MetroPulse Stories: Boom Box

Boom Box: Private Papers

Wed, 27 Jul 2011 15:33:00 -0000

Travis Gray has been a minor character in the Knoxville music scene for the past 10 years in Mito Band, Demonicle, Rumblytums, and, most recently, Private Papers. He is also the Metro Pulse art director. Here’s a list of what he has been listening to while putting together this week’s issue.

Boom Box: Sam Quinn

Wed, 04 May 2011 15:12:00 -0000

Sam Quinn, formerly of the everybodyfields and leader of the Japan 10 for the last couple of years, will be pulling double duty with his new band Taiwan Twin this weekend, first at the South Knoxville family fest Vestival and later at Pilot Light, opening for Jennifer Niceley.

Boom Box: 4Matiks

Wed, 27 Apr 2011 14:23:00 -0000

Local DJ 4Matiks, aka Forrest Kurth, spins an electronic blend of hip-hop and club music. His energetic manipulations of obscure samples, dance-floor favorites (Daft Punk), and collaborations with local artists (Black Atticus) have earned him a weekly Saturday night slot at Latitude 35.

Boom Box: James Trimble of the Dirty Guv'nahs

Wed, 20 Apr 2011 15:04:00 -0000

It’s been five years since the Dirty Guv’nahs played their first show, a hectic and thrown-together performance in the Old City. The gritty hometown rockers—and three-time Metro Pulse readers’ poll winners as the best local band—are celebrating their anniversary by headlining two shows at the Bijou Theatre this weekend.

Boom Box: Katie Cauthen of Radio Bonnaroo

Wed, 13 Apr 2011 17:54:00 -0000

As the official voice of Radio Bonnaroo, Katie Cauthen can be heard daily on the festival’s website, streaming live performances, interviews, and music from Bonnaroo performers past and present. In preparation for the festival, scheduled for June 9-12 in Manchester, Tenn., Cauthen fills us in on what she’s been listening to lately

Boom Box: Chyna Brackeen

Wed, 30 Mar 2011 13:37:00 -0000

Chyna Brackeen, the organizer of this weekend’s Dogwood Arts Rhythm n’ Blooms Music Festival, is a self-described workaholic. She runs Attack Monkey Productions and is also responsible for booking live music at the Knoxville Botanical Gardens. This year’s Rhythm n’ Blooms, which takes place at the gardens and a variety of other downtown venues, features New York’s Felice Brothers and a reunion of Robinella and the CC String Band, as well as performances from more than a dozen other artists.

Boom Box: Elizabeth Wright of the Dirty Knees

Wed, 23 Mar 2011 13:29:00 -0000

All-girl punk outfit the Dirty Knees (Elizabeth Wright, Maggie Brannon, Laura Rogers) have garnered a rambunctious reputation by hammering their way into the ears of Knoxvillians for years—and they don’t appear to be toning it down any time soon.

Boom Box: Matt Woods

Wed, 16 Mar 2011 14:14:00 -0000

With his intricate lyrics documenting life in East Tennessee, as well as long weeks spent on the road, nothing escapes Matt Woods’ songwriting scrutiny.

Boom Box: Kvillains

Wed, 09 Mar 2011 14:16:00 -0000

Knoxville’s Kvillains channel pop-punk’s ’90s glory days with short and energetic anthems to past girlfriends and late-night parties.

Boom Box: Matt Snow of Scissormen

Wed, 23 Feb 2011 18:12:00 -0000

Nashville duo Ted Drozdowski and Matt Snow, aka Scissormen, are bringing their down-and-dirty, amped-up country blues to town for two shows this week.

Boom Box: Alex Minard of Hey OK Fantastic

Wed, 02 Feb 2011 18:52:00 -0000

Alex Minard’s off-the-wall pop/rock band, Hey OK Fantastic, incorporates elements from across the music map into their flamboyantly energetic and impulsive live performances.

Boom Box: Abigail Washburn

Wed, 05 Jan 2011 15:33:00 -0000

Banjo star Abigail Washburn mixes up jazz, American folk, and traditional Chinese music with her band the Sparrow Quartet (which also features her husband, Bela Fleck). She also records as a solo artist, and has a brand-new album, City of Refuge, due out on Jan. 11.

Listening in With the Cave Singers' Derek Fudesco

Wed, 01 Dec 2010 16:01:00 -0000

Derek Fudesco, one-time guitarist for Seattle’s semi-legendary ’90s goth-punk band the Murder City Devils and the later group Pretty Girls Make Graves, is now one of the alt-folkies who call themselves the Cave Singers. The Cave Singers’ third album, No Witch, is due out in February; they’re touring to promote the album this fall.

Shortwave Society's Grant Geren Is Still Listening to Music, Even After His Band's Gear Is Stolen

Wed, 17 Nov 2010 15:21:00 -0000

Last week was a bad one for Knoxville’s eccentric electro-acoustic ensemble Shortwave Society, who had their tour van and tens of thousands of dollars’ worth of gear stolen. They’ve turned this week’s performance at Pilot Light with Asheville’s Stephaniesid into a benefit show; they’ll be performing on borrowed equipment, so it will likely be unlike any other Shortwave Society show you’ll ever hear.

Liturgy's Hunter Hunt-Hendrix: Danish Composers and Proto-Rappers

Wed, 10 Nov 2010 14:33:00 -0000

Liturgy’s 2009 album Renihilation is an ecstatic, ferocious, and brainy blast of black-metal art, indebted as much to medieval religious music and minimalism as it is to Darkthrone and Burzum.

Listening in With Deakin of Animal Collective

Wed, 03 Nov 2010 13:46:00 -0000

Joshua Dibb, who performs under the name Deakin, is one of the founding members of Animal Collective and has been an occasional member the last few years; he didn’t appear on last year’s Merriweather Post Pavillion, but he’s planning on writing songs with the rest of the band for its next album in early 2011. Between now and then, he’s also planning to record his first solo album.

Steve Britton's Depressing Halloween Playlist

Wed, 27 Oct 2010 15:34:00 -0000

It turns out that Immortal Chorus, one of Knoxville’s most popular bands in the early 1990s, just might have eternal life. Frontman Steve Britton resurrects the goth-rock band for the first time since 2002 for this Halloween-weekend show. Here’s what he’s been listening to lately to get him in a scary frame of mind.

Listening in With Kevin Hyfantis

Wed, 20 Oct 2010 15:50:00 -0000

A quick glance at a list of his past performances indicates that Knoxville’s Kevin Hyfantis juggles the schedules of three men at once. He’s currently busy touring with Jonathan Sexton, as well as playing bass for local troubadour Taylor Brown. In addition, he’s also a frequent performer around town, both solo and with his group, the Bishops Band.

Listening in With Oxford, Miss., Indie Rockers Colour Revolt

Wed, 06 Oct 2010 13:41:00 -0000

Oxford, Miss., indie rockers Colour Revolt take their name from the Victorian math fable Flatland, but there’s nothing flat about the band’s bouncy, no-nonsense garage-style power pop, as shown on their second album, The Cradle, released in August.

A List of Doom Rockers Batillus' Favorite Albums

Tue, 21 Sep 2010 22:26:00 -0000

The Brooklyn quartet Batillus take their name from a class of 1970s supertankers that are among the biggest ships ever built, and the name fits—the band’s self-titled debut EP is three tracks of long, slow, and super-heavy doom metal.