It was appropriate that The Third Mind’s recent appearance came at The Hamilton Live, which hosts a number of Grateful Dead-related events. The psychedelic supergroup even finished their main set with a cover of the Dead’s “Dark Star,” rounding out a fine evening of highly improvisational, eclectic, and supremely skilled musicianship.
It was an exceptional night of music when Modest Mouse and Built to Spill came to The Anthem to play a fantastic set of ’90s-era indie music. Seeing both sensational ’90s bands on the same night at a great venue such as The Anthem made the show one of the best of the year for the DC metropolitan area! The show was exactly what the doctor ordered. If you get the chance to see this tour, don’t miss out.
Andy Bell, famed as the frontman for synth dance duo Erasure, recently sang and twirled the night away in the first of two DC appearances at the Lincoln Theatre.
On his first-ever solo North American tour, the English chanteur ostensibly promoted Ten Crowns, his third solo album, released earlier this year. But as witnessed by a very happy crowd, Andy delivered a big dose of Erasure songs also.
Nearly five years after the release of Sci-Fi Sky, Lebanon Hanover has produced your favorite soundtrack for a visit in a psychiatry clinic: Asylum Lullabies.
The European darkwave duo have embarked on a North American tour that includes a local show at Black Cat on Wednesday, Oct. 22.
Chris Thile recently turned the Strathmore Music Center into a mandolin cathedral, delivering a solo set that balanced brainy precision with giddy playfulness. Working alone on a spare stage, he toggled between dazzling counterpoint and breezy storytelling, building an arc that felt equal parts recital and front-porch hang.
Nalinee Darmrong was there to photograph the show for this Snapshots photo essay!
Hiss Golden Messenger is sometimes labeled as a jam band, comparable, in some ways to the Americana and country-rock of the Grateful Dead. In his recent solo acoustic appearance at The Barns at Wolf Trap, Mike Taylor — the sole constant member, frontman, singer, and lyricist for the band — showed off a different side of his artistry, one that emphasized his songwriting, which is more similar to classic singer-songwriters like Bob Dylan, Nick Drake, and Joni Mitchell.
From the moment the Steve Morse Band took the stage, the air was charged with purpose and precision at Rams Head on Stage. Guitar virtuosic front-man Steve Morse, flanked by bassist Dave LaRue and drummer Van Romaine, immediately dove into a set deep with technical mastery and dynamic interplay. The night opened with a surge of energy that set the tone — rapid-fire riffs, fluid changes, and a crowd clearly primed for the genre-bending journey ahead.
Steve Satzberg was there to photograph the show for this Snapshots photo essay.
The Psychedelic Furs are true road warriors, touring through the Washington, DC, area on practically an annual basis. In recent years, they have paired with Squeeze and the Jesus and Mary Chain in a reach for larger spaces and bigger crowds. In their most recent visit to The Anthem in DC, they struck a platinum pairing as they invited the pioneering Gary Numan to open for them.
The audience totally ate it up, and I have rarely seen so many people so thoroughly engaged by both acts on the bill as I did for The Furs and Mr. Numan.
The Cult Bring Their Brand of Mysticism to the Warner Theater
Story and photos by Mike Sprouse / Odd Rocker Photography
The Warner Theater in downtown DC is one of those grand old venues that feels alive, the air thick with echoes of decades-old applause and cigarette ghosts.
When The Cult rolled through town recently, it felt like the place had been waiting for them. The band took the stage to a low rumble of anticipation, Ian Astbury appeared first, tambourine in hand, looking more like a rock-and-roll mystic than a frontman. Billy Duffy followed, all in black, Gretsch guitar gleaming under the lights. No introductions, no buildup, just that first haunting riff of “Ghost Dance,” and suddenly the room was theirs.
I would be hard pressed to come up with a band I have listened to more in the last five years than Dan Bejar’s Destroyer. As I’ve written before, his March 2020 gig at the Black Cat was the last thing I did before the country shut down for Covid — and it impressed and transfixed me so much that I have been basically listening to his new and old material pretty much non-stop.
I’ve seen Bejar a few times since that fateful gig, including a 2024 gig at Union Stage and twice earlier this year opening for Father John Misty, including the show at The Anthem. But those gigs were all stripped down affairs, either as a duo with guitarist David Carswell or a trio with Carswell and drummer (and acting keyboardist) Joshua Wells. But this time, I would finally get to see a full band performance, which included the aforementioned Carswell and Wells in addition to guitarist Nic Bragg, bassist Brian Betancourt, trumpet player JP Carter, and keyboardist Ted Bois.
