The Broken String
cd From the first lonesome strum to the final handclap-fueled sing-along, Bishop Allen‘s The Broken String twists my stomach in a giddy knot and sends my head floating away with its light-as-air hooks. Since teaching themselves the art of positive energy on Charm School, their self-released 2003 debut, Bishop Allen have been the authors of [...]
An Apple a day
Fiona Apple and Nickel Creek? Seductive songstress and sweet 'n' proper newgrass? Really?
Sweet Crude Bill and The Lighthouse Nautical Society, with Accordion Death Squad
music As I arrived at Outback Lodge, San Francisco’s Sweet Crude Bill and the Lighthouse Nautical Society were finishing up their second song. As a burst of vocal warbles and aggressive guitar strums punctuated the piece, Peter Agelasto from Monkeyclaus, the Nelson County studio/art farm where the band started out, told me that Bill was [...]
Bang a gong
Charlottesville Gamelan, Love Tentacle Drip Society, Brian Jones Quartet, Sarah White, Mountain Stage NewSong, Ryan Adams
Super Taranta
cd “If we are here not to do/ what you and I wanna do/ and go forever crazy with it,/ why the hell we are even here?” asks Eugene Hutz at the opening of Super Taranta. Then, with a guttural cry, he summons the rest of the band into the mix, and immediately you want [...]
The gospel of headbanging
“I’m a Reverend, I gotta have my own church so I’m not a chump,” explains Tim Clark, guitarist for local metal quintet This Means You.
Getting in with the un-crowd
The name of the game is change. Starr Hill just closed its doors. After more than 10 years of selling you your favorite discs, Danny Shea has stepped down from managing the Corner’s Plan 9 Music store to focus on booking and promoting Satellite Ballroom shows, which will now include bands that would have played [...]
The Screaming Infidels
music Let’s start off with the good: The highlight of the night was a two-person mosh pit that broke out during a rendition of what I believe was the “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles” theme song. Another memorable moment was a guy hopping up from his bar stool to accompany the Screaming Infidels’ guitarist in singing [...]
Battles, with Ostinato
music The Battles show on the night of June 13 saw both familiar local characters as well as fresh faces from nearby metropolises like Richmond and Lynchburg. The span of ages was also wide, ranging from the eager high schoolers who perched front-and-center to the drunken 40-something with a tweed jacket and unnecessary sunglasses atop [...]
Animal Collective, with Sir Richard Bishop
music By the end of Animal Collective’s performance at the Satellite Ballroom on May 30th, the condensation on the room’s air ducts was dripping onto the audience like a refreshing indoor rain shower—a telling sign of the group’s typical live experience. Animal Collective saturated the evening in almost every way. They easily filled the Ballroom [...]
Keyed up
UVA’s Old Cabell Hall brings to mind piano recitals, string quartet performances, and the occasional comedian or lecturer, but the historic building also houses one of the University’s newest and most eccentric programs. Tucked away in the room B012 on the basement level is the Virginia Center for Computer Music. Strange but inviting noises often [...]
Questing Through Chaos
cd Only a year old and Kate Starr’s three-piece band has already reached the finals of Lollapalooza’s Last Band Standing contest, opened for acclaimed shoegazers Asobi Seksu and played New York City nearly as many times as they’ve played Charlottesville. Starr has an impressive array of artsy publicity photos, and she’s built a distinct image [...]
Folk Music for the End of the World
cd A friend recently mentioned how he couldn’t help but listen to depressing music. “I try to find upbeat stuff, but I always end up going back to really sad music,” he said. “It’s just better.” He has a point. Unless you’re out for a rousing night on the town, pensive and existential music is [...]
The Hackensaw Boys, with Jim Waive & the Young Divorcees, and Casa de Chihuahua
music The Hackensaw Boys have played with Modest Mouse and The Flaming Lips, and have traveled to far off places like the Netherlands and France, but nothing beats a hometown show. Just as most of the Boys hail from nearby burgs like Crozet and Waynesboro, a good portion of Saturday night’s crowd came from the [...]
Explosions in the Sky with The Paper Chase and Eluvium
music September 11th could have sidelined Explosions in the Sky. Their breakthrough album, Those Who Tell the Truth Shall Die, Those Who Tell the Truth Shall Live Forever, was released less than a month before the attacks and featured a picture of a plane with the caption “This plane will crash tomorrow.” This unfortunate coincidence, [...]
Ostinato with Red Wizard and Horsefang
music The press release for the show at Outback Lodge declared that “this will be the closest thing to hanging out in the old Tokyo Rose basement you’ve felt in a while.” Since the Rose stopped hosting shows a few years ago, several venues have offered great alternatives, but none have provided a comparable atmosphere. [...]
Children Running Through
cd Patty Griffin’s versatility and ambition are obvious from the start of Children Running Through, her latest release on Dave Matthews’ brainchild, ATO Records. The minimal upright bass and drums of “You’ll Remember” give way to the horn-inflected, bluesy “Stay on the Ride,” which tells the tale of an old man’s determined bus trip to [...]