The Dirty Little Heaters
Local 506, Chapel Hill
Saturday, Feb. 20
Plenty of bands commemorate their CD release with a special show—top-notch openers, an extra-long headlining set and a surprise guest or two. With its release party for Champions of Imperfection—five years in, the band’s first full-length—The Dirty Little Heaters did all that and a lot more.
After fellow Durhamites Pink Flag and Red Collar—whose new material sounded terrific, by the way—got things started, Magic Mike, the night’s emcee, gave a brief history lesson on the Heaters for the unacquainted. After some technical difficulties—“It’s always something with you,” singer/guitarist Reese McHenry’s bandmates chided—McHenry was joined by drummer Melissa Thomas and the duo (the original incarnation of The Dirty Little Heaters before splitting in late 2006) blasted through the raw punk of a couple of early Heaters tunes. Check “Cherry Van” below the jump. Continue reading »
Since American Aquarium’s 2006 debut Antique Hearts, the Raleigh roots rockers have garnered plenty of (deserved) Whiskeytown comparisons. With rollicking E Street-flavored heartland rock like “Mary, Mary” and “Ain’t Going to the Bar Tonight,” last year’s Dances for the Lonely brought Bruce Springsteen references into the fold. Not that American Aquarium shied away from them, as they took on The Boss for this year’s Raleigh Undercover.
Recorded last November while holed up in Oxford, Miss., Smalltown Hymns—American Aquarium’s fourth—won’t do much to shake either of those associations, though Hymns has more in common with Nebraska and Heartbreaker than Born to Run and Faithless Street. Frontman B.J. Barham sent The Independent five tracks from the upcoming record, which was produced and engineered by Andrew Ratcliffe (Will Hoge, The Damnwells) and will be the band’s second for Last Chance Records. Continue reading »
WKNC Double Barrel Benefit
The Pour House, Raleigh
Friday, Feb. 5 & Saturday, Feb. 6
As I bemoan yet another Wolfpack men’s basketball loss (don’t laugh, Tar Heels), I’ve come to the regretful conclusion that WKNC—N.C. State’s student-run radio station—may be all that’s left to be proud of regarding my alma mater. Of course, that assumption may be colored by new memories of this weekend’s seventh annual Double Barrel Benefit, which starts another year of KNC-championed local music events: Besides blasting a heavy rotation of Triangle tunes on the airwaves, the station also backs sporadic on-campus shows and a Thursday night Local Beer/Local Band series at Tir Na Nog that offers fine bills for free on a weekly basis.
Making up for a lack of variety and marquee value, the eight-band line-up—while noticeably lacking any hometown representation—offered a solid mix of the area’s rising stars and established vets. Kicking off the festivities on Friday night, fledgling Chapel Hill outfit The Light Pines shared members (but less these days than in their previous gigs) and a sense of pop classicism with sister project The Love Language, though its songs seemed to take on a much darker tone than I remembered from the group’s brief set at the Drughorse Christmas show. Fronted by sometimes Love Language bassist Josh Pope, it should be no surprise that the Pines—which, like Stu McLamb’s aforementioned project, was birthed shortly after the demise of Strokes-soundalikes The Capulets—leans heavily on rhythm, too. I had a tough time grabbing good video, but fortunately Karen Mann pulled through. I did manage to catch some from the Christmas show, for comparison’s sake.
Up next, Carrboro duo Veelee added a surprising amount of energy to what I had previously considered to be gentle bedroom pop tunes. Vocalist Matt Park ripped jagged, crunchy riffs from his guitar—flashing some serious ’90s indie rock influence in the process—and craftily used his headstock and some well-placed duct tape to give himself an extra hand for keyboard flourishes. Alongside Ginger Wagg’s rudimentary drumming, the pair harmonized with a detached coolness through catchy choruses.
Bellafea—who had a relatively quiet 2009 while Heather McEntire and Eddie Sanchez worked on albums with Mount Moriah and Fin Fang Foom, respectively—followed. McEntire’s battle cry led the menacing trio through the sharp turns and tense twists of its tough, shifty tunes. During one particularly intense instrumental passage, McEntire faced her amp and unleashed a throat-shredding scream that seemed to hurl the band forward. Continue reading »
“As my children get older, I started thinking about what I was going to leave behind or pass on to them—how they’re going to remember me,” says Tofer Moran, graphic designer, father of two and singer/guitarist of Durham’s Proud Valletta. “I hoped to leave behind a sort of anthology of music for or inspired by my sons as a kind of patrimony,” Moran continues. “Music is something that can live on, hopefully, long after I’m gone, and it’s my hope that they’ll be able to have some of my music to mark the days we have together.”
With his wife Vye Moran on percussion and vocals, childhood friend Paul Boccaccio on accordion and pals Brentley Cobb and Andrew “Shoe” Shoemaker adding a host of stringed and percussive sounds, Tofer Moran began crafting uncomplicated indie folk with simple melodies and shanty qualities suggested by the rickety foundations behind the nautically inspired tales. Borne out of Dapper Dandy and The Good Day Sirs!, a project involving the Morans and Boccaccio that recorded a “folk-opera retelling of the Pied Piper story” as Reckoning, its sole release, the new outfit borrowed songs from the old and began busking outside the Durham Bulls Athletic Park. Continue reading »
When it comes to music festivals, I’m a dabbler. Barring a few must-see acts, I tend to wander from stage to stage to try to catch bits of as many bands as possible, hoping to stumble across a surprise or two. At many festivals, that approach can be exhausting, making it easy to spend more time rushing off to see the next band than being able to get a true feel for the performers.
But thanks to generous set lengths and the close proximity of stages and tents, Shakori Hills is a sampler’s paradise. During my 13 hours at the festival, I was able to catch parts of 22 acts with enough time to actually relax and enjoy the music. I even managed a couple of cat naps. Hit the jump for minute-by-minute impressions. Continue reading »
Them Concord boys sure do clean up nice, don’t they? As per usual, the Avett Brothers were dressed to the nines while making their big performance on last night’s episode of The Late Show with David Letterman, but their snazzy duds failed to cover up a snag in execution.
Sure, I grinned like a proud papa when Dave—holding up a vinyl copy of I And Love And You, officially released just minutes earlier—kicked it over to our Avetts. Seth Avett struck out the first chords of the title track on a grand piano. But I flinched when the camera turned toward center stage, revealing Mike Marsh (Dashboard Confessional) behind the drums rather than Scott Avett, who usually mans the kit for live performances of the tune. I cringed more when Scott began hesitantly plucking at an out-of-tune banjo, assuredly a prop to get the elder Avett out from behind the drum kit for the television audience. Continue reading »
Method Man & Redman, Ghostface Killah
Lincoln Theatre, Raleigh
Thursday, July 23
The silence that fell over the Lincoln after an enjoyable (though not spectacular) set from Brooklyn’s Duo Live was puzzling. With nearly a half-dozen DJs in attendance, it seems like someone would have been spinning records to keep the room buzzing during the 20 minute break before Ghostface Killah made his way to the stage. Perhaps the lack of house music was for the best, though, as the onslaught that followed from the Wu-Tang emcee and Method Man and Redman’s Clan/Def Squad alliance meant that we needed to save all the energy we had. Continue reading »
Sure, there are plenty of great shows you could catch around the Triangle tonight, but none deserve your attendance more than a five-deep bill of top-notch local indie rock at Tir Na Nog. It’s more than just another great line-up trotted out by the downtown Raleigh pub that has become known for its weekly Local Band-Local Beer series: all proceeds from the $5 cover charge—totally a bargain for this stacked roster—benefit HopeLine of North Carolina, a twenty-four hour crisis line that fields calls on suicide, child abuse, domestic violence, sexual assault and substance abuse, amongst other issues. The non-profit also lends an ear to teenagers through a round-the-clock hotline and makes daily check-in calls to senior citizens who live alone.
Tir Na Nog’s Chris Tamplin explains the non-profit’s urgent need for funds: “Hopeline relies on public funding as well as private donations, and with the economy the way it is, a lot of people aren’t opening up their wallets to charities.” Tamplin added that Hopeline representatives will be in attendance to provide information about the organization’s programs, answer questions, and collect donations above and beyond the five-spot collected at the door. “Hopeline really needs the help. They’ve been around since 1970, and to lose an organization like this would be devastating to our community.”
Even if it wasn’t a benefit, this event would still deserve your attention. In the second spot, bouncy pro-pop/anti-folk scene leaders The Future Kings of Nowhere plays its last full-band show in the area before frontman Shayne O’Neill moves to New York City. They’re bookended by a pair of indie pop sets: synth-centric Terpsikhore noobs On Photon bats leadoff at 9:30 p.m., while Chapel Hill’s power-pop princes (and princess) I Was Totally Destroying It follows the Future Kings. Durham’s Hammer No More The Fingers are in the penultimate slot, pulverizing its pogo rhythms with power trio crunch, while Lonnie Walker wraps the night up, blending ramshackle Americana with raring indie rock.
Jake Shimabukuro
Fletcher Theater, Raleigh
Thursday, April 30
After opening his sold-out performance with the flamenco-influenced “Let’s Dance,” ukulele virtuoso Jake Shimabukuro spread his next 90 minutes of stage time over a pair of seven-song sets and a well-deserved encore, spending almost as much time chatting about his songs as playing them. Continue reading »
American Aquarium, Red Collar, Holy Ghost Tent Revival
The Pour House, Raleigh
Saturday, April 25
Last Saturday night, Raleigh road warriors American Aquarium showcased Dances for the Lonely, its latest batch of tunes inspired by frontman BJ Barham’s cross-country adventures with his band—and, of course, his women. Heavy on the new stuff, Barham spent the first half of the 80 minute set relating those out-of-town tales to the local crowd (which he—err, affectionately—referred to as “motherfuckers”) by describing the New Orleans enchantress who’s the subject of “Louisiana Beauty Queen,” discussing the “Queen of the Scene” (“a girl who thought she was too fucking cool for everyone”) or calling out the high school friend whose white ride is mentioned in “PBR Promenade.” Introducing the soaring album opener “Katherine Belle,” Barham explained, “If you’ve ever been to Columbia, South Carolina, you know there’s not anything there except for beer and women, and I happen to enjoy both.” In one of the highlights of the night, Caitlin Cary made her way from behind the bar to the stage to lend her pipes to the song, as she does on the album. Hit the jump for the video and more words on American Aquarium and the rest of the bill. Continue reading »
Jake Shimabukuro
American Aquarium, Red Collar, Holy Ghost Tent Revival
