Dream pop duo GEMS just released a new music video for their not-yet-for-sale single Pegasus. It’s black & white, gauzy, melancholy and beautiful, just what you want out of your modern dream pop music. GEMS doesn’t sound quite like any other band in DC, and to my ears that’s a great thing. They’ll be playing a show at the Rock & Roll Hotel next Wednesday March 6th to warm up for making new fans at SXSW.
Can you believe I wrote an entire post without mentioning they used to be called Birdlips? Oops, damnit.
Hometown Sounds
Showing The World How DC Rocks
Monthly Archives: February 2013
Brett – Visions (The Soundmen Remix) video
Kevin Bayly once played guitar in the 80s influenced band The Dance Party, and now he’s pumping out dance tracks as Brett. Last year’s double single Confidence / Kate Moss garnered a huge number of remixes, and I expect a similar number from the new double single Rap Songs / Visions. Party DJ king Chris Burns has already cranked out a great one, as has the NY/Seattle duo The Soundmen. Here’s a brand new music video for The Soundmen’s remix of Visions, which will either make you want to go surfing now or stay the hell away from really huge waves.
Tom Goss – Can’t Hold Us video
It’s not often that you see a well-produced music video of a live performance. When bands do appear in their videos, almost always they lip sync to the pre-recorded track. For his latest video, just released today, singer Tom Goss performed an acoustic cover of Macklemore’s song Can’t Hold Us, and the video shows how he uses loop pedals to layer the music together, freeing him up for an impressive rapping performance. Catch Tom live at the Dunes this Thursday with Eric Himan as he sets out on tour.
Podcast for Feb. 26th, 2013
Tracklisting:
Dub Campaign – Lion In Disguise
Ugly Purple Sweater – I Will Not Regret
Bellflur – Atoms
East Ghost – Tobacco Teeth
Clones of Clones – The Neighborhood
Big Green Cherry – East Coost
The Dead Women – I Am Delusional
Me and Karen – Of You
Ra Ra Rasputin – Whenever You’re Ready
Micah Vellian – Snake Charmer
Is And Of The – You’re A Palindrome and I Can’t Spell
Or listen on SoundCloud:
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Nadastrom – DC Mix for BBC Radio 1
Over the weekend DC expats Nadastrom, Moombahton’s parents Dave Nada and Matt Nordstrom, dropped a DJ Mix for BBC Radio 1 Saturday Night Diplo & Friends show, serving as a love letter to our fair town. The mix includes lots of hometown gems from many genres, including Deep Dish, Alvin Risk, DJ Flexx, Fort Knox Five, the Blackbyrds, Dischord classics and tons more. The hour long mix is available for streaming (not downloading) through the BBC’s iPlayer only for the next week [cough]Soundcloud[cough], so don’t miss this.
The Riverbreaks – Tell The Girls video
Twangy rock band The Riverbreaks just released a new video for Tell The Girls, from their newly released album Wildfire. The boot stompin’ song is complimented well by the hand-drawn animation from artist Rachel Briggs, and with the refrain lyrics spelled out you have no excuse not to sing along when the band plays DC9 on March 27th.
Drop Electric – Baku Hatsu (Blue Light Sessions)
The Mansion at Strathmore’s Friday Night Eclectic series continues its winning streak with a headlining set by sonic architects Drop Electric, joined by local openers Whales and Rajna and Anjna Swaminathan with Sam McCormally of Ugly Purple Sweater. Advance tix are long gone but show up early with $12 cash and you can hopefully make it in. Drop Electric have steadily improved their live performance over many shows, and new material is slowly emerging from the large ensemble. Last December Drop Electric stopped by the studios of Pick-Up Productions to film a new song Baku Hatsu for their Blue Light Sessions live performance series, with face paint, projected visuals and multiple violinists.
Superstar Butta – Visions video
Do you guys remember that video for DC USA that Ugly Purple Sweater put out a couple of months ago? With the boxer dude jogging around Columbia Heights? Well that guy is a rapper named Superstar Butta, and the director of the DC USA video, Paul Abowd, shot a video last year for his track Visions. It’s a fun track with a youthful summertime vibe, very welcome on this cold February day. I couldn’t find any releases to buy or mixtapes to download by Mr. Butta, so follow him on Twitter if you want more!
Hume – Inverse Fireworks video
As good as all the performances were at the final Sockets Records showcase at the Black Cat a few weeks ago, the one that stands out most was Hume‘s. After moving to Baltimore a little while back, the spacey prog group decided to call it quits after that show, and during their set the crowd swelled with musicians, journalists and bloggers tweeting and vine-ing to everyone who missed it. Today’s video for Inverse Fireworks comes from a 7″ single released on Sockets back in 2011.
http://vimeo.com/18794992
Gideon Grove – Smoking Gun video
Singer-songwriter Gideon Grove, formerly of the local rock band Zelos, just released the music video for Smoking Gun, the debut single from his recent full length solo album Wildfires. Smoking Gun has an upbeat modern rock vibe that’s catchy and easy to sing along with. Your next chance to sing along live is this Saturday night at Vienna’s Jammin’ Java, opening for Nashville based Leagues.
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