Green Day came to Fairfax with an arsenal of stadium-ready tricks of the trade. It was an entertaining and well-curated show, but the greatest moment was almost purely spontaneous.
Sigur Rós’ show at the Patriot Center was a visually and aurally rewarding experience, despite and perhaps because of its openness to interpretation.
Last Friday two of rock and roll’s original greats, Neil Young and Patti Smith, touched down in Fairfax. In addition to playing a lot of material from his latest album, Psychedelic Pills, he also played “Cortez the Killer” for only the second time this tour. DCist photographer Andrew Markowitz was on hand to document the event.
How many members are actually in Gorillaz? If we’re counting the cartoon characters, there are only four: 2-D (on vocals), Murdoc (on bass), Russel (on drums) and Noodle + her cyborg counterpart (on guitar and vocals). If we’re referring to human members, only two names appear: those of artist Jamie Hewlett and Blur ex-pat Damon Albarn. However, judging by the number of people onstage at the Patriot Center Monday night, the Gorillaz are an ensemble cast, the size of which rivals Broadway plays, traveling orchestras and circuses. We counted an eight-piece string section, eight band members, four backup singers, the Hypnotic Brass Band, an Arab-American band, a slue of guest contributors, Albarn himself and the kitchen sink.
Just a heads up, Live Nation let us know that they’ve released some extra tickets to the nearly sold out Kings of Leon/Walkmen show tonight at the Patriot Center. These are two of our very favorite live bands (we’ve reviewed KoL twice). They offer variations on rough, well-rehearsed, full and satisfying rock ‘n’ roll. So if you’ve been wishing and doing the Craigslist shuffle, try for a legit ticket here while there are still some…
Forget everything you thought you knew about Oasis! I kid, of course. While Los Bros. Gallaghers and The Whomevers may continue to rate themselves in the Beatles-Stones pantheon, they’ve got a lot more in common with AC/DC or the Black Crowes. This is a band that prides itself on being proof against evolution. I’ll give them this much: “Rock and Roll Star” is one hell of a way to open a rock ‘n’ roll show….
It’s finally over; summer’s soon to be actually gone. As we slumber this evening, the season that wouldn’t end will at last lift its hot, wet blanket from our area, and autumn will descend with her cool nights and humidity-free days. Summer hung on like a trooper, though, lasting nearly three weeks past the autumnal equinox, and presenting us with–as our friends at CapitalWeather.com noted–three straight days of 90 degree temperature. This has happened only…
The Cold War Kids are the perfect complement to Muse. The boys from Fullerton, California stepped out into the Patriot Center last night with the same laid back attitude as if they were jamming in a friend’s garage. No props, no light shows, no flashy signs or confetti. They picked up their guitars and drumsticks in their partially tucked in shirts and just played, saving the over-the-top showmanship for their British conspiracy theorist headliners….
DCist goes to more than our share of indie rock shows in this fine town of ours, so when the chance came about to check out Nelly Furtado and her arena-type stage show, it was hard to say no. Furtado started out her career as a Jewel-like folkie but when that career path started down the road to obscurity, she jumped on a few hip-hop remixes and eventually landed Timbaland’s midas touch on her…
When Telograph (***) played the Six Points Music Festival back in April, they were easily our favorite band in the festival’s Velvet Lounge lineup. We may have compared them to new-wave hipsters Interpol and The Strokes, but Telograph’s great live show made it difficult to categorize them simply as another “it” band. We’re happy to say that their upcoming EP Little Bits of Plastic justifies our initial impression: Telograph is a band to watch. Over…
