The Kills recently released their sixth studio album, God Games. And now Alison Mosshart and Jamie Hince are on tour to promote it! They soon visit 9:30 Club for two dates, including a show on Wednesday, Feb. 28, and you can win tix to see The Kills with Parklife DC.
Rock duo Deap Vally recently bid farewell to DC while on their final hurrah tour at Black Cat. Love was in the audience, not only because it was Valentine’s Day and largely a crowd of couples, but also because it was clear dedicated fans would miss the group that announced their breakup in September 2023.
Acclaimed singer/songwriter and guitar virtuoso Daniel Donato recently gave a mesmerizing performance on Valentines Day at The Vault at Capitol One Hall in Tysons, Virginia. Daniel and his band brought a unique blend of what he calls, “cosmic country” to the stage, leaving the sell-out crowd captivated and yearning for more.
Few bands can pack an entire arena on a Tuesday night, but Disturbed is one of those bands that you just don’t miss. With openers Plush and Falling in Reverse, Disturbed recently came to CFG Arena in Baltimore for their Take Back Your Life Tour.
The act of creation is strange and mysterious. When one writes a song or a story, it may contain depths and meanings hidden even from its author. Revisiting his seminal album Hello Starling on its 20th anniversary, Josh Ritter has found things in his songs he never knew were there.
“When I first started writing songs,” Ritter recently told an audience at the 9:30 Club, “I was 16 or 17.” Back then, he added, “Every chord was mystical.” A native of small-town northern Idaho, Ritter attended Oberlin College, my alma mater, a liberal arts college with a hitory of producing popular muscians: Liz Phair, Jason Molina, Rhiannon Giddens, and Karen O of the Yeah Yeah Yeahs are just a few.
Greensky Bluegrass Brings High-Energy Jamgrass to The Anthem
Words by Dan Rozman
Photos by Mark Raker
Greensky Bluegrass (GSBG) took The Anthem stage in DC by storm for the first highly anticipated shows in a recent two-night stand.
Philip Basnight is the kinda guy you don’t want to disappoint. He’s perpetually bright and upbeat with a presence that illuminates a room. He’s got a can-do attitude and an easygoing manner that put you at ease. The gregarious frontman of Broke Royals also is a pretty talented chap who sings, writes, and plays with earnest feeling.
And so a few weeks ago, I told Philip I would like to check out the Broke Royals record release show at Songbyrd Music House with the caveat that I wouldn’t be able to write about it right away because I was going away to muck about in Florida and Georgia for a few weeks soon after the show.
It was a pretty darn good show, where local DC bands Broke Royals and openers Dear Dear and Milo in the Doldrums — all of whom have new music — sold out the venue and rocked the night away. And so I’m motivated to keep my promise to Philip and tell you a bit about it!
Brigitte Calls Me Baby has been on a roll the past 12 months. The Chicago five-piece has notched USA gigs opening for Muse and the Last Dinner Party, as well as sharing the stage with the Strokes and the Yeah Yeah Yeahs.
The post punk rockers bring their fresh take on the sounds of the ’80s to DC9 tonight, Friday, Feb. 16. Few tix remain to check out these rising young stars!
Michael Shannon and Jason Narducy Play REM’s Murmur
Words by Mickey McCarter
Photos by Steve Satzberg
Let me first say that I know very little about REM, the jangle rock musicians who burst out of Athens, Georgia, despite being a musical child of the ’80s. I do know the work of actor Michael Shannon, a fellow scion of Gen X who wasn’t even 10 years old when REM dropped their debut full-length album, Murmur, in 1983.
And so I went to see Michael and musician Jason Narducy perform songs by REM in a recent sold-out show at Black Cat with a simple question on my mind: Was Michael Shannon there to “play the role” of Michael Stipe? Or was he just a guy so moved by the music that he wanted to share his love of REM in performance?
The old saying goes, “There’s nothing like a Grateful Dead concert,” but Dark Star Orchestra came pretty close to replicating the memories of my last Dead concert in their recent appearance at Bellingham’s Mt. Baker Theatre. This night, just as in 1982, I was surrounded by twirling dancers, tie-dyed hippies, and that strange, slightly altered atmosphere, and those same feelings and sensations came flooding back.
Arriving to the theatre, I was greeted by throngs of fans (personally, I eschew the term “Deadhead”) dressed in the aforementioned tie-dye, streaming into the venue, the air of anticipation high (yes, pun obviously intended), and the sense that nobody would actually be seated for the show. As things turned out, there’s nothing like a Dark Star Orchestra concert, either.
