Hopscotch 2012 Lineup Announced

Fans enjoy The Flaming Lips at The Plaza Stage, Hopscotch 2012

The Independent's Hopscotch Musical Festival in Raleigh, NC is back for the third year with a stellar lineup featuring something for just about every musical taste. This year's headliners include The Roots, Scottish 80s alt-rock group The Jesus and Mary Chain, Built to Spill, Yo La Tengo, and Liars. Hopscotch is unique in its support of the homegrown music scene. Notable locals include Birds of Avalon, Roman Candle, The Beast, Arnold Dreyblatt/Megafaun, and The Mountain Goats. Even with the sheer amount of local groups there are bands from all across the US and the world, for that matter (High Wolf, Hubble, and Holograms are all European). Other US bands include Damien Jurado, Ducktails, and Wye Oak, as well as numerous others.

Wayne Coyne of The Flaming Lips, Hopscotch 2011

With so many bands in so little time how do they fit them all in three days? Hopscotch makes use of many well-known venues in the area but also utilizes bars and clubs with smaller stages for smaller acts. Concerts are ongoing at fifteen venues all over downtown, starting at staggered times so patrons can hopscotch Raleigh, giving festival-goers a chance to see what Raleigh is all about. The festival features headlining shows at The Plaza on Fayetteville St. on Friday and Saturday night.

Titus Adronicus at Tir Na Nog, Hopscotch 2011

VIP passes are already sold 
out and 3-day wristbands are on sale now for $110. One day passes will be available soon. Check their tickets page for availability. Look for band previews on Final E Chord in the months leadng up to the festival. All photos shown, courtesy of Ronny Nause Photography.

Wayne Coyne surfs the crowd

The Dodos

Upcoming Show: Washed Out with Memoryhouse at the Cat's Cradle

Ernest Green aka Washed Out

Washed Out will be at the Cat's Cradle on April 16 with Memoryhouse.The last time I saw Washed Out he opened for Cut Copy at the Cat's Cradle. The performance was great, albeit short, leaving much more to be desired. I told my friends I felt that the next time he was on tour he would likely be the headliner. Lucky for fans, that is now the case. 

Washed Out is Georgia native Ernest Greene's stage name. He began creating music in his bedroom studio in 2009, moving up through the ranks of the music world via music blogs and MySpace. From 2009-2010 he released three EPs, the second featuring his most popular tune to this day (Feel it All Around from Life of Leisure). In 2011 he shook up the music world with the release of his first LP, Within and Without (Sub Pop Records), which peaked at 26 on the U.S. Billboard 200. Washed Out typically travels with an accompanying band so I would expect the same for this show.

Evan Abeele and Denis Nouvion of Memoryhouse

Opening the show will be Memoryhouse of Ontario, Canada. The band began as a multimedia project with classical musician Evan Abeele and photographer Denise Nouvion. The band features drums, echoing guitars, piano, synthesizers, and cello. Nouvion's smooth wispy vocals are pleasant to the ear, and when blended with Abeele's flanged guitars melt the music into a dreamy aerial bliss. Memoryhouse released their first LP, The Slideshow Effect in February 2012 on Sup Pop Records. They are indeed a band to watch, as they are sure to be the next big thing in indie rock. Tickets and info here.

Memoryhouse

Concert Recap: Neon Indian + Purity Ring

Purity Ring

It was a sold out show at the Cat's Cradle this Wednesday, as Neon Indian and Purity Ring fans got a megadose of low-fi synth-pop. Purity Ring opened the show and, given their talent, is sure to have someone opening for them next time I see them. Instead of relying on stage lights the DJ had a contraption rigged to his sampling equipment. The colors on the lights around his console corresponded to the beat and a large bass drum on the stage would light up during bass beats. Megan James' vocals were slightly haunting, though meticulously well-pitched, and married well with the DJ's almost spooky music samples and beats.

As the anticipation built for Neon Indian, a sea of flannel shirt-wearing fans wielding PBRs packed in around the stage. Neon Indian opened with "Local Joke" from Pyschic Chasms (2009). Much of the original music remained in tact, but some guitar leads were slightly lost in translation. They also relied on a drum kit instead of low-fi drum samples. The crowd responded well to the more popular tracks. The band played a long synth-heavy segue into "Pyschic Chasms" and the crowd began to move as the synth-bass line drove the song along. "Polish Girl" (Era Extraña, 2011) was also a huge hit and a segue into "Dead Beat Summer" made both tunes even better. Lead singer Alan Palomo even let the crowd sing the chorus. Palomo told the crowd there was one song left in the set but said that since we were "such a great audience" they would play on through the encore set, which included "Terminally Chill" and "Should've Taken Acid With You". All in all it was a great night of low-fi/chillwave, right in my backyard.

Alan Palomo (lead singer, synth)

Leanne Macomber (synth, vocals)
 playing a tune on bass

Upcoming Concert: Hammer No More the Fingers with The Big Picture, Thursday, March 1st

Joe Hall on guitar, Duncan Webster on bass

Raleigh is in for quite a treat on Thursday. Hammer No More the Fingers, the indie-punk/pop/rock trio from Durham, N.C. is headlining Tir Na Nog Irish Pub's weekly Local Band, Local Beer Night.

 Jeff Stickley on drums

HNTF has been rocking the Triangle for years and just recently released their third and most polished album last year. Their sound is unique and tricky to describe, as even they admit. Some critics call them emotional rock, without being emo. For me, Weezer comes to mind as a major influence (see Vodka Grasshopper). The songs are short and catchy, with melodies and choruses sure to have you on your feet, moving to thumping bass-lines and up-beat drumming.

The Big Picture

The Big Picture is opening up for HNMTF and I can't wait to hear them, as they feature a mix of some of the bigger names in the Triangle music scene (Johnny and Joah Tunnell of The Never, Nick Radford of The Annuals, Leah Gibson of Lost in the Trees). They're described as experimental pop, at times reminiscent of The Arcade Fire. Come enjoy a local brew and some awesome local music this Thursday at 10 p.m.!


Hammer No More the Fingers - Shark (Black Shark, 2011)
Hammer No More the Fingers - Radiation (Looking for Bruce, 2009)