“IV is the sum of the I, II, and III.” That was the driving thought behind the fourth installment of the Eaux Claires music festival according to the festival’s homepage. In years past, co-creators Justin Vernon and Aaron Dessner have used the weekend in the woods to shine a light on emerging artists and give fans the opportunity to see influential artists of a massive scale.
Foster Farms lies just outside the city limits of Eau Claire, Wisconsin on the north bank of the Chippewa River.
When Unknown Mortal Orchestra’s song “Ffunny Ffrends” mysteriously popped up on Bandcamp back in 2010, it was a random, ownerless track.
“Get off your a** and hustle,” is the first line on Rich the Kid’s debut album The World Is Yours. He goes on to rap, “I’m the definition of a hustler,” which could not be more true. While The World Is Yours has been marketed as his first album, he’s been a star in the trap scene for half a decade. In the past five years, he’s released a staggering 18 mixtapes which, on average, meant a new project every three months. On top of that, he founded his own record label Rich Forever Music all before signing a deal of his own. Rich is a hustler in every sense of the word.
Scottish-based, Mercury-Prize-winning group Young Fathers have been ones to ignore the confines of genre since their critically acclaimed 2014 debut Dead. The following year, they upped the ante with genre defiance while throwing in more abrasive touches that expanded their sound even further. Their first output since 2015, Cocoa Sugar is yet again an expansion of their incredible musical palette.
The 60th Annual Grammy Awards — the self-proclaimed biggest night in music — aired on Sunday. This year, following what is now tradition for the incredibly out-of-touch award show, The Recording Academy and all those who vote for the nominees snubbed some of the most deserving and relevant candidates for several of their coveted awards.
As the year approaches its finale, we’re thrown into a blitzkrieg of artists releasing highly anticipated — and sometimes unexpected — albums. Björk, Fabolous & Jadakiss and a slew of holiday-themed artists all released projects this weekend.
Every Thursday night at 11 p.m., a slew of new albums pop up on music streaming services on phones across the country.
As a horde of people crowded into the High Noon Saloon on Thursday night, it became quite clear that the night would be filled with sincere appreciation for the music. I soon found myself completely surrounded by denim-shirt-wearing, Pabst-Blue-Ribbon-holding music fanatics.
To put it simply, Los Angeles bassist Thundercat is a bizarre human being. From his lyrics to his clothes, he is the embodiment of embracing the unconventional.
Wearing a customized Favre jersey, Lil Wayne performed classic tracks during the sold-out show.
Woodes, a young singer, song-writer and producer from Melbourne, Australia, is an artist who uses her haunting voice to paint a picture of a dream world untouched by the evils that plague earth. Her music is pure and innocent and she’s a beautiful storyteller whose youth shines through her lyrics with a sense of eager anticipation for the future. –Logan Rude
Her’s, a duo from Liverpool with music oddly reminiscent of both 80s pop-rock and 60s surf-rock, is about as fun as two guys can get with just their voices, two guitars and a computer. They are spunky and loud; though a little older, they resemble two quirky misfits from a 90s teenage flick who just want to have a good time. Keep an eye out for their album Songs of Her’s due out later this year. –Logan Rude
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Solutions by The State News
