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Music Park: Foals @ Lincoln Theatre — 12/16/15

By
Mickey McCarter
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Foals @ La Route Du Rock 2015
Yannis Philippakis of the Foals performs at La Route Du Rock in France on Aug. 16, 2015. (Photo by Alter1fo)

“This song is about what happens when Trump gets into office,” said the very Greek Yannis Philippakis, frontman of the UK band Foals, when introducing a new song, “A Knife in the Ocean.”

The shimmery psychedelic song is both a departure and an affirmation of previous songs by the Foals in that it is more slowly paced but still built upon remarkable guitarwork. The song, from the band’s fourth studio album What Went Down, is about losing things to time as if they were washed away by the sea. Apparently, Yannis believes we will lose many things of value if Donald Trump becomes US president.

Politics aside, Yannis and his three bandmates played a sold-out show at the Lincoln Theatre on Wednesday, Dec. 16, enrapturing an enthusiastic audience with new material like “Knife” that stacked up well with the Foals’ more familiar songs.

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Music Park: The Arcs @ 9:30 Club — 12/14/15

By
Jeremy Bailey
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The ArcsDan Auerbach of The Arcs (Photo Credit: Monelle Chiti)

When a band features two drummers, a keyboardist, a bassist, a chorus line from an all female mariachi band, and a lead singer who shreds his guitar in a state of estatic bliss, you know you’re in for something more. Something alive. Something visceral.

Dan Auerbach’s project, The Arcs, because it is clearly no one else’s, is raucous and funky and unique in ways that are not just about music, but about life. Living to the fullest. Not giving a shit what anyone else thinks. Crying out “this is who I am, thank you coming, but I’ll still enjoy what I do, whether you do or not.”

That The Arcs exist, is a testament to Auerbach’s need to create, to express himself passionately, to find outlets where he can bare his soul, and experiment musically outside of The Black Keys.

And The Black Keys are great. I’ve seen them three times already (unfortunately, most recently at the first Firefly Music Festival), so I was intrigued to discover what The Arcs were all about. What they represented in comparison and in contrast.

The Arcs still have Auerbach’s garage rock and blues sensibility, with his unmistakable voice. It would not be a stretch to mistake The Arcs’ sound for The Black Keys.

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Music Park: Parklife DC Top 10 Concerts of 2015 by Mickey

By
Mickey McCarter
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Steve Norman of Spandau Ballet was a star player at the 9:30 Club on April 28, 2015. (Photo by Joy Asico)

When I look back upon 2015, I certainly discovered my share of new favorite bands. But I have to confess, the best shows of the year were dominated by legacy bands returning to reclaim their pop thrones. And so the shows I am most excited about in 2015 were generally those shows where a genre-defining artist came back to DC and absolutely mastered their art.

But I’ll add this postscript: 2015 also was the year of the punk rock girl, as several notable bands reminded me of how much I like a woman’s voice over a bit of surf or rockabilly guitar. I’ll explain more after my official list of Parklife DC Top 10 Concerts of 2015.

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Music Park: Mariachi Flor de Toloache @ 9:30 Club — 12/14/15

By
Mickey McCarter
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Mariachi Music Hits Chennai!
Four members of Mariachi Flor de Toloache perform at the US Consulate in Chennai, India, on Nov. 13, 2013. (Photo courtesy US Consulate Chennai)

Four women of Mariachi Flor de Toloache brought brightness *and* efficiency to bear at the 9:30 Club Monday as openers for The Arcs — a new band from The Black Keys’ Dan Auerbach of which they also are members.

The all-female mariachi band from New York City toured in a slimmed down line-up (which can involve up to 13 rotating members) of four, including vocalist and violinist Mireya Ramos, vocalist and guitarist Shae Fiol, trumpet player Julie Acosta, and a fourth member who I am sadly unable to identify for you. The four talented women sang songs from their self-titled debut album, and they brought spunk and spirit to the stage as an effective warm-up for The Arcs — well, effectively for themselves as well as the four blended seamlessly into The Arcs, providing vocals, strings, and horns as members of the 10-person collective.

Band founder Mireya engaged the audience with style and grace, asking Spanish speakers in the sold-out crowd to identify themselves. Although there were many delightful “Woo’s!” in the house in response, those with mastery of only the English language like myself need not have worried. Flor de Toloache played universally appealing material, and they led the audience along in several singalongs with cool aplomb.

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Music Park: Ed Schrader’s Music Beat @ 9:30 Club — 12/10/15

By
Mickey McCarter
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EdSchradersMusicBeat3
Ed Schrader and Devlin Rice of Ed Schrader’s Music Beat (Photo courtesy Infinity Cat Recordings)

Ed Schrader was switched on.

“I wanna give it up for Stoli,” he proclaimed at the 9:30 Club Thursday night, raising his glass. He pauses for a beat. “Oh, I mean Crystal Geyser.”

As he continued to have fun with things he’s “not supposed to do,” he flipped off his shirt, noting he was stopped from doing so in Texas, and introduced “a song about joining the military.”

Ed Schrader and his partner in crime Devlin Rice form Ed Schrader’s Music Beat, and the band were in DC to open for hometown heroes Ex Hex. With the lively pace of a human metronome, Ed dove into his songs with gusto, playing 90 second bursts of punk songs that were distinguished by their surprisingly engaging rhythms.

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Around Town: Grand Opening @ Lab 1270 – 12/10/15

By
Mickey McCarter
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Exterior Image - LAB 1270 at Union Market
Outside Lab 1270 (Photo by Joy Asico)

You know how you drive past those garage bays and warehouses when you’re arriving at Union Market? Well, now the market has given you a reason to stop by and investigate one of those spaces instead of driving past them.

Several startup retailers have taken up residence in Lab 1270 (1270 5th St. NE, DC), a fashion incubator of sorts, offering various clothing and lifestyle items for those seeking to reinvigorate their style.

For example, during a Thursday grand opening party, my companion Yasmin was taken by the vibrant colors and general selection at Ron David, a retailer that occupied a prime space near the front of the incubator space. Rather than simply offering the standard DC range of conservative winter wear, Ron David had an array of livelier colors and styles that caught her eye. For more info on Ron David’s offerings, visit their website at http://shoprondavid.com.

Shoppers browse Ron David at Lab 1270 in Union Market by Joy Asico
Shoppers browse Ron David at Lab 1270 in Union Market. (Photo by Joy Asico)

After browsing some clothes, we were pleasantly surprised to find a bar in the next space. But this was no ordinary bar — it was a kumbucha bar. And we were pleased to sample some refreshment from Craft Kombucha as we continued to explore the area around us.

The vendors inside Lab 1270 right now are only committed to be there through February 2016. They include, in alphabetical order, Caryn Cramer, Craft Kombucha, Dunn Lewis MC, Guerilla Vending, Lisa Shirk, Living Threads, Master Williams, Niko+Ava, Ron David, S3 Active, South Block Juice, Thursday Boot Co., and Time Off, among others.

The space also currently houses an art installation known as #ACreativeDC, and it is planning dinner events, yoga classes, and other activities through the winter. Specifically for the holidays, Salt & Sundry and photographer Emma McAlary will offer portrait sessions at Lab 1270 as well. Others will provide gift wrapping and wreath and garland workshops for all of your holiday needs.

Lab 1270 is now open Thursday through Sunday every week from 10am-4pm.

For more information on Lab 1270 and its vendors, visit http://www.unionmarketdc.com/lab1270.

Thursday Boot Co at LAB 1270 at Union Market
Thursday Boot Co. makes handcrafted boots to order. (Photo by Joy Asico)

Don’t Miss: The Arcs @ 9:30 Club, 12/14 & 12/15/15

By
Jeremy Bailey
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thearcs_officialThe Arcs (Photo Credit: thearcs.com)

The Arcs come to the 9:30 Club for two shows, December 14 and 15th, touring in support of their first album, Yours, Dreamily,.

The band is composed of Dan Auerbach, as a side-project of the Black Keys, on lead vocals (and many other instruments) with a slew of other members, like Leon Michels, Nick Movshon, Homer Steimweiss, Richard Swift and Kenny Vaughan. The ladies from Flor de Toloache also contribute. No less than four members contribute to drums and percussion, so the R in their brand of R&B is well established.

“Outta My Mind” reminds me of the Black Keys’ energetic garage rock, with Dan’s unmistakable voice a powerful force beyond the song. It also hints at something psychedelic, as do many of the songs on their first album.
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k84Fpso2cBY]

 

“Stay In My Corner” is a slow, fuzzy jam that soulfully pleads for two people to stay together and fight for each other.
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EHCO6CRTLT8]

 

Tonight’s show is sold out (Editor’s correction: There are still tickets available for December 14 here), but there are tickets available for the Tuesday, December 15 show. Find them here.

 

The Arcs
w/ Mariachi Flor de Toloache (see our preview here)
9:30 Club
Monday, December 14
Tuesday, December 15
Doors @ 7:00pm
$40
All ages

Music Park: Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings @ The Lincoln Theatre – 12/8/15

By
Mathew Harkins
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Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings perform in May, 2014 (Photo by wcmickle)

You haven’t seen Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings until you’ve seen Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings. By which I mean that you’ve heard the music and the voice, and seen some videos or clips of live shows, but that isn’t really seeing her. Because to see Sharon Jones is to feel her. The energy, the presence, the command that she brings into a room. And I’m not speaking of just any room, but a sold out, standing room only night at The Lincoln Theatre in Washington, DC.

This past Tuesday marked one of just two live performance scheduled for this holiday season and Jones brought a dynamic collection of originals, holiday standards, and holiday originals, which were released on her first holiday album, It’s a Holiday Soul Party. The audience hung on every soulful word she sang and every tight, clean note that The Dap-Kings played.

[soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/4252841″ params=”auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false&visual=true” width=”100%” height=”450″ iframe=”true” /] 

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Don’t Miss: ShamrockFest @ RFK Stadium, 3/12/16

By
Mickey McCarter
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0

Scythian (1)
Scythian perform in Dublin, Ohio, on Aug. 4, 2014. (Photo by Paul and Cathy)

We know that Saint Patrick’s Day is a little over four months away yet, but given how warm it is this DC weekend, it’s hard not to think of that portal to Spring that comes with waves of green.

And so it is that exactly three months from tomorrow, on March 12, 2016, you will have an opportunity to celebrate with ShamrockFest, returning again to the grounds of RFK Stadium.

As announced recently, ShamrockFest will feature headliners Dropkick Murphys and Flogging Molly as well as Street Dogs, Scythian, Go Go Gadjet, Fighting Jamesons, and more than 25 additional bands, DJs, and performers across six stages.

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Tonight! Ex Hex @ 9:30 Club – Go!

By
Mickey McCarter
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0

exhex_01
Laura Harris, Betsy Wright, and Mary Timony of Ex Hex. (Photo courtesy Merge Records)

Somehow in mid-’90s, friends of mine were clued into some good female-fronted indie rock bands — quite a few of them from Boston (including the likes of the Blake Babies and Belly).

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