songs; sounds cool and I don’t dislike it, I’m just not crazy about it. There’s not much else I can say. It seems like her music kind of follows a theme, which isn’t a bad thing by any means! I just expected more individuality since it’s an EP.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VOqcJnM1PMA

Overall, this EP was good. I like The Japanese House so much that I’m going to add the station onto my Pandora list, but – I felt as if 3/4 of the songs sounded the same. It’s not bad for an artist to be comfortable with their sound and to follow a “theme”, if you will, but I don’t know, I expected something different. That’s why my favorite was “Good side in”; it was different from all of the rest. The others were good. I just wanted a variety, I suppose.

If you want to learn more about The Japanese House, here is her website.

Annie said that you should follow her Spotify account, so here is the link to that.

And as always, if you’re super interested in my own personal life, here is my Instagram link. Give me a follow!

And lastly, here is a photo that Annie took of The Japanese House performing at Lollapalooza! She was really excited to get a chance to talk about one of her favorite artists, so I decided I would include this photo just for her!

The post The Rolling Bean: “Swim Against the Tide” by The Japanese House appeared first on KRUI Radio.

What is your favorite genre of music to listen to?

“Broadly, I guess rock. I don’t know specifically what kind of rock, but I like classical a lot, like the Beatles and Pink Floyd.”

How long have you been listening to rock?

“Maybe like six years, because when I was in middle school I listened to the radio, but in high school, my dad got me into rock music. It’s something we listen to together.”

How would you describe your music taste in general?

“I like a lot of different things, but I guess I like more alternative-type stuff. I don’t like the radio.”

Are there any specific bands that you are drawn to?

“Yeah! Well, the one I am talking to you about today, XTC, that is one that my dad showed me, but they’re different from everything else I listen to. I would say I listen to a lot of The Beatles, I really like Tame Impala, The Kooks, and The Shins. Those would be my main artists.”

What are you recommending that I review today?

“My favorite XTC song is called ‘Humble Daisy’. I don’t know what their genre technically is. I think they’re ‘new wave’, as they are from the 80s-90s era, but this song makes me emotional, with half the reasoning being because it reminds me of my dad, but also because of the lyrics. I pay attention to lyrics a lot.”

Does this song sound like any other songs you know?

“It’s very unique, all of their music is unique. I guess if they sounded like anyone, it would be a mix of The Smiths with some Beatles.”

How long have you been listening to this band?

“My dad has been listening to this band since I was a baby, but I didn’t get into them until the last year or so. I listen to them all of the time now!”

Huge shout out to Emma for volunteering to be the first person I interviewed for this column. I know she was a little nervous, but I appreciate her taking the time out of her day to help me out! Now let’s talk XTC.

XTC was an English rock band that roamed the earth for over three decades. In the early years, their name varied, but in 1975, they settled with XTC, which Emma thinks is a play on the word “ecstasy”, but who knows. The bands goal was to be “completely original”, and after listening to “Humble Daisy”, I can confidently say that they achieved their goal.

“Humble Daisy” is off of their 12th album “Nonsuch”, which came out in 1992 with a total of 17 tracks on it. In this piece, I will be discussing the song’s musicality, the lyrics, and the overall feel of it. I do not want anyone to be offended by my opinion, because you know that saying, “Opinions are like a**holes, everyone has one”? It even applies here.

So just be forewarned, just because I do or I don’t like something, does not mean I or the person I interviewed are horrible human beings. It just means we have different tastes in music! Luckily in Emma’s case, I liked the song “Humble Daisy”, and I’m gonna tell you why.

My first thought when listening to the intro of the song was, “Wow. I love those guitar chords”, and that theme followed me through the rest of the song. Though there are a few key changes, the song seems to stay in a major-key.

Sorry for the music-technicality talk, let me explain in case you don’t know the difference between “major” keys and “minor” keys. Major keys are where the chords “happy” sounding. They’re usually bright and you can’t help but bob your head along to the beat. Since I’ve mentioned The Beatles a couple of times, an example of one of their song’s that uses major chords is “Eleanor Rigby”.

Songs with minor keys are known to sound sad or scary. When I think of minor chords, I think of “What Child is This?”. Yes, the Christmas song. It used to scare me so much as a child, just because of the way the notes come together!

I am a visual-listener. I don’t know if that’s actually a “thing”, but if it’s not, I’m making it one. What I mean by that is that when a song plays, I kind of imagine the event it’d be playing in the background of, like a movie or TV show.

This song, specifically chorus, made me think of the scene from Shrek 2, where Shrek and Fiona are running in slow-motion towards each other through a field of sunflowers. I don’t know why it made me think of this specific scene…maybe because of the title having to do with flowers? I don’t know. Listen to it yourself and see if you agree.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z9QpNH-16lg

It’s a good song! Now let’s analyze some lyrics, since Emma said that was part of the reason she loved this song so much. They’re not too long, so I’ll include the entire piece below:

“Humble Daisy
Form a chain to hold all battleships in check
Humble Daisy
Knit a ladder down to nature’s sunken wreck
Ragged rug unbound
Tangle trip the lovers
Royal barge aground
Brighter than all of the others on the window sill
I’ll sing about you if nobody else will
Humble Daisy
Cast the milk and coins of morning’s cash about
Humble Daisy
I fell down to heaven as you picked me out
We’ll look up together
Browsing through some old sky
Sipping in the weather
You’ve got me dizzy, the fly that climbed the sugar hill
I’ll lay upon you ’till somebody else will
Humble Daisy
We’ll look up together” (AZ Lyrics)

Okay, so to be blatantly honest, the first time I listened to this song, I didn’t even notice the lyrics…after reading them and listening to it a few more times, the words became clear, but the meaning didn’t. The lyrics put together make no sense. I am guessing that Daisy is a girl, but that is the only thing that I am semi-confident about understanding.

The first half dozen lines refer to some kind of water vessel, but if it’s in relation to something specific, I am missing that key information. My favorite line is “You’ve got me dizzy, the fly that climbed the sugar hill”. WHAT?! What does that even mean!? In some cases, the words don’t necessarily make sense, but the song is still good, y’know? I find that’s the case with a lot of popular music that’s played on the radio today. The background is good, just the words falling out of the artist’s mouth have absolutely no meaning. It’s tolerable (most of the time).

Overall, I think that “Humble Daisy” by XTC is a feel-good, laying-in-your-backyard-in-the-summer-reading kind of song. I wouldn’t necessarily blare it in my car with the windows down or listen to it while getting ready for a night out on the town, but in a more relaxed and casual setting, definitely.

It’s honestly not something I would go out of my way to listen to again, but I’m glad that Emma introduced me to something of good quality.It’s always nice to get out of your comfort zone. I know that if allowed, I could and would and have listened to the same album every day, multiple times a day, for a month straight. Switching it up never hurts.

If you’re interested in reading more about XTC, click here.

If you’re interested in listening to the entire album of “Nonsuch”, which I totally recommend, click here.

And with a shameless social media plug, if you’re interested in following me on Instagram, click here.

Here’s a photo of a field of daisies. I feel like it’s an appropriate way to end the piece. Have a good week, peeps!

The post The Rolling Bean: “Humble Daisy” by XTC appeared first on KRUI Radio.