Posted Wolfmother @ 930 Club to DCist
Typically I
try not to describe a band's sound by listing every obvious influence and antecedent. But when it comes to
Wolfmother, the exercise is almost impossible to avoid. Their sound is a skein of 70's rock tropes. Songs contain blatant borrowings from Steppenwolf, Led Zepplin, The Rolling Stones, Black Sabbath, etc. Everything from little riffs, to entire melodies, to more esoteric thematic robberies. It's not bad to borrow but there is certainly a big difference between what someone like Jack White has managed to do with his influences and what Wolfmother is doing with theirs.
Posted Andrew Bird @ 9:30 Club to DCist
Wow. Damn. And wow. It's hard to reconcile a concert like last night's exquisite set by
Andrew Bird. As mentioned several times by the performers during the evening, Washington D.C. was witness to the final installment of Bird's tour with fellow genre-defier
St. Vincent. The billing seems appropriate. Take one musically gifted, experimental, and odd male musician and combine with a female of the same description.
Posted Preview: Bluebrain @ Comet Ping Pong to DCist
Bluebrain is the brainchild (rim shot!) of Ryan and Hays Holladay. The brothers grew up in D.C., but left the city in their teens for the Big Apple. There they were in a solid band called
The Epochs. Recently, they returned home to pursue a new direction for their songwriting. When asked about their recent emigration from New York to The District, Ryan said, "Brooklyn is a fantastic place but eventually it just becomes unsustainable. We grew up here in DC and it feels like we're back home. That said, this city has changed so much since we left ten years ago. Right now, especially, it feels like an exciting time to be here."