Afro Nation, the world’s biggest afrobeats festival, which spanned from March 24th  – 26th, took place in San Juan, Puerto Rico this year. The three-day experience was filled with beautiful people, pouring rain, all the right vices, and of course amazing music and talent. Every night was like a gigantic family reunion where a sea of melanin rejoiced over lyrics and ear delicious instrumentals.  Although … Continue reading [Festival Review] Afro Nation: Broken Hearts, Heavy Showers, And Plenty Of Love

Touring Day/Night, their November album release, Parcels is once again expanding their global reach and fanbase.  An Australian band with sold-out shows in America and across Europe, Parcels does well to satisfy fans of poppy, light anthems and entrancing deep cuts that send audiences into a synth-induced trance. Folding in layers of funk, surf rock, and electronica, Parcels’ wide stylistic appeal and goofy charisma made … Continue reading [Concert Review] Parcels Brings Denver to the Australian Beach

I arrived about an hour ahead of Charlotte’s March 8 set to a line of excited fans streaming perpendicular to the East River in Williamsburg, Brooklyn past a communal fridge used for feeding food-insecure community members. I left uplifted about the city I live in, the music I listen to, the people around me, and the state of the world.  Performing at the Music Hall … Continue reading [Concert Review] Charlotte Day Wilson Displays Instrumental Diversity and Quiet Charisma

Godspeed You! Black Emperor (GYBE) had the Gothic Theater in a trance this February 25 in Denver. Bringing the ~1,000-person room to increasing levels of dissonance before cathartic release throughout the night, the band put on a display of musical maximalism in a time of minimalism. There are as many reasons to go to a show as there are people packed in a venue; to … Continue reading [Concert Review] Godspeed You! Black Emperor Sends Denver into a Trance

Anyone walking into Mission Ballroom on Dec. 7 expecting a groovy night to the tempo of Thundercat’s studio-recorded songs received a hefty slap in the face after only a few minutes.  The show was impressively disorienting. Channel Tres’ opening performance was head-nodding, evoking the feeling of an intimate, late-night club session. Jumping around with his pet cheetah backpack and black overalls, Channel Tres made smooth … Continue reading Thundercat’s Frenetic, Evocative Space Ride at Mission Ballroom [Concert Review]

Austin, Texas musicians Charlie Martin and Will Taylor first came on my radar with their single Problem, off their 2016 release Taster. The band’s first full-length release is a washed-out and slow crawl of nostalgia’s introspective lens that anyone can poke their head into and relate.  I’ll walk you home / You say you’re tired of talking to people you don’t know / Feet on … Continue reading Discovering Optimism in the Melancholic: A Spotlight on Hovvdy 

As if directly inspired by Steve Lacy’s Ted Talk on the creative possibilities brought about by advanced technology, John Lisi created I Hope This Feels Good, a gentle, soft-around-the-edges album. Employing jazz and alternative stylings with his saxophone, guitars, keyboard, and computer, the project keeps its allure over many replays. I Hope This Feels Good’s cover art tells you much of what you need to … Continue reading Multi-instrumentalist John Lisi Welcomes You Home with “I Hope This Feels Good” [Album Review]