YelaWolf at the Catalyst
Coming across YelaWolf was a complete coincidence. I like rap as much as the next Justin Bieber tween-fan but I don't proactively go out of my way to search for up and coming artists, I usually just stick to the…
An Electric Pow Wow (free download!)
Take some dubstep-influenced beats, overlay them with Native American tribal vocals, and you get Pow Wow step, the genre A Tribe Called Red uses to describe their debut self-titled album. Hailing from Canada, the Native American DJ crew combines the…
Local Santa Cruz band North Pacific String Band releases debut album “Steak & Eggs”!
photo by Blake Goodmacher; featured image by Yasamine June "Sure, sure...fersherrsure," the boys of North Pacific String Band mumbled enthusiastically when asked to play some more tunes on my show, Pickin on the Porch with Auntie Em, a few weeks…
August’s Programmer of the Month
August's featured programmer is Dj Panda McFloo with the program The Kids "Are Not" That Revolting. Described as music for those who are cute and cuddly, but mildly cranky, music for the geeks that are far too weird, rebellious on…
The Soft Moon’s Sophomore LP
San Francisco band The Soft Moon will be releasing their second LP, Zeros, on October 30th. Tour dates are set, and they'll be hitting da bay - December 14th at Oakland's New Parish, and December 15th in San Francisco at…
Sunday, Sunday Sunday! Willie K. at Pono
Willie K. will be performing at Pono Hawaiian Grill this Sunday, September 2nd at 7:00 PM. Whether he sings in Hawaiian, performs Blues, OPERA or flat out rock and roll, Willie K. can PLAY. You can enjoy the man, the…
Upcoming Shows At The Catalyst
Summer is the perfect time to put on your dancing shoes and go see your favorite artists performing live. The Catalyst always hosts a great collection of bands, and this season is no different. Here are some of the upcoming…
Loud Rock Charts: 8/27
Some exciting news for our friends over at Criminal Records: the fine ladies in "basement rock" band The Kut have been chosen to play in Olympic Park on August 30th as part of the Paralympics festivities. It's always awesome to…
Do It Yrself Beck Album
Remember Beck's "The Information?" The album that provided stickers so you could create your own cover? Well Beck is back and taking it one step further, with his new album featuring 20 songs of sheet music - and it's up…
Wiggin’ Out: The Endless Cycle
As you probably are aware, the Olympics just happened in London. All eyes were on the British athletes, who wanted to demonstrate their abilities on their home turf. As a cycling fan, I was most interested in the road race…
The Woodstock of Jazz: MJF55
You don't want to miss this concert. Ever. It's not just a concert, it's a weekend of concerts. A full weekend of the world's finest jazz artists performing at the Monterrey Jazz Festival including: Trombone Shorty, Eddie Palmieri Salsa Orchestra, Jack DeJohnette,…
Loud Rock Charts: 8/21
Our thoughts here at KZSC go out to both Baroness and Periphery. We hope for a quick recovery for Baroness, and that everything is okay for Periphery and their family. You will be sorely missed on the rest of the…
channel ORANGE
Frank Ocean, a member of Odd Future (OFWGKTA) recently released his second album, channel Orange, on July 10. His first album was quite successful, and I look forward to seeing where this album leads him. Along with his new album…
Loud Rock Charts: 8/14
Is it just me, or is it getting HOT AS BALLS? (Cue Nelly) Summer is getting fairly close to ending, so it should not be getting this damn hot. Speaking of hotness, my interview with The Contortionist's lead singer is up…
New Rock In August
August means getting ready to start another year of academics at our fine University. It's been a wild summer at The Great 88 with stacks of knockout new releases hitting the airwaves. Right now, Nashville's favorite bros Jeff the Brotherhood…
Interview with The Contortionist’s Jonathan Carpenter
Every now and then, a band comes along that just blows everyone out of the water with each musical piece that they write. Right now, that band is The Contortionist. I recently got a chance to sit down (or rather,…
Outside Lands Fest
It's easy to forget how good we have it here in Santa Cruz. There's the obvious: beaches, redwoods, meadows, radio (duh)... but there's also our prime location. Santa Cruz is exactly 73.4 miles from San Francisco, home to the 2012 Outside Lands Music…
Aesop Rock’s New One
Any Aesop Rock fans will be happy to hear that he has recently dropped a new album, Skelethon. This is the San Francisco-based rapper and producer's sixth studio album and first self-produced project. Skelethon contains a multitude of playful and…
Jovanotti’s “Italia 1988-2012”: A 24-Year Retrospective
Through ATO Records, Italian singer-songwriter and rapper Lorenzo Cherubini, better known as Jovanotti, has finally issued his first U.S. release after over two decades of being in the business. This compilation album that includes the greatest hits of his career so…
Loud Rock Charts: 8/6
Can you believe its August already? I can't. I still feel like it's June. Pretty soon, us UCSC students have to go back to the grind that is school. I am not looking forward to upper division math homework. It's…
A “Vacationer” Vacation In < 3 Minutes...
I'm making my way via automobile up to Oregon for a mini-vacation. Nothing too lavish—I'll be gone less than a week and still be in a separate hemisphere than the Bahamas. But it's just enough time to get away from that plague of the…