Post Rock

The Jesus Lizard: Live last night

Fri, 20 Nov 2009 16:45:48 -0500

The Jesus Lizard, in earlier days. The band -- if not the crowd -- brought it just as hard Thursday at 9:30 club. By David Malitz Maybe this current run of concerts by '90s hell-raisers the Jesus Lizard isn't simply the latest in a long-string of alt-rock reunions that have overrun the concert landscape the past few years. Maybe it's just that after 10 years of full-contact, sweat-and-blood-stained shows that rightly earned the band a spot in the Best Live Act pantheon, the four dudes simply needed a decade off to catch their breath before resuming their bone-crushing ways. If so, it worked. Thursday night's show at 9:30 club was as good an argument you'll find in favor of turning back the rock clock. Through sludgy power chords and a barrel-chested rhythmic brutality there was a sinister, sonic clarity that rang through the band's songs. And even at 49-years-old (and

Daughtry: Live last night

Fri, 20 Nov 2009 12:53:40 -0500

Don't let the mean look fool you; Daughtry's a softy at heart. By Dave McKenna Chris Daughtry tries to play rough. At the Patriot Center on Thursday, the former American Idol contender led a band that bears his surname through a set of hard pop that mostly fell somewhere between Nirvana and Bread. Like Vancouver-based Nickelback, Daughtry takes a lot of tough guy poses, but is too sweet to pull off that shtick. It's sort of a reverse Lipstick on a Pig syndrome: No matter how much leather, chains, flashpots or heavy metal accoutrements a nice boy throws into his show, he's still a nice boy. (From "American Idol" to "Cougar Town," after the jump.)

Baroness: Live last night

Thu, 19 Nov 2009 19:58:15 -0500

John Dyer Baizley of Baroness roars at Rock and Roll Hotel. (Photo by Kyle Gustafson/FTWP) By Chris Richards Head-bangers have Georgia on their minds. Two of this year's most exciting rock albums come from Savannah's Baroness and Atlanta's Mastodon, positing the Peach State as the new locus of American heavy metal. The former brought some colossal riffage to Washington's Rock & Roll Hotel Wednesday, kicking off its U.S. tour for a throng of fans so tightly packed, you could detect distinct brands of shampoo (or lack thereof). The only thing more piquant than the clashing body odors wafting through the crowd was the voluminous din emanating from the stage. ("Screaming his larynx into ribbons," after the jump.)

Rock-and-roll, no clothes

Thu, 19 Nov 2009 12:39:29 -0500

The Jesus Lizard, fully clothed. (Photo courtesy Joshua Black Wilkins) Hey, ladies! Looking to pick up a dude in his late-30s who values his Touch & Go 7-inch singles more than personal relationships? If so tonight's your Super Bowl, World Series and Stanley Cup all rolled into one -- the Jesus Lizard reunion comes to 9:30 club! Back in the day the band's live show was the musical equivalent of witnessing a bomb explode and then rummaging through the wreckage for an hour or so. Reports from the current tour indicate no change. One thing that has been missing (thankfully?) is a certain part of yelper/stagediver/madman David Yow's anatomy which used to make a very special appearance at some Jesus Lizard shows. That got me to thinking about other rock shows I've attended that could have been R-rated -- or even X-rated. L7 - Constitution Hall - 1995 The L.A.

Local rappers take it to the stage couch

Wed, 18 Nov 2009 09:53:08 -0500

Local rapper XO, shown here at 9:30 club in September, teams up with other area MCs for the Capitol City Music Tour. (Photo by Kyle Gustafson/FTWP) The Capitol City Music Tour -- a revue of local rappers that crosses back and forth between the District and Northern Virginia through mid-December -- landed downtown at Eyebar, Tuesday. But the MCs never actually jumped on stage; they jumped on couch, spitting emphatic verses from a VIP booth near the bar. Despite the odd set up, the quick performances still felt intimate and inspired. K-Beta and Angel Lola Luv each delivered poised rhymes from their VIP perch, along with Kingpen Slim, who was pushing his new mixtape "Clark Kent is the Capital City Kingpen." XO provided the nightcap with the unflappable cool of "Time Out" while a not-so-subliminal message flashed on a nearby video screen: "YOUR FAVORITE RAPPER'S FAVORITE RAPPER! UPTOWN X.O." Consider

Public Enemy to perform on flatbed truck

Tue, 17 Nov 2009 15:18:12 -0500

If Flava Flav jumps like this while on a moving flatbed truck, will he land on the truck or on the street? (We were bad at science.) (Photo by Kyle Gustafson/FWTP) It will take a traffic jam of millions to hold them back: Tomorrow night, hip-hip icons Public Enemy will perform in the streets of Foggy Bottom, rapping on a flatbed truck en route to a headlining concert at Lisner Auditorium. It's an effort to promote National Homeless Youth Awareness month and the reunited rap group, featuring Chuck D and Flava Flav, will be touring the Sasha Bruce House in Southeast Washington earlier in the evening. Around 7:45 p.m., they'll arrive in Foggy Bottom to bring the noise. At the concert, fans who donate a new or gently used winter coat will be eligible for a free VIP ticket upgrade with all proceeds from concert's ticket sales benefiting the Sasha

Is Dave Grohl the best rock drummer alive?

Tue, 17 Nov 2009 14:19:38 -0500

Grohl -- the greatest? We say yes! Them Crooked Vultures' eponymous debut disc, reviewed in today's Post, proves that Dave Grohl is the undisputed king of 21st century tom-smashing. The supergroup -- comprised of Grohl, Led Zeppelin bassist John Paul Jones and Queens of the Stone Age front-dude Josh Homme -- has produced an album that hits HARD. It's an air-drummer's dream come true! But let's open the floor. Who's a better living rock-and-roll drummer than Grohl? (If you nominate afro-beat time-keeper Tony Allen on the technicality that he's drummed for British rock supergroup The Good, the Bad and the Queen, you will earn our respect, but you will still be wrong.) Cast your nominations in the comments section.

The xx: Live last night

Mon, 16 Nov 2009 15:29:39 -0500

The xx -- now a trio -- stayed at their own pace at DC9. By David Malitz The xx must be commended for a dogged devotion to aesthetic. The babyfaced, buzzed-about British trio (its members can drink legally back home but not in the U.S.) never strayed from its slow tempos and sensual sounds over the course of nearly an hour at a sold-out DC9 Sunday night. Most bands so young rely on the old-standbys of energy, bravado and attitude in a live setting. The xx, on the other hand, was a perfect picture of restraint. It may not have made for the most thoroughly engaging performance but that's almost the point -- the band plays perfect mood music, not necessarily meant to be the listener's main focus, but instead ideal background fare. (DC9 = make out club, after the jump.)

Goodie Mob: Live last night

Mon, 16 Nov 2009 09:43:39 -0500

Reunited Southern hip-hop pioneers Goodie Mob added new twists to old songs on Saturday night. (By Kyle Gustafson/FTWP) By Sarah Godfrey With Gucci Mane, Lil Boosie, Lil Wayne and T.I. all sidelined due to legal troubles, it's kind of hard to put together a Southern rap show these days. Perhaps it's out of necessity that concert promoters are reaching back to the '90s, but it's still nice to see a group like Goodie Mob come together for a reunion tour -- especially since without the Atlanta quartet, none of the aforementioned rappers would have careers, let alone the luxury of throwing them away. Anyone who raps with a drawl owes Goodie Mob a debt: When they first asked what we knew about the Dirty South back on their 1995 Organized Noize-produced debut, "Soul Food," the answer was pretty much nothing. But along with OutKast and other pioneering rappers from below

Stefon Harris: Live last night

Mon, 16 Nov 2009 07:45:19 -0500

By Mike Joyce Jazz vibraphonist Stefon Harris and Blackout opened its performance at the Kennedy Center's KC Jazz Club on Saturday night with a variation on George Gershwin's "Gone, Gone, Gone" that could have been re-dubbed "Gone Down U Street." It wasn't newly arranged so much as thoroughly overhauled, stamped by Harris' four-mallet attack and riddled with drummer Terreon Gully's go-go beats. (Melding genres and a myriad of influences, after the jump.)

Slumberland 20th anniversary: Live last night

Mon, 16 Nov 2009 07:40:34 -0500

Local trio and Slumberland mainstays Lorelei provided the highlight of the label's 20th anniversary show at the Black Cat Friday. (Courtesy Forcefield PR) By Mark Jenkins Slumberland Records, which celebrated its 20th birthday Friday at the Black Cat, was founded in Maryland and is now based in California. But its musical inspirations have always been primarily British, as was demonstrated by the seven Slumberland acts that performed at the anniversary show. The evening included bands new, old and in-between, but all showed debts to strummy, noisy U.K. indie-pop. (A low-key evening with plenty of feedback, sustain and reverb, after the jump.)

Full album concerts do little for us

Sat, 14 Nov 2009 12:28:44 -0500

By the end of November, Bruce Springsteen, the Pixies, Steely Dan and Devo will all have played full-album concerts in D.C. (Illustration by Serge Bloch) In Sunday's Arts & Style section Chris Richards wrote a piece titled "Frozen in their tracks" about the continuing trend that finds bands playing concerts at which they perform an entire album, start-to-finish, in order. The gist of his argument: What's the point? There's more to that, of course, and Chris makes those arguments. But I've talked to a few musicians who share our point of view. Craig Wedren of Shudder To Think, last year before Virgin Mobile Festival, about reunions and the full-album concerts: "To be totally honest with you I think (playing an album start-to-finish) is weirder. It's totally splitting hairs but there's something wax museum, mausoleum-esque about watching somebody play their classic album. It's so Pink Floyd, because they're already such a

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Sat, 14 Nov 2009 12:28:44 -0500

Slumberland celebrates its 20th

Fri, 13 Nov 2009 13:38:53 -0500

"I don't think any of us had any great ambitions or imagined putting out more than one or two singles each. We really just wanted documents of what we were doing, and putting out singles seemed to make the most sense." That's Michael Schulman of Slumberland Records, talking about the modest beginnings of his record label, which he founded in Silver Spring 20 years ago and now runs from San Francisco. Countless other labels have started in the same low-key manner, and the story usually ends shortly after that. Hardly any make it through two decades, and even fewer boast a catalogue that helps define a genre. But Slumberland did achieve those milestones; for the past 20 years, the label has released some true indie-pop cornerstones. It's currently experiencing some of its greatest success to date, thanks the popularity of new bands such as the Pains of Being Pure at

Sights and sounds from the Beijing underground

Fri, 13 Nov 2009 09:31:57 -0500

Chinese post-punk band P.K. 14 plays at the Velvet Lounge Friday night. (Photos By Matthew Niederhauser/from "Sound Kapital" Courtesy Powerhouse Books) In today's Style section I've got an article that focuses on Matthew Niederhauser, a local photographer who now lives in Beijing and has spent the past two years documenting the Chinese capital's burgeoning underground rock scene for a book "Sound Kapital: Beijing's Music Underground." Two of those bands -- post-punk quartet P.K. 14 and eclectic, experimental sound collage artist Xiao He -- will perform at the Velvet Lounge tonight and an exhibition featuring photographs from the book runs at Georgetown's Govinda Gallery through Nov. 28. It was an interesting story to write but discovering some of the great music was the real highlight. A compilation CD that comes with the book introduced me a dozen or so bands that I'm kind of embarrassed I never knew existed. ("I wouldn't

Bob Dylan: Live last night

Thu, 12 Nov 2009 21:11:25 -0500

By Chris Klimek Even Bob Dylan can't be Bob Dylan all the time. The 68-year-old Boy from the North Country born Robert Allen Zimmerman has been trying to break his own myth since the mid-'60s, when he alienated fans of his early folk albums by plugging in and rocking out. Since then, his muse has come and gone, but his contrarian streak has been a constant. For the last 20 years, the road has been constant too. Dylan tours endlessly, turning up at a half-full arena or a minor league ballpark near you again and again, as if to prove he's no sage, just an itinerant song-and-dance-man. Though late-period albums like "Time Out of Mind" and "Love and Theft" have evinced a creative renewal, he's often been erratic, even indifferent onstage. Still, there's something noble in his doggedness, singing on even though thousands of shows have curdled his voice