Culture Club (Photo courtesy the band)
Grammy Award winners Boy George & Culture Club return to the Filene Center at Wolf Trap on Thursday, Sept. 1! And they appear with their hard-charging new wave contemporaries The English Beat!
Ticket Giveaway: Flogging Molly and The Interrupters @ The Anthem, 6/22/22
Flogging Molly (Photo by Katie Hovland)
Legendary Celtic punk band Flogging Molly return with their first new album in five years, Anthem (Sept. 9, Rise Records), a collection that finds the raucous Los Angeles-by-way-of-Dublin outfit reunited with Swagger and Drunken Lullabies engineer Steve Albini. In support of the album Anthem, Flogging Molly perform with The Interrupters at The Anthem on Wednesday, June 22!
You can win tickets to go to the show with Parklife DC.
Live Review: Jeff Rosenstock @ Black Cat — 12/1/21
Jeff Rosenstock leads his band during a performance at Black Cat on Dec. 1, 2021. (Photo by Casey Vock)
If a live performance is measured in collective caloric burn, then a Jeff Rosenstock show should be considered one of this country’s most effective and lasting workouts.
A widely respected hero among DIY mavens for his work as the leader of the ska band The Arrogant Sons of Bitches and the punk outfit Bomb The Music Industry!, Rosenstock is an explosive, fetching multi-instrumentalist with astonishing talents and a bristling, assiduous spirit that erupts from his recorded work and, as he showed at last week in the nation’s capital at Black Cat, fuels his live performances too.
Live Review: Spafford @ 9:30 Club — 2/5/20
Spafford performs at 9:30 Club on Feb. 5, 2020. (Photo by Mark Caicedo)
One of the many pleasures of blogging for Parklife DC is getting exposed to myriad types of music throughout the DC metro area. Whether it’s experiencing a new local player putting her/ his voice out there in the cacophony of great area performers or seeing established national touring bands with huge loyal followings, the thrill of documenting live music (to my mind, its purest form) is indeed a privilege. For someone like me, with a foot in the past and one stepping into the future, I get to tread a musical path that stretches out in many directions.
Preview: Spafford @ 9:30 Club, 2/5/20
Spafford (Photo courtesy Big Hassle)
Spafford have embarked on a Winter 2020 headline tour, and the jam band performs at 9:30 Club on Wednesday, Feb 5.
Live Review: The Fuss @ 9:30 Club — 12/28/19
The Fuss performs at 9:30 Club on Dec. 28, 2019. (Photo by Mickey McCarter)
The Fuss already had the party started by the time the reggae band hit “Red Hot Trainwreck” from their latest album at 9:30 Club recently. But the swinging call-and-response tune took their set to another level when the octet opened The Pietasters for the DC ska legend’s annual holiday season hometown show.
Live Review: The Pietasters @ 9:30 Club — 12/28/19
The Pietasters perform at 9:30 Club on Dec. 28, 2019. (Photo by Mickey McCarter)
Should ever you feel down during the holidays, get yourself to The Pietasters’ annual holiday show at 9:30 Club. Any Pietasters show is a boisterous, singalong good time, but the hometown holiday edition always seems to have a little bit more meaning.
2019 went skanking out the door as frontman Stephen Jackson, with the good looks of Jon Hamm and showmanship that recalled the halcyon days of the Rat Pack, led his merry ska collective through an hour of well-regarded favorites as the last band in a four-band bill at 9:30 Club recently.
Ticket Giveaway: The Pietasters @ 9:30 Club, 12/28/19
The Pietasters (Photo courtesy the artist)
It’s the Annual Pie Party, and you’re invited! That’s right — ska collective The Pietasters take over 9:30 Club once a year, and this year, Stephen Jackson and company throw a big ol’ party on Saturday, Dec. 28. You can win tickets to go with Parklife DC.
Snapshots: Reel Big Fish @ The Fillmore Silver Spring — 6/25/19
Reel Big Fish frontman Aaron Barrett poses for the camera during a performance at The Fillmore Silver Spring, June 25, 2019. (Photo by Ari Strauss)
Reel Big Fish played to a packed house recently at The Fillmore Silver Spring. The southern California ska-punk band co-headlined a show with Texas-based Bowling for Soup.
Live Review: The Specials @ The Fillmore Silver Spring — 6/10/19
Lynval Golding fronts The Specials at The Fillmore Silver Spring on June 10, 2019. (Photos by Jason Nicholson; Words by Mickey McCarter)
There is a certain pleasure in watching seasoned masters of any genre showcase their chops. And so it was that the masters of ska in The Specials returned to The Fillmore Silver Spring recently, stabilized by three experienced musicians and rejuvenated by a UK #1 hit record.