A few dedicated, well-run house venues in DC survive the test of time and put on a long string of amazing shows. More often, of course, police shut down the party early, landlords get wind of the goings-on and snappy-named venues fade into memory. Which will Casa Bellissima near in Shaw turn out to be? Wouldn’t it be cool to go to their first show ever? Well you can, as synth rockers Color Palette inaugurate the space this Friday with Drive TFC and New York’s Frances Cone. Color Palette’s debut full length album comes out this May, but you can sample their powerful, big room sound now with this live video for “Bullets”. Be cool, bring your own beverages, donate money for the touring band, and don’t scare the house cats.
Hometown Sounds
Showing The World How DC Rocks
Monthly Archives: March 2016
Lance Neptune – Janus
Despite hailing from the lesser-known DC suburb of Glenarden MD, electronic dance music producer Lance Neptune is blessed with buzz from top outlets like Beatport, Vice and XLR8R, who named Neptune one of 2015’s best new artists. After crafting a well-received remix of UK artist Lone, Lone’s label Magicwire woke up from a 3 year slumber and released Neptune’s EP Animal Eclipse, six tracks of truly cosmic dance music in a similar vein to Protect-U. “Janus”, a moon of Saturn and the EP’s first single, gets a music video from Rafael Bonillav channeling Neptune’s insatiable love of space into a claymation exploration of alien life on uncharted planets.
Mellow Diamond – No Treaty
Cellist Janel Leppin, always at the forefront of experimental mind-blowing music in DC, has been struggling to release her debut solo record as Mellow Diamond for years. Despite being recorded, mixed and mastered, no label she met with was willing to put it out the way Leppin intended, so she has gone the route of many in the DIY scene and started her own label, Wedderburn Records. Last year we featured Mellow Diamond’s first ambient, dreamy video “Namesake”, and earlier this week she dropped the second video, “No Treaty”. It’s a surprising turn to moody pop music with lyrics, strummed electric guitar and a steady 4/4 beat with handclaps, while the video keeps things trippy as video artist Michael Hindert manipulates travel footage shot by Leppin. Mellow Diamond’s album finally emerges later this week after a celebratory show Thursday night at Songbyrd featuring a finely curated lineup of fellow female-fronted experimental pop bands, Roz and the Rice Cakes and Pree.
Podcast for March 22nd, 2016
Tony reminisces about a high school road trip to a show that ended disastrously, and Paul learns that scratching records is much harder than it looks.
Tracklisting:
Hotel Garuda – Smoke Signals
Calm and Crisis – Traffic [In A Real Good Place]
Drop Lockers – S.O.P. (Remix) [single]
Plurals – Nothing Really Matters (Come Watch TV) [Plurals]
The Greatest Hoax – Opus No. 30 [enso]
DÉVÅZ – 125 Mg Zoloft [125 Mg Zoloft]
Or listen in SoundCloud:
Subscribe to the Hometown Sounds podcast in the iTunes Store or your favorite podcast app! (and tell a friend too!)
Wall of Trophies – Never/Always
The second music video from Wall of Trophies‘ debut album Heliograph is an absolute stunner. From the first moment of “Never/Always”, the peaceful street footage of Amsterdam shot by the band back in October 2014 is undercut with the song’s skittish, ominous notes from producer Will Copps. Colors quickly begin to distort and by the time Brittany Jean’s vocals come in, the hallucinations take over the scene, rendering everything beautiful and suspect and metaphysical. Wall of Trophies has crafted the best kind of psychedelic, meditative drug trip with this music video. More please.
The Relics – Substance
Reggae fans in DC lost a lot of energy with last year’s closing of Patty Boom Boom on U Street. Silver Spring band The Relics keep the good vibes alive after singer Menlik Zergabachew’s shot at stardom on NBC’s The Voice in 2014 brought them wider attention. Though they haven’t yet released a proper album or played a hometown show in a couple of years, they do have a debut music video for the single “Substance” with some beautiful images from director Daniel Agre.
Two Inch Astronaut – Personal Life
No one bats a thousand with their crazy ass ideas, but it takes courage to admit it didn’t work out the way you thought and creativity to salvage the tatters into something pretty cool. Director Mike O’Brien thought he could recreate the Wachowski siblings’ Bullet Time effect from The Matrix in DIY fashion by equipping 15 dedicated superfans with selfie sticks while grungy post-hardcore band Two Inch Astronaut performed “Personal Life”, the title track from their recently-released third full length album. That didn’t quite work, so instead we get a video of people filming themselves around the oblivious band. Any concert goer stupid enough to try this at a real show should get their selfie stick broken over their head. After a tour of the southeast and SXSW, the tiny spacegoers play a show at The Void, formerly Hostage House, in Hyattsville on Saturday March 26th with Exploding In Sound labelmates Gnarwhal, XK Scenario and Sungazing.
Wylder – Swells
Are these guys on the radio yet? I gave up FM for podcasts years ago, but the acoustic guitar, singalong choruses and feel-good violin & keys melodies of indie folk band Wylder are tailor-made for mass appeal. They’ve only put out 2 singles to date, but their debut album Rain and Laura comes out April 8th, and opening slots for national acts and festival gigs won’t be far behind. Unless, of course, romantic relationship troubles doom this tight-knit sextet of young musicians, as portrayed by singer Will McCarry in their second music video, “Swells”. Don’t ever give up your bros, Will. Catch Wylder opening for The Family Crest at Rock & Roll Hotel on Saturday March 26th.
Podcast for March 8th, 2016
FACE SWAP!
Tony’s enthusiasm for live music tests the boundaries of acceptable show-going behavior, and Paul shares an idea to sell albums to digital only fans.
Tracklisting:
Be Steadwell – Netflix [Jaded. dark love songs]
Blankus Larry – Please (Don’t Let Me Lose My Mind) [Problemo]
Jauze – Maybe You Did [Two Demos]
Honey Pot Canoe – Drink My Way To You [Radiotelephony]
Brutalism – Amulets [single]
Terracotta Blue – Dirge [Stronger / Dirge]
Or listen in SoundCloud:
Subscribe to the Hometown Sounds podcast in the iTunes Store or your favorite podcast app! (and tell a friend too!)
Cigarette – Housewife
Cigarette maintain a brash attitude by creating the absolute opposite of hurried punk music, allowing their languid compositions to sprawl out and soak listeners in moody atmosphere. For their first music video for “Housewife” from their 2013 debut ep ‘gush’, Sarah Kinlaw of the Brooklyn band SOFTSPOT directed her bandmate Jonathan Campolo to shoot this solo dance performance of Sarah moving through rooms of a house while changing costumes and wigs that feels eerily like a clip from a David Lynch movie. Cigarette plays tonight at the Black Cat with Pearie Sol (aka Perry from DC bands Teen Liver and Gauche) and headliner Dougie Poole.
https://vimeo.com/144129080
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