Pearl
Pearl, originally from a small town in Michigan known as, Grass Lake, started writing songs when she was six-years-old. Over the years, Pearl has spent many days busking on sidewalks and piers, playing in bars, performing at festivals and doing shows of her own. She has lived all over the USA, moving from west coast to east coast, and her music uniquely reflects her experiences. We are often reminded of the rock classics when she performs, with her raspy voice and magnetic presence. Known as @unaestheticsurferpearlz on TikTok, her music has recently started receiving viral attention, gaining organic popularity on social media platforms. Website | Instagram | TikTok | Spotify
Hotline TNT – Path of Totality 2025
Will Anderson needed to call a timeout. It was October 2024, in the studio of modern D.I.Y. hero Amos Pitsch, clear across Wisconsin from the small town where Anderson was raised. As he has done for every increasingly absorbing Hotline TNT album, Anderson arrived at the studio with eight, maybe nine demos he liked, leaving himself room not only to expand their sound but to write a few tracks in the room, too. But this time, and for the first time, the quartet that had toured for the last 10 months as Hotline TNT had come with Anderson, somewhat unexpectedly. He had intended to make one more album his way—holing up with a producer and building songs piece by piece, as he’d done for the 2023 breakthrough Cartwheel—before making Hotline TNT a full-band affair in the future. But guitarist Lucky Hunter, bassist Haylen Trammel, and drummer Mike Ralston wanted in. Anderson relented. As they cycled repeatedly through one of Anderson’s demos, they couldn’t unlock the way to play it, the power and pattern that Hunter’s and Anderson’s guitars needed to share. When Hunter began playing a part that had nothing to do with that song, Anderson dipped, heading upstairs with his guitar in a spell of mild pique and fatigue. When he emerged a few hours later, he’d written “The Scene,” a spiraling-and-stomping new song about wanting someone to throw a tantrum on your behalf. The rest of Hotline TNT, meanwhile, had written a lunging and moody instrumental, guitars pulled as tightly as razor wire against Motorik drums. Anderson resisted at first but then helped finish “Break Right.” Both songs are now tentpoles of Raspberry Moon, the most sweeping and compelling Hotline TNT album to date and, crucially, the first built by a full band. Oh, the other song they couldn’t get right? No one remembers its name. That moment is but one element of the vulnerability and romance that funneled into Raspberry Moon, a generationally great statement of youthful wistfulness and very adult growth that also happens to be very charming and sometimes funny. Not only did Anderson cement his touring band in the studio, but he also wrote the most direct love songs of his life, winning testaments to a relationship that has seemed to change his perspective on sweetness, sincerity, life itself. And when the quartet finished tracking with Pitsch, Anderson essentially handed him the tracks and asked him to play along, adding harmonies, keyboards, and percussion wherever he felt it worked. (Pitsch is credited as the fifth member here—so much for a solo project, huh?) Some of these 11 songs still deal with the sting of regret, of being left or leaving, as Hotline TNT always has. But this is a record animated by a sense of newness and possibility, of pushing back against the global sense that curtains are closing to make room in your own life for new friends. It is perfect music for looking forward, no matter how fucked the past may feel. Two months before Hotline TNT stopped at Pitsch’s Crutch of Memory between tour dates, Anderson thought another version of his touring band had reached its ignominious end. They were three songs into a set at Poland’s Off Festival when, in front of a few thousand people, Hunter’s knee rotated 180 degrees, fracturing his kneecap and ripping the sinew. Paramedics cleared the room and carted him to a hospital. The band assumed it was just another unlucky break, like the meningitis that forced Anderson to lay in a cot in the back of a van during an early Cartwheel tour or the litany of lineup squabbles and fractures during the band’s first seven years. Website | Bandcamp | Instagram
Tim Barry
“This big old heart ain’t running right // ‘Bout time to check the tires.” And so begins “Ain’t Much For Talking,” the opening salvo on Tim Barry’s latest album, Spring Hill. In a fashion that can only be called “perfectly Tim Barry,” the line carries with it some rather immense weight and rather eloquently and succinctly sets the table for what’s in store, both on the remainder of the song and on the album as a whole. If you’re expecting a baker’s dozen tales of introspection and honest reflection and occasional pointed-tongued humor and a handful of lines that’ll punch you right square in the solar plexus, you’ve come to the right place.It’s been just about three years since Barry’s last studio album, The Roads To Richmond, a span that pretty nearly matches the longest break between albums in a solo career that’s now closer to the end of its second decade than it is to its start. And while it’s fair to say that the years since The Roads To Richmond have seen the world-at-large continue to unravel in ways that are as varied as they are tumultuous, much of that turmoil is absent from Spring Hill. Instead, what follows, both on the remainder of “Ain’t Much For Talking” and on Spring Hill as a whole, as a real and thorough examination of where Tim’s been, a little of where he’s headed, and perhaps most importantly, where all of the many hard-earned miles on the above-mentioned tires have brought him to right now.Which is to say, Richmond. Since the early Avail days three decades ago, it’s been no secret that Barry is well-known for being a proud native son of the River City. References to the city and its neighborhoods and its history and its cast of characters have abounded for years, and that’s no different on Spring Hill. During the course of the last year, with most options for touring and live music mostly off the table, Barry returned to the familiar Richmond confines of Minimum Wage Recording, alongside his trusted producer-in-arms Lance Koehler. While that’s been the modus operandi since the days of Barry’s genre-defining debut full length, Rivanna Junction, in 2006, that’s not to say that he’s returned to the same well time and time again.Through the process of recording the songs that would become Spring Hill, Barry surrounded himself with a cast of Richmond characters to help fill out a sonic palette that ranges from sparse to haunting to dynamic, sometimes all in the same song. Tim’s sister Caitlin Barry once aga lends her violin playing talents, joined by the virtuosic harmonica stylings of Andrew Alli. Josh Bearman chimes in on mandolin and banjo. The multitalented Charles Arthur adds pedal steel and lap steel and resonator. Barry himself has added newfound banjo strumming chops to his signature vocal and guitar styles. The result is a Tim Barry record that’s comfortable in its own skin and also willing to explore some new and different levels. Recurring themes of freedom and of moving on abound. Barry long-ago perfected the craft of the “tell off” song, steadfast in his vision and eschewing the trappings and vanities of things like wealth and celebrity in favor of a truer, more real and fulfilled life. That is very much on display in “Free As The Wind” which extols the virtue of enjoying the real, human experiences of a “sunset with no filter, no trophy fish, no fake ass fucking smile.” Website | Instagram | Twitter | Facebook
Theo Kandel
Theo Kandel’s music is a tapestry, with each song woven together like a thread of memory through your life. It’s a beer around the campfire with friends; it’s a baguette you picked up at the farmer’s market; it’s the night’s last cigarette on the porch when everyone else has gone to bed. The New York based singer, songwriter, producer, and multi-instrumentalist zeroes in on everyday details and extracts wonder from them. This spirit surges through his eloquently fashioned folk amplified by just the right dose of rock energy. Its also fueled his quiet rise as a phenomenon with millions of streams and packed shows. After a series of what he describes as “test releases,” he emerged in 2021 with his debut EP, Spin Cycle, which incited the applause of FLAUNT, OnesToWatch, and more. His 2022 EP, What if it all works out in the end?, was highlighted by “Me & All My Friends Have Got the Blues,” a modern-day folk tune à la Jackson C. Frank and James Taylor. The lead single from that project, “Flight to JFK,” has reeled in over 500k streams to date.Between nationwide headlining dates of his own, Theo has supported The Script, Rayland Baxter, Morgan Wade, Evan Honer, ROSIE, WINGTIP, KT Tunstall, AJR, Quarters of Change, The Wood Brothers, Monrovia, Jordy Searcy, and John Oates. He’s shared the stage with Gracie from Lawrence and released a duet with Evan Honer of Theo’s song “Flight to JFK (Alt. Version.) Theo released his debut album “Eating And Drinking And Being In Love” via Nettwerk last September and is currently rolling out Volume 2 of his critically acclaimed “Somewhere Along the Trail” series. Website | Instagram | YouTube | Soundcloud | Facebook | TikTok
Jensen McRae – The Praying For Your Downfall Tour
Jensen McRae could’ve been down for the count. “The most profound choices of my life,” she says, “have often felt like things I did before I was ready to do, and I had to grow into them.” McRae’s songs have a way of giving shape to these leaps, cliff jumps, and trust falls. On her new album, I Don’t Know How But They Found Me!, Jensen McRae goes further than ever, evolving from a promising young artist to a fully grown songwriter and star. “It’s about realizing what you can’t outrun, and what follows when you have withstood what you thought might crush you,” she explains. “There are things that can happen to us—unthinkable, untenable things—that threaten our safety in our own bodies. They happen, and you feel like the only option is escape. In truth, the only way out is in—back into the place you have always lived.” The home—with Jensen front and center, possibly leaving, possibly arriving—adorns the artwork for I Don’t Know How But They Found Me!. “You can leave the city, you can leave the lover,” McRae continues, “but you can never leave yourself.” From the very beginning, fans have fallen in love with Jensen McRae for her sharp, evocative, and clear-eyed songwriting. An avid journaler, McRae has been breathlessly documenting her existence since she was 18. Her first album, Are You Happy Now?, was a mission statement for the artist who grew up an automatic outsider: a Black Jewish girl from Los Angeles, hellbent on making folk music in spite of the world’s attempts to box her into other, more stereotypically Black genres. McRae looked to her songwriting heroes—Alicia Keys, Carole King, James Taylor, Stevie Wonder—to build a sonic world all her own. As her audience grew and myriad doors began unlocking, it “became the record of my coming-of-age. But it was a quiet coming-of-age, one that mostly took place inside my own head.” I Don’t Know How But They Found Me! takes place against the backdrop of romantic turbulence and McRae’s rapidly growing audience. “I had never been in love before,” McRae said, “not really. And then I had two life-altering relationships back to back in my early twenties. This album is primarily an exploration about how love and intimacy knock the wind out of you, can take your legs out from under you.” She has also had multiple viral moments; the most recent was in 2023, when McRae posted a solo verse and chorus online—little more than a piece of a demo—and it took off. Covers, duets, and an avalanche of new fans followed (including the likes of Justin Bieber, Stormzy, and Dan Nigro, to name a few). The song became the beginning of “Massachusetts,” which would become her first Dead Oceans release. I Don’t Know How But They Found Me! also reaffirms McRae’s defiance of expectations as she deepens her singer-songwriter bona fides and claims space for young Black women in the genre. “I do still feel like I’m pushing a boulder up a hill,” she says. “I know that in spite of my success and hard work, I still do hit walls that aren’t there for other people, and that it’s because I’m working in a space that doesn’t already allow for people who look like me. It’s connected to why I make music,” she continues, “to be seen and to help others feel seen. But I remain somewhat misunderstood.” Website | Instagram | TikTok | Spotify | YouTube
Big Richard
The world-class musicians in Big Richard initially convened in 2021 for a festival date. The quartet showed up to the one-off like it had been together for years and quicklygraduated to club shows and dates. The musicians siphon from bluegrass, old time, classical, country, and pop. Bursting with jaw-dropping virtuosity; playfully irreverent stage banter; stunning four-part harmony; imaginative arrangements; a refreshingly eclectic repertoire; and a healthy dose of lady rage, Big Richard is poised to penetrate the Americana music world and beyond. To date, the quartet has issued 3 singles, the Live from Telluride album, and it has new music on the way. Website | Facebook | Instagram | Youtube
Hayes Carll – ‘We’re Only Human’ Tour
We’re Only Human Hayes Carll isn’t preaching or teaching. He’s not interested in telling the rest of us what to do or think. But he is charting out a personal guide for his life, quieting the noise, and sitting with his real voice – the one that’s candid, consistent, and often inconvenient. We’re Only Human is Carll’s tenth album. Like his best lyrics, it is also an understated masterpiece, an honest snapshot of one man’s confrontation and delight with humanity’s biggest and most intimate questions. Where do we find forgiveness for ourselves and grace for others? How do we hold on to peace of mind and stay present? What can we—and should we––trust? And how can we moor ourselves to, well, ourselves, in the midst of confusing, trying times? We’re Only Human offers audiences the chance to listen to Carll as he listens to himself. “I’ve lived outside of myself for so long,” Carll admits. “Distractions, fear, anxiety, insecurity, and the complexity of being human in this world have so often pulled me away from being present or at peace.” “I feel like there’s been a voice riding shotgun all my life, pushing me to do better, but I’ve struggled to listen to it,” Carll says. “The idea behind this record was to do the personal work I needed to do, then codify those lessons in song to serve as sort of breadcrumbs to get me back on the trail if, and inevitably when, I get lost again.” Carll is more than two decades into a celebrated career. Praise from places such as Pitchfork and the New York Times––the latter of which yoked Carll’s ability to tackle tough issues with wry humor to Bob Dylan––punctuate a resume that includes Americana Music Awards and a Grammy nomination. His songs aren’t safe, but many of Nashville’s stars have recorded them, including Kenny Chesney, Lee Ann Womack, and Brothers Osborne. As a solo recording artist, Carll has long-since established himself as one of Americana’s most-played––and most loved––voices. His warm but crackling vocals, wit, and heart dance through wordplay that’s always clever, and never too precious. Through it all, whenever Carll points a finger, it’s most often at himself. As We’re Only Human collects moments of Carll figuring out how to be with himself, the songs feel forthright, hopeful, and timely. In today’s onslaught of instant gratification, rage-baiting headlines, glorified intolerance, and falling empathy, the record is a startling outlier: an artist’s raw, real-life effort to live well—both with himself and others. Carll embraces private epiphanies, and shares them with the world, allowing them to unfold for all to see and share. Of course, We’re Only Human is also art. So while appreciating the motivation and compelling themes driving it will underpin the listener’s experience, Carll’s album also matters because of the sheer brilliance of its execution. These are songs composed by a writer’s writer, wielding his considerable skill with precision and beauty. The album’s title track unfolds with plaintive piano and a mantle of grace. Carll sings, with a calming sincerity, “We’ll do most anything to avoid the pain / Hiding our hearts and casting the blame / 6,000 tongues, but we’re all the same / Ain’t no need to carry that shame / ‘Cause we’re only human.” Website | Facebook | Instagram
S.G. Goodman
S.G. Goodman returns from the Western Kentucky bottomland with her latest full-length album, Planting by the Signs, Available June 20, 2025 on her very own Slough Water Records via Thirty Tigers. Composed of songs inspired by love, loss, reconciliation, and the aforementioned ancient practice. Eleven tracks highlighted by the critically-acclaimed and award-winning artist’s singular voice and her penchant for juxtaposing vulnerable folk music with punchy rock ‘n roll, replete with chiming guitars, ethereal atmospherics, and her DIY ethos. Goodman provides a timely reminder that the only way forward is together, and that we must always take into account humanity’s dependence on and responsibility to the natural world.Back in the early hours of 2023, Goodman told her late friend Mike Harmon and his wife Therese that she wanted to base her next album around the concept of planting by the signs, which she had heard about growing up, and recently rediscovered while reading a volume of Foxfire. She remembered general points from her rural southern childhood – how planting a garden, or weaning a baby, or getting a haircut are best timed in accordance with the cycle of the moon. A concept diametrically opposed to the tech-obsessed, profit margin-driven mania swirling around her. Through exploring themes related to planting by the signs, Goodman hoped to help herself and others reconcile this jarring disconnect, as well to pass along the story of the practice to her nieces and nephews – the latter being a role she took very seriously. But it wasn’t an easy path to writing Planting by the Signs or to the recording studio. 2023 saw the passing of her beloved dog, Howard, as well as the tragic death of Harmon, a father figure and mentor. Mike was mentioned in Goodman’s song, “Red Bird Morning” on Old Time Feeling, her debut. Her band used to practice in the quonset hut behind his house. He would check on her house while she toured. Often, Goodman would call him for advice from the road. A few days before he died, he advised her about putting chains on her van during a snow storm. He once drove that same van from Boston to Chicago so the band could play a one-off in the middle of a tour. He was a rock for Goodman, and a rock star in his own right. Harmon’s death led to Goodman reconciling with her longtime collaborator and guitarist, Matthew Rowan, who had become estranged from her following a year of grueling live shows in 2021. Rowan and Goodman had met in their early 20s while at college in the Murray, KY, indie rock scene, and eventually began playing music together. His idiosyncratic guitar work became an essential part of her production. He wrote most of the guitar parts on her first two records, and their creative relationship stretched for nearly 10 years. But life on the road isn’t for all, one thing led to another, and Rowan decided to step away. After Harmon passed, Matt was one of the first people Goodman called. From there they began to mend their relationship, and eventually, once she started working on her new album, S.G. asked Rowan to be her co-producer. The album would not exist in its current form without their reconciliation. With over 150 performances on the books in ‘23, including headlining sold out tours and opening for the likes of Tyler Childers and Jason Isbell from Red Rocks to the Grand Ole’ Opry, there was also little time for songwriting, much less recording. Website | Spotify | Instagram | Facebook | YouTube
WXYC Presents: The All-Denim Disco
UNC Students $5 with One Card$10 for non students
School of Rock Chapel Hill’s End of Season Showcase
FREE and Open to the Public, but $10 donations at the door are kindly requested and gratefully received to help cover fees for students with financial need. Thank you for your generosity. 11:00am – Super Bowl Halftime Heroes!12:00pm – The Best of Beck!1:00 pm – Arena Rock!2:00 pm – Epic Album – Led Zeppelin’s “In Through The Out Door”!3:00 pm – A very special Senior Send-off Ceremony for our graduating high school seniors in the Performance Program!3:30 pm – Janis Joplin vs. Grace Slick!4:30 pm – Little Richard vs. Chuck Berry!5:30 pm – Best of Rage Against The Machine! Website | Instagram | Twitter | Facebook | Facebook Event
