RTP-area local music and culture

[grady <grady AT ibiblio.org>]

Thursday, May 25
Ike Reilly Assassination ( http://www.ikereilly.com/ ) , Luce (
http://www.luceband.com/ )
Local 506, Chapel Hill



Friday, May 26
The Mountain Goats ( http://www.themountaingoats.net/ ) , Language
Arts ( http://www.languageartsmusic.com ) , AOK (
http://www.myspace.com/aoknc )
305 South, Durham

This is how crazy-in-love with Durham the Durhamites are: this show is
a benefit for the entire Durham music infrastructure, with all
proceeds to be "donated to local Durham venues
and record shops."

AOK are a young Durham band with warbly off-kilter vocals that call to
mind early Rainer Maria, or that Greensboro band Mortar & Pestle.

Language Arts are Durham hip-hop. So are the Mountain Goats, in the
absolutely loosest possible sense of the concept.



Friday, May 26
Cantwell, Gomez, Jordan ( http://www.cantwellgomezandjordan.com ) ,
Hi-Red Center ( http://www.hiredcenter.com/ )
Kings, Raleigh

Hi-Red Center are from elsewhere, and their music combines the
relentless shape-shifting repetition of frequent CGJ showmates Calabi
Yau & Ahleuchatistas, with retarded keyboard lines and absurdist
unison sing-songery.

Cantwell Gomez & Jordan bring tears to my eyes every time they play
(whether I'm there or not, even). They are that good. They are so good
that I made a Cantwell Gomez and Jordan ringtone. Call me so I can
hear it one more time.



Friday, May 26
Charles Latham ( http://www.myspace.com/sircharleslatham ) , The
Tourist ( http://www.myspace.com/thetouristnc )
Nightlight, Chapel Hill

Every generation has its boys with guitars, and The Tourist & Charles
Latham are 2 of theirs. Based on what I've heard, The Tourist
(self-selected moniker notwithstanding) would seem to be the Sincere
one. Charles may be a little more comfortable with the inherently
absurd nature of boys with guitars.



Friday, May 26
Heretics, Terrorcouple ( http://www.terrorcouple.com ) , Crowdkontrol
( http://www.crowdkontrol.com/ )
Wetlands, Chapel Hill



Saturday, May 27
The Moaners ( http://www.themoaners.com/ ) , Bellafea (
http://www.bellafea.com/ ) , This Orange Four
Local 506, Chapel Hill

This Orange Four would appear to be from Hattiesburg, MS, and that's
all I know about them. Are they a guitar/drums duo? The Moaners sure
are, as are Bellafea, and if you're one of those skeptics who suspect
that all such combos must necessarily sound more or less the same,
well, come on out & see how wrong you are.



Saturday, May 27
Goner ( http://www.gonertheband.com/ )
Slim's Downtown, Raleigh



Sunday, May 28
Charles Latham ( http://www.myspace.com/sircharleslatham )
WXDU 88.7 FM, Durham

Charles Latham bounced around the North Atlantic for a while before
coming to rest right here in Chapel Hill. He aligns himself with the
"antifolk" movement, whatever that means. I think it means reedy boys
with acoustic guitars writing wordy talking-blues/folk type numbers,
but with cussing, and a healthy disdain for hippies. Or at least, dear
god, I hope so, because I can't abide hippies hanging around the radio
station stinking up the carpets. They smell bad enough as it is. The
carpets, I mean.

I made Charles promise to bring a band, due to my longstanding &
nearly ironclad rule against solo performers; we'll see what he comes
up with. 5:00 p.m. 88.7 FM or  wxdu.org.



Sunday, May 28
Excepter ( http://www.excepter.com/ ) , Esperanto Bat, DJ Admit It
Nightlight, Chapel Hill

Nightlight sez:

EXCEPTER is a synthethic protest band engineered to erase cultural
distinctions through polarized confusion. Former NNCK vocalist John
Fell Ryan + friends turn the tools of electronic dance music to more
esoteric ends ... smeared shadows of house, destroyed electro, drone,
ghost voices, disturbed freestyling, etc. I like to sit in my front
yard and listen to them like summertime jams."

Apparently, Esperanto Bat = Ethan Clauset, Randy Pelosi, Jane Allen,
Mark Griffith, Chuck Johnson.



Sunday, May 28
The Wusses, Shipwrecker
Local 506, Chapel Hill

Shipwrecker make amiable sitting-down country music, or at least they
did at their first show, which I heard but couldn't see due to the
huge number of people crammed into Joe & Jo's (and the aforementioned
sitting-down).

The Wusses have been presenting their tribute to the classic/timeless
soft-rock songs of the 70s continuously up and down the Eastern
Seaboard for most of the past 42 years. I can only assume they'll have
a Memorial-Day-themed portion of their set, perhaps with a tribute to
the man with whom I most closely associate Memorial Day, Mario
Andretti.



Sunday, May 28
Jetpack UK ( http://www.myspace.com/jetpack ) , Super Sport (
http://www.myspace.com/supersport  )
Wetlands, Chapel Hill



Sunday, May 28
The Juanita Family ( http://www.juanitafamily.net/ ) , The New
Heathens ( http://www.newheathens.com/ )
Slim's Downtown, Raleigh



Monday, May 29
des_ark ( http://www.des-ark.org ) , In the Year of the Pig (
http://www.southernloveprod.com/ityotp.htm ) , Attrition (
http://www.attritionmusic.net )
Chaz's Bull City Records, Durham

Attrition are a DC hardcore band; they're friends of Aimee's, so she
set up this show for them. And any friend of Aimee's is a friend of
mine, natch.

In the Year of the Pig are a huge wall-o-pulsing-sound noiserock band,
who write remarkably hook-laden songs (considering), and who wear cute
little animal hats.

des_ark is just Aimee at present, although you oughta hear the new
stuff she's been recording (due out later this year on a split with
Ben Davis).



Monday, May 29
Tiger Bear Wolf ( http://www.tigerbearwolf.com ) , Valient Thorr (
http://www.valientthorr.com/ ) , Brightleaf (
http://brightleafmusic.com/ )
The Werehouse, Winston-Salem

Valient Thorr are from Venus, and they make high-powered
evangelical-style hardrock/metal. Their mission is to bring the people
of Earth together under the unifying flag of rock-n-roll. Etc.

Tiger Bear Wolf are the latest/greatest version of the Greensboro
classic-rock meets post-hardcore combination; they include former
Strunken White guitarist Noah Howard, and he's singing here, too.
Bellowing, I should say.

Brightleaf are a newish Winston-Salem supergroup, and they feature
ex-members of Malabaster and JapanAir, among many other W-S
powerhouses.



Monday, May 29
Blood Red River ( http://www.myspace.com/bloodredriver ) , Flatfoot 56
( http://www.flatfoot56.com/  ) , Vanguard
Local 506, Chapel Hill



Tuesday, May 30
Valient Thorr ( http://www.valientthorr.com/ ) , Black Skies (
http://www.myspace.com/losblackskies ) , Future Islands (
http://www.myspace.com/futureislands ) , Year Long Disaster (
http://www.yearlongdisaster.com/ )
Cat's Cradle, Carrboro

Valient Thorr are ultra-high-energy evangelo-rock, or something,
though their god isn't God, it's rock-n-roll.

Black Skies evolved out of a rockband called The Man, and they're
fronted by Kevin Clark (ex-Smearcase, Snatches of Pink, Cat's Cradle
barman).

Future Islands evolved out of a weird sideburns-laden synth/pop
danceband called Art Lord & the Self-Portraits.



Tuesday, May 30
Spader ( http://www.myspace.com/spadermusic ) , The Capulets (
http://www.thecapulets.net )
The Library, Chapel Hill

The Capulets remind a lot of people of a certain NYC band with skinny
pants & messy hair. I definitely hear the resemblance, but part of
that is the fact that the Capulets write really hooky rocksongs, which
isn't something that can just be copied offhand.

Spader are from Raleigh, and I've forgotten who they reminded me of
when I saw them. Was it U2? But which version?



Tuesday, May 30
Hamburger Helper, Apeshit ( http://www.myspace.com/apeshitnyc ) ,
Cuddle Machines ( http://www.myspace.com/cuddlemachines )
Reservoir, Carrboro



Wednesday, May 31
Work Clothes ( http://www.workclothesmusic.com/ ) , Mowing Lawns (
http://www.dyss.net/mlawns.html )
The Cave, Chapel Hill

Mowing Lawns are, at core, Mike and Todd. I've only ever seen them as
Mike and Todd (well, there was an amazing Urinals cover with Crowmeat
Bob joining them on sax . . . ) and as such, there's a lot of
intricate looping interweaving guitar-picking. I'm told that when they
play the occasional show with more bandmates, it's a whole different
thing. & of course I don't know which type this show is.

Work Clothes are also vastly different as a two-piece (hushed,
minimalist) and as a full band (from hushed & minimal to huge and
anthemic, within the transition from verse to chorus); they're one of
the best bands working in the Triangle right now.



Wednesday, May 31
Pit er Pat ( http://www.piterpat.com/ ) , Alphas Wear Grey (
http://www.alphasweargrey.com/ )
Kings, Raleigh



Wednesday, May 31
Park Life ( http://www.parklifeband.com/ ) , A Fir-Ju Well (
http://www.afirjuwell.com/ ) , The Ruse (
http://www.myspace.com/rusemusic )
Local 506, Chapel Hill



Thursday, June 1
Blackstrap ( http://blackstrap.org ) , New Grenada, Dirty Little
Heaters ( http://www.thedirtylittleheaters.com )
Local 506, Chapel Hill

New Grenada (or is that New Granada? It's been too long since I've
seen the movie, either way) are a band formed by Local 506 staffers to
compete in the Bartender Olympics; not content to bash out a few
rockers and call it a night, they actually (apparently--haven't seen
it myself) composed a rock opera based on the brilliant teen-rebellion
movie "Over The Edge" (you remember it: "a kid that tells on another
kid is a dead kid!").

Dirty Little Heaters and Blackstrap are two of Durham's finest,
Blackstrap with an early-80s-California sass & snarl, and the Heaters
with a full-on blues-stomp assault.



Thursday, June 1
The Solace Brothers ( http://www.thesolacebros.com/ ) , The
International Drive ( http://www.myspace.com/theinternationaldrive )
Kings, Raleigh



Friday, June 2 - Saturday, June 3
No Future Fest ( http://www.freewebs.com/nofuturefest/  )
Nightlight, Chapel Hill

This is it, the biggest Noise event of the year, at least in NC and
quite possibly in a much larger radius than that. The website said no
advance tickets, so if you want to spend 2 raucous sweaty nights
crammed into Nightlight with the biggest collection of freaks you'll
ever see, I guess you gotta show up early (before 8:00, that is). Have
a sandwich; I recommend the African Tuna, natch. Lineups:

Night 1:
Sickness
Pedestrian Deposit
Wilt
Clang Quartet
Stimbox
Black Meat
Armenia
WZT Hearts
Endless Humiliation
Moribund

Night 2:
Macronympha
Aaron Dilloway
Can't
Xome
American Band
Hive Mind
Carlos Giffoni
Oscillating Innards
Wilderness
Ironing



Friday, June 2
Pleasant ( http://www.pleasantmusic.com ) , Dawn Chorus (
http://www.myspace.com/dawnchorus ) , Glow-in-the-Dark Scars (
http://www.myspace.com/glowinthedarkscars ) , Vireo (
http://www.myspace.com/vireoband )
The Flying Anvil, Greensboro

Pleasant are from Chapel Hill, and they make fluttery catchy slightly
hiccuppy popmuzik. Dawn Chorus are from Greensboro, and I just
realized I think I misplaced their CD. Glow-in-the-Dark Scars are from
Wilmington. Vireo are from Carrboro, and they're basically a mutation
of a short-lived Triangle band called The Killing Frost, who were
themselves a transmogrification of a great Greensboro band called the
Dirty Version.



Friday, June 2
Proof, Strange ( http://www.thisisstrange.org ) , Nudity (
http://www.myspace.com/nuditytheband )
Kings, Raleigh

Strange are a big, echoey, vaguely Gothy band (well, in the same sense
that the Birthday Party were Gothy, that is) from Raleigh. Proof
contain members of Cole & Goner. Nudity are from OlyWa and are
ex-Tight Bros. from Way Back When.



Friday, June 2
The Port Huron Statement ( http://www.porthuronstatement.com/ ) ,
North Elementary ( http://www.northelementary.com )
Slim's Downtown, Raleigh



Friday, June 2
Endless Mic ( http://www.trekkyrecords.com/endlessmic.html ) , Soul
Position ( http://www.rhymesayers.com/aDetail.php?aId=12&cT=Bio ) ,
One Be Lo ( http://www.onebelo.com/ )
Local 506, Chapel Hill



Saturday, June 3
Eyes to Space ( http://www.eyestospace.net/ ) , Kapow! Music (
http://kapowmusic.net ) , On Three (
http://www.myspace.com/ericonthree )
Local 506, Chapel Hill



Saturday, June 3
The Dynamite Brothers ( http://www.dynamitebrothers.com/ ) , Birds of
Avalon ( http://www.myspace.com/birdsofavalon ) , Nudity (
http://www.myspace.com/nuditytheband )
Reservoir, Carrboro

Dynamite Brothers were back down to a 2-piece last time I saw them,
but that's been like a year, so they may've grown again. They make
hot! spazzmo electric blues-boogie. Birds of Avalon are from Raleigh &
they've got ex-members of Cherry Valence and The Weather, which means
they bring the Raleigh Rock.



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