#get familiar

[tas-renee]

[9ine9ine9ine6ix]

i'm always gonna prefer the term stagegay to queerbaiting when talking about real people because... it involves way less bamboozling. like, showing gayness on stage or in your profitable media isn't evil, and performing a gay character isn't evil. like it'd suck if it was a straight person and they wanted to do more of an "i kissed a boy" cobra starships version type of character rather than a BTS Blanket Kick/ Lesbian Flag album color palette character, but it could be wrong to say they're queerbaiting cause... what if the people acting gay are gay? what if it isn't misleading marketing or putting on queerness as a costume because that performer is a fruitcake? like gay people can be gay without constantly confirming the canonicity of their own gayness

not that i'm calling cobra starship straight or anything, i just don't know why pete signed off on the lyrics used on their joke cover. "i kissed a boy and i liked it, homeboy was not about it" pete that'd make you block someone on twitter why the Fuck is it said in your mixtape

like i'm not rlly offended but. sometimes im worried about certain bands that used to work for fall out boy and cobra is often at the top of my wellness check list

[lookofsavagery]

Some Gifs From Last Night’s WOH Match. 

[930club]

GET FAMILIAR: Week of April 29, 2019

COMING SOON: The Dream Syndicate

Release Title: These Times (LP)

Release Date: Friday, May 3, 2019

What To Expect: Pioneers of the Paisley Underground and practitioners of neo-psychedelia, LA rockers The Dream Syndicate are back in a big way after taking a decades-long hiatus from 1989-2012. The one constant throughout the many reincarnations of the band has been the captivating voice of frontman Steve Wynn, who has been backed by an ever-changing cast of characters since the departure of founding member Kendra Smith in 1984. The group’s current lineup features lead guitarist Jason Victor, bassist Mark Walton, and Dennis Duck on drums, and they’re gearing up to release their second project since a triumphant comeback in 2012, a full-length album titled These Days.

The record’s latest single, “The Way In,” starts with a bang. A slickly-strummed guitar riff kicks things off before Wynn’s instantly recognizable twang cuts through his bandmates’ driving instruments and angelic harmonies, singing:

“Working hard, against the underwriter Got a dog in the fight, But I’m a lover not a fighter And we can’t begin, until we find a way in”

It’s a biting track with distorted rhythms and a vintage Steve Wynn break down that will give any original Dream Syndicate fan the chills. The group seems to have been influenced by a variety of genres and sounds on the track, and the other two lead singles, “Black Light” and “Put Some Miles On,” display a similarly more modern touch as well. The Dream Syndicate looks to deliver another classic album with These Times. Snag a copy this Friday and catch The Dream Syndicate a week from then on Friday, May 10 when they take the stage at U Street Music Hall — get tickets here.

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LOCAL LEGENDS: The Experience

Release Title: “The Get Down” feat. Soduh (Music Video)

Release Date: Thursday, May 2, 2019

What To Expect: Hailing from our nation’s capital and paying homage to his roots in go-go and gospel, rapper-singer-songwriter The Experience is putting his own soulful spin on the sounds that built the DMV’s music scene. Born into a household full of musicians, a young EXP often found himself singing in his grandmother’s church choir on Sundays or tagging along to his father’s late-night gigs with legendary go-go bands Heaven Sent and Arye Rayde. His early introduction to music eventually inspired him to pick up the drums at the age of two and the rest, as they say, is history.

The Experience’s irresistibly bouncy sound seamlessly blends together elements of hip-hop, funk, and R&B. Last Thursday, he released “The Get Down,” the hip-shaking lead single from his forthcoming debut EP. The track is sure to make you want to let loose and features a smooth verse from Baltimore’s own Soduh, who dropped a project himself last Saturday titled Top Croc. The Experience unexpectedly shared a trailer for the music video today, and the clip shows a lively scene of partygoers getting down to the smooth flows of the two DMV spitters. The lostartistry-directed video seems like it’ll be the perfect complement to the undeniably funky single. Keep your eyes peeled for the visuals this Thursday.

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WILD CARD: Still Woozy 

Release Title: Lately EP (EP)

Release Date: Friday, May 3, 2019

What To Expect: Sven Gamsky, better known by his stage name Still Woozy, is one quirky dude. From his outrageous, and sometimes disturbing, album artwork to his wacky onstage dance moves, he oozes originality. The Oakland, CA native is constantly pushing the limits of his art, and he does so through careful consideration and terrific execution.

His biggest hit to date, the ridiculously groovy “Goodie Bag,” blew up almost overnight (thanks in part to its wildly popular music video), and currently holds over 31 million streams on Spotify alone. At the beginning of April, he released “Lava”, his first artistic output in nearly eight months, while simultaneously unveiling a striking new blue hairdo to match. He’s back to his old tricks on the track with his drawn-out, sing-songy vocals and his trademark boogielicious basslines. Here’s to hoping the rest of the Lately EP follows suit when it drops on Friday. If it does, we may be remembering 2019 as the summer of Still Woozy.

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- Matt Singer

[nctrnm]

"Get Familiar" by Nur-D, Tuvok the Word, Peace the Keeper. Stream my new EP, Mosaic on @Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/album/6548mu5Z0Y2KcnpnfiLPhK?si=Yp-j9v5jTjW-RbWXwr3OUA

[ratfriends]

I FELL FROM THE HEAVENS AS A FETISH BLESSED WITH AN OPERATIC SKELETON AND AS THE STARS WATCH ME DESCEND I CRACK A FAMILY TREE AND CHOPPED OFF ALL OF THE BRANCHES

[930club]

GET FAMILIAR: Week of March 18, 2019

COMING SOON: Wallows

Release Title: Nothing Happens (LP)

Release Date: Friday, March 22, 2019

What To Expect: With two lead singers, a member with a hit Netflix show under his belt, and collaborations with some of today’s most exciting stars, indie rock three-piece Wallows are forging their own path in a genre that has at times been accused of being stagnant and repetitive. The trio have been playing together for over 10 years, which is quite the feat considering that none of the three are older than 24. This familiarity with each other’s abilities has led to a cohesive, refined sound that makes for some incredible music, particularly 2017’s smash-hit “Pleaser,” which landed at #2 on Spotify’s Viral 50 Global chart.

When they announced that their much-anticipated debut album, Nothing Happens, would be dropping sometime this year, fans everywhere rejoiced. They’ve put out three singles from the album so far and all three serve as impressive previews of what’s to come.  “Scrawny” is a self-aware track reminiscent of The Strokes in their heyday, while “Sidelines” is a sing-songy tune with sonic undertones thanks to the band’s expert incorporation of various electronic elements, and “Are You Bored Yet?,” which features Clairo, beautifully encapsulates what it’s like to navigate the feelings of insecurity that can sometimes rear their ugly head in a relationship. The band is looking to make a statement with Nothing Happens, and their West Coast-influenced brand of alternative music makes them a group to watch for years to come.

Catch Wallows at 9:30 Club on Tuesday, May 7 - tickets are going fast, so get them while you can!

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LOCAL LEGENDS: Scorpio

Release Title: afterthought (EP)

Release Date: Saturday, March 23, 2019

What To Expect: 

Boston-born multi-instrumentalist Alli Vega is no novice when it comes to the DC music scene. After years of playing with DIY mainstays Lavender and Mystery Friends, Vega is gearing up to unveil her solo project, Scorpio, with the release of her debut EP, afterthought, this Friday.

“This EP was really cathartic to make, it ebbs and flows between chill self reflection and nervous energy,” says Vega. It was made for “riding into the sunset in your ‘80s Camaro after dropping out of school and leaving your ex on your way to start a new life on the West Coast.” It came together across countless late-night studio sessions with friends and frequent collaborators, and the result is a fantastically introspective work of art. afterthought features masterfully-layered harmonies that ooze with emotion, and her ability to convey these feelings through her ethereal guitar solos  and soul-baring lyrics makes for quite the listening experience. It’s about breakups, “falling out with friends, falling out of place at a party,” and wanting to get it all out, you know, things we can all relate to. Keep your eyes peeled for the EP’s drop this Friday and make sure that Scorpio is on your list of DMV artists to watch in 2019.

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WILD CARD: Pell

Release Title: Bitch Ass

Release Date: Friday, March 22, 2019

What To Expect: From being forced to relocate from New Orleans to Jackson, Mississippi in the wake of Hurricane Katrina as a child, to bursting onto the scene due to a somewhat unexpected cosign and remix of his song “Eleven:11” by G-Eazy in 2015, Jared Pellerin has been on quite the wild ride. Especially when you consider the fact that the slick-spitting rapper, professionally known as Pell, is still three months shy of his twenty-seventh birthday.

Pell’s last project, 2017’s girasoul, was met with critical acclaim and its standout track, “throwback” featuring Chicago’s Saba, puts his uncanny double-time ability on full display. His uniquely recognizable voice and delivery style allow him to effortlessly traverse multiple genres, and in 2018, we saw him collaborating on Brasstracks’ single “Vibrant” as well as with DJ NIGHTMRE on a two-song EP titled Magic Hour. Fans have been patiently waiting for the follow-up to girasoul since its release, and last Wednesday, their prayers were answered with a single tweet from Pell’s account: “New Music. Bitch Ass. 3.22. presave.io/t/bitchass.” It’s still unclear whether it will be a single or an entirely new project, but based off his recent experimentation with sounds and genres, one can only imagine that we’ll be seeing an exciting new side to Pell’s music that is the cumulation of two years of new experiences for one of NOLA’s brightest young stars. Check out Bitch Ass this Friday and see for yourself what Pell has up his sleeve!

WEBSITE ● TWITTER ● FACEBOOK ● MUSIC

- Matt Singer

[930club]

GGET FAMILIAR: Week of April 22, 2019

COMING SOON: AJR

Release Title: NEOTHEATER (LP)

Release Date: Friday, April 26, 2019

What To Expect: According to their Spotify profile, “AJR feature the talents of the Met brothers, Adam (vocals/bass), Jack (vocals/guitar), and Ryan (guitar/piano/vocals), who grew up in New York and got their start busking around the city.” The electronic-influenced indie-pop power trio lean on their tight familial bonds and abundance of talent to pump out smash hits that help them gain popularity by the second. 

The band has come a long way from their humble beginnings of first recording in their at-home studio built in their parents’ living room to racking up over 390,000,000 streams alone on their song “Weak” and having a Rivers Cuomo- assisted tune in 2017’s “Sober Up.” It’s been an incredible rise to the top that couldn’t have happened to three nicer guys, with the group even lending their song “Burn The House Down” to the March For Our Lives campaign last year to help effect change on their own terms. As Ilana Kaplan wrote in Rolling Stone, “The energetic track, meant to reflect the current American political climate, has been adopted by [the campaign], appearing in the announcement video for the organization’s ongoing Road to Change tour.”

These three brothers will continue to dominate the airwaves when their next album NEOTHEATER hits shelves this Friday. 

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LOCAL LEGENDS: Soduh

Release Title: TOP CROC (LP)

Release Date: Saturday, April 27, 2019

What To Expect: You have to earn your keep in Baltimore, and the city’s residents can sniff out a phony in no time. For the last few years, Baltimore’s buzzing hip-hop scene has been consistently pumping out gritty, grimy hits that reflect the blue-collar mentality of Charm City. At the forefront of this new wave of young, hungry MCs is Soduh, AKA The Alligator.

His snarled lyrics and smoothly-delivered flows paint a hyper-realistic picture of a city that’s still struggling to cope with its demons. Despite all the issues facing his hometown, Soduh still sees a light at the end of the tunnel for East Baltimore. He uses his platform to speak truth to the things he sees on a daily basis and to showcase the city’s vibrant culture, “from the way we walk, talk, the chicken boxes we eat, to the beautiful neighborhoods where the most ugliest things happen in” (Noisey). His next project, TOP CROC, is dropping this Saturday. Expect an album of trapped-out songs that touch on the trials and tribulations of daily life in Baltimore, and expect the city’s Top Croc to make his presence felt all summer 2019.

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WILD CARD: Yeek

Release Title: “Too Fast” (Single)

Release Date: Friday, April 26, 2019

What To Expect: South Florida’s own Yeek lets it be known that he isn’t here for standing in place on the opening of his insanely catchy single “Shake,” proclaiming:

“Let’s shake (hey!) Let’s take a ride (yo!) I’m not (hey!) Made out of time (yo!)”

Writing for Pigeons & Planes, Graham Corrigan said, “[Yeek] is an artist born from [the] DIY SoundCloud culture who's been writing, producing, and mixing a unique collection of heartfelt indie-rock songs for years,” and the musician’s sincere songwriting and willingness to be vulnerable allows his music to connect deeply with his fans.

He makes music that resonates with any millennial still trying to figure out this whole thing called life. Like on the mellowed-out “I’m Not Ready,” where he effortlessly details the hilarity that ensues at his local stop of the phenomena that is Emo Nite, while simultaneously talking through his thoughts of not feeling ready for the commitments that come with a serious relationship. The duality of his songs shows a maturity rarely seen by someone his age, and his many talents should take him far.

He took to Instagram last week to announce his next work, a song titled “Too Fast,” will be dropping this Friday with a video to match. 

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- Matt Singer