Vocalist/guitarist John Rzeznik and bassist Robby Takac are best known as the Goo Goo Dolls. As a follow-up to 2016’s Boxes, their 11th studio album, the duo released You Should Be Happy, a five-song EP, physically on June 9 (after a May 12 digital release) via Warner Bros. Records.
John and Robby have hit the road for their Long Way Home headlining tour, accompanied by touring bandmates Brad Fernquist (guitar), Korel Tunador (keyboards), and Craig Macintyre (drums). The tour stops at Wolf Trap in Vienna, Virginia, on Tuesday, Aug. 8.
Steve Jackson of The Pietasters keeps the party going at the 9:30 Club on Friday, Dec. 23.
Christmas came early for the rude boys and girls of DC as The Pietasters, our city’s terrific #1 ska band, took to the 9:30 Club for a holiday show that proved a jubilant celebration of the storied band’s catalog.
Chief Pietaster Steve Jackson and his motley crew were in fine shape indeed for a stomping singalong of their tunes, along with a few favorite cover songs. The Pietasters shared a full house that wasn’t afraid to mosh with a busy bill that included Loving Paupers, Hub City Stompers, and Mephiskapheles -– with the support bands occasionally leaping into The Pietasters’ set to lend their voices to the chorus.
Northern California punk rockers AFI return with a 10th studio album on Jan. 20 via Concord Music Group. The self-titled album is alternatively titled the “Blood Album” because of its cover artwork (featuring drops of blood), and it will include four limited vinyl color variants matching the four blood types (A | O | B | AB), according to a press release from the band.
A week ago, AFI released a video for “White Offerings” from the Blood Album. Watch the official music video on YouTube:
Vocalist Davey Havok, guitarist Jade Puget, bassist Hunter Burgan, and drummer Adam Carson have been going strong since their sixth studio album, Sing the Sorrow, raised their national profile in 2003. The gents certainly have their own sound derived from hardcore punk, but they are first and foremost rock-n-rollers who put on a lively show.
Davey said AFI developed the Blood Album without an initial concept, noting, “No, that’s never really the case for us. We sit down and we begin writing and whichever direction the writing leads us, we follow, and if something comes out of us that we feel is too familiar, we generally don’t gravitate towards it, and conversely, when we’re writing something that comes out that is fresh and different for us within the context of AFI, we generally go in that direction, and that leads us to different places and different songs, and that was the case with the ‘Blood Record.'”
Katie Alice Greer performs as K A G at Comet Ping Pong on Dec. 1, 2016.
Katie Alice Greer stood focused on her electronic rig Thursday night at Comet Ping Pong, presenting quite a contrast to her explosive persona as lead vocalist of Priests.
Rather than wailing at the top of her lungs as DC metro’s resident punk banshee, Katie instead sang minimally over droning beats, often directing her voice into an old telephone receiver plugged into her gear. In so doing, Katie made her cassette release party as solo project K A G a far cry from her frenetic kinetics in Priests.
It’s officially safe to talk about Christmas after Thanksgiving, right? No matter — it’s always a good idea to talk about The Pietasters. And The Pietasters have an upcoming Christmas show at the 9:30 Club on Friday, Dec. 23.
You’ll want to be there to skank the night away with the (currently) nine-man band under their founder Stephen Jackson, who started The Pietasters back in 1990! Although The Pietasters released their last studio album, All Day, back in 2007 on their own Indication Records, they are still a strong touring act, very much ready to blow you away with their personal blend of ska, rocksteady, soul, and punk rock.
Watch the official music video for “Out All Night,” a popular concert staple from the 1998 album Willis, by The Pietasters:
Parklife DC is giving away a pair of tickets to see The Pietasters in their Christmas show at the 9:30 Club. To win these tickets, leave a comment on this blog. You can leave any comment, but we would like to hear your favorite song by The Pietasters.
For the rules of this giveaway–
Comments will be closed at 5pm on Friday, and a winner will be randomly selected. The winner will be notified by email. The winner must respond to our email within 24 hours, or they will forfeit their tickets and we will pick another winner. We will email you instructions on claiming your ticket. Good luck!
Peter Hook performs at the Howard Theatre on Wednesday, Nov. 23. (Photo by Paivi)
Peter Hook, former bassist for Joy Division and New Order, is willing to bet that we are not soon to forget that he contributed significantly to the sound of both bands. If Hooky were a gambling man, this gambit paid off well for him indeed, as he wrapped up a successful US tour of tracks found on the Substance compilations by both bands — a tour where many stops sold out and a local visit to the Howard Theatre last Wednesday drew a very full house indeed.
Sshh Liguz sings while Zak Starkey plays guitar in the background and Glen Matlock plays bass in the foreground at the Roxy Hotel in New York City on Oct. 18, 2016. (Photo by Mickey McCarter)
Sshh Liguz, she a blonde Australian fury, and Zak Starkey, he the famous musician son of famous musician Ringo Starr, brought their album of covers to the Roxy Hotel in New York City to party down. In doing so, SSHH made a big impression on an elegant if tiny stage in their debut US show in New York City last week, playing a performance for charity Teen Cancer America.
SSHH developed a covers album, titled Issues, with support from PledgeMusic, and it consists of 11 tracks ranging from “Problems” by The Sex Pistols to “All the Young Dudes” by Mott the Hoople to “Private Life” by The Pretenders. (You can support the album or buy a copy here!)
SSHH is Sshh Liguz and Zak Starkey. (Photo courtesy Girlie Action Media & Marketing)
Zak Starkey is a busy man. As drummer for The Who (since 1994), he’s been on a long tour with the band to mark its 50th anniversary over the past couple of years. Not one to rest on his laurels, the son of Ringo Starr has a newer group of his own called SSHH, and he will visit New York City with the band on Tuesday, Oct. 18.
SSHH gets its name from Zak’s partner in the group, Australian singer Sshh Liguz. The duo has completed a covers album called Issues, which they are funding via a PledgeMusic campaign. (You can support it online here.)
Dave Wakeling performs with The English Beat at the 9:30 Club on Tuesday, Oct. 11, 2016. (Photo by Mickey McCarter)
“This song has been used by two presidential campaigns,” Dave Wakeling said of his cover of “I’ll Take You There” by The Staple Sisters, “and both presidents served two terms! So if you fancy being president of America, it appears that I’m your man! I’ll take you there!”
The number, of course, was used by the presidential campaigns of both Bill Clinton and Barack Obama, but Dave wasn’t overtly political in his appearance at the 9:30 Club on Tuesday, Oct. 11. He and The English Beat got down to performing the 1994 version of “I’ll Take You There,” recorded by Dave’s former band General Public, with vigor.
