WKNC Interviews

WKNC Interviews

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WKNC Interviews episodes

  • Pick N Bitch
    At 5:00, Kim Gray brought a rather large posse with her, including Megan and Ian from Pistil, Paul and Junko from Scientific Superstar, Teresa from The Virgo 9, and Shirle from Free Electric State. We chatted about the upcoming Pick n Bitch Festival at the Pinhook in Durham. Our topics of discussion ranged from Durham’s (undue?) status as official “underdog of the triangle” to the word bitch and its connotation.
    19 min
  • Reigndrop Lopes
    On Saturday 5/30, I had the pleasure of speaking with Reigndrop Lopes, sister of the late Lisa “Left-eye” Lopes, of the legendary, Grammy award-winning, multi-platinum group, TLC.
    In the candid interview, Reigndrop talks about growing up with Left-eye, producing and being featured on Eye Legacy and being the first lady of Hip-Rock .
    Reigndrop also discusses “The Last Days of Left-eye” documentary, possible new TLC music and the purpose of the Lisa Lopes Foundation.
    29 min
  • Screaming Females
    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.
    27 min
  • Grey Young and Battle Rockets

    Dan giving Chas a purple nurple in the WKNC studio

    Gray Young called the studio during the latter part of the Battle Rockets conversation to let us konw that they’d been locked in the stairwell and unable to get in.  So we went and rescued them and brought them in for the second half of the interview.  They dispelled the self-contrived rumours that they’re playing with U2 in October.  We discussed both bands’ future plans, which include WE Fest.  Check out the interview with the entire cast of characters below.

    Now, onto the show that night. 

    The lineup at Slim’s Downtown was this:

    Battle Rockets

    The Proclivities

    Gray Young

    Battle Rockets were entertaining and have quite a bit of energy, and it’s always fun to watch that level of energy coming from a two-piece.  The Proclivities were–and have been for a little while–sans drummer, so they had D.A.R.Y.L. fill in and rocked out as a two-piece (a very dapper two-piece, might I add).  Although the lack of a real drummer was sort of the elephant in the room (at the risk of using their song lyric), they were obviously having a good time, and so was I.  Matt Douglas was chatting the crowd up as well, as per usual.  Lastly, Gray Young took the stage around midnight.  I must say, I’ve seen Gray Young several times over the past year or so, and every time I’ve seen them they’ve been exponentially tighter (and on this night, louder).  It has been really fun to watch these guys as they play more shows together, and I can’t wait to see them again at the May 22 Lemming Malloy CD Release/Neckbeard Records Debut show at Local 506.  That’s all for now, be sure to tune in to the Local Beat this week, details to follow in another blog post soon…

    21 min
  • Prabir and the Substitutes

    In today’s digital world, it’s great to see a band that cares so much about the physical release of an album. I love having something I can hold in my hands when I buy my music—the thrill of driving to my local record store, thumbing through the collection, talking with the clerk as I pay, peeling off that damn sticky tape before prying open the cover, admiring the pictures in the liner notes—owning the physical CD gives me more of a connection with the artist.

    In the 1960s, the single was the primary means by which an artist released their music before bands like the Beatles and the Beach Boys demonstrated the artistic importance of the album. In 2007, Prabir and the Substitutes demonstrated their respect for the physical release of an album by intending for the duplicate copy included with their EP, Share, to be given to a friend. The group might not save the physical album from certain doom, but they’re putting up a valiant fight.

    23 min
  • Kingsbury Manx
    Our last guest of the evening was Ryan Richardson of the Kingsbury Manx, who joined us by phone. We talked about the band’s label, Odessa Records (owned and managed by band member Paul Finn). Odessa was having its “label release” party at Cat’s Cradle that night, which included all 3 bands on the label: Americans in France, Impossible Arms and Kingsbury Manx.
    8 min
  • Lost in the Trees
    As Bombadil was leaving the studio, we were shuffling Double Barrel Benefit 6 band Lost in the Trees (2/13 of them, anyway) into the studio. They also played a previously unreleased track called “A Church that Fits our Needs,” a stunningly beautiful song with, as we noted, a touch of folk. We also talked about their upcoming date at the Shakori Hills Festival and some work the band is doing in schools (promoting rock, or pop, or whatever it should be called). Finally, we talked about the band’s next album, which should be released sometime this fall (check the Trekky Records website for more info). They also spoke a little about the show that night at the Lincoln Theatre.
    41 min
  • Bombadil
    Wow, what a day. We started off the Local Beat with an interview and in-studio performance by one of my favorite bands around, Bombadil. They played previously unreleased “Kate and Kelsey” and were also kind enough to let us spin a few tracks off of their yet-to-be-released album, Tarpits and Canyonlands. We talked about the imminent loss of Stuart, Daniel’s injured hand, the NC State Brickyard preachers, and how none of these things will stop the momentum that Bombadil has with new album to be released soon.
    17 min
  • Brian Walsby
    A little before the 6:00 hour, Brian Walsby, drummer of Double Negative and renowned comic artist, and Charles Cardello, co-founder of Bifocal Media, joined us in the studio. We talked a little bit about the Manchild 4 comic and Melvins CD release party. Walsby described Double Negative as a cross between Cat Stevens and Bread.
    A little later on, Scott Phillips of Goner, Scott Williams (also of Double Negative) and Chris Jones (of The Loners) stopped in. We talked about party/show events as well as the growth of Raleigh as it relates to the cultural scene, and the unofficial pre-party dining location, The Remedy. But mostly, we chewed the fat.
    30 min
  • A Rooster for the Masses
    So on Friday night Adam from A Rooster for the Masses stopped by with special guest James of Baltimore-based Scary River.
    The reason for the occasion? ARFTM was playing at the Pour House that night alongside Scary River and the Desmonds, and playing another show Saturday night at The Cave in Chapel Hill alongside Death to the Details.
    We chatted for the better part of an hour about everything from South by Southwest, which Scary River was on its way back from, to songwriting inspiration. Oh, and Adam gave away a copy of “Broken Era,” the band’s recently-released album, to a lucky listener.
    19 min

About WKNC Interviews

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WKNC 88.1 FM HD-1/HD-2 is student-run non-commercial radio from NC State University, playing indie rock, electronic, hip-hop and metal. This podcast features interviews from 2010-2018.