Blogs
WVAU Spring Prom
On April 24, we're excited to present WVAU PROM, a night of student DJ sets and a celebration of our community. If you missed out on Founder's Day, have no fear: WVAU Prom is here. Want to dance? Want to take fun photos with your friends Want to start those...
Zen Palette: An Exclusive Interview with Moving Castle
You'll always be able to find the squad lingering in the WVAU studio now with a can of QT. If you listen to my Sunday radio show Smoove Grooves, you might find that at least one song I play is usually from an artist that's part of the Internet-based,...
Live in the Hive: Quarterbacks
A few months back, Dean Engle of QUARTERBACKS dropped by the WVAU studio for a private session before the release of the band's debut self-titled album. In-between an intimate acoustic performance, Engle sat down with us and talked in detail about piecing the...
Joel Michael Howard, "Love as First Response" (Ernest Jenning)
A Journey from upbeat love to depressing heartbreak The organ, the quick strums of the guitar, and the keys. The instrumentation of Love as First Response sounds more like a 70s funk band than any indie band or artist that Joel Michael Howard has been opening for....
Weed, "Running Back" (Lefse)
“Dream-grungeÛTerrorbird Radio described Weed's sound as “dream-grunge,Ûand I think that's very accurate. There's a lot in their music that speaks to the dark, cold climate of the Pacific Northwest (I think, although I've never lived there) while drawing...
Nadine Shah, "Fast Food" (R&S/Apollo)
Can't fit this girl in a box!Fast Food opens with a very western, sort of galloping sound that makes a listener believe that we're about to go on a tour of the wild, wild west. But fear not (or lament depending on what you like, idk)! Shah, instead, paints a very...
American Wrestlers, "American Wrestlers" (Fat Possum)
Lo-fi, high quality indie guitar ballads First song in, and American Wrestlers has already got me feeling some type of way, as the kids say. But if its guitar grooves and moody DIY tunes don't have everyone feeling some type of way then I don't know what could. All...
Alison Wonderland, "Run" (Astralwerks)
Sassy electro-dubstep-dream-pop fusion that gets curiouser and curiouserMultitalented Producer/DJ/Singer Alison Wonderland lures you deep into the rabbit hole with glamorous, shimmery beats and smooth, electronic anthems that will have you listening to this album on...
The Very Best, "Makes A King" (Moshi Moshi)
Feels like you're by a Washington state waterfall The Very Best creates unusual beats from unusual sounds, but somehow it all comes together. One moment their music could be mistaken for reggae on an island (track 3) and the next song could sound like a rainy day in...
Toro Y Moi, "What For?" (Carpark)
Roadtrippin' in a Hotboxed CarIt makes sense the record opens with the scream of an F1 speeding around a racetrack. Something about this album makes it feel like it was meant for the road. Maybe it's the driving-but-laidback attitude exuding from the foggy guitars,...
Matt And Kim, "New Glow" (Harvest Records)
Head-pounding Indie-pop with strange integration of hip hop influenceMost would agree that Matt and Kim have one of the most unique sounds in Indie Pop- that's what's made them so successful. They have this way of combining sounds that most think wouldn't work...
Waxahatchee, "Ivy Tripp" (Merge Records)
Twangy punkish diary entries of a 20somethingKatie Crutchfield has spent a good portion of her adult life transcribing the honest experience of living into carefully spun songs with a hint of Alabama twang and a lot of influence from the Philly scene. Waxahatchee's...
Another Kind of Currency: The Jam, “The Eton RiflesÛ
Courtesy of The Guardian. The Jam was a band that I'd always meant to get into throughout high school. Digging through their extensive back catalog always seemed daunting to me, but then senior year of high school happened and senioritis struck. I had...
Feedback: Are Musical Genres Meaningless?
Courtesy of Click on English. These days no one's a philistine. You love a little bit of art some way or another unless you have literally lodged yourself under a rock. Even then I am sure some far-flung poem or portrait captures that subterranean...
The Tough Crowd: In the Bin at Joint Custody
I learned the hard way that Easter Sunday isn't exactly the best time to go record shopping. Luckily, punk rock never takes a break and Joint Custody was open till 8pm. This stroke of fate was good for this article but bad for my wallet. Now,...
Sufjan Stevens, "Carrie & Lowell" (Asthmatic Kitty)
The bohemian-folk golden boy goes back to his acoustic rootsSufjan Stevens' musical journey has left few territories uncharted - over the course of his career, the Detroit native has explored acoustic folk, ambient rock, orchestral ballads, electronic, and everything...
The One2s, "EP 2" (self-released)
Fuzzy pop-punk youthEP 2 offers a quick 5 track glimpse into the lo-fi, melodic pop-punk world full of potential for the One2s. “Cryer” is skuzzy, anthemic guitar track that is very angsty and shouty, whereas the drowsy, dreamy closer “Blank Stare” builds up into...
The Staves, "If I Was" (Atlantic)
Epic folk revival, the second comingThis trio of sisters produces sweet melodies that are deeply poignant. They harmonize over arrangements that always feel as if they are about to blow up into a a powerful climax of a chorus, taunting you until they raise their...
Boxed In, "Boxed In" (Nettwerk)
Relaxing-Yet-Upbeat Indie SuperalbumThis masterpiece of an album has something for everyone—though not mainstream, it's catchy and simple melodies market it easily to the masses; despite its upbeat tempo, the music has a calming and reassuring effect; thus are...
Tica Douglas, "Joey" (Swell)
Going on my “Girls Who Sing Softly” playlistPlease bear through this review with me, as I continuously pause to wipe away tears of a mixture of sorrow, beauty, regret, happiness, melancholy. I'm lying on a hammock, fulfilling that nostalgic polaroid photo that we...
Happyness, "Weird Little Birthday" (Rough Trade)
Delicately Refined AngstTo be quite honest, when I first downloaded Weird Little Birthday, the cover art immediately reminded me of Mac Demarco. But this is one of the instances when the banal platitude, “don't judge a book by its cover,” is exceptionally relevant....
Say Lou Lou, "Lucid Dreaming" (Cosmos)
The modern day electro-dream-pop girl band— the 2010s version of M2MTwin sister duo Say Lou Lou captures the listener with their accurately named electro-pop debut release, Lucid Dreaming. Breathy, soothing, layered vocals float in like a dream over piano driven...
Lower Dens, "Escape From Evil" (Domino)
Native American sounds plus the 80sThe Lower Dens have a very different — everything. In my opinion, their album cover is different, their band name is puzzling, and you just can't put a finger on their sound. It is quite a bouncy album yet pretty soft with...
Geronimo Getty, "Greyhound Blues" (self-released)
Concept album about a man with a hidden violent nature Greyhound Blues is the debut album from singer-songwriter Aaron Kyle's newish project Geronimo Getty. It is a concept album about the journey of a man with a hidden violent nature, though the music is more...
WVAU Presents: The Antlers with Boon
Poster designed by WVAU Art Department/Luke Palermo.WVAU is proud to present this spring's Capitol Punishment concert: The Antlers with Boon on Saturday, April 18th in the Abramson Family Founders Room in SIS at American University.Brooklyn-based indie rock act...
Zen Palette: Let’s Talk about the Women of Secret Songs
Courtesy of Stereogum. Recently, Pitchfork published an article about what's wrong with women in EDM. They used Skrillex and his label OWSLA as their main example of the problems in this genre. Responses to this article blew up over Twitter and launched another...
Porque no los Dos: Diego Torres
Courtesy of BBC Mundo. Too often I bump into 12-year-olds rapping about sex, money and cars as they play catch with their friends and drag an oversized backpack on one hand and a soda on the other. The juxtaposition of this reoccurring event has me wondering what...
Pop Exodus: Let’s Play "Pop or Not?"
Courtesy of Mobile Music. Categories are fun, but they're the most fun when you can use your own powers of persuasion to make up totally arbitrary reasons for why certain things belong in categories. Thus, my friends and I have created the "Pop or Not?"...
Live in the Hive: Juan Wauters
Photo by Andrea PantingDespite the snowy weather, Juan Wauters stopped by the WVAU studio the morning after his show at Comet Ping Pong in February. He played some new tracks off of his upcoming album, Who Me? Check out "Woodside, Queens" below: And...
The Current: Space Jam
Scott Kelly arrived at the International Space Station yesterday and will be the first American to make a yearlong trip to space. This will be the longest journey NASA has taken part in. 365 days and only 230 miles away. In fact, it's a quicker flight from...