by Abby Trapp | Apr 6, 2018 | albums, review, wolf tracks
Honey and Salt just released their self titled LP. The grunge/rock/punk band has a variety of ten tracks on the LP starting with “A Nihilist Takes Up Knitting” and ending with “Cascade.”
The band is described as sociopolitical or as I like to call it “music with a purpose.” Honey and Salt has good reason though. Wade Allen, on main vocals, is a philosophy teacher which definitely influences the bands lyrics. On “A Nihilist Takes Up Knitting” Wade pleads “Right or wrong is not subjective.” “Blame game” is an anthem of “who and what is blame?”
My favorite, though, is “Bowling Green Memorial.” “Bowling Green Memorial” rounds out at a whooping eight minutes and nine seconds. What most impressive though, is that the majority of that is a drum/guitar solo that will take you be surprise. Just when you think the solo is over, Honey and Salt will bring you back into the music. Honey and Salt is definitely worth the listen. The LP is more than just an album—it is truly one big box of sociopolitical prompts, wrapped carefully and neatly to give to any listener so that they can ask themselves “How and why are we here now?”
Keep up with Honey and Salt here.
by Abby Trapp | Apr 5, 2018 | videos, wolf tracks
The pop-folk singer/songwriter Carla Stark just released her latest single “Once a Cheater”, which takes a sinister look at a lover who has been promiscuous. The song is addicting, charming, and will have you grinning from ear-to-ear. My favorite lines include “You were too old for me, and too good looking,” “You can cheat on me and you can cheat on others—but you’ll never cheat your death,” and “And you may think your skin is the best leather, but my knife go through flesh.” From those lines alone, you can see that Carla has a gift for writing cunning and quick lyrics. Not only is she a great songwriter, Carla’s syrupy sweet voice shines on “Once a Cheater.”
Keep up with Carla Stark here.
by Abby Trapp | Apr 3, 2018 | singles, wolf tracks
The Fader describes as Colin Magalong’s “Melo” as “…a little bit of warm loving to get us through these last few dregs of winter…Over a chill little bass groove, he sings about an ideal sort of comfy date night including getting wine drunk, ordering take out, and dancing around the house.” They nail “Melo” right on the head as its retro disco-pop theme combined with lyrics of staying in with a your significant other will have you feeling “mellow.” My favorite lyrics include “We can make this apartment heaven,” and “We can do whatever…I don’t really care.” It’s the perfect “stay in, instead of go out” anthem as we transition from winter into spring.
Keep up with Colin here.
by Abby Trapp | Apr 3, 2018 | videos, wolf tracks
Brooklyn based Las Rosas just released their video for their single “Christa.” “Christa” opens to child-like imagery. It opens in a kids room, where they are lying on their bed wearing a “monster” suit (think “Where The Wild Things Are”). The video follows a pre-teen girl with short curly red hair who is keen to her vintage camera and has a smile for everyone she meets. The “monster” and “Christa” don’t cross paths until the end of the night when they end up in a club. One may argue that “Christa” displays no kids in this video. After all why would they be in a night club?
To me, “Christa” purposely cast kids for a specific purpose– to display the endless hope and search for young and middle age adults to find “innocent teenage love.” The garage band’s “Christa” is coming from their sophomore album Shadow By Your Side which will release on May 11th.
Keep up with Las Rosas here.
by Abby Trapp | Apr 2, 2018 | videos, wolf tracks
Clay Priskorn just release a video for his latest video “Orange Sky.” With a classic all-American feel, the video takes on a cross country road trip with two lovers. Shots of motel rooms, arcades, and cruising in a Rolls Royce, these two girls are hot and taking on the world with each other. Soon they have reached the “big city” as if this is their place to begin again. While the couple seems truly in love, it’s not all fun and games. The end of the video for “Orange Sky” leaves you with an unexpected and dark twist.
Decide for yourself whether or not “Orange Sky” is about two reckless lovers, or a tale of sabotage and revenge.
by Abby Trapp | Apr 2, 2018 | singles, wolf tracks
L.A. producer /artist Koda just released his latest single “Touch”, which is melancholy, intense, and seeps into your feelings. The song begins with lyrics from Koda stating “We touch ourselves to distant memories/I feel what you felt when you were lying next to me.” His voice is drawn out and breathy giving the song a haunting mood to it. While he track tells the tale of a past love, the whole thing isn’t so bleak. Koda finds hope through the heartbreak on “Touch” proclaiming “Next time I’ll hold you close, I’ll never let you go– I need another dose so you can make me whole again.” “Touch” encompasses all the things that went wrong, but all the things that can go right should you make the decision to go the second time around.
Keep up with Koda here.
by Abby Trapp | Mar 30, 2018 | singles, wolf tracks
Rapper Kahiem Rivera just release his latest “This Night Last Year” (ft. Snake Eye). I’m a big fan of rap, but I’m even a bigger fan of amazing rap that the whole world has yet to discover. Kahiem Rivera hits everything perfectly on “This Night Last Year.” Snake Eyes takes the lead at the beginning of the song with hypnotic vocals. Kahiem Rivera quickly joins in as his voice will grab you and draw you in. He pronounces every word perfectly and his way of rapping is meticulous because he wants you to listen to what he’s actually saying. On “This Night Last Year,” Rivera tells a tale of staying out late- the conflict between exciting and “I need to stop going out…what am I living for?” feeling.
Admits Rivera:
I fell into a long depression last winter, during a leg injury from getting hit by a car. Once I was semi-healthy again, I started going out a lot to this one bar to get out of that rut. Just being there almost every night, till 4am, binge drinking with a lot of people who didn’t seem to have a care in the world. It almost felt like the club in San Junipero, from Black Mirror. So the song is balancing the feeling of having genuine fun but also an existential “wtf am I doing?
If you have seen that episode of Black Mirror, then you will recognize the direct correlation to the songs reference.
Keep up with Kahiem Rivera here.
by Abby Trapp | Mar 29, 2018 | show review
Hip-hop duo Atmosphere returned to Kansas City on Saturday, the 24th at the Voodoo Lounge. Atmosphere was previously in Kansas City three years ago and was thrilled about their return. The duo performed songs from albums such as Fishing Blues, God Loves Ugly, and Lucy Ford. Atmosphere did not have a problem with keeping the crowd hyped, commanding us to “Put your hands up Kansas City.”
The show was so wild, that at one point in the night, an edible was thrown onstage. It was acknowledged, but fittingly thrown back into the audience. Atmosphere even noted that they were working on a new album, and previewed a new song. It was a night filled with energy and excitement, and if you have the chance, catch Atmosphere on tour.
You can find tour dates and more info here.
by Abby Trapp | Mar 29, 2018 | videos, wolf tracks
Febueder just released a video for their latest “Paramount Tether”. The video had a homemade feel to it but is nothing short of trippy. What starts as a series of street lights, soon turn into flashes of lights and candles. The camera starts cutting to random images which include but are not limited to, dead dogs/animals, blood soaked sheets, random strangers, and bodies of water.
Have you ever watched anything and after you were just like “What?” That’s how I feel about this video, incredibly intrigued in the best way. The song is trippy in itself too. It flows with drums, trumpets, and deep vocals. It has a similar feel to Alt-J’s sound, but this is more distinctive and less produced which makes for a raw sound.
Keep up with Febueder here.
