Mar 9, 2024 | ktru
By Jacob Pellegrino
Dreamville rapper Bas is currently on tour on the heels of his 2023 solo album We Only Talk About Real Shit When We’re Fucked Up. We attended Bas’ Houston stop at the House of Blues, his third show of the tour. Bas did not disappoint live and played tracks spanning his own releases so far, along with some of his most notable collaborations.
The show featured three openers: Blxckie, Reuben Vincent, and Hoosh. While that number of openers might feel excessive, each played for around 20 minutes, giving a taste of their style and sound. This shorter set time and the overall quality of the openers worked really well for getting the crowd ready for Bas to take the stage. It was obvious that Bas picked musicians he respects and enjoys listening to to open for him, something emphasized by a story he told about first hearing Blxckie’s music while in South Africa.
Bas was particularly good at interacting with and engaging the crowd, even pouring out shots of Clase Azul tequila for members of the audience celebrating their birthdays. The show kept a great energy with the crowd getting into songs from We Only Talk About Real Shit When We’re Fucked Up and Bas’ back catalog.
Unlike many other artists who simply rely on backing recordings for vocal additions live, Bas brought backing vocalists who really filled out his live sound and added a sense of harmony to the performance. These vocals were such a nice touch that really show his attention to detail in putting together a performance.
A highlight of the show was hearing “Dr. O’blivion” live. The track, a standout from Bas’ newest album, has an incredible aura with its jaunt-like instrumentation and strong vocals. Bas’ energetic cadence over relaxing backing made the crowd sway and become entranced by the music.
Bas’ Dreamville connection was fun to see as well when he performed “Costa Rica” and “Down Bad” back to back from the label compilation Revenge of the Dreamers III. For “Passport Bros,” the lead single from his newest album, and a collaboration with J. Cole, Bas rapped Cole’s verse live instead of playing the studio track, a nice touch that added to the intimate feeling of the concert.
The show ended with Bas inviting a fan up to rap J. Cole’s verse on his song “Lit.” Clearly energized, the fan selected from the crowd excitedly performed with Bas, rounding out a great night of music and vibes.
Nov 14, 2023 | ktru
By Jacob Pellegrino
Australian singer-songwriter grentperez is currently on tour in the United States and recently played a show at the Bronze Peacock stage in House of Blues Houston. The small room was packed with people excited for the show, which had sold out months prior.
The night started with opener FIG, a New York based indie pop musician. FIG was able to engage the audience throughout her set with her humorous personality and catchy, relaxing music. FIG’s sound is something that could easily be listened to while kicking back. She involved the audience in her show, asking general trivia questions and awarding those who got them right with free merchandise. FIG was able to keep the crowd moving and getting into her music, even as much of the audience had not heard her before.
grentperez opened his set with “When The Day Is Done,” the last track on his debut full-length album. He kept the show going with a mix of banter and music, at one point telling the audience that, at twenty-one, his voice has gotten a bit deeper recently, leading him to question some of the highest notes in his older music. Despite this new difficulty, he was still able to perform the songs well.
The crowd was invested in the performance throughout, with one member of the audience gifting Perez a crocheted cardigan with his last name emblazoned across the back. Perez sang “Happy Birthday” to an audience member when he saw on a sign held up that it was their birthday. The increasing expectation of audiences to get personal interaction from performers can often be obnoxious and distracting, but, at least at this show, it added a personal touch to the night.
After a few songs, Perez announced that his band had to take a flight to another gig and would unfortunately have to leave. This led to a set of three songs performed solo, including “Us Without Me,” where he brought up a fan to sing with him. After the songs performed solo, Perez faked a phone call in a bit and announced that his band’s fictitious flight had been canceled and that they would be able to return for the remainder of the show.
Lit by a disco ball, the small venue was perfect for grentperez’s laid-back sound. Ending the night with his debut single, “Cherry Wine,” Perez delivered a night to remember for the crowd rapt in attention to his music.
Nov 13, 2023 | ktru
By Jacob Pellegrino
Icelandic jazz-pop singer-songwriter Laufey recently performed a sold out show at White Oak Music Hall’s downstairs stage. Having played a show in the much smaller upstairs room just over a year ago, Laufey’s growth in popularity was visible with a large crowd entranced by her music, packing into the venue for the show.
The show opened with Adam Melchor, a musician from New Jersey, who performed his set acoustic and unaccompanied, except by his guitar. Having never heard Melchor’s music before, I was not sure what to expect, but really enjoyed his set. His songs are largely based on intimate, personal experiences from his life, but the emotions they evoke are larger than the individual events. Melchor engaged the crowd throughout his set, talking about the inspiration behind songs and mixing in banter between songs. A particularly poignant song that he played, “Joyride,” is about an old family car that got stolen and the divorce of his parents, drawing a similarity in how it can be healthy to let go of things.
Laufey came out shortly after Melchor and instantly commanded cheers from the full room. She opened with “Fragile,” the album opener from her debut album, Everything I Know About Love. It quickly set the tone for the rest of the night, showcasing Laufey’s smooth vocals and jazz-influenced band. She regularly interacted with the audience, talking about how excited she was to be in the big room at White Oak after having seen it last time she was in Houston and how happy she was at the enthusiastic, sold-out crowd. At one point, she split the crowd in two, giving each one a part to sing with one of her songs and describing them as her choir.
As this was the Bewitched tour, the setlist skewed closer to her newest release, as she played almost every song from the album, including her bossa-nova inflected viral hit “From The Start,” where she changed the lyrics to "Houston, I loved you from the start." After playing seventeen tracks, Laufey returned for a two song encore, playing “Letter To My 13 Year Old Self” and “Someone New” to the excitement of the crowd. The audience was particularly excited for “Letter To My 13 Year Old Self,” a track about how far she’s come that addresses prior sources of unconfidence.
The concert showcased Laufey’s unique mix of traditional, jazz-inflected vocal performances and pop. She is able to take sounds from as wide a range as bossa nova and jazz and synthesize them into music that is approachable for people without experience with the genre. Laufey’s unique style really breathes in a live environment and makes for a great performance.
Oct 30, 2023 | ktru
By Jacob Pellegrino
Atlanta rapper and singer 6LACK is currently on tour with up and coming St. Louis musician Jordan Ward opening. We were able to attend his Houston stop on the “Since I Have A Lover” tour. The show featured a strong opening from Ward and a career-spanning set from 6LACK that had the crowd moving for the whole night.
The show began with Ward coming onto the stage jumping and pumping up the audience with his infectious energy. Early in his set, he played his addictive 2021 single “Lil Baby Crush” to the excitement of the crowd. The track’s upbeat and breezy energy was great to hear live.
Before performing his song “WHITE CROCS,” which was posted on Tyler, the Creator’s Instagram story a while back, Ward signed a pair of the titular Crocs for a fan. He ended his set with “FAMJAM4000,” calling the audience family and reaffirming his appreciation of each person’s presence during his set. It was a perfect closer with Ward leaving to applause and telling fans to say hello to him at the merch booth after the show.
After a brief wait between sets, it was finally time for 6LACK to take the stage. He opened with “Inwood Hill Park,” a favorite from his most recent album, “Since I Have A Lover,” which sees him embrace happiness after years of music about emotional instability and unhealthy relationships. Classics like “Free” and “Luving U” had the crowd flashing back to 2016 and the sounds that propelled 6LACK to early popularity, even as he clarified that he doesn’t feel that way anymore, acknowledging his growth over the years.
Among songs from his own albums, 6LACK mixed in a section of collaborations that he has done over the years, showing the breadth of his musical ability. During this section, he also brought Jordan Ward back out to perform their collaboration from Ward’s most recent release.
6LACK performed for almost two hours with the crowd singing along on a large portion of the songs. The inclusion of his music from different albums, with the set alternating between the eras, kept the show interesting with a wide range of emotions in play for listeners. The stage setup of three screens with simple visuals and/or video of 6LACK performing worked well with the lighting to add a great ambiance and energy to the venue.
6LACK’s trademark mix of R&B and rap is something that is intoxicating in a live music environment. Throughout the night, he reaffirmed just how great his voice is with his words gaining a new power live.
Oct 16, 2023 | ktru
By Jacob Pellegrino
The first weekend of ACL 2023 was filled with great music and energy that kept the festival exciting throughout without too many breaks between acts. Here we collect some of the highlights from the festival and overall impressions.
FRIDAY
The first act I saw at ACL 2023 was Lil Yachty, who combined his alternative/psychedelic rock experimentation from his most recent album, Let’s Start Here, with his pop rap sound. The inclusion of both sides of his career led to a diverse and interesting performance that kept the crowd energized. Yachty had a strong stage presence and his band was powerful throughout the rock oriented songs.
One of the highlights of the whole weekend for me was seeing Little Simz on the T-Mobile stage. For those of you who don’t know, Little Simz is a British rapper whose lyricism is complemented by well-produced beats. She showed up a bit late, but owned the stage with simple but effective visuals behind her and an unforgettable presence. When cameras panned to the crowd, both Dave Grohl (performing later in the weekend) and Venus Williams could be seen enjoying the music.
ACL also has a Bonus Tracks stage that features conversations in a podcast-esque format. I attended to see Dave Grohl speak about songs that stick with him. It was an interesting conversation with one of rock’s living legends, but was at times hard to see and hear over the crowd. The stage was small and the crowd Grohl drew was a bit too big for the area.
Especially for those who grew up listening to The Lumineers, their performance was one to remember. Opening with their hit song “Cleopatra” and continuing through their catalog, the group kept the audience moving. At one point, Wesley Schultz even went into the crowd during the song “BRIGHTSIDE” from their most recent album. Hearing their songs live had a large emotional impact both from the lyrics and band.
One snag in the regular programming came from “plane issues” for Kendrick Lamar. Lamar came on at 9:45pm, an hour after his scheduled start time. Knowing his shortened set length, he played the hits. However, in the middle of “Alright,” the mics were cut and Kendrick Lamar’s set ended after a brief thirty minutes.
SATURDAY
Having played a lot of festivals this year, it was a guarantee that Rina Sawayama’s set would be a performance to attend. With music that spans a wide range of genres and styles, Sawayama’s music was engaging live and kept the audience dancing throughout. The choreography was well done, as would be expected from someone with her stunt acting credentials from the most recent entry in the John Wick franchise.
Alanis Morissette began her set with a montage of clips ranging from SNL sketches referencing her to news clips and covers of her music before coming on stage. She quickly reminded the audience why her music has had such a long impact on audiences. She played “Hand in My Pocket” second, putting one of her biggest hits early in the set. Hearing “Ironic” and “You Oughta Know” live was a testament to the long-term relevance of her debut album Jagged Little Pill.
After Alanis Morissette, Noah Kahan performed on a smaller stage nearby. With his recent growth in popularity, he definitely should have been scheduled for a bigger stage as the crowd was large and dense. Kahan’s set consisted of the majority of his album Stick Season and an additional unreleased song called “Emily” performed with Mt. Joy. Throughout the show, Kahan shared the inspiration behind his songs with bits of humor and personal stories.
The final act of the day was Foo Fighters. There was a little bit of bleed between them and Noah Kahan as Kahan’s set went a little late and the stages were near each other. However, this didn’t detract much from either set. Dave Grohl and company put on a show to remember, mixing in bits of other artists’ hit songs with their own catalog. Shania Twain, the other headliner scheduled for the same time slot, came over and sang “Best of You” with the band. They ended the night with “Everlong” leaving the audience cheering for an act that proves the longevity of rock music.
SUNDAY
During his set, Niall Horan proved his skills beyond his time in One Direction to this concertgoer. His music was perfectly suited to the mid afternoon sunlight and really let his voice shine. Playing his own songs, Horan mixed in “Story of my Life” from his time with one of the most successful boy bands in recent memory, sarcastically introducing it as a song most people wouldn’t know. He ended with his own hit “Slow Hands.”
Hozier was another big act performing on Sunday. One of the standout live performances of the weekend was a solo acoustic rendition of “Cherry Wine” from his debut album. The ornate guitar part was beautiful unaccompanied except by Hozier’s tender vocals. Ending with his mega-hit “Take Me to Church,” Hozier had the audience forgetting themselves throughout his set.
The Sunday headliner that I attended was Mumford & Sons. The band returned to the festival for their third time as a headliner after a summer filled with festival appearances around the world. It can be easy to forget just how many great songs the group has. They kicked off the set with “Babel” and “Little Lion Man,” instantly engaging the audience and transporting the audience back to when those songs took over the radio. Their song “Dust Bowl Dance” is one that I was not super familiar with, but that really stuck with me after the show. Near the end of their set, the band moved to a second stage in the crowd and debuted a new song. Bringing out Noah Kahan, they played an unreleased collaboration titled “Maybe.” The surprise guest combined with their strong performing energy made it an unforgettable performance.
TAKEAWAYS
ACL again put together an engaging lineup that can appeal to a wide range of people. In my opinion, it was an especially good year for fans of folk rock music. The weather was good and crowds were respectful throughout my experience this year. Although the festival is slower than others to embrace genres newer to US audiences, such as K-pop, which has seen a presence at Coachella, Lollapalooza, and Governor’s Ball, it still created an exciting lineup that kept me moving from show to show to see all the artists I wanted to.
Oct 10, 2023 | ktru
By Jacob Pellegrino
Austin-based folk-rock duo Briscoe creates music inspired by nature and enlivened by their vocal harmonies and rich instrumentation. We recently had the opportunity to talk with the band on the heels of their debut album, “West Of It All,” which was released in September.
The members of Briscoe, Truett Heintzelman and Philip Lupton, met at a summer camp when they were still teenagers. They became fast friends and their artistic collaboration grew from a mutual love of music.
“We met almost 10 years ago now at a summer camp out in the Texas Hill Country and despite growing up in different cities, remained good friends through the years until we were finally together in Austin. We both went to UT…. We were friends long before we were bandmates,” Heintzelman shared. “And prior to that a lot of our friendship, a lot of what we bonded over, was music that we love and getting the plate together. And so I think we just kind of naturally started singing together and naturally found that two-part harmonies were kind of our bread and butter and so as we started to record music and write songs for Briscoe we wanted to put forth what we thought was our bread and butter, which is harmony based music.”
At a talent show later that week at summer camp, the two performed a cover of John Prine’s song “Paradise.”
“It was a song that we just both knew and loved and was just a very easy harmony to find… it was like the first time I'd ever really sang with somebody else. And so when you sing with somebody else for the first time and hear the harmony for the first time, pay attention to what it actually is, you're kind of mind blown. And we figured that out and we're like, oh my gosh, who's got to play this for people and went to the talent show to play and had a blast. And actually funny enough we played a headline show a few weeks ago in Austin, our biggest headline show ever, and we covered that song again there which is a blast,” Heintzelman recalled. “That whole kind of late 60s through the 1970s period of music has had a huge influence on us. Guys like John Prine, James Taylor, Paul Simon, Willie Nelson. You know, just spanning a couple of different genres, but people who just write such wonderful songs with very clever and awesome lyrics, a lot of harmony. I mean, that's just like the golden age of music. And hopefully our music reflects a lot of that, for sure taking a big influence from a ton of people like The Beatles and Grateful Dead, all those we’re big fans of.”
When asked about the one song from the album that they would like listener’s to check out, the group expanded on their first single and how it serves as a microcosm for the rest of the album.
“If we had to choose a theme song for the record, if you will, I think ‘The Wells’ is a great song that kind of captures a lot of different things about us from, you know, our instrumentation that we love with the upbeat folky feeling, lots of harmony oriented melodies, and thematically. It's the first song on the record and captures a lot of what we portray throughout the rest of the record, which is a lot of experiences in nature and experiences of people we love and a combination of those things,” Lupton explained. “So ‘The Well’ was our first single and we put it out there first hoping that it would kind of prime people for the rest of the record, which is now out.”
One of the things that is the most evident throughout the album, aside from clear vocals and lush instrumentation, is the duo’s love of nature. The natural world not only serves as a source of inspiration for the two, but something that is regularly mentioned in the lyrics.
“Whether it's hiking or fishing and just hanging out, it's just such a sweet thing to be able to go spend time in small towns like Medina or Kerrville or outside San Angelo, where Phillip’s from, with our friends and family,” Heintzelman shared. “So I feel like a lot of [our time in the outdoors] is out at ranches and lakes that are all within two to three hours of Austin which is incredible.”
The duo further elaborated on music they listen to that might not be as strongly reflected in their recorded output.
“I think we listen to a lot more country music than is reflected. I think we have hints of country influence in our record… But I think we listen to just as much country as we do anything else, not like Nashville pop country, but more like this Americana highwayman country kind of thing we're really into,” said Lupton. We listen to a ton of that and I don't think that's necessarily reflected in our music, a little bit, but not as heavy for the amount that we've listened to it.”
Having both studied at UT, Lupton expanded more on the influence of their time at the university on the duo’s songwriting.
“I studied hydrogeology in my time at the University of Texas, and it was a great major as a songwriter and a lover of nature because it would get me outside a bunch to do a bunch of different field work. And I think a lot of our work, if I had to put it in a nutshell, is themes of nature and how they relate to themes of life. The song ‘The Well’ is a great example of that. It was inspired by a project I did for a class in hydrogeology, about the Ogallala Aquifer and how it's being depleted and it's this massive well, if you will, that’s running dry,” recalled Lupton. “I did not study songwriting by any means, but we still apply different parts of our lives to songs that we're writing. Especially from school, I think that's a great example.”
The two also recommended a diner in Austin for people visiting when asked about any must visit places in the city.
“There's this little place north of campus that was close to where we lived called the Red River Cafe. They have the best food. They have such good food and it's just a small little kind of like Mom and Pop cafe. And you know if we can get their name out there then we want to do it. The River Cafe, we swear by it,” Heintzelman said.
When we spoke to the band, they were on the road to Pittsburgh for a stop on their first headlining tour. They shared their emotions as they embark on tour.
“We’re just having fun, it's been a blast. You know, every city looks a little different. We've gone through some of these cities before supporting other artists. So we've got a little bit of a fan base, but a lot of them are brand new cities for us,” Heintzelman shared. “It's everything from playing to 200 capacity rooms that are mostly full to some shows playing to less than 50 people, most of which haven't ever heard of us before. So it's a fun thing to kind of hit the road and build up some new fans around the country. Even just today, we spent most of the day driving through the state of Pennsylvania. It’s just incredibly gorgeous right now with all the leaves turning. So it's been a blast. Just to experience all these things on the road.”
When asked if there was anything else Briscoe wanted to say to listeners, they spoke about their upcoming Houston show.
“I think the only other thing that people should know is that we want them to come see us play live. We're coming to Houston in late October at White Oak Music Hall upstairs. And kind of a little slogan that we've sort of adopted is ‘live music and good times.’ If you come to a show, we think you'll be very happy and content. Come see us play and have a good time,” Heintzelman explained.
This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
Briscoe’s album “West Of It All” is available wherever you stream music.
Jun 25, 2023 | ktru
By Jacob Pellegrino
The Re:SET Concert Series is a new music festival format that works to address common complaints and issues with the typical format seen in large festivals. No more competing stages; attendees of Re:SET could easily see every artist performing. As the festival traveled around the country, stopping in Dallas, Atlanta, Boston, New York, and more places, the festival brought an unprecedented accessibility to a format that is normally localized to one place. With an exemplary lineup, Re:SET was a great experience that will hopefully come back for years to come.
We attended the Dallas stop of Re:SET, fighting a hot Texas summer to see the bands perform. While it cooled down at the end of each day as the sun set, finding shade was essential until then. Unfortunately, day three, headlined by LCD Soundsystem, was canceled due to storms and lightning that prevented the artists from playing for the crowd. Updates were handled in a timely manner via the festival’s Instagram account to keep potential attendees safe. Even with that unavoidable change, the first two days of the festival more than made up for it.
Day one was headlined by Boygenius and started with Bartees Strange, who began with a high energy set. Up next was Dijon, who had a video display showing a birds eye view of the group as they jammed for the crowd. A highlight of their set was “Talk Down” and their chemistry led to a great time for the audience. On site food options provided some tasty street tacos and water refill stations were available throughout the experience.
The crowd began to fill in more for Clairo, crowding the stage. While the stage setup was largely similar to other festivals, one point of annoyance was the VIP section, which was sparsely populated for its large size and made it harder for the average attendee to see the show and move through the crowd. Aside from her own songs, Clairo gave a great performance of “Bitter With the Sweet” by Carole King, whom she credited as an influence. Closing with “Bags,” Clairo restarted the song to get help for a concert goer fainting from the heat. The live instrumentation added another dimension to “Bags,” giving a strong close to a great set.
Finally, it was time for the headliner, Boygenius. Featuring Phoebe Bridgers, Lucy Dacus, and Julien Baker, the supergroup gave a high energy and emotional performance, getting reactions from the crowd not just for their music, but also for a resounding condemnation of Texas governor Greg Abbott led by the band. Coming out onto the stage with Thin Lizzy’s “The Boys Are Back in Town” blaring, the group’s comfortable humor and group dynamic captivated the crowd throughout the night, closing with a solo track from each of the members of the group. Their set again had interruptions to help keep crowd members safe, but kept up steam even with the delays.
There was a severe thunderstorm warning on day two that led to different stage setups than initially planned: Steve Lacy was unable to use his usual video screen. However, the storm that was warned of never materialized and the day went along smoothly with more attention given to making sure the crowd stayed hydrated. Learning from day one, none of the artists had to stop their sets for crowd members.
Fousheé began the day with a set that showcased her unique style. Toro y Moi came up next and brought a chill vibe to the venue with his atmospheric music. The crowd continued to fill in throughout the sets. There was a long delay after Toro y Moi as James Blake took the stage around a half hour late due to issues getting his instruments set up. Blake’s layered instrumentals and incredible vocal range were on full display throughout the night, hitting a wide range of notes when he asked the crowd to sing along. “Hummingbird” was a joy to hear live after seeing it in Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse. Blake’s cover of Frank Ocean’s “Godspeed” was beautiful and the closest most fans will ever get to seeing Frank perform.
Out of the weekend, the final act, Steve Lacy was perhaps the most engaging to see live. Lacy’s energy and inimitable stage presence kept the audience engaged and showed why he’s such a unique artist to follow. Lacy’s most recent tour sold out with a large margin added to the resale tickets online. The crowd at Re:SET hung onto every word from Lacy, singing along with most of the tracks, with an impressive knowledge of his words. Starting with “Helmet,” Lacy humorously talked to the audience throughout the show, guiding them through his catalog. Fousheé also came back out for a joint performance of “Sunshine.” Near the end of the show, Lacy asked the crowd to “watch this,” going right into playing his viral hit “Bad Habit.” Ending with “Dark Red,” Steve Lacy gave an unforgettable performance that was a fitting end to the festival.
Re:SET largely delivered on its promises to redefine the festival experience. I loved that I was able to see every artist playing, something that I am never able to do at traditional music festivals. Focusing on creating a quality, no-frills lineup, Re:SET also condenses the time commitment of a festival, something that is welcome with how exhausting a weekend-long music festival can be. Re:SET brings a more accessible festival experience around the country with quality acts who often sell out their own solo shows.
May 30, 2023 | ktru
By Jacob Pellegrino
R&B singer-songwriter hyejin creates music that combines personal lyricism with dreamy vocals and production that envelop listeners in her world. We recently had the opportunity to talk with hyejin after the release of her most recent single, “DAVID LEE.”
Born in South Korea, hyejin currently lives in SoCal and discussed how the differing cultures have influenced her sound.
“When I was in Korea, I definitely grew up listening to a lot of American records. And then once I left Korea, I fell in love with Korean music… There's a really huge city pop and fusion jazz scene in Korea and those artists really influenced my sound right now,” hyejin explained.
hyejin went on to discuss some more specific influences and how she listened to American music in her youth.
“In Korea, my dad would take me to like those bootleg CD stores. Foreign exports were really expensive back in the day, so a CD would cost like $60. So you would go to a record store and get the fake ones. I bought a bunch of records and I grew up listening to a lot of James Taylor, Keyshia Cole,” hyejin recalled. “But I think that really, the influences are there with my song ‘I’VE SEEN THIS MOVIE BEFORE.’ And that song, people view it as just like an R&B ballad, but it’s an homage to the Korean ballad scene. So I kind of like to sprinkle in the influences, like Eastern influences.”
Currently a student at NYU’s Clive Davis Institute of Recorded Music, hyejin released her newest single during finals week and move out. She discussed how production and songwriting classes complement her music career while other general education classes “take up a lot of [her] energy.”
“It's kind of weird. A lot of us are professionals in the music industry and we do so much stuff outside of school that school kind of feels like a side hustle at times,” hyejin said.
hyejin’s single, “DAVID LEE,” came out on May 19th and begins with a bouncy production style and smooth vocals before moving into a melodic and ethereal chorus. The track is a “straight to the point trap, R&B, pop song” that sees hyejin described as an “outlier” sonically and something she had never done before with more rap influenced vocals.
“There's a huge community of Korean boys that like church is a huge thing. Like religion is like everything, you know, over here and so like, they go to church and they go to praise band… but when they're not in church, they like to screw girls over and there's a huge like cultural awareness surrounding that and we just wanted to kind of tap in and make fun of that,” hyejin explained. “But David Lee is not like a specific person.”
hyejin’s lyricism is very open and bold, addressing a variety of situations that can arise in romantic relationships and embracing an empowering pessimism. She spoke some about the differences between her personal life and the view listeners get from her songs.
“My daily life is more low key… I would say I grew up as a super introverted, like shy girl. And then once I got to college, I think I realized that not a lot of people care. So I became more extroverted. So I kind of did a 180 with my personality,” hyejin said. “I think a lot of people who used to know me, they view my music as an, ‘oh, what the hell happened to her’ kind of thing. But the music that I'm making right now, especially the things that I talk about, have been thoughts that I've had for my whole life… it's how I express it. Like, I've never been able to express those thoughts. And then my music, once I got to college, became an outlet where I just talk about whatever I want to talk about.”
As a musician, hyejin started on the production side when she was 14, volunteering at her mother’s church to get her mother to buy her a USB mic and later Logic Pro, before being able to buy her own equipment. hyejin’s focus soon shifted to songwriting, “realizing that music’s such a collaborative thing and you gain a lot by working with other people.”
“With my producers, I met them my freshman year of college, and it was a very interesting process… I'd never been in the studio before. I was just writing songs in my room. And then once I got to college, it was kind of like figure it out in the studio,” hyejin recalled. “And so what I did was, I was super shy, so they would arrange the song first and then I would go to my bathroom floor to write it because I couldn't write in front of them for a while. Now I don't have an issue, but I used to be unable to top line or do anything in front of people. So I would do it in my dorm and then my roommate would come in at night to sleep, so I would go to my bathroom. Like all my songs are songs from my dorm bathroom floor. Just gross, but that's how it happened.”
With a diverse taste in music, hyejin has also been collecting records since she was 14, which can help her to find new sounds and inspirations.
“My dad would drive me to a bigger store in LA called Amoeba Records. That was like the greatest, greatest happiness of like, being able to buy like a $40 record. You know, I mean, it's an investment piece, and I have a few that are like rare finds,” hyejin shared. “My favorite one is a record called Oasis by Roberta Flack. I bought it at a bookstore in LA for 99 cents. I’d never heard of the record. Like, I love Roberta Flack, but that was not her hit album, I think. I listened to that and I fell in love. A lot of my songs are inspired by her and that album, especially my song, ‘I’VE SEEN THIS MOVIE BEFORE.’ The reference I had was a song from that album, so that's such a special album to me.”
As a musician, hyejin has recently started doing live performances and connecting with fans in person. When asked if there were any artists whom she listens to that someone might not expect from her catalog, hyejin discussed an upcoming track.
“I'm a huge Radiohead fan. I've been super inspired by Radiohead since high school, and I think my current catalog doesn't reflect that, but I have a few songs that are going to come out that are sort of alternative rock. I don't want to say it's a rock song, but it has the influences of rock music. So I'm very excited for that,” hyejin said.
After the interview, I was able to listen to the referenced track, titled “My Favorite Pillow.” It melds her unique style with more experimental stylings, mixing together multiple vocal and instrumental sections in an exciting new direction.
hyejin’s music is available wherever you stream music.
Photo courtesy of hyejin.
May 14, 2023 | ktru
By Jacob Pellegrino
Lewis Capaldi recently finished a US tour in advance of his upcoming album, “Broken by Desire to Be Heavenly Sent.” Capaldi’s 2019 debut album, “Divinely Uninspired to a Hellish Extent,” comprises emotional ballads that primarily address lost love and the dissolution of relationships. While his music is often drenched in melancholia, Capaldi’s public image and stage presence embraces direct and honest humor. This contrast, along with the quality of musical performance, makes for an engaging show that had the audience laughing, crying, and singing along.
The show began with opener Medium Build. They played a short set with a lot of humorous interjections. The lead singer began with a long white wig that complemented their often silly persona. Medium Build’s opening set and overall attitude was a great pairing for Lewis Capaldi.
After a short break, Lewis Capaldi came out onto the stage with his band. He began the show with “Forget Me,” a single from his upcoming album. The set as a whole, primarily consisted of tracks from “Divinely Uninspired to a Hellish Extent” with some of the singles from “Broken by Desire to Be Heavenly Sent.” Touring in advance of his album release is an interesting strategy, but it worked really nicely here. The show made me even more excited for his sophomore release.
Capaldi’s trademark sense of humor helped to make him an engaging live performer, regularly talking to the crowd. Beginning the show, he claimed to the packed room that “at least 100 people here will leave disappointed… there will be no f—ing refunds.” I would be surprised if anyone left disappointed after the show that we saw. Capaldi’s vocals were great, sounding as good as on the studio recording throughout the night. His humorous quips provided a great lightness in contrast to his often heavy subject matter. For example, when introducing “Lost on You,” a song about letting someone go, Capaldi asked if there were any couples in the crowd before dedicating the song to “when you inevitably break up.”
One of the most emotional moments of the show was when Lewis Capaldi played “Wish You The Best” with its full music video playing in the background. The music video, which features the relationship between a dog and an old man, is well known for making people cry and the live version was no exception for much of the crowd.
In his most unhinged moment of humor, Capaldi hyped fans up that he had talked to Ed Sheeran, who co-wrote his new track “Pointless,” about performing with him. He recounted a lot of communications, building up excitement and cheering before letting the crowd know that Ed Sheeran could not, in fact, make it to the show to play with him. He quickly made up for the brief deception with a beautiful performance of the song.
As the show neared its end, Lewis Capaldi told the audience, “I have two songs left, and by that I mean: I’m going to stand just over there and I’m going to wait,” sardonically describing the encore process. The night ended with “Someone You Loved,” as the rapt crowd sang along with Capaldi. Through his combination of heartfelt lyrics and open humor, Lewis Capaldi won over the crowded Dallas venue with a memorable show.
His sophomore album will be released on May 19th.
May 1, 2023 | ktru
By Jacob Pellegrino
Yves Tumor is currently embarking on their “To Spite or Not to Spite” tour on the heels of the release of their fourth album “Praise a Lord Who Chews but Which Does Not Consume; (Or Simply, Hot Between Worlds).” Tumor’s experimental rock music lends itself perfectly to live performances that make it feel as if you’re in a club out of a slightly dystopian futuristic movie.
Yves Tumor opened with “God Is a Circle,” the first track from their most recent album. The song, which features heavy breathing as part of the instrumental, felt expanded live, letting me hear more of the guitar and drums. It also gained more of a push and pull in the tempo, starting slightly slower and quieter beginning before opening up to start the show.
Tumor performed in front of a stark stage, with his band behind him and an array of lights to bathe the venue in a variety of colors depending on the song being played. At times, they jumped into the crowd, inspiring cheers and excitement throughout the venue. The crowd was moving throughout the entire night, at one point shifting back to create a mosh pit around the front of the stage.
The setlist primarily drew from Yves Tumor’s newest album by a large margin, but other fan favorites like “Gospel for a New Century” and “Kerosene!” were integrated into the set. Having previously seen Yves Tumor in 2021, it was nice to hear their new tracks live. Tumor did not interact with the audience a ton by talking, rather they focused on performing their songs to the best level possible.
Yves Tumor is one of those artists that pushes the boundaries of rock music through constant experimentation. This hunger for new forms of expression is perfect for a live environment as it brings a strong energy to the performance.
Icelandic jazz-pop singer-songwriter Laufey recently performed a sold out show at White Oak Music Hall’s downstairs stage. Having played a show in the much smaller upstairs room just over a year ago, Laufey’s growth in popularity was visible with a large crowd entranced by her music, packing into the venue for the show.
As this was the 
Before performing his song “WHITE CROCS,” which was posted on Tyler, the Creator’s Instagram story a while back, Ward signed a pair of the titular Crocs for a fan. He ended his set with “FAMJAM4000,” calling the audience family and reaffirming his appreciation of each person’s presence during his set. It was a perfect closer with Ward leaving to applause and telling fans to say hello to him at the merch booth after the show.
6LACK performed for almost two hours with the crowd singing along on a large portion of the songs. The inclusion of his music from different albums, with the set alternating between the eras, kept the show interesting with a wide range of emotions in play for listeners. The stage setup of three screens with simple visuals and/or video of 6LACK performing worked well with the lighting to add a great ambiance and energy to the venue.
The first weekend of ACL 2023 was filled with great music and energy that kept the festival exciting throughout without too many breaks between acts. Here we collect some of the highlights from the festival and overall impressions.
One of the highlights of the whole weekend for me was seeing 
ACL also has a Bonus Tracks stage that features conversations in a podcast-esque format. I attended to see 
Having played a lot of festivals this year, it was a guarantee that 
After Alanis Morissette, 
The final act of the day was 
During his set, 
Hozier
The Sunday headliner that I attended was 
Finally, it was time for the headliner, Boygenius. Featuring Phoebe Bridgers, Lucy Dacus, and Julien Baker, the supergroup gave a high energy and emotional performance, getting reactions from the crowd not just for their music, but also for a resounding condemnation of Texas governor Greg Abbott led by the band. Coming out onto the stage with Thin Lizzy’s “The Boys Are Back in Town” blaring, the group’s comfortable humor and group dynamic captivated the crowd throughout the night, closing with a solo track from each of the members of the group. Their set again had interruptions to help keep crowd members safe, but kept up steam even with the delays.
Out of the weekend, the final act, Steve Lacy was perhaps the most engaging to see live. Lacy’s energy and inimitable stage presence kept the audience engaged and showed why he’s such a unique artist to follow. Lacy’s most recent tour sold out with a large margin added to the resale tickets online. The crowd at Re:SET hung onto every word from Lacy, singing along with most of the tracks, with an impressive knowledge of his words. Starting with “Helmet,” Lacy humorously talked to the audience throughout the show, guiding them through his catalog. Fousheé also came back out for a joint performance of “Sunshine.” Near the end of the show, Lacy asked the crowd to “watch this,” going right into playing his viral hit “Bad Habit.” Ending with “Dark Red,” Steve Lacy gave an unforgettable performance that was a fitting end to the festival.
Tumor performed in front of a stark stage, with his band behind him and an array of lights to bathe the venue in a variety of colors depending on the song being played. At times, they jumped into the crowd, inspiring cheers and excitement throughout the venue. The crowd was moving throughout the entire night, at one point shifting back to create a mosh pit around the front of the stage.