If you didn’t know better, Soccer Mommy, the stage name for singer-songwriter Sophia (Sophie) Allison, may bring about visions of minivans, orange slices, and participation trophies. Suburban tedium at its best. That couldn’t be further from the truth. During a recent show at 9:30 Club, Sophie and her indie rock band performed a set that was far from pedestrian.
Charley Crockett performs at Watermelon Pickers Festival 2021. (Photo by Chester Simpson)
Watermelon Picker’s Fest is one of my favorite festivals that I look forward to every year. The experience of camping, socializing with old and new friends while listening to music is an amazing experience not to be over looked. Besides music on the stages, there’s the night jam sessions, where various musicians travel from campsite to campsite for a special musical experience. It’s an opportunities to hangout with performers in a pleasant, usually quite rural, setting.
Oh He Dead (Photo courtesy 9:30 Club)
DC indie band Oh He Dead “recalls the danceability of Earth Wind and Fire, the pop genius of Prince, and the seductive, soulful groove of Sade,” said Parklife blogger Mark Caicedo in his last review of this funky quintet.
Experience that sound for yourself and catch Oh He Dead live at 9:30 Club on Saturday, Sept. 25.
Lizzo headlines Firefly 2021 this weekend! (Photo courtesy Firefly Music Festival)
After a year off due to COVID-19 lockdowns, the Firefly Festival returns to Dover, Delaware, this weekend. This festival is an easy drive from DC, Maryland, and Virginia, so take a road trip to see headliners Billie Eilish (Thursday), The Killers (Friday), Tame Impala (Saturday), and Lizzo (Sunday)!
Catch the action at The Woodlands from Thursday, Sept. 23, through Sunday, Sept. 26, 2021.
Bob Mould performs at 9:30 Club on Sept. 18, 2021. (Photos by David LaMason)
Bob Mould showed what a pro he is at his show at the 9:30 Club Saturday evening.
Dr. Dog perform at 9:30 Club on Sept. 16, 2021. (Photo by Casey Vock)
“All good things come to an end” has to be one of the most extremely overused, inflated perspectives on any favorable scenario, especially relationships, and it seems that statement is most often inappropriately used to sum up the end of relationships built around music.
But, nevertheless, the proclamation does tend to be true, as is currently demonstrated by the Philadelphia-based band Dr. Dog, a group that sold out consecutive gigs at the 9:30 Club Thursday and Friday — its last shows in the nation’s capital on what has been announced as its last tour together. [Parklife has learned Dr. Dog does indeed have one more sold-out show at 9:30 Club on Oct. 1! — Ed.]
The Hu perform at Baltimore Soundstage on Sept. 15, 2021. (Photos by Katherine Gaines)
Copy adapted from press materials by Kelly Walsh, Schneider Rondan Organization (SRO PR)
Mongolian rock sensation The Hu returned with a headlining tour, “The Hun Tour,” and a show in Baltimore on Sept. 15. Katherine Gaines photographed the show!
Dawes performs at the Warner Theatre on Sept. 15, 2021. (Photo by Casey Vock)
When she opened for Dawes at the Warner Theatre recently, singer-songwriter Erin Rae complimented the venue’s beauty. She’s absolutely right: it’s a gorgeous place, beautifully restored, one of the most attractive in the area. And while you might expect an event in such a elegant room to be a bit staid, this show was anything but: led by frontman Taylor Goldsmith, Dawes play jammed-out versions of both their most popular songs and deep cuts, and they got the crowd involved throughout their performance.
Ratboys perform at the new location of Songbyrd Music House on Sept. 14, 2021. (Photo by Casey Vock)
Not often does a double bill work to evenly showcase the best of two bands, but on occasion, there can be a symbiotic relationship between two touring musical acts that is so wholesome that each can get the most out of valuable, even if in some ways taxing, time on the road.
It does appear as though the current tour co-headlined by Ratboys and Wild Pink is so far a success, the local evidence being a highly enjoyable show put on Sept. 14 by this pair of bands at the newly launched Songbyrd Music House on Penn Street NE, near Union Market.
Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit (Photo by Alysse Gafkjen)
Jason Isbell referred to himself, his band, and opening act Waxahatchee as ambassadors for the state of Alabama when they appeared at Wolf Trap on Tuesday evening.
