THE HOT AT NIGHTS Three Kids Self-released Iith their January 2016 EP, Cool It, Raleigh’s The Hot at Nights delivered a neat crop of five songs by North Carolina musicians. Cool It wasn’t a batch of covers as much as thoughtful recasts of other artists’ songs, warped into new instrumental creations under the guise of […]
Allison Hussey
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Sara Watkins Turned Her Raw Reassessments of Relationships Into Her Best Record Yet
SARA WATKINS Sunday, May 14, 8 p.m., $18–$22 Cat’s Cradle, Carrboro www.catscradle.com When Beyoncé dropped her Lemonade bomb on the world last April, she more or less wrecked the curve for anyone else putting out a breakup record in 2016. The world was captivated by the album and its visual counterpart, especially with regard to […]
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Solange, Future Islands, Big Boi, Run the Jewels Headline Hopscotch 2017
Raleigh’s Hopscotch Music Festival just announced the lineup for this year. And, y’all: It looks good. Solange is this year’s biggest name, an exciting and major get for Hopscotch. Future Islands, who’ve come a long way since packing the Berkeley Café at the first Hopscotch, sit in the second headlining slot, alongside Run the Jewels […]
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Art of Cool Festival, Night One: Revive Big Band’s Music-History Concert Leaves Out Women to an Absurd Degree
Art of Cool Festival Friday, April 28, 2017 Various venues, Downtown Durham Music festivals bring up a lot of feelings. There’s delight, excitement, curiosity, and most of all, exhaustion. Rarely, though, does an experience at a music festival inspire the kind of visceral frustration I felt bubbling up inside me Friday night. But let’s start […]
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Shirlette Ammons, Phil Cook, and Tamisha Waden Team Up for a New Single
Three mighty local talents have come together on a wonderful new track, “Skin and Bone,” released yesterday. It’s a collaboration that’s felt like a long time coming, featuring Durham’s Shirlette Ammons, Tamisha Waden, and Phil Cook. If you need a mid-week boost, “Skin and Bone” will get you there. The song features Ammons coolly rapping […]
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Art of Cool Festival 2017: Durham Changes, Jazz Lasts
DURHAM CHANGES, JAZZ LASTS At the first Art of Cool Festival four years ago, the northeast corner of the intersection of Durham’s Corcoran and West Main streets was an empty, grassy lot. But when festival attendees meander downtown this weekend, they’ll meet a looming construction project known as One City Center. It’s the most visible […]
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Here’s What You Shouldn’t Miss at Art of Cool This Weekend
THE INDY PICKS THE SIX CAN’T-MISS CONCERTS OF ART OF COOL 2017 COMMON For the first time in Art of Cool Fest history, tbe Durham Performing Arts Center will be used as one of its official venues, and who better to christen it for the festival than one of the patron saints of hip-hop: three-time […]
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Cicely Mitchell Unites Rev. Barber, George Clinton, and Common to Further Art of Cool’s Artivist Missions
On a Wednesday evening, Durham’s West End Wine Bar is buzzing with customers, many of whom are eager to sip a drink and take in the lovely weather from the patio. But Art of Cool Festival director Cicely Mitchell is tucked in a back corner, indoors. Her purpose isn’t purely to unwind: she’s hosting office […]
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Song Premiere: Listen to New Tunes from Organos and Faults on a Forthcoming PotLuck Split
After a hibernation of nearly five years, Durham’s Organos is, at last, back with a new song, a quick little number that you can listen to right here. It’s side the A-side of a forthcoming split with Faults, the the current project of Gross Ghost‘s Mike Dillon, who relocated to New York from Durham last […]
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Listening to Boy Bands and Riot Grrrls with Bruxes’ Rachel Hirsh
BRUXES Saturday, April 8, 8:30 p.m., $8 Deep South, Raleigh www.deepsouththebar.com For the better part of a decade, Rachel Hirsh has been performing with the pop-rock outfit I Was Totally Destroying It, co-piloting the band on vocals, guitar, and keys alongside longtime local John Booker. But when the band slowed down and stopped touring in […]