The Beach Report: It's June!

The summer months are here and the weather is heating up. After getting burnt to a toasty crisp, check out the nightlife along the Delmar coast.

The Bottle and Cork gets a little N'awlins flavor Friday night (6/1) when Cowboy Mouth rocks the joint. Always an excellent show. Get tix without the service charge for this and all Cork shows at Booksandcoffee or B&C T-shirt shop.

Get your cover song party mix fill with Mr. Greengenes at Rusty Rudder Saturday (6/2) and at the Party Block in OC 6/4.

Thursday (6/7) check out Shooter Jennings with local favs Hoots and Hellmouth at the Cork.

And of course, plenty of music, karaoke, and just plain fun everywhere you turn. Enjoy the sand and surf!

A Little Show

Since word of this is already starting to spread, I might as well announce it on here. On Friday August 10, we are having our First Anniversary Party at Rock and Roll Hotel in DC. We recruited some friends to help us celebrate: Le Loup, Bellman Barker, Lejeune and Jette Kelly (of Jette-Ives).

Doors @ 8:30, Show starts @ 9:30, $10. However, it is free until 9. Much more on this later. I just wanted to get it out there.

Le Loup - We Are Gods! We Are Wolves!
Bellman Barker - Molly Maroon
Lejeune - The Latest Greatest
Jette-Ives - Darker Than You

Post-Holiday Blues

Alright, so we have all made it through the holiday weekend. Now we must survive going back to work. To make things easier (or to relive the glories of your weekend), there are some shows tonight that will help ease your troubles.

Of course, you could go see Keane at 9:30 Club, but what fun would that be? Instead, there is a better, cheaper and less sold out alternative. That would be in the form of a pretty good show at DC9. Philly's Grammar Debate! will be joined by locals The Vita Ruins for a great night of indie rock.

Grammar Debate!- Believe It Away
The Vita Ruins - My Last Days On Earth

Contest: Bellman Barker

DC's Bellman Barker is getting ready to release their debut CD and on Saturday night, they are having a release party at Rock and Roll Hotel. Bellflur and The Subjects will be providing support. To celebrate, they put together a crazy contest. The prizes up for grabs are:

2 Guestlist Spots
1 Bellman Barker CD
1 Bellflur CD
1 Bellflur T-shirt
1 Limited edition print of the concert poster (see picture above)
1 Bellman Barker mascot (one of a kind)

I'm sure that you are wondering what the Bellman Barker mascot is. Well, it is an oversized stuffed animal that they personally pimped out. You may see it surfing the crowd on Saturday night, before they give it to the winner.

To win, send an e-mail with your name, location and the name of a Charles Bukowski book to Bellman Barker. A winner will be selected and notified later this week. Good luck.

Bellman Barker - Molly Maroon
The Subjects - The Hounds of War
Bellflur - First To The Moon

To learn more about Bellman Barker and to stream the album, go here.

The Beach Report: Memorial Day Weekend

This weekend marks the official start of Beach Season and also the start of a seasonal feature: The Beach Report. I will try to give you the highlights of the coming week from Rehobeth, Dewey and Ocean City. This is in no way an exhaustive list, just what will probably be a great time.

Get your reggae groove on all weekend with Jah Works @ Seacrets, Ocean City. Fri Sat & Sun

If you want to rock out to covers all night, check out Mr Greengenes @ Rusty Rudder, Dewey on Sunday

One of the biggest beach bands is in Dewey this weekend and next: Love See Mama Jump @ Rusty Rudder Friday & next Thursday

No one should be blue at the beach, but if you are, revel in them with lower case blues @ Wahoo raw bar on Friday, Trader Lees on Saturday and Outriggers next Thursday

What a way to blow out the weekend. Check out the Party Block in Ocean City on Memorial Day and see Tommy Lee (from the picture i saw, yes, THAT Tommy Lee) & DJ Aero on the wheels of steel. Usually free before 10, this night its half price before 10.

New Thrushes

Barely months after their debut dropped, I have a brand new demo from Baltimore's Thrushes. This demo shows that Sun Come Undone was just the beginning. Enjoy!

Trees (Demo)

Contest: Middle Distance Runner, Telograph and The Hard Tomorrows

There is a huge show at Black Cat on Friday night. Middle Distance Runner, Telograph and The Hard Tomorrows will all be playing the main stage. To celebrate, I have a pair of tickets to give away. To enter, send me an e-mail (instanalysis@aol.com) with your first name and location. Since I currently have 2 contests running, please specify which one you are entering. Winner will be contacted by the end of the week. Good Luck!

Middle Distance Runner - Man of the People
Telograph - We Won't Settle Down
The Hard Tomorrows - Glossy-Eyed Sweetheart

Enter the Bellman Barker contest here.

Great Tuesday Night Show

There is a great show at Rock and Roll Hotel tonight. The Rosebuds are headlining. They will be joined by Bowerbirds and DC's own Le Loup. This is definitely one to check out.

Speaking of Le Loup, they just gave their first ever interview. You can check it out here. While you are there, check out The Rosebuds interview too.

The Rosebuds - I Better Run
Le Loup - We are Gods! We are Wolves!
Bowerbirds - Olive Hearts

The Monday Blues

As I attempt to recover from the weekend that was, here is some information on the show of note for this evening...


Joseph Arthur and The Lonely Astronauts will be at 9:30 Club tonight. They will be joined on the bill by Stars of Track and Field.

Joseph Arthur - Honey and the Moon (live)
Stars of Track and Field - Movies of Antarctica

Good Weekend In Philly

Finally a weekend in Philly that has some shows to go to. If you want to check out some great bands from the Baltimore and DC areas, this is the weekend. Tonight, Saturday May 19, our friends Two If By Sea are at Johnny Brenda's. They are joined by Philly's own and a great band in their own right, Hail Social and Omaha's Coyote Bones.

Two If By Sea

Sunday at the Khyber, check out several great bands from DC, as our good friends Telograph and Middle Distance Runner come to town. They are joined by the Gena Rowlands Band, who include members of Ida, Dismemberment Plan and Beauty Pill. Great line-up and cheap at 7 bucks!

Telograph

See you all at the shows. I'll be at both. Enjoy the tunes.

Two If By Sea - Summer Borne For Sleep
Coyote Bones - Fated to Fail
Hail Social - Heaven
Telograph - Beneath Your Feet
Middle Distance Runner - Man of the People
Gena Rowlands Band - Flesh and Spirits

Shows for 5.17.07

Sweden's Mando Diao is playing Black Cat and they will be joined by Pop Levi and The Films.

Mando Diao - Long Before Rock N Roll
Pop Levi - Sugar Assault Me Now
The Films - Black Shoes


Son Volt is on tour again and they will be at 9:30 Club tonight. The High Strung will be opening the evening.

Son Volt - Windfall
The High Strung - What A Meddler


At IOTA tonight, you can catch The Seldon Plan, who will probably be testing out material from their forthcoming release. They will be supported by Timothy Bracken Complex and Grammar Debate.

The Seldon Plan - Holding Patterns Are Slow

Georgie James Sign Deal

Another week, another DC signing. Congratulations to 12 Bands alumnus Georgie James for signing a deal with Saddle Creek. Their debut record, Places, will drop in the fall and they'll support it with an extensive tour. In the meantime, you can check out some regional shows.

5/25 St. Stephen's Church, DC
6/14 Mercury Lounge, NYC
6/15 Mojo 13, Wilmington, DE
6/16 Johnny Brenda's, Philly
8/11 Recher Theatre, Towson, MD

Need Your Needs

Contest: Let's French

Yes, we are in the midst of CD release party bliss in DC. This week's contestant is Let's French. They are releasing their great new album Victory. Their CD release party will be held Saturday at Black Cat. These United States and Death by Sexy will be supporting them on the bill. To celebrate, they are sponsoring a contest.

There will be two winners and each one will receive a spot on the guest list and a copy of the new CD. To enter, send me an e-mail (instanalysis@aol.com). Include your first name, location and the name of a French president (or a humorous attempt at one). Winners will be chosen at random and will be notified on Friday. Good Luck!

She Says She Loves Me

Lejeune - For Club And Country

A lot of strange things have been happening lately. DC's music scene has become so loaded, that people are finally starting to take notice. There are local bands packing 9:30 Club, there are bands signing to Sub Pop after 2 shows and then there is Lejeune. The band has been in existence since 2003, which makes them relative dinosaurs on the local scene. They released an album in 2004 and have kept a pretty low profile over the past few years, playing only a handful of local shows every year. While the younger bands in the scene have been playing as many shows as possible, attacking the Internet and handing promo Cd's out to anyone who would take them, Lejeune have been honing their craft. They've spent the past year and a half working on their live show and putting For Club And Country together and now it's finally seeing the light of day.

It's rare to find a band that can write songs that are instantly accessible, yet don't sound like they were made to be shoved down your throat. It's even rarer to find a band who can make an actual album that is packed with them. In this age of iTunes and digital singles, For Club And Country is the rare album that is not about the individual tracks. Yes, there are plenty of radio ready songs, but they are merely pieces to a much larger puzzle. It's a cohesive album that is enjoyable from the opening notes of "Your Serene Saturday Night" through the fade out of "Good Times." In between, exists an album full of jangly guitar, enough riffs to write a textbook and some of the most intelligent lyrics that DC has ever produced. Some of those lyrics describe this album better than I ever could: "I want to build a monument, a mausoleum fit to represent the wreck we'll leave behind." They may lack the flash and buzz that many of the young bands on the scene seem to possess, but For Club And Country proves that Lejeune certainly doesn't lack the arsenal.

The Latest Greatest
I Am In Your Corner

Any Given Tuesday

The Baltimore music site Any Given Tuesday has joined forces with SĒN Baltimore and started it's own podcast called (surprise) Any Given Tuesday. The podcast will premiere on May 22, 2007 at 9:30 PM as a live internet broadcast on Talkshoe.com. My friend Barrett King, the creator of Any Given Tuesday, will host. The first episode will feature an interview with the great Baltimore band, Thrushes. They will also play a song from their new album and debut a brand new one. You can listen live online and you'll have the opportunity to call in and talk to the band.

If you want to participate in the discussion, you must download and install the Talkshoe.com client. Click here to sign up. Once that is done, the link to the broadcast can be found here. If that is too complicated, just wait. This is the digital age, the whole thing will be available for download the next day. I have a feeling that you'll see that new track floating around too.

I'll leave you with a couple of tracks from Thrushes. Enjoy!

Heartbeats
Aidan Quinn

Oh Glorious Weekend

This has been one of those weeks. Finally, the weekend is here and there are a lot of shows worth seeing...

SATURDAY


The Kooks are invading America and DC is next on their agenda. They will be playing 9:30 Club along with the really good Pennsylvania band, Illinois.

The Kooks - Naive
Illinois - Alone Again


A trio of Philly bands will be playing the Rock and Roll Hotel. Dr. Dog, The Teeth and Hoots & Hellmouth are all on the bill. I can't speak for the other bands, but I accidentally caught Hoots & Hellmouth last September and they gave one of the most vital performances that I have ever seen. It was quite spiritual.

Dr. Dog - Worst Trip
The Teeth - Ball Of The Dead Rat
Hoots & Hellmouth - It's Close, I'm Undone


New York's The Orion Experience bring their indie pop sound to The Red and The Black.

The Orion Experience - There's No Love In February


DC locals Lejeune and The Antiques will release their long awaited new albums at IOTA. Julie Ocean will be providing support. This is pretty much the only big local show this weekend, but it's quite a good one.

Lejeune - Bizarre Histrionics
The Antiques - Bedsit Bones


Heading up to Baltimore, Elvis Costello brings his never ending supply of great songs to Ram's Head Live.

Elvis Costello - Pump It Up


If you are up for a short road trip, there is a nice show happening in Harrisburg, PA. Appalachian Brewing Company is having their 10 year anniversary. To celebrate, they booked bands for the entire day. They will cap it off at night with a free concert that is headlined by The Hold Steady. Hershey, PA's The April Skies will be opening.

The Hold Steady - The First Night
The April Skies - My Love Is In This House

SUNDAY


The very popular LCD Soundsystem is coming to 9:30 Club. The always eccentric YACHT is opening.

LCD Soundsystem - All My Friends
Yacht - See A Penny (Pick It Up)


Silversun Pickups are playing a show at Recher Theatre in Towson. Sea Wolf is also on the bill.

Silversun Pickups - Well Thought Out Twinkles
Sea Wolf - You're A Wolf


There is a Canadian Invasion in DC. Toronto bands Sloan and Small Sins will be bringing their brand of rock to Black Cat.

Small Sins - Stay
Sloan - Before The End Of The Race

Viva Le Loup!

The rumors have been flying around for weeks and now it is official. DC's Le Loup have signed to Hardly Art, which is a new offshoot of Sub Pop. Their debut album The Throne of the Third Heaven of the Nations' Millennium General Assembly will be released this fall. Stay tuned for more about these guys. I'll have a couple of Le Loup related announcements of my own in the coming weeks. In the meantime, you can catch them at Rock and Roll Hotel on May 22. Since I know that many of them frequent this site, congrats!

Thursday Night In DC

There are a lot of good shows tonight. This has been a pretty crazy day and I'm running behind, so I'm just going to list them...


Baltimore's Two if by Sea is joined by DC locals The Alphabetical Order and Paul Michel at IOTA. You don't get a much better regional music showcase than this.

Two if by Sea - Summer Borne For Sleep
The Alphabetical Order - Submarines
Paul Michel - The Ways and Means


Death Cab For Cutie's Ben Gibbard is playing two sold out shows at 9:30 Club. He will be joined by David Bazan of Pedro the Lion and Johnathan Rice.

Death Cab For Cutie - The Sound Of Settling
David Bazan - Backwoods (SSL Rough Mix)


DC's City-State is having a CD release for Monument at Black Cat. Philly's A Study In Her will be providing support.

City-State - Mary
A Study In Her - Favorite Actor


Brandon Butler has a special in store at Crooked Beat Records.

Brandon Butler - Sparks


New York bands Meowskers and Quintus play a show at The Red and The Black.

Meowskers - I'll Be By Your Side
Quintus - Old Guitar


Viking Moses, Castanets and Phosphorescent come to DC9. For an evening of interesting singer songwriters, they will be joined by DC's own Jesse Elliott (of These United States).

Viking Moses - I Will Always Love You (Dolly Parton Cover)
Castanets - Three Days Four Nights
Phosphorescent - I Am A Full Grown Man (I Will Lay In the Grass All Day)
These United States - Already Got A Girl Who Calls Me That (Daytrotter Session)

Wednesday In The District

Tonight has a couple of interesting shows coming to DC...


Over at the Rock and Roll Hotel, Scotland's The Cinematics come to town. They will be joined by Chicago's The Changes and local atmospheric rockers, Cedars. This should be a really solid lineup of indie rock.

The Cinematics - A Strange Education
The Changes - On A String
Cedars- Black Book


Speaking of atmosphere, France's Air will be at 9:30 Club tonight. They will be joined by Norwegian newcomer Kate Havnevik, for what should be a very interesting lineup.

Air - One Hell Of A Party (featuring Jarvis Cocker)
Kate Havnevik - Unlike Me

Black Cat Tonight

There is one show of note for this evening. London's The Clientele will be playing at Black Cat. Brooklyn's The Ladybug Transistor and locals The Positions, will be providing support.

The Clientele - Bookshop Casanova
The Ladybug Transistor - Always On The Telephone
The Positions - Back To Me

Deleted Scenes and Friends

Later this week, DC's Deleted Scenes will embark on a US tour that will stretch into mid-June. Tonight, they will be having a big kickoff party at The Red and The Black and several of their tourmates will be joining them. The band is excited about this show and Dan describes their friends as follows...

The Hero Cycle is dense indie rock from Burlington, VT.
Hot Lava is milky, very pretty electro-folk from Richmond, VA.
Paper Airplanes is shambling, charming indie pop from Wichita, KS

Samples are included below, so feel free to form your own opinions. If you like what you hear, check out tonight's show.

Deleted Scenes - Trying To Remember A Dream
Hot lava - JPG In The Sun
Paper Airplanes - The Fences
The Hero Cycle - Breathing In

Coming This Weekend

There are a lot of shows happening today and tomorrow. I have talked about some of them already and others have only appeared on the calendar. As a quick reminder, here are your choices...

SATURDAY


Exit Clov/Jukebox The Ghost (EP Release)/ Le Loup @ Black Cat

This is sure to be a ridiculous show. You have local sweethearts Exit Clov supported by two of the biggest new buzz bands in the area. Jukebox The Ghost and Le Loup are two names that you will be hearing a lot about in the coming months. This is your chance to see them early in the game.

Exit Clov - Violent Berries
Jukebox the Ghost - Hold It In


Cedars/Shade/The Vita Ruins @ IOTA

Cedars and The Vita Ruins are two local bands that have been covered quite a bit on this site. Shade is a great band from Pittsburgh. Throw them all together and you have a great night of atmospheric rock.

Cedars - Arrivals/Departures
Shade- Broken Ribs
The Vita Ruins- My Last Days On Earth


Low Red Land @ Warehouse Next Door

Low Red Land is a great band from San Francisco. They are an indie rock band that has a strong helping of alt.country sensibilities. They also know how to put on a great live show.

Low Red Land - West Texas


A Lot Of Bands @ Rock 'N Roll Hotel

11 local favorites including Middle Distance Runner, These United States, Telograph, Let's French and The Hard Tomorrows, are all playing together. This show has each band playing their favorite upbeat cover songs.


SUNDAY


Summerbirds in the Cellar @ Lo-Fi Social Club

They delighted DC on Monday. Now it is Baltimore's turn to check out the great band known as Summerbirds in the Cellar.

Summerbirds in the Cellar - The Night Thief (Demo)


Blonde Redhead/The Fields @ 9:30 Club

Blonde Redhead has been around for awhile. Their latest CD has been gaining them some of the best reviews of their career. They will be joined by Fields.

Blonde Redhead - Spring and By Summer Fall
Fields - Brittlesticks

Jukebox The Ghost's CD Release

DC's Jukebox The Ghost have a new EP coming out. They will be releasing it tomorrow night at Black Cat. Local buzz band Le Loup will be opening the show and Exit Clov will be headlining. It should be a great show and I'm willing to bet that they'll bring balloons.

If you like piano driven pop music, you''ll enjoy these guys. They fit somewhere between Ben Folds, They Might Be Giants and Queen. I've heard that they have a lot of energy live and I'd be interested to see them at work. They've also been building a nice buzz in the northeast. I'll leave you with a couple of tracks to check out.

Hold It In
Good Day

Mark Your Calendars

August 10 is going to be a very special night in DC. What's going on? Well, I'm not quite ready to divulge the full details. I can tell you that you're probably going to like it and it may have something to do with some friends getting together to help a certain music site celebrate their first birthday. Any guesses? Stay tuned...

IA Exclusive: Low Red Land

It is sort of ridiculous how many great bands are playing locally tomorrow night. A band that is most likely going to get overlooked (and really shouldn't), is San Francisco's Low Red Land. The 3-piece will be playing Warehouse Next Door and they're certainly worth your time. Take a small dash of the best elements of alt.country and add them to a large serving of really good indie rock and you'll arrive at these guys. Another thing about this band, is that they know how to bring it live. I promise you, they do not disappoint.

In honor of their return to DC, they provided me with an exclusive new track. "West Texas" is the result of a recent studio session and has never been available before. The track is held down by tight grooves and they do a great job with changing up the tempo. Personally, I can't stop listening to song and I love the musical direction that they are heading in. What do you think? I'll also include a track off of Weight of Nations for good measure. Enjoy!

West Texas
Dreams That Heroes Dream

Cedars Mixed Up

Cedars is one of my favorite DC bands. They just made a remix available for "Arrivals/Departures." Enjoy...

Arrivals/Departures (Winter Sea Storm Remix)

For those of you who don't remember the original...

Arrivals/Departures

You can buy the excellent CD here.

The Jaguar Club - The Sirens

Fresh off of their first show headlining at Mercury Lounge, IA favorites The Jaguar Club have released their debut music video. The piece for "The Sirens" is great in it's simplicity. Enjoy...




The Sirens

City-State

DC's City-State is releasing a new album this month. On May 10, they will have a release party for Monument at Black Cat. Philly's A Study In Her contributed a remix to the CD and will be opening the show.

So how is the new material? Well, they took the ideas that they had on their debut EP and expanded on them. There is a lot of layering and they even threw in a string section. They still haven't met their full potential, but they're getting closer. In the end, this is a solid release from a promising band.

We wouldn't be IA, if we didn't have a contest. We will be giving away a grand prize that includes two tickets to the release party and a CD. Two runner ups will receive copies of the CD. To win, all you have to do is send an e-mail with your first name and location. Good luck and enjoy a couple of tracks from the CD. If you like what you hear, pre-order here.

Mary
Great Lakes

Triple Tuesday

It's Tuesday and our old features are currently on ice, so I felt like doing something different. Here are 3 (mostly) older songs that I just felt like posting. Cool? Cool.

Catherine Wheel - Black Metallic
Afghan Whigs - Debonair
The Blakes - Lie Next To Me

Day For Night

Day For Night is a 3-piece from New York City. Having only two instruments and a vocalist, it would seem like they would be pretty minimalist. While that may be true, they come at you full force with pounding drums and driving guitars. However, the real story here is Kali Holloway's haunting vocals. She has the kind of voice that can stick with you for days. A three song EP is not a lot to go on, but it's enough to leave you wanting more.

Silver Beach