Parklife DC

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April 27, 2016

Joaquin Pastor of James Supercave (Photo courtesy Riot Act Media)

We at Parklife DC have spent the last few days listening to the debut album by James Supercave — an album called Better Strange published via Fairfax Recordings earlier this year. It’s a great psychedelic dance record, so I was pleased to catch up with James Supercave vocalist Joaquin Pastor to ask him about the making of the record.

James Supercave are on tour in support of the album, and they are opening for funky psych duo Wild Belle at the Black Cat on Sunday, May 1. Tickets are available online!

Meanwhile, it’s worth mentioning that James Supercave have two dates coming up in New York City as well — a sold-out show with Wild Belle at Music Hall of Williamsburg and a date of their own. If you’re in Brooklyn, catch James Supercave headlining on Friday, April 29, at Our Wicked Lady (153 Morgan Ave., Brooklyn, NY). (At $5/$7, that’s a steal.)

I chatted with Joaquin about his band’s sound, the debut record, and David Bowie.

Mickey McCarter: How’s the tour going?

Joaquin Pastor: It’s going well! We just played Pittsburgh, and we are finally starting to kick. It’s our third night with Wild Belle, who are fantastic. It’s going to be a real pleasure to watch them over the next month.

Music Park: AURORA @ U Street Music Hall — 4/21/16

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April 26, 2016

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Aurora performs live at U Street Music Hall on Thursday, April 21. (Photo by Mickey McCarter)

Aurora Aksnes is a powerfully expressive performer.

Although petite in size, the Norwegian folk popstar, who goes by only her first name, has a big voice that fits her ambitious songs of flight or fight. She also has a habit of physically moving where her music takes her. This somewhat off-kilter acting out of her own words and melodies might readily draw some comparisons to her fellow Scandinavian artist Bjork.

Don’t Miss: Kraftwerk @ Strathmore Music Center, 9/3/16

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April 25, 2016

Kraftwerk in performance (Photo by Peter Boettcher)

The legendary synth pioneers Kraftwerk are returning to the DC metro area to launch a tour at the Strathmore Music Center on Saturday, Sept. 3.

Ralf Hütter, Henning Schmitz, Fritz Hilpert and Falk Grieffenhagen witll return with their Kraftwerk 3-D Concert, which they launched in the United States in 2014, including a previous stop at the 9:30 Club.

Now brought to you by IMP Productions, the Kraftwerk tour reignites with the German synthpop band’s groundbreaking compositions coupled with their performance art. It’s “gesamtkunstwerk” – a total work of art, as they say in German. Tickets for the Strathmore show go on sale Friday, April 29, at 10am!

Watch “The Robots” by Kraftwerk in an official 2013 retrospective video on YouTube:

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i-R7t-ihoT4]

In 2014, Kraftwerk toured a show concert series THE CATALOGUE – 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 with stops in US cities like New York City. Said Jon Pareles of the New York Times of the NYC United Palace Theatre show: “Kraftwerk has billed itself as the man-machine, and its songs are equally enthralled and wary of the emotionless precision and pervasive reach of computers, media, high-speed transportation and other inventions with unintended consequences. ‘Business, Numbers, Money, People,’ flashed in midair in ‘Computer World,’ a song released in 1981 that was tersely prescient about big data and surveillance.”

Ralf and Florian Schneider founded Kraftwerk in Germany in 1970, setting up their famous electronic Kling Klang Studio in Düsseldorf, where they conceived and produced all Kraftwerk albums. By the mid-‘70s, the band were hailed as innovators influencing bands across many genres of music globally. When I saw Kraftwerk at Moogfest 2014 in Asheville, NC, I wrote, “Although the concert offered many highlights, I was particularly pleased with a stretch of songs from my favorite Kraftwerk album, The Man-Machine. Released in 1978, the album was certainly among the more pop offerings put forth by Kraftwerk, as I believe at the time they were riding the tide of a generation of musicians they themselves had influenced.”

Don’t miss out on this opportunity to see Kraftwerk in action.

Kraftwerk
Music Center at Strathmore
Saturday, Sept. 3
Doors @6:30pm
$68-88
All ages

Grapevine: Watch Game of Thrones @ Little Miss Whiskeys on Sundays

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Jeremy Bailey

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April 25, 2016

Eater DC highlights the Game of Thrones Watch Parties:

What: Game of Thrones fans rejoice that watch parties have returned. Watch it on the big screen upstairs. There is a one drink minimum and seating is first come first serve.

When: Sundays at 8:00-11:00pm

Where: Little Miss Whiskey’s Golden Dollar, 1104 H St. NE

Winter is coming. #housestark

Don’t Miss: James Supercave @ Black Cat, 5/1/16

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April 25, 2016

Tickets are available online.

James Supercave (Photo courtesy the band)

California neo-psych trio James Supercave have come zipping back with a debut full-length album, Better Strange, released in February on Fairfax Recordings.

Vocalist Joaquin Pastor, keyboardist Patrick Logothetti and guitarist Andres Villalobos have crafted a dynamic, synthy album that sneaks up on you fast and then runs frenetically around you in hypnotic loops. The band is touring in support of the new album with a stop at the Black Cat on Sunday, May 1, opening for Wild Belle.

James Supercave deal with themes of finding love and finding yourself while sounding a bit like MGMT or occasionally The Klaxons, although they definitely have their own distinct personality.

Watch the official music video for “The Right Thing” by James Supercave online at YouTube (be warned: rather NSFW due to nudity):

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gfKYg-9MCYA]

As we mentioned, James Supercave are opening for Wild Belle, who have a similar psychedelic vibe in their music, including a new album Dreamland. The two bands should make for a good pair!

James Supercave
(Opening for Wild Belle)
Black Cat
Sunday, May 1
Doors @7:30pm
$15
All ages

Sports Park: The Nationals’ Homestand vs. the Twins & Phillies, 4/22-28/16

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Jeremy Bailey

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April 22, 2016

Bryce Harper, the best in the game! (Eight home runs after 15 games) (Bryce pictured against the Baltimore Orioles at Oriole Park at Camden Yards on July 12, 2015, in Baltimore, Md. — Photo by Keith Allison)

Your Nationals are flying high to start the 2016 campaign. At 11-4, they are in first place in the NL East Division by 3-1/2 games over the Mets.

Stephen Strasburg already has three wins and 21 strikeouts, while Joe Ross has started with a blazing 0.54 ERA after three starts.

This weekend the Nats take on the Twins. On Saturday there is the first Pups in Park (bring your dog!) sponsored by Budweiser (their new beer partner).

Music Park: Operators @ DC9 — 4/19/16

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April 21, 2016

Devojka and Dan Boeckner of Operators perform at DC9 on Tuesday, April 19, 2016. (Photo by Mickey McCarter)

“The US Department of Homeland Security, the DC Department of Public Works, and you have all cooperated to make tonight happen,” commented Dan Boeckner from the stage of DC9.

Dan was referring to two thwarted attempted by his band Operators to perform at DC9 in the past two years –- visa issues stymied the band’s visit from Canada once and a watermain break closed DC9 on another occasion.

But if Dan were worried about a third strike against Operators at DC9, he need not have. The new wave quartet hit a smash home run in a sold-out show on Tuesday night as they delighted and entranced their crowd, which was eating out of their hands. Operators performed a stellar live show in part because they have boatloads of talent and charisma. Everyone in the room pressed as far forward to the stage in earnest anticipation as to what would come next from the synthpop band.

RIP, Prince

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April 21, 2016

Prince performs at the Warner Theatre in DC on June 14, 2015. (Photo by Karrah Kobus / NPG Records)

We at Parklife DC are shocked and saddened to hear of the passing of the legendary musician Prince, who was found dead today at his Paisley Park studio complex in Minnesota.

Reportedly, Prince was hospitalized with the flu a few days ago. You can read the latest on the situation via the Associated Press.

Last year, I saw Prince twice — once on my birthday weekend at Warner Theater in DC on June 14, and prior to that at Royal Farms Arena for the Rally 4 Peace concert in Baltimore last May.

I ranked the DC show as my #1 concert of 2015, describing it as follows:

“Soon into a 2.5 hour set, Prince reached down into the audience and grabbed the hand of my favorite lady Yasmin –- and then Prince brought her up out of the front row and ONTO STAGE TO DANCE WITH HIM. Yasmin kicked off her shoes and danced up there with Prince for three songs or so as he sang through ‘U Got the Look,’ ‘Shake!,’ and ‘Cool’ (covering the Time).

If that wasn’t enough to set the night on fire, Stevie Wonder snuck onto stage during our late-night show at the Warner Theatre to take over keyboards at some point, perhaps around the time of ‘Controversy,’ the title track to the amazing Prince album from 1981. Stevie stayed on stage for the strongest segment of Sunday’s late show, rolling from ‘Controversy’ to ‘1999’ to ‘Little Red Corvette.’ Prince himself was full of delicious swagger, and the audience ate it up. The man often took center stage during his performances, dancing up a funky two-step or thrashing away on his guitar while strident before his microphone. He was in good form, and he sounded fantastic and looked as fit as fuck.”

We loved your music, Prince, and we loved how you broke barriers from soul to funk to R&B to new wave. Bless you, my friend.

Don’t Miss: Born Ruffians @ Rock and Roll Hotel, 5/3/16

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April 21, 2016