Aquarium Drunkard

Over at my radio show, I do a bi-monthly feature called Cityscape in which I feature nothing but artists from a particular city. This month, in honor of March Madness, I decided to focus on bands from the one, the only, Chapel Hill.

Chapel Hill is a college town, home to one of the oldest state universities in the United States, the University of North Carolina. It’s also been home to many a brilliant songsmith over the years, despite most people’s knowledge of the town’s music extending only to their mid- ’90s commercial peak. With a vibrant club scene (including the legendary Cat’s Cradle, whose vintage flyer you see pictured above) and a never ending parade of bands, new and old, it’s the apex of North Carolina’s independent music scene.

Even more lovely is the diversity the city has cultivated over the years. While Chapel Hill has yet to have a really big hip-hop scene (though Sankofa would disagree with me; nearby Raleigh really has the dibs, being home to the wonderful Little Brother), there are very few other genres in rock that haven’t flowered in the Old North State’s music mecca.

To see the complete list of bands I played on my show (some were unable to make an appearance in MP3 form here), or to learn more about any of these songs, head on over to my blog. Here’s a sampling of some that I played last night, including a few songs I didn’t have time to share. Enjoy.