Blog: WRMC 91.1 Middlebury College Independent Radio

Back in 1981, Middlebury student Don Kreis penned a two-page feature for the Campus on the history of radio at Middlebury. Although it's not current, it's interesting both on its own and in comparison to the way things work now, radio-wise. You can access all past issues of the newspaper, including this one (from March 27, 1981) via the library's digital archives. Go to this link: archive.middlebury.edu/cdm4/se arch.php and type "history of radio" into the second search line, labeled "exact phrase." The one result should be the March 27, 1981 issue. The article is [...]

As 2011 winds down, you may be taking a moment or more in the next couple of weeks to reflect on all the great music you heard this year. Remember James Blake's debut LP ? That was in January! Everything since then has all been this year! Many, many great albums and singles were released in 2011. I've never tried to compile a list of favorite songs from a year before, but I decided to do a two-week special highlighting my top 50 songs of the year on my radio show this January. Making that [...]

Hey DJs and WRMC blog enthusiasts! The brand-new Fall 2011 issue of MONDEGREEN , Middlebury College's very own music and culture magazine, hit the stands (?) today! You can find stacks of Mondegreen s in strategic locations all over campus. Take one, read it cover to cover multiple times, tell all your friends how great it is, and then lend it out, bring it back for another to enjoy, or covet it for its interesting contents and gorgeous binding until it's worn to tatters. This issue features: interviews with Chamberlin and Apollo [...]

Once simply a (frighteningly addictive) anonymous mix exchange, Tiny Mix Tapes is now one of the foremost online publications about independent music and popular culture currently running. Its contributors' broad-ranging tastes run more toward the experimental and esoteric; this, as well as their seriously well-read, probably college-educated (hey!) backgrounds in philosophy and critical theory (references to thinkers from Freud to Foucault abound in their reviews), set TMT writers apart from their colleagues at other major online music publications. TMT can be counted on to remember, when other music publications do not, that true cultural [...]

Last week, Bon Iver released the deluxe edition of their 2011 self-titled album, featuring 10 videos corresponding to each track on the cd. Bon Iver's official website described the videos as "the comprehensive vision for the record captured in moving picture. The visual works both complement and enrich the audio on the album...while not music videos per se, these visual accompaniments are striking in their distinctive atmosphere, and compelling works in their own right." Each video features stunning cinematography done by various artists, including Bon Iver's own Justin Vernon, who brings a whole new dimension to one [...]

You might not realize it, but you could be broadcasting to more than just people. Recently Uzoo , the #1 source for animal videos, released a clip about DogCatRadio, a radio station for pets. It's been around for a few years now, though its current status remains a little ambiguous. I'm thinking this will provide some inspiration as we start thinking about programming for the spring. Watch the video here .

The new YACHT seems to at first to be a mere epileptic fit, but it quickly evolves into something much more. The video is supposed to convey a sense of community, and for that there are many circular camera pans that create a sense of gathering around a central figure--YACHT's newest song. By starting the video with a vast and empty landscap, YACHT contrasts the end nicely with the stark colors and enclosed spaces that characterize the latter half. This is definitely worth five minutes of your time. -Steph Roush

Bitter Gourd is Anjali Merchant and Carly Shumaker's talk/music show about plants. It's on, on Saturdays from 10-11 am. This is its first semester on air. Anjali and Carly describe Bitter Gourd as a "botanical talk show interspersed with college rock music." It is perhaps the only show of this kind [...]

...Here's an informative New York Times article about the changing shape of college radio in our increasingly digital era. (Thanks, Mom!) It includes a little college radio history, some bleak prospects, and the definition of shoegaze. A worthwhile read to catch up on the state of things and understand the pressures that we're up against.

There were some dope music videos released today. First, WU LYF (World Unite Lucifer Youth Foundation) dropped a video for the standout track "We Bros" off of their stellar LP, Go Tell Fire to the Mountain . It features teens running away from a decrepit cityscape, through a forbidden forest, eventually making their way to an ocean. Additionally, The Black Lips released their video for "Raw Meat" off of their latest, Arabia Mountain . They pay corrupt NYC cops riding around, causing havoc. Both videos are embedded below: [...]

A couple weeks ago two great bands came to Middlebury for a fun show in the Hepburn Zoo. One of these bands, The Milkman's Union , spent some time with yours truly shooting the breeze about their awesome name, Maine lobsters, east vs. west side, and how to skin a cat. Ok, not that last one. They also played an acoustic version of their song "The Dog with the One Red Ear," which includes Jeff drumming on a piece of styrofoam. No joke, it's amazing. The interview will air in it's entirety [...]

Right now you can head over to NPR's webpage to stream Los Campesinos! latest LP, entitled Hello Sadness , in its entirety. The 40 minute album finds the band in the same snarky mindset of their previous three efforts. While it may lack the more abrasive, harsh sounds of 2008's Hold On Now, Youngster , this decisively more polished effort finds the band maturing and graduating from their LiveJournal-esque rants to a more melodic, catchy effect. Head over to NPR's site HERE to stream Hello Sadness .

In case you missed it last Friday, here are some pictures from the set in the Hepburn Zoo. Shout out to all the bands that played: Caroline Smith & The Goodnight Sleeps, The Milkman's Union, and Middlebury's very own Alpenglow. It was a fantastic show filled to the brim with great folk music. Check [...]

What does Beyoncé like to do at a party? Apparently mow the lawn, wear yellow fur coats, and change her hairstyle about a dozen times. Solid. Check out the embedded music video below:

DJs: Erik Benepe 13.5, Jebb Norton 13.5 Time: Monday 1:30-3:00am Semesters on air: Three Discussed:Mysterious text messages, Abraham Lincoln, Orc blood, Parlament Funkadelic'sinfluence on De La Soul . WRMC : Your show is on late at night, what's the strangest call youhave received while on the air? Jebb Norton : Erik's brother's really weird. He's done some weird stuff. Eric [...]

Who wants a radio station that plays new music, doesn't repeat songs all day, and has personality and character – that, in short, doesn't SUCK? Well, WRMC, duh, but what about when we're on break, like this upcoming long weekend? Here at WRMC have some recommendations of other radio stations that we like almost as much as our own, and that's why we're going to be posting these live aural gems once by one in a series we like to call: Radio on Radio. [...]

Every Saturday morning I scramble out of bed at 11 and have a fantastic day. This is, obviously, due to the fact that "Something to Talk About" is the best start to a Saturday morning I could ask for. Hilarious banter, poignant cultural observations, and general tom-foolery is the status quo. Peep the promo video, embedded below, to see for yourself. "Something to Talk About" airs every Saturday from 11am to 12:30pm.

Feist's fifth LP, Metals , was released on Tuesday. After her fourth album, The Reminder , brought her mainstream media attention, Leslie Feist took a four year hiatus from writing music. Now, she is back with a collection of songs that is not as pop-driven or immediately accessible at the now-infamous "1234," but instead a grittier, more hard-hitting sound that Pitchfork describes as [LINK] "a refreshing and slyly badass statement of artistic integrity." KCRW recently recorded a live session with Feist featuring some of these new songs. It will be released in [...]

Two posts back-to-back--way to be, NPR. Future Islands, the Baltimore band who killed it at Sepomana 2010, will release their third LP, On The Water , October 11th. More subdued than 2010's In Evening Air , the album makes full use of the Samuel Harring's melancholie lyrics and gravely vocals. You can stream On The Water in its entirety at NPR's First Listen website. Click here to listen.

As you should already know Wilco just released their album, The Whole Love. A LP that finds the band squarely back in their Yenkee Hotel Foxtrot sonic realm, it features beautiful melodies and grating sounds that combine to form a delicate and complex soundscape. NPR recently recorded Wilco performing a two hour set full of both new cuts and classics from as far back as 1995's A.M. Obviously this recording is something special. Click here to stream. Setlist: Art of Almost I Might Black Moon I'm Trying [...]