WASU Top Ten & Adds 1/26/10

Top Ten
1. Robert Francis- "Keep on Running"
2. Imagine Dragons- "I Need a Minute"
3. Systems Officer- "East"
4. Art Decade- "Royalty"
5. Wolfmother- "White Feathers"
6. We All Have Hooks For Hands- "Howling and Bellowing"
7. Norah Jones- "Chasing Pirates"
8. Nerami- "Uninspired"
9. Them Crooked Vultures- "New Fang"
10. Blakroc- "Ain't Nothing Like You"

Recent Adds
1. Spoon- "Trouble Comes Running"
2. Los Campesinos!- "Romance Is Boring"
3. The Eels- "Gone Man"
4. OK G0- "This Too Shall Pass"
5. Cosmo Jarvis- "She's Got You"

Album Review- Gobotron "On Your Mark, Get Set..."

by: Alex Mayfield

When discussing Gobotron you have to look at where it came from. This side project from Manchester Orchestra’s guitarist, Robert McDowell, brings a certain unique familiarity that is easy to enjoy. What I mean by that is that Gobotron delivers a sound that is catchy and different, but at the same time the sound of the album rings similar to the ever so great Manchester Orchestra, mainly due to the guitars (duh!) and that fact that both vocals share similar tones, but it isn’t Manchester. Gobotron makes sure that its own being, though it sounds similar, you can tell the difference. Songs drive and pulse in ways that create a feeling that most bands don’t capture. It is nice to hear something that is not another MGMT knock off. If you are expecting a masterpiece like Means Everything To Nothing, this isn’t it, but Rome wasn’t built in a day. Expect great things from Gobotron because On Your Mark, Get Set… is quite good. 7.1 out of 10

Download: “Cobbler”, “I Lied”, “Never Turn Around”

WASU Top Ten & Adds 1/9/10

Top Ten

1. Asteroids Galaxy Tour- "The Golden Age"
2. Relient K- "Sahara"
3. Parlour Steps- "As The World Turned Out"
4. Tegan & Sara- "Hell"
5. Robert Francis- "Keep On Running"
6. Imagine Dragons- "I Need A Minute"
7. We All Have Hooks For Hands- "Howling And Bellowing"
8. Systems Officer- "East"
9. Los Campesinos!- "There Are Listed Buildings"
10. Norah Jones- "Chasing Pirates"


Recent Adds

Animal Kingdom- "Two By Two"
Retribution Gospel Choir- "Hide It Away"
Italian Japanese- "Le Pony"
The Films- "Amateur Hour"
The Soft Pack- "Answer To Yourself"
Gobotron- "I Lied"
Vampire Weekend- "Run"
Dawn Landes- "Young Girl"
Blue Eyed Shark Experiment- "Goodbye My Little Friend"

Album Review- We Were Pirates "Cutting Ties"

by: Alex Mayfield

We Were Pirates is composed of Mike Boggs, who self recorded this entire debut album. I was very surprised when I felt that Boggs created something that is definitely enjoyable. The balance between the instrumentation and the vocals provides a state of relaxation with an upbeat feel. Each track is a little bit different from the others. Some songs have a dark somewhat angry tone, but not really angry because how angry can you really sound with a synthesizer playing a cute melody behind it (“Little Monsters”), while other tracks directly remind me of the Beach Boys (“Rich Girl”). I do not know why most bands these days love the synthesizer, but most people need to stop. That being said, We Were Pirates presents it in a way that is very bearable. Keep a look out for We Were Pirates because a debut album that is this good means that a future album will be on the verge of masterpiece. By the way, he recorded this entire album on his iBook. 8.0 out of 10

Download: “Little Monsters”, “Cutting Ties”, “Settle Down”

WASU Top Ten & Adds: 11/10/09

WASU Top 10

1. Frank Turner- "Live Fast, Die Old"
2. The Dodos- "Fables"
3. Two Hours Traffic- "Territory"
4. No Age- "You're A Target"
5. Thrice- "All the World Is Mad"
6. Brand New- "At the Bottom
7. Built to Spill- "Aisle 13"
8. State Radio- "Knights of Bostonia"
9. Electric Tickle Machine- "Part of Me"
10. Jamie T- "Hocus Pocus"


WASU Recent Adds

Delta Saints- "Train Song"
Robert Francis- "Keep on Running"
Systems Officer- "East"
We All Have Hooks For Hands- "Howling and Bellowing"
Weezer- "The Girl Got Hot"
Art Decade- "Royalty"
Imagine Dragons- "I Need A Minute"
Say Anything- "Do Better"
Tegan And Sara- "Hell"
Wolfmother- "White Feathers"

Concert Review: Brand New/Thrice/Crime in Stereo : Nov 9, 2009

Venue: The Fillmore, Charlotte, NC

by: Alex Mayfield

The crowd rolled into the newly erected Fillmore in Charlotte on Monday night. As people waited the stage was already set for what was hopefully going to be an amazing show. As 7 pm rolled around, the lights dimmed and Long Island’s Crime in Stereo took the stage. Musically the band was alright, with heavy riffs and your average drum beats. The vocalist, Kristian Hallbert, brought high energy but overall the band lacked something brilliant, they were missing a crowd that was into their show. Without the crowd feeding off the band, the band could not feed off the crowd, and Crime In Stereo was slowly forgotten as they left the stage.

As the crowd waited, the lights drop down once again and the crowd rushes forward as Thrice enters. Though playing Beggars, one of the most excellent albums of the year, the biggest hit for Thrice seemed to be their creative take on The Beatle’s "Helter Skelter." Though clearly not the first time covered, it had to be one of the most blood pulsing, crowd thriving songs of the night. Though the rest of the set list was filled with "The Weight" and "All the World is Mad" (both songs were incredible), they ended the set with "Beggars." This is where Thrice truly showed how much passion was put into the music they were making. With such a great set, it was a shame that they had to be followed by Brand New, which made me almost forgot they had played.

Brand New opened the set with "Welcome to Bangkok" off of The Devil and God Are Raging Inside Me and to my surprise a wonderful guest appeared on stage with Brand New. The wonderful and very enthusiastic, Kevin Devine decided to grace us with his presence, which was even a surprise to Jesse Lacey, front man of Brand New. After, they continued playing "Sink," "The Quiet Things That No One Ever Knows," "Sic Transit Gloria…Glory Fades," and several others that made the crowd scream their hearts out. Jesse Lacey slowed it down for a moment as he played one of the band’s most powerful songs (and one of the most powerful of the set) by himself. ("Limousine MS Rebridge") As the band joined him again they continue playing most of Devil and God… and their new album, Daisy. Then, Lacey walks off stage for about 15 seconds, he walks back out and says “Pretend, if you will, that we just left and you chanted for us for hours and hours.” They immediately jump into "Jude Law and a Semester Abroad" and end the show on the very high energy "Shower Scene." In the end if you ask me was a 4 hour round trip on a Monday night worth seeing these guys plays live, my answer would clearly be, “Without a doubt!” Thrice and Brand New came together to create an amazing experience and one of my favorite shows of all time.

Album Review- The Almost "Monster Monster"

by: Alex Mayfield

The Almost are back with their sophomore album, Monster Monster. It is no surprise that UnderOath drummer/singer and Almost front man, Aaron Gillespie, produces an album with heavy, intricate percussion and a just as heavy religious influence. For those who have never heard The Almost, do not expect the heaviness of UnderOath but do expect some great music. The album thrives on some very high energy tracks ("Monster Monster," "Get Through") and the occasional calm down ("Hand Grenade"). There is a bit more of a southern feel on several tracks, where a noticeable blues/country sway exists. The Almost created a good album this time around, but I do not feel that it holds up to their first record, Southern Weather. Musically, the sound and style is almost identical over the two records. Not a great deal of diversity over the album, but the tracks all differ slightly. It is a good album; I just feel like the band re-released Southern Weather and gave it a new cover. 7.5 out of 10

Download: “Monster,” “Books & Books,” “Monster Monster”