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.
Hometown Sounds
Showing The World How DC Rocks
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
Loud Boyz – World’s A Cage
The inaugural Breakin Even Fest kicks off tonight at Songbyrd in AdMo, promising “Mystery Merch Raffles, Cheap Beer, Party Times” from a hardcore lineup including Lilac Daze, Collider, Curse Words, The Mauls and headliners Loud Boyz. “World’s A Cage” comes from their debut album Tough Love, Hard Feelings out on Cricket Cemetery, and the video wisely chooses some iconic 80s monsters to join the raucous Loud Boyz party.
Near Northeast – Under the Pines
The divide is as stark as the Potomac river: the punk and angular indie rock goes on the DC side, and the folk and twangy alt-country goes on the VA side. Near Northeast is doing great work at bridging that gap, developing a passionate fan base for their earnest folk sound in the heart of the city. Kelly Servick, Avy Malik and Austin Blanton play a lot of well-received sets around town, including a high profile gig at the Luce Unplugged showcase at the Smithsonian American Art museum last fall, while they work on a follow up to last year’s pay-what-you-want debut Curios. Videographer Kip Radt and graphic artist Ashley Blanton collaborated on Near Northeast’s debut music video “Under the Pines”, presenting a puffy cloud’s journey through surreal landscapes and many recognizable DC landmarks. Tonight Near Northeast kicks off the buildup to the Kingman Island Bluegrass Festival later in April with a show at the Hamilton also featuring the Plate Scrapers and Walter Martin of The Walkmen.
Be Steadwell – Just A Flirt (Tiny Desk Contest submission)
Be Steadwell is a creative force to be reckoned with. While she screens her short film “Vow of Silence”, the thesis project for her MFA from Howard University, she also performs original musical compositions primarily using looped vocals, with the support of a crew of musicians. What started in the black queer creative community of DC is now spreading far and wide as Steadwell shows her film and performs on tour in New Orleans, Chicago, New York City and beyond. If you enjoy this immersive, captivating solo performance of new song “Just a Flirt”, grab her most recent release Jaded. Dark Love Songs for whatever price you like and mark your calendars for April 9th for Honey Groove, DC’s festival for queer creatives of color at Blind Whino featuring RatheMC, Reesa Renee, The Coolots, Boomscat and more.
Cecily – Your Idea of Beautiful (NPR Tiny Desk Contest submission)
NPR Music’s judges are watching all the submissions to 2016’s Tiny Desk Contest, and soon they’ll pick a winner. We continue to show you the best submissions from DC, our shared hometown with the Tiny Desk. Cecily Bumbray, a talented and soulful singer-songwriter, gathered her jazz quartet to lay down a romantic new song called “Your Idea of Beautiful”. If this hits your spot, grab her debut self-titled EP featuring a collaboration with DC expat Tabi Bonney.
We Were Pirates – Matter
Esteemed co-host and podcast producer Tony Porreco likened We Were Pirates‘ Mike Boggs to a “pourover coffee”. It takes more time to brew, but the complex, nuanced taste is worth the wait. While Boggs rounds up a few talented folks to perform songs live, the composition and studio recording work is nearly all Mike. The original instrumental score to the documentary film Dear Mr. Watterson came out in 2013, and the last proper album by We Were Pirates was 2012’s Change. Spacey electronics and synthetic drums are the new compliments to Boggs’s delicate and precise vocals on “Matter”, the title track from We Were Pirates’ brand new album. Celebrate the album’s release next Thursday March 3rd at the Black Cat with Color Palette and Me & Karen, an all-DC lineup as perfectly curated as you’d expect from Boggs.
Den-Mate – DC Junkie
The best place to see Julia Hale front the Babe City Records crew as Den-Mate is front & center. That’s where noted videographer Michael Andrade captured this performance of “DC Junkie” at the Luce Unplugged concert seriess at the Smithsonian American Art Museum last November. That’s where you should be tonight when Den-Mate headlines an album re-release show at the Black Cat along with Baltimore’s Sitcom and label-buds Witch Coast. As work continues on recording new material with Hale and her backing band, Babe City opted to remix Hale’s initial GarageBand demos from 2013, showing a more electronic angle than the loud and brash sound Hale leads now. With releases from Foozle, The Sea Life, Witch Coast, BRNDA and Young Rapids, Babe City is doing great work to broaden the popularity of their flavor of the DC music scene.
Hometown Sounds 