Just wanted to pass on this update from @katmarsh25 and @HRMusic: the Monochromatic 7 Cities Myspace page has been updated with tons of calendar dates. Plenty going on if you live over on the Southside.
Monochromatic is dedicated to the reconstruction of the local art and music scene by connecting artists, fans and the general public.
Kudos to Gabriel and K@t, you guys should be getting paid for what you’re doing!
Wow, what a night.
We arrived at The Boot for our 9PM reservation seriously overdressed and settled into our table. The place a great cozy feel to it and nice style. I went straight for the duck and balsamic reduction, sides of small new potatoes and green beans. The flavor was great, I totally cleaned all traces of the sauce off my plate. Because the duck was made to order and takes so long to cook, I think they rushed it a bit and served it to me undercooked. The breast was good, it was the leg that was rare and impossible to cut off the bone. I told my waitress and the owner before the night was out, not to cause a scene, just to let them know. My fiancee’s meal was fantastic though, a clam and spicy sausage with pasta and a tomato based sauce. It was a bit too spicy for her; I wound up sopping up every trace of the sauce with bread it was so good.
By the time we were done with the food the place started to fill up and Norfolk based Yokefellow hit the stage. It’s just one guy, he was joined onstage by a young lady on violin for a few songs. It was a very calm introduction for the following acts. After the show Yokefellow gave me a copy of the anchors ep, his 4 song demo. Here is one of the tracks off of it:
Yokefellow – Sleeves Up
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After Yokefellow finished his set the stage was swarmed with a crowd of people and equipment that was Holler Wild Rose. The New Jersey band launched their wall of sound off to an energetic start. Three guys with guitars, one drummer, one bassist and a girl on a keyboard. Wow. Frontman John Mosloskie’s voice has been described as resembling Thom Yorke, Jeff Buckley and Sigur Ros’s Jón Birgisson, but trying to describe the bands waves of sound by comparing it to another band or genre ultimately fails. They have a unique sound and put on a great show. Check out their YouTube videos for one, and read this profile of the band. Here’s them performing Captive Train last night, midway through the set.
Newport News’s Westbound was the reason I had wanted to come to the Boot in the first place. When I first heard “I Swear We Were Infinite” I knew I had to go see them. Their instrumental heavily textured guitar sound reminded me of post-rock acts like Tortoise and Mogwai, and I had to check them out. I was not dissapointed. They kicked right off with their lush sound and I was not dissapointed. Here’s a clip from one of the songs they played.
We had to leave before they were done with thier set, but they will be back at the Boot in a few weeks. I cannot wait to hear more from them and will try my best to help get these local boys the chance to play over on this side of the water.
From the #HRVA feed, Rebel Sessions on a great new site, Mogulus. It’s a streaming video site with integrated chat room. Really cool.
Phrantik, Splatterhouse and the Darkitect. I’ve heard everything from dubstep, electro and drum&bass, and a even a track that samples ‘this is rock and roll keyboard‘. It’s still going on now, and should be a regularly occuring event on Fridays. Like a local Betalounge.
Follow drscodelab on Twitter for more updates as to what’s happening.
An mp3 mix album featuring the trio: The Revolution III
I am officially calling this weekend as the first weekend of summer. There’s a ton of cool stuff going on Saturday.
My pick for tomorrow is Holler Wild Rose, Yokefellow and Westbound @ The Boot (insidetheboot.com) in Norfolk. This place seems really nice. Great menu, and their philosophy centers around fresh, local, seasonal. They have all their local producers listed. Also they really get the internet. They have Facebook and Twitter and you can book a table online through OpenTable. Very nice. I can’t wait to see Westbound.
Campus Chaos 2009 at the Webb Center in Norfolk this Saturday.
Blonde Redhead, Marnie Stern, Ultra Dolphins, Des Ark, The Love Language, EAR PWR, Savvas and Stimutacs. You can listen to some of the lineup on the Last.FM event page. This actually starts a noon with a DJ and percussion ensemble, and ends out with a dance party after Blonde Redhead is done at midnight. This will be very cool. Here’s the Facebook page.
The Downtown Hampton Block Parties resume this week with Molly Hatchett and roll every Saturday through August. The party moves off the street and inside Marker 20, Goody’s, Goodfellas, and the Taphouse at 10:30. Family Tree will be playing inside Marker starting at 10.
Also Beerfest @ Nauticus Plaza, Norfolk waterfront.
That’s it, hit us up in the comments.
I’ll be filling in for Kerry Knight again tonight, playing an acoustic set with drummer Joe Milosevich tonight at Keagan’s of Jefferson Commons, 9:30-1:30 tonight. Come on down and say hi and enjoy the show
Via FB from Jennie Zell: 757 Art show alert! ~ RT @katmarsh25: Please RT Renewal This Friday!
From Craigslist comes word of a benefit for parapalegic Elliot Williams of Smithfield. The Smithfield Jaycees are throwing a BBQ for him on April 25th, and it seems that the band that was booked for that night had to cancel.
Elliot has opened his home up as sort of a halfway house for those in need, and has been in much need himself, having made modifications to his car and home to suit a man confined to a wheelchair. I’ve known him since I was child and have watched him raise his 4 children.
I’m still waiting confirmation back on the situtation and will pass on any word when I get it.
So Alfredo Torres wrote a blog post up over at HamptonRoads.com listing his pics for a locals only mixtape. I applaud the idea. Torres didn’t build any links out to any of the bands listed so I figured I’d start a #HRVMixtape hashtag on Twitter and post up the links to the bands’ mySpace, YouTube or mp3 links.
As I was posting Torres’s pics, a few other people started adding their picks as well. I’m still posting to it and hopefully others will their own down the road. I think this is a great way to discover good local music.
So check the stream for all the good picks and add your own by posting a Tweet with #HRVMixtape, the name of the band, the song, a link to a page where we can hear such song.
[update:]
Earlier we reported about a Battle of the Bands that took place this last weekend at the Peppermint Beach Club (WARNING: Horrible autoplay) in Virginia Beach. Since we never heard back from Derek I tried to do a bit of digging around to figure out what happened. Turns out that the event was being thrown by a promoter called Gorrilla Music.
Battlefield Blvd may have been the winner. There’s no update on the official page yet. They will be doing another show at the Peppermint on May 2, and it looks like they still need more bands to fill out the roster.
And here is last year’s VA Beach winner: In Cynthia’s Diary
[original post:]
From my friend Derek Moore of Bent Tranzmission comes word of a battle of the bands at the Peppermint Beach Club in Virginia Beach this weekend. 9 bands will be playing from 4PM til 9.
Should be a great oppourtunity to hear some great local music. Check it out today.
After driving 663 miles, or about 9 hours and 23 minutes, I needed a drink. So as I drive into Deadwood, I was totally blown away by the secnery. In South Dakota, the scenery is so majestic, it pretty much gave me a whole new outlook on this country. Specifically, the Black Hills were absolutley amazing. So anyway, I have never gambled in a casino before, but the signs for Cadillac Jacks looked too cool to pass up.
Needless to say, beginners luck was in the air. 7 jack and cokes later, along with $800, and a few more friends (Jeff the dealer), and I was off to bed. Tonight is Missoula Montana, and I can already smell the casinos. (like I need another vice…) check my flickr account for more photos!
till that day…
