THE ORANGES BAND doesn't do anything angry or scary or intimidating. They play upbeat, classic-sounding rock. These are good boys from Baltimore, and they have truck with nothing unpleasant. And in this time of tsuris, there are worse things that rock music that makes you feel good.
» The Red & The Black, 1212 H St. NE; Sat., Nov. 22, 9 p.m., $8; 202-399-3201.
Photo by Tad Kubler
Dave Witte, lightning-fast drummer for Richmond punkers Municipal Waste, is beaming, having just returned from playing the Fun Fun Fun Festival in Austin, Texas — a weekend of music that featured the usual parade of hot new hipster groups but also Witte's personal punk rock heroes.
"We had the pleasure of playing with Bad Brains, Adolescents, Cro-Mags and Killdozer," he says proudly.
A LOT OF artists can tell horrific stories about their record companies. But the Oranges Band has one of the worst.
In 2005, the Baltimore indie-rockers were signed to Lookout Records, Green Day's first label. Then Green Day got into a dispute with Lookout and took its lucrative back catalog away from the label. Money got tight and employees were laid off. All this happened when the Oranges Band's "The World & Everything In It" was about to drop. The band's momentum was broken.
"It really hurt the record a lot," recalls bandleader Roman Kuebler, a one-time member of Spoon, with whom the Oranges have been compared.
Continue Reading "Rolling With the Punches: The Oranges Band" »
HE'S OPENED for the Rolling Stones, headlined tents at Bonnaroo two years in a row, but instead of being part of a crowd of thousands, on Friday night you can catch DJ Z-Trip in the small confines of the Rock and Roll Hotel. Oh, and he's also one of the top five DJ's in America, with a mix-tape for Barack Obama that received just a little attention. Just saying.
» Rock and Roll Hotel, 1353 H St. NE; Fri., Nov. 14, 9 p.m, $20; 202-388-7625.
Written by Express' Nathan Martin
BRUNO WIZARD, MASTERMIND of the late '70s and early '80s British art-punk band The Homosexuals, loves to talk. Earlier this year he gave a 29-minute answer to a single question posed to him on BBC Radio 6, and during our 34-minute conversation the 58-year-old answered four questions.
"I'm a walking bundle of ideas," the vocalist said, before launching into another monologue about the record industry, not selling out, drug addiction, being an artist and the Law of Nature.
"In 1985, '86, I discovered the Law of Nature that says naught point naught, naught, naught, naught, naught, naught one percent is aware of the true nature of things. The rest are asleep," said the intensely DIY artist, who refused to work with any record labels while his colleagues in The Damned, The Jam and Generation X went on to become punk superstars.
FANS OF FORMER Red House Painters mastermind Mark Kozelek have harvested a bumper crop of music this year. His book of lyrics was packaged with a disc of live tracks and a free promo EP, and the sleepily stoic San Franciscan singer/songwriter released "April" (Caldo Verde) with his band Sun Kil Moon.
Kozelek will release a second full-length, "Finally" (Caldo Verde), under his own name in December, which collects his covers of songs by Kath Bloom, Husker Du, Low, Stephen Sondheim and AC/DC, along with a few originals and instrumentals. There's also a song from "Yo Gabba Gabba!," a favorite among young kids and potheads.
It'll be just Kozelek and his acoustic guitar — which many fans say is the best way to hear his songs — playing covers and originals at the Rock and Roll Hotel on Nov. 10.
Express spoke to Kozelek about his Caldo Verde label, how he divides his songs among his different projects and whether he's a "Yo Gabba Gabba!" fan.
DON'T JUDGE Frida Hyvonen just because she's a beautiful blonde from Sweden. Tackling thorny issues like sex and abortion, Hyvonen's newest album, "Silence Is Wild," came out Tuesday and is hardly stereotypical.
She plays a two-night stand at the Red and the Black on Sunday and Monday.
» The Red and the Black, 1212 H St. NE; Sun. & Mon., 9 p.m., $10; 202-399-3201.
Written by Express' Nathan Martin
Photo by Knotan
MR. LIF ISN'T SHY about spouting off his opinions. The MC calls to mind socially conscious hip-hoppers Public Enemy, KRS-One and Gang Starr, and Lif couples a delivers tight, intelligent lyrics with a commanding presence.
Lif's focus of late has been twofold — the presidential election and the downtrodden state of affairs across the country, from prison rates to the housing crisis. His upcoming album, "I Heard It Today" (Bloodbot Tactical Enterprises) focuses on the latter.
It's slated release date?
Inauguration Day, January 20.
"I couldn't ask for a more significant release date. It's amazing," Lif said.
The Legendary Pink Dots may have meant the first word in their moniker to be ironic back when they named themselves during the post-punk anti-rock star era. But nearly three decades later, the irony now is that they've pretty much ended up living up to their own billing. The Amsterdam-by-way-of-London quartet has not only held to their defiantly experimental concept, but they've done it independently of the recording industry.
Continue Reading "Resilient Revolutionaries: The Legendary Pink Dots" »
IF THE GRAY WASHINGTON weather has you down, don't frown, because Bollyb!end is coming to town.
D.C.'s Dhoonya Dance Performance Company has a cure for Saturday night monochrome with its artistic and colorful blend of Bollywood, hip-hop and belly dancing.
» Lang Theatre, 1333 H St. NE; Sat., 3 & 8 p.m., $15; 202-399-7993.
Written by Express' Nathan Martin
Photo courtesy Dhoonya Dance Performance Company
Addison Road