WCPO Lounge Acts

Brooklyn-based singer Anna Wise earned a Grammy in February 2016 for best rap/sung collaboration for the ethereal vocals she lent to rapper Kendrick Lamar’s “These Walls.”

Lamar scooped Wise up as a collaborator on several of his albums after listening to "Nursery Boys" from Wise's duo Sonnymoon on YouTube. In the most professional use of Facebook stalking skills I’ve ever witnessed, Billboard reports Lamar asked around until he discovered her phone number. Wise and her bandmate Dane Orr were on the road when he reached out, but they immediately detoured to California to spend some time in the studio with Lamar.

Wise blazed her path as a solo artist with the April 2016 release of her seven-song EP “The Feminine: Act I,” followed up by the 11-track “The Feminine: Act II” out Feb. 17. Both records delve into the everyday challenges of being female (of which I won't pretend to be an expert as a male). "B--chslut" from Act I presents the infuriatingly contradictory reasons women are called either epithet, ranging from "cause you said no/ cause you slept around" to "cause you played games/ cause you lost your head."

Act II opens with "Coconuts," an otherworldly, synth-heavy track calling for female unity and trashing the arbitrary rules of womanhood. "The governors of status quo know that they're old/ That ship is sinking/ Go for it. You know when we're together/ Baby, there's nothing that we can't do/ So ignore the disapproval," Wise croons.

Her Queen City visit comes courtesy of local sitar- and synth-infused folk duo Dawg Yawp, whose friendship with her stems from their days at Berklee College of Music in Boston. Sitarist and vocalist Tyler Randall toured with Sonnymoon and says he’s excited for Cincinnati to see Wise perform since she is “the best singer I’ve worked with.”

Set List:
- Coconuts
- Self on Fire
- interview -
- Precious Possession
- BitchSlut

Find out more about Anna Wise at http://www.annathewise.com

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Folk pop songwriter Tristen performs some new songs from her forthcoming album and chats about poetry and funding her latest album through Kickstarter.

Tristen broke her drought of new music with the December release of her seasonally appropriate single “In Winter Blues.” Right in tune with the holiday spirit, Tristen devoted all proceeds from the baleful, piano-driven tune to benefit the International Rescue Commission. Founded by Albert Einstein in 1933, the IRC responds to humanitarian crises and delivers healthcare and support to people fleeing conflict and natural disaster.

While the hauntingly beautiful song doesn’t explicitly mention the Syrian refugee crisis, her Bandcamp page does. Lyrics like “Crazy arms longing to hold you/ To bring you back where you belong” that could signal unrequited love require no large leap of the imagination to also conjure images of Syria's turmoil and other countries embroiled in crisis.

Between touring with singer-songwriter Jenny Lewis and southern rockers The Weeks over the past two years, Tristen found time to pen an 18-poem volume titled "Saturnine" that delves into a “dystopian world where apathy uncovers empathy” and “the heart speaks kindness through the ugliness sometimes.”

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There are one-man bands that are known for making a holy ruckus all on their own. And then there's Banners' Michael Joseph Nelson. Instead of trying to cram as much sound and fury into a track as possible with just his own musical know-how, the Liverpool, England-native singer/songwriter opts for the opposite: dreamy, airy arrangements anchored around his haunting falsetto and lyrics that aims to soothe the soul.

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Since leaving the Cincinnati area a decade ago to live in the music mecca of Austin, Texas, Erika Wennerstrom has released four critically acclaimed albums with her band, including last year's Restless Ones. The group's signature mix of high energy rock and Wennerstrom's wailing, urgent vocals have made them one of today's most riveting live acts.

But for this WCPO Lounge Acts session, Wennerstrom stripped it down to play three unreleased tracks that laid bare her emotions in a whole new way, digging into what she called her odes to "self love" and the search for, as she sings in the striking "Extraordinary Love," a place to call home."

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Dawg Yawp perform a set from their debut album in the WCPO Lounge and chat with host Austin Fast about their unusual instruments and journey to becoming band.

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Whether you call him an educator, activist or poet, Malcolm London has left his mark on projects all over his native Chicago since first winning the Louder Than A Bomb poetry slam contest as a high school senior in 2011. Add an official album debut to that list of accomplishments. London’s 12-track debut album features guest spots by Vic Mensa, Jamila Woods, Donnie Trumpet, How to Dress Well, Cam O’bi and more.

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The music of Philadelphia's Beach Slang alludes to a feeling of youth and vulnerability. Sounding equal parts punk and pop, their similarity to artists such as The Replacements can't be denied, but they're fully rooted in the present. Now Beach Slang find themselves at a crossroads. Shortly after drummer JP Flexner left the band, guitarist Ruben Gallego was fired amid controversy. Committed to carrying on, frontman James Alex has embarked on a tour supporting "A Loud Bash Of Teenage Feelings" performing by himself. Recently Alex told fans on Facebook "If you come to a show, know that it's going to be just me, my electric guitar and my amplifier—loud and loose and unyielding."

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Self-described "Cincinnati lush punk" trio Leggy have quickly honed in on a punky, garage-rock sound inspired by post-2000 bands such as the Vines, Strokes, Interpol and Death Cab For Cutie and collected their angsty anthems on a string of EPs, culminating with May 2016's release of their self-titled debut full-length, a compilation of their three previous releases.

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If the exuberant praise critics heap upon Wussy’s indie rock isn’t enough to draw you to their back-to-back weekend shows at the Woodward Theater, the brilliantly barbed banter between vocalists Chuck Cleaver and Lisa Walker is worth the ticket price alone.

The Wussy Duo recently dropped by the WCPO Lounge in advance of their shows Friday and Saturday. Warnings about what Lisa calls “Chuck Unhinged” didn’t quite prepare me for his bathroom jokes right as we went live on Facebook, but that’s the charm of a Wussy show and this five-piece’s delightfully volatile rapport.

Setlist:
- “I Give You All”
- “My Parade”
- interview -
- “In the Tall Weeds” (unreleased)
- “Donnie”

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Long Island, New York rock duo The Glazzies break the seal.

Singer/guitarist Peter Landi and drummer Dave Horn swung by WCPO's Digital Lounge on Thursday for the first-ever broadcast of the brand new WCPO Lounge Acts podcast. The duo performed live in the Lounge and chatted with Lounge Acts host Gil Kaufman (Billboard, MTV News).

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