“We owe it to the future of our industry, and every artist filling our rooms, to keep ticket prices low and keep consumers’ hard-earned money with people actually doing work,” said Dayna Frank, CEO of First Avenue & the 7th Street Entry and founding president of the National Independent Venue Association (NIVA) in opening remarks at NIVA 2023 in Washington, DC, last week.
“This was never a radio song but it’s a song that ended up becoming really big because it was in a TV show called Grey’s Anatomy,” Tegan Quin said recently at The Atlantis.
In 2004, Tegan and Sara’s management contacted them with the opportunity to license the song to Grey’s Anatomy for use in its pilot. “We had no idea it would go on to be an absolute epic,” Tegan added. “They’ve used the song seven times!”
The song in question is “Where Does the Good Go?” from So Jealous (2004), the album that allowed the duo to breakthrough in the United States. And at The Atlantis, Tegan and Sara performed it as the third song in a freewheeling, relaxed acoustic show for a joyful DC crowd that soaked up every moment in the band in the sold-out small venue.
There was electricity in the air recently at The Anthem in DC as hundreds of people gathered to witness the invasion of T-Pain. Holding signs and waving fans, the anticipation was real as The Anthem turned pitch black. Chants of “T-Pain, T-Pain, T-Pain” created a sense of excitement and anticipation.
Aaron Shneyer, the soulful roots musician from Washington, DC, recently brought his 12-year musical journey to life at Pearl Street Warehouse with the official album release party for his debut album, Love Rebellion. The evening showcased the culmination of Aaron’s experiences, traversing worlds between Israelis and Palestinians, exploring different continents, and ultimately finding love and purpose.
The show began with “Utopia,” one of the few songs that were not part of Love Rebellion. Aaron sang the first verse alone with just his guitar as accompaniment. Then, as the first chorus unfolded, a powerhouse ensemble of talented musicians joined him, creating a seamless transition that set the tone for the rest of the concert.
Only the most dedicated and creative musicians can continue to impress and raise the bar across the decades. And for about 40 years now, Trey Anastasio has been blowing the minds of those who’ve gone out of their way to see him play guitar and hear him sing.
Embarking on their North American tour alongside Teenage Dads, Lime Cordiale recently kicked off their tour at Union Stage in Washington DC with a splendid performance.
“Forty-one years ago yesterday,” Tori Amos recently told the audience at Wolf Trap, she got fired from her first job in the music business. Amos grew up in the DMV and, by her teens, was playing piano and singing in local clubs. She continued the story, mentioning a friendly African American man who told her, “They’ll regret this.” And, as she said, it worked out for the best.
In 2021, director Edgar Wright created an extraordinary documentary — The Sparks Brothers — thoroughly recapping the musical career of Ron and Russell Mael. The two men (now in their mid-’70s) have been active as avant-garde crafters of pop earworms for 50 years, and they have been as influential as David Bowie and Roxy Music to generations of musicians in England, where they first broke through despite being very much Los Angelinos.
Due in part to that documentary opening Sparks to new frontiers, the Maels enjoyed a breakthrough year in 2022, when they packed the Lincoln Theater in DC (and other venues globally) for a career retrospective tour. Sparks are back again with a new album, The Girl Is Crying in Her Latte, and the brothers recently returned to Lincoln Theatre for a wonderful performance.
The best thing about secondary market tours is the chance to see large bands in smaller venues than they normally play. Case in point, The Smile — Radiohead’s Thom Yorke and Jonny Greenwood along with former Sons of Kemet drummer Tom Skinner — played to a capacity crowd of just 1,500 Wednesday night at The National in Richmond.
I’ve actually seen Radiohead play club-sized venues twice back in the ’90s. Once at Irving Plaza and the surprise show at the 9:30 Club in 1998. Both were memorable; the Irving Plaza show is probably the single best concert I have ever seen. Look at that setlist! But I digress.
Pedro the Lion played its 39th (of 40) show of the It’s Hard to Find a Friend + Control Tour 2023 at Bellingham’s Wild Buffalo House of Music on a recent Saturday evening. With guitarist Erik Walters’s opening set, a near capacity crowd enjoyed three hours of music that spanned genres from folk-punk to indie rock to wall of sound grunge.
