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Album cover for Wintersun's "Time I," featuring mystical, blue and purple hues, swirling patterns, a shadowy face, and a tree illuminated at the center, with the band's stylized logo and album title.

Loud Rock Charts: 10/23

This week in metal comes some very interesting releases. Wintersun's newest album that was 6 years in the making, Time I, dropped last Friday. Can it live up to more than half a decade's worth of hype? Another notable release  is…

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A person in a white tank top and cap poses confidently, showing tattoos on their neck and arms, multiple rings, and layered chains around their neck, standing in front of a light background.

Lil’ B – A Golden State Warrior?

The Santa Cruz Golden State Warriors tryouts were this weekend and there were many a talented players who came out to tryout for this NBA D-League team. Among all the players there was one that brought the attention of the…

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Logo for Kuumbwa Jazz with the text "kuumbwa jazz" in bold black and blue letters, followed by the tagline "Celebrating Creativity Since 1975" on a light background.

What a Month for Jazz!

If you haven't already heard, it's another great month for jazz is Santa Cruz. Some of the heaviest hitters on the scene today will be gracing us with their presence in our wonderful town. All of the shows are at…

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Two men stand in front of string lights; one is wearing glasses and a plaid shirt, the other is wearing a red cap and headphones while singing or speaking into a microphone.

Fall for Hip-Hop

Fall is here, and Santa Cruz is the place to be for hip-hop enthusiasts! The next few months are crammed with hip-hop shows all the way until December. Starting on October 13th, Zion I will be at the Catalyst followed…

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“Discovering” Jacques Brel

As I perused our station's labyrinth of a record collection in search for some "European" music a couple of days ago, I found a record from an artist with a name that rang a bell, but with a track-list that…

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Two raised forearms with hands joined at the wrists, featuring bold black geometric lines and a circle painted on the skin. The background is neutral, and "Enslaved RIITIIR" is written at the bottom.

Loud Rock Charts: 10/9

I think now is a very worthwhile time to point out the amazing upcoming metal albums that are dropping in this metallest of months. The list is as follows: BTBAM, Daylight Dies, Enslaved, Dethklok, Downfall of Gaia, Converge, Sylosis, Wintersun,…

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A stylized, black-and-white portrait of a man's face on a bright yellow background. The man wears sunglasses with a honeycomb pattern, and the words "Calvin Harris" appear vertically on both sides of the image.

Calvin Likes All the Girls

Calvin Harris has been a popular act since the release of his first album I Created Disco. One of my favorite records ever was his second album Ready for the weekend. Lately though Mr. Harris has been making himself more of a…

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Abstract cover art for Flying Lotus’s album "Until the Quiet Comes," featuring blurred, dynamic figures in flowing golden, red, and pink fabrics, creating a dreamy, ethereal effect against a dark background. Text is above and below the image.

Until the Quiet Comes

Anybody who knows me knows that I am a Flying Lotus fanatic (fan) so of course I am going to blog about his new album released this month entitled "Until the Quiet Comes." This album continues Lotus' move away from…

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Book cover for "The Tragedy of Macbeth" by William Shakespeare, featuring a large sword, silhouettes of figures in combat, a dark castle, and a red background with the words "It will have blood.

Our Sound, Our Fury

Today and Today and Today, sweeps in this pretty place, from hour to hour.  To the last sound of time left on this track, and all our yesterdays have lighted playlists.  The way to dusty vinyl.  Out! Out!  Skips and…

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Poster for the Hardly Strictly Bluegrass festival in Golden Gate Park, San Francisco, featuring bold vintage-style text and dates: October 5-7, 2012. The event is free.

Hardly Strictly Bluegrass

Hardly Strictly Bluegrass is a San Francisco institution. Establishing itself as a free festival has its perks... I mean for one, it's free! But this festival also prides on having some of the most recognized acts not only in bluegrass…

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Two textured planets, one blue and one purple, float in space with the album title "Between the Buried and Me: The Parallax II: Future Sequence" written in the center against a dark starry background.

Loud Rock Charts: 10/2

School has officially started up again here at UCSC, and that means I'm  multi-tasking between classes, digging through the newest batch of Loud Rock sent to KZSC and trying to watch the NFL. Who would have thought the Arizona Cardinals would be 4-0…

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A black-and-white drawing of a dog with a human-like face, lying down. In the top right corner, colorful text reads "THEE OH SEES PUTRIFIERS II.

Review: Thee Oh Sees – Putrifiers II

In recent years the San Francisco Bay Area has produced some of the finest garage rock acts around. With such acts as Ty Segall, The Fresh and Onlys, Shannon and the Clams, and Wax Idols calling the area home, the…

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Illustrated scene of panicked people with black bars over their eyes fleeing a burning city, while giant vultures with skull faces fly overhead. Text reads “This or the Apocalypse Dead Years.”.

Loud Rock Charts: 9/25

TesseracT, known for being very finicky with their vocalists, have finally found their newest singer, Ashe O'Hara, who will hopefully be a more permanent addition than their last two. You can hear a snippet their newest song "Nocturne", which showcases…

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A black and white cat wears oversized yellow sunglasses with colorful, psychedelic spiral patterns. The word "BIRP!" appears in bold letters at the bottom right. The background is a glitchy, rainbow-colored static.

New Music

Birp has released their new September 2012 playlist! The playlist’s music genre ranges from Indie rock to various other genres and features the work of bands like Sun Airway, Wild Nothing, and Ariel Pink's Haunted Graffiti. Newer remixes by Teen…

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Got Twink?

Like it or not, we are well into the age of digitally enhanced music.  There is no escape & resistance is futile.  Our only defense is to sort through the truly awful with great speed & alacrity.  But every now…

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Album cover art featuring a stylized skull with a large black moth overlay, flanked by two symmetrical winged figures. The text reads "As I Lay Dying" above and "Awakened" below the skull.

Loud Rock Charts: 9/18

Has anyone looked at the album releases on October 9th? Here's a list of the bands that are releasing new albums on that Tuesday case you're wondering: Deftones, Converge, Coheed and Cambria, Enslaved and of course Between the Buried and…

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