There’s a bunch of videos out there. Some of them are good. Some of them are a cut above. I like to think my picks for Video Of The Day are a cut (or two) above. Another day, another Django Django video to love up on. "Shot Down" takes the viewer on a technicolor, kaleidoscopic trip through the US of A, as seen through the lenses of the band as they traverse the expansive amber waves of grain and purple mountain's majesty. The rapid-fire barrage of saturated images is a cheeky play against the slower, more deliberate blurry rhythms of the song. All told, it's another winning combination from the Djangos.
Left Coast! I am so jealous of you right now. SO JEALOUS. And for once it's actually not because I tend to covet the Southern California climate and warm sunshine as the East Coast starts to cool off at this time of year. No, this green-eyed monsterness is happening because a run of January Cayucas dates with Surfer Blood is imminent. So Phoenix, LA, Cayucos, Santa Ana, Santa Barbara, Visalia, Pioneertown, Flagstaff, and Santa Fe, y'all better get out there and shake many tailfeathers when the good vibrations of Cayucas roll into town. Cayucas Tour Dates
Thurs. Jan. 7 - Phoenix, AZ @ The Crescent Ballroom # Fri. Jan. 8 - Los Angeles, CA @ Teragram Ballroom # Sat. Jan. 9 - Cayucos, CA @ Cayucos Veterans Hall # Sun. Jan. 10 - Santa Ana, CA @ Constellation Room # Tues. Jan. 12 - Santa Barbara, CA @ Soho Restaurant & Music Club # Wed. Jan. 13 - Santa Cruz, CA @ The Catalyst (Atrium) # Thurs. Jan. 14 - Visalia, CA @ The Cellar Door # Fri. Jan. 15 - Pioneertown, CA @ Pappy and Harriets # Sat. Jan. 16 - Flagstaff, AZ @ The Green Room # Sun. Jan. 17 - Santa Fe, NM @ Skylight # # = w/ Surfer Blood
What happens when you add the sultry siren voice of Dee Dee Dum Dum Girls to the atmospheric gloom of Merchandise? In "Red Sun," we learn that the end result of such a union is as good as you might have suspected. Sinewy, seductively serpentine synth plays the foil to the velvet vocals of Dee Dee and Merchandise's Carson Cox, and the whole song feels hypnotic, like tantalizing temptation. A sexy little number, indeed.
Strange Faces has wasted no time in getting me to love them. With "I Saw Your Face" the band proffers a heady tribute to the halcyon kaleidoscopic psych pop days of old, replete with a bevy of "oohs" and lines like "I saw the sunrise/and it was the color of your eyes." A pleasant amount of fuzzery and grit abounds in this lightning-quick two minutes, all the while anchored by an ever-present backbone of instrumentation reminiscent of the Glasgow School. Basically, this Chicago band sounds a whole lot like a whole lot of awesome. Almost as soon as it starts, the song it over, and without thinking you're going to hit play once again. The band's record Stonerism is out on December 11th, and you should strongly consider picking it up.
When it comes to spaced out sea shanties, it doesn't get any better than The Coral. I've been enamored with these Liverpudlian kooks for a good many years now, so imagine my delight upon hearing the good word about a new record in the near future. The band's eighth record, Distance Inbetween, will be released in March, and it's their first output since 2010. During that time, the band picked up a new member (Paul Molloy, formerly of excellent Liverpool spacecakes The Zutons). Also announced is a UK tour in March and a few Euro dates in April. Beyond that, you know I'm keeping everything crossed for word of a US tour.
A gray and somewhat icky Sunday morning seems as good a time as any to plot ones weekly live music schedule, I think. Let's take a look at what's happening in the greater DC metro this week, shall we? Hot diggity! It's already time to kiss November goodbye. Which means one more month and 2015 will be in the books. As a reminder, you might catch me at any show with an asterisk. And I'll be making one pick for an extra special super recommended show that you really, definitely, seriously ought to consider going to. So here we go, a look at some recommended shows for the coming week. MONDAY, 11/30/15 -Proxy States + Breakup Season (Galaxy Hut) -Big Hush + Wildhoney + Cigarette (Black Cat) WEDNESDAY, 12/2/15 -All Them Witches + New Madrid (Black Cat)* THURSDAY, 12/3/15 -Cartoon Weapons + Dumb Waiter + Show Pony + Breakup Season (Songbyrd) -Jack Ladder & The Dreamlanders + Caz + Shooting Down Asteroids (DC9)* -Low Cut Connie + Bobby E. Lee & The Sympathizers + Jonny Grave (Rock & Roll Hotel) FRIDAY, 12/4/15 -Teen Liver + The Mystery Lights + The Whips (DC9) -Kingsley Flood + The North Country (U Street Music Hall) -Lighting Fires + Spirit Plots + Jacqueline Pie Francis + The Duskwhales + Uptown Boys Choir (Magnificent Intentions Music Festival) (IOTA) -Amy Helm & The Handsome Strangers (Gypsy Sally's) SATURDAY, 12/5/15 -Eighties Mayhem Dance Party (Black Cat) -Deerhunter + Atlas Sound (9:30 Club - SOLD OUT) (Extra Recommended!) -Middle Distance Runner + Titles Tracks + Alex Vans & The Hideaway + More TBA (Magnificent Intentions Music Festival) (DC9) -Heavy Breathing + Tone + The Caribbean (Comet Ping Pong) -Bearstorm + Silence The Blind (The Pinch) -The Shack Band + Black Masala + Flux Capacitor (Gypsy Sally's) [posted 11.29.15]
There’s a bunch of videos out there. Some of them are good. Some of them are a cut above. I like to think my picks for Video Of The Day are a cut (or two) above. I'm becoming quite smitten with Norway's Dråpe. Their sound is a bit like what might have happened had bands like Dungen and Tame Impala veered more towards 60s pop, making their breathless breed of psych quite hard to resist. The video for the deliriously catchy "Round and Around" celebrates that nostalgic charm of 60s video recordings, and makes a great fit for the honeyed jangle of the song.
The coming and going of Black Friday means that it's getting down to serious holiday shopping time. Struggling to find a perfect gift for your favorite music lover (or favorite music blogette)? Look no further. These gift guide ideas are sure to bring a smile to anyone's face this holiday season. This one I can personally recommend, having giving it as a gift to a dear friend. The ticket stub diary is a great place to keep those vintage ticket stubs (not those ugly, boring 8 1/2 x 11 sheets of paper you see a lot these days), and keep them handy in one place. A great little thing for your organized, show-going amigos.
Leverage Models first blipped on my radar as I was getting ready for this year's Hopscotch festival. I was drawn in by their energetic, eccentric textured synth pop, and I was hardly the only one whose interest was piqued. It was a huge bummer to have missed them live, but I was undeterred. Graciously, the LM duo took some time to answer some questions, and you can read on to see what Shannon and Alena have to say about all things Leverage Models (Sugarcubes! Alicia Keys! Glenn Gould!). And join me in hoping these two take their act on the road pretty sharpish. Fuzzy Logic: What was the last song you listened to? Alena Spanger: Judee Sill – “The Kiss” Shannon Fields: Madi Diaz – "Trust Fall" (remix by Jensen Sportag) FL: Playing music is: AS: A counterweight to the brain. SF: Escape from myself, a way to be present, a license to dance, joy, therapy…maybe a cry for help. I think I’ve just said exactly what Alena said but less elegantly. FL: What album most made you realize you wanted to make music? AS: Alicia Keys “Songs in A Minor.” I was 12 when it came out and would listen to it obsessively on my portable CD player. That’s when I decided I definitely wanted to move to NY and be a singer….and be like Alicia Keys. FL: Beatles or Stones? AS: Never really fell in love with either….but probably the Beatles. SF: In my own inner life that paradigm doesn’t really hold much meaning. Neither was important to me growing up and neither had any direct impact on my music. FL: What’s your first music memory? AS: Dancing with my dad to Ray Charles in the living room. Not sure how old I was, but I remember sliding around in my socks on the wood floors and singing “Hallelujah I love Her So.” FL: Top 5 albums (of now, of this week, of ever): SF: How about “5 Late Night Records to Match the November Weather in NY”: - Lawrence English: A Colour for Autumn - Bill Nelson, Fila Brazillia & Harold Budd: Three White Roses & a Budd - Hamlet Gonashvili: Hamlet - Girls & God: You are Copper Greening in Open Air - The Weeknd: Thursday FL: Favorite music-related movie? AS: Dancer in the Dark destroyed me. SF: 32 Short Films About Glenn Gould. FL: Half-full or half-empty? AS: Half-full?? SF: Empty. Almost entirely. But I’m trying to find something to fill it with. FL: What's the first thing you think when you wake up in the morning? SF: … SF: Who am I and how did I get here SF: ... SF: Maybe I should stop drinking. SF: Nah, fuck that. FL: Little-known Leverage Models fact? SF: All Leverage Models facts are little-known. FL: The greatest record store in the world is: SF: Euclid Records, New Orleans, LA. I might be biased because two of the people that run the store are two of my favorite humans. But it’s pretty badass, and in one of my favorite cities in N. America. FL: What was your first show? AS: Avril Lavigne? I was like 10….it was pretty punk rock to me. And Good Charlotte opened for her. FL: Your boots were made for: AS: Stomping? FL: Shaken or stirred? AS: I would probably never order a martini but if I did, definitely stirred to be fancy. SF: Broken. FL: What’s the longest flight you’ve ever been on, and where to? AS: My flight to India was 14 hours. It was an absolute nightmare. I get really panicked and claustrophobic on airplanes. FL: If you weren't in a band you'd be? SF: Alone, without purpose, in a perpetual state of existential panic. This is very melodramatic. And entirely true. Maybe I should quit. FL: If you were so inclined, whom would you form a tribute band in honor of? AS: The Sugarcubes would be a blast. SF: Whichever one Alena was in…I think I could pull off being a screamy Einar Örn next to her Bjork….but we’d need to throw in some dope KUKL jams. FL: Best song ever written? SF:Nope. Leverage Models... As a weather event: SF: Microburst. As a denomination of currency: SF: Leverage Models *is* a denomination of currency. It’s cultural capital and that’s a kind of currency. Knowing our music makes you sexier to the right people. Way better than money. As a work of literature: SF: Something between Barry Hannah’s Yonder Stands Your Orphan (for madness, vulgarity, sexual darkness, violence), Carole Maso’s Ava (for the impressionistic, romantic, precious, structurally open), Annie Dillard’s Holy The Firm (for its pleading with the unseen & the unknowable, making peace with the dark, & for the sentences), and George Saunder’s Pastoralia (I can’t explain why…which is why). This answer is cheating, but Leverage Models might be a cheat. As a campaign promise: AS & SF: Nope.
The coming and going of Black Friday means that it's getting down to serious holiday shopping time. Struggling to find a perfect gift for your favorite music lover (or favorite music blogette)? Look no further. These gift guide ideas are sure to bring a smile to anyone's face this holiday season. Seeing as Loveless is one of the best records of all time, it stands to reason that the My Bloody Valentine classic ranks up there as a pretty solid present option. Mind you, it probably is already lurking in your intended's record collection, so what should you do? Obviously, you should still endeavor to bring some Loveless into your loved one's life. In the form of a duvet cover. Or a throw pillow. Or a mug. Or a framed art print...you get the idea. Basically, follow this link and see everything Loveless you could ever think of. And while you're at it, get something for yourself. You've been a good naughty thing this year.
There’s a bunch of videos out there. Some of them are good. Some of them are a cut above. I like to think my picks for Video Of The Day are a cut (or two) above. Scavengers. That's what buzzards are, if you really think about it. But Love Buzzard is a different breed of vulture. Two-headed and sounding like the Anglo branch of Goner Records et. al., the garage duo makes gnarly, frenzied, and above all fun rock and roll. The video for their frenetic little ditty "Superglue" is a whirlwind of bright colors and cartoonish cameos, and it's absolutely perfect.
There’s a bunch of videos out there. Some of them are good. Some of them are a cut above. I like to think my picks for Video Of The Day are a cut (or two) above. I'm thankful for music. I'm thankful that I love music, and get to write about the music I love. And I'm thankful that you enjoy reading what I have to say about music. Of all the music I'm thankful for, it must be said that The Verve ranks right up there at the top of my "thank the lord this band exists" list. So no better to choose a video from on this Thanksgiving holiday. "Bittersweet Symphony" wowed me when I first saw it, and it still gets me. Richard Ashcroft, the fallen cherub menace, glowering and gorgeous, deathly pale and all arms and legs, prowling down a London street wreaking all sorts of person-to-person havoc. Nary a flinch in sight. It's also the song that got them in trouble with a rather wealthy band (shame). This will always be one of my favorite Verve songs, and videos. And I'm incredibly thankful. Happy Thanksgiving one and all.
More years ago than I can believe, I saw a show at a small Richmond gallery that really got under my skin. The humid confines of that artistic space really made the noise of yndi halda even more enveloping and all-consuming than they might have been in a larger space. It was an intense night of expansive noisescapes, and I walked away into the Richmond night totally hooked. Somehow, it's been over eight years since the band's last record, but they're (finally) back and sharing an excerpt from their forthcoming sophomore effort Under Summer (due March 2016). "Golden Threads From the Sun" continues in their stylistic moving of heaven and earth in each and every song, and it's a beautiful, messy, reverent symphony.
There's a whole lot of good stuff coming out of Nashville that doesn't fall in line with the city's expected country inclinations. For example: Idle Bloom. "Some Paranoia" offers quite a bit to love, from the glowering din of noise to the ferociously feline purr of vocals singing lines like "I lit the match." It's a well put together little number, and I for one can't wait to hear more.
Jangly and clever and all sorts of catchy, SPORTS is a joy to listen to. The band of indeterminate number (sometimes it's a foursome, sometimes five) creates a gallivanting, gleeful racket that is nothing short of infectious on record. In person, I can't help but have a sneaking suspicion that they've got something even better in store. Let's all find out, shall we? SPORTS Tour Dates 12.27.15 - Washington, DC @ Songbyrd DC 12.28.15 - Philadelphia, PA @ Everybody Hits 12.29.15 - Brooklyn, NY @ Baby's All Right (w/ Long Beard, Vagabon, Pinegrove) 01.02.16 - Hadley, MA @ The Asbestos Farm 01.03.16 - Providence, RI @ Aurora 01.04.16 - Boston, MA @ Middle East Upstairs (w/ Bent Shapes, Gravel) [posted 11.25.15]
Oh sure, it's popular these days to attempt emulation of that most golden of eras, the girl group/wall of sound Spector-ian beauty. But where many try, not many can rightfully claim success. Pom Poms, however, now that's a different story. With "Betty" the band cagily coos their way through a song that successfully hits the mark, without it sounding like a mere tribute song. It's a song you might well find yourself listening to repeatedly, and not minding it one bit.
Pulp gave the world the song "Bad Cover Version." But seeing as I'm a sonic optimist, I'm of the belief that there's more likely than not more good cover versions floating around than bad ones. Good Cover Version celebrates the good, and leaves all that bad and ugly stuff alone. Sometimes all it takes to win me over is a little lap steel and a voice that gives the impression that its owner has downed all the whisky and smoked many of the cigarettes within a five mile radius yet still somehow retains a heck of a honey-coated croon. In Jack Ladder & The Dreamlanders' cover of the Dire Straits song "So Far Away," that's what you'll hear plenty of. Yours truly is in favor.
From Leeds comes Post War Glamour Girls, a foursome that's these days fond of creating expanses of sinewy, smoky murk fraught with tension and pressure. Or, that's the impression one gets after having a listen to this big bad wolf of a song. Clocking in over eight minutes, "Cannonball Villages" elicits a sense of gloom, teeth-bared menace nibbling at the corners and finally, here and there, getting a bit of release. Plucked from the record entitled Feeling Strange, the band's second, "Cannonball Villages" is all things stormy and noisy and wonderful.
It's no secret that it doesn't take a great number of band members to make a great heaping wail of noise. Denver's In The Whale is further proof of this notion. The two-headed "balls-to-the-wall" rock monster takes the show on the road for a good long while at the end of this week, and if you like your face getting rocked off, you just might be into it. There's plenty of dates (alas, none in this neck of the woods), so be sure you check these dudes out. In The Whale Tour Dates 11/27 - The Hideout - San Diego, CA 11/28 - Tiki Bar - Costa Mesa, CA 11/29 - Whisky A Go Go - Los Angeles, CA 12/01 - Rockbar Theater - San Jose, CA 12/02 - Bottom of the Hill - San Francisco, CA 12/03 - Shea's Tavern - Reno, NV 12/04 - Volcanic Theatre Pub - Eugene, OR 12/05 - Dante's - Portland, OR 12/06 - El Corazon - Seattle, WA 12/07 - Garibaldi Lift Co - Whistler, BC 12/08 - Rickshaw Theatre - Vancouver, BC 12/10 - Denizen Hall - Edmonton, AB 12/11 - Dickens - Calgary, AB 12/12 - The Vat - Red Deer, AB 12/14 - Club X - Salt Lake City, UT 12/15 - Aggie Theatre - Fort Collins, CO 12/16 - Bluebird Theatre - Denver, CO 02/02 - Launchpad - Albuquerque, NM 02/03 - Blue Max - Midland, TX 02/04 - Paper Tiger - San Antonio, TX 02/05 - Scout Bar - Houston, TX 02/06 - Siberia Bar - New Orleans, LA 02/07 - Vinyl Music Hall - Pensacola, FL 02/09 - Beachside Tavern - New Smyrna Beach, FL 02/10 - Debauchery - Melbourne, FL 02/11 - The Inlet - Fort Pierce, FL 02/12 - West End Trading Co - Sanford, FL 02/13 - Propaganda - Lake Worth, FL 02/15 - The Foundry - Athens, GA 02/16 - The Jinx - Savannah, GA 02/17 - The Sparrow - Charleston, SC 02/18 - Local 506 - Chapel Hill, NC 02/19 - The Rabbit Hole - Charlotte, NC 02/20 - The Earl - Atlanta, GA 02/21 - Grey Eagle Music Hall - Asheville, NC 02/24 - Exit/In - Nashville, TN 02/26 - The Hi-Tone - Memphis, TN 02/27 - Shrine - Tulsa, OK
I'm a proponent of escapism through music. With "Travelling Song" from Aussie outfit Timber Bones, escapism seems to be the order of the day. Shimmering like so many mirages on a steamy summer day, the song bounds along with irrepressible abandon and an undeniable lightness. A song for letting it all go and letting your hair down, in the right state of mind the jaunty folk ramble of this song can really hit the spot.
A quite brr Tuesday evening seems as good a time as any to plot ones weekly live music schedule, I think. Let's take a look at what's happening in the greater DC metro this week, shall we? Hot diggity! It's Thanksgiving week here in the US of A. As much as I love Halloween, there's something I really do love about Thanksgiving. And as a reminder, this is a holiday with origins in Virginia, so don't swallow that pilgrim guff you might have heard. Short calendar this week, and a little less going on than there has been, though there are still shows to be seen. So here we go, a look at some recommended shows for the coming week. Happy Thanksgiving to all! WEDNESDAY, 11/25/15 -The English Beat (9:30 Club) -Dragonette + Avan Lava + Young Empires (U Street Music Hall) THURSDAY, 11/26/15 -Give thanks for friends and family! FRIDAY, 11/27/15 -The Nighthawks + The Skip Castro Band (State Theatre) SATURDAY, 11/28/15 -Keller Williams' Thanksforgrassgiving (9:30 Club) -Glen Hansard + Richard Thompson (Constitution Hall) -Citizens! + High Waisted (U Street Music Hall) SUNDAY, 11/29/15 -The Sword + Royal Thunder (Rock & Roll Hotel) [posted 11.24.15]
It is an unfortunate reality for the serious concertgoer that on occasion, there will be more than one show on any given night that you really, really, REALLY wanna go to. Since the vast majority of us don't own a time machine, nor have the ability to either clone ourselves or split ourselves in half (or thirds or quarters depending on the night in question), this tends to present a problem. Difficult decisions are made based on a variety of variables (perhaps some of you even make lists of pros and cons), and ultimately, a show is chosen. But those other shows are still gonna be killer, and I'd like to give a little face time to the shows that, while I can't go myself, are still highly recommended. I'm turning into a little bit of a broken record with this here band, y'all. Be it vacation or, as is the case this time, vile sickness, I just can't seem to catch a break when it comes to checking out Dead Professional live. But you can make up for my absence tonight at DC9, make sure you get out and show these purveyors of clever, polished, tuneful mountain pop a wonderful Sunday evening. I know they'll return the favor.
A rather chilly Sunday morning seems as good a time as any to plot ones weekly live music schedule, I think. Let's take a look at what's happening in the greater DC metro this week, shall we? Hot diggity! Last week my target was time changes, this week it's the common cold. Your bloggatrix has been rather sick this week, which is rather no fun. Whenever possible I've been in pajamas drinking tea and sniffling. But hey, there's some pretty good shows in town this week. You never know, you might just run into yours truly at any show with an asterisk (if I decide it's worth the while to go spread my germs among the general populace). As always, I'll be picking one extra special show as my super extra recommended show of the week, which you should probably go to if at all possible. So here we go, a look at some recommended shows for the coming week. MONDAY, 11/16/15 -Shakey Graves + Those Darlins (9:30 Club - SOLD OUT) TUESDAY, 11/17/15 -Priests + Shopping + Puff Pieces (Black Cat) -Hiss Golden Messenger + Frazey Ford (Rock & Roll Hotel) -U.S. Girls + Escape-ism + Elmapi (Comet Ping Pong) -Together PANGEA + White Reaper (DC9) WEDNESDAY, 11/18/15 -The Yardbirds (AMP) -Made of Oak + Tuskha (DC9) -Hot Jam Factory + Jon Garcia & The Hopeless Romantics + Matt Tarka (Velvet Lounge) -2 Inch Astronaut + Infinity Girl + Wing Dam (Songbyrd) THURSDAY, 11/19/15 -!!! + Stereolad + Heavy Breathing (Black Cat) -Health + Pictureplane (Rock & Roll Hotel) -Beat Connection + Phantoms + Lanceneptune (DC9) FRIDAY, 11/20/15 -An Evening with Okkervil River (Black Cat - SOLD OUT) (EXTRA RECOMMENDED!) -Polyon + Hurry + Homosuperior + Governess (Songbyrd) SATURDAY, 11/21/15 -The Ocean Blue (Jammin Java - SOLD OUT) -Diarrhea Planet + Music Band (Black Cat) -Slow Magic + Giraffage + Daktyl (9:30 Club) -Hemlines + Company Calls + Psychic Subcreatures (Rock & Roll Hotel) -Alex Bleeker & The Freaks + Gingerlys + Go Cozy (DC9) SUNDAY, 11/22/15 -Lights + The Mowglis (9:30 Club) -The Max Levine Ensemble + Sundials + Maneuvers (Black Cat) -Flavor Waster + The El Mansouris (Songbyrd) -Quiet Company + Bombadil (IOTA) -Macy Gray (Howard Theatre) -Moonbees + Snow Panda (Galaxy Hut) [posted 11.15.15]
In 2012 I called Hopscotch "one big warm fuzzy hug of a festival" that is "run well by good, music-loving folks." Having been to Raleigh for this year's installment of Hopscotch, I can happily say my sentiments remain unchanged. And I've got to tell y'all, the more of these that I go to, the more I think Hopscotch is angling to be my very favorite festival on the circuit. Sadly, work constraints kept me from enjoying the first full day of festival goodness (including Godspeed You! Black Emperor, OBN IIIs, and Bully, all of whom I would love to have seen). Having missed all the goodness of Thursday, I arrived on Friday, and by the time I left Sunday I was full of smit for all the bands I'd been lucky enough to see.
It was hot and humid most of the weekend, with the occasional shower adding to the moisture. Mmm, a weekend full of sweat. It was a constant refrain. Friday night was a really good one, filled with a pretty darned good City Plaza performance from TV On The Radio and an epic CAM showing by Moon Duo. In all honesty, after seeing Moon Duo I could have left Raleigh a sated girl, so spine-tingling was their set. I'd waited a long time to see them, and Moon Duo didn't disappoint. CAM was filled with sensational psych fuzz and overall noisiness, and it was a beautiful thing. In a pinch, I'd call Moon Duo my favorite band of the whole weekend.
Saturday was all about the day parties, mainly the Let Feedback Ring shindig (highlights include a solo Hoax Hunters set and the impressive Patois Counselors), and the great party at Ruby Deluxe that yielded an absolutely incandescent set from the stunning River Whyless. At the end of the night, after nearly an hour in line, I was able to check out some of the insanely rambunctious King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard set at Slim's. Crowd surfing, sweat, and Aussie accents. Can't beat it, y'all. The psych rock monsters from Down Under were in top form, and they made the wait well worth it.
In all seriousness, if you ever have the opportunity to attend Hopscotch, do it. It's so well run, it offers a great variety of live music to see, and it's growing at the right kind of pace. Raleigh is an excellent host city. It makes for a hell of a weekend. My only complaint, really, is that it's sometimes a problem to pinpoint which bands to see, since there's just so dang many good ones on the lineup. But I suppose there are worse problems to have. Bottom line: I heart Hopscotch. And I already can't wait for next year. [posted 11.8.15] [photos of Moon Duo, Patois Counselors, and King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard copyright Megan Petty]
There’s a bunch of videos out there. Some of them are good. Some of them are a cut above. I like to think my picks for Video Of The Day are a cut (or two) above. I do so love to see a band having a grand old time, and that's exactly what goes down in Edinburgh outfit The Spook School's clip for "I Want to Kiss You." Tomfoolery with brightly-colored foodstuffs transpires against a backdrop of jangly sweetness that I can't get enough of. As an added bonus, check out the infectious clamor of "Binary" to double your pleasure.
A crisp, gorgeous Sunday morning that really, actually, finally feels like November seems as good a time as any to plot ones weekly live music schedule, I think. Let's take a look at what's happening in the greater DC metro this week, shall we? Hot diggity! All I have to say is time changes are the work of the devil. But hey, there's some pretty good shows in town this week. You never know, you might just run into yours truly at any show with an asterisk. As always, I'll be picking one extra special show as my super extra recommended show of the week, which you should probably go to if at all possible. So here we go, a look at some recommended shows for the coming week. MONDAY, 11/9/15 -GWAR + Born of Osiris + Battlecross (9:30 Club) -Surfer Blood + Ski Lodge + Collider (Comet Ping Pong) -Toadies + In The Whale (Birchmere) -Son Little + Baby Bry Bry Duo (DC9) TUESDAY, 11/10/15 -PIL (U Street Music Hall - SOLD OUT) -Moving Units + The Milestones (Black Cat) WEDNESDAY, 11/11/15 -Givers + Doe Paoro (U Street Music Hall) -EL VY + Flock of Dimes (9:30 Club) -Mitski + Palehound + PWR BTTM + Painted Zeros (DC9) THURSDAY, 11/12/15 -The Charlatans + Eyelids (Howard Theatre) (Extra Recommended!) -Rachael Yamagata + Tony Lucca (9:30 Club) -Natalie Prass + Loamlands (Rock & Roll Hotel) FRIDAY, 11/13/15 -Nada Surf + Slothrust (U Street Music Hall) -Fuzz + Walter (Black Cat) -Wild Child + Royal Canoe (9:30 Club) -The Weathervanes + The Walkaways + The Reserves (IOTA) -The Sea Life + Triathalon + The Laughing Man (Songbyrd) -Grimes + Nicole Dollanganger (9:30 Club - SOLD OUT) -The Last Waltz Tribute (The Hamilton) SATURDAY, 11/14/15 -Clones of Clones + Color Palette + Furniteur + Cruzie Beaux (Rock & Roll Hotel) -Walk the Plank + Loud Boyz + Honah Lee + American Television (The Pinch) SUNDAY, 11/15/15 -More Humans + Passing Phases (Galaxy Hut) -Diane Coffee + The Duskwhales + Dead Professional (DC9) -Shakey Graves + Those Darlins (9:30 Club - SOLD OUT) [posted 11.8.15]
