Parklife DC

Don’t Miss: At the Drive-In @ 9:30 Club, 3/20/17

Live Review

Mickey McCarter

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December 19, 2016

Don’t Miss: At the Drive-In @ 9:30 Club, 3/20/17

At the Drive-In (Photo courtesy Fearless Records)

After a long silence following their last album, post-hardcore stalwarts At the Drive-In released a new song “Governed by Contagions” on Dec. 8 via Rise Records.

The new song marks a remarkable turn in developments for the El Paso punk quintet, which originally broke up in 2001 and eventually returned to touring in 2012. But now it seems like they are really back with a brief headlining tour in 2017, which includes a stop at the 9:30 Club on Monday, March 20, along with the promise of new music. Indeed, the new full-length album, produced by ORL and Rich Costey, to be released in 2017 will be the band’s first since third album Relationship of Command in 2000.

Watch a lyric video for “Governed by Contagions” by At the Drive-In on YouTube (or download a free MP3 at http://www.atthedriveinmusic.com):

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1-NYWzd7JW8]

With original guitarist Jim Ward departing the band, At the Drive-In members Cedric Bixler-Zavala, Omar Rodriguez-Lopez, Paul Hinojos, Tony Hajjar, and Keeley Davis carry on without him. Still, SPIN magazine hailed the new song, saying “The fierce, stuttering anthem is pretty classic ATDI.”

At the Drive-In initially eyed some US dates in June, but the band canceled that tour while Cedric recovered from voice problems. But now they are back for a run of dates that starts in DC and ends in Toronto on March 29.

Tickets are available online.

At the Drive-In
9:30 Club
Monday, March 20, 2017
Doors @7pm
$45
All ages

Don’t Miss: AFI @ 9:30 Club, 2/7/17

Live Review

Mickey McCarter

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December 19, 2016

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AFI (Photo by Jiro Schneider)

Northern California punk rockers AFI return with a 10th studio album on Jan. 20 via Concord Music Group. The self-titled album is alternatively titled the “Blood Album” because of its cover artwork (featuring drops of blood), and it will include four limited vinyl color variants matching the four blood types (A | O | B | AB), according to a press release from the band.

Meanwhile, the quartet will launch “The Blood Tour” in Los Angeles on the day the album drops, and they will hit DC to perform at the 9:30 Club on Tuesday, Feb. 7.

A week ago, AFI released a video for “White Offerings” from the Blood Album. Watch the official music video on YouTube:

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hC93KhZRxUw]

Vocalist Davey Havok, guitarist Jade Puget, bassist Hunter Burgan, and drummer Adam Carson have been going strong since their sixth studio album, Sing the Sorrow, raised their national profile in 2003. The gents certainly have their own sound derived from hardcore punk, but they are first and foremost rock-n-rollers who put on a lively show.

Davey said AFI developed the Blood Album without an initial concept, noting, “No, that’s never really the case for us. We sit down and we begin writing and whichever direction the writing leads us, we follow, and if something comes out of us that we feel is too familiar, we generally don’t gravitate towards it, and conversely, when we’re writing something that comes out that is fresh and different for us within the context of AFI, we generally go in that direction, and that leads us to different places and different songs, and that was the case with the ‘Blood Record.'”

Tickets are available online.

AFI
w/ Souvenirs
9:30 Club
Tuesday, Feb. 7
Doors @7pm
$30
All ages

Music Park: Seu Jorge @ Howard Theatre — 12/13/16

Live Review

Mickey McCarter

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December 19, 2016

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Music Park: Seu Jorge @ Howard Theatre — 12/13/16

Seu Jorge performs at the Howard Theatre on Tuesday, Dec. 13, 2016. (Photo courtesy the Howard Theatre)

In a year with David Bowie, I’ve participated many tributes, wakes, and remembrances of the man. Soon into 2016, David passed unexpectedly, and the DC metro area was promptly greeted by a concert by former Bowie drummer Woody Woodmansey and his Holy Holy tribute to Bowie’s early years.

That was a great show, boisterous and fantastic, with a remarkable group of musicians that included longtime Bowie producer Tony Visconti on bass. It was cathartic to attend their concert only days after David’s passing. But it’s been equally affecting in the past month to hit two DC performances by Seu Jorge, an unassuming Brazilian musician who broke through to a new audience a bit more than a decade ago with his acoustic covers of Bowie classics in the cult film The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou.

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Music Park: Den-Mate @ Songbyrd Music House — 12/14/16

Live Review

Mickey McCarter

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December 16, 2016

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Music Park: Den-Mate @ Songbyrd Music House — 12/14/16

Jules Hale of Den-Mate sings at Songbyrd Music House on Wednesday, Dec. 14, 2016.

Jules Hale seems to sing of a sort of spiritual liberation in her song “For Free” by Den-Mate. Delivering a hazy vocal over a steady beat, she weathers emotional attacks as if they were physical missiles in the song with a metaphorical shrug.

In concert on Wednesday at Songbyrd Music House, Jules opened for Laura Burhenn of The Mynabirds, delivering seven mesmerizing songs in a deliberate state of dreampop. (Read our Parklife DC review of Laura Burhenn’s concert.) Affixed to the center of stage, Jules played a keyboard while beating a drum and singing, an impressive display of efficiency that may have discouraged some impulses to dance during the show (as she has expressively done in the past).

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Music Park: Laura Burhenn @ Songbyrd Music House — 12/14/16

Live Review

Mickey McCarter

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December 16, 2016

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Music Park: Laura Burhenn @ Songbyrd Music House — 12/14/16

Laura Burhenn of The Mynabirds performs at Songbyrd Music House on Dec. 14, 2016.

Laura Burhenn came home to DC for the holidays.

She even brought with her a Christmas song in her visit to Songbyrd Music House on Wednesday. Of course, despite a jingly medley, that song turns out to have some bite as Laura tackles climate change, dishonest politicians, and a search for truth in “All I Want Is Truth (for Christmas),” a holiday offering from her project The Mynabirds released by Saddle Creek in 2012.

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New Release: “The Temple of I & I” by Thievery Corporation, 2/10/17

Live Review

Mickey McCarter

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December 15, 2016

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New Release: “The Temple of I & I” by Thievery Corporation, 2/10/17

Thievery Corporation (Photo by Jen Maler)

If you’re heading to one of three sold-out shows at the 9:30 Club to see Thievery Corporation tonight, Friday, or Saturday, you’ll hear some new songs from the collective from their upcoming new album.

Thievery Corporation are set to release their Jamaican-inspired studio album The Temple of I & I on Feb. 10, 2017, via their own ESL Music. The band recently debuted two songs from the album, “Let the Chalice Blaze” and “Letter to the Editor.”

Said Thievery’s Eric Hilton of the record, “The innovation, spirit and power of Jamaican music is a constant source of creative manna for us. On the musical map, Jamaica is an entire continent. Frankly, we could have spent a year there, soaking up the vibes in the air and the strength and resilience resonating from the people. And for us, the only way to connect with this rich source of inspiration was to work in that environment — to feel the pulse of the place.”

Listen to “Let the Chalice Blaze” by Thievery Corporation on YouTube:

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-_3zkDe0fgg]

Listen to “Letter to the Editor” by Thievery Corporation on YouTube:

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vBt7R9nfqsM]

Thievery Corporation went to Geejam Studios in Port Antonio, Jamaica, to record the new album in February 2015. Eric and Rob Garza took along with them contributors like guitarist Robbie Myers.

Other tracks on the album include “Thief Rockers,” featuring new vocalist Racquel Jones, who livens up the album considerably!

“We’ve been waiting years to find a conscious, brilliant, female Jamaican singer and MC. As a model and former Miss Jamaica contestant, you’d never expect the pure lyrical fire and tough delivery could come out of her. It’s impressive,” said Eric.

Keep your ears peeled for those new songs and more at the 9:30 Club!

Thievery Corporation
9:30 Club
Thursday, Dec. 15-Saturday, Dec. 17
Doors @7pm/8pm/8pm
Sold out
All ages

Ticket Giveaway: PHOX @ 9:30 Club, 1/25/17

Live Review

Mickey McCarter

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December 14, 2016

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PHOX (Photo courtesy Big Hassle)

Hailing from Baraboo, Wisconsin, the (now) five members of PHOX are preparing to release their second album — a follow-up to 2014’s self-titled debut released via Partisan Records.

In the race to that release, PHOX are launching a US tour that begins at the 9:30 Club on Wednesday, Jan. 25. The alternative folk group — consisting of Jason Krunnfusz, Monica Martin, Matthew Holmen, Matteo Roberts, and Davey Roberts — are probably best known for their single 1936.

Watch PHOX perform “1936” live in the studios of 89.3 The Current on Aug. 7, 2014, via YouTube:

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DAM6pm9qSww]

Parklife DC is giving away a pair of tickets to see PHOX at the 9:30 Club. To win, simply leave a comment on this blog. You can leave any comment, but we would like to know your favorite song by PHOX.

For the rules of this giveaway–

Comments will be closed at 5pm on Friday and a winner will be randomly selected. The winner will be notified by email. The winner must respond to our email within 24 hours, or they will forfeit their tickets and we will pick another winner. We will email you instructions on claiming your ticket. Good luck!

Tickets also are available online!

PHOX
w/ Cuddle Magic
9:30 Club
Wednesday, Jan. 25
Doors @7pm
$20
All ages

Don’t Miss: Tokyo Police Club @ Black Cat, 1/22/17

Live Review

Mickey McCarter

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December 13, 2016

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Don’t Miss: Tokyo Police Club @ Black Cat, 1/22/17

Tokyo Police Club (Photo courtesy The Billions Corp.)

Tokyo Police Club are having a busy year! The Canadian post-punk quartet released two EPs in 2016 -– the first and second parts of Melon Collie and the Infinite Radness. (There is a Smashing Pumpkins joke in there somewhere…?)

Equipped with the first of those EPs, vocalist and bassist David Monks, keyboardist Graham Wright, guitarist Josh Hook, and drummer Greg Alsop hit the 9:30 Club locally back in April. They published the second EP in September, rounding out the set on Dine Alone Records. Now they are returning to DC to perform at the Black Cat on Sunday, Jan. 22, 2017.

Watch the official music video for “Not My Girl” by Tokyo Police Club from Melon Collie and the Infinite Radness Part 1 on YouTube:

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DpBNWWcJIRs]

With the release of the two EPs earlier this year, Tokyo Police Club were not yet finished, however! You see, 2016 marks the 10th anniversary of the band’s debut EP, A Lesson in Crime. So they reissued that album as well.

The upcoming tour by Tokyo Police Club is being billed as a 10th anniversary tour for A Lesson in Crime, although they also are sure to play some of those new songs. Experienced the “Radness!” Brooklyn bubble-grunge quartet Charly Bliss open for Tokyo Police Club.

Tickets are available online.

Tokyo Police Club
w/ Charly Bliss
Black Cat
Sunday, Jan. 22
Doors @7:30pm
$20
All ages

Music Park: Jai Wolf @ 9:30 Club, 12/8/16

Live Review

Corey Paterson

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December 13, 2016

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Music Park: Jai Wolf @ 9:30 Club, 12/8/16

Jai Wolf performs at the Treefort Music Fest on March 26, 2016. (Photo by Kristen McPeek)

Jai Wolf made a stop at the 9:30 Club on Thursday night as part of the Kindred Spirits tour. The show started late (he got on around 11:30pm), but the time of the show did not deter fans from filling up the club.

The mastermind behind the EDM project Jai Wolf is Sajeeb Saha, who hails from Bangladesh. He recently released his debut EP, “Kindred Spirits,” which features six tracks, including his most popular song “Indian Summer,” which you can hear on YouTube.

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Don’t Miss: Laura Burhenn @ Songbyrd Music House, 12/14/16

Live Review

Mickey McCarter

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December 13, 2016

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Don’t Miss: Laura Burhenn @ Songbyrd Music House, 12/14/16

Laura Burhenn of The Mynabirds (Photo by Bliss Katherine)

A little over a year ago, DC’s own Laura Burhenn stopped by U Street Music Hall while touring the latest album from The Mynabirds, Lovers Know. When she wrapped up that tour, she found herself in a lull. Thankfully, she hit the road again and returns to DC to perform solo at Songbyrd Music House on Wednesday, Dec. 14.

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