month in review: march 2024
the truth is hard to bear / seems it only comes now when we’re staring away from it - friko (where we've been)
on my rotation last month. check out @npezine on instagram & rym.
to know who/what/where/when/why/how i am click here.
friko - where we’ve been, where we go from here (where we’ve been)
for fans of noise rock that cuts to your core, you will have no issue with this duo from chicago. it has been a whirlwind of a month and finding this record at the top of it has grounded me. i am reminded of the emotional turmoil of the pandemic, when the future felt so distant, and the present felt so suffocating. in this record niko kapetan asks unanswerable questions while coming to terms with the growing pains of adulthood. bailey zimmerman's percussive backing, paired with kapetan’s feverish vocals, deliver a dynamic and sonically effervescent wall of sound. it’s almost as if it hurts to get the words out. and in some ways, it hurts to hear too.
kevin morby ft. waxahatchee - farewell transmission (single)
went down a bit of a jason molina rabbit hole after my friend jordan mentioned magnolia electric co. [the band, not the album… it was a whole thing] during a jam sesh in his attic. then i crossed paths with this article by
on the anniversary of molinas death [coincidence?]. in the fall of my senior year, songs: ohia slithered its way into my rotation and, honestly, what a devastating thing to find in my final days of college. i remember sprinkling slowcore in just about every radio show i did that fall [october 2022. talk about ego death]. i find it addictive how molina depicts melancholy and it pierces me deeply. morby wrote about the song hammer down recently and its impact on him and his relationship. ‘i think the stars are just neon lights / shining through the dance floor / of heaven on a saturday night.’ rip.lcd soundsystem - self-titled (daft punk is playing at my house)
after listening to their feature on the new idles record, i began to realize the widespread influence of lcd soundsystem. i’d never heard an lcd song before this month, but it turns out i’ve been a fan all along. younger bands i enjoy like geese, yard act, black midi [who actually did a 15 second cover of this song last year in central park] all pull different elements of lcd’s dance-punk/ indietronic vibe into their own performances. its clear: any music an artist interacts with has an impact [seen or unseen; immediate or delayed]. what goes in comes out, and seeds cannot be unplanted. maya angelou wasn't kidding — ‘you are the sum total of everything you've ever seen, heard…its all there…’
middle kids - faith crisis pt 1 (dramamine)
this is a run through a field of tulips with the love of your life kinda tune. i haven’t been as drawn to happier songs with uplifting messages recently but this was the exception. it made me think of the walk home i used to make in middle school — listening to walk the moon’s talking is hard [not as austrailian but just as infectious] and excited to reach the pepperoni pizza rolls in our freezer. in this track, vocalist hannah joy [aptly named] shouts her love from the rooftops, acknowledging the risk of rejection but not letting it affect her actions. when you find someone who remedies the motion sickness in your life, you can only do one thing — tell them.
waxahatchee ft. mj lenderman - tigers blood (right back to it)
i’ve been all up in the hatchee this month. plus any and all mj lenderman contributions are instantly good (re: this). my junior year i had a huge obsession with chapel hill’s music history of the 80s/90s [read this and also this]. finally free from covid, i got overwhelmed with the idea of community in a geographical scene, specifically in a town i thought had nothing notable to write about [other than college basketball. rah, rah!]. in that frenzy, i heard of waxahatchee through merge records and stuck her in my backpocket till i was ready. i am ready now. tigers blood met me on the eve of disappointment, and carried me off into the sunset. ‘i was drifting in and out / reticent on the off chance / i’m blunter than a bullseye / begging for peace of mind.’
charlie hill - chuck pond (give two fucks)
local pick this month is chuck pond by charlie hill (fka chazzy lake). he played an incredible show at the east room with lily seabird, merce lemon and greg freeman and i was fervently impressed. this band oozes western swagger [as pictured below] with bolo-ties intact and tweed suit jackets worn handsomely [the shine on the pedal steel player’s loafers alone was blinding]. the nashville-based hill mixes indie rock with elements of folk and country. he uses distorted guitars with pedal steel ornamentation to sing about why he couldn't care less about nothin’ [but also cares about everythin’]. he invited me to a basement show at his house and i went with mimi [we stopped for costco hotdogs on the way, classic] and we really enjoyed the performance by abigayle kompst & tom davis. the atmosphere was so safe and free of judgment – just friends coming together to hear good songs. how it should be.
brockhampton - technical difficulties (i.f.l)
i don’t burn many cd’s anymore, but in my analog haze of 2020 i made a copy of brockhampton’s quarantine mixtape and rinsed it almost everyday. before their budget was high enough to clear the samples and the songs were creatively realized, the group released technical difficulties to keep the fans at bay. these songs are so freakin good [‘tech diff, the last to feel true’]. i try and switch out cd’s in my car bi-weekly and in the last ~10 days rekindled my love for this era. by god is it good. there is something to love in every song [like, ryan beatty on Downside or asap rocky with ‘money finish sentences / no, i ain’t cents-itive’ on Bankroll] but matt champion’s talents on I.F.L get me everytime: ‘if i ever die young / have larry david do the eulogy / film it on one of those little camcorders where you can barely see / and hire someone to throw up all on my jewelry.’ c’monnnnnnn.
npe: nashville show calendar march 2024
march 1 - sam hunt & brett young & lily rose @ bridgestone arena*
march 1 - bats & iven & baby wave @ the blue room
march 2 - evan honer & theo kandel @ the basement east
march 4 - dadi freyr & ken sable @ eastside bowl
march 4 - bombay bicycle club & luthi @ brooklyn bowl
march 6 - greg freeman & lily seabird & merce lemon & charlie hill @ the east room*
march 7 - mg & massie99 & book NOT brooke @ the blue room
march 8 - flyana boss & honey bxby @ the basement east*
march 9 - snooper & total wife & skull cult @ soft junk*
march 9 - madi diaz & jack van cleaf @ brooklyn bowl
march 10 - dawes & lucius @ the caverns
march 10 - wheatus & gabrielle sterbenz @ the basement
march 14 - trash panda & frog mallet & toad smoke & gouged out @ the end
march 14 - kc and the sunshine band @ ryman auditorium*
march 15 - dan spencer & the montvales & nick harley @ springwater supper club
march 16 - veeverse & multi-ultra & tom james & luke schneider @ brooklyn bowl*
march 17 - laura jane grace @ city winery
march 17 - mckay & nordista freeze & edgehill @ tennessee brew works
march 18 - mirabelle skipworth & holy hers & abigayle kompst & kaytelyn fajardo @ momos basement*
march 19 - arlo parks & chloe george @ marathon music works
march 20 - sierra ferell & nikki lane @ ryman auditorium
march 21 - bendigo fletcher & free range @ the basement east
march 21 - dan + shay & ben rector & hailey whitters @ bridgestone arena*
march 22 - sinai vessel & son of the challenger & celltower @ drkmttr*
march 23 - anxious & koyo & one step closer & stateside @ the end
march 25 - bar italia & the messthetics w/ james brandon lewis @ the blue room*
march 26 - budge & finger foods & max langlinais @ the throng*
march 27 - otoboke beaver & drinking boys and girls choir & the sewing club @ eastside bowl*
march 29 - sampha @ brooklyn bowl
march 29 - miki fiki & itsjustrand @ analog
march 29 - shaq (dj diesel) & virtual riot & celo & levity @ skydeck broadway*
march 30 - san fermin & runnner @ the blue room
march 31 - fall out boy & jimmy eat world & hot mulligan & carr @ bridgestone arena*
***
npe: elsewhere march 2024
march 3 - emmaus holder @ the living room - chapel hill, nc*
