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Join us tomorrow for an evening of spooks! We will be airing our Halloween special from 5:30-9:00pm on 91.5 WUML Lowell, and the WUML.org website! (at 91.5FM WUML, Lowell) https://www.instagram.com/p/CVrHdNLpCzV/?utm_medium=tumblr

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Keep an Ear Out: February 2017

By  Noah Vanderwerf, WUML Metal Director

MORKOBOT

morkobot.org/  -  facebook.com/MoRkObOt/

I recently stumbled on this Italian trio through a live video posted on the Riff Underground youtube channel; my ears couldn’t believe my eyes which couldn’t believe my ears. This is a groovy, fast, funky, technical, weird and freakish take on math/noise rock, progressive metal and “djent” style metalcore with only two bassists and a drummer. They pummel you with polyrhythmic jams that sound like an alien-possessed Primus fused with Dillinger Escape Plan and In The Company of Serpents. Listen to the opener “KOGROMOT” and you will know what I mean by the first riff.

morkobot.bandcamp.com

AURIC

facebook.com/AuricMusic/

Ever since Mastodon started moving into more rock territory with their sound, thousands of their fans have been carrying the torch of their early work with new bands bearing that slightly psychedelic and energetic progressive/sludge metal sound. Auric, from Fayetteville, Arkansas, are not one of these imitators. They reinvent that sound by injecting strains of post-metal, black metal, and even death metal influence. Overall, their work can be as colorful as it is grand without sacrificing any of the impact. They have a great new EP to be released this year, but this second LP of theirs is a great place to start.

auric.bandcamp.com

PALLBEARER pallbearerdoom.com/

Speaking of Arkansas, this beloved doom metal act from Little Rock, merge the classic old-school psychedelic songwriting and vocals style of artists like Black Sabbath and Pentagram with heavy, modern-produced guitar riffs. This group’s work is a fantastic gateway to the heavier and more experimental world of the current metal underground. Considering the quality of the songwriting and clean vocals, this will probably be great for rock fans too.

https://profoundlorerecords.bandcamp.com/track/thorns

YELLOW EYES

facebook.com/Yellow-Eyes-659862920738821/

I always had trouble getting into the cold, distant, somewhat grating early black metal sound, but these guys have it down. This New York black metal four-piece have such engaging riffs with a somewhat left-of-field riff writing style for the genre. The movements of fierce blast-beating and morosely colorful polyphonic progressions are interwoven with atmospheric field recordings and nature sounds. Check these guys out. If you’re not acclimated to the recording style, the songwriting will be strong enough to pull you in and get you used to it. Their latest record on the beloved Gilead Media label is solid example of the creativity for their genre.

yelloweyes.bandcamp.com

AD NAUSEUM facebook.com/Nauseous.Noise/

This new Miami band has been putting out splits, demos and EPs steady since their formation in 2014. They have a fresh take on fusing grindcore, sludge/doom metal, and noise music. Any keen modern metal fan will notice the Ethan Lee McCarthy cover art for this new EP. Fans of E.L.M.’s brutally sludgy projects Primitive Man and Vermin Womb will enjoy this, with the taste of a little Rotten Sound and maybe Indian on the side.

adnauseum.bandcamp.com/album/ep

ROZAMOV

facebook.com/Rozamov/

This Boston-born doom metal and rock band have gone through enough lineup changes since their early days in 2012 to gain songwriting influences from plenty of different bands in the genre. From their Kylesa-style EPs and hardcore-influenced split, they’ve finally locked down a full length album set for release on March 3. The massive opening single should help set the tone for the grand journey you’re in for down This Mortal Road.

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SUSTO - & I’m Fine Today (released January 13, 2017)

On their sophomore album, folk-rock band SUSTO pushes the envelope with & I’m Fine Today, an album that is significantly SUSTO, but also branches off into uncharted territory.

Both thematically and musically, & I’m Fine Today touches upon a number of different influences. The album begins with their track “Far Out Feeling,” opening with a guitar riff that is reminiscent of Jeff Buckley, but quickly devolves into a somewhat psychedelic vibe of wah-wah guitar and floating keys. The string sections throughout the chorus and bridge add a new layer to this track, and a new layer to SUSTO’s musical potential. “Hard Drugs” is more of a classic folk/Americana feel, which is what SUSTO has dug their roots into. Bright acoustic guitars are backed by a rich piano and simple drum rhythm throughout the song. The song touches upon a strained friendship as a result of doing hard drugs. This track is followed by “Waves,” one of the “harder” songs on the album. An aggressive bass drives the verses, complimented by an almost crunchy drum pattern. Farther into the album, “Mystery Man” returns to the mellow folk vibe. The song emphasizes the need for a partner, the desire to experience life with someone else, and to make something beautiful of it. Again, bright acoustic guitars drive the song, accented by a melodic synth in the distant in the background. 

The album comes to a close with “Jah Werx,” a song mainly dealing with God. It is a very mellow and relaxing song to tie everything together. All in all, it is a very positive end of the album, a reminder that we should strive to be fine today. Both good and bad things come and go, but everything will be okay. & I’m Fine Today takes SUSTO’s stories of life, love, family and friends, and projects them outward. It is such a personable album with songs that are effortless to vibe to. SUSTO will be opening for The Lumineers on their tour throughout the spring. This album will be a defining moment for SUSTO, driving them forward as 2017 takes the band to new places.

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Asset Out Of Containment Playlist 1-23-2017

Landlady: Electric Abdomen from The World Is A Loud Place  http://landladyland.com/ https://www.facebook.com/landladyband https://landlady.bandcamp.com/ Crying: Premonitory Dream from Beyond the Fleeting Gales  https://wearecrying.bandcamp.com/ https://www.facebook.com/cryingband https://twitter.com/cryingband Nataly Dawn: Marshmallow World (single) http://www.natalydawnmusic.com/ Davey Dynamite: Mowing at Grandma’s from Holy Shit https://www.facebook.com/daveytnt https://dyingscenerecords.bandcamp.com/album/holy-shit Misery Loves Co: Changes from Knock’s Thrice  https://misery-loves-co.bandcamp.com/album/knocks-thrice Harrison Brome: Fill Your Brains from Fill Your Brains  https://soundcloud.com/harrisonbrome https://www.facebook.com/hvrrisonbrome/ Ms. Steak: Amber from Plastic Grass https://ms-steak.bandcamp.com/album/plastic-grass Will Wood & The Tapeworms: Skeleton Appreciation Day from Everything Is A Lot  https://willwoodandthetapeworms.bandcamp.com/album/everything-is-a-lot http://www.willwoodandthetapeworms.com/ https://twitter.com/tapewormsmusic https://www.facebook.com/willwoodandthetapeworms Tight Whips: Spotlights from Tightwips https://apocalypsemeow.bandcamp.com/ Mrs Magician: You’ll Fall In Love (single) https://mrsmagician.bandcamp.com/album/youll-fall-in-love https://www.facebook.com/mrsmagicianmusic https://twitter.com/mrs_magician

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Snacks With Seth 1-22-2017 Playlist

Tupperware Remix Party: Ladyworld & Automatic Karate from Ladyworld   https://twrp.bandcamp.com/album/ladyworld https://www.facebook.com/tupperwareremixparty https://twitter.com/TWRPband BadBadNotGood: Kaleidoscope from III and Putty Boy Strut & Untitled from Spotify Live https://badbadnotgoodil.bandcamp.com/album/iii https://twitter.com/badbadnotgood https://www.facebook.com/BADBADNOTGOOD-215708555125814/ The Bamboos: You Ain’t No Good from The Best Of The Thru Thoughts Years https://thebamboos.bandcamp.com/album/the-best-of-the-tru-thoughts-years https://www.facebook.com/thebamboos Landlady: Cadaver from The World Is A Loud Place https://landlady.bandcamp.com/album/the-world-is-a-loud-place http://landladyland.com/ https://twitter.com/landladyband https://www.facebook.com/landladyband

Al Bairre: Bungalow from Experience the Al Bairrre Show with Al Bairre https://albairre.com/ https://soundcloud.com/al-bairre The Polyphonic Spree: Section 12 from Together We’re Heavy  http://thepolyphonicspree.com/ https://www.facebook.com/polyphonicspree/ Big Black Delta: Money Rain Down from Big Black Delta http://bigblackdelta.com/ Yoko and the Oh No’s: She Ain’t Mine from Yoko and the Oh No’s https://yokoandtheohnos.bandcamp.com/ https://www.facebook.com/yokoandtheohnos

Cbdb: Somewhere to Fall from the Fame EP http://cbdbmusic.com/music/

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What the Heck, 2016? A Year in Review

The year of 2016 has been a metaphorical roller coaster to say the least. This can be safely said with respect to all that has happened, which includes the still ongoing crisis with the Dakota Pipeline. We have seen similar events like this historically, dating back to the Jackson Administration with Native Americans being forced westward due to American expansion. It can be understood that the amount of frustration that comes with Natives being uprooted from land they have possessed for more than two centuries is exponential, much less tragic. Under the current nature of this crisis, it can be still be said that there is much work and diplomacy that needs to be achieved to solve the problem. This includes two major options--either rerouting the pipeline in its entirety or stopping its construction altogether. However, neither can be done without the support of the current presidential administration as well as local governing authorities creating an agreement with the Native American tribes currently affected by the construction of the pipeline.

 This segues into the results of the current presidential election. Naturally, there are mixed feelings about the nation’s Presidential and Vice Presidential-Elects Donald Trump and Mike Pence. There has been much controversy surrounding the elects, which have included nationwide protests and applause on both sides of the spectrum. Even with the still ongoing dispute on the election results in Wisconsin, Michigan, and Pennsylvania, there is still much work to be done on this as well. Yet, in times when our country is divided, it has been encouraged by both parties that we should focus more on what unites us versus what divides us.

 With respect to music—tragedy has definitely struck many fans this year. The loss of artists including Prince, Phif Dawg, and David Bowie just to name a few have disheartened fans across the globe, country, and even locally, as many were so passionate about the music these artists presented to the public. On January 11, David Bowie died of cancer at the age of 69 after battling it for 18 months. His last album was released just a few days before his death. Bowie was known for his iconic musical and flamboyant styles along with his showmanship and the groundbreaking sound he created as an artist despite not having his first number one single in the U.S. until he released “Fame” in 1975. In March, the world lost Phif Dawg, one of the founders of the rap group “A Tribe Called Quest”. Born Malik Taylor, Phif Dawg’s cause of death was unknown, but it was speculated that it was related to complications from diabetes. He was mostly known for his philosophical and thought-provoking rhymes he composed while a member of the group. Prince, who was only 57, died from an overdose in June. He was deemed as a pioneering musician, who had a unique style when it came to combining his music with others genres, which included soul, funk, hip hop, jazz, R&B, and much more. This factor and much more made him an icon sure to be remembered by all who listened to his music.

 Finally, comes something that all will definitely be looking forward to next year—the reopening of the WUML main studio. This past year, DJs were using a temporary studio located next to the office for broadcasting their radio shows. The highly anticipated renovated studio will be unveiled to the public sometime in the coming year. There will be a public unveiling soon after the studio is reopened.

Again, in many respects, the year 2017 has been quite the year for many, considering how much has happened, but thankfully for many, the year is nearly over and the holidays are fast approaching. As many families begin to make preparations for the holidays and the new year, it is important that each person take into consideration what the achieved together in spite of all that took place in 2016 versus what they may have failed to achieve. What is more important is what each person plans, or hopes to achieve in the coming year. With that in mind, Happy Holidays from 91.5FM WUML, Lowell.

-Aaron Wilson, WUML News Director 

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Will Wood Interview

by Jon Garniss

I’d like to start off this post with a shout out to the wonderful people at Behind The Curtains Media. They’ve yet to send something my way that I haven’t loved. Key example: Will Wood & The Tapeworms.  Appearing almost out of nowhere, they struck in May of last year with a wonderful debut (Everything is a lot), and here they are, a little bit over a year later with their sophomore release Self-ish.

To be honest with you guys, I think Will Wood may be a little crazy. Perhaps more than a little. However, regardless, he is most definitely brilliant. When I asked him about the process of writing this new album, the response that I got was not at all what I expected:

“Self-ish happened by accident. Rough nights, coarse days, harshly textured edges on the outlines of my personhood. Every time a song dragged its way out of me like a body from the hudson river it had on the same cement shoes and the same bad tattoos. Every bloated carcass I fished out of my head made the same gaseous groans as the saltwater and methane left its rotten maw. Eventually they stacked into a fairly coherent pile- color-coordinated corpse-like compositions. Or decompositions. I guess. Ew, that was a really gross answer. I sound like I’m trying really hard to be edgy but I promise that’s just an accurate appraisal of the process I undertook. Metaphors, you know? Whatever.”

And on the differences between his previous record:

“Everything is a Lot coalesced over the course of years. A more seasoned musician than I once said that you have your whole life to cut your first album, and nine months for any subsequent ones. He was at least somewhat right. Some of the nasty bile that was boiled into the sinews of Self-ish had already started to bubble up before I finished piecing EIAL together, but for the most part I stitched the Self-ish quilt together over the course of a few sick months and shoved needles through my thumbs until I had a record.”

Self-ish is an odd album from an odd band fronted by an odd man, and I love every minute of it. The album begins and ends with Will Wood, alone at piano, playing the same progression, singing the same melody. The key difference between the two songs is the level of intensity, the album’s ultimate song is, even with its bareness, its’ most chilling. Between these however, we descend into glittery chaos, impossible to pin down when it comes to genre; smorgasbord cabaret, building and descending and keeping you on your toes throughout. When I listen to this album, I simultaneously want to cry, cover myself head to toe in glitter, and get into a fistfight. It’s weird, contrarian, avant garde music that deals with my very favorite topic in music: identity.

When probed about what influences his musical sensibilities:

“I don’t know, I like weird stuff. I like movie villains and dramatic death soliloquies and caped avengers swinging from chandeliers over the audience. Bright red blood and bright blue eyes, high contrast, over-or-under-saturation and a wide spectrum with extreme polarity. I’ve always been drawn to veins of bright color in a sea of blackness, and rainbow lights over ugly subjects. The more extreme, the more wild and passionate, the more exaggerated and dramatic and histrionic and fetishized the emotion the better I can feel it. Maybe it’s my undersized hippocampus or overactive amygdala. Probably is. I’m just being myself, writing things I like to hear. When I’m lucky.”

When your record is about the self, you are allowed to be self indulgent. Another reason this album works so thoroughly because the compositions and lyricism can back up the strangeness. The playing on this record stuns me. I really don’t want to use the phrase virtuosic, but it is. It is technically impressive and human. Notes and rhythms are bent and altered and personalized. The lyricism straddles a line between sincerity and sarcasm, while Wood’s baritone croons and screams with soaring, dissonant, and clashing melodies. Songs like Mr. Capgras Encounters a Secondhand Vanity and Dr. Sunshine is Dead are two of the catchiest songs I’ve heard all year. Over the course of the middle six songs, we get a stream of eccentric and manic pieces, each sounding like a different band and pulling each different style off with glamour and bravado. The scary thing about that bravado is that they have the technical ability to back it up.

Will Wood isnt slowing down, even with his busy schedule:

“We’re lucky enough to be performing alongside Honus Honus of Man Man/Mister Heavenly on 11/14 in Jersey City, and then I’m going on tour with Papa Reese Van Riper in December. And then I’ll be recording. You’re all invited.”

I have to tell you guys the truth, I’m terrified of the very minimalistic chance of the man discussed here will read this. His command of language is startling, and I worry that perhaps my attempts at conjuring up my thoughts and feelings about this record and this band aren’t up to snuff. So, I’ll end here, with this: If you like your music odd, bare, eccentric, violent, powerful, contrarian, self-contradictory, self-deprecating, glamorous, and bombastic, then this is the album for you.

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Band Overview: Problem Daughter

by Jon Garniss

I’m going to be honest, guys and gals and anyone that falls in that lovely technicolor spectrum of gender, all cards on the table: I love Problem Daughter.  Fits of Disorganized Boredom was the very first thing I recieved in my inbox when I started working as the Punk Director here at WUML, and their self titled album from 2012 is a genuine classic that got me through my junior year of high school. Imagine my surprise when they announced a show in Cambridge along with Direct Hit, canadian punks Pkew Pkew Pkew, and local highlight Tied To a Bear. Stoked beyond belief, I headed over to Elk’s Lodge to witness a bunch of bands that I love tear shit down. That night is one of my fondest memories of the summer. There's nothing like screaming along to your favorite songs surrounded by strangers in a basement. I even got to meet the band after their set, and though I embarrassed myself thoroughly in front of them due to my own awkwardness, it was still an amazing experience. It was even a little surreal, as I got some really vital bass advice from Regan Ashton.

So, sitting in the McGauvern Student Center, brainstorming ideas for a post to this blog, the idea dawned on me that instead of annoying my close friends and family with verbal statements about this band, I could annoy strangers on the internet with a stream of text about them. Using a very professional means of contact (Facebook), I got into contact with them and asked a few questions about their music, while also dealing with a few technical issues.

Coming out of Salt Lake City, Problem Daughter, consisting of Trey Bird on Drums, Shane Augustus on Guitar and Vocals, Regan Ashton on Bass and Vocals, and Tyler Sisson on Guitar, has had a pretty steady output since arriving on the scene in 2008. However, 2016 has been one of their busiest years yet.  Already three albums deep into their discography by the time January 1st rolled around, this year they’ve signed to Dying Scene Records, released their fourth album Fits Of Disorganized Boredom to critical acclaim, toured the East Coast for the first time, released an EP of acoustic versions of a few of their songs from the album, pumped out a few music videos, and dropped an unrelated single.

If you’re unfamiliar with this band, think the Flatliners, but grander. The sheer mass of their sound is amazing. The melodies are catchy, the guitars are light, the drums are booming, and the bass flows delicately in between the seams of the other three instruments. In fact, the freneticism of the bass and guitar work on this record really lend a hand to the feeling of chaos present on the record, while the steadiness and precision of the drums keep everything oddly ordered. They work hard to craft swooping transitions into odd time signatures that you don’t hear in punk often enough. Rest assured, this isn't just present on the record. In fact, their playing sounds even tighter live.

This album is light, but it’s subversive in its’ lightness. It’s poppy, but on another layer, it’s very dark. They revel in this odd niche of depth and depravity. It’s hooky, bright, and optimistic, while also retaining an element of darkness, pessimism, and self-deprecation. This album is this weird and beautiful mess of what made me love punk so much: an outpouring of emotion that’s simply fun. This is music to either dance to or have an existential crisis to.

This is punk music unafraid of being boxed into the three chord stereotype: “We like to mess around with timing and song structure, but always keeping things as poppy as possible. As far as lyrics go, we write about anything we want to, we just want them to be sincere.” The stark contrast between the bounce of O Bother Where Art Thou and the depth of Like a Dog is positively vibrant. The songs we get on this album are controlled chaos. “It's kinda like building a puzzle sometimes - seeing what fits where”. They’re melodic, they’re shouty, they’re angry, they’re sad, they’re snarky and so much more. One of their songs, My Other House is a Meth Lab, highlights this; “It (Meth Lab) pretty much covers every genre in one song”. But, even with all this experimentation, Problem Daughter does not have an identity crisis: “The nice thing about being in a punk band, is you can usually try new and weird things and still fit into the genre”.

This is a band of fans. Regarding their tour with Direct Hit and Pkew Pkew Pkew: “It was like punk rock summer camp and when every day ended you got to watch two of your favorite bands play”. While some out there are pessimists about the punk scene, Problem Daughter is optimistic: “Despite popular opinion I think punk is the best it has ever been. So many different bands fall under the punk label and they are doing super unique and exciting things”. When it comes to local music in their area: “(We like) show me island, wicked bears and pop warner”.

Just because the year has been productive for the band doesn't mean they're slowing down: “2016 has been a blast, and we just want to keep the momentum going. We've already written quite a few new songs, and we keep writing more. We're not sure what the next release will be, but it will happen in 2017 for sure”.

I could talk about this band all day. The adjectives I could use to describe my feelings about this record in particular could fill pocket thesauri. Instead of running on and on with unending superfluous prose, I’ll end with this: everywhere, if you go looking, is incredible music looking for an audience. Support it, cherish it, champion it.  When you do, you get gems like this.

Problem Daughter can be found here:

https://problemdaughter.bandcamp.com/

https://www.instagram.com/problemdaughter/

https://www.facebook.com/problemdaughter/

https://twitter.com/problemdaughter

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Planet Radio Interview, 10/13/2016 Carl and Leia interviewed by Neel N: Hey guys, this is Neel here at WUML and we are joined here in the station by some of the members of the band Planet Radio, you guys want to say hi? C: Hey L: Hi! Carl is here and I’m Leia N: Alright so we have Carl and Leia and they are here to promote themselves because they have a show here in Lowell at Mill No. 5 tomorrow [October 14th, 2016] door open at 7:30pm. Were really pumped up for it, its been promoted a lot at the station. So tell me about the type of sound you guys bring? C: Well, we had a hard time describing that for the longest time so we came up with a little thing, what was it? L: Futuristic Soul N: So how long have you guys been a band? C: Like 2 and a half years. And it was interesting because it started off our friend, the bass player of the band, Mark Zaleski, who is kind of the unofficial band leader, just threw together a gig and kind of just put a band together, as musician do, for a completely unrelated, it was just covers or whatever and we had such a good time playing together that we started writing original tunes and we kind of turned it into more of a original thing. N: So before you guys made the band you were just a group of musicians that all knew each other? C: Kind of. I didn’t know Leia L: Yeah some of us knew each other for a long time and some of us kind of just met through this project. C: I was one of the odd men out. A bunch of them knew each other and i only knew like one person in the band. Now we’re buddies. L: Its quickly become a family. For sure. It happens fast. N: Awesome. So i'm guessing you guys are from different parts, so where are you guys from, in terms of hometown? L: So i grew up sort of  in central mass, i grew up in Groton, Massachusetts. It’s not that far from Lowell. And a bunch of us are from Massachusetts, not Carl though. C: I’m from Illinois, that explains the “bad behavior” *laughs* but yeah, we all live in boston. Actually the drummer Patrick is from Canada. Shout out to Quebec! N: So i haven't gotten a chance to look at your discography, but you said you guys did a lot of covers, so in terms of original content L: yeah so we just started off doing more covers because that's the way the gig started, but after as we came together and realized we have something sort of special with this particular group of people i think it inspired us to do writing as a group and for those of us that wrote individually to bring tunes to the group, so now for our shows we do pretty much exclusively original material. C: we have like one cover that we do in sort of a signature style. L: yeah which we do with a very different sort of style, it’s sort of special. You can actually check it out. We do a cover of Higher and Higher, the Jackie Wilson tune and we have a video for that that’s up on YouTube that’s kind of a fun thing that we did about a year ago. But yeah for the most part its original stuff now pretty much entirely. N: So what kind of artists did you cover in the beginning? C: Well we actually did a Britney Spears cover at that first gig, Circus. But it was like, have you ever heard of that band Dirty Loops? N: Yes C: So you’ve seen the videos where it’s just like ridiculous? Mark like transcribed, learned it note for note and wrote it down and then brought it in. L: we did a cover of a cover i guess C: Yeah cover of a cover, and then we did some Michael Jackson stuff L: Stevie Wonder C: a little bit, Donny Hathaway. So what brought us together really was out love of this R&B backbeat soul music. And that was always the basic, even from that first day when we weren’t really “Planet Radio”. I mean that day like, that gig, wasn’t this band really. But what was this band is that we all love this type of music and that's kind of like what we’ve put into our original tunes now. L: yeah and i think each of the band members sort of has, you know, a different perspective that they’re coming from and a lot of the folks are sort of trained and jazz and have that background or Patrick, our drummer, does a lot of world music stuff, and with this group though we were all coming together with our soul kinda thing so it was coming at it from that perspective even though people may have been schooled in other things. N: so the CD you have right here, is this an album? An EP? C: this is an album. N: your debut album? L: It is. C: our debut album, produced by us 100%, no help. And it’s all originals except for the Higher and Higher cover, Jackie Wilson, we did pay for the rights so do get no ideas. And yeah, we’re actually going in the studio, we’ve already begun work on our second record. Were going in the studio in November to track the second record and then Pat, the drummer, is going to be, like, galavanting around planet earth for about six months L: so we’re getting all the basic tracks down while he’s here and then we’ll work on it while he’s gone C: Were going to try to have an album by the time he gets back. N: In the music industry now it seems more that there’s a strong suggestion that you don’t just get involved as a band but you also get involved in the industry itself, whether it’s starting a creative collective, labels, or just getting involved in the merchandising stuff like that. What have you guys planned to or have thought of or have already done to kind of get into those different areas. L: I would say that’s an area we need to work on, i think that each of us tries to kind of take on different roles in this sort of business aspect of things. C: Leia's our social media representative L: yeah i try to. We have someone that definitely pushes a sort of booking and reaching out in terms of a network, trying to push the social media stuff. The label stuff you're talking about is an interesting kind of aspect of things that we haven’t really gotten into yet. Not for any reason other than that we haven't had the sort of push for it yet. C: there's no reason to have a label really, at this point. You can put anything out, anytime you want. We are a label. The whole point of a label up until the 90s when the internet sensation really happened and took over music you had to have a label to make a CD you know. Now people are making professional albums on GarageBand, so you don't need the big label money. It used to be that you could only get access to studios trough a label, you could only get access to the production companies to print CDs through a label. I mean in Warner Brothers called and tried to give us a million bucks we would be like “Heck Yeah” but L: I think to something that we've talked about a lot is that idea of putting out a lot of content, or trying to be able to really keep up because everything is so fast paced and there's so much content all the time online, you know whether it's the social media stuff or not it's like this idea of not waiting for anything to put out your material. C: Its creative control in a sense L:yeah exactly! Because there is this ability to do so much of it yourself in terms of all of it, it makes up more able to put out content because it's like “Ok we can just do this whatever time we want” the only thing stopping us is ourselves, so we have to keep going with that C: and a lot of the reason we can do that is all the, we've been playing now for two years, and we've played a bunch of gigs and rather than taking the money and splitting it up, as would be customary, we take every single cent that we make and put it back into the music. So when we go to a show, like tomorrow at Mill no’ 5, or at planetradiomusic.com, and somebody buys a $10 CD, we take all that money and we put it back into the music so we paid for all the CDs through the support of listeners, we have T-Shirts that we have funded through the support of the listeners. The second record will be paid for by people coming out to check out the show. Which i think is really, thats like a huge part of why this thing works, we could either make a couple buck a piece or the band could make substantially more. L: if you keep feeding the project and making the brand bigger and bigger through doing that. N:No you kinda like the idea of that you guys don't want to depend on anyone else, more like we try to do things ourselves and fund ourselves. C:yeah. I mean the ultimate goal would be to be like, you know, huge or whatever L: we could get some help at some point C: Yeah if that was a thing but you know the most important thing is that the music needs to be made and the music needs to be heard. L: The thing is too, i'm just thinking about the record, like you designed the cover of the record, you know it's just like if you can do it yourself and make it happen in a certain way that's really authentic than why not, you know? C: Jeff Dantona, who plays keys, designed The website, put the website together and kind of maintains the website, i drew the logo, i'm kinda like the merch manager dude, and i also play guitar. L:Mark does all the bookings C: Mark plays bass and does all the managerial stuff. Jonathan Bane who plays saxophone is kinda like, he's like the clutch “I'm going to bring 60 people out to the show”. Hell be like “I don't know i got a couple buddies coming out” and the whole gig will be his friends. Leia does the social media stuff and sings and writes. Pat is the drummer. He doesn't do a lot of the other stuff but he is just the most ridiculous, incredible, in your face musician of all time. L: Creative, out of control. C: just the highest level of musicianship, so that's his gig. N: So basically you guys are a self sufficient machine C: Yep. N: that's awesome. Especially in the music industry where it's difficult to go off record labels it's very important that you kinda have your own system set up, an that you're doing your own stuff because it's very difficult to make that leap fo instead of finding the leap you make it yourself. L:Yeah C:One thing we're noticing to is that there is no leap really, it's like a slow crawl. And like every day, like coming to lowell to do this radio thing right, as chill as it is right now, that's something that takes you to the next level and all those opportunities add up, and really trying to reach out, it's about people at the end of the day. It’s about hopefully making music that people want to listen to and that people want to come and see, and that's our goal. To deliver the best thing that we can. N: One thing that's kind of plaguing the scene is a sense of kind of consistent, basic copy and paste. There's a lot of band out there, and you guys aren't the first to do a kind of general soul style, what do you guys do to make sure you stick out and that you guys make a bigger impact. Whether it's in the writing process or the branding, what do you do to take it a step further? L: well i mean i guess the first thing i think about musically there's a couple of things that we do differently as a band. I think one of the things carl and i are the vocalists in the group and one thing that we really are going with in our sound is this kind of dual vocal sound, so sometimes he's singing lead and sometimes i'm singing lead but i think the sort of sweet spot for our group is when we're both singing. So we do a lot of tight harmonies and a lot of like double vocal lines for lead signing, which i think is kinda uniques adm really adds to like the sound of the band and is different from what a lot of people in that genre do in particular C: It's becoming more so all the time, were trying to achieve both of our voices being like one spirit, one voice L: right, so that's definitely something. I think also because there's a lot of a jazz background of the group, something that's unique about this sound is that, i mean it is very much an R&B soul vibe and the wiring is that way, it also has these elements of like really energetic soloing and instrumentalist. We can showcase each of the instrumentalists so that's something that i think is unique about it. C: And we do that unapologetically to, like you might go see a band and there's a little solo or something but it's not uncommon for one of our tunes to be, it might be four minutes on the record but live it might be eleven minutes because there's like an extended crazy solo that gets built to the point of, you know, destruction, and then it comes back and we smooth it out or whatever. But i think that's a unique thing, its could be like a song in the way of Marvin Gaye but with the spirit of Jimi Hendrix at times. So it really crosses dynamically into many different universes L: and i think, when i'm thinking about the live show, i think a lot of people are struck by the energy of that for sure. C: also i do think that our writing is very unique, while we're not the first group to do this, were not relying on invention in the way that, you know when you reference electronic music and the copy and paste thing, that's a convention that people are accustomed to, and looping and all that. While our music does not employ that anyway, we're not going like “Oh cool this James Brown song. Lets steal the chord changes and make our own song” which is a real thing that people do, and that's cool i think there's a place for that, but i'd like to think that our music is more searching than that. I think it's evidenced in the art that we make, it's like we're trying to do new stuff that is totally unique. I think a lot of it is, in my opinion. N:i just have one more question. So When you perform live, i know you improve. Do you have a setlist of songs that you do and then see where it goes from there? C: kind of. For example we have songs where Jeff, the keyboard player, He starts it, and its understood that he begins the song. But we don't necessarily know what he's going to do. We know that there's a framework, a set of chord changes, but one day he might play a two minute intro and one day he might play a much longer intro. I start some songs where somethings i begin the song right away, like the straightforward song thing, other times it's like in my heart to like play more so like it's not uncommon for there to be like a like five minute guitar intro before the intro of the actual song even begins. I think that's a huge part of it. Leia and i do vocals constantly like i feel like, at least me, i'm constantly trying to surprise you [Leia], i'm trying to surprise them. Like i know if i can make the band be like “Yeah!” then i'm really doing it because they like know these tunes and if we can make it fresh for each other then we know the audience is really digging it. L: Exactly. And i think the audience understands that energy to like, you know if we're excited about what we're doing and it's a new experience for us then that energy translates for sure. And i think vocally to, like that's an area where sometimes it would seem like it would be hard to improvise but i feel like we have a good sort of thing working where were able to kind of like let one person roll with an idea while the other person kind of catches on, you have to be really listening and be really open to that sort of improve journey. C:I Mean there have been times where we like legit, like Leia and i are at the front of the stage like close to one another as the front people, and there have been times where i am literally like “i don't know how we just did that” You know like “that was crazy”. Theres like tons of times where somebody in the band does something that is unexpected and were all just like “Woah!” so that like, his band really, when i play other music now i long for that freedom that we have in this thing, like it's the most supportive free, unlimited thing i've ever been apart of. It can be anything at any time. We're always working from the song, like it's about that song but like it could change L: Yeah like that the road map and we allow ourselves to take it where we want to take it, you know? C:Yeah it's different every time in a way. L: And i think a lot of bands do, like a lot of bands have, in terms of recorded music, is you know, a little more thought out and planned this particular way or produced in a particular way and that's sort of the fun of a live show, being able to expand on what you've done with the record. C: A lot of people don't, this is my opinion i mean, i know that speaking personally a lot of times i'll take a chance, and there's always a risk involved in improvisation, like if you're truly improvising you're playing something completely spontaneous, not this tried and true thing that you know is going to work. So sometimes it doesn't really work.And sometimes i'll play stuff that is just like not. The price of that risk is that sometimes you do fall down or whatever for a second, but because we know each other and we respect the musicianship we can always pick it back up  and often times the guidance won't even know that there was something weird but it's like the cost of admission for truly improvisation is being willing to take that chance to do something and maybe it doesn't work. N: Well i'm definitely going to listen to this CD. Check out Planet Radio's debut album at Mill no’ 5 tomorrow at 7:30. Thanks.

[wuml-blog]

"Velvet Portraits" by Jimmy Keeley This is some hip shit. Terrace Martin incorporates a lot of different textures and instruments than the traditional Jazz artists. The influence of outside genres is also prevalent throughout this album through the use of synthesizers, blues/funk guitar licks, and extended techniques implemented on the saxophone. Some songs are more characteristic of the Jazz fusion style, but there are other songs that lean more towards R&B as well as funk.This makes the album easy to listen to, and there is almost never a dull moment. There is a song for everyone on this album because of the variety of styles accentuated on this record. The album was also recorded live, which adds a personal and raw element to the music. It's an entertaining album with special moments throughout that you need to experience for yourself. I highly recommend listening to this album from top to bottom if you have the chance. Give the album a listen here

[wuml-blog]

Weekly Concert Update 4/28/16

Thursday, April 28

THE LUNA SESSIONS - The Luna Theater, Mill No. 5 8:05PM

BEES DELUXE - The Back Page 9:00PM

Saturday, April 30

PERSPECTIVE, A LOVELY HAND TO HOLD / SPORTS. / BAY FACTION / SLEEPING PATTERNS / MOTEL TV / MALLCOPS - The Onyx Room 5:30PM

BUNNY BOY / MICHAEL MURPHY / LAUREN HURLEY - Coffee and Cotton, Mill No. 5 7:30PM

TOM DOWD - The Back Page 9:00PM

[wuml-blog]

ALBUM REVIEW: "Saint Paul" - Endless Mike and the Beagle Club By Jon Garniss Woo! First ever music spotlight on the brand spanking new WUML blog! I had the opportunity to interview a wonderfully talented musician that goes by the name of The Homeless Gospel Choir the other day to promote his upcoming show right here in Lowell, Mass. Speaking of the band he was touring with, he said “They’re like if the E Street Band and Bad Brains were the same band." Fuck, he was right. After seeing them live, I picked up the CD that they had for sale at their merch table. The next day, I had a long drive ahead of me, so I popped the CD in and hit play. What came out of my speakers for the next hour or so was some of the tightest playing and songwriting I have ever heard. At times, the album bounces and floats, with soaring strings and multi-part harmonies, and at others, it cuts deep with distortion, dissonance, and melancholy protest. This album is a complete album, not a compilation of songs, simultaneously optimistic and cynical of human nature. This album is an album that proves that punk can be whatever it wants. It doesn’t need to be amplified, intense, and simple. It is allowed to be acoustic, subdued, and complex. You can do whatever you want, get over it. I’m not going to do a track by track breakdown of this album, but I am going to tell you that you should go out and get this album, or maybe, you know, hit up their bandcamp, whatever works. 9/10 Listen to the album here

[wuml-blog]

Thursday, April 21

THE LUNA SESSIONS - Luna Theater, Mill No. 5 8:05 PM

PRONOID / CROWN THE YOUTH / NEVERSLEEP / AMATEUR ATHLETES - UnchARTed Art Gallery 9:00 PM

LUX - The Back Page 9:00PM

Friday, April 22

BOX OF BIRDS - Coffee and Cotton, Mill No. 5 7:30 PM

KREWE DE GROOVE - The Back Page 9:00 PM

Saturday, April 23

VOCALITY - Mill No. 5 7:00 PM

BUNNY BOY / MICHAEL MURPHY / LAUREN HURLEY - Coffee and Cotton, Mill No. 5 7:30 PM

HAL HOLIDAY AND THE TONES - The Back Page 9:00 PM

Sunday, April 24

WE’RE GHOSTS NOW / FUN WHILE YOU WAIT / NASHOBA - The Hi-Hat, Mill No. 5 7:00 PM

DJ SLIPPAZ & SNOW - Dudley’s 8:00 PM

Tuesday, April 26

THE JAZZ PUNISHERS - The Back Page 9:00 PM

Wednesday, April 27

BIRDSONG AT MORNING - Coffee and Cotton, Mill No. 5 7:30 PM

UMASS LOWELL STRING ENSEMBLE - Durgin Hall, UMass Lowell 8:00 PM

STEVE CLEMENT’S FAMOUS OPEN MIC - The Back Page 9:00 PM

[wuml-blog]

Thursday, April 14

THE LUNA SESSIONS - Luna Theater, Mill No. 5 8:05 PM

JENNY AND THE GENTS - The Back Page 9:00 PM

Friday, April 15

JON KOHEN - Coffee and Cotton, Mill No. 5 7:30 PM

EXPLORERS OF THE MIND - UnchARTed Art Gallery 9:00 PM

CHRIS FITZ - The Back Page - 9:00 PM

Saturday, April 16

BUNNY BOY / MICHAEL MURPHY / LAUREN HURLEY - Coffee and Cotton, Mill No. 5 7:30 PM

THOUGHT ABOUT THE PYRAMIDS / PROFESSOR CAFFEINE AND THE INSECURITIES / BROOK PRIDEMORE / TROLL 2 - The Tip 8:00 PM

MCKINLEY’S MOOD - The Back Page 9:00 PM

HARRY BORSCH AND THE SQUIRES OF SOUL - Thirsty First 10:00 PM

Sunday, April 17

JULIE DOHERTY - Coffee and Cotton, Mill No. 5 1:30 PM

DJ SLIPPAZ & SNOW - Dudley’s 8:00 PM

Tuesday, April 19

THE JAZZ PUNISHERS - The Back Page 9:00 PM

Wednesday, April 20

BIRDSONG AT MORNING - Coffee and Cotton, Mill No. 5 7:30 PM

STEVE CLEMENT’S FAMOUS OPEN MIC - The Back Page 9:00 PM

[wuml-blog]

JOYWAVE/MIKAELA DAVIS/KOPPS

BOSTON--This show was the biggest small show I have ever been to and was also filled with more surprises than a haunted house. These three bands from Rochester that performed on this October night left you satisfied while still yearning for more.

I wasn’t expecting to see choreographed guitarists and bassists, but that’s what KOPPS, the opener, gave me. They didn’t ever stop--I expected their energy to leak out onto the street. They got the crowd jumping and dancing and set a very high bar which would end up being broken by the next two acts by the end of the show.

The next act, Mikaela Davis brought with her a 70s vibe and a harp. You read that right. With her Rock Horror Picture Show shirt and lights strung about her harp she transported me somewhere else during that set. I now understand why angels are often depicted carrying harps with them, albeit small ones. Her set was a complete 180 from KOPPS, but that doesn’t mean she wasn’t as amazing. She brought the crowd down from it’s KOPPS high and lead the crowd to a dreamlike world, while still keeping everyone warm for Joywave.

Joywave started and ended with intensity and Destruction. Literally and figuratively. Pulling most of their set from their most recent album How Do You Feel Now? Joywave is what really made this whole show feel as though we were not in the itty bitty Brighton Music Hall. I felt as though I were in an arena or stadium, the crowd maybe stopped jumping two, maybe three times during their seventeen-song set. They ended with Somebody New, but made the crowd work for their encore by chanting “Three more songs!” until they were satisfied. Two songs later, they start playing their hit single Tongues, bringing KOPPS onto the stage to perform with them but never finished because they brought this show back to the beginning, playing Destruction once more, bringing the energy of the show to it’s peak--I’m surprised the building didn’t collapse from everyone jumping so much. They left the crowd feeling breathless and satisfied, for they had brought everything full-circle and transported me back from a stadium, to this little hall.

Before the show, I sat down with Paul from Joywave and talked about everything from Halloween, to pizza, to Big Data. This interview is available here!

[wuml-blog]

WUML goes to Brew'd Awakening

By Santiago Rodriguez Rey 

It helps us in the morning to wake up, it’s the Goose to your Maverick on a first date ( 80’s reference, “Top Gun” is great movie guys), or it’s your study partner on a long study night; coffee is there to help and support. Not long ago one of Lowell’s local coffee stores decided to upgrade its love for the bean based beverage and started roasting.

WUML was invited into Lowell Makes by Andy, owner of the local coffee house and student favorite A Brew'd Awakening, to see the result of his recent Kickstarter campaign that allowed him to start roasting beans locally, allowing him to experiment with different temperatures adding his personal touch to his brewings. His roaster puts all beans through a scientifically precise process to give us that perfect taste Brew'd is known for!

Andy showed us the beans he imports monthly and explained where each type come from, carefully measuring them out into the perfect amounts and preparing them for roasting. After all the feedback he receives from customers, Andy has spent a lot of time working on the perfect recipe. He roasts his beans daily and makes sure that every day, the citizens of Lowell have access to the perfect cup of coffee!

You can try a cup of your own, or one of their many other products at 61 Market St. in downtown Lowell! Students may take the yellow line and walk, or ask to be dropped off at Market St. after 7pm on weekdays!

[wuml-blog]

Palma Violets w/ Public Access T.V. at the Great Scott (5/19)

By: Victoria Kurker

On Tuesday, May 19th the Palma Violets made their way over the pond and played at the Great Scott in Allston. The venue, if you are not familiar with the Great Scott, is an old fashioned bar with a stage set in the back. Before the Palma Violets took the stage, Public Access T.V. opened up the show. These guys are a four piece post-punk band from New York City that has been playing for only a year. Their sound was upbeat and fun as they jammed on their guitars and got people pumped for the upcoming Palma Violets. Their vocalist, John Eatherly, was great as he jumped around the stage playing his guitar. Public Access T.V. were clearly loving the venues vibe. Members of Palma Violets even went into the crowd to jam along to their music and enjoy the show before they took the stage.

When the Palma Violets took the stage the whole place exploded with applause, people were clearly in love with this indie rock band from London. The Palma Violets had a great set bringing back some classics like “Best of Friends” and “Step Up for the Cool Cats”. The whole place was grooving with the band and moshing up front. People were screaming out lyrics and enjoying these energetic boys blasting their songs. The bassist, Alexander "Chilli" Jesson, had great energy, interacting with the crowd. At one point he grabbed a tambourine, banging it, and then throwing it behind him, going right back into singing lyrics and pounding out a bass line. The lead singer, Samuel Thomas Fryer, looked cool in his hat and had such a magnetic presence on stage, almost like a punk Van Morrison. All in all, the Palma Violets concert was fantastic and they are definitely a band to keep an eye out for if they stop by to do a live show again.