2013 Locally Grown concert and movie series announced

The annual Locally Grown concert and movie series atop Wallace Plaza in Chapel Hill will return in 2013 and will feature three free concerts and six movies.

The groups performing this year are Kooley High and JSWISS on June 27, The Wusses and The Whom on July 25 and Virgins Family Band, The Morning Brigade and Clockwork Kids on August 29.

Each concert and film will start at 8 p.m. Check out the full schedule below which includes the films in series, Ghostbusters, O Brother, Where Art Thou?, The Avengers, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Finding Nemo and Psycho.

The Connells, The Love Language, Marcy Playground & more to play tornado benefit

This morning, Raleigh mayor Charles Meeker announced a big concert to benefit the victims of the tornadoes that hit the Triangle in April called Rise Up Raleigh. The concert will happen on Friday, June 3 at the Raleigh Amphitheater and will feature headliners The Connells, The Love Language and Marcy Playground.

Also on the bill is The Small Ponds, Kooley High, Young Cardinals, Aunt Martha, Motor Skills and Red Sonja Band. The show is free and no tickets are required. Donations are being accepted through via the United Way and will be given to Salvation Army of Wake County, Centro International de Raleigh, the Inter-Faith Food Shuttle and the Helping Hand Mission.

The music will start at 5 p.m. and keep rolling until 11 p.m. Check out the stage schedule below.

New music video from Kooley High - "All Day"

Local hip hop group Kooley High have released a new music video from their latest album Eastern Standard Time. It was shot at various locations in Raleigh including Schoolkids Records, Cup A Joe and The Pour House. It's a beautifully shot video. Check it out below.

Kooley High will be performing at The Pour House in Raleigh on Saturday, April 16. Tickets will be $9 at the door. They'll also play the Shakori Hills Grassroots Festival in Pittsboro on Saturday, April 23. Check out the rest of their upcoming tour dates below.

Also, check out photos and a review of Kooley High's performance at Duke Gardens last July HERE.

Hopscotch Day 3: I Was Totally Destroying It, First Rate People & Kooley High

Local indie pop rockers I Was Totally Destroying kicked off Hopscotch's Saturday evening festivities at Deep South. They played an upbeat, energetic set that the whole crowd really enjoyed. Singer and keyboard player Rachel Hirsh often channeled fellow female rocker Hayley Williams of Paramore, giving her an intense, confident air. The fun continued between songs as all of the band's members joked with each other and the audience.

After what seemed like a quick fifty minute set, I Was Totally Destroying It packed up to make way for Lonnie Walker, another great Triangle band. Some skipping around trying to work out a few more schedule kinks meant my missing out on most of Lonnie Walker, but if the last ten minutes of their set is any indication as to the quality of the rest of their set, they too were excellent.

Kooley High bring unabashed fun to Duke Gardens

On the hottest day so far this year, fans packed onto the lawn at Duke Gardens to experience the hip hop sounds of Kooley High.

The Raleigh group, most of which recently moved to Brooklyn, tore through a set with ease and charm like seasoned veterans who've been around for decades. They pulled out some new songs from their forthcoming debut album Eastern Standard Time, including the title track and "Betty Crocker."

Win tickets to Kooley High at Duke Gardens

Raleigh's own Kooley High will hit Duke Gardens on Wednesday, July 7, as part of the Music in the Gardens series.

Win a pair of tickets to the show by emailing us at trianglemusicblog at gmail dot com by noon on Monday with "Kooley High tickets" in the subject line. We'll pick a name at random and notify the winner Monday afternoon.

Tickets to the show are $10 or $5 for Duke students and employees and, as always, children 12 and under are free.

July line-up of Local Beer Local Band at Tir Na Nog

With a new month starting, it's time to bring you the July line up for WKNC's free weekly concert series, Local Beer Local Band. Things kick off tonight, July 1, with The Static Minds and A Tin Djinn.

Other shows throughout the month will feature Kooly High, The Bronzed Chorus, Midtown Dickens and more. Check out the scheduled below, which should fill out more as the month rolls on.

The music starts around 10 p.m. every Thursday night and again, it's free!

Win tickets to Annuals at Duke Gardens

It's nearly time again for Duke Performances' Music in the Gardens concert series and we're excited to offer one pair of tickets to a reader for most shows in the series.

To win a pair of tickets to the kickoff show with Annuals on Wednesday, May 26, email us at triangle_music [at] hotmail [dot] com by noon on Monday, May 24, with "Annuals tickets" in the subject line. We'll randomly select one reader to win. How could it be any easier than that?

Of course, if you don't want to leave it up to fate, tickets can be purchased to each other shows here. Click through for a complete list of Music in the Gardens shows and ticket prices.

Full details of Duke's Music in the Gardens series

With the winter we had this year, it's almost hard to believe that just six weeks from now we'll be spreading a blanket on the lawn at Duke Gardens to enjoy another summer full of great music. It should be no secret by now that the folks at Duke Performances excel at pulling together a fantastic roster of artists to fill the Gardens with their sounds, and this year is no different.

The series will kick off on Wednesday, May 26, with Raleigh-based Annuals and continue for 10 weeks including nights with Camera Obscura, Lonnie Walker, Kingsbury Manx, Max Indian and more.

'Hear Here' compilation track list revealed

We mentioned the new Hear Here local compilation album being released by Terpsikhore on August 29 no too long ago, but now the full track list is available thanks to The Independent.

One notable absence from the release is Annuals. The band recorded the Johnny Cash song "Flesh and Blood" for the album, but due to licensing problems, the track had to be cut. It is not lost though. You can hear the song in the preview video below and Annuals will play the song at the Hear Here launch party at the Cat's Cradle on August 29.

I'm most excited to hear The Rosebuds song "Brad Cook is Not Your Man." With a title like that, how can it be bad? Check out the complete track list below.