WUD Music Summer Lineup

Posted on May 20, 2013 by erinberge

It’s that time again where the sun sets over Lake Mendota and musicians take over the summer stage on The Terrace. Below is our ENTIRE summer lineup, plan ahead, or don’t, just know this summer will be one to remember.

5/24/13 Behind the Beat: John Christiansen Jazz Quartet- Memorial Union: The Terrace

5/25/13 Handphibians + Gomers- Memorial Union: The Terrace

5/31/13 Behind the Beat: Brett Newski and the Corruption + The Thriftones- Memorial Union: The Terrace

5/31/13 Tweed Funk- Memorial Union: The Terrace

6/1/13 Roots Collective + Sebeh Tree- Memorial Union: The Terrace

6/5/13 Colorphase- Memorial Union: The Terrace

6/6/13 Sortin’ the Mail- Memorial Union: The Terrace

6/6/13 The Orwells + Twin Peaks- Memorial Union: The Terrace

6/7/13 Behind the Beat: Louka Patenaude- Memorial Union: The Terrace

6/8/13 Bailiff + The Outfit + The Sharrows- Memorial Union: The Terrace

6/12/13 Whiskey Farm- Memorial Union: The Terrace

6/13/13 Northern Comfort- Memorial Union: The Terrace

6/13/13 Adelyn Rose- Memorial Union: The Terrace

6/14/13 Behind the Beat: Cork N Bottle- Memorial Union: The Terrace

6/14/13 3 Pill Morning- Memorial Union: The Terrace

6/15/13 Natty Nation- Memorial Union: The Terrace

6/19/13 Anna Vogelzang + Dietrich Gosser- Memorial Union: The Terrace

6/20/13 Cajun Strangers- Memorial Union: The Terrace

6/27/13 Off the Porch- Memorial Union: The Terrace

6/27/13 Field Report + John Mark Nelson- Memorial Union: The Terrace

6/28/13 Behind the Beat: Little Margie’s Soul Band- Memorial Union: The Terrace

6/28/13 Mac DeMarco- Memorial Union: The Terrace

6/29/13 Jeffrey Broussard and The Creole Cowboys- Memorial Union: The Terrace

7/3/13 Sincere Life + Tefman- Memorial Union: The Terrace

7/4/13 Mad City Jug Band- Memorial Union: The Terrace

7/4/13 Bassel and the Supernaturals + Vic and Gab- Memorial Union: The Terrace

7/5/13 Behind the Beat: Louka Patenaude- Memorial Union: The Terrace

7/5/13 Wild Child + PHOX- Memorial Union: The Terrace

7/11/13 Stillhouse Six- Memorial Union: The Terrace

7/11/13 Oberhofer- Memorial Union: The Terrace

7/12/13 Behind the Beat: The New Breed- Memorial Union: The Terrace

7/12/13 Lowdown Brass Band- Memorial Union: The Terrace

7/13/13 Trapper Schoepp and the Shades- Memorial Union: The Terrace

7/17/13 4 Aspirin Morning- Memorial Union: The Terrace

7/18/13 Daylight in the Swamp- Memorial Union: The Terrace

7/18/13 Saintseneca- Memorial Union: The Terrace

7/19/13 Behind the Beat: El Clan Destino- Memorial Union: The Terrace

7/19/13 Sidewalk Chalk- Memorial Union: The Terrace

7/20/13 EI-P + Killer Mike + Despot + Kool A.D.- Memorial Union: The Terrace

7/24/13 Pushmi-Pullyu + Icarus Himself- Memorial Union: The Terrace

7/25/13 Boo Bradley- Memorial Union: The Terrace

7/25/13 A Hawk and A Hacksaw- Memorial Union: The Terrace

7/26/13 Behind the Beat: Megan Moran’s + 1- Memorial Union: The Terrace

7/26/13 Whiskey of the Damned + The Kissers- Memorial Union: The Terrace

7/27/13 Seabird- Memorial Union: The Terrace

8/1/13 Al Scorch- Memorial Union: The Terrace

8/1/13 Wook- Memorial Union: The Terrace

8/2/13 Behind the Beat: Alison Margaret Jazz Quartet- Memorial Union: The Terrace

8/2/13 Steez- Memorial Union: The Terrace

8/3/13 Pokey LaFarge- Memorial Union: The Terrace

8/7/13 Land of Vandals + Oedipus Tex- Memorial Union: The Terrace

8/8/13 Sparetime Bluegrass- Memorial Union: The Terrace

8/9/13 Behind the Beat: Composers Quartet- Memorial Union: The Terrace

8/9/13 Maxmillion Dunbar- Memorial Union: The Terrace

8/10/13 Lords of the Trident + Thunderunderus + Beast Warrior- Memorial Union: The Terrace

Tuesday Playlist: 82 degrees and perfection

Posted on April 30, 2013 by benwimmel

It’s 82 degrees outside and perfect. This weekend is your last chance to get any fun out of the way before finals week rolls around and you grind your hands into little nubs with ink on them. At least your new hand deformity is a good ice breaker.

Anyways, this playlist is stuffed with some music that is perfect accompaniment to any walking or running (preferably running) you do in the sun. Summer is almost here, and that’s terribly shocking, so ignore it and sprint! Move your eyes a little further down and you’ll see some little blurbs about the songs in the playlist. I promise they might be entertaining.

Tame Impala – “Apocalypse Dreams”: You know all of those psychedelic poppy songs The Beatles wrote? Imagine if a band only heard those songs and then decided to write as many catchy songs as possible. And reverb. Oh man the reverb.

Glocca Morra – “Y’all Boots Hats (Die Angry)”: I wrote about this punk band a week or two ago, and it takes all the exuberance of driving cars quickly on an interstate–then shoves it into your ears.

Chance the Rapper – “Cool Ass Intro”: Dude actually has a new mixtape called Acip Rap out today. Piano and beautiful backing vocals combined with a bouncy bass drum and some fantastic rhyming. It’s stuck in my ears and it won’t go away.

Coping – “B”: More punk. They sound like a busy, sunny day. That makes sense, right?

Machine Go Boom – “Lil’ Devil”: This was a weird little folk-ish rock band from Cleveland that seemed to be ignored since they were so strange. The frontman could really write a song though, and Lil’ Devil is probably one of the most uptempo, giddy songs he wrote.

Ringo Deathstarr – “Slack”: So Ringo Deathstarr is a shoegaze band, but this song sounds like an attempt by them to make a good old fashioned high paced rock ‘n roll song, complete with a great chorus guitar hook and a grand amount of noise.

SPORT – “Saint Louis, 1904″: Yet another punk song. They’re from France. They sound a lot like the two other punk songs.

The Front Bottoms – “Twin Sized Mattress”: These are two witty New Englanders with an acoustic guitar, drums, and some tongue-in-cheek lyrics to win you over. They have a new album coming out soon! If you’re not yet convinced, look up their band name on Urban Dictionary. Five year old Timmy probably shouldn’t read what it says though.

A Great Big Pile of Leaves – “Alligator Bop”: You know those big exercise balls you can sit and bounce on, and, if you’re mentally a five year old, it’s the most entertaining activity ever? This song is that feeling.

The Deirdres – “Milk Is Politics”: I know absolutely nothing about this band. I know that the website they link to on their Myspace page links to this sketchy site that is semi-pornographic, so I’m assuming that is no longer their website. And if they still are only using myspace, it’s a pretty safe bet they either don’t know what computers are, or they no longer exist. Either way, this song is absolutely ridiculous and poppy and catchy and it makes my fingers tingle. It’s absolutely perfect to sing along to with fifty other people, the only other problem being fifty other people haven’t heard this song.

Andrew Bird – “Hole In The Ocean Floor”: Listen to this and feel happy. It’s perfect.

Monday Feature: Revelry is Coming

Posted on April 29, 2013 by mackens

You know a weekend is going to be great when you’re already anticipating for the week to be over on Monday at one in the morning. Whether you’ll be attending the annual Mifflin Street Block Party, hitting up capitol square for the weekly fresh market, or kicking back and watching a Star Wars trilogy (preferably the original one), there is no shortage of funtivities available for Madison citizens this first weekend of May.

And while all of these funtivities are respectable means of entertainment in their own right, I want to highlight the weekend event I will be attending: Revelry Music and Arts Festival. DISCLAIMER: I am in no way being prompted to write this feature by any member of WUD Music. I chose to write this feature because it’s music related, it’s Madison news, I love music, live concerts are awesome, and I want to give those that are or may be going a small preview of what they can expect out of the musical talent at the festival. So let’s get to that. I am going to give my short, unarticulated opinion of the artists that were highlighted in the wonderfully crafted video below. Here goes nothing.

Toro y Moi - Contrary to what your initial reaction may be, Toro y Moi is actually one man. And he may be one of the chillest men I’ve ever heard on a track. For starters, he combined both the Spanish and French languages to create his stage name. It doesn’t matter as long as it translates to English easily (Bull and Me) and sounds cool, right? Beyond this, his calm vocals and looped electronic beats are combined to him consider him a part of the genre known as chillwave. It doesn’t get any more chill than that.

Hoodie Allen - One of my close friends has been a Hoodie fan well before the Revelry lineup was released, and since its release I have hopped on the bandwagon hard. His All American EP was only $5 on iTunes, and provides eight solid tracks that exemplify his catchy music and smart lyrics. In addition, his newest mixtape Crew Cuts is on his website for free! Outside of his music, the former Google employee and UPenn Sprint Football player has collaborated on comedy videos with CollegeHumor that are just too funny to only watch once.

Phox - This seven-piece band from Baraboo, Wisconsin utilizes instruments that run the gamut of sounds, resulting in songs that are most often whimsical, but can also be hectic and heavy. No songs particularly called out to me, but there’s no doubt that the band is unique.

The Mowgli’s - While the only music I could find of theirs was the five songs from their Love’s Not Dead EP, this pop-rock octet has an established pedigree with a recent performance at SXSW 2013 and a scheduled performance at Lollapalooza 2013. Their eight-person chorus is extremely catchy, and “San Francisco” is an irresistible summer jam.

Chance the Rapper - Chance the Rapper is definitely a different sounding hip-hop artist, with a significantly higher voice than your typical MC. His second mixtape, Acid Rap drops tomorrow, so hopefully Madison will be receptive to his new material come Saturday.

Delta Spirit - This band has a strong alternative rock sound, and many of the songs I listened to have the feel of a live show even though they’re master tracks. I trust that their live performance will be nothing short of a great display of musical talent. In addition, they have a song on the official first volume of The Walking Dead soundtrack, so I am sold.

Julian Lynch - Chill, instrumental, and articulate all at once, Julian Lynch’s music gives off good vibes. With a Ph.D. in ethnomusicology (!?) from UW-Madison, I think concert attendees will give the former city resident a warm reception.

Oh Land - Hailing from Copenhagen, Denmark, Nanna Øland Fabricius serves as singer, songwriter, and producer, for her music. Pianos and an extensive palette of electronic sounds make for a plethora of experimental tunes for Oh Land to sing over. It will be interesting to see how her music translates to a live performance.

So there you have it: A preview of the biggest acts that Revelry has to offer. It would seem that there is a little something for everyone in the festival’s first installment, and I couldn’t be more excited. Here’s to the joys of live music, summer, and the continued success of this festival for years to come. Revel on.

Friday night at Memorial Union: Heavy Times w/ Pleasure Leftists + Dharma Dogs

Posted on April 26, 2013 by erinberge

Originally from Chicago, the grunge/pop band Heavy Times will grace WUD Music’s stage tonight in Der Rathskeller, accompanied by Pleasure Leftists and Dharma Dogs. The combination of rough tones, with a melodic vocals makes this band a truly unique live music experience.

“Once these mammoth choruses kick into gear, and just as the guitars explode, it’s an endorphin-rushing experience that stands all hairs on end, and will knock you back unexpectedly ” said Tod Killings, as a part of the band’s biography.

A post-punk band that is heavily influenced by 1970′s Britain from Cleveland, according to Pitchfork, Pleasure Leftists will also tear up the stage with their own personal guitar riffs and catchy beat of the drum. But starting off the night is Dharma Dogs, an upbeat, in-your-face grunge Madison band.

It’s a beautiful day, that will soon turn into a beautiful night. So, why not enjoy your time at Memorial Union?

Tape Deck Tuesday: Songs To Stomp To

Posted on April 23, 2013 by toridexter

-University of Wisconsin Memes

The weather is beautiful, the sun is shining, and the streets are finally dry. This is the time of year that I’m really glad that I walk EVERYWHERE. But with all the walking I do on this campus, it’s inevitable that I frequently end up running late, and having to walk to class/the library/WUD Music meetings faster than should be humanly possible. That’s when I whip out what I like to call The Power Stomp (I’m gonna trademark it eventually). It’s like power walking, but more forceful. People loitering on the sidewalk will leap out of your way. Cars will let you cross, even when they have a green light. The ground itself will shake under the rubber soles of your shoes. I wanted to share this technique with the world, so I created a playlist of songs that perfect for those moments when “I need to get to class NOW” is the only thought in your head.

This playlist is a mix of hip-hop, electronic, rap, rock and unclassifiable mixes of these and other genres, but the unifying theme between all of these songs is that they have a strong, pulsing beat that drops at the same time as your shoes, in order to book it up Charter hill in time for Econ 101. Do it to it.

Icona Pop – “I Love It (feat. Charli XCX)”

Atmosphere – “You” – The song that gave me the idea for this playlist in the first place. Dat beat.

P.O.S. – “Weird Friends (We Don’t Even Live Here)”

Passion Pit – “Take A Walk” – A great beat AND it’s walking-themed. Does it get any better?

The Black Keys – “Gold On The Ceiling”

Ben Harper – “Ground On Down”

Florence and The Machine – “Drumming Song”

Brother Ali – “The Preacher”

The Darkness – “Hazel Eyes” – Stick with me on this one. This song is weird, but it gets really awesome at around 1:14 or so.

V V Brown – “Shark In The Water”

Red Hot Chili Peppers – “Higher Ground” – A quality one for Bascom, if you ask me.

Dessa – “The Bullpen” – How appropriate to have one of this weekend’s artists on the playlist. Told you I was obsessed.

Eyedea – “Weird Side”

K.Flay – “Doctor Don’t Know” – Another artist we’ve had at the Sett this year, who I’m similarly obsessed with.

Doomtree – “Savion Glover”

Matt and Kim – “Cameras”

Jay Z and Kanye West – “No Church In The Wild” – Kinda my ultimate ass-kicking song. It doesn’t get any better than this

Santogold – “Creator”

AWOLNATION – “Burn It Down”

Lil Jon – Get Outta Your Mind – I just had to. This song is just so ridiculous and stupid and completely perfect for the occasion. Total guilty pleasure song on my part, and the perfect song to cap off this playlist.

Monday Feature: Phoenix; From a Mess to the Masses

Posted on April 22, 2013 by mizarykizate

You wish you looked this cool while running.

If Phoenix was a type of fruit, it would be a strawberry. You taste it don’t you? Picture this: the year is “1901”. You’re “Run Run Run”ning through a strawberry patch, and you are snagged by a “Lasso”. Now you’re in the hospital with a horrible case of “Lisztomania” and while you’re wondering, “If I Ever Get Better,” a beautiful young woman (not “Too Young”) enters your room. You fall in love and ride off into the “Love Like A Sunset Pt. I.” If that doesn’t sound like a strawberry I don’t know what does.

As if it’s not already cool enough to be from Versailles, France, Thomas Mars, Deck d’Arcy, Christian Mazzalai, and Laurent Brancowitz have made quite the name for themselves. Formed in the early 90′s as a garage band, the quartet had three studio albums before their breakout album, Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix, in 2009. “Too Young“, off of their first album, United, was featured in Lost in Translation, directed by Sophia Coppola, lead singer Thomas Mars’ now wife.

Official music video for “Too Young,” from Lost in Translation

The band has a rich history in the suburbs of Paris. The thirty-somethings wrote almost all of their songs in Mars’ parents house, literally across the street from the palace grounds of Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette. So dreamy. So chic.

Phoenix is on my Bands-I-Would-Sell-My-Soul-To-See list. They are renowned for their energetic shows and their performances make for great “Entertainment“ (see what I did there?). Who can’t like the romantic vocals and pulsing, synthetic sound? Phoenix has been busy playing Saturday Night Live, Jimmy Kimmel, Coachella, and Osheaga this year and I will finally be able to check them off my list when they play Lollapalooza this August.

Phoenix performing “Entertainment” on Saturday Night Live

If you’re not swooning to the wavy, synthetic streams of “Girlfriend,” then you’re bopping your head uncontrollably to “Lisztomania.” The group prides themselves on perfection. In Follow Phoenix, an 18 minute Spotify documentary highlighting a day in the life of Phoenix, Broncowitz was asked who the band listens to when seeking inspiration. “Bronco” he replied, “we like everything. Actually, we don’t like anything, but in every genre there’s a few guys who get it right.” Mars chimes in that editing is crucial. They record everything, so they can go back and squeeze out every last drop of musical genius created.

Follow Phoenix, a Spotify documentary

Phoenix’s long-awaited, fifth studio album, Bankrupt!, will be released this Tuesday in the United States; and the world is ready for it.

Friday Night in the Sett: Dessa w/ First Wave Performers, Co-sponsored by the Campus Women’s Center

Posted on April 19, 2013 by toridexter

Guys, I have a confession to make. I am more than a little bit obsessed with the artist I’m currently writing about. Some have called it a Level 3 girl-crush…Whatever. Basically, THIS is the blog post that I’ve been waiting for. Friends, WUD-ians, countrymen, lend me your ears. I’m going to tell you a tale. A tale that begins far, far away in the land of Minneapolis.

Dessa’s unique combination of musical talent and smart, biting lyricism first arose from participating in slam poetry competitions in college at the U of M. While living and working in Minneapolis after graduation, she befriended members of the Doomtree rap collective, and when they discovered her incredible talent for writing, they asked her to join the group. She has since gone on to basically conquer the world, releasing four albums with Doomtree, writing and publishing a book, developing her own lipstick color with The Elixery in Minneapolis, and releasing two solo albums with one more, Parts of Speech, on the way on June 25th. Parts of Speech is being hailed as Dessa’s best work yet, with a wealth of different genres, beats, and instruments weaving together into a beautifully cohesive album that has critics falling over with pure excitement. The first single, Warsaw, was described by one reviewer like this: “The track boasts a beat like Azealia Banks playing Pacman, which provides a background for our emcee’s confident, hypnotic flow.” Couldn’t have said it better myself. You can listen to that here .

Dessa’s style is truly exceptional. It’s rare to encounter a rapper who makes amazing music without conforming to the genre’s stereotypes, but she accomplishes it, refusing to be put exclusively into the box of “singer,” “rapper,” or “writer.” She’s not shy about calling out the sexism and hypocrisy present in the world of hip-hop, with lyrics like “I found your steel ladder/Now your ceilings don’t matter/Check me out now I got glass floors.” Dessa will make you think. She will grab you by the collar and make you listen to her lyrics. She will change how you think of women in rap music.

She is what I listen to when I’m blissfully happy, and what I listen to when I’m so angry that I want to punt strangers through the Camp Randall goalposts. Dessa is an incredible artist, and a role model for women everywhere. Not just those in the music industry, but all the women who deal with sexism and stereotyping in their lives and work.

Of course, this night would not be complete without the incredible talent of an all-female group of First Wave performers, in honor of this event’s co-sponsorship with the Campus Women’s Center. For those who don’t know, First Wave is a multicultural coalition of artists who are also students here on campus. They perform spoken word and hip-hop, polishing their skills and showcasing their talents all across campus, the city, and the country. Anyone who has seen First Wave in action before knows that they consistently put on an energetic and passionate show, and will be the perfect intro to a night full of strong women with mad talent.

And as a final quick plug, the Campus Women’s Center does amazing work on this campus, and we are very proud to be working with them to put on an incredible show that honors and promotes female artists and their accomplishments. This show is going to be ridiculously awesome. Get there.

Friday 4/19, The Sett, 9:00 PM

Here’s some videos, to get you pumped.

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