Review:

Mansions, The Front Bottoms, Bluebird Midwest, Look Out Loretta

The Smiling Moose, Tuesday 1/24

The upstairs room at the Smiling Moose on a Tuesday evening is not the most crowded place in the world. People have work and classes, and not many care to come out to see a show. Those who did come to the venue last Tuesday at around 6:30, though, were in for quite a treat. The dimly-lit little room became the backdrop for a very enthusiastic night of indie-punk music featuring local acts Look Out Loretta and Bluebird Midwest as well as touring headliners The Front Bottoms and Mansions. All-in-all, the show was dynamite.

Upon arrival, there were only maybe 5 other people there. The air smelled faintly of smoke and sweat and there was equipment piled by the stage. By the time the first band, Look Out Loretta, came on, the number of people hadn’t even doubled. The band played a good set full of Wonder Years-style pop punk, complete with strong harmonies and loud guitar playing. The band was a bit stiff at first, but managed to loosen up by the end – by which time there was a decent addition to the crowd.

After they finished and got offstage, one man got up there alone with his acoustic guitar. Tall, awkward-looking, black-haired, and wearing a very interesting black shirt featuring a grizzly bear, the man sat down on a stool and checked his microphone. Roger Harvey, member of local punk rock band White Wives, played an emotionally-charged acoustic set under the name Bluebird Midwest. His solemn voice, reminiscent of Conor Oberst’s, was powerful and soft all at once, floating from melody to melody effortlessly. The songs were powerful, and he even did a cover of Woodie Guthrie’s “Deportee”, a song that Harvey described as “the saddest song ever written.” The crowd clearly enjoyed his set, though by the end everybody seemed to be ready to move around to some faster, more energetic music.

Thankfully, The Front Bottoms were on next and they certainly delivered. For a band with only two members, they really rocked out. Their energy was owed in part to drummer Matt Uychich, who also operated a slew of pre-programmed beats, horn sections, and other various odds and ends on a Macbook perched next to his drumkit – a very interesting addition to the songs that brought a lot of fun to the tunes. Most of the audience at least nodded their heads along to the driving beats, which is a lot to say for a standard concert audience. It seems even the most droll, statue-like crowd members couldn’t resist the Front Bottoms’ punk-pop jams, all of which have fantastic lyrics as well as being packed with ferocity. The band closed with their ridiculously catchy “Maps”, even calling up a second drummer to play a second drum kit for some extra percussive power.

The second drummer turned out to be the drummer for Mansions, the headlining band. Featuring primary member/creative mind Christopher Browder on vocals and guitar as well as a bass player and aforementioned drummer, Mansions spat out an extremely raw and inspired set that showcased some of their best musicianship. The punk rock/emo band also occasionally indulged in some stage banter, such as when they got into a conversation with an audience member about the board game Sorry!, in which they had apparently competed against The Front Bottoms members the night before while hanging out.

“Who won?” asked the audience member.

“They beat us in Sorry!,” replied Browder. “But we beat them in watching The Bachelor.”

“I can’t believe you just brought that up,” said the band’s bass player as she shook her head and smirked.

After bantering and playing a set full of some of their best songs (including the spirited “Seven Years”) while the crowd jumped and cheered, two of the band members left the stage. Christopher Browder remained onstage alone, and closed out the evening with a solo rendition of the snappy, bitter “The Worst Part” from the album New Best Friends. It was the perfect, calmer resolution to a high-octane night in the upstairs room of a South Side bar on a Tuesday night.

The members of Anti-Flag raised their middle fingers high on the stage of Mr. Smalls Theatre.

None of their arms trembles or shook as they flipped off not the audience members, but rather the oppressive government present in modern society. Lead singer Justin Sane shouted the words to the song “F*** Police Brutality,” and certainly it hit home for a lot of people, in the wake of recent aggression toward the Occupy protests.

The audience mimicked the band’s profane gestures and the whole room was a middle-finger fest. Only at a punk rock show could such a thing be considered good, but indeed it was. The moment was powerful and uniting for a group of people who often felt downtrodden and outcast, and is very telling of the concert overall. Anti-Flag put on a highly energetic show and, along with the fantastic lineup of opening bands, cemented November 26th, 2011, as an amazing night for punk.

The show began with local band Mace Ballard. This pop-punk act played a very tight set that sounded great, however they could have used a bit more stage presence. They mostly just stood still or at least stayed at the same part of the stage. Still, their music was great for an opener, and their NOFX cover was a great touch.

Philadelphia punk band The Holy Mess played next, and what they lacked in technical skill they made up for in pure explosive energy. They played somewhat sloppily, partially owed to their level of intoxication, but their fiery songs and fun state banter made their set highly enjoyable.

The third band, Cancer Bats, traveled all the way to Pittsburgh from Toronto, Canada in order to play their heavy, sludge metal-esque hardcore punk and make the whole audience mosh. And mosh, they did. The crowd went insane as the Cancer Bats’ music erupted from behind the haze of the smoke machine.

“I wanna see that rainbow mohawk cut someone in half!” said the Bats’ lead singer, Liam Cormier, during their set. Cormier’s stage presence was a force to be reckoned with as he crouched at the front of the stage and screamed into the microphone like there was no tomorrow. All in all, when it comes to opening bands, the Cancer Bats took the cake in getting the audience to move.

The final act to go on before Anti-Flag seemed to take the best of every other opener and combine it into one set. Indie-punk experts The Menzingers dominated the stage with ease; they played their songs tightly, they had a dynamic stage presence, and the audience loved it. Their well-rounded performance did a great job of getting everybody pumped for the headliner, and of course their music itself is wonderful.

Before Anti-Flag went onstage, Justin Sane and two other people came onstage to talk about the dangers of ‘fracking’, or hydraulic fracturing, which is a method of extracting oil and natural gas that causes great harm to the environment. The two members of the anti-fracking initiative, who Sane introduced, briefly explained their purpose and encouraged the audience to take copies of the free pamphlet they had made to explain their cause. While this was an odd interlude to have at a concert, it made sense due to the progressive tendencies of the punk genre. The crowd seemed to honestly care about the cause, and people could be seen going to grab some pamphlets from the back. The message was very much worth the brief interruption in the music.

Finally, Anti-Flag came onstage to an ocean of cheering punks. This is what everyone had come to see, and the band did not disappoint. They played all of their popular angry protest songs, including the fiery hit “Turncoat,” and the audience never stopped moshing. The group even dedicated a song to the Occupy movement, called “The Economy Is Suffering, Let It Die”, from their newest album The People Or The Gun. This sentiment even further built upon the emotions invoked by their middle-finger-flinging song about police brutality.

Overall, the band’s set was explosive and a great end to a night of high-octane moshing and headbanging. It was angry and fiery, as punk is usually expected to be… but above all it captured something that people often forget punk rock should be: fun.

Val Pal from 11/7/11

Val Pal from 10/24/11

To Val Pal’s offical Facebook page just click here

We’re kicking off the annual nonstop 67 hours of PURE COLLEGE RADIO INSANITY to raise money for charity!

This year, we’re lighting a bigger bonfire – each hour is going to have something MANIACALLY GOOFY or otherwise utterly unexpected happen.

That’s right. EACH. FREAKING. HOUR. All 67 of them is going to have some type of crazy contest or messy on-air challenge. You’re never going to know what will happen next.

WHO NEEDS SLEEP? THIS IS COLLEGE!

From the mid-afternoon to the wee hours of the morning,

Whether it’s the opportunity to pie your CF in the face or maybe challenge your roommate in a head to head hot sauce eating competition…

Whether it’s a Lady Gaga hour or perhaps an hour dedicated to the guitar legend, Jimi Hendrix…

Whether it’s a yodeling contest or a battle of the air bands…

There will always be something ABSOLUTELY BIZARRE going on in the hallway outside of Point Café, on the air waves on 670 AM ,and online at WPPJRadio.com during the entire 67 hours of Rock-A-Thon 2011!

We have a TON of prizes to give away. Everything from iPods to Starbucks gift cards!

All of this to raise money for The Early Learning Institute!

To the Facebook event page click here

WPPJ is currently interested in finding people to produce a weekly podcast. We will post your work to the inter-web and even promote the hell out of it. If you are interested in hosting a podcast (a mini episode of a show), please send me your idea for your podcast show, and we will arrange a tryout.

Here are some sample podcasts produced by WPPJ to get an idea of what we’re looking for…

Fin in a Can:
http://www.4shared.com/audio/PmuqcPTi/Fin_in_A_Can_Episode_1_-_St_Pa.html

Lost and forgotten:
http://wppjradio.podomatic.com/entry/2011-02-02T11_03_18-08_00

If you’re interested, please e-mail wppj@pointpark.edu and give us a heads up!

WPPJ receives thousands of albums each year from record companies. Companies give the station these albums because they want us to play their music in hope that listeners will want to buy the album. The Music Department is responsible for keeping in touch with these companies. They do so by producing weekly playlists that include all the music DJs play. These playlists are composed on the computer and are copied and mailed to hundreds of record companies and to CMJ.

Hip-Hop Adds:
1       LET GO  Morning Comes   Self-Released
2       SIMS    Bad Time Zoo    Doomtree
3       SHAD    TSOL    Black Box
4       BEANS   End It All      Anticon
5       LUPE FIASCO     Lasers  Atlantic

Radio 200:

1       AGESANDAGES     Alright You Restless    KF
2       RISE AGAINST    “Help Is On The Way” [Single]   Interscope
3       BAG RAIDERS     Bag Raiders     Modular
4       BAYSIDE Killing Time    Wind-Up-Victory
5       PHANTODS        Creature        Self-Released
6       PLAN B  The Defamation Of Strickland Banks      Atlantic
7       BRIGHT EYES     The People’s Key        Saddle Creek
8       COLD WAR KIDS   Mine Is Yours   Downtown
9       IRON AND WINE   Kiss Each Other Clean   Warner Bros.
10      MOTHER MOTHER   Eureka  Last Gang
11      OH NO! OH MY!   People Problems Koenig
12      TELEKINESIS     12 Desperate Straight Lines     Merge
13      MIDDLE BROTHER  Middle Brother  Partisan
14      WANDA JACKSON   The Party Ain’t Over    Nonesuch
15      PJ HARVEY       Let England Shake       Vagrant-Island
16      DEERHOOF        Deerhoof Vs. Evil       Polyvinyl
17      DESTROYER       Kaputt  Merge
18      LITTLE COMETS   In Search Of Elusive Little Comets      Dirty Hit
19      VACCINES        Extended Play   Columbia
20      WHEN SAINTS GO MACHINE  Fail Forever    !K7
21      TINS    The Tins        V2 Benelux
22      YOUNG GALAXY    Shapeshifting   paper bag
23      ART VS. SCIENCE Magic Fountain  Bossy
24      CUT COPY        Zonoscope       Modular
25      EDWYN COLLINS   Losing Sleep    Co-Op
26      PAPERCUTS       Fading Parade   Sub Pop
27      ANNA CALVI      Anna Calvi      Domino
28      ADELE   21      Columbia
29      DOM     Sun Bronzed Greek Gods  Astralwerks
30      RURAL ALBERTA ADVANTAGE Departing       Saddle Creek

WPPJ receives thousands of albums each year from record companies. Companies give the station these albums because they want us to play their music in hope that listeners will want to buy the album. The Music Department is responsible for keeping in touch with these companies. They do so by producing weekly playlists that include all the music DJs play. These playlists are composed on the computer and are copied and mailed to hundreds of record companies and to CMJ.

1       BAG RAIDERS     Bag Raiders     Modular
2       COLD WAR KIDS   Mine Is Yours   Downtown
3       SARAH DONNER    Typing Is Dangerous
4       DONOTS  The Long Way Home       Ok! Good
5       WANDA JACKSON   The Party Ain’t Over    Nonesuch
6       AGESANDAGES     Alright You Restless    KF
7       BRIGHT EYES     The People’s Key        Saddle Creek
8       PLAN B  The Defamation Of Strickland Banks      Atlantic
9       KIDS OF 88      Just A Little Bit       Sin
10      SICK OF SARAH   2205    Adamant
11      LESS THAN JAKE  Losing Streak/Hello Rockview    Sleep It Off
12      RADIOHEAD       The King Of Limbs       TBD
13      PENDULUM        Immersion       Atlantic
14      TAPES ‘N TAPES  Outside Ibid
15      RADIO DEPT.     Passive Aggressive: Singles 2002-2010   Labrador
16      PAINS OF BEING PURE AT HEART    Heart In Your Heartbreak        Slumberland
17      LITTLE COMETS   In Search Of Elusive Little Comets      Dirty Hit
18      INTERPOL        Interpol (2010) Matador
19      DESTROYER       Kaputt  Merge
20      CLOUD NOTHINGS  Cloud Nothings  Carpark
21      ADELE   21      Columbia
22      SETH GLIER      Next Right Thing        MPress
23      DANIEL MARTIN MOORE     In The Cool Of The Day  SUB POP
24      FENECH-SOLER    Fenech-Soler    B-Unique
25      RISE AGAINST    “Help Is On The Way” [Single]   Interscope
26      RINGSIDE        Lost Days       Self-Released
27      PHANTODS        Creature        Self-Released
28      NOW, NOW        Neighbors       No Sleep
29      KITTEN  Sunday School   The Control Group
30      AND YOU WILL KNOW US BY THE TRAIL OF DEAD       Tao Of The Dead Superball

WPPJ receives thousands of albums each year from record companies. Companies give the station these albums because they want us to play their music in hope that listeners will want to buy the album. The Music Department is responsible for keeping in touch with these companies. They do so by producing weekly playlists that include all the music DJs play. These playlists are composed on the computer and are copied and mailed to hundreds of record companies and to CMJ.

1       GET UP KIDS     There Are Rules Quality Hill
2       COLD WAR KIDS   Mine Is Yours   Downtown
3       JOHN VANDERSLICE        White Wilderness        Dead Oceans
4       PENDULUM        Immersion       Atlantic
5       SICK OF SARAH   2205    Adamant
6       RISE AGAINST    “Help Is On The Way” [Single]   Interscope
7       NOW, NOW        Neighbors       No Sleep
8       INTERPOL        Interpol (2010) Matador
9       APEX MANOR      The Year Of Magical Drinking    Merge
10      BAG RAIDERS     Bag Raiders     Modular
11      LITTLE COMETS   In Search Of Elusive Little Comets      Dirty Hit
12      TRISTEN Charlatans At The Garden Gate   American Myth
13      DEVOTCHKA       100 Lovers      Anti
14      CLOUD NOTHINGS  Cloud Nothings  Carpark
15      TAPES ‘N TAPES  Outside Ibid
16      LESS THAN JAKE  Losing Streak/Hello Rockview    Sleep It Off
17      MOTHER MOTHER   Eureka  Last Gang
18      KIDS OF 88      Just A Little Bit       Sin
19      FUNERAL PARTY   Live At The BBC RCA
20      WANDA JACKSON   The Party Ain’t Over    Nonesuch
21      CHICO MANN      Analog Drift: Muy… Esniqui    wax poetics
22      TINS    The Tins        V2 Benelux
23      JESSICA LEA MAYFIELD    Tell Me Nonesuch
24      PJ HARVEY       Let England Shake       Vagrant-Island
25      FORT WILSON RIOT        Predator/Prey   Self-Released
26      DESTROYER       Kaputt  Merge
27      PLAN B  The Defamation Of Strickland Banks      Atlantic
28      TARA PRIYA      Tara Priya
29      TENNIS  Cape Dory       Fat Possum
30      RADIO DEPT.     Passive Aggressive: Singles 2002-2010   Labrador

WPPJ receives thousands of albums each year from record companies. Companies give the station these albums because they want us to play their music in hope that listeners will want to buy the album. The Music Department is responsible for keeping in touch with these companies. They do so by producing weekly playlists that include all the music DJs play. These playlists are composed on the computer and are copied and mailed to hundreds of record companies and to CMJ.

1       COLD WAR KIDS   Mine Is Yours   Downtown
2       DECEMBERISTS    The King Is Dead        Capitol
3       TARA PRIYA      Tara Priya
4       SICK OF SARAH   2205    Adamant
5       RADIO DEPT.     Passive Aggressive: Singles 2002-2010   Labrador
6       DESTROYER       Kaputt  Merge
7       TINS    The Tins        V2 Benelux
8       IRON AND WINE   Kiss Each Other Clean   Warner Bros.
9       DEERHOOF        Deerhoof Vs. Evil       Polyvinyl
10      INTERPOL        Interpol (2010) Matador
11      FERGUS AND GERONIMO     Unlearn Hardly Art
12      PAINS OF BEING PURE AT HEART    Heart In Your Heartbreak        Slumberland
13      WANDA JACKSON   The Party Ain’t Over    Nonesuch
14      PJ HARVEY       Let England Shake
15      DANIEL MARTIN MOORE     In The Cool Of The Day  SUB POP
16      GET UP KIDS     There Are Rules Quality Hill
17      NOW, NOW        Neighbors       No Sleep
18      FUNERAL PARTY   Live At The BBC RCA
19      APEX MANOR      The Year Of Magical Drinking    Merge
20      SETH GLIER      Next Right Thing        MPress
21      TAPES ‘N TAPES  Outside Ibid
22      TENNIS  Cape Dory       Fat Possum
23      SMITH WESTERNS  Dye It Blond    Fat Possum
24      ROONEY  Eureka  California Dreamin’
25      HELLOGOODBYE    Would It Kill You?      Wasted Summer
26      DUCKTAILS       Ducktails III: Arcade Dynamics  Woodsist
27      GANG OF FOUR    Content Yep Roc Music Group
28      BRITISH SEA POWER       Valhalla Dancehall      Rough Trade
29      DARWIN DEEZ     Darwin Deez     Lucky Number
30      ARCADE FIRE     The Suburbs     Merge

21- Adele

`My heart skipped a beat when I found out that the new Adele CD had finally leaked, and because I had tried to avoid listening to any singles that were released (except for Rolling in the Deep), I was able to listen to the whole album on a clean slate. I’ll just tell you now, this album does not disappoint her fans. To me, this album is a brighter, more confident continuation of her debut album, 19. Starting off the album is the previously mentioned song which surely sets the tone for the rest of the record. Once again, channeling her neo-soul, powerhouse voice, she sings about losing love, eternal love and letting people go. The one thing that I think people like about Adele (besides her gorgeous voice) is that her lyrics are relatable not only because she’s probably gone through all of it but because her voice makes the listener really believe her. She evokes such passion in each perfectly crafted song, and that’s what sets her apart from other neo-soul singers in that genre. This album is perfect for the cold weather because it does contain a nice mixture of upbeat songs with some of her more slower, soulful songs. Proving that she isn’t a one hit wonder, Adele will surely be one of those artists who will be able to stick around for a long time, and this new album proves it to her fans. 8/10