Chris DeLine

Nickk is a Cedar Rapids-based MC whose recently released full-length album, Closed Hands, explores themes of mental health and addiction. The album title itself represents the concept of self-sabotage, which is a theme that bleeds into one of the album’s standouts (and its lone feature), “Ghosts and Spirits.” For the track, Nickk teamed up with […]

KID PICASSO is the new full-length release from That Honorroll KID, bookending a series of three albums which the Des Moines MC says brings closure to a particular era of his life. The discussion that follows is certainly focused on this release, and in particular a standout track from it titled “Lunch Table Flow,” but […]

Now on the tail-end of a series of shows which brought the Des Moines-based musician out to the east coast, Dan Tedesco will be returning to Iowa for a performance this weekend at the Village Theatre in Davenport. For this edition of “Singled Out,” Dan checked in from the road to discuss his recent singled […]

Singled Out is a feature focusing on the stories behind a song, as told by the artists behind their creation. In this edition, Mango discusses the music video for his song “Hard to Hide.” Shot and produced by Cedar Rapids‘ Young Creatives, the video combines live and road shots in creating a narrative that reflects the […]

Singled Out is a feature focusing on the stories behind a song, as told by the artists behind their creation. In this edition, Dave Helmer discusses “Kiss the Sun,” a track from his debut solo album titled Such a Clown. Here, Dave contextualizes the song within the bigger picture of the release, contrasting Such a Clown […]

Singled Out is a feature focusing on the stories behind a song, as told by the artists behind their creation. In this edition, Closet Witch vocalist Mollie Piatetsky discusses “My Words Are Sacred,” the first track released from the band’s album Chiaroscuro. Featuring Dylan Walker of Full of Hell, the track encapsulates lyrical themes of social […]

Flex Bormarr’s new full length album, Admin, wordlessly encapsulates modern anxieties surrounding the what-ifs of potential technological collapse. More specifically, it captures the story of his own experience, documenting a hard drive failure by way of composition, speaking through sound to the range of emotions that accompanied the incident. In this edition of “Singled Out,” […]

Singled Out is a feature focusing on the stories behind a song, as told by the artists behind their creation. In this edition, William J Locker discusses “Between The Lines,” a track which grew out of the period of writing around his 2022 release, Brainwash. While its roots date back a little, “Between The Lines” has […]

Singled Out is a feature focusing on the stories behind a song, as told by the artists behind their creation. In this edition, Des Moines-based four piece Display Case discuss their new single “Get Out.” The track is part of an upcoming EP, with vocalist Jordan Essy calling it a “hard, fast, and angsty anthem,” borne […]

Singled Out is a feature focusing on the stories behind a song, as told by the artists who made it. In this edition, guitarist and vocalist Sean Tyler discusses the opening track from his NOR THERE EP, titled “Drive Me Home.” The song, as he explains, stands at a crossroads, bearing sonic inspiration from Link Wray […]

Singled Out is a feature focusing on the stories behind a song, as told by the artists who made it. In this edition, guitarist and vocalist Bo Becker digs into the song “Gaze of Colossus” by Glass Ox. In our discussion, Becker touches the process of building the track, an update on the development of […]

The first line of Teri Underhill‘s website bio frames the purpose of her music around advocacy work, particularly relating to mental health and autism awareness. This mission is felt with brute force when considering her latest track, a creeping pop anthem titled “MONSTER.” The song, as Teri explains, is a direct response to past experiences […]