Violent Vira Rocks Hard at 9:30 Club
The emerging star already has an extremely dedicated following
Words by Matt Bailey
Photos by James Todd Miller
Violent Vira brought droves of fans to 9:30 Club recently for her stand-out style of hard rock and metal. Her show at the DC venue had been sold out for weeks ahead of time.
As the new documentary Lilith Fair: Building a Mystery on Hulu revisits how Sarah McLachlan’s women-led festival reshaped ’90s music, her recent set at The Anthem brought that legacy home in the most powerful way: live.
And while there was plenty of the material from those long-ago salad days, when I was just a spry young pup and Lilith Fair was touring across the nation, this wasn’t just a nostalgia show: We got plenty of songs from the album McLachlan released earlier this year.
Couch turned the 9:30 Club into a full-body groove session on Nov. 15, delivering a buoyant, tightly arranged set that showcased just how far the Boston-bred collective has come.
Steve Satzberg was there to photograph the show for this Parklife Snapshots photo essay.
Saturday night in DC was a great night of music and protest as Rage Against the Machine and Audioslave legend Tom Morello and his band, along with The Neighborhood Kids — and a special appearance by Max Weinberg from Bruce Springsteen and the East Street Band — played an enormous set at the historic Lincoln Theatre to a sold-out crowd. Morello and band played a fantastic gig of exceptional guitar-driven rock and roll and were very convincing in getting across messages of “anti-fascism,” “anti-Nazism,” and “anti-racism” to the highly enthusiastic crowd.
Someone once asked Colin Hay if he would say pursuing a career as a songwriter was worthwhile.
“Here’s a song that took me 40 minutes to write, and it’s sustained me for 40 years,” Colin told The Birchmere recently when closing the first of two sold-out performances. So, the answer is “yes.”
Colin then played a lovely stripped down version of “Down Under,” originally recorded with the band Men at Work, the outfit that catapulted him to fame.
Under the glow of the disco ball of the 9:30 Club and electric blue lights, The Aces returned to DC recently, transforming the storied venue into a sanctuary of queer joy and unfiltered guitar pop-rock adrenaline.
The Aces, a Utah-born band, played live on their Gold Star Baby Tour as they reaffirmed their place as one of indie-pop’s tightest live acts. They felt delightfully at home with a crowd that greeted them like beloved friends rather than visiting performers.
Founded in Brooklyn in 2011, The Lone Bellow — Zach Williams, Kaneane Pipkin, and Briam Elmquist — are known for their gorgeous three-part harmonies. In their recent appearance at Union Stage, they also brought plenty of heartfelt feelings and tender moments.
When Khruangbin plotted its current small-club quest across the USA, there was one spot the group members agreed they’d have to hit: 9:30 Club.
Josh Ritter turned the Lincoln Theatre into a storybook on Nov. 13, unfurling a generous, 1-hour and 45-minute set that balanced literary new songs with long-loved favorites.
Steve Satzberg was there to photograph the show for this Snapshots photo essay.
Last week at the Capital One Arena in Washington, DC, I caught an unforgettable show from Playboi Carti, supporting his newest album, I Am Music. Even before the opening beat dropped, the energy in the venue was unmatched, Carti’s fanbase was less crowd and more cult-like. What followed was a chaotic explosion of light, bass, and bodies.
