Parklife DC

Music Park: Prince + 3rdeyegirl @ Warner Theatre — 6/14/15

Live Review

Mickey McCarter

-

June 17, 2015

Music Park: Prince + 3rdeyegirl @ Warner Theatre — 6/14/15

Prince jams at the Warner Theatre on June 14. (Photo by Karrah Kobus / NPG Records)

Hey, we all agree: Prince is awesome. He’s funky, and he rocks the house in live performance. And he did as much in two sold-out shows at the Warner Theatre on Sunday as part of his series in the Hit & Run tour.

And so, yes, we’re going to talk a little about Prince. But Prince wants us to talk a bit about his backing band, 3rdeyegirl. So let’s talk about them first.

I actually first attended the Rally 4 Peace at the Royal Farms Arena in Baltimore on Sunday, May 10, and then I caught the late 11pm show at Warner Theatre this past Sunday, June 14.

In both performances, 3rdeyegirl were really quite great. They add fire to the overall show, and they hold down specific numbers on their own. Guitarist Donna Grantis often takes the front of the stage, literally leaping into action as she thunders away on her guitar. She did as much for the opening number Sunday night — “Plectrumelectrum,” the title track from their 2014 debut album with Prince. “Plectrumelectrum” is an instrumental track that gives the audience a chance to see 3rdeyegirl in action as the band gets warmed up. Donna is always in the minute, and her axe is really sharp.

Continue

Sports Park: The Nationals’ Homestand vs. the Rays, Pirates & Braves, 6/17-6/25/15

Around Town

Jeremy Bailey

-

June 17, 2015

0

Sports Park: The Nationals’ Homestand vs. the Rays, Pirates & Braves, 6/17-6/25/15

Drew Storen is third in the NL with 19 Saves

The Nationals have been in a rough patch the last couple weeks. They didn’t do much at home the first week of June, going 2-5, and then finished 4-4 on their latest road trip. They have fallen out of first place behind the lowly Mets.

At 34-31, they are still in the thick of the race. This upcoming homestand is the perfect time to overtake the Mets. Again.

On Wednesday, the Nationals send Jordan Zimmerman (5-4, 3.74 ERA) to the mound against the Rays’ Matt Andriese (1-1, 3.76 ERA).

Thursday we’ll see Joe Ross (1-1, 3.46 ERA) finish off the two-game series against the Rays’ ace, Chris Archer (7-4, 2.00 ERA).

You’ll have to wait until Friday, when the Nats play the Pirates, to see Max Scherzer (7-5, 1.93 ERA) continue his Cy Young campaign.

For game tickets and more information, call 202.675.NATS(6287) or visit nationals.com/tickets.

Last week, Major League Baseball’s 2015 First-Year Player Draft was held. The Nationals selected the following players in the first 10 rounds, including Mariano Rivera’s son.

RD	Pick	Player	Position	School
2	58	Andrew Stevenson	OF	Louisiana State University
2	69	Blake Perkins	OF	Verrado (AZ) High School
3	103	Rhett Wiseman	OF	Vanderbilt (TN) University
4	134	Mariano Rivera Jr.	RHP	Iona (NY) College
5	164	Taylor Hearn	LHP	Oklahoma Baptist University
6	194	Matt Crownover	LHP	Clemson (SC) University
7	224	Grant Borne	LHP	Nicholls (LA) State University
8	254	Koda Glover	RHP	Oklahoma State University
9	284	David Kerian	1B	University of Illinois
10	314	Taylor Guilbeau	LHP	University of Alabama

Wednesday, June 17 vs. Tampa Bay Rays

Celebrate the Grand Opening of the new Team Store with special events on Wednesday before the game.

Thursday, June 18 vs. Tampa Bay Rays

The 9th Annual Ladies Night, featuring live music, player appearances, food samples and more. Even with quadrupling the number of available tickets from last year, 2015 Ladies Night is sold out. Fans can enjoy Ladies Night entertainment and music throughout the ballpark with a regular ticket. For more information, visit nationals.com/ladiesnight.

Friday, June 19 vs. Pittsburgh Pirates

The first 15,000 fans to enter Nationals Park through ALL GATES will receive a Nationals pilsner cup (ages 21 and over).

Continue

Don’t Miss: Foo Fighters 20th Anniversary Blowout @ RFK Stadium, 7/4/15

Live Review

Mickey McCarter

-

June 17, 2015

0

Don’t Miss: Foo Fighters 20th Anniversary Blowout @ RFK Stadium, 7/4/15

Dave Grohl (center) and the Foo Fighters, before “breaking a leg” (Photo by Hayley Madden)

Dave Grohl may have taken well-wishers’ call to “break a leg” a bit too literally! On June 12 at Ullevi Stadium in Gothenburg, Sweden, Dave took a tumble — and did just that.

During the second song of a Foo Fighters’ set, Dave fell off the stage. After being temporarily patched up, he completed the show in Sweden, but Camp Foo has seen a flurry of cancellations since then.

However, all major indicators suggest that all systems are go for the Foo Fighters 20th Anniversary Blowout at RFK Stadium, slated for Saturday, July 4.

On the advice of doctors, Dave was forced to cancel shows across Europe on June 14, 16, 19, 20, 23, 25 and 26. (The date of June 26 was for no less than the Glastonbury Festival 2015.)

In a humorous, high-spirited note to fans, Dave apologized for the cancellations on his website.

“So… here I am, recovering with 6 metal screws in my leg, thinking about a lifetime of holding up TSA lines from here to Kalamazoo… damn,” Dave wrote.

“Here’s the not so witty bit… My doctors have advised me to lay low for a while. The most important thing now is for me to recover from the surgery, to keep my leg elevated so as to keep swelling down and prevent any infection/complication that could do long term damage. I’m not out of the woods yet, folks…,” he added.

Despite the European cancellations, the 20th anniversary celebration remains on track. The show features acts that participated in the Foo Fighters HBO documentary series Sonic Highways, as well as a motorcycle rally, BBQ, fireworks and more. Guests include Buddy Guy, Gary Clark Jr., Heart, Joan Jett, LL Cool J feat. DJ Z-Trip, Trouble Funk, and Trombone Shorty.

Tickets for the festival are available online through Ticketmaster.

The party at RFK Stadium starts at 2pm on July 4, but you can start the party earlier with Dave at DC Brau (3178-B Bladensburg Rd. NE, DC) for the motorcycle rally at 9am.

At DC Brau, you can fill upon a breakfast of Chef Geoff’s Breakfast Burritos and Vigilante Coffee and catch some live music. Rally participants get VIP motorcycle parking at RFK as well as a special T-shirt. A portion of the proceeds benefit the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children as well as We Are Family D.C.

You can buy tickets for Dave and Elliot’s 4th of July Rally and Ride to RFK separately, or you can buy them together with the Foo Fighters 20th Anniversary Blowout. You must ride a motorcycle to participate in the rally.

Woo! Well, there you have it. That’s what we know so far. So don’t miss a step, blow out an ankle or take a bad dive, go see the Foo Fighters (safely) instead!

Dave & Elliot’s 4th of July Rally & Ride to RFK
DC Brau
Saturday, July 4
9am
$50-$128
18+

Foo Fighters 20th Anniversary Blowout!
with Buddy Guy, Gary Clark Jr., Heart, Joan Jett, LL Cool J feat. DJ Z-Trip, Trouble Funk, and Trombone Shorty
RFK Stadium
Saturday, July 4
2pm
$78
All ages

Music Park: Royal Blood @ 9:30 Club — 6/10/15

Live Review

Mickey McCarter

-

June 15, 2015

0

Music Park: Royal Blood @ 9:30 Club — 6/10/15

Mike Kerr of Royal Blood at the 9:30 Club on June 10 (Photo by Katerine Gaines/AmbientEye Photography)

Royal Blood are loud. Improbably so, considering it consists of only two members — bassist Mike Kerr and drummer Ben Thatcher.

Mike’s vocals recall the spirit of 70s hard rock bands that inspired them, most notably Led Zeppelin, and Mike and Ben’s powerful instruments echo sounds from 90s grunge bands, notably Nirvana.

I realize that I’m repeating things that Jimmy Page and Dave Grohl themselves have said here, but the duo’s top song “Out of the Black” speaks its own case in volumes. At a sold-out show at the 9:30 Club on Wednesday, June 10, Royal Blood closed an all too brief 11-song set with the number, thundering their way into the hearts of the excited crowd.

People came to rock out, and Royal Blood gave them that opportunity. “Out of the Black” deals lyrically with a classic theme of the surprise of being rejected by a lover and as a result, “It broke your skin and shook through/Every part of me, every part of you.” In that way, Royal Blood follow in the footsteps of grunge bands who were always eager to sing about the negative emotions in their lives.

But Royal Blood aren’t here to wind down their statements into an empty cacophony of strings and drums. Rather, they are here to rock.

Continue

Don’t Miss: Men Without Hats + China Crisis @ World Café Live, Philadelphia, Pa., 6/15/15

Live Review

Mickey McCarter

-

June 14, 2015

0

Don’t Miss: Men Without Hats + China Crisis @ World Café Live, Philadelphia, Pa., 6/15/15

The new-look Men Without Hats, with iconic frontman Ivan Doroschuk (Photo courtesy Cobraside)

We at ParklifeDC like to do our bit to cover the waterfront as far as bands performing in our fair city.

But sometimes, we just have to get out of town to see some old favorites, you know?

And so it is that on Monday, June 15, we are at the World Café Live in Philadelphia, Pa., for the amazing Men Without Hats, featuring iconic frontman Ivan Doroschuk in what is certain to be an entertaining performance.

About five years ago, Ian recruited a new backing band, and they released a terrific new album in 2012, Love in the Age of War, produced by Dave Ogilvie, who also has famously produced for the likes of Nine Inch Nails and engineered for Carly Rae Jepsen on “Call Me Maybe.”

How satisfying then that Men Without Hats fall squarely between the two – poppy, upbeat and wholly synthy.

I saw the new-look Men Without Hats at the State Theatre on Nov. 29, 2012, and “the new lineup sounded amazing with James Love on guitar and duo synthesizers played by Lou Dawson and Rachel Ashmore — a killer duo with impressive synth skills,” I reported on We Love DC at the time.

I added: But part of the appeal of Men Without Hats is that the songs only fans could name are really terrific songs — songs like “I Like,” “Living in China,” and “Where Do The Boys Go?” The first two appeared along with “The Safety Dance” on the Men Without Hats debut album, Rhythm of Youth in 1982 and still sound sharp today.

Philadelphia, Men Without Hats are worth your time tonight. Because, as the saying goes, we can dance if we want to, and we can leave your friends behind. Everyone wants to “Safety Dance,” and Men Without Hats are certain to fulfill that desire.

Watch the very famous video for “Safety Dance”:
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AjPau5QYtYs]

Men Without Hats appear with New Romantic Brits China Crisis. Tickets are available online and at the door.

Men Without Hats + China Crisis
World Café Live
3025 Walnut St., Philadelphia, Pa.
Monday, June 15
Doors @7pm; Show @8pm
$16-23
All ages

Music Park: Mumford & Sons @ Merriweather Post Pavilion — 6/10/15

Live Review

Jeremy Bailey

-

June 12, 2015

1

Music Park: Mumford & Sons @ Merriweather Post Pavilion — 6/10/15

Mumford & Sons in Italy

I’m a fan of Mumford & Sons. In fact, I like them. Actually. Not in a general sense.

It wasn’t always so. When I first heard of them in early 2010, on a recommendation from a British friend, I listened to a few songs but didn’t ‘get it’. It was just another band, albeit one with banjos.

Until I caught them live at Lollapalooza in Chicago that same year, it suddenly hit me. This is a great band. Their music is inspired when live, especially when playing “Little Lion Man” and “The Cave”. The crowd energy was off the charts. So I gave their first album, Sigh No More, a full listen. The rest is history.

I was also pleasantly intrigued when I heard the tragic, “After the Storm”, on the closing credits of the short-lived TV series, Stargate Universe.

Much has been made of Mumford & Sons third album, Wilder Mind. As a departure from their roots. As embracing a more mainstream approach to rock and roll, and setting aside the folkiness of their banjos. That they no longer had a unique sound.

The songs have even been compared to The National. Good news, I love The National.

What do I think of Wilder Mind? I gave it a listen, then did the true litmus test and witnessed Mumford perform live at Merriweather Post Pavilion on 6/10/15. With a maximum capacity crowd in full-throated cheer. On a beautiful night.

Mumford & Sons were all in on their new material. They played nine new songs in the 20-song set.

Often, when you hear new songs live from a band you enjoy, it doesn’t have the same cachet and familiarity, and therefore doesn’t immediately resonant or move you.

Not so with Mumford & Sons. The new songs in Wilder Mind fit perfectly with their sound and who they are. Minus the banjos. And really, so what?

From the furthest reaches of Merriweather’s lawn, we were able to take in the spectacle of humanity that came to revel in what Mumford & Sons had to offer.

Five of the first seven songs were from Wilder Mind. From the self-doubt in “Believe”, the first single, to the anthemic build in “Broad-Shouldered Beasts” the songs never felt out-of-place or un-Mumfordlike (to coin a phrase). Later they sang about last chances in love in the peppy “Tompkins Square Park” and the head nodding “Ditmas”. Both among their strongest new songs.

They did get around to the crowd favorites, “The Cave”, “Little Lion Man” and “I Will Wait”.

They ended the show with “The Wolf”, the second single from Wilder Mind, and possibly the most rock and roll sound they’ve achieved.

What do I think of Wilder Mind? I like it, but it’s still not as strong as their origins in Sigh No More. It is, however, better than their second album, Babel.

What did I think of the show? Excellent.

Food Park: Get Your Food Truck Fix at Truckaroo @ Fairgrounds, 6/12/15

Jeremy Bailey

-

June 12, 2015

0

For you food truck enthusiasts, Truckarooo is a happening today, Friday, June 12th at the Fairgrounds (near the Nationals Park).

From 11am to 11pm, you can find over 20 food trucks, live music, adult beverages and games like cornhole.

The Nationals are in Milwaukee this weekend playing the Brewers, but that’s no reason not to head down to the Fairgrounds and check out the action.

Truckaroo happens once a month. This month’s food trucks include:

Arepa Zone
Bada Bing
BBQ Bus
Big Cheese
BONMi
Borinquen Lunch Box
Cajunators
Captain Cookie & the Milk Man
Curbside Cupcakes
Curley’s Q
DC Empanadas
DC Slices
DC Taco Truck
Doug the Food Dude
Due South
Feelin’ Crabby
KaftaMania
Korean BBQ Box
Pepe
Red Hook Lobster Pound
Rito Loco
Rocklands
Surfside
Tapas Truck
That Cheesecake Truck
The Orange Cow

Truckaroo
Fairgrounds (M St and Half St SE) near the Nationals Park
Friday, June 12
11am-11pm
Free Admission (pay for food and beverages)
All ages

Don’t Miss: Ki:Theory w/ Technophobia + Pleasure Curses @ DC9, 6/11/15

Live Review

Mickey McCarter

-

June 11, 2015

0

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rS5Eb2q27OU]

Richmond’s Ki:Theory performs tonight at DC9. He’s known for his covers like “Stand by Me” (video above), which is much different than 1962 original by Ben E. King. (Darker, to say the least?) He’s also known for remixing things like Daft Punk’s “Son of Flynn” on the Tron: Legacy soundtrack remix album.

Listen to the new single from Ki:Theory “The Way It Was,” released in January:

[soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/186978691″ params=”color=ff5500&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false” width=”100%” height=”166″ iframe=”true” /]

Several local acts open for Ki:Theory — Technophobia and Pleasure Curses. Technophobia are a dark wave duo who recently revamped their act with new songs, all sang by Katie Petix and all synthed by Steve Petix.

The Pleasure Curses are nu disco indie pop stylists who always put on a good show as well! Jahn Alexander delivers smooth vocals while Evan Maxwell leaps from guitars to synths.

Tickets are available at the door.

Ki:Theory
w/ Technophobia and Pleasure Curses
DC9
Thursday, June 11
Doors @8pm
$10
All ages

Music Park: Wire @ Black Cat — 6/6/15

Live Review

Mickey McCarter

-

June 10, 2015

0

Colin Newman of Wire performs at Les Guess Who Festival in Utrecht on Nov. 22, 2014 (Photo by Rene Passet)

The guitars start out with a low, repetitive drone and then they break out into a trot.

A pleasant English voice begins to sing matter of factly alongside the guitars. The lyrics are conceptual not narrative. And as the song continues, the guitars hit peaks and valleys while the singer remains steadfastly laconic and sardonic.

This is Wire, and they have opened their concert Saturday night at the Black Cat with “Blogging,” the first track from their 14th album, the self-titled Wire, released in April. The band proves in this case to be much like many of their individual songs in that the more you get into it, and the more you think about it, the more it has to offer.

The London quartet, of course, practically invented post-punk upon forming in 1976, but they have not sat still, particularly since reforming after a break in the 1990s. Vocalist and guitarist Colin Newman is interested in what’s new. He likes to tinker and to move the dial forward, even if doing so within the predefined confines of the post-punk genre. I never previously saw a performer quite like him, and I immediately thought to myself that Colin is to the guitar what a Billy Currie or a Thomas Dolby is to the synthesizer.

No one in Wire plays a synthesizer, of course. But the sound they make — that beautiful sound!– nonetheless somehow encompasses the space age and the immediate. Somewhere, both contemporaries in the Buzzcocks and new kids in Prinzhorn Dance School are taking notes.

Continue

Music Park: Hot Chip @ Echostage — 6/5/15

Live Review

Mickey McCarter

-

June 9, 2015

0

Music Park: Hot Chip @ Echostage — 6/5/15

Hot Chip (Photo courtesy Press Here)

Hot Chip kept a very full room “ready for the floor” as they danced the night away at Echostage Friday night.

Touring in support of their sixth album, Why Make Sense?, released in May 2015, the London quintet also paid respects to their career so far, hitting highlights from their previous albums.

In doing so, Hot Chip sang a lot about being in love while adding soulful samba-like grooves to some of their greatest hits.

And so the crowd boogied down in earnest to tracks like “Night & Day,” “Over and Over” and “I Feel Better” throughout the show, as well as many of the noteworthy tunes on the new album.

The U.K. synthpoppers opened with “Huarache Lights,” a dance-funk ode to living on the go until eventually replaced by automation, the first single from their latest effort. They also showcased “Easy to Get” and “Started Right” from Why Make Sense? — the first a playful tribute to playing “easy to get” with someone you love and the second also a lovely song about being in love and in a committed relationship.

Continue