Photo by Ali Enright. (@cityonahillpress)
"In between spitting grit and rawness about the harsh realities of drugs, death and a hard life, humility poured through the mic as Freddie Gibbs performed to about 150 lucky, loyal — and mostly male — fans. The intimate show transpired at The Atrium on April 6 as part of his tour promoting his latest album, “Shadow of a Doubt,” released last November.
“You follow drugs/You get drug addicts and the drug dealers/But you start to follow the money and you don’t know where the fuck it’s gonna take you,” Gibbs rapped in his last verse of “Fuckin’ up the Count,” one of the more popular songs on the album. His demeanor was collected but sharp, and he stood shirtless as sweat dripped down his face.
Though Gibbs isn’t interested in glamorizing drug use, he acknowledges it’s a reality for some, which is reflected in his music. And for many young adults in both privileged and under-resourced neighborhoods, Gibbs is revered.
Giovanni Walker, a fourth-year UC Santa Cruz film and digital media student from Los Angeles, who produces, performs and writes hip-hop music, has looked up to Gibbs since 2011 when Gibbs emerged with his second mixtape “Cold Day in Hell.”
“He is not the most politically correct,” Walker said. “Yet his ability to use hip-hop culture immediately spoke to me and inspired me to self educate and further decontextualize myself from current systematic situations.”
Read the full article here: http://www.cityonahillpress.com/2016/04/18/selling-you-the-science-of-street-rap/
"The Sound of Sorrow"
April, 2016
Photo by Casey Amaral. @cityonahillpress
"You can fall in love with a person, a place or a food, but sometimes it’s an album that captures you. Sometimes, you play the album over and over, framing your life’s moments. For local band Boostive, these moments rush through beats in their latest album, “Room for Living.”
“This album was largely inspired and completely dedicated to our friend Kyle Lesley who passed away this past year,” Gibbs said in an e-mail. “Kyle is one of the reasons we are the way we are today.”
The snapshots in the album capture the love of friendships and a celebration of life. Boostive’s trombone player, Travis Gibbs, explained the work behind the album and remembered Lesley, a friend who played an integral role in the project.
“He recorded and helped put together our previous releases, and his influence has affected and will affect all of the music Boostive creates,” Gibbs said. “Naturally, this project resonates strongly with his presence.”
Lesley, who on Aug. 28 died from cancer at the age of 34, was invested in music, activism, and his friends and family. The music’s soul and Lesley’s legacy is reflected in their album."
Read the full article here: http://www.cityonahillpress.com/2016/04/01/the-sound-of-sorrow/
Photo by Stephen de Ropp. @cityonahillpress
February, 2016
"The usual crowd of animated Santa Cruzans, students and locals, dripped with sweat as they counted down the 30 minutes until Dr. Dog claimed the stage at The Catalyst on Jan. 31.
Blue hues from LED lights decorated drummer Eric Slick’s drum kit, Zach Miller’s keyboard and Dimitri Manos, a multi-instrument wonder. The entire set, complete with a black and white checkered background and disco ball, transformed the venue into a colorful backdrop full of green, pink and blue lights.
At their third show into their U.S. tour, Dr. Dog tripped out The Catalyst with their music and a journey through cosmic space, dark matter and brightly colored zing.
“It’s almost like surf music in outer space,” said UC Santa Cruz student Jeremy Lessnau as Dr. Dog transitioned into one of their more experimental songs, “Be the Void.”
Bodies bobbed as images of bright green flowers popped on stage. Musical chords pulled the crowd out and the band jumped into their more popular “Heart it Races” song, a cover of the Architecture in Helsinki track. After he sang, lead guitarist and vocalist Scott McMicken hinted toward the band’s new album “Psychedelic Swamp” dropping Feb. 5.
“It’s a pretty significant thing to put people through if you’re not in that kind of trance,” McMicken said.
McMicken calculated an approximate 16-minute trance where the band looped through sounds. Wearing matching shades on stage, McMicken was grateful for the tuned-in crowd, welcoming fans at a meet and greet backstage afterward.
“As much as we get inside ourselves, we get off stage and feel great because sometimes you do really well when your back is against the wall,” McMicken said."
Read the full article here: http://www.cityonahillpress.com/2016/02/04/swimming-the-swamp/
"Radio’s Not Dead"
January, 2016
Illustration by Celia Fong. @cityonahillpress
"Long gone are the days when an aspiring artist can freak out over hearing their song played on the radio. The once intimate and sentimental relationship between the listener and the radio has been betrayed. Commercial radio is inundated with top 40 hits, where the cycle of airplay is dictated by the 100 most popular songs of that week, as compiled by Billboard.
While most stations repeat the same songs, KZSC — UC Santa Cruz’s own non-commercial radio station — plays content selected by students for students. The station grew its roots in 1967 as KRUZ with a small group of listeners in the Stevenson dorms, and eventually moved its way to its current home, a decked out cabin. It stands behind Crown College, complete with history and records, run by more than 114 staff and volunteers.
“A lot of students put a lot of effort into their shows,” said KZSC DJ Gabe Lopez. “With KZSC, every hour will introduce you to 30 or 40 songs you did not know about. That’s the best feeling as a DJ — a new piece of art, a new expression of self.”
Lopez, who goes by DJ Null, hosts “Nara Dreamland” from 10 p.m. to 12 a.m. every Friday. He got the idea for the title from an abandoned theme park in Japan he’s been obsessed with since his teenage years and developed an ever-evolving series of weekly concepts for his program.
“[It’s] this imaginary theme park that’s abandoned, and exists in people’s minds and dreams — every show is a different conceptual piece,” Lopez said. “Tonight’s show is called ‘A Love Letter to Adolescents,’ it’s about weird things you think about as a teenager that don’t make a lot of sense but you feel ‘em.”
Read the full article here: http://www.cityonahillpress.com/2016/01/21/radios-not-dead/