Blogs
Against Me! – Transgender Dysphoria Blues (Total Treble)
Long-awaited, honest punk rock answer to some complicated questions. Following a tumultuous year for Against Me!, especially frontwoman Laura Jane Grace, the band has released their first album on their own label, Total Treble Music. The album deals with Laura...
James Vincent McMorrow – Post Tropical (Vagrant)
Giving James Blake a run for his money. There is no denying that Early in the Morning was far more than just a solid folk album. However, Post Tropical is a radical departure into a genre that is just now finding itself. The album makes a significant contribution to...
Cheap Time – Exit Smiles (In The Red)
A fun blend of punk, glam, and powerpop While garage-rock peers such as Ty Segall and John Dwyer have garnered steadily increasing press and recognition, Cheap Time leader Jeffrey Novak has quietly established himself as a songwriter whose output never slouches in...
Jake Bugg ÛÒ Shangri La (Island)
“Britain's answer to Johnny Cash” should throw out his early-00s pop/rock records. Jake Bugg is most famous in the UK for having a debut album shoot to number one at the tender age of 18 , here in the good ole U. S. of A, he's best known for his song “Lighting...
Sharon Jones and the Dap Kings – Give The People What They Want (Daptone)
Soul straight out of the seventies. Sharon Jones and the Dap-Kings make soul music. This group revives the emotion-evoking, groove-inspiring music of the 1960s and 1970s with newfound energy and life. The lead singer, Sharon Jones, brings powerful vocals perfect for...
WVAU Top Music 2013: #1
#1 ALBUM: Arcade Fire, Reflektor åÊ Arcade Fire's gradual ascent towards true rock stardom has always been endearing, in part because it was obvious that the band wanted it so bad for so long. Their earliest live shows displayed such ridiculous levels of...
WVAU Top Music 2013: #3
#3 ALBUM: Danny Brown, Old åÊ Danny Brown has always been a contradictory being, simultaneously rapping about his hedonistic party lifestyle while at the same time dredging the horrifying bottom of his experiences growing up poor in Detroit for inspiration. On...
WVAU Top Music 2013: #4
#4 ALBUM: Vampire Weekend, Modern Vampires of the City åÊ Vampire Weekend’s third album was highly anticipated, coming after their breakthrough eponymous debut and their strong sophomore outing with Contra. Modern Vampires of the City took on somewhat more...
WVAU Top Music 2013: #5
#5 ALBUM: Haim, Days Are Gone åÊ The coolest sisters from L.A. have dominated this year with their EPs and multiple festival appearances, quickly building up their reputation in time for their debut album Days Are Gone released at the end of September. It's no...
WVAU Top Music 2013: #6
#6 ALBUM: My Bloody Valentine, mbv åÊ There was hardly a review of My Bloody Valentine's long-awaited third LP that didn't pit the record off against massively influential predecessor Loveless. How could one not? Shoegaze was a lightning rod in the early 90s,...
WVAU Top Music 2013: #7
#7 ALBUM: James Blake, Overgrown åÊ Remember post-dubstep? The way we speak critically about the music James Blake makes has unquestionably shifted in the 3 years we’ve followed his trajectory from upstart DJ to Mercury Prize winner. Since the release of...
WVAU Top Music 2013: #8
#8 ALBUM: Chance the Rapper, Acid Rap åÊ 2013 was a good year for the Chicago based artist Chance the Rapper. After releasing his mixtapeåÊ10 Days in 2012, appropriately named after a 10 day suspension he received in high school, he quickly shot up within the...
WVAU Top Music of 2013: #9
#9 ALBUM: The National, Trouble Will Find Me åÊ The National may be the most consistent indie band in history. Every full album since 2005’såÊAlligator explored a new variation on the band’s sonic stylings. InåÊAlligator, The National strived for simplicity,...
WVAU Top Music of 2013: #10
#10 ALBUM: King Krule, 6 Feet Beneath the Moon åÊ Before 2013, Archy Marshall (better known now by his stage name, King Krule) had not much more than a single EP, a two-song 7Û, and some demos released under his name. 2013 brought Marshall to the center stage...
Concert Review: Holograms @ DC9
There's something going on in Scandinavia and 2013 has seen this to its fullest.åÊ While the Iceage-lead punk/DIY scene of Copenhagen would argue their dominance, miles north is home to Sweden's pride: Holograms.åÊ With noticeable difference from their comrades...
A Boy and His Pile: A Year-End Recap/Love Letter
As the year draws to a close, we all get the impulse to check in on the state of music over the past twelve months. What was great, what was terrible, what’s next? Here are my thoughts: There have been numerous “scenes” throughout music that would go on to plant...
The Raised By Wolves In-Studio
Earlier this week, Bethesda indie pop duo The Raised By Wolves stopped by WVAU to chat and give a stripped down in-studio performance. The group played four songs off their debut album Sadie Hawkins, and talked with WVAU General Manager Maxwell Tani about the stresses...
FaceTime: "Spotless" – An Immaculate Track
It is a well-known fact that I am a fan of Ryan Hemsworth, especially within the WVAU community. I reviewed his album Guilt Trips and his concert in D.C. this past October. åÊHemsworth is an artist and producer from Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada and has a gift for...
Leading Ladies: Top 10 Songs of 2013
It’s nearing the end of the year so you know what that means! Various lists on the best music of 2013! I’m super excited to let you all get a glimpse of my list (it’s very extensive and mathematically chosen, probably) and perhaps will inspire a few lists of your own!...
Geology: Monolithic Modest Mouse
One of the great tragedies of music has been Modest Mouse's association as “that band that did ‘Float On.‘” Travel back a few years and you'll find a monolithic trio of albums (and one compilation that shits on most artists' magnum opuses) that embodies everything...
Jazz It Up: Look Out for Trombone Shorty at the 9:30 Club
If you're in D.C. at the end of December, be sure to check out trombone player Trombone Shorty and his band, Orleans Avenue, at the 9:30 Club. Over the summer, I had the privilege of seeing this up-and-coming artist at San Francisco's Outside Lands music festival...
Geology: The Microphones Cover All Ground on "The Glow Pt. 2"
It's almost inevitable that discussion of The Glow Pt. 2 will involve some sort of comparison to Neutral Milk Hotel's In The Aeroplane Over the Sea. The comparison works on a very superficial level, but to equate the two as sister albums is to do both a disservice....
Capitol Punishment Review: Mac DeMarco and Shark Week Usurp the Founders
The dim glow of holiday lights revealed the silhouettes of the band Shark Week as the musicians ran through a final sound-check in the SIS Founders' Room to send the evening on its merry way. Without much further hesitation, the band filled the makeshift venue with...
Eye Candy: "Bound 2"
Released to the fanfare of both the internet and Ellen Degeneres, Kanye's new video opens on impressive time lapse imagery of majestic mountains, presumably to show his timeless love for fianc̩e, Kim Kardashian. She then toplessly writhes on a motorcycle for the...
FaceTime: Get to Know Metronomy
Metronomy is a British rock band with members Joseph Mount, Oscar Cash, Anna Prior and Olugbenga (Gbenga) Adelekan. Their most famous albums are Nights Out from 2008 and The English Riviera from 2011. Metronomy's music contains experimental percussion and...
Poetic Justice: Lovers Make Up Lost Time in “Jetlag” by Milosh
Less than a year after releasing the critically-acclaimed Woman alongside producer Robin Hannibal under the name Rhye, Milosh teams up with his wife Alexa Nikolas to release an album that steadily grooves along themes of somber sensuality. Jetlag, available November...
WVAU Staff Picks: Grizzly Bear, Yo La Tengo, Mutual Benefit & More!
Have a great day? Have a great day. So, no more Macspins, but thanks for helping get him up to 40 spins (more than twice the usual #1 amount)! Luckily, there's a lot of great stuff going up this week that should fill that void. There's something here for everyone!...
Leading Ladies: Three New U.K. Artists You Should Know
1. Rainy Milo Last year, this 18-year-old London native made her debut with her jazz and hip-hop fusion mixtapeåÊLimey, produced with the help of some established artists like Oddisee and Chet Faker to name a few. A recent graduate of the BRIT School, Milo describes...
Geology: "Daydream Nation" Plays with the Building Blocks of Music
Sonic Youth is a bit of an anomaly. They've stuck around for decades after their original inception and inevitably their sound and artistic intents have undergone a noticeable change. They're probably the quintessential New York experimental band after The...
Eye Candy: Cats
I justÛ_I really like cats. It's time to let the fur fly and see what the music video world has to offer for we bold, feline-obsessed few. Paula Abdul, ÛOpposites Attract” The classic cat music video, Paula Abdul's “Opposites Attract” features Paula rapping...