Maxilla Blue were the first group to perform. Consisting of Emcee Asphate Woodhavet on the mic, and DJ TouchNice behind the turntables. Maxilla Blue has been a staple of Des Moines music since their first release in 2008. Maxilla Blue started the show with their high energy rap, (or, as Asphate called it, “that rhyme shit”). Asphate rapped over beats that tended to be on the smoother side, sampling horns and jazz melodies. The duo also performed from a new release out later this year.

Up next were AWTHNTKS from right here in Iowa City. The four-piece group is made up of emcees ION, johndope, and Romulan and are backed by DJ Johnny Sixx. The three emcees took turns taking the lead on songs, which consisted of a mix of solo songs, and newer tracks that have yet to be released.

With the show being the only rap concert at Mission Creek, it was nice to see 2/3 of the acts as Iowa natives. It’s pretty obvious that Iowa doesn’t a have a booming hip-hop scene, but Maxilla Blue and AWTHNTKTS were good representations of the flourishing scene that can only grow.

Shortly after AWTHNTKS’ set, main act Freddie Gibbs took to the stage armed with a full bottle of vodka and his crew. “Y’all could of gotten anyone for this festival”, Gibbs addressed the audience after a few songs into his set. “But ya’ll went with motherfuckin’ Gasnta Gibbs!” And there was a good reason for that. From beginning to end, Gibbs was relentless. It seemed pretty obvious that Gibbs wasn’t really working with a set list, rapping a capella and leaving the DJ to jump in on his own. But with the amount of times he had us yell “fuck police” during the set, it was clear that structure isn’t really Gibbs’ style.

Not long into the show, Gibbs asked for the lights to be turned off. From then on, Gibbs performed in almost total darkness, with nothing but lighters and phone lights to light the stage. After the show, Gibbs returned not for a typical encore, but for a dance party where fans were invited to join him on stage. Leftover beer cans were sprayed by Gibbs’ crew over the audience, as fans tried to get as close as they could to Gibbs and the stage. It was a pretty fitting ending for a night of “that rhyme shit.”

There’s still plenty more acts to see from Mission Creek, get the full schedule here on their website.

The post Mission Creek: Freddie Gibbs @ Blue Moose 4/2/15 appeared first on KRUI Radio.

Bull Black Nova was the first band to play. Hailing from Cedar Rapids, Bull Black Nova describes themselves as a “freakypopmelodypsychodramatic rock band.” And, oddly enough, the title seems to fit. The band brought with them a wide range of sounds from groove-driven bass lines to messier, shoegaze style guitar riffs and reverberated vocals. “If you don’t like [our music], just wait longer” the bassist joked to the audience a few songs into the set. Luckily for us, that wasn’t the case, as Bull Black Nova got the audience excited for what was to come.

Delicate Steve followed soon after. The New York band played a set of instrumentals with lead guitarist Steve Marion at center stage. While each song was hard-hitting and exciting to listen to, the peak of the show came from the band’s ability to blend various genres with their heavy rock sound. At times, Marion opted for slide guitar, giving a more laid-back bluesy feel. Other songs featured more electronic synth riffs and even a bit of sampling.

And finally, headliner Amen Dunes took to the stage to finish off the night. Another New York band, the trio kept their set softer than the previous two acts, but the energy was just as high. Beginning with a couple songs on acoustic guitar, frontman Damon McMahon brought a folkier sound to the stage which blended nicely with the simple set up from the rest of the band. The rest of Amen Dunes consisted of a keyboard player providing smooth melodies and a drummer whose playing felt like that of a heartbeat: more felt than heard. Overall, Amen Dunes brought a relaxed yet sonically charged set which provided a good finish to this eclectic night of music.

There’s still much more to see from Mission Creek, check out the schedule of events here on their website.

The post Mission Creek: Amen Dunes @ The Mill 3/31/15 appeared first on KRUI Radio.

This week’s Track of the Week is brought to us by Swedish singer-songwriter José González.

González is known for blending soft, folk guitars with other elements including electronic and world music. His newest single, “Leaf Off/The Cave”, from his third full length album Vestiges and Claws, is a perfect example.

The majority of the track consists of González’ upbeat guitar rhythm over gentle percussion containing claves and hand-claps, while the opening vocals add an ethereal quality to the mix. Lyrically, the song focuses on leaving behind the old and moving along to the new.

The second half of the track’s title is in reference to Plato’s Allegory of the Cave, which focuses on the same theme. While González is certainly not the first artist to sing about this subject, he does so with interesting lyrics and simple but beautiful instrumentals.

You can check out the entrancing video below for “Leaf Off/The Cave” and read more about his music on his website.

Vestiges and Claws is out on February 17 via Mute Records.

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“Nobody’s Empire” is the second single off their first album in four years, and is an instant Belle and Sebastian classic. With the twee-folk sound the band is known for, singer Stuart Murdoch sings about his childhood, family, and relationships. Murdoch has even called the song “the most personal I’ve ever written.”

Girls in Peacetime Want to Dance was released on January 20th. Check out the artwork for the album above, and learn more at their website. You can also watch the video for “Nobody’s Empire” below.

The post Track of the Week “Nobody’s Empire” by Belle and Sebastian appeared first on KRUI Radio.

The idea of post-rock is often off-putting to some people. Just the addition of “post” onto any genre brings with it an air of pretentiousness. But what really separates it from traditional, old fashioned rock n’ roll?

The definition of post-rock is just as vague as the origin of the term itself. While the name suggests many similarities to rock music, such as the traditional instrumentation of drums, bass, guitars, vocals, and a variety of other instruments, the genre shifts its focus towards utilizing a variety of sounds such as layering instruments to create different textures and, at times, driving melodies. These aspects usually take precedence over other areas, such as vocals, which, more recently, are sometimes completely left out in post-rock.

While what is known as “first wave” post-rock came to prominence in the underground music scene in the 1990’s, many of its attributes can be traced back to much older groups such as Velvet Underground. Songs like “Heroin” which feature aspects of drone and noise would later become defining features in the genre.

When looking at first wave post-rock, there seem to be two defining albums, both taking quite different directions. The first, released in 1991 is Talk Talk’s fifth album Laughing Stock. The album experimented with a variety of different instruments for the band including strings and horns, a big change from their previous synthpop albums.  “Ascension Day”, for example, features a jazz inspired drum and bass groove which underlines a buildup of guitars.

The second album worth mentioning in the advent of post-rock was released earlier the same year. Slint’s sophomore LP Spiderland, takes a different approach to the post-rock sound. The album’s instrumentation features prominent guitars that are commonly accompanied by shifting vocal styles and even spoken-word poetry.

The fact that both of these equally influential post-rock albums sound so different is a common trait within the genre and becomes even more prominent in “second wave” post-rock which tends to expand its instrumental repertoire. Many different post-rock bands tend to pull elements from other genres. The popular Icelandic post-rock band Sigur Rós have dabbled in other sounds such as folk and more recently, much heavier industrial sounds.

On the lighter side are bands such as Thee Silver Mt. Zion Memorial Orchestra. While their sound has changed drastically over the past, their debut LP He Has Left Us Alone but Shafts of Light Sometimes Grace the Corner of Our Rooms… is often described as an ambient album composed of mostly piano and various stringed instruments.

However, if relentless noise is more your style, experimental rock band Swans have more recently dabbled in the genre. Since their reunion in 2010, Swans have released three albums. The most recent, To Be Kind, released earlier this year, is an album that encompasses many post-rock aspects while turning up the volume. “Oxygen”, one of the tamer songs on the album, starts with a simple riff that builds on itself along with horns, percussion, and singer Michael Gira’s rambling vocals.

And then there are the albums that seem to do it all. My personal favorite post-rock album (and one of my favorite albums in general) is Godspeed You! Black Emperor’s Lift Your Skinny Fists Like Antennas to Heaven. Released in 2000. This influential album spans genres including noise, ambient, and neo-classical. Save for a few sampled vocals, this album is completely lyric-less, relying entirely on its instrumentation. Because of its ability to cross multiple genres of music, it’s a perfect album for anyone to get started into post-rock.

The post Listen In: Post-Rock appeared first on KRUI Radio.

While a church may not be the first place one would expect to see a concert, it worked well.  John stood beneath the large stained glass window which reflected the spotlights and lit up the stage.

The Lonelyhearts, a duo from Colorado and Iowa opened for the Mountain Goats.  The set was fairly mellow and eased itself into the night.  The duo features John Lindenbaum on the guitar and Andre Perry on the keyboard, while both contributing the the vocals.  The duo’s harmonies swirled throughout the sanctuary, adding to the peaceful atmosphere.  The Lonelyhearts performed for about a half hour before handing over the stage to the main act.

“Welcome back home to Iowa, John” an audience member shouted out while John began tuning his acoustic guitar.  John had lived in Iowa for several years of his life, including Ames and Colo, which he briefly discussed throughout the night.  One of the best parts of a Mountain Goats show is the way John connects with the audience.  John paused in between songs to tell stories about inspirations for songs, recording an album in a shed in rural Iowa, and really anything that came into his mind.

John played plenty of fan favorites, such as “Color in Your Cheeks” and “Dance Music”.  But he also played some more obscure songs as well, including “Song for Black Sabbath’s Second North American Tour”, an unreleased song that highlights John’s love for all things metal.  “I’m not feeling traditional” John said as he began his encore, which pretty much seemed to embody the theme of the night.

About halfway through the performance, John played a few songs on the piano.  One of which, “Thank You Mario but Our Princess is in Another Castle” was certainly a crowd pleaser.  The song tells a romanticized version of the popular video game series, Mario.  The song was equally funny and heartbreaking, a strange mix of emotions that became quite familiar by the end of the night.

If the atmosphere wasn’t already personal enough, John asked everyone to finally stand up and for the house lights to be raised so that he could see everyone’s face.  He then unplugged his guitar and walked out into the audience performing “No Children”.  John weaved in and out of the crowd, standing on pews and shouting the lyrics that echoed throughout the sanctuary along with rest of the audience.  “I hope you die.  I hope we both die” we all sang together.

John returned to the stage for his encore where he performed three more songs.  He ended the night with “Shadow Song”, a track that appeared on his 2000 album, The Coroner’s Gambit.  The album was recorded in Colo, Iowa, only about 100 miles from where we were standing.  “This is a song for you, in case I never make it to where you are”, John sang as the audience swayed back and forth.  It was a solemn ending to a night filled with the emotion that John’s music conveys so well.

The Mountain Goats will continue to tour as a duo, check out tour dates on their website.

For more information about Scope Productions and future concerts, visit their website.

The post Concert Review: The Mountain Goats @ First United Methodist Church 4/21/14 appeared first on KRUI Radio.

Scottish post-rock group Mogwai have returned with their eighth studio album, Rave Tapes.  Unlike the title suggests, the band puts forth an album filled with soft yet powerful instrumentation, creating its own atmosphere of sound.

If Rave Tapes puts its focus on anything, it’s layers.  Straight from the beginning, the album’s opener “Heard About You Last Night” begins with a slightly percussive intro, setting the tone for what’s to come.  The rhythm is quickly overtaken by the guitar melody and the building ambient background.  While this formula can be seen on many of the album’s songs, each one gives it its own unique twist.

“Remurdered”, the highlight of the album, is a perfect blend of traditional post-rock style and new electronic elements.  Synthesizers create the focal point of the song, while the drums and guitars drive the force until the track finally lets up in the end, instruments dropping out one by one, leaving the melody to dance around in the listener’s ear.

While Mogwai leaves Rave Tapes heavily instrumental, they choose to experiment with vocals a couple of times.  The first of which is “Repelish”, features a lasting drone style instrumentation underlying an audio recording of a man discussing the infamous Satanic reference in Led Zeppelin’s “Stairway to Heaven”.  Although the music provides an excellent background for the monologue, the song itself gives the impression of an idea not fully fleshed out, but merely thrown into the middle of the album.

“The Lord is Out of Control”, however, uses soft, effected vocals to create an eerie atmosphere.  A synthesizer plays the part of a church organ in the opening to the track, before continuing to do what Rave Tapes does best: builds into an amalgam of sounds that sweeps through the listener throughout the entire song before placing them safely back onto their feet.

Find out more about the band their albums on their website.

Listen to the album on Spotify.

The post Album Review: Rave Tapes by Mogwai appeared first on KRUI Radio.

Musical acts Dave Moore, The Pines, and William Elliott Whitmore came together Saturday night for an event full of folk and americana music.

Iowa artist Dave Moore kicked off the night.  Moore and his band kept it simple.  Accompanied by a mandolin and bass player, the trio played a variety of easy going folk tunes.  The highlight of the performance was Moore’s harmonica solos which were powerful yet graceful, catching the attention of everyone in the audience.  Dave Moore and company helped to set the stage for what was to come.

The next act, The Pines, is a Minnesota based folk group.  While stylistically quite different from Moore, The Pines’ folk roots were present.  The band started off slowly, using electric keyboards to build a eerie ambiance underneath the guitars.  Singer Dan Ackerman’s soft vocals created a calming effect on the audience, allowing them to relax and enjoy the set.

And finally, it was time for headliner William Elliott Whitmore to take the stage.  It quickly became apparent that this was the man everyone came to see.  Just like Moore, Whitmore kept it simple.  Whitmore was alone on stage, switching off between his banjo and acoustic guitar while using a kick drum to the keep the beat.  The first song, “Cold and Dead”, was sung a cappella. Whitmore’s gruff but soothing voice echoed throughout the theater as fans cheered him on, sung the words, and clapped along.

Whitmore seemed to have a good relationship with the audience.  In between songs, he would walk towards the edge of the stage, shaking hands, accepting beers, and cracking jokes.  “This feels like the kind of place I’d be getting kicked out of” Whitmore said to the crowd about the Englert theater.  Later in the show, Whitmore attempted to explain why he does what he does.  “I think the best thing about music is that it brings us together and enjoy camaraderie” Whitmore said right before going into “Hell or High Water“, a favorite of not only mine, but probably many others judging by their reaction to the song.

Whitmore closed the show just as he started it.  “And though we may go our separate ways, our paths will cross again someday” Whitmore sang without the help of instruments.  It was the perfect ending to such an intimate and powerful show.

For more information on Mission Creek, visit their website here.

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California band !!! (pronounced “chk chk chk”) was accompanied by Trouble Lights and Caroline Smith at Gabe’s on Friday night for another fun and energetic Mission Creek show.

Iowa duo Trouble Lights kicked off the night’s events.  The electro-pop duo quickly brought the up the energy with their catchy synth beats.  When singer Adrien Daller’s voice wasn’t soaring throughout the venue, she was dancing and jumping around the stage.  The group played songs from their newest and so far only album, The Endless Prom.  They closed with “Stay With Me”, the debut single, and my personal favorite on the album.

Trouble Lights’ liveliness put the night to a great start, but Caroline Smith decided to tone it down a bit.  This isn’t to say Smith was boring–far from it.  Smith and her band gave a fantastic performance of soulful R&B indie pop.  Smith’s smooth vocals radiated throughout as the audience danced right along.

Smith played a few of her older songs but focused on her new album, Half About Being A Woman.  Crowd favorites such as “Magazine”, “Half About Being a Woman”, and “Buy Me Something” made an appearance.  I found myself pleasantly surprised and very happy as Smith started rapping of verse of Kendrick Lamar’s “Bitch Don’t Kill My Vibe” to her song “Bloodstyle”.

I wasn’t exactly sure what to expect as !!! took the stage as the final act of the night, but the band  grabbed me and the rest of the audience right from the beginning.  The Californian dance-punk band used electronic style beats to build and build until the final breaking point.  !!! also utilized fast and bright keyboards, saxophone solos, and a variety of percussion instruments to add to their already unique sound.

But as fun as they were to listen to, !!! was just as fun to watch.  Lead singer Nic Offer took advantage of the entire stage, jumping around, flailing his arms, and using vogue-style dance moves that kept the energy going.  Offer even took the floor, stepping off the stage weaving throughout the tight crowd.  A few members of the audience even made their way onto the stage to dance with Offer.  It was, essentially, one big party.

There’s still events left for Mission Creek Festival.  For information on their lineup and schedule, visit their website.

The post Mission Creek: !!! @ Gabe’s, 4/4/14 appeared first on KRUI Radio.

Noise rock band Wolf Eyes came to the Yacht Club on Wednesday night to present their loud, ruthless sound for Mission Creek Festival.  The band was joined by three opening acts: Mating Call, Curt Oren, and Taser Island.

Mating Call was the first to take the stage.  The crowd was scarce as there didn’t seem to be more than ten or fifteen people huddled in front of the small stage.  But that didn’t stop the band from giving it their all.

Mating Call was relentless, not offering a single second of silence throughout their entire set.  Behind a table filled with sound equipment, two of the members produced electronic drum beats while turning various nobs and tuners.  On the left of the stage, a guitar player builds and layers endless chords upon one another.  The main focus, however, was on the vocalist who danced around and in the audience screaming into the mic.

By the time the second act was ready to perform, the crowd was steadily growing larger.  Curt Oren brought a much different style of music to the stage.  While much more simplistic than Mating Call, Oren kept the energy up with his baritone and alto saxophone solos.  “Sorry”, Oren said after the first song.  “My lower register is broken.  This would sound a lot more bad ass if my lower register wasn’t broken.”  But based on the reaction of the audience, nobody seemed to mind.  Oren performed several jazz inspired pieces that immediately pulled the crowd towards his unique style.

The third act of the night, Taser Island, brought a different aspect to the show.  The duo sat in chairs in front of the stage while a projector showed three different video clips of various locations.  The group played along to the footage with acoustic guitars and electronic beats, singing along with an eerie harmony.  Off to the side, a third member who had offered to help for the night played long, quiet notes out of an electric guitar, creating a beautiful sense of ambiance to underscore the vocals.

A little past midnight, Wolf Eyes took to the stage.  The crowd had grown as the hours passed, packing the floor just in front of the stage.  By now the crowd was definitely pumped and ready, and Wolf Eyes did not disappoint.  The group started right away.  The two guitar players both building off each other’s sounds, letting them bounce off one another holding up the hardcore punk style vocals from singer Nate Young.

My favorite song of the night was the encore.  Spanning a grand ten minutes, the band layered its sound over time, using pedals to loop various vocals and guitar riffs until the cacophony of sound had enveloped the entire venue creating what was probably the loudest show Mission Creek has seen.  Even while typing this hours after the last note was played, my ears are still ringing.

For more information on Wolf Eyes and their current tour, visit their website.  For more information on Mission Creek and its lineup, click here.

The post Mission Creek: Wolf Eyes @ The Yacht Club, 4/2/14 appeared first on KRUI Radio.