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Don’t Miss: Born Ruffians @ Rock and Roll Hotel, 11/3/15

Mickey McCarter
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Don’t Miss: Born Ruffians @ Rock and Roll Hotel, 11/3/15

BornRuffiansbyMayaFuhr
Born Ruffians (Photo by Maya Fuhr)

Canadian post-punk quartet Born Ruffians released a new album, simply titled RUFF, on Oct. 2 via Yep Roc. The band just wrapped up a tour of Europe, and they are set to start a US tour in support of the new record next week, visiting DC to perform at the Rock and Roll Hotel soon after on Tuesday, Nov. 3.

Born Ruffians’ new single, “Don’t Live Up,” has drawn praise from reviewers for its nervous energy and cautionary message. The clever video for the song depicts the band caught in a whirlwind of daily activities as the play gigs/grab drinks/go to bed/eat food/do it again. But is it all it’s cracked up to be?

Watch the official video for “Don’t Live Up” by Born Ruffians on YouTube:

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mB8-eX_mHk4]

Lead singer and guitarist Luke Lalonde explained the video’s concept, saying, “The video was meant to represent one version of something that isn’t quite what you might expect. The difference in perception versus reality.”

Although the video is fun, the song comes with a warning, Luke adds, cautioning that sometimes it’s good to take it slow: “The song is about the idea that one’s ideas of what they need to achieve in order to be fulfilled/happy doesn’t always meet the expectations once you get there.”

Indeed, the entire RUFF album has a sense of knowing when to say enough is enough and when to take stock of things, particularly with songs like “Don’t Worry Now,” “When Things Get Pointless I Roll Away,” and “Fuck Feelings.”

Some of the songs have the sense of malaise belied by inquisitiveness found as a theme in the music of the Talking Heads, but Luke and company maintain an immaturity that dodges some of the deeper intellectual assessments of life that underpin the songs of David Byrne and company. That’s okay – maybe sometimes you just want to say “fuck feelings!”

Still, Born Ruffians demonstrate some quality musical chops on their fourth album, and they promise to entertain on the accompanying tour!

Tickets are available online.

Born Ruffians
w/ Young Rival and Boon
Rock and Roll Hotel
Tuesday, Nov. 3
Doors @7pm
$14
All ages

Don’t Miss: Styx @ Music Center at Strathmore, 11/10/15

Mickey McCarter
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Don’t Miss: Styx @ Music Center at Strathmore, 11/10/15

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Styx with (from left to right) Chuck Panozzo, Ricky Phillips, Todd Sucherman, Tommy Shaw, James “J.Y.” Young, and Lawrence Gowan at Macon City Auditorium on Oct. 4, 2014, in Macon, Ga. (Photo by Rick Diamond/Getty Images for STYX)

Q&A with Lawrence Gowan of Styx

Lawrence Gowan has taken on vocal duties for the inimitable progressive rock band Styx for the past 17 years after replacing Dennis DeYoung. In that time, Lawrence has made an impression on audiences worldwide and left his own indelible mark on Styx. Styx returns to the DC metropolitan area for a show on Tuesday, Nov. 10, 2015, at the Music Center at Strathmore in Bethesda, Md., in a Concert to Benefit Community Services for Autistic Adults and Children. Prior to that show, Parklife DC chats with Lawrence about the music that moves him, performing with Styx, and future plans for the band.

Mickey McCarter: Hey, Lawrence, it’s great to talk to you! You’ve been busy lately. You just got off the BIG Tour with Def Leppard, and now you’re launching into your own tour.

Lawrence Gowan: Yes, we did our first show recently without Def Leppard after four months in Springfield, Mo. We had the big summer blockbuster tour where we could only play a little over an hour a night, so it’s great to get back to a two-hour set. And we’ll be playing in the DC area on Nov. 10 in Bethesda, Md.

MM: So what can people expect? You were here in Virginia on July 2 at Jiffy Lube Live with a shorter set. How are the upcoming shows different?

LG: This is an Evening with Styx. It’s not the fine blend of coffee that people got over the summer. This is the full-on espresso! Maybe a triple-shot!

We’re able to go a lot deeper. It’s more akin to the DVD we put out a couple of years ago — an Evening with Styx. We are playing the entire Grand Illusion and the entire Pieces of Eight. It’s closer to that sort of evening, where we delve a lot deeper into various album tracks, and the show has a wide-ranging emotional arc to it than the onslaught of four hours of classic rock that people saw over the summer with Tesla, Styx, and Def Leppard.

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Music Park: New Video from YACHT (Appearing @ U Street Music Hall, 11/7/15)

Mickey McCarter
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Music Park: New Video from YACHT (Appearing @ U Street Music Hall, 11/7/15)

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Jona Bechtolt and Claire Evans of YACHT (Photo courtesy Downtown Records)

YACHT will perform at U Street Music Hall on Saturday, Nov. 7, after releasing their new album, I Thought the Future Would Be Cooler, last Friday. We’ve been recommending that you go!

Today, the L.A.-based art pop collective debuted the video for the album’s title track — clearly in hopes that the future would have turned out cooler than it did. It’s really quite clever in pointing out the silliness of some things of NOW — including selfie sticks, Segways, vaping and Tinder.

Watch the official video for “I Thought the Future Would Be Cooler” by YACHT on YouTube:

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R8cavxA10Gc]

Claire Evans and Jona Bechtolt of YACHT say, “This is a science fiction video that uses only existing technologies—VR, drones, self-balancing scooters (“hoverboards”), telepresence robots, selfie sticks, Soylent, and vape pens. All of these things have variably been presented as symbols of our futuristic world, but up close, they just feel straight-up comical. Our director, Eugene Kotlyarenko, has a unique perspective on this material, as a filmmaker. His feature film, Zeros and Ones, takes place entirely in computer interfaces. He was a perfect partner. He totally understood what we wanted to do and how to do it—from faux FaceTime to faking scrubbing ahead on YouTube.”

It’s a shame in a way that YACHT are no longer with DFA, as the label that made famous LCD Soundsystem is surely ground zero for a literal peek at now as the future from the reference point of a late ’70s/early ’80s synth-driven idealistic outlook formulated by the new wave sensibilities favored by both LCD and YACHT.

All the same, YACHT clearly are in good form, and you should see them when they are here in a few short weeks.

Tickets are available online.

YACHT
w/ Larry Gus
U Street Music Hall
Saturday, Nov. 7
Doors @7pm
$20
All ages

Around Town: Streetfilms Features Two of DC’s Bike Lanes

Jeremy Bailey
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Around Town: Streetfilms Features Two of DC’s Bike Lanes

19.PennsylvaniaAvenueBikeLane.NW.WDC.4July2011Biking on Pennsylvania Ave

Streetfilms put together a couple of videos featuring DC’s bike lanes. They produce short films showing how smart transportation design and policy can result in better places to live, work and play.

One video takes you on a journey of the protected bike lane along 1st Street NE (which goes by Union Station).

[vimeo 141968633 w=500 h=281]Washington D.C.’s Protected Bike Lane Treatments on 1st Street from STREETFILMS.

 

The second video looks at how the Pennsylvania Avenue bike lane came about.

[vimeo 142332258 w=500 h=281]

D.C.’s Pennsylvania Avenue Bike Lane Story (with Gabe Klein) from STREETFILMS.

 

The Word of the Day is:

Armadillo (or zebras): those black and white barriers used to prevent cars and taxis from pulling U-turns. (Note: The DDOT had stopped using these on Penn Avenue, but they are back.)

Don’t Miss: The Darkness @ The Fillmore Silver Spring, 10/25/15

Mickey McCarter
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Don’t Miss: The Darkness @ The Fillmore Silver Spring, 10/25/15

BlastofourKind
Dan Hawkins, Justin Hawkins, Rufus Tiger Taylor, and Frankie Poullain are The Darkness. (Photo courtesy Publicity Please)

Glam metal band The Darkness are back with a new album, Last of Our Kind, produced by the band’s guitarist Dan Hawkins and released earlier this year!

If the UK glam rockers didn’t already remind us of Queen, mostly thanks to the impressive vocals of frontman Justin Hawkins (Dan’s brother), who surely could front a killer Freddie Mercury tribute, The Darkness have recruited an actual scion of Queen as their new drummer! In 2015, The Darkness have introduced Rufus Tiger Taylor, the son of legendary Queen drummer Roger Taylor, as their new drummer, debuting him on tour in support of the new album.

That tour comes to The Fillmore in Silver Spring, Md., on Sunday, Oct. 25, where The Darkness headline a show certain to feature terrific new songs alongside old favorites. The title track to Last of Our Kind will remind you of why everyone loved The Darkness so much in the first place, as it starts out with a catchy melody and builds into a soaring glam chorus before you can blink. Justin is in great form as a true showman in the song’s official video, and you also can see Rufus Tiger join the revelries (with Indian headdress nonetheless). Everyone is just plain having fun, which is the way it should be when you listen to The Darkness.

Watch the official music video for “Last of Our Kind” by The Darkness on YouTube:

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Hi_kzzSXhY]

Rolling Stone said of the new album: “Their sound remains perfectly suited for the biggest stages in the world.” Clearly, The Darkness are fully back in the saddle since reuniting for their 2012 album, Hot Cakes. You’ll want to bring wear your dancing shoes and your party pants to The Fillmore on Sunday!

Tickets are available online for the cleverly named “Blast of Our Kind Tour!”

The Darkness
w/ These Raven Skies
The Fillmore (Silver Spring, Md.)
Sunday, Oct. 25
Show @8pm
$28.50
All ages

Don’t Miss: FROTH (Opening for The Drums) @ DC9, 10/26/15

Rebecca
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Don’t Miss: FROTH (Opening for The Drums) @ DC9, 10/26/15

Photos by Tony Accosta
Froth (Photo by Tony Accosta)

When Mickey first asked me to look into and preview Froth, a band I knew nothing about, I went to Spotify. In my search for the band, I found three albums, and as I often do, I chose the first album dated 2010 as my starting point. What followed was not the indie rock band I had expected as the opener for this coming Monday’s The Drums show at DC9, but rather a doodling, psychedelic jam band. This had to be wrong. And indeed it was one of those weird Spotify mix ups with two bands listed under the same artist name. A bizarre mashup of songs, albums and divergent cover art. And while the 2010 album from the band Froth wasn’t half bad, it wasn’t my assignment, so I moved to Froth’s 2014 album Patterns and their latest 2015 tracks from Bleak.

What I found on these two albums from what NPR’s Robin Hilton calls a “shoegaze” band was an entertaining combination of psych-pop and hard rock, which in stark contrast to my jam band chill prep, had me totally rocking out. While shoegaze emerged from the UK in the 1980s and 1990s, my feel for Froth went to the West Coast with a surfing music vibe, particularly found in the tracks “Lost My Mind” and “Oaxaca.”  While these tracks are from Froth’s 2014 album, this distinct multi-layered, beach sound continues into the tracks from 2015’s Bleak, albeit with a much stronger presence of rock, psych-pop, and grunge along the lines of Nirvana and Hole.

In listening to Froth, I was happily reminded of my love for the similarly sounding band — the Smith Westerns whose 2013 album Soft Will and 2014 BlackCat performance blew my mind. If you enjoy a band that plays with complexity and a tight balance between all its members, then definitely show up Monday at DC9 for the opener Froth.

Oh, by the way, the show at DC9 on Monday is free to members of Jukely, a new monthly subscription service that gives its members unlimited concerts from a slate of bands every month. Check it out and see what you think!

Froth
(Opening for The Drums)
DC9
Monday, Oct. 26
Doors @8:30pm
Free w/ Jukely Membership
All ages

Don’t Miss: TORRES (Opening for Garbage) @ 9:30 Club, 10/28 & 10/29/15

Jeremy Bailey
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Don’t Miss: TORRES (Opening for Garbage) @ 9:30 Club, 10/28 & 10/29/15

Torres_Shawn_Brackbill5

TORRES (aka Mackenzie Scott) joins Garbage at the 9:30 Club for two shows in October, on the 28th and 29th.

In anticipation of touring with Garbage, TORRES did a cover of their song “Special”, a subdued version that focuses more on her vocals than the accompanying melody and beats.

TORRES released her sophomore album, Sprinter, last May.

“Sprinter is the sound of an artist at the moment her vision snaps into startling focus.” — NPR Music, “NPR Music’s 25 Favorite Albums Of 2015 (So Far)”

The title song flows as a drawn-out, melancholy croon about losing faith.

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H6SIw30IOt8]“Sprinter”

Both shows are sold out, but check the resale sites, as you won’t want to miss it.

 

You can also buy a copy of Sprinter on iTunes, Amazon or Partisan’s website.
iTunes – http://ptsnre.co/SprinteriTunes
Amazon – http://amzn.com/B00UKO5EKW
Partisan Store – http://ptsnre.co/Sprinter

 

[soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/201955921″ params=”auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false&visual=true” width=”100%” height=”150″ iframe=”true” /]“Cowboy Guilt”

 

TORRES (Opening for Garbage)
9:30 Club
Wednesday, October 28 and Thursday, October 29
Doors @ 7:00pm
Sold Out
All ages

Music Park: Matt Pond PA @ Rock and Roll Hotel — 10/14/15

Jeremy Bailey
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Music Park: Matt Pond PA @ Rock and Roll Hotel — 10/14/15

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rclldxzn6Wo]”Take Me With You”

Matt Pond PA, fronted by Matt Pond from Pennsylvania, took the Rock and Roll Hotel crowd on a refreshingly honest musical journey last Wednesday, 10/14/15.

With a catalog of music spanning 17 years (their first album came out in 1998), they played 16 or so songs for the semi-full venue.

That there were many long-time fans in attendance was apparent when you turned in every direction to spot the many people singing along to their older songs.

In addition to the lead singer, Matt Pond, the band consists of his “best friend”, Chris Hansen, and other recurring members, including a bearded cellist. The band did enjoy beards, as three of the five members sported one. This speaks more to the expectation of a more folk or country sound, but the reality is there were elements of many musical genres, from guitar rock, chamber pop, post-punk and the aforementioned folk and country.

The band is currently touring for their 10th full-length album, The State of Gold, released in June. Their setlist was certainly supportive of the new material, as they played at least five songs from The State of Gold.

Many of the songs deal with loss, yet with a sense of exploring new challenges and hope on the horizon. With “Take Me With You”, the refrain “when we run away, let’s really run” leads to “It feels good to be gone.”

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Music Park: Jessie’s Girl @ Howard Theatre — 10/16/15

Mickey McCarter
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Music Park: Jessie’s Girl @ Howard Theatre — 10/16/15

IMG_9583

“Jessie is a band/
Yeah, I know it’s been a good 80s cover band.”

Usually closely held by denizens of New York City, Jessie’s Girl brought its brightly lit guitar solos to the Howard Theatre on Friday night to an ardent audience happy to dance their hearts out.

The seven-person ensemble rocks out with a wide variety of tunes from the ’80s, ranging from artists like Prince, Madonna, Cyndi Lauper, A-ha, Loverboy, and more. Friday, they bound onto the stage with intro music borrowed from “The Final Countdown” by Europe and then proceeded to dive headlong into kinetic tributes to musicians who defined a decade.

Early in the show, the band jumps into “Working for the Weekend” by Loverboy, encouraging the crowd to hop around the room, hands raised in celebration. Singers Jenna O’Gara and Mark Rinzel trade off vocal duties for the song, pumping up the shamelessly lyrical fun of the song’s mission statement: Take a few days off to party!

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Music Park: Lane 8 @ U Street Music Hall — 10/15/15

Mickey McCarter
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Music Park: Lane 8 @ U Street Music Hall — 10/15/15

Spring Awakening Music Festival, Chicago 6/13/2015
Lane 8 performs at the Spring Awakening Music Festival in Chicago on June 13, 2015 (Photo by Mary)

Deep house musician Lane 8 captivated a sold-out show at U Street Music Hall on Thursday night with his own house compositions and mixes of similar earworms from artists delivering complementary stately beats.

Lane 8 (born Daniel Goldstein) is an American ex-pat living in Germany with an affection for unhurried rhythms. He kicked off a DJ set shortly after midnight with his own “Undercover” featuring Matthew Dear. The sparkling synths of the song couples well with the hushed bluesy voice of Matthew Dear, who serves as vocalist for the number. The number drifts above the crowd in soothing, pleasing pulses.

The audience at U Street Music Hall fell into formation, facing Lane 8 from the DJ booth to the stage behind them, and several young dancers took the stage to express their approval with mannered, if occasionally frenetic, dancing.

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