Preview: ACRN LobsterFest with Jetty Bones, Sun Boats, Warp and Wastemen

Rock Lobsters, what could that be lingering around the station at ACRN? Is it hope? We’d like to think so. The music world seems to be slowly on its way back from the standstill of the pandemic due to the massive vaccine rollout and the joy that summer tends to bring to everything. Unfortunately, we won’t be back in person for this year’s Lobsterfest. Instead, we’ll again be sticking to the virtual format that we adopted for the Battle of the Bands and ACRN Prom. Four artists will be featured on the bill: Jetty Bones, Sun Boats, Warp and Wastemen. You won’t want to miss what these groups will bring to the table. The sets will be released one at a time on ACRN’s YouTube channel, starting on April 23 and going until May 1.

Album Review: Xiu Xiu – OH NO

By Venus Rittenberg, Contributor
[Polyvinyl; 2021]
Rating: 8/10
Key tracks: “One Hundred Years”, “A Bottle of Rum”, “OH NO”
Xiu Xiu’s 15th album is an album of duets that sees them returning to the sounds that frequent their discography prior to 2019’s experimental Girl with Basket of Fruit. A perfect example of this return to the olden days of Xiu Xiu is the title track, which sounds like something from Xiu Xiu’s fifth album, The Air Force, but with a poppier hook.

Movie Review: Zack Snyder’s Justice League

The time has come. Zack Snyder’s behemoth, a four-hour director’s cut of Justice League, has arrived after over three years of calls from fans. After the immense hype and speculation, with the film being stitched together under the worst circumstances, Zack Snyder’s Justice League miraculously delivers a satisfying and engaging epic that is sure to be a hit for the fans who waited so long for it.

Fiddlehead releases new single, “Heart to Heart”

Fiddlehead released their newest single “Heart to Heart” on Tuesday. The track is the second single from the punk supergroup’s upcoming sophomore album, Between the Richness, which is due out May 21 via Run For Cover Records. The song follows the initial single, “Million Time,” which came out in March.

Lobster Review: Shakey Graves — Roll the Bones X

By Ethan Bloomfield, Staff Writer
[Dualtone Music Group; 2021]
Rating: 8/10
Key tracks: “Unlucky Skin”, “Business Lunch”, “To Cure What Ails”
The lobster review is meant to bring albums from the past forward to celebrate their influence, their merit and their lasting relevance in music. That being said, how is an album released in April of 2021 qualifying? Roll the Bones X is the product of 10 years of Americana singer Shakey Graves’ first record, Roll the Bones, released for the first time on all streaming platforms and loaded with new content from the last decade. 

Gus Dapperton releases “Palms with Channel Tres”

By Paul Nern, Contributor
Gus Dapperton released a new version of “Palms”, originally from his latest album Orca which released on AWAL Recordings last year.  The reworked single features LA-based artist-producer and rapper Channel Tres and premiered on Van’s “Channel 66” livestream.  

Rising indie artist Wallice releases single, announces debut EP

By Maddie James, Staff Writer
[Photo courtesy of Jerry Maestas]
Indie artist Wallice has released a new single, “Hey Michael”,  and announced her debut EP, Off the Rails. The EP is set for a summer release, though an exact date has yet to be announced.

Your Favorite Artist is an Asshole: Shia LaBeouf Edition

I woke up one cold morning in December 2020 to the news that English singer-songwriter FKA twigs, born Tahliah Debrett Barnett, had filed a civil lawsuit against her former boyfriend, Shia LaBeouf. I scoured the internet for information about the case as I picked sleep from my eyes. I sat in bed and cried.

Brick City Records to release signed artists’ EPs, music videos

By Ethan Bloomfield, Staff Writer
Ohio University’s own Brick City Records will begin to release signed artists’ music videos for their singles and EPs recorded with BCR since late summer, according to the label. The releases start in early April and showcase four artists.

Album Review: toe – DOKU-EN-KAI

By Ethan Bloomfield, Staff Writer
[Topshelf; 2021]
Rating: 8.5/10
Math rock is, to many casual music fans, a mysterious genre. Reaching all the way back to the likes of King Crimson and Spiderland-era Slint, the genre has found itself nestled into many bands across borders and oceans and repackaged for style after style. The Illinois emo band American Football popularized math rock in the mainstream with its 1999 hit single “Never Meant” and has achieved both cult and meme status, acting as both a face of the genre for many that know it casually and as a sort of butt of music circle jokes. Looking deeper, though, the math rock genre has much more to offer than this. 

Album Review: Tigers Jaw – I Won’t Care How You Remember Me

By Ethan Bloomfield, Staff Writer
[Hopeless; 2021]
Rating: 7/10
Key tracks: “I Won’t Care How You Remember Me”, “Lemon Mouth”, “Anniversary”
In the past year, Indie rock and DIY music in general have taken a major hit, and much of the grassroots music industry appears to be in dire straits. Nevertheless, as this year-long catastrophe rages on, independent music has found a way to shine through. Whether that be Sinai Vessel’s excellent Ground Aswim last Halloween or The Mountain Goats’ lo-fi quarantine tape, Songs for Pierre Chuvin––the stripped-back, quarantine-inspired album is a growing musical trend––musicians have found a way to get their message to people regardless of restrictions and problems associated with COVID.