Contrary to the sparkle-and-shine of current Logic/Pro Tools recording-gloss readily available for independent bedroom artists, local singer-songwriter Kithera opts for a low(er)-fi production, to great effect, on “The sun could explode tomorrow and I’d still be asleep.” A two-chord ballad that’s just on the side of being in tune, the four-minutes of “The sun” sits squarely in the covenant of …
Our weekly Go concert recommendations are updated every Monday morning. For a comprehensive list of this week’s concerts, go to our live music calendar page. Indie Rock/Electronic Cindy Lee – Tuesday, October 31 The Walrus | Murray Hill Canadian indie-rock singer-songwriter Cindy Lee and fellow Canucks Freak Heat Waves visit the Walrus on Halloween night, with support from Jax’s Severed+Said, Golden Clouds and more. …
Formidable but wholly invitational, Stop Time is an impressive time capsule of high-potency NYC free jazz. On the track “Untitled III,” the trio of drummer Barry Altschul, double bassist David Izenzon and clarinetist Perry Robinson bring the goods and then some on this 1978 previously unreleased live performance. The players were progenitors of the ’60s free jazz and ‘70s loft …
The Austin, Texas, duo Black Pumas drew album-of-the-year nods when they dropped their self-titled debut in 2019. Now the group is back with its long-awaited followup, Chronicles of a Diamond, a scruffy, fuzzed-out soul and psych-rock album anchored by singer Eric Burton’s unforgettable voice. We give Chronicles of a Diamond a spin to kick off this week’s show and talk …
Media Contact: Neily Braren, Promotion & Marketing Associate 904.318.2633 • nbraren@wjct.org WJCT Public Media to Celebrate Public Radio Music Day on October 25 Non-commercial music stations will highlight how they uplift and elevate local artists and communities through this commemorative celebration JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – October 25, 2023 – WJCT Public Media announced today that the station will participate in the …
There’s a sweet moment between songs when Nora Brown and Stephanie Coleman reminisce about their love for traditional banjo and fiddle tunes. Speaking about the “The Old Blue Bonnet,” banjo picker Nora Brown says she first heard the song when she was about 10 or 11. That puts a grin on fiddler Stephanie Coleman’s face, as she chimes in to …
The first single from his forthcoming album Philanthropy, the six-minute “Nature” from Hauschka is a prime nominee for the gallery space playlist. The alter-ego of Academy Award and BAFTA-winning German composer-pianist Volker Bertelmann, Hauschka is adroit at blending arch-conceptual experimentalism and pop-ambient soundtrack work. His elegiac score for last year’s antiwar epic film All Quiet on the Western Front snagged him …
Jordan Ward showed up to NPR headquarters radiating with a warm energy that felt familiar, like linking up with your favorite cousins at the cookout. After all, the immense amount of creativity and synergy displayed by Ward and his bandmates during this Tiny Desk performance is indicative of pure fellowship. The St. Louis-bred singer-songwriter started his professional career as a …
Purveyor of certi-fried guitar pop Kurt Vile has announced Back to Moon Beach, a new collection, which — featuring an hour-plus worth of music — stretches the agreed-upon definition of EP. It’s Vile’s first new music since 2022’s watch my moves. Last week the Philadelphia-bred musician shared “Another good year for the roses,” a catchy, arpeggiated-piano-driven number that features both …
In late May, Jacksonville-based act Chalooby dropped Bloom FM, an 11-track offering of dream pop that serves as a worthy and divergent follow up to 2022’s hazy long player, lofi love. Chalooby is the brainchild of local singer-songwriter Micah George. While he offers that the sound was inspired by everything from ‘60s surf rock to ‘80s synth pop — or …
Too electrified to be fully twee, too melodious for mere jagged guitar-rock, Australian alt-rockers Middle Kids work the middle path and serve up an above-par crackler with their latest single, “Dramamine.” A heads-up from their forthcoming third album, Faith Crisis Pt 1, the three-minute upbeat “Dramamine” fires up with an Afropop-leaning guitar figure but then takes a nice bite out …
While a broken heart isn’t required for romance, it seems like something has to give. Cindy Lee, the creative alter-ego of Patrick Flegel, is a bridge between the reverb-rich music of ‘60s girl groups and the guitar freefall of indie rock. Following the 2012 dissolution of Flegel’s former Canadian band Women, Flegel began releasing music as their drag queen persona: …
Our weekly Go concert recommendations are updated every Monday morning. For a comprehensive list of this week’s concerts, go to our live music calendar page. R&B/Pop Billy Ocean – Wednesday, October 25 Thrasher Horne Center | Orange Park The international pop sensation Billy Ocean is 73-years young and still going strong. He’ll bring his radio smashes, including “Caribbean Queen” and “Get Outta My Dreams, …
Local indie-rock act Bad Madonna have shared their first new material as a four-piece, the spiky anti-judgment anthem “Vicious Party Girl,” ahead of a single release show on October 20, at The Block Skate Supply in Springfield, with an accompanying music video due out Friday, October 27. On “Vicious Party Girl,” singer-songwriter Alexis Rhode, guitarist Dylan Young and bassist Storm …
U.K. singer-songwriter Sampha has become a go-to guest vocalist for artists such as Kendrick Lamar, Drake, Alicia Keys, Frank Ocean, Solange and Stormzy. Naturally, he’s got a distinctive, genre-blending style as a solo artist, too: Sampha’s second full-length album, LAHAI, showcases his vulnerability, growth and gorgeous vocals, which can sound both timelessly familiar and futuristic, often simultaneously. We’ve also got …
Bristol’s IDLES have always been a band to smile with a mouthful of blood, but on their newly announced fifth album TANGK (Feb. 16, 2024, Partisan Records), previewed via lead single and video “DANCER” this week, the hard-nosed English rockers don’t just smile—they dance, too. TANGK—“pronounced ‘tank’ with a whiff of the ‘g’ and an onomatopoeic reference to the lashing …
The enigmatic singer-songwriter who performs under the name Bonnie “Prince” Billy and acts in films as Will Oldham has announced 2023-2024 tour dates. Beginning in mid-October and including multi-night runs in New York and Philadelphia, the tour will bring Oldham to the Sunshine State with a stop at Intuition Ale Works in Jacksonville on January 18. “If you’re in Florida we …
Carla Bley, the pianist behind some of the most beloved compositions in the jazz canon, who recorded over two dozen albums between 1966 and 2019, died Tuesday. Her death was confirmed by her husband and longtime collaborator, bassist Steve Swallow; the cause given was complications from brain cancer. She was 87. Bley was a force in jazz even before she …
Media Contact: Neily Braren, Promotion & Marketing Associate 904.318.2633 • nbraren@wjct.org WJCT Announces New Additions to Board of Trustees Brian Bush, Anne K. Madsen, George E. Maxey and Kimmie Winston elected at the annual meeting JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – October 17, 2023 – WJCT Public Media today announced four new additions to its Board of Trustees, along with the election of …
The latest from K.UTIE is a genre-shifter for the changing of seasons, with enough high-gloss soul to usher in the cooler weather. Produced by Mantra, “Trance” serves up three strong minutes of hypnotizing sliding synths, switched-up percussion to keep things in motion, propelled by jabs of bass, as K.UTIE sings about being both mesmerized by—and questioning of—the daze of love: …
As the venerable Jacksonville Symphony edges closer to its 75th year of operation, the future is looking brighter than ever for Northeast Florida’s premier cultural institution. With dozens of concerts and other events scheduled for the 2023-2024 season, not only is there something for everyone this year, there are actually several things for everyone. The season is already underway, so let’s …
From Isola Collective, the St. Augustine-based queer music collective who brought you Kids in Their Cars, comes the new band Spotless Record, who recently shared “Sertraline Dream,” the first single from their forthcoming debut album growing pains. The Isola Collective thread begins with this summer’s mary st. demos, the first EP of three from Kids in Their Cars that will …
Allow Wahid to reintroduce himself: The Orlando-born and -based rapper with Jamaican roots, a rapid-fire flow, and a subtly reggae and dancehall-influenced sound has shared WILT/CORNERSTONE, his two-track debut EP on eclectic Los Angeles-based indie label Innovative Leisure. The record might as well be the first flaps of a phoenix’s wings, which brings us to the ashes: Wahid co-founded nine-person …
The members of experimental rock group All Them Witches met in Nashville in the early 2010s. That may seem like a curious locale for a band whose music has more in common with the sonic experimentation of “Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds” than it does the country garb of denim and rhinestones. “Nashville has always had a really excellent …
It’s been a breakout year for Asheville indie-rock quintet Wednesday, and the momentum generated by the band’s latest and greatest album Rat Saw God is poised to carry them right into 2024: Karly Hartzman and company have announced the expansion of their current tour with new U.S. dates, including a February stop at Jack Rabbits, and a documentary on their …
Australian psych band, the aptly-yet-archly named Psychedelic Porn Crumpets are currently stomping through the US on a month-long North American tour with fellow noisy experimentalists, the Austin-based group Nolan Potter’s Nightmare Band. The tour hits the Sunshine State in mid-October, with a stop at Jack Rabbits in Jacksonville on Friday, October 20. The Crumpets’ latest, the 2022 full-length album Night …
Legend is a word thrown around far too often. But if there was ever an artist the word “legend” applies to, it would be Smokey Robinson. The iconic songwriter, producer and vocalist was not only a key architect of the Motown sound, but also R&B and soul music as a whole. His uncanny ability to craft tender and catchy romantic …
The title track from Duval singer-songwriter Jeremy Marshall Blanton‘s Strange Cargo EP dropped in mid-October and it’s a certain gem for anyone seeking local musical treasure. While Blanton has worked with estimable area acts including Robert Lester Folsom, Dean Winter and the Heat and Strangerwolf, the flavors Blanton serves up on his debut EP are surely his own. The intro …
On Thursday, November 2, guitarist Martin Barre brings his current tour A Brief History of Tull, to the Florida Theatre. Barre has arguably come full circle. The longtime Jethro Tull guitarist was born in Birmingham, U.K., a working-class town that also produced other formidable ‘60s musicians who went on to form The Move, Traffic and Black Sabbath. Influenced by jazz …
Our weekly Go concert recommendations are updated every Monday morning. For a comprehensive list of this week’s concerts, go to our live music calendar page. Folk/Pop The Head and the Heart – Wednesday, October 18 The Amp | St. Augustine Seattle indie-folk-pop act the Head and the Heart return to the St. Augustine Amphitheatre on Wednesday. Singer-songwriter Amanda Shires opens the show. More Rock/Psych …
We didn’t get a chance to hear Bad Bunny’s new album, Nadie Sabe Lo Que Va A Pasar Mañana, prior to taping this week’s episode. But we did hit some of the other records that highlight a busy week of new releases. Australian singer and actor Troye Sivan put out one of this year’s late-breaking Song Of The Summer contenders …
Pioneering folk-punks Violent Femmes will reissue their self-titled debut with planned digital Deluxe edition release in December and a box-set edition in February. The reissue features numerous b-sides, alternative takes and never-before-heard live performances by the core Midwest trio. The group recently shared the first single from the special anniversary reissue, a live take of the spunky lovesick classic “Gone …
Media Contact: Neily Braren, Promotion & Marketing Associate 904.318.2633 • nbraren@wjct.org WJCT Public Media Selects Anne Schindler to Host “First Coast Connect”Accomplished producer, journalist and editor will begin Monday, October 30 JACKSONVILLE, Fla., Oct. 12, 2023 — WJCT Public Media today announced the selection of Anne Schindler as the permanent host of “First Coast Connect,” WJCT News 89.9’s flagship daily …
Welcome to Songwriting School, where we talk to songwriters about the craft of songwriting. Jake Xerxes Fussell is a folk music treasure and something of a treasure hunter as well. In addition to singing and playing guitar, the Durham-based musician is regarded for his research methods. He finds Southern songs of yesteryear in archives and old field recordings. And after …
What began as a side project in 2020 for Jacksonville singer-songwriter Alissa Leonard (Isabella Parole, Manatella), Souvineer is now fleshed out as a four piece. The deceptively titled “Paradise” is surely not a jam for the Indian summer. Instead, we get a five-minute minor-key contemplation on the arrival of an imminent storm, amends and a paradise “that never ends.” Souvineer …
A longtime fixture on the NYC improvisation scene, violist-composer Jessica Pavone continues her forward-thinking musical endeavors with her latest release, Clamor. A four-movement suite performed by Pavone and a sextet of strings and woodwinds, each movement of Clamor is a kind of poignant homage to things that women have created as a subterfuge against systems put in place to confine …
