Bat Fangs (Photo courtesy Don Giovanni Records)
Betsy Wright is the bassist for DC power pop trio Ex Hex. Laura King is drummer for North Carolina garage rockers Flesh Wounds. Together, they are also Bat Fangs! The band releases its debut self-titled album on Friday, Feb. 2 via Don Giovanni Records. One week later, Sasha Lord presents Bat Fangs playing that new album at Comet Ping Pong on Friday, Feb. 9!
Silo Halo (Photo by Adam de Boer and Julie Goett)
Etxe Records, named for the word for “shelter” or “home” in Basque, celebrates its 10th anniversary in 2018. To mark the occasion, the label released Etxe Records at 10 Years: A Compilation on Thursday, Jan. 18. Bands from Etxe Records also will perform in a Etxe Records 10th Anniversary Showcase at Capital Fringe (Logan Fringe Arts Space, 1358 Florida Ave. NE, DC) on Saturday, Jan. 20.
To explore the label and its bands in its 10th year, Parklife DC chatted via email with Chris Goett of Silo Halo and Avy Mallik of Near Northeast, the first of whom also is a co-founder of Etxe Records. Near Northeast and Silo Halo will be joined by fellow labelmates The Red Fetish and Teething Veils for the anniversary showcase concert.
Philip Basnight fronts Broke Royals at Union Stage on Dec. 28, 2017. (Photo by Mickey McCarter)
Time is very important to Broke Royals, the DC Americana-flavored power pop band founded by Philip Basnight and Colin Cross. Their debut single, released in May 2014, was called “About Time,” an ode of encouragement dedicated to taking time to care for yourself.
Broke Royals (Photo by Sound Snap Photography)
DC duo Broke Royals released their self-titled debut album on Nov. 17. The gents will present its songs live in an official album release show at the new Union Stage on Thursday, Dec. 28.
Nefra Faltas fronts Humble Fire at Rock and Roll Hotel on Friday, Aug. 11, 2017. (Photo by Mark Caicedo)
If variety is the spice of life, the Rock and Roll Hotel served up a flavorful mix of D.C. musical dishes this past Friday, Aug. 11.
As the appetizer, Near Northeast opened the evening’s fare with its eclectic mix of Americana-, jazz- and rock-inflected melodies. Frenemies’ complex power pop felt like we were having dessert first. Nuex (pronounced “new”) then took the stage and reset the table with its soulful electronic pop. The main course arrived on stage with Humble Fire, celebrating the release of its newest album, Builder.
Humble Fire (Photo by Kate Warren)
On Friday, Humble Fire released their second album Builder, and they are heading to Rock and Roll Hotel for an album release show on Friday, Aug. 11.
Helium (Photo by James Smolka)
Mary Timony, DC’s top guitar ace, first became an indie rock darling in the ‘90s with her Boston-based band Helium, which dabbled in well-written noise pop. Twenty years after the band’s second and last album, Matador Records last month reissued Helium’s records and a new compilation — Ends with And, a collection of singles and other tracks.
To mark the occasion, Mary herself is hitting the road to celebrate the music of Helium in a short tour beginning with a date at the Rock and Roll Hotel on Tuesday, June 6. You still have a chance to buy tickets!
