Supporting music in Richmond since 2000 - "There was time to someone and heading to the right / We were walking till the rise on shine / Some time alone, alone to wonder, change your mind and on / while everyone else is moving on and on, and on / Empty heart, it's not the same at all / Turn on the love and I'm losing the time" - Melody's Echo Chamber - "Some Time Alone, Alone"
Josh Ritter and the Royal City Band are in town tonight to play a Groovin' in the Garden show at Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden. With your ticket to the show, you'll also get a free digital download of Josh' new album, "The Beast in its Tracks" which is getting fine reviews. Tix are $25 in advance, $30 at the gate. Gates open at 5:30 and the show starts around 6 with opener David Wax Museum. If you want a preview of tonight's show or can't make it, here is a full show Josh recently did for NPR:
Over at The National tonight, it's outlaw country with Shooter Jennings. Hopefully, some of you were able to win free tickets to the show (see yesterday's blog). If you didn't, tix are $18, doors open at 7, show starts at 8 with opener Daniel Romano. Here's the new lyric video for Shooter's "The Gunslinger" (language NSFW unless you drop f-bombs at work):
On the local music scene, salsa band Bio Ritmo will be over at Balliceaux tonight starting at 9:30 and it's $6 to get in. Here the are playing "La Muralla" featuring Giustino Riccio on timbale.
The National is giving away free tickets to see alt-country artist Shooter Jennings (son of Waylon). Here's the details:
Enter to win a FREE pair of tickets to see Southern Country
Rock Artist, SHOOTER JENNING THIS Wednesday night ... Just send an email to
tixswin@gmail.com by 8pm Today Tuesday May 21st with the SUBJECT - OUTLAW. One e-mail per person. Please be sure to include your full name that
appears on your ID for entry. Ten
WINNERS will be chosen and notified via email tomorrow afternoon by 12pm !
Ray Manazarek, keyboardist from The Doors, passed away yesterday at the age of 74. Ray was a great nut job, all his interviews showing a sense of fun and excitement with pearls of psychedelic wisdom thrown in. HERE is the obit from Rolling Stone. Here's one of Ray's finest performances, "Riders on the Storm":
The Hangout Music Fest taking place on the beach in Alabama this weekend will be webcast live all weekend by MTV/VH1/Palladia. Most of the main acts will be streamed including
Toots & the Maytals, Jim James, The Shins, Kings of Leon, The Roots, Black
Crowes, Tom Petty, Shovels & Rope, Stevie Wonder, Trey Anastasio, moe,
Galactic. Should be fun weekend viewing! Click HERE to get there.
The Late Night TV pick tonight is indie rock singer/guitarist out of Philly, Kurt Vile. He'll be on the Late Show with David Letterman tonight on CBS at 11:35 PM. Kurt's recent show in Portland was described as "jaw dropping". Kurt will be at the Jefferson Theater in Charlottesville on July 19.
In an interview with Rolling Stone, Huey Lewis reflects on the 30th anniversary of the "Sports" album and shows us, once again, that he is a pretty cool dude. Huey & The News' music from "Sports" and "Back to the Future" remind of summers during high school so he'll always be a guilty pleasure, though perhaps not so guilty any more. HERE is the interview.
Now off to Riverrock where I'll see you this weekend!
We last saw Dawes in Richmond when they were putting on a fine performance opening for Bob Dylan last month at the Landmark. Tonight, the band with the Southern California sound (think Jackson Browne or The Eagles) will be on Jimmy Kimmel Live on ABC at 11:35 PM. For those of you that dug Shovels & Rope (pun
intentional!) two weeks ago at Friday Cheers and/or Dawes last year at Cheers or opening for Dylan, NoiseTrade is offering a
free 6 song sampler featuring the two bands to celebrate their upcoming tour:
http://www.noisetrade.com/dawesshovelsandrope/summer-tour-sampler
Another busy weekend and this one begins, as all good weekends do, on Thursday with the first Groovin' in the Garden concert of the summer. Iron & Wine will be at Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden with tickets at $30 for General Admission in advance, $35 at the gate. There were some $50 General Reserve Seats available but it looks like they are gone. Gates will open at 5:30 and the music starts around 6 with openers The Secret Sisters. Uncut Magazine just gave Iron & Wine's new album, "Ghost on Ghost" a 9 out of 10 review and called it "sublime" and the music should be even more sublime surrounded by the beautiful garden. Here's "Joy" from that album:
On Thursday at Strange Matter, you can trip balls with The Features, a psychedelic rock band out of Tennessee. Tix are $8 in advance, $10 at the door. Doors open at 9 and the show starts with openers Those Manic Seas and Heyrocco. You might like The Features if you like The Shins, The Jam, Peter Gabriel, The Cure, The Stooges or XTC. Here's The Features doing "This Disorder":
Over at Balliceaux on Thursday night, Black Girls will get you movin' and groovin'. Show starts at 10 and it's $5 to get in.
At Cary St. Cafe Thursday, check out the classic rock sounds of Trongone Band. Show starts at 10 and there is no cover. Here's the Trongone Band playing at Easter on Parade last month. A shout out to Paul Magill and Rockitz Richmond for providing lots of video of local bands over the years.
The big event this weekend is the Dominion Riverrock Festival down on Brown's Island Friday through Sunday. It's all FREE and it's a blast. The Mud Run, mountain biking, bouldering, kayaking, slacklining, and the kid's favorite, the Ultimate Air Dogs. It runs from 5 PM - 11 PM Friday, noon - 10:30 PM on Saturday and 11 AM - 5 PM on Sunday. Besides all the great adventure sports to watch, try, and participate in, there is incredible music with my highlight being the New Orleans blues/funk of Anders Osborne on Saturday at 7 PM. The other headliners are Soulive (soul jazz at 7:30 PM Friday), Lettuce (deep funk at 9:30 PM Friday), and reggae giant Toots & The Maytals on Saturday at 9. There are some great local bands in there too. Here's the full schedule:
Friday, May 17
Time Band
6:00 pm - 7:00 pm DJ
Mordecai
7:30 pm - 9:00 pm Soulive
9:30 pm - 11:00 pm Lettuce
Saturday, May 18
Time Band
1:00 pm - 2:00 pm The
Trongone Band
2:30 pm - 3:30 pm The
New Belgians
4:00 pm - 5:00 pm The
Shack Band
5:30 pm - 6:30 pm The
Southern Belles
7:00 pm - 8:30 pm Anders
Osborne
9:00 pm - 10:30 pm Toots
& The Maytals
Sunday, May 19
Time Band
1:00 pm - 2:00 pm William
Walter with Tucker Rogers
2:30 pm - 3:30 pm Barrelhouse
4:00 pm - 5:00 pm Photosynthesizers
And here is Anders Osborne doing "Greasy Money" and a Dead song you might recognize from the New Orleans Jazz Fest a couple weeks ago:
If you can't make it to Riverrock on Friday night, check out the webcast with alt-country king, Robert Earl Keen. It'll run from 7 PM - 9 PM ET and you can watch it HERE.
Space rock band O'Brother will be at Strange Matter Friday night. Tix are $10 in advance, $12 at the door. Doors open at 8, show starts at 9 with openers Shy, Low and Comrades. O'Brother will be opening a bunch of shows for Alice In Chains this month. You might like O'Brother if you like Sigur Ros or Mogwai. Here's O'Brother performing the hypnotic "Ascension" live a couple years ago:
Southern Culture on the Skids bring their campy, honky tonk to Capital Ale House Friday. Tix are $15 in advance, $18 at the door, doors open at 9, show starts at 10 with openers Atomic Mosquitos. Here's SCOTS doing "Camel Walk" with some audience participation and some incredibly white dancing from that balding guy in the white t-shirt:
DJ Logic, the jam band DJ who has performed with moe. and Bob Weir & Ratdog, will be at The Canal Club Friday. Tix are $10 in advance, $15 at the door, the show will start at 10 PM with a "special guest". That doesn't really mean special, it just means they haven't found an opener yet. You'll dig DJ Logic if you like Medeski, Martin & Wood, Benevento Russo Duo, or other jam bands. He'll be part of an all-star band on the 2014 Jam Cruise with John Popper (Blues Traveler), George Porter Jr. (the Meters), Stanley Jordan and Adam Deitch. Here he is performing with the Everyone Orchestra in New Orleans on May 3rd including Richmond's own DJ Williams on guitar, Marco Benevento, Zach Deputy and others.
On Friday over at Balliceaux, No BS! Brass Band will be having a record release party for their new record "RVA All Day". It'll start at 10 PM and it's $5 to get in. Here's the title track where aliens invade RVA and the No BS! Brass Band comes to the rescue:
Over here in Lakeside on Saturday, it's Lakesidepalooza starting at noon in front of McCook's Grill. It's free but proceeds from the beer and food and stuff will benefit Lakeside Volunteer Rescue Squad and Lakeside Youth Baseball. Lakesidepalooza will feature stuff for the kids, beer truck for the adults, food vendors and more along with the bands Rosie Soul & the Rock n Roll Cowboys, Mo DeBree, Bush League, Weeping Molly and Cha Cha's Cadillac. Here's Rosie Soul & The Rock n Roll Cowboys doing "Crimson Society":
NJ punkers Titus Andronicus are at Strange Matter on Saturday evening. This is an early show with doors opening at 5 PM, tix $12 in advance, $14 day of show, music starts at 6 and it'll over by 9. Openers are So-So Glos (NY garage punk) and The Ar-Kaics. Titus Andronicus and So-So Glos have played together often and been roommates in various combinations so expect some punk rock camaraderie. Here's a video for Titus' song, "In a Big City":
If mountain music is more your speed, check out the benefit for WRIR with Wayne Henderson & Helen White at Westover Baptist Church. It'll be Saturday with doors at 7, music starting at 8 PM. Tickets are $22 and proceeds support future WRIR live events. Here they are performing at Ashland Coffee & Tea a few months ago:
No BS! Brass Band will continue their RVA record release tour with a show at The Camel on Saturday night. Tix are $10 and the show starts around 9 PM with openers Brand New Life.
That is one packed weekend! Hope to see you out at Riverrock!
Flaming Lips will be on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon tonight on NBC at 12:35 AM. Flaming Lips are out promoting their new album, "The Terror". If you are an artist or know one, the Lips are having a contest to create designs for a Lips t-shirt. You can get the details HERE.
Tonight, we are choosing the Pistol Annies on the Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson on CBS at 12:35 AM because (1) the Pistol Annies new album, "Annie Up", is one of the best reviewed albums of the year so far and (2) we haven't checked in on the zany Craig Ferguson in a while. The Annies will also be doing a live concert webcast on Wednesday, April 15 at 10 PM ET HERE doing songs from the new album and their previous album "Hell On Heels".
Vampire Weekend returns with a new album this week ("Modern Vampires of the City") and they'll be playing a new track from it tonight on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon on NBC at 12:35 AM. In case you missed it, NBC announced that Seth Myers, currently the head writer on "Saturday Night Live" and host of SNL's "Weekend Update" segment, will take over for Jimmy when Jimmy moves up to the Tonight Show next year. Hopefully, Jay Leno won't decide to come back and screw everything up again. If you missed the concert Vampire Weekend streamed on YouTube on 4/28, you can still check it out HERE along with the very funny "story" of Steve Buscemi working with the band prior to his directing the concert.
Back to Last Call with Carson Daly (NBC, 1:35 AM) tonight for the pop/rock of Family of the Year. Steven Tyler of Aerosmith has called them "The Mamas and Papas on acid". That should intrigue you, eh?
