Soil Compilation

Sports
Around the Big Ten – Week Four

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Week three of college football was the final tune-up for the Big Ten before the conference schedule began. This week, we’ll talk about Iowa’s 55-0 victory over Northern Iowa, Northwestern’s final game before moving into Ryan Field, and the Southern California showdown between USC and Oregon.

Music
Gin Blossoms Live at Hy-Vee Ampitheater

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On a cool night, somewhere in between the last days of summer and first days of fall, the finale to the Hy-Vee Ampitheater’s inaugural season took place. Starring Arizona’s Gin Blossoms, hundreds turned out on their feet for the band in North Liberty’s newest venue.

Sports
Around the Big Ten – Week Three

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Week two of college football gave us a pair of early Game of the Year candidates. Unfortunately for the Big Ten, those games came at their expense. This week, we’ll take a look at Iowa’s cathartic win over Iowa State, Oregon’s early-season struggles, and Ohio State’s meltdown against Texas.

Music
Kendall McCabe

Review: Akron Family – S/T II: The Cosmic Birth & Journey of Shinju TNT

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By Kendall McCabe Akron/Family might actually live in the woods. Their latest release, S/T II: The Cosmic Birth & Journey of Shinju TNT, seems to capture the panic of a red fox stalking its prey, the calm of tree leaves rustling next to each other as they sleep at night, and the loud snapping of sticks underneath hikers’ heavy feet…all within each individual song. This manic psych-folk album is full of contrasting tracks and is, ultimately, a wild and confused romp that will leave listeners will feeling caught between one song and the next. Recommended Tracks: 1, 2, 5, 9, … Continued

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Review: Delicate Steve – Wondervisions

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By Alexa Squire It’s hard to imagine an album that starts out sounding like African pop, morphs into shredding psychedelic guitars, and passes by twangy Southern riffs before finally landing on a bright slide guitar solo, but Delicate Steve does so in their first single. This debut album from the New Jersey band is only 26 minutes long and completely instrumental. The guitar parts are both primitive and post-rock, the keyboard is fuzzy and the drums are loud and soulful. While comparisons have been made to the Dirty Projectors and RATATAT, the fact is Wondervisions is the product of a band … Continued

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Review: John Vanderslice – White Wilderness

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By Blake Carlson-Joshua John Vanderslice’s new album, White Wilderness sets out on a different path than his previous releases. Known for his studio precision, Vanderslice changes things up in this album as he teams up with San Francisco-based conductor/ composer Minna Choi and her Magik Magik Orchestra. Unlike any of his previous work, Vanderslice was able to complete this album live and in merely three days by enlisting the help of Choi to deliver the heavy musical layers we’ve all come to know and love. The result is a wonderfully vivid set of music that will resonate with any Vanderslice … Continued

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David Berkeley – 2/19/11

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David Berkeley stopped by the KRUI studios on February 19 to promote his reading and musical performance at Prairie Lights. Berkeley gave us the scoop on his new album Some Kind of Cure and corresponding book, 140 Goats and a Guitar. He also talked about life on the road, graduating from Harvard, teaching, and his recent visit to Corsica. Interview by Drew Ingersoll [audio:http://krui.fm/assets/music/David%20Berkeley.mp3]

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Review: The Forms – Derealization

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By Alexa Squire Derealization isn’t your typical remix EP. The Forms (now only a two member band) have completely deconstructed their songs and combined them with new chord progressions, lyrics, and arrangements. The result is six original songs that manage to still be dreamy, rich, and melodic like the band’s previous material, but poppier with the instrumental additions of synth bass and drum machines. Old fans will recognize echoes of the songs they know from The Forms and Icarus and hear many things that are entirely new. Guest vocalists include The National’s Matt Berninger, Pattern Is Movement’s Andrew Thiboldeaux, and … Continued

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Audio: Second City

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Members of the world famous comedy troupe Second City sat down with Max Johnson of “Live From 380″ on February 5th, 2011. They were in town for two performances at the Englert. [audio:http://krui.fm/assets/music/Second%20City%20In-Studio.mp3]

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Audio: Utopia Park In-Studio

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Brothers Dominic and Philip Rabalais of Utopia Park sat down with hosts Max Johnson and Kendall McCabe of “Live From 380” on February 12th, 2011 to talk shop. They were in town to open for Dan Deacon. The Rabalais brothers, who run the cassette label Sweat Power Records, hail from Fairfield, Iowa. They talked sleep schedules, feminine sexuality, and rap careers—Dominic may or may not be launching his own soon. Utopia Park will be back in Iowa City on February 26, playing at The Mill with Akron/Family and Delicate Steve. [audio:http://krui.fm/assets/music/Utopia%20Park%20In-Studio.JPG]

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