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Asheville-based group Town Mountain will perform in DC at The Hamilton Live on Oct. 23. Since their inception over a decade ago, Town Mountain has built a reputation for their rowdy, energetic performances, a testament to each member’s refined musicianship. They’ve continued to make waves in both the studio and the live music circuit; from holding spots on the Billboard Bluegrass and Americana Radio charts for weeks to appearing on the legendary Grand Ole Opry stage multiple times.
The Midnight North perform at The Hamilton Live on Oct. 7, 2021. (Photo by Mark Caicedo)
After a two-year absence, Midnight North recently made a much-anticipated return to the DC area, even briefly renaming The Hamilton on the strength of the two “Graham(e)” bandmembers. The show featured an appearance by Phil Lesh, beloved Grateful Dead bassist and father of Midnight North guitarist and founder, Grahame Lesh. For two-plus hours, the “Gramilton” felt like an extended family reunion with fans from differing generations and bands reuniting after a too-long pandemic hiatus.
Red Wanting Blue frontman Scott Terry performing at The Hamilton Live, Sept. 17, 2021. (Photo by Ari Strauss)
Red Wanting Blue, the heartland rock band from Columbus, OH, kicked off its “25 and Still Alive,” tour on September 17th with a stop at DC’s Hamilton Live. Parklife DC’s Ari Strauss had an opportunity to interview RWB lead singer, Scott Terry prior to the tour opener.
Read Ari’s interview with Red Wanting Blue lead singer, Scott Terry HERE.
The Nth Power (Photo courtesy Margaret Willard)
Formed during an impromptu late-night jam during the 2012 New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival, The Nth Power believes in music as a higher power. The trio performs at The Hamilton Live on Saturday, Sept. 18!
Red Wanting Blue frontman, Scott Terry, performing at City Winery DC, June 19, 2018. (Photo by Ari Strauss)
Red Wanting Blue will kick off its “25 and Still Alive” fall tour at The Hamilton Live this Friday Sept. 17. Before the show, lead singer Scott Terry spoke with Ari Strauss about reaching the band’s 25th anniversary, the upcoming tour, and the inherent philosophies in appreciating live and studio albums.
Ari had the opportunity to interview Scott once before in April 2020, and that is referenced in the dialog below. Red Wanting Blue was scheduled to perform at City Winery DC later that year but, of course, COVID-19 made that impossible.
Casie Blanton (Photo by Jason Albus)
Carsie Blanton’s show at The Hamilton Live on was 18 months in the making. On Friday evening, she finally made it to the venue, and had a whole new album of songs, Love & Rage, to share with the audience. The title of the album, she told the audience, is a statement of purpose, a summation of the two themes that run through her work.
Willie Nile (Photos by Cristina Arrigoni)
Willie Nile is a man all about New York City, his longtime home. The man about town was in the process of releasing an album about New York City, titled New York at Night, when the COVID-19 pandemic struck the world and put things on hold.
In May 2020, Willie released that album. Not long before he did so, he chatted with Parklife DC’s Mark Engleson. Now, Willie is back with another album about the place he loves to live — The Day the Earth Stood Still, his 14th studio album, which was released on Aug. 13.
Willie is on tour again with a stop at The Hamilton Live in DC on Saturday, Aug. 28. But Parklife has been sitting on this unpublished interview from when Willie was promoting New York at Night. And in this interview, Willie chats about how much he also loves DC. So with no further ado, we present this chat and strongly suggest you catch Willie live at The Hamilton this weekend.
Jimbo Mathus and The Dial Back Sound perform at The Hamilton Live on July 22, 2021. (Photo by Rashad Polk)
Jimbo Mathus is best known as the guitarist, singer, and bandleader for the swing revival group Squirrel Nut Zippers. But Jimbo’s career is much broader than that, and when he performed with his band, The Dial Back Sound, at The Hamilton on Thursday, he promised to get to “all types of music,” starting with “a little bit of honky tonk, and bringing up some deep soul from the deep South.”
Amy Helm performs at The Hamilton on June 11, 2021. (Photo by Casey Vock)
On Friday, pandemic capacity restrictions were lifted in the District of Columbia. When Amy Helm performed at The Hamilton Live, it was the first time in 16 months that venue had been fully open to present live music to eager audiences. It was a special night; the enthusiasm and love from the crowd was palpable, as most of the attendees were at their first show since early March 2020.
For Helm and her band, it was their first time back on the road and being outside of her native New York state. She acknowledged the significance of live music reopening, saying it was an honor to be playing. She joked, “Just to full capacity?” to which her bandmate Connor Kennedy quipped, “You can’t really go further than that.
Amy Helm (Photo by Ebru Yildiz)
Acclaimed singer/songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Amy Helm releases her upcoming album What the Flood Leaves Behind (Renew Records/BMG) on June 18. One week prior to that, Amy performs at The Hamilton Live in DC on Friday, June 11!
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