WDCV Fall 2017 Review

WDCV Fall 2017 Semester Review

 

This semester flew by at WDCV! The fall of 2017 started off successfully as two new station managers, Justine Hayward ’18 and Julia Ormond ’19, organized and planned for the semester. The executive board, comprised of inventive and enthusiastic juniors and sophomores, tackled many events which ultimately lead to an overall awesome semester.

                     

WDCV had around 75 new DJ sign-ups during Activities Fair. The DJs stuck it out through training and information sessions, and got their shows a couple weeks after signing up. There were 30 newly trained DJs, 10 returning DJs, 14 exec DJs, and 18 community DJs, rounding out to 72 DJs in total broadcasting their radio shows throughout the semester!

                                   

 

Because we had so many DJs, we had a lot of exciting events. WDCV DJs provided music for Farm Frolics on the Dickinson College Farm in early September and hosted two successful Pop-Up Record Shops with our friend Dennis in October and late November. WDCV also participated in College Radio Day and First Friday simultaneously by DJing for those strolling through Carlisle on a sunny Friday afternoon. We compiled a playlist dedicated to the queer and LBGTQAA+ community for Out on Britton and collaborated with MOB to introduce their fall concert through the airwaves. WDCV successfully broadcasted live for a full day during our 24 Hour Live Event in late November and put on a concert in the Social Hall in early November to celebrate underrepresented artists from Lancaster and Boston. It was a huge success for all WDCV concert planners and concert-goers alike! And to end the semester on top, the station hosted a DJ potluck during the last week of classes to wish their DJs good luck on finals and a happy winter break!

                     

Outside of the many events that WDCV hosted this semester, the station continued to thrive as new DJs joined, awesome CDs were added as featured artists, and more people came to appreciate college radio. We can’t wait for next semester, and hope that you are all excited too! Thank you for a great couple months, and see you back in the station in January!

 

If you have any questions, email Julia Ormond at ormondj@dickinson.edu

WDCV Live at Dusk Review

WDCV’s plan for a live concert on the Dickinson campus finally came to fruition Saturday November 4th. Concert planners worked a majority of the semester to secure the musical acts of the night: Izzy Heltai, The Split Pistols, and The Skiffs. The Social Hall made for an exciting venue perfect for dancing to the upbeat pop rock of The Split Pistols and the wacky rock of the Skiffs. The opener of the night, Izzy, graced the audience with his alluring voice and mesmerizing acoustic guitar. A one-man band from Massachusetts, Izzy captivated the audience with his original music that centered around his unique, raw vocals and deep lyrical abilities. He ended with a new song, Anybody to Anybody, off of his upcoming new EP ‘Sweet Apathy.’ Izzy wowed the crowd with his heartwarming songs, and set the stage for the following acts. The Split Pistols, hailing from nearby Lebanon, immediately introduced themselves with their loud electricity, and pushed the audience to their feet. Playing mostly original songs, The Split Pistols turned the heads of students walking by in the HUB. The lead singer, Vaughn, repeatedly jumped off the stage to dance with the audience during solos. His ability to command an audience paired with his dancing resulted in an upbeat set that was a perfect segue into closing act, The Skiffs. Also hailing from Lebanon, The Skiffs showed their love for Ween by covering many of their songs, most notably Ocean Man. They continued to wow the crowd with their funny songs and dedicated musicians. The guitarist and singer both captivated listeners with their personalities, exemplified through guitar solos vocal range.

                                              

WDCV Live at Dusk was a success, and most audience members stayed for all three sets, leaving tired but satisfied from a night of dancing. If you’d you like to check out music from the three artists WDCV brought to campus, you can find their music below. Further, both Izzy Heltai and The Split Pistols will be releasing new music in early 2018!

 

Izzy Heltai http://www.izzyheltai.com/ and can be found on Spotify

 

The Split Pistols on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/thesplitpistols/ and Youtube https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCP8UGfwMsi0j_d6YLmnWFQA

 

The Skiffs on Soundcloud https://soundcloud.com/theskiffspa/ciggy-song

 

If you have any questions, email Julia Ormond at ormondj@dickinson.edu 

College Radio Day(s)-Pop Up Record Shop 10/5 & First Friday 10/6

College Radio Day is technically Friday October 6th but we here at WDCV like to stretch out our celebrations over multiple days. 

Thursday October 5th – Pop Up Record Shop! 9am-3pmn

We are going to bring our favorite Vinyl Slinger, Dennis Gotthard, back to campus for a Pop Up Record Shop on Thursday October 5th from 9am-3pm in the HUB lower Level.  Dennis always brings a mighty collection to campus with countless genres and artists to choose from so please consider supporting on of our favorite small businesses while celebrating College Radio.  You can also find some of Dennis’ collection at Miss Ruth’s Time Bomb on N. Hanover St.

 

Friday October 6th – First Friday Downtown – 5pm-8pm

October’s First Friday Music Walk is this Friday October 6th from 5pm – 8pm in Downtown Carlisle. We will finish out our College Radio Day Celebration by taking our tunes to the streets of Carlisle.  We will be set up next to the clothes vine.  Stop by for free stickers, buttons and cd’s and you can buy one of our WDCV t-shirts while you are there.




Spotlight on Lake Street Dive

Last Tuesday night, July 11th, the attendees of the Majestic Theater in Gettysburg waited excitedly for 7:30 to finally roll around. The theater was packed; even those sitting in the farthest seats, like me, were surrounded by enthusiastic fans. Much of this excitement filling the theater flowed into the air when finally the lights dimmed and people walked onto the stage. Instruments were tuned, throats were cleared, and as the show lights lit the faces of the band Lawrence, the upbeat music began. 

Lawrence, a pop-jazz sibling duo from New York, set the scene for the bigger act to come. Gracie, the amazing vocalist with an extremely wide range, bopped around the stage, dancing with the saxophonists and trumpeter, while her brother wailed away on the keyboard. Though their sound compares similarly to pop music of today, their R&B and jazzy twist created an exciting and upbeat atmosphere that got the whole crowd cheering. Though they only played a couple of songs, their force and stage presence stuck with the audience, even once they were off the stage.

Lawrence brought the audience to their feet, but the band we were all waiting for, Lake Street Dive, drove us to dancing in the aisles. The moment Rachel Price and her three other insanely talented band members took the stage, the excitement in the Majestic Theater was through the roof. They sound like they belong at outdoor festivals, where the audience dances along, barefoot in the grass, to their rhythmic beats and relaxed tone. Even when playing their slower, more melodic tunes, the members of Lake Street Dive possessed a cheery, passionate aura that inspired others to continue their dancing and swaying. Last year, Lake Street Dive came out with a new album, Side Pony, and they played many tracks from it, such as “I Don’t Care About You,” “How Good It Feels,” “Call Off Your Dogs,” and of course the namesake, “Side Pony.” Sprinkled in throughout the set were some of their classics off their older album, such as “Bad Self Portraits,” “Seventeen,” and “Better Than,” and they ended the night with one of my favorites, “You Go Down Smooth.” Throughout the concert, audience members were bopping along to the music, and some more enthusiastic fans were swinging their arms around to their favorite songs. But it wasn’t until the second to last song, “Call Off Your Dogs,” that people started dancing in the aisles. Only a couple at first felt the urge to get up, but once an older gentleman stood up from the middle of the audience and motioned the rest of the crowd to join him did we all dance along to the upright bass, the jazzy guitar, and the incredible strength of Rachel’s voice. The audience demanded an encore, and the whole crowd sang along to “You Go Down Smooth.”

It was an incredible performance by both Lawrence and Lake Street Dive; there wasn’t a dull moment throughout both sets. Both bands will continue their tour throughout America, staying a couple more nights on the East Coast until they venture towards the mid-West. If you ever get the chance to see them, you should take it!                                              

If you are interested in hearing more from Lake Street Dive, check out this NPR Tiny Desk Concert! Also check out their website for more cool info!

As for Lawrence, here is their website and how to listen to them for free!

 

If you have any questions, email Julia Ormond at ormondj@dickinson.edu. Thanks for reading!

Bluegrass on the Grass Review

Bluegrass on the Grass, a Carlisle summer tradition, took the Dickinson College Academic Quad by storm on Saturday, July 8th. Lasting 8 hours, the festival hosted five different bluegrass bands, hailing from Tennessee to West Virginia. Families, students, and devoted bluegrass fans from Carlisle and beyond alike showed up and gave their support for a festival that has been around for more than 20 years now. Festival-goers arrived as early as 8 am to claim the best spots on the Academic Quad, in the shade of course, and camped out there throughout the whole festival, proving just how loved this festival is! Children danced along to the quick fiddles, families enjoyed the crooning of their favorite bluegrass singers, hungry listeners appreciated the local food vendors, and Bluegrass on the Grass volunteers savored the support they felt from the festival lovers.

This tradition started many years ago by the infamous Davis Tracy. A retired Dickinson Counselor and faculty advisor for WDCV FM, Davis Tracy and other local bluegrass lovers hosted bluegrass concerts on Tracy’s farm back in the 90s. They wished to expand their barnyard concerts, invite other bluegrass musicians and listeners, and create a festival out of their love for bluegrass, and in 1996 Tracy and others created a reality out of this dream. Tracy and his band took the stage on the Dickinson campus for the first time in front of about 200 people, and since then the festival has grown to nearly 4,000 attendees and a multitude of bluegrass bands who have received high regard in the bluegrass world. There is no doubt that every summer, the town of Carlisle gleefully awaits this music festival.

                                            

The bands featured this year included some familiar faces, such as the Dismembered Tennesseans, but also comprised of new sounds, most notably from Mile Twelve, a relatively new band with a young, fiery sound. An astounding fiddler, Michael Cleveland, along with his band Flamekeeper, joined the line-up this year as well, and left the crowd in pure amazement of his incredible skill and musical ear. The music lasted from noon until 8 pm, interspersed with raffle contests, in which Bluegrass on the Grass merchandise and other impressive prizes were given to upwards of one hundred winners. Dennis Gotthard, a local vinyl collector, sold a multitude of vinyl to festival-goers, and impressed the crowd with his boxes and boxes of bluegrass vinyl for the true bluegrass fans. Bluegrass on the Grass was an immense success this year, attracting new faces both on stage and in the crowd. It was a lovely day filled with great music, and no doubt the town of Carlisle excitedly looks forward to next year’s event!

                        

For more information about this event, check out http://blogs.dickinson.edu/bluegrass/

 

If you have any questions, email Julia Ormond at ormondj@dickinson.edu. Thanks for reading!

Student Podcasts to be Aired

It’s finals week at Dickinson College, and that means final essays, exams, and projects are to finally be finished!

This week, WDCV will be airing a series of podcasts from one of Dickinson’s courses, Lusomusics, a cross-listed class in both music and Portuguese studies. This course focuses on music influenced and created by the Portuguese, as well as Cape Verdeans, Brazilians, Angolans, and many other citizens of past Portuguese colonies. The podcasts present and examine four subjects that these students have learned about throughout the semester, which include Tropicalia, Bossa Nova, Coladeira, and the artist Jose Alfonso. Along with musical examples, these students explore the historical context of their music, as well as the varying instrumentation and social significance. If you are interested in world music, or want to expand your musical ear, these podcasts are perfect for you!

Tune in on Monday, May 8th, at noon to hear all about it!

Listen live by tuning your radio to 88.3 fm, or stream us at wdcvfm.com!

 

WDCV Events: March

The month of March has a lot in store the WDCV station! Check out our upcoming events below. 

Thursday, March 3rd: Movie Night in the station lounge! We will be watching Spinal Tap at 8 pm. All student DJs are welcome to come lay on our comfy couches and eat the yummy snacks we will be providing! Hope to see you all there!

 

Saturday, March 25th: 24 Hour Live Event from 8am to 8am Sunday, March 26th! WDCV will be broadcasting live for 24 hours straight. This event will act as a community-DJ bonding experience where both student and community DJs can sign up for a one hour shift throughout the 24 hour span. Come help us get our name out in the airwaves!

Monday, March 27th: Live on Britton Plaza for the Energy Challenge kick-off! WDCV student DJs will be playing music outside from 7pm to 9pm. WDCV is proud to support the Energy Challenge across the Dickinson campus!

If you are interested in participating in any or all of these events, email wdcvfm.djaffairs@gmail.com!

 

Grumpus Visits the Whistlestop Bookshop

On November 16th, Grumpus, a Dickinson alum, visited the Whistlestop Bookshop in Carlisle as a stop on his November Tour. It was an intimate setting for a very enjoyable and personal concert. WDCV live streamed Grumpus and his opening act, Alex Dillon. Listen and check them out!

 

Follow Grumpus on Instagram and like him on Facebook!

Instagram: @grahamofgrumpus

Facebook: Grumpus