Capital Swamp: The DC Resource Thread

Was Glenn Close reciting a script at Oscars or does she really know all about Sugar Bear, EU, Da Butt , Spike Lee School Daze and the Backyard Band ?

https://www.washingtonpost.com/arts-entertainment/2021/04/26/glenn-close-da-butt-oscars/

Too good to be true: Glenn Close dancing to ‘Da Butt’ at the Oscars was scripted https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/movies/story/2021-04-25/oscars-2021-glenn-close-da-butt-dance

Hold up.

You're telling me that entertainment industry may in fact have been selling us an illusion?

I am shocked, SHOCKED

‘A lady her age, doing Da Butt like that?’ E.U.'s Sugar Bear on Glenn Close’s Oscars rump shake https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/music/story/2021-04-26/glenn-close-da-butt-oscars-2021-eu-sugar-bear

You have a favorite song about butts besides “Da Butt”?

Well, “Da Butt” is my favorite song of all time.(…)

She likes "Da Butt" and she cannot lie.

Sugar Bear was on the radio doing an interview with Donnie Simpson yesterday afternoon and was apparently talking to reporters all day. Nice to see him get that coverage.

Alona got good quotes from Sugar Bear and Big G

https://washingtoncitypaper.com/article/515431/glenn-close-da-butt-left-eu-sugar-bear-speechless/

In bouncebeat go-go news , Yaddiya has now done Moechella s with TOB band in both Los Angeles and Atlanta

No go-go bands or high school marching bands in virtual funk parade this year. That makes me sad. They do have jazz, Hiphop, r’n’b at least

This may surprise you, but some intrepid soul put together a documentary about the DC punk scene!
I wonder if Ian MacKaye is in it... I kid but I am a sucker for these.

http://files.constantcontact.com/67e4e85b001/8a83d00c-be7e-4274-92a0-1fdb4627f47a.jpg

Punk the Capital: Building a Sound Movement
A documentary tracing the birth of punk rock in Washington D.C. (1976-1983)

Featuring Bad Brains, Minor Threat, Void, Rites of Spring, and more, with interviews
from Henry Rollins, Ian MacKaye, H.R., Jello Biafra, Joe Keithley, and many others

Premiering exclusively in Theaters and on Virtual Cinema nationwide beginning May 14th

DVD / Blu-ray to be released for National Record Store Day on June 8th via Passion River

Website: www.punkthecapital.info

For you folks actually in DC, there's a screening:
5/14 - Suns Cinema – Washington, DC

I wonder if Ian MacKaye is in it... I kid

Lol, nice. In college, a kid in my music theory class turned in a videotaped interview he conducted w/MacKaye for one of his projects (that’s how little it takes to get that guy in front of a camera).

I think he's just a nice guy.

I met him once backstage after a Fugazi show at the (now closed) Marquee in NYC back in the early '90s.
There I am telling him how much as a kid who spent formative years in Manassas, how important he was to me.
"I learned a lot from you," I said. Then I looked and noticed I had a beer in one hand and a lit cigarette in the other.
"Well, not all of it took," I said sheepishly.

He laughed.

Haha

Ha.

So the Punk the Capital doc is worth seeing, and there’s an online screening Friday May 14 too. This doc’s 1976 to 1983 focus covers an earlier period than the other doc Salad Days. Though they both overlap in coverage a bit. Some great home movie super 8 footage in this one

https://www.musicinafrica.net/fr/node/15368

Earlier bio of Amha Eshete covering his years as a pioneering Ethiopian producer and label owner, plus touching on his later years after he fled to Washington DC and started the Blue Nile and the Ibex restaurant/ clubs. In a French website obit for Eshete it noted that Nina Simone visited and ate at Blue Nile.

The Ibex club had Ethiopian bands playing on one floor and go-go and old school r’n’b on another. Rip Amha Eshete

You know about Inner Ear likely closing, yes?

Inner Ear may be coming back in same location in the new building but as a nonprofit educational studio; or it may move. Arlington Arts folks got grief about the impact on Inner Ear, and so while they’re going ahead with new arts nonprofit building there, they are at least sort of giving lip service or more to the future of Inner Ear.

It is kind of LOLz that Arlington, in order to create a cultural district, may be displacing a genuine example of Arlington culture. Though it’s been a long time since Arlington was a hotbed of homegrown indie rock.

Speaking of Arlington, wera Arlington community radio vinyl vault show is interviewing Ian about records and stuff Thursday May 6 at 8 et online etc

Ian Mackaye not the notorious Ian S who has moved to Los Angeles

https://dcist.com/story/21/05/05/temple-hills-skating-rink-remain-open/

https://medium.com/seventhirty-dc/on-biyya-chonta-kumera-zekarias-creates-a-heady-blend-of-ethiopian-and-colombian-grooves-353a460a9beb

Kumera Zekarias

Here’s the nice video Kumera did with footage in Colombia and in the District of Columbia’s Malcolm X park among other locales

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1xJETByzg7A

Funk Parade panels are free online today, but they’re charging for their virtual “parade” which I see has gotten smaller ( 3 acts dropped off the bill).

Later in May there’s a DC Music Summit conference with performances. R’n’b, some rap, jazz , but no go-go or street rap

New 3rd album by postpunk trio Nice Breeze on Bandcamp and Spotify

https://washingtoncitypaper.com/article/516325/city-lights-nice-breeze-cast-a-spell-on-magicians-rabbit/

Live Q&A: Punk the Capital
Join the film's director, James Schenider, co-director Paul Bishow, and other surprise guests on Thursday, May 20 at 7 PM ET via Facebook Live. No Facebook account necessary! Hosted by George Myers from Amherst Cinema.

. DC Music Summit online-- Friday May 21 through Sunday May 23
Sat. May 22 --
Fly Zah Performance
*9:40AM-10:40AM Carolyn Malachai KEYNOTE ADDRESS*
​
10:40AM - 10:55AM Cecily - Guided Meditation;
12:00PM - 1:00PM Tools & Programs to Empower Youth During the Pandemic by
Shanay Miles
3: :00 PM - 3:30PM Performances : Carly Harvey & Asha Santee

Sunday 5-23- 5:30PM - 6:30PM Closing Event and Performances
​
***Natalie Brooke, The Cruddy Crankerz, and Dior Ashley Brown & F.L.O.T.U.S.

Heavy Metal Parking Lot 35th Anniversary Party webinar
Description
Join directors John Heyn and Jeff Krulik for a virtual screening of the seminal 1986 documentary on 35th anniversary of that fateful Judas Priest concert at the Capital Centre. Hosted by Joe and Nick from the Found Footage Festival and featuring:
-Rarely seen footage from the 35-year history of the cult classic film
-Krulik and Heyn's follow-up movie, "Neil Diamond Parking Lot"
-Highlights from Krulik's collection of public access weirdness from Maryland
-A live Heavy Metal Parking Lot alumni reunion featuring the stars from the movie
Sign up and trip Jack Daniels with us!
Time
May 31, 2021 09:00 PM in Eastern Time (US and Canada)

Mt Pleasant uprising anniversary community concert 4 to 9 today Saturday May 15 Lamont St & Mt Pleasant street

Leonardo Rua at 5 ; Kumera Zekarias at 5:30 are only performers I have gotten word that are playing

Former zine editor and now director of Salad Days dc punk doc and Creem doc Scott Crawford has a new podcast called Spoke. He talks to Jim Saah in episode 1. Saah is a longtime punk show photographer, had a zine I wrote for called Uno Mas, and helped Crawford on Salad Days.

https://anchor.fm/scott-crawford3/episodes/SPOKE-with-guest-Jim-Saah-e10qvpj?fbclid=IwAR1NLtFXiresBmOVzeMaQjEx8_R6Q8Sw0FXo7J0GKYaJ9iharOOMwwnrdg4

https://washingtoncitypaper.com/article/517662/city-lights-see-christopher-chens-floating-world-on-a-mount-pleasant-alley-wall/

Photos up through May in Mount Pleasant alley near Elle. Friday talk. Streetscapes plus Chuck Brown, Sharon Jones, Laughing Man band ( Luke Stewart), jazz musicians at Cafe Toulouse

https://www.kennedy-center.org/whats-on/millennium-stage/2021/reach-summer/

Cambodian garage rock and the evil Khmer Rouge movie doc “Don’t Think I’ve Forgotten “ is screening on Reach tonight. Plus first Les the DJ spinning Filipino rock vinyl

Some interesting Reach / k Ctr mill stage weekends this summer

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lKY7UmIS6rY

Jeff Krulik films Bill McKenzie talking about growing tomatoes and how he got into the DC punk scene circa the late 1970s

https://www.washingtonpost.com/goingoutguide/music/best-new-rap-music-dmv-may/2021/05/25/dcb8f96e-b9ce-11eb-a5fe-bb49dc89a248_story.html

Some new Baltimore and DC r’n’b & rap cuts

Punk the Capital is screening at Charles Theatre in Baltimore tonight Wednesday. Jeff Nelson will be there

GoGo City doc that is about gentrification as much as go-go is screening online as part of Filmfest DC June 4 to 13 I think

Scott Crawford podcast mentioned above is now up to 3 episodes. Lyle Presler of Minor Threat in 2 sessions

A dc hiphop movie doc is coming soon. I forget what it’s called

Juneteenth go-go weekend gigs coming

https://www.fortreno.com/

June 19 deadline for DMV musicians to submit music for consideration to be selected to play Fort Reno later this summer.

Details at link

Juneteenth Moechella- Friday night Bouncebeat bands and exercise workout @ Audi Field; Saturday March for equity & Justice w/ bands from BLM plaza to U Street; Sunday Moechella Unity Fest at Gateway Pavilion, MLK Ave Se with EU, Junkyard, TOB, ABM, Ambition Band, MTM plus guest rappers , a kids haven for little kids and lots of vendors

All free

DMV has too many rappers for old guys like me to keep up with

NPS has announced that Fort Dupont park concert series will be online only again this summer. They say it will include soul, funk, hiphop, jazz.” No specific dates or acts announced yet

Don Zientara made an announcement on his Facebook that the legendary Inner Ear Studios is closing 10/1 which is a goddamned shame.

https://www.facebook.com/don.zientara/posts/2990457901190251

Yeah, sucks. Don is a truly fine person in addition to running a great studio. He did something with my drum sound that will never be equaled.

https://wtop.com/arlington/2021/06/inner-ear-studio-to-close-this-october-it-needs-to-come-to-an-end/

But it sounds like he will be producing elsewhere

Zientara said only the location won’t stay the same.

“Inner Ear is not going away — it will be set up somewhere else. I’m still gonna be working. I’m not finished. I haven’t bought a fishing pole, or worms or flies yet.

Rhizome is doing 4 outdoors shows July 1 to 4. They now also say they don’t have to move until early next year.

Black Cat is reopening Friday July 9 with a free dj night with Baby Alcatraz and Mark Cisneros spinning the tunes. Live music coming after that soon

Good news about Rhizome, was just there last night for a concert.

Cool that Rhizome can get acclaimed jazz guitarists like Mary Halvorsen

https://www.americanbluesscene.com/bear-family-records-announces-release-of-rb-in-d-c-1940-1960/

.@BearFamilyRec Announces Release of ‘R&B in D.C. 1940-1960’ CD box set tells the story of DC r’n’b in 16 cds and a 252 page book put together by Jay Bruder

Looks awesome

oh man that does.

16 CDs! I didn’t think they were making those big boxes anymore.