Call it ferocity in domesticity rather than fully tamed. Rob Rase is sitting in the home recording studio in the Westside home he shares with wife, Brenda Kato. Sleeved and legged in tattoos, sporting a Rat Town Records t-shirt, Rase grins as he shows off the gear he’s assembled in a relatively short time. The studio doubles as a practice …
Playlist | April’s Best New Music
boygenius, Pearl & The Oysters, Sunny War, Angel Olsen and more.
Featuring a few dozen new tunes from local, regional, national and international artists, our Fresh Squeeze playlist includes the best new music emanating from Northeast Florida and beyond. Handpicked by our team of contributors, there are no rules or genre restrictions; just songs we thought were worth a share. Our latest Fresh Squeeze playlist includes music from supergroup boygenius‘ monumental new …
Wynton Marsalis, Dirty Dozen Brass Band, Samara Joy, Ulysses Owens Jr. and More to Play 2023 Jacksonville Jazz Festival
For more than 40 years, the Jacksonville Jazz Festival has brought international jazz legends and emerging artists, as well as offering local musicians the chance to be seen and heard. Held every Memorial Day Weekend, the festival attracts jazz fans from around the globe to soak up some (hopefully) warmer weather and cool sounds on different stages. This year is …
For the beloved trio’s return, Nickel Creek created its own world
The opening song and title track of Nickel Creek‘s fifth studio album, Celebrants, poses a striking image: “Heaven’s always been in this cathedral that we rebuild nightly together.” The line conjures the fantastical and the spiritual, but, at its heart, the song celebrates something simple, even ordinary: choosing to come together in community. It’s an idea made quietly radical not …
Durand Bernarr | Tiny Desk Concert
Durand Bernarr is an experience. At the Tiny Desk, members of his band — clad in costumes evoking characters from the Disney Channel animated series The Proud Family — surrounded Bernarr, outfitted in a white and magenta sequined ensemble with a wig styled in a pompadour, channeling the electric energy of the soul and funk singer of the Proud Family, …
On Eureka Springs’ “Nothing Quite Like,” Jax Singer-Songwriter Cory Driscoll Balances the Light and Dark
The latest from Duval singer-songwriter Cory Driscoll is an impressive mix of what could be described as cheery morosity—no small feat when one considers the “ship in a bottle” delicacy of penning a tune, about love no less, that is neither grinningly hypomanic nor headed for the psych ward. “Nothing Quite Like” is the first song of Driscoll’s new full-band …
It Could Happen To You | Playing One Tune with Jazz Great Bunky Green
As I have traveled the world as a jazz musician from Jacksonville, I’ve found that there are only a few jazz musicians from Northeast Florida that everyone recognizes. Globally, saxophonist Bunky Green is at the top of that list. In 2015 I was on tour with Christian McBride Trio when we played a concert at Wigmore Hall. I remember running …
Ryuichi Sakamoto, a godfather of electronic pop, has died
Ryuichi Sakamoto, a trailblazing composer and producer who was one of the first musicians to incorporate electronic production into popular songcraft, has died at the age of 71. Sakamoto died on March 28 after a multi-year battle with cancer, according to a statement published on his website Sunday. “We would like to share one of Sakamoto’s favorite quotes,” the statement …
Yves Tumor’s disruptive pop-cultural synthesis
The latest Yves Tumor album begins with a scream and ends with a call to lock eyes. A project with the koan-like title Praise A Lord Who Chews But Which Does Not Consume; (Or Simply, Hot Between Worlds) might seem like it’s obscuring or even deliberately thumbing its nose at meaning, but the carnal bookending of a scream and a …
The Beths | Tiny Desk Concert
If you squint hard enough at the paper in front of Elizabeth Stokes, you’ll find an encouraging note she wrote to herself: Breathe. Relax. Smile. (followed by a hand-drawn smiley face, of course). We get it: The Tiny Desk is filmed in broad daylight, at eye level, in front of NPR employees and, eventually, is released to “the inside of …
The Best Concerts in Jacksonville This Week | April 3-9
Jax River Jams, Sleeping Giant Fest and more.
Our weekly Go concert recommendations are updated every Monday morning and are always available on jaxmusic.org. For the comprehensive list of this week’s concerts, go to our live music calendar page. Blues Jimmie Vaughan – Tuesday, April 4 PV Concert Hall | Ponte Vedra Texas blues guitarist Jimmie Vaughan returns to Northeast Florida, performing at the PV Concert Hall with his Tilt-a-Whirl Band on …
On “King Kong,” Jax Duo Jawberry Unleashes a Monster Mashup of Indie, Grunge and Hip Hop
The latest from Jawberry, the collab project from local indies Huan (aka Juan Mallorca) and Rockbot Studios owner Josh Cobb, “King Kong” mashes up prominent ‘90s guitar-slack-and-hip-hop styles into three-minutes of casually retro-vibed, upbeat rock, with a riff that is maybe one chord from a “Smells Like Teen Spirit” lawsuit. A minor sin, considering the legion of songwriters that have …
Jax Indie-Rock Band flipturn on the JME Soundstage
Indie-rock band flipturn is ascendant. The Fernandina-founded, now-Jax-based quintet is probably the biggest Jacksonville-music success story since Black Kids blew up in the early aughts. Watch flipturn, as well as performance videos of other local and nationally touring artists on our NPR Live Sessions Page On the strength Shadowglow, their debut for unimpeachably cool boutique label Dualtone (Shovels & Rope, …
Unknown Mortal Orchestra’s Ruban Nielson on the family-inspired new album ‘V’
Unknown Mortal Orchestra’s sound is something of a mystery. While it’s bathed in a lo-fi aesthetic, it has managed to evolve and grow through genres such a psychedelic, punk and even disco through the band’s decade-plus making music. UMO is back now with its latest album, V, bathing this time in the pools of Palm Springs and oceans of Hawaii …
San Diego Surf-Jazz Duo Mattson 2 to Play Hotel Palms in Atlantic Beach
We’re stoked to welcome world-renowned surf-jazz duo the Mattson 2 to Jacksonville as part of our JME Presents Music Discovery Series. The San Diego based duo, made up of twin brothers Jonathan and Jared Mattson, will perform at the Hotel Palms in Atlantic Beach on Wednesday, April 12. Over the last decade-plus, the Mattsons have consistently displayed a kind of …
Preview | Jax rock quartet Skyview tells its celestial stories at Underbelly
Skyview is doing some of the most interesting stuff in the rock genre right now, and if you don’t believe me, just ask them. Seriously, though, Evan Smith and his colleagues are justifiably proud of what they’ve accomplished in their current incarnation, and they promote themselves with gusto. It’s not so much a matter of personal pride, though, so much …
After allegations against Win Butler, an existential crisis lingers for Montréal
“I usually write,” Élise Jetté laughs. “It’s hard to speak about a very emotional subject like this one.” The freelance music journalist had always been a fan of Arcade Fire. More than just one of her favorite bands, Arcade Fire defined her career. The band that made her a music journalist. As a young student at Université de Sherbrooke, she …
Famed EDM DJ and Producer Deorro on His Ultra Music Festival Debut
Miami’s Ultra Music Festival, which is billed as “the world’s premiere electronic music festival,” is right around he corner. The three-day fest returns to Bayfront Park in downtown Miami March 24-26, and will once again serve as the grand finale to Miami Music Week, an annual marathon of electronic music events. We recently spoke to DJ and producer Deorro, who will …
Jacksonville Saxophonist and Improvisational Musician Jamison Williams’ Peels Away the Brass on the 38-Minute “Mary Blair”
Saxophonist and multi-reed polymath Jamison Williams continues to uncover a vast realm contained in the proverbial small world within the greater corpus-universe of Walt Disney. Williams is amassing a daunting body of work: dozens of massive and miniature projects, released in various formats from limited-edition lathe cuts and hardcopy books to direct downloads. Recorded in NYC, “Mary Blair” is his …
Jax Indie-Folk Faves Bobby Kid Return Just In Time with the Tearjerking “Ten Minutes Late”
Get the tissue box ready before listening to Bobby Kid’s newest single. On “Ten Minutes Late,” the popular local indie-folk band — made up of Anna Lester (vocals and guitar), Brian Lester (drums), Phillip Hess (lead guitar), Daniel Hubert Jr. (bass) and Caleb Hollan (pianist) — tells a story of familial loss, love that was once shared and the reminiscence …
Celebrated Guitarist Eli Winter on his Early Influences, his Eponymously-Titled New Album and More
When 20th-century occultist-artist Austin Osman Spare remarked that, “It was the straying that found the path direct,” he could have been anticipating the peripatetic ways of guitarist Eli Winter. Granted, the British magician died nearly 70 years ago and Winter was born in 1997. Yet the Chicago-born Winter has packed a lot of experiential wallop and road miles in a …
Electropop Duo LANNDS on the Creative Process Behind “Blueprint” from their Estimable Debut LP
Welcome to Jacksonville Music Experience’s Songwriting School, where we talk to local songwriters about how they wrote one specific song. Rania Woodard and Brian Squillace of LANNDS met here in Jacksonville and have been making psychedelic electropop together since 2016, releasing singles and EPs regularly. On March 3, LANNDS released their first-ever full-length album, Music for the Future (Run for …
Best Concerts in Jacksonville this Week | March 20-26
Our weekly Go concert recommendations are updated every Monday morning and are always available on jaxmusic.org. For the comprehensive list of this week’s concerts, go to our live music calendar page. Folk Eli Winter, Eureka Springs – Thursday, March 23 The Walrus | Murray Hill Buzzed-about guitarist Eli Winter plays The Walrus with support from Cory Driscoll’s Eureka Springs band on Thursday. Read Winter’s …
The St. Johns Meets the Seine on the Debut from Lonely Rose
The St. Johns River merges with the Seine on the debut from transcontinental group, Lonely Rose. The track “Tonight is Yours (Ce soir est à toi)” from the group’s debut, French Love Songs, is a blues-meets-chanson hybrid which, according to band founder and lyricist William Sims, is the look into the mind of a heroine in a fugue of forlorn, …
On “Mistakes With The Bottle,” Singer-Producer Luci Lind Pours from His Deep Well of Melody and Empathy
Though he’s been releasing DIY singles since 2018, Jax bedroom-pop singer-songwriter-producer Luci Lind has lately been honing his craft, dropping a torrent of new music and delighting crowds with raucous, energetic sets at Murray Hill’s The Walrus; he was also, most recently, an early-afternoon-crowd fave at this year’s Winterland music festival. Lind’s latest, “Mistakes With The Bottle,” showcases the artist’s …
On “On Your Line,” Jax’s Rambler Kane Dispenses Honky-Tonk Allegory Over a Country-Rock Stomp
“On Your Line,” the latest from Jacksonville singer-songwriter Rambler Kane is a three-minute stomp of country-rock choogle that serves up facets of the form—a relentless rhythm section in two-four, rolling finger-picked acoustic, and some tasty Hank Garland-style electric soloing—and Kane’s winning lyrics that are a honky-tonk allegory about fishing in the neon bar lights, and getting caught up; hook, line, …
Louder Than A Riot Returns Thursday, March 16
New season explores the sexist prejudice against Black women in hip hop.
We’re supposedly living in a renaissance for Black women and queer folks in hip-hop, with so many running the game. But if you’re one of those people at the top, you’ve definitely come into contact with one of the most constraining forces in the culture: misogynoir, or the sexist prejudice against Black women specifically. Louder Than A Riot is a …
Join us at SXSW as Thee Sacred Souls, DEBBY FRIDAY, Hermanos Gutiérrez Perform on Public Radio Stage
SXSW, the week-long music industry (et al) gathering in Austin, Texas is in full-swing. And the Jacksonville Music Experience is there, too… kind of. As a Public Media organization and member station of NPR Music’s Live Sessions, we’re helping to welcome four emerging artists to the Public Radio Day Stage at SXSW. On Friday, March 17, San Diego soul trio …
With “La La,” Jax Progressive-Soul Duo Bright Purpel has Preemptively Bloomed the Local Song of the Summer
A strong lead-in track from the equally consistent Colors, the debut album from Duval progressive-soul duo Bright Purpel, “La La” is the summertime jam of 2023; bloomed early in the spring. A three-minute paen to being blindsided by love, a fat-free-and-lean production (including tasty brass and a savvy loop of “La La” that is an electro-percussive force unto itself), and …
Mama’s Broke | Tiny Desk Concert
A couple of chairs, a small room and a cozy crowd describes the last eight years of tour stops for Mama’s Broke. Having performed in intimate venues including homes and cabins, as well as stages, being at the Tiny Desk may have felt right at home for the Canadian duo. Lisa Maria Bates and Amy Lou Keeler make powerful songs …
Lynyrd Skynyrd founding member Gary Rossington dies at 71
Gary Rossington, Lynyrd Skynyrd’s last surviving original member who also helped to found the group, died Sunday at the age of 71. No cause of death was given. “It is with our deepest sympathy and sadness that we have to advise, that we lost our brother, friend, family member, songwriter and guitarist, Gary Rossington, today,” the band wrote on Facebook. …
Artsy Jax Noise Duo golfer two’s ‘bl00db4th6000’ is Four Minutes of Enjoyable Unorthodoxy
Jacksonville experimental outfit golfer two recently released a new album, bl00db4th6000, that assuredly has regional noise acts shaking in their hand-me-down boots. The duo’s unimpeachably-DIY and innovative psychoactive sound has hit the market (see: bandcamp) and unlike the infamous synthetic amphetamine that led to an albeit short-lived trend of face-eating in Miami, golfer two’s album is labeled for human consumption. …
2023 is the Magic Number | For generations of rap fans, De La Soul was a phantom. Welcome to a new age
For a long time, De La Soul tracks felt like Easter eggs, littered across the landscape for only the most enterprising young rap fans to stumble across. My first conscious encounter with one of their cuts was hammering away at the “Race for the Heisman” mode on NCAA Football 06 for Playstation 2, grinding to turn my unheralded college running …
Wayne Shorter, sage of the saxophone, dies at 89
Updated March 2, 2023 at 1:58 PM ET Wayne Shorter, the 12-time Grammy-winning saxophonist and composer and the creator of one of the singular sounds in contemporary jazz over more than half a century, died on Thursday, March 2 in Los Angeles. Shorter was 89 years old. Cem Kurosman, a publicist at Blue Note Records, which released Shorter’s recent recordings, …
Jax Hip-Hop Group L.O.V.E. Culture Shares New Video, Provides Update on East Coast Tour
When it came time to curate our 2023 Jacksonville Artists to Watch list, we made a concerted effort to not repeat any artists from the previous year’s list. In the case of Duval hip-hop collective L.O.V.E. Culture, we made an exception. If they ever hit a ceiling at all after the release of their debut full-length, 1827 N Pearl, in …
Playlist | March’s Best New Music
Featuring a few dozen new tunes from local, regional, national and international artists, our Fresh Squeeze playlist features the best new music emenanating from Northeast Florida and beyond. Handpicked by our team of contributors, there are no rules or genre restrictions; just songs we thought were worth a share. Our latest Fresh Squeeze playlist includes music from Gorillaz, whose new record is …