A Case of the Fridays

Local modern-rockers No Second Troy just dropped a new album, Colors, this week. During the recording process, lead singer Jeff Wharen said they looked to “capture the band at its most authentic.” As a result, Colors is a more organic-sounding record, with less digital editing, and more focus on "pairing the aesthetics of the musical and the lyrical." Check out “Leap of Faith” from Colors below, a beautiful acoustic-driven ballad with its fragile harmonies and atmospheric electric guitar. No Second Troy will be having their CD-release party this Saturday, May 1st, at the Black Cat in DC.

MP3: Leap of Faith – No Second Troy

I first came upon Ryan Star (see above) during season two of Rock Star (Rock Star: Supernova). He impressed me with his raspy vocals and strong finish in the competition; however, I really hadn’t considered what would become of him afterwards. But when I heard his recent recordings, my interest was definitely piqued. Though Star's new album, 11:59, keeps getting delayed, several of its new tracks are available as an EP (Last Train Home) - kind of a teaser until the whole album drops, and the EP title track is a wonderful slice of anthemic, triumphant modern rock. If you like what you hear, Ryan Star will be at IOTA in Arlington Sunday, May 2nd.

MP3: Last Train Home – Ryan Star

El Prezidino Give VA Props

Yeah, no doubt you’ve heard Jay-Z’s ode to New York, “Empire State of Mind,” but doesn’t New York already have enough songs? So DC-based Virginia-native hip-hop artist El Prezidino takes things back, reveling in his proud twist on Jay-Z’s hit with his live recording of “Excuse My Commonwealth.” Hey, we’re in Virginia, and he knows we need an anthem (so put your damn hands up!) that you can check it out below. El Prezidino flips things VA-style, throwing out regional references left and right, even getting Richmond neo-soul singer Nickey McMullen to play Alicia Keys to his H.O.V.A. while his band, M.O.R., nails the instrumentals. His new mixtape, Almost Genius, Almost Crazy, is dropping May 31st, but you can catch him before that Friday, May 7th, in DC at The Red & The Black.

El Prezidino - Excuse My Commonwealth by 3Fingers Music Group

Quasi @ the Black Cat: A Review

About midway through Quasi's short but sweet show at the Black Cat April 24th, drummer Janet Weiss said, "This is really different from the last time we played here." I can only presume that she was referring to the size of the audience, which even with plenty of elbow room only filled up a third of the hall. Nice for the audience, as was the ticket price which, at $13, was the least I had paid for a show in a long time and was more typical of a band just starting out than for credentialed indie royalty.

The small crowd did not deter the Portland, Oregon-based band from delivering a powerhouse performance. Opening with "Repulsion," the first song on their latest release, American Gong, they mostly played material from that CD, which introduced bassist Joanna Bolme into the band, increasing it in size by half and injecting a more muscular electric sound that relies less on the warbling of the keyboards. The lyrics, still slashing and poignantly cynical, are no longer delivered in the dreamy lilt that took the sting out of the dark sentiments. Gone is the plaintive reediness in Coomes' voice, which sometimes actually strains hoarsely to compete with the driving guitar chords.

On stage they played without frills, putting all their energy into the music, though Coomes did do a few guitar jumps during "Bye Bye Blackbird," a swirling acid-rock-meets-carnival-music tune that punctuates a nursery rhyme-like song with tremendous, crashing crescendos of discordance. The band members didn't introduce themselves, the banter was sparse and a little self-conscious, and they didn't wait around for the applause before ripping into the next song. Drinking beer in a sleeveless dress and playing a big bass guitar with implacable assurance, Joanna Bolme was the most glamorous of the trio. Janet Weiss played the drums with that trance-like concentration that all great drummers slip into, holding up the weight of the song with every fiber of their being, like Atlas single-handedly bears the burden of the sky. The energetic core, hair flopped into Sam Coomes' eyes as he went from keyboards to guitar, leaned into the microphone, and provided the harmony that stitched the drums and bass together.

They played for about an hour, running through most of the catchier songs from American Gong, including "Everything & Nothing At All," "Black Dogs and Bubbles," "Rockabilly Party," and "Laissez le Bon Temps Roulez." Fifteen years after Quasi released their first album, that song's lyrics perhaps embody the philosophy of the mature musician in a musical form that favors the youthful. As individuals, the members of Quasi have played with everyone from the late, great Sleater-Kinney and Elliott Smith, to Stephen Malkmus & the Jicks and Bright Eyes. "You might say your race is run or you can rise up on the sound in the center of the sun ... I used to be mad, not crazy, just mad, not anymore, the receding taillights of a teenage dream." Not only is rock and roll not the fountain of youth, but it often eats its own young. Getting older is not for sissies, especially if you are a rock musician.

Performing only a few songs from other releases, including "All the Same, "Sword of God," and for an encore, that great Portland anthem "It's Raining," they ended the show with a perfect rendition of "Pictures of Lily," another song about the dangers of being misled by dreams. Quasi hasn't given up their dreams, they have brought to them a steel edge, pulsing beats and ferocious chords that do not go gently into that good night.

**Special thanks to Alice Stephens for contributing this review**

Photo credit: Flickr user forklift

School of Rock Redux - Dreamscapes Project "Bluegrass" Video by H-B Woodlawn Students

Just in time for their concert tonight to benefit the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society, we have an artistic "re-imaging" of The Dreamscapes Project's Bluegrass created by students at H-B Woodlawn.  This is the fourth entry in their Twelve Days Project, the band's collaborative multimedia initiative uniting artists, filmmakers, and the band to benefit area charities.  Tonight's concert at the LA Bar starts at 8pm, with all proceeds from raffle ticket and wristband sales going to the LLS.

Caleb Stine Takes Upperville

Sunday night I was lucky enough to catch Baltimore singer/songwriter Caleb Stine at a house concert out in Upperville, VA, where I could actually see the Blue Ridge Mountains in the afternoon and the Big Dipper when the sun went down. Caleb has a folky bent to his music, playing solo acoustic guitar with a very nice finger picking technique, and vocally, he reminds me just a bit of John Gorka. There's a wonderful intimacy to Caleb's voice and lyrics, drawing the listener in, like he's sharing his inner-most secrets. Here's a very well-done video (not from the house concert, alas) of him performing the achingly lovely "My Service Isn't Needed Anymore" live.