Nicholas Faulkner
Trav, of Astro Cowboy, head bangs during a song at Double Barrel Benefit 14 on Feb. 25, at Kings in downtown Raleigh.
A 15-year tradition with WKNC 88.1 will be continued next weekend. Some student organizations sell baked goods in the Brickyard to raise funds; WKNC throws a two-night celebration of local music and local musicians affectionately known as Double Barrel Benefit.
“Double Barrel is a way to bring together a bunch of really cool local music acts that span all of the different genres that WKNC host,” said Sara Darwish, a second-year studying social work and Arabic and the promotions director for WKNC. “To bring together all of these really cool local musicians and promote them while also creating revenue for the station is a win-win.”
On Feb. 2, Double Barrel Benefit 15 will start at popular music venue and bar Kings in downtown Raleigh. Friday night will see performances from Charlotte-based rap and hip-hop artist Well$, Durham rap and hip-hop artist Jooselord Magnus, and electronic artists Diaspoura and RGB.
Darwish said that past Double Barrel Benefits have been mostly focused on the radio station’s primary genre: indie music. More recent benefits have been more genre diverse.
“It’s not just indie, but also hip-hop, electronic and all kinds of stuff,” Darwish said.
“The goal when booking is to try and take people from the local community because that is a really big thing with WKNC […] playing local music and promoting shows that are for local musicians. It’s also easier logistically to get a hold of them.”
Night two of Double Barrel is all about diversity in both genre and artist. Once again, four performances will be featured: politically charged three-person band Pie Faced Girls, stereotype breaking all-Muslim punk band The Muslims, hardcore band Drugcharge and indie rock band The Future Kings of Nowhere.
Darwish said she is most excited to see Diaspoura and The Muslims.
“Diaspoura I got to meet two weeks ago,” Darwish said. “She came in to film a lounge with WKNC and had a good energy. Her music is really awesome because the tone of the music is super chill and calm, but the words she’s saying are really aggressive and in your face. It’s a really good juxtaposition.”
Cas Saroza, a third-year studying anthropology and the program director at WKNC said the station is planning to get more artists from this year’s Double Barrel into the station for interviews next week. WKNC’s program schedule is available online.
“The other band I’m really excited about are The Muslims,” Darwish said. “As a Muslim person, I think it’s really cool because they are an all-Muslim band, but also queer and I just thought that combination and kind of representation is just awesome. Working at a radio station, there aren’t a lot of Muslim people or any. To see that kind of representation, in local music especially, is really cool because usually you’d see that in the North, not in the South. It warms the heart.”
Saroza said the artists for Double Barrel Benefit are booked by WKNC General Manager Jamie Halla, but that the decision is largely influenced by the all student staff and the conversation can start as early as August.
“Jamie is mostly in charge of booking, but he does keep in mind what is popular at WKNC […] what are the big local artists of the year and stuff like that,” Saroza said. “My job during Double Barrel is to make sure people are volunteering to help.”
Volunteers from the station help hang posters across downtown and on campus, sell merchandise during both show nights and work directly with the acts to help move equipment.
Saroza said one of the acts they believe will please a lot of people is The Future Kings of Nowhere. The band has been on hiatus for around six years and just released their first single since the hiatus in celebration of their upcoming Double Barrel performance.
“I really like the whole idea of Double Barrel reviving bands from the dead,” Saroza said.
Tickets to Double Barrel are $13 per night in advance or $15 at the door. Two night passes are also available for $22. Tickets can be purchased through Kings website. Ticket revenue generated from the event accounts for eight percent of WKNC’s annual income.