The WXAC Concert!

This Week In WXAC

I was prepared to tell you that the students have returned from their Spring Break, which was last week, bright-eyed and ready to dazzle the airwaves, but it is pouring down rain in Reading today and we're all frankly a little bummed about it.  Anyway the community DJs had the run of the station last week, and here's what they played: 

1    LIARS    Sisterworld    Mute

2    GORILLAZ    Plastic Beach    Virgin
3    LAWRENCE ARABIA    Chant Darling    Bella Union
4    ALOHA    Home Acres    Polyvinyl
5    GOLDEN TRIANGLE    Double Jointer    Hardly Art
6    JJ    No. 3    Secretly Canadian
7    FREE ENERGY    Stuck On Nothing    DFA-Astralwerks
8    JOANNA NEWSOM    Have One On Me    Drag City
9    HAPPY BIRTHDAY    Happy Birthday    Sub Pop
10    BUNDLES    The Bundles    K
11    BETTIE SERVEERT    Pharmacy Of Love    Second Motion
12    FANG ISLAND    Fang Island    Sargent House
13    JOSIAH WOLF    Jet Lag    Anticon
14    SHOUT OUT LOUDS    Work    Merge
15    XIU XIU    Dear God, I Hate Myself    Kill Rock Stars
16    QUASI    American Gong    Kill Rock Stars
17    PHANTOGRAM    Eyelid Movies    Barsuk
18    BLACK REBEL MOTORCYCLE CLUB    Beat The Devil's Tattoo    Vagrant
19    JAGUAR LOVE    Hologram Jams    Fat Possum
20    ONE FOR THE TEAM    Ghosts    Afternoon
21    KATE MILLER-HEIDKE    Curiouser    Sony
22    TINY TELEVISION    Mission Statement    Magnolia
23    HOT CHIP    One Life Stand    Astralwerks
24    WHIGS    In The Dark    ATO
25    RUBY SUNS    Fight Softly    SUB POP
26    NEW MONARCHS    Electrocaching    soup bowl
27    JOHNNY CASH    American VI: Ain't No Grave    Lost Highway
28    FRIGHTENED RABBIT    The Winter Of Mixed Drinks    Fat Cat
29    WHITE STRIPES    Under Great White Northern Lights    Warner Bros.
30    CAROLINA CHOCOLATE DROPS    Genuine Negro Jig    Nonesuch

In my last post, I put up a star-studded video of Vampire Weekend, so I might as well continue the theme with our #2 artist of the week, Gorillaz: 

The WXAC Top 30, Week of 2/22

Wondering what got played the most last week at WXAC? Wonder no longer! We keep records of that kind of thing and here they are. (This is a fun game I'm playing called "let's see how many different intros I can do for the weekly charts." Nobody wins.) 

1    VAMPIRE WEEKEND    Contra    XL
2    YEASAYER    Odd Blood    Secretly Canadian
3    PHANTOGRAM    Eyelid Movies    Barsuk
4    TITLE TRACKS    It Was Easy    Ernest Jenning
5    HOT CHIP    One Life Stand    Astralwerks
6    ZEUS    Say Us    Arts And Crafts
7    EVERYBODY WAS IN THE FRENCH RESISTANCE... NOW!    Fixin' The Charts Vol. 1    Cooking Vinyl
8    MUMFORD AND SONS    Sigh No More    Glassnote
9    QUASI    American Gong    Kill Rock Stars
10    DAN BLACK     ((un))    Polydor
11    EELS    End Times    Vagrant
12    FIELD MUSIC    Field Music (Measure)    Memphis Industries
13    TWIN TIGERS    Gray Waves    Old Flame
14    LOCAL NATIVES    Gorilla Manor    Frenchkiss
15    BOY EATS DRUM MACHINE    Hoop + Wire    Tender Loving Empire
16    XIU XIU    Dear God, I Hate Myself    Kill Rock Stars
17    BETTIE SERVEERT    Pharmacy Of Love    Second Motion
18    SHOUT OUT LOUDS    Work    Merge
19    LIGHTSPEED CHAMPION    Life Is Sweet! Nice To Meet You    Domino
20    SEAN HAYES    Run Wolves Run    
21    DAVIN MCCOY    So Good, So Cruel    Self-Released
22    MAGNETIC FIELDS    Realism    Nonesuch
23    ALKALINE TRIO    This Addiction    Heart And Skull
24    DONORA     Donora    Rostrum
25    THIS MOMENT IN BLACK HISTORY    Public Square    Smog Veil
26    SOFT PACK    The Soft Pack    Kemado-Heavenly
27    CAROLINA CHOCOLATE DROPS    Genuine Negro Jig    Nonesuch
28    ADAM GREEN    Minor Love    Fat Possum
29    JOEY RYAN AND THE INKS    Well, Here We Are Then    
30    THESE NEW PURITANS    Hidden    Domino

This week's number one most-played album: 

Vampire Weekend - Contra

Since this album reached number 1 on the Billboard charts in its very first week, chances are you've already had some experience with this album. Vampire Weekend's first album was one of the most-played albums at WXAC when it came out, and the band has only taken off since. The band has definitely honed its preppy public image, but their sound diverges significantly in their sophomore effort. The violins are back, Rostam Batmanjli's vintage synths and keyboards play a more prominent role, with far fewer of the Mali-inspired guitar riffs that became the signature of their first album. The African influence that yielded so many Graceland comparisons are somewhat submerged, but still present in the guitars and Ezra Koenig's distinctive style of singing. Rather than sum this myself, I'm going to let their brand-new video for "Giving Up The Gun" give you a sense of what you can expect from Vampire Weekend, even if Jake Gyllenhaal, RZA, and that one Jonas Brother don't actually show up on the album. 

The WXAC Top 30, Week of 2/15

From the desk of John Weber to you, the listener, comes a new weekly feature. Here are the top thirty most-played albums for the week of February 15th: 

1    FIELD MUSIC    Field Music (Measure)    Memphis Industries
2    HOT CHIP    One Life Stand    Astralwerks
3    MUMFORD AND SONS    Sigh No More    Glassnote
4    YEASAYER    ODD BLOOD    Secretly Canadian
5    VAMPIRE WEEKEND    Contra    XL
6    EELS    End Times    Vagrant
7    GALACTIC    Ya-Ka-May    ANTI-
8    XIU XIU    Dear God, I Hate Myself    Kill Rock Stars
9    MIDLAKE    The Courage Of Others    Bella Union
10    PHANTOGRAM    Eyelid Movies    Barsuk
11    TITLE TRACKS    It Was Easy    Ernest Jenning
12    LIGHTSPEED CHAMPION    Life Is Sweet! Nice To Meet You    Domino
13    OK GO    Of The Blue Colour Of The Sky    Capitol
14    LOCAL NATIVES    Gorilla Manor    Frenchkiss
15    CHARLOTTE GAINSBOURG    IRM    Elektra-Because
16    SPOON    Transference    Merge
17    SHOUT OUT LOUDS    Work    Merge
18    MAGNETIC FIELDS    Realism    Nonesuch
19    ASOBI SEKSU    Rewolf    Polyvinyl
20    TINY TELEVISION    Mission Statement    Magnolia
21    MASSIVE ATTACK    Heligoland    Virgin
22    DONORA     Donora    Rostrum
23    KASHMIR    No Balance [EP]    BMI
24    SETH AUGUSTUS     To The Pouring Rain    Porto Franco
25    LOS CAMPESINOS!    Romance Is Boring    Arts And Crafts
26    HOTRATS    Turn Ons    Fat Possum Records
27    BEACH HOUSE    Teen Dream    SUB POP
28    SOFT PACK    The Soft Pack    Kemado-Heavenly
29    CRAIG RAMSEY    Parting Gift For A Party Girl    Self-Released
30    ADAM GREEN    Minor Love    Fat Possum

And how about this! A mini-review for the number one album: 

 Field Music - Measure 

Field Music is made up of two brothers, David and Peter Brewis, who make sunny, beautiful pop tunes in contrast to the bleak, foreboding climate of their native Northeast England. Measure is their third album and a sprawling, ambitious effort. Far from sounding like the product of just two people, the album spans from Kinks-esque two-and-a-half minute ditties to symphonic narratives in the tradition of "Eleanor Rigby" to guitar-riff-based jams reminiscent of Belle & Sebastien. The production values tend towards the vintage throughout, with lots of doubled tracks, two-part harmony and clean instrumentation. Field Music doesn't overstep their boundaries or outstay their welcome, keeping each core idea wrapped up in a tight melody - the album lasts over 70 minutes but is made up of 20 songs, so none feels too long. There's something here for almost anyone, so keep an ear out over the coming weeks as our DJs spin more of these tracks. 

Come back next Monday for this week's Top 30 and be sure to tune in all week long!

National French Week Special Broadcast

It's National French Week, and as part of our French Week tradition, we had our visiting French professor Laetitia Walbert playing a variety of Francophile music from all over the world including Martinique and Algeria along with French Club students Margot Collins and Ryan Mattice. Click the link below to listen in to this hour-long special!