Can’t let the week come to and end without saying a few words about Avers’ fantastic set at the tUnE-yArDs show on Monday.
#rva
Matthew E. White
I’m a sucker for intertexuality, so the new Matthew E. White album is like a gift from above.
Friday Cheers
Backstage with Richmond’s Brewery Boom
Talk about arduous research. I got to write an article for River City Magazine about the symbiotic relationship between Richmond’s breweries and bands. Lots of boozy fun was had, and I’m super-duper excited to share the results — click here to check it out over at Richmond Navigator’s site.
Anousheh
I’ve been spending lots of time with Anousheh’s new Make Noise album lately. As it happens, it’s caught me at a fairly weighty moment. Both Mrs. YHT and I have had family members pass away recently, and we’ve taken turns giving each other colds that have lingered. Those two categories of hardship certainly pack unequal emotional punches, but their confluence has been one hell of a drag. Baby YHT has been a source of happiness throughout — she’s getting bigger every day and we’ve started feeding her real foods and relishing her hilarious reactions. Still not sure whether she loves or hates applesauce. That was a fun one.
It’s entirely random that Make Noise caught me at this particular moment, but I’m glad it did, because I’ve found it to be a great comfort.
Natalie Prass
At some point last year, I stopped writing about the shows I was going to. I’ve still been taking notes on my phone — quick bullet point observations of songs and performers — but I haven’t been committing them to blog paper lately. Last night’s Natalie Prass show was one hell of a wake-up call, however, and I can’t resist sharing this time around. Here are my notes as they would have looked if I’d been able to pull a Zack Morris and pause the show to wax rhapsodic about what I was seeing. (As a side note, I once told my parents during an episode of Saved By the Bell that I wanted to change my name to Zack. They didn’t oblige, which seems like the right call in retrospect.)
The Trillions
World, it’s my pleasure to introduce you to “Dead Meat,” from the Trillions’ soon-to-released album, Superposition.
Clair Morgan
Some bands you find out about right when they’re getting started. Cavern Club regulars — I’m looking (with immeasurable jealousy) at you. Other bands you fall for after they’ve stopped making music, and looking back is all you have. For all the bands that fall in between, one of the most interesting moments is when you find out, for the first time since you’ve started listening, that a new album is coming out — it’s when your fandom jumps out of the past and into the present. I’m so excited to be living in that magical, blue-sky moment with Clair Morgan.
Backstage with Richmond’s Music Venues
This was fun. As part of a River City Magazine article, I got to interview folks who work at some of Richmond’s most beloved venues about their favorite shows and live music moments. When I was done working on it, a few things became clear:
Top 10 RVA Albums of 2014
A few days ago, I saw yet another malcontented article about how 2014 wasn’t a great year for music, and how there were “good” albums but no “great” albums. I can’t remember where I saw it, and I’m not going to bother trying to find a link, because it’s crap. I’ll give you three reasons why:
- One person’s good is another person’s great.
- The way an album is perceived can and will change over time, so good now can be great later.
- This was a great year for Richmond music.
That last one warrants its own list, so here are 10 reasons we should join Tina Belcher in raising a glass and toasting RVA music’s 2014. Consider it an alphabetically ordered top 10 that doubles as a drinking game.
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Avers — Empty Light
Reason We Should Raise Our Glasses: Because Avers shows how, in a tightly knit community full of talented people, the lineup possibilities are endless and endlessly rewarding.
Avers — “The Only One” [Spotify/iTunes]
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Black Girls — Claire Sinclaire
Reason We Should Raise Our Glasses: Because the snuff rock sound took a giant leap in terms of realization and articulation.
Black Girls — “Buyin’ Time” [Spotify/iTunes]
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Butcher Brown — All Purpose Music
Reason We Should Raise Our Glasses: Because truly groovy music — songs that find a pocket, set up shop and explore all the space it has to offer — can be enjoyed over and over, and in any situation.
Butcher Brown (ft. Nicholas Payton) — “Jellowstone Room” [Spotify/iTunes]
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Dead Fame — Vicious Design EP
Reason We Should Raise Our Glasses: Because you don’t have to choose between intensity and danceability.
Dead Fame — “Joan Crawford” [Spotify/iTunes]
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Everyone Dies in the End — All Things Lead to This
Reason We Should Raise Our Glasses: Because the cycle of creation and destruction is a powerful thing to witness.
Everyone Dies in the End — “We Bears Are A Proud Race” [Spotify/iTunes]
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Lightfields — Junior
Reason We Should Raise Our Glasses: Because the chorus of “Junior” feels like an invitation — the kind of singalong that makes you feel like a part of something.
Lightfields — “Junior” [Spotify/iTunes]
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Sleepwalkers — Greenwood Shade
Reason We Should Raise Our Glasses: Because every track being dynamite and not being able to pick a favorite is a wonderful problem to have.
Sleepwalkers — “Breaking My Heart” [Spotify/iTunes]
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Sundials — Kick EP
Reason We Should Raise Our Glasses: Because Sundials’ Kick EP packed a full-length album’s punch into six tightly crafted songs that can be enjoyed over and over without losing an ounce of their emotional impact.
Sundials — “Gained A Grip” [Spotify/iTunes]
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Trio of Justice — Pookie’s March
Reason We Should Raise Our Glasses: Because the roomy, thoughtful mastery of Pookie’s March tells us that Jellowstone’s success will be varied and fun to follow.
Trio of Justice — “Motherland” [Spotify/iTunes]
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White Laces — Trance
Reason We Should Raise Our Glasses: Because the word is getting out about White Laces, so Richmonders and non-Richmonders alike can cozy up to the many-splendored warmth of TRANCE.
White Laces — “Nothing Clicks” [Soundcloud]
You Hear That 