Capital Swamp: The DC Resource Thread

Missed all the 930 club stuff (the invitation only Sunday night thing and the Monday night deal with the bands). Saw a few of someone's photos on Facebook--Scream with Dave Grohl, and Henry Rollins introducing the current version of Troublefunk.

Saw with the W. Post review the photo of the Evens playing upstairs on the balcony, rather than on the stage.

http://www.washingtoncitypaper.com/blogs/artsdesk/music/2010/06/11/your-weekend-in-international-and-roots-music-salif-keita-angel-y-kris-beausoleil-ar-rahman/#more-25081

Lots of stuff I am interested in this weekend (but I may not be able to attend).

I'm still at work, day from hell, but will hopefully make Pantha du Prince. RA says he starts at 10:30 at U Street Music Hall. http://www.residentadvisor.net/event.aspx?166856

Yep, that's when things seem to start there.

Good news, skip - Pantha du Prince is playing live and will be a much earlier show.

― I DIED, Thursday, May 27, 2010 6:37 AM (2 weeks ago) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink
Started at midnight, which would have been annoying had I arrived with everyone else in my group at 10:30. But instead the timing was perfect. :) By 1:20 we were out the door. He was good, not mind-blowing. The set straddled the line between dance set and art piece--that's probably the point, but it created some awkward transitions for the crowd between dancing and standing around waiting for the next beat to show up. My friends were not totally weirded out by my taste in music so I was happy.

Holy Ghost sounds like a lot of fun on Saturday but I'm probably going to be at Mixtape that night.

Howard Theatre to be finally re-opened, rebuilt and modified into quasi-theatre and nightclub (ala State Theatre in Falls Church) maybe---

http://www.washingtoncitypaper.com/blogs/artsdesk/music/2010/06/15/howard-theatre-restoration-may-mean-a-major-music-venue-for-shaw/

See the comments re the Howard and the Lincoln theatres and why they sit empty for the most part...

http://www.washingtoncitypaper.com/blogs/housingcomplex/2010/06/14/howard-theater-set-to-break-ground-in-august/#comments

yeah, I don't see why the city thinks that another version of the money-losing Lincoln Theater with MORE restrictions is going to work any better than the Lincoln.

It's alot of money for a feel-good thing (and I say that as someone who is wowed by the list of amazing performers who were there in the 20th century years during segregation). I recall someone once suggesting that it be turned into some kind of DC music museum--but I doubt there's grant or corporate money to sustain that or enough tourist interest. DC r'n'b and jazz history may be important (and recent stuff in other genres as well), but this isn't New Orleans or Memphis (and the r'n'roll museum I think is struggling in Cleveland; they have a pricey offshoot in NYC now).

The Lincoln Theater management needs to be subject to scrutiny by the DC government and by the press.

never really understood why the lincoln always seems so under-utilized, it's a great multi-purpose venue. one of the best concerts i've ever been too in dc was sigur ros at the lincoln (watching while seated with wine definitely beat struggling against the crowd at the 930 club), and always looked forward to the the annual reel affirmation's film festival's showings there.

IMP/930 has filed (another) lawsuit re Montgomery County's plan to financially support a planned Live Nation 2,000 seat mega-club in Silver Spring

the new D.C. Go-Go thread

More bad go-go related news

My buddy Jeff is gonna be on WAMU 88.5 (and online) Wednesday with host Kojo N. & others from 1:30 pm to 2 talking about 1950's & '60s DC (in advance of Jeff's Saturday Historical Society panel from 2:30 to 4)

Lotsa stuff happening through the weekend in multiple music genres.

The New Pornographers played for almost 2 hours at 9:30 Club yesterday -- definitely worth the $40 for anyone going tonight.

It's sold out. They did a fun show when I saw 'em there awhile back.

I'm gonna be busy with my kid and will have to miss the DC Caribbean Carnival and related soca gigs, plus the special Boukman Exsperyans Haitian show Saturday night at the Folklife Fest.

Anybody see the ol' DC hardcore footage last night Marc Andersen of Positive Force was showing? How was...? They're busy again with shows at St. Stephens. So much going on-- deep house at U St., Tinariwen from Mali at 930, Caribbean Carnival, Folklife Fest, Wavves...Chuck Brown and Cyrille Neville over the weekend at the Barbeque Battle; the Eat, Drink and be Merry '50s and '50s DC nightlife panel...

what's the deal with that panel? i have zero time this weekend but if there is an accompany website or something i would love to see it

From the press release Jeff sent me:

On Saturday, June 26 at 2:30PM, the Historical Society of Washington, DC will host an encore of a popular conference panel discussion, EAT DRINK AND BE MERRY IN 1950-60s DC, a nostalgic journey using images from the HSW Emil Press Collection (1959-1979). As a hobby, Mr. Press shot nearly 4000 color slides of Washington DC between 1959 to 1979, and many are images of our lost buildings, streetscapes and commercial establishments.

Panelists:
local writer Vance Garnett, longtime music fan Mike Baker and Washington Post On The Town columnist John Pagones (1959-65). More panelists to be announced.

And audience participation will be encouraged.

“These are people who experienced the city’s cultural tapestry of the 50s and 60s,” Krulik says. Baker will talk about the Howard Theater, Ebart’s Jazz Mecca, Bohemian Caverns and other r’n’b, rock, and jazz clubs in the city’s U Street and Southeast neighborhoods. Garnett will address Coffee ‘n’ Confusion, the D.C. beatnik hangout that opened in 1959. (Jim Morrison would frequent the place when he was growing up in Alexandria.) Garnett will also cover Bassin’s at 14th and Pennsylvania Avenue, known for its outdoor cafe and honky tonk piano sounds; the Rocket Room, an early rock club at 12th Street and New York Avenue near the old Greyhound Bus Station; Charlie Byrd’s Showboat Lounge on 18th Street; and the Blue Mirror, a music club on 14th Street that later became a strip bar.

Garnett also used to be a lounge singer I think. He was on with Jeff on Kojo's WAMU radio show on Wednesday throwing out his brief memories of places.

panel sounds awesome--really wish i could go to it!

I wonder if the panel talked about the Blu Mirror (discussed in this linked John Kelly Washington Post item)

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/06/26/AR2010062603621_pf.html

Jeff told me the panel had about 100 persons in attendance. He also said, "Lots of great stories from everyone, including Richard Mendelson whose father owned Benny's Rebel Room."

Speaking of old DC music history, I missed the tribute to Carr's Beach concert that took place in Annapolis on Sunday. When many of the area beaches and amusement parks were off-limits to Blacks, Carr's Beach near Sandy Point was the place to go for area African-Americans.

http://www.washingtoncitypaper.com/blogs/artsdesk/general/2010/07/02/international-roots-music-weekend-roundup-the-smithsonian-folklife-festival-arcangel-and-more/#more-26229

cough ....plug....cough(quickie post I prepared last night that includes a UHall event, the Folklife fest, and some reggaeton and more

Glen Echo dancing types love the Folklife Fest...(and me too. It has been slimmed down over the years. Less money available)

Thanks for the tents there. Made it bearable. Not too crowded there today on this Monday government holiday.

W. Post critic David Malitz' band the Cheniers are at Fort Reno tonight.

Morgan Geist (Metro Area) and DJ Sprinkles at U Street Music Hall tonight.

How was it?

Saturday:

Unrest at Black cat tonight; Norwegian pop group whose name I forgot at Iota; ConFunktion, Zapp & Slave at Carter Barron; and a Brit postpunk group at Comet Ping Pong

Really good. Morgan Geist played a mix of stuff and Thaemlitz's set was all his own music. Both were more uptempo and crowd-pleasing than I expected, especially Thaemlitz. A track like Masturjakor sounds amazing on that sound system and people were dancing about as hard as you can dance to his music. I thought the crowd would mostly be gay nerds but it was almost all straight people--just the typical crowd for U Hall's Friday night parties? Unfortunately Thaemlitz came on at 1:30 a.m. and I only lasted until 2:30, but it was a very solid hour. I got there at 11:30 and Geist's set lasted the full two hours until Thaemlitz.

hmmmmm. Interesting. http://www.washingtoncitypaper.com/blogs/artsdesk/music/2010/07/19/for-dj-neekola-iphone-app-is-the-new-show-flyer/#more-26897

“DJing a big club in D.C. is definitely different than DJing in Europe,” she says. “If it’s a local night here, it’s never as full as a club would be over in Europe. And in Europe I can get more creative with the music…I don’t have to stick to just vocal house, and I never have to mix in top 40 or commercial stuff, but it’s like a necessity here in D.C. And almost always in Europe, the people jump, wave their hands and dance like crazy.”

Neekola DJs at local venues like L2, MOVA, Funxion, and Auld Shabeen in Fairfax. She spins at L2 on June 23.

Never been there, but based on what I've read, I can imagine that dj'ing anywhere else would be better than dj'ing at Georgetown lounge L2.

"Georgetown lounge"

Ugh

noooo comment on that piece.

btw Skip, thanks for coming out to DJ Sprinkles! IT was a really great night, and he ended up playing until 4am. Occasional ilxor Lou was there, as was old-school ilxor Aaron Grossman, the initiator of this thread.

From the W. Post blog re issues with getting "free" tickets to see LCD, Pavement, MIA, and more at the Virgin Mobile Fest in September. Online tickets are available Saturday.

there are two asterisks. First one: Virgin Mobile customers and fans who held tickets for previous Virgin Mobile Festivals will be invited via text message and email to a private online ticket giveaway on Friday, July 23. Secondly, fans who don’t want to deal with the rush of online ticket-snatchers can choose to purchase a premium ticket for $125. It provides Pavilion seating, with a portion of the proceeds going to homeless youth charities, and is available for purchase online Friday at 10 a.m.

Fans who would prefer a totally free FreeFest, practice your mouse-clicks. Last year, all 35,000 tickets vanished in a mere 30 minutes.

I think Saturday is the 20th anniversary for Lamont's nightclub in Pomonkey. Amazingly this soulfood/music club has survived with no ads and no website. Just some radio mentions, flyers, posters and word of mouth.

I keep missing Fort Reno shows this summer. Oh well. Have also missed Lamont's soul things and Latino ones and U Hall ones as well. Sometimes real life stuff gets in the way.

Is musician Lida Husik living in DC again, but no longer recording? Thought I read that somewhere.

Sarah Godfrey article on go-gos at DC private schools

http://www.tbd.com/articles/2010/08/private-school-go-go-goes-public-3.html

I DIED, you got any big name acts in the works for U Hall? I had a great time at Aeroplane, Pantha du Prince and DJ Sprinkles.

On our Friday house nights, we've got Neurotic Drum Band, Paul Johnson, Timmy Regisford, Tony Humphries, King Britt, and Francios K coming up. There's also Tim Sweeney, Tensnake, Annie Mac, and more.

There's a lot of really amazing stuff for Oct-Dec we don't have quite confirmed yet, but I'll post a follow up when we do.

The Washington City Paper is putting together a fall arts preview supplement now. You should e-mail a list of stuff to Jonathan Fischer and Erin Petty of the CP. I'm always bugging them to improve their listings and that would help.

x-post to myself--Lida Husik's website says she's recording her first album in years, in Portland shortly (but not sure where she is living--she had gotten married and was out in California for awhile). If you don't know her, old Liz Phair and Beth Orton and Lois might be reference points

Italians Do It Better DJs worth seeing? Might head along if I can master the transport.

Last time Mike Simonetti was here he definitely played harder & housier than the IDIB sound. What I'm really looking forward to in that lineup is Victor Simonelli, who did a lot great 90's NY house:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CI6ka-OPP6I

I'm looking for DC industrial/Dark Wave or punk nights or any good upcoming electronica. Apparently there used to be something at Little Miss Whiskey's but it's been put on hold.

I wonder if there's a DC industrial/dark wave e-mail list or something? Not my thing, but I am guessing somebody should know...

Otherwise I guess you've just gotta google DC goth or something or see if the listings for DC 9 or Velvet lounge or something seem to show an industrial genre dj

Anybody know anything about Subterranean A, a new club featuring indie-rock bands (at 13th and R NW maybe? not sure)