5 Tracks to Get Your Morning Started

There can be nothing worse than the sound of your alarm clock in the morning. Coupled with this week's rain, the snooze button quickly becomes your only ally against the morning. Our favorite trick? Getting ready with some great tunes. They may not be as inviting as your warm bed, but these tracks are the perfect way to start your day!

September by Earth, Wind & Fire
I actually dare you to find a happier song. This song is classic for so many reasons (the horns!) and will have you spinning around your bathroom in no time. Also if the fantastic throwback music video doesn't put a smile on your face, I don't know what will.

If You Didn't See Me (Then You Weren't on the Dancefloor) by Dale Earnhardt Jr. Jr.

I promise I'm not directing you to a song by a NASCAR driver. The duo behind the name used it to suggest "a way to identify our crazy new project that had no limitations." This track is an infectious jam that you will be stuck in your head for the rest of the day. Also, it comes with another incredibly great music video that will definitely give you a chuckle and remind you of Reno 911. 

Chasin' Echoes by The Lonely Biscuits

The Lonely Biscuits formed a few years ago at Belmont University in Nashville and though they've yet to release a full-length CD, they've been making their festival rounds. My brother turned me onto this song last year and it demonstrates the level of talent these guys truly have.

Touch The Sky by Kanye West

Personal feelings against Kanye aside, this song is a great way to set your morning on the right track. It's Kanye in his traditional element and its where he excels. Plus a perfect cameo from Lupe Fiasco makes this track the brilliant piece of music it is.

Elevate by St. Lucia

John-Philip Grobler, better known as St. Lucia, embraces his South African heritage to create a track that is very Peter Gabriel-esque. This peppy tune will have you bopping your head along in no time. 

Kim Walker

This week I had the pleasure of sitting down for coffee with Kim Walker who has been a musical force here in the Triangle for almost thirty years on and off. Kim has been in several bands and she has experienced tons of shows, as a fan, at venues all around NC.

Describe the music scene in the Triangle? I would say the music scene is diverse and abundant.

There are so many shows. Every night there are at least two shows that I would love to see.

What is your favorite venue in the Triangle to see a show? Pinhook. I live in Durham and Pinhook is close and convenient.
I really like everything about Pinhook it is the perfect middle ground between the cave and the cradle.

How would you describe the vibe at Pinhook? Professional but casual. Easy-going. I like that the Pinhook is a good size.

I know you have been playing music in the Triangle for a while...What has your history been? Well, when I was in undergrad at NC State I was in a band called Shiny Beast which I joined in '91. Then I traveled around did other things and came back to NC and moved to Greensboro where I joined another band. Now I'm in Durham and I've been playing with the band Horizontal Hold for about a year and a half. There are four of us in the band now and I play the bass.

Do you have a memory of an awesome music moment or experience in the NC?
Well there was this memory I had of a venue in Greensboro called, The Onion Seller which was like a total fire hazard, totally terrifying, completely illegal. It was a tiny "old school" store. Everybody kinda joked that if anyone ever needed to get out once we got in we wouldn't have been able to. They had tons of shows there. The place was a dump...but it was GREAT. Totally illegally. They got shut down a lot but they kept it going...I just love the ingenuity of Greensboro. They say screw it we are having a shows and people figure it out. I love that Greensboro it's so accepting of music. You can be so much wack-ier and crap-ier as an artist in Greensboro and people are so much more amenable to that.

Horizontal Hold has been working on some new music so be sure to check them out at one of their next shows.

Yep Roc Records

An easy way to tap into the local music scene in the Triangle is to be familiar with the local record labels. This week I'm going to introduce you to a unique record label located in Hillsborough, NC...not too far outside the Triangle. 

Yep Roc Records is a seventeen year old local boutique record label, and they're incredibly unique. Yep Roc admits in a blog post that the easiest way to describe a record label is to define what kinds of music it releases, but they pride themselves on the variety of artists that they represent. They now represent genres from bluegrass to modern rock. What are they all about? Here are some things you should know:

• The label was founded in 1997 by Tor Hansen and Glenn Dicker after being inspired by the rich music scene in Chapel Hill. 
•  In the first 15 years of business, Yep Roc released over 300 albums, singles, videos and box sets.
• They pride themselves in signing "legacy artists," honoring the artists' pasts and rejuvenating their futures by releasing some of the most exciting music of their careers. 
• They also take pride in launching successful careers of some of the most notable North Carolina artists today.
• The label's name is after a notable jazz pioneer, Slim Gaillard.

You can read an extended history of the label on Indy Week, and you'll see that the label grew from a humble beginning to a unique and successful company. The two founders worked out of Hansen's basement and started small with releases of regional artist compilations. Two of the most successful early artists with Yep Roc were Los Straitjackets and Nick Lowe. However, not all artists that they've taken on have taken off. According to an article on Indy Week, these are some of the founders' favorite artists that never became successful.

•  C.C. Adcock is an artist that they produced the "coolest album" they'd ever done...but it never took off. 

• An NC band called The Comas did a record called Conductor with Yep Roc which the founders deem as amazing, which unfortunately was not mirrored with success.  

If you check these artists out...you may find that music fans missed out! Over the years though, Yep Roc has had more success stories than un-success stories. They refer to themselves as "the artist-driven label that refuses to be labeled," and this image is portrayed through the diverse group of artists that they represent. They've signed artists Ranging from Paul Weller, a British Rocker, to indie rock artists like Dave Alvin. 

If you're looking for some new music, I'd encourage you to explore the full list of artists on the label now. You won't be disappointed!

Local Artist Spotlight: Kooley High

I'm very surprised that I haven't heard about this Raleigh music group until recently, because they seem to have generated some buzz in the NC music seen over the past few years. Kooley High is a new-wave and energetic hip-hop group from our wonderful capitol, Raleigh, NC. Although they haven't put out new music since 2011, I still want to bring your attention to this unique group, because if I haven't heard their music...chances are you haven't either.

According to Kooley High's press kit, they take pride in their "North Cack"style and describe it as soul-sampling beats coupled with well crafted rhymes. And that description pretty much hits the nail on the head. The two albums since their EP in 2008 (The Summer Sessions) that you should listen to are Eastern Standard Time and Presents...David Thompson. The cool thing about this group is that if you're from North Carolina, especially the Triangle area,  you'll definitely be able to relate to the lyrics in some of their songs.

Here are two that you're likely to like as a Triangle resident:

Some fun facts about Kooley High:

• The group started as a student run hip-hop organization at NC State University. Six members got together and released an EP followed by mixtapes and albums. 
• They have performed with notable names in the hip-hop world like Wale and J. Cole. 
• They were known for frequenting hot Triangle music spots like Cat's Cradle and Lincoln Theatre but have also successfully had shows in New York and LA. 

According to Indy Week, members of the group actually relocated to New York a few years ago with hopes of expanding their fan base. Since discovering Kooley High, I've grown an appreciation for their simplistic but fun, up-beat music, but I'd be interested to know how their career has panned out in New York. It seems that they've got a dynamic and a larger group than you typically see in hip-hop, so I'm curious if that has caused the collaboration process to suffer since we haven't seen new music in a while.

Regardless, I would definitely recommend checking this group out!

3 Triangle Soundcloud Accounts to Check Out

A great way to listen to music for free and discover music you've never heard before is Soundcloud. If you're a fan of music, and you've never used this site before, I'd definitely suggest you check it out. What I love most about this site is the search feature - you can search music of any genre, and from any location. If you sign up for an account, you can follow genres and artists that you may be interested in. To give you a taste of the possibilities on Soundcloud, here are a few accounts you should follow to discover local music...

1. Yep Roc Music Group

I've recently discovered this awesome boutique record label based out of Hillsborough, NC. They represent some incredibly talented local bands such as the bluegrass group, Chatham County Line, as well as some bigger names (and one of my personal favorite artists), Apples in Stereo.

2. III Bomb Records

This is a label now based out of Raleigh, NC, was formed by two brothers from New York. They started producing underground electronic over 15 years ago, and started a label in Raleigh to sign new artists and continue making electronic music.

3. New Sounds North Carolina

This account is based out of Chapel Hill, NC. This is a great account to follow if you want to hear some of the undiscovered artists in the Triangle.

Covers from Carolina

We spend a lot of time talking about upcoming bands and singers in the NC area, but we can't forget about how fun it is for us to enjoy a really sick cover band every once and a while. North Carolina is home to several phenomenal cover ensembles and we really think you should check out our list of favorites:

#1. One of my all time favorite entertainers in the area is The Dickens Band. I will not miss a show when they come our way. Covering songs like Aretha Franklin's R-E-S-P-E-C-T and Kayne West's Gold Digger, The Dickens plays a variety of jams that keeps people dancing all night long.

#2. The second band on my list is Who's Bad. If you haven't heard of this Michael Jackson cover band, then you are really missing out. Their show will take you right back to the days of "Smooth Criminal" and "Triller." Be sure to check them out if you're in the mood for an amazing time!

#3. She Bop!  is North Carolina's "Raddest Party Band." They play exclusively 80's jams and, luckily enough, they are going to be coming to Burlington, NC this Saturday to play a show! If you and your friends are in the mood for teasing your hair and dancing the night away, then you should make your way to Fat Frogg this weekend!

Some Things You Might Not Know About James Taylor

James Taylor was born almost exactly sixty-six years ago, on March 12th in Boston, MA - but he was raised in the Triangle's very own Carborro. I'm sure it's a well-known in our area that James Taylor has given us the unofficial NC Theme song, "Carolina In My Mind," and has had an extremely successful music career as a five-time Grammy Award winner. Behind his wildly successful career though, Taylor is quite the interesting guy. Here are a few obscure facts about this triangle native...

I'm a huge Beatles fan, so this was particularly interesting to me: Paul McCartney plays the bass and George Harrison sings back up for our state's beloved song, "Carolina In My Mind." Take a listen to it here...

Paul McCartney is actually largely responsible for discovering James Taylor. Taylor was the first non-British artist to sign to the Beatle's record label, Apple Records. According to this article on solobeatles.com, the song references growing up in North Carolina as well as recording with the infamous Beatles in the UK.

Another surprising fact about Taylor is that he was admitted into a mental hospital at the early age of seventeen years old due to severe depression. Throughout his life he also struggled with heroin addiction. Watch him discuss these issues in a feature on youtube.

And lastly, James Taylor's parents were interesting as well and very involved in the Chapel Hill Community. According to the Chapel Hill Museum site, Taylor's father was the dean of UNC Chapel Hill Medical School. His mother was musically talented and Lyrics Freak's article states that she was actually an Opera Singer. It's clear where James Taylor's musical inclination came from.

Taylor is an iconic musician - definitely a source of pride for North Carolina and the Triangle.