RTP-area local music and culture

[grady <grady AT ibiblio.org>]

Thursday, July 13
Strange (http://www.thisisstrange.org), Natasha
(http://www.myspace.com/natashatheband), The Black Hollies
(http://www.theblackhollies.com)
Wetlands, Chapel Hill

Strange are a big booming echoey Raleigh band, who remind me at
various moments of the Birthday Party, the Cult, and Calexico. All
playing at once.

Natasha met in high school at the Carolina Friends School in Durham;
they're keyboards, drums & singing, and if I can manage to use this
phrase without it seeming somehow diminutive, they're irrepressibly
fun.

The Black Hollies are a psych/garage band from somewhere up the east
coast; they record for the Ernest Jennings Record Co., erstwhile home
of the now-defunct Greensboro bands Disband and Kudzu Wish.



Thursday, July 13
Vetiver (http://www.vetiverse.com), Filthybird
(http://www.myspace.com/filthybird)
The Flying Anvil, Greensboro

In case you couldn't make it to Kings for the 7/12 Vetiver show, you
can make the trek to Greensboro (closer to my house than Raleigh,
actually) and see the big homecoming show, inasmuch as Vetiver
frontman Andy Cabic was a member of Greensboro's sweethearts the
Raymond Brake back in the 90s, and on this tour he's being backed by 2
ex-members of Rebar, yet another defunct genius Greensboro band.



Thursday, July 13
Tiger Thief (http://www.tigerthief.com/), Only Midnight
(http://www.myspace.com/onlymidnight)
Local 506, Chapel Hill



Friday, July 14
Dirty Little Heaters (http://www.thedirtylittleheaters.com), The
Veldas (http://www.myspace.com/theveldas)
305 South, Durham

This is a fashion show to benefit Celiac disease research. Fashions to
be provided by the Electric Blender/Untidy Museum; models to be
provided by the Carolina Rollergirls.

Rockmusic to be provided by the Veldas and the Dirty Little Heaters.



Friday, July 14
DeYarmond Edison (http://www.dyemusic.com/), Nola
(http://www.myspace.com/nolaband), Homemade Knives
(http://www.myspace.com/homemadeknivesrva)
Chaz's Bull City Records, Durham

Homemade Knives are from Richmond, which is Chaz's old stomping
ground, which explains why it seems like we're getting 2-3 RVA bands a
week through town nowadays. It's good to rebuild those old ties with
that *other* decaying southern red-brick city.

DeYarmond Edison moved to Raleigh from Wisconsin a year or two ago;
the newspaper says they have a duck.

You're only getting a fraction of Nola tonight, specifically Christy
and David, who are in any case the singing portion of the band.



Friday, July 14
Urban Sophisticates (http://www.urbansophisticates.com/), Talib Kweli
(http://www.talibkweli.com)
Cat's Cradle, Carrboro



Friday, July 14
Tennis and the Mennonites (http://www.tennisandthemennonites.com),
Walker Lundee (http://www.walkerlundee.com/)
The Cave, Chapel Hill

Walker Lundee are from Philadelphia, and they're presumably named for
former Philadelphia Inquirer editor Walker Lundy; little do they know
that he retired to the Lake Norman area, and may in fact show up at
The Cave to heckle them.

Tennis and the Mennonites are the sickly brainchild of Jerstin Crosby,
who has a classic new-wave hiccuppy vocal delivery, a winning way with
a pop hook, and a fucking eyepopping pair of yellow slacks.



Friday, July 14
Manamid (http://www.manamid.com), Blag'ard (http://www.blagard.com/),
Cannons (http://www.myspace.com/cannonslightbrigade)
Wetlands, Chapel Hill

Manamid are from Greensboro; they contain ex-members of Rights
Reserved, Eagle Bravo, Sclix, Rebar Mk.II. They make a sorta
smart-alecky yet grown-up version of what we used to call "punkrock"
back before it became something unrecognizable. They recently announced
that this show would be their Last Show Ever.

Cannons are from SC, and thus are the designated butt of all jokes for
the evening.

Blag'ard is the new band of Joe Taylor, who was in Capsize 7 back in
the 90s. Some of his songs are *really* "classic indie-rock" in their
squirrelly-guitar-ish-ness.



Saturday, July 15
Cantwell, Gomez, Jordan (http://www.cantwellgomezandjordan.com),
Calabi Yau (http://www.calabiyau.com/), Robo Sapien
(http://www.gorobosapien.com/), Capillary Action
(http://www.capillaryaction.net/)
Local 506, Chapel Hill

This is a CD-release party for the new Cantwell Gomez & Jordan CD, the
prospect of which has left me so giddy that I can barely type. CGJ
embody, for me, all that is good and right and wonderful about music
in this town: they're kinda dorky (both individually and as a group);
they run themselves ragged going to shows by other bands in town; they
make weird complicated music that doesn't sound like anybody else on
earth, even when they're covering bona-fide classic-rock-radio
'standards'. They are a local treasure and they're far too modest to
even *realize* that, let alone admit it, so I'll do it.

Robo Sapien make the goofy boy/girl laptop-hip-hop / disco / electro
dance-party jams.

Calabi Yau are from Charlotte and they are gnomic in their
fucked-up-ness.



Saturday, July 15
Pleasant (http://www.pleasantmusic.com), Hotel Lights
(http://www.hotellights.net/), Jennifer O'Connor
(http://www.jenniferoconnor.net/)
The Flying Anvil, Greensboro

The Flying Anvil is the new rockclub in Greensboro, for which we all
have high hopes, as Greensboro has always had Durham-class mixed
results with the rockclubs.

Hotel Lights is the beautifully morose pop band of former Ben Folds
Five drummer Darren Jessee. They put out a gorgeous, lush & mildly
depressing album last year that was just re-released by Bar None.

Pleasant's 2nd album is all mature-sounding and stately (well, it's
still two-guitar indie-rock, but it does what it can to act adult);
onstage, they're able to pull off the slow/delicate bits while still
throwing in a half-dozen of their classic frantic Pixies/Feelies
spazzouts as well.



Saturday, July 15
Red Smokes White (http://www.myspace.com/redsmokeswhite), Big Cream
(http://www.myspace.com/bigcream)
Wetlands, Chapel Hill



Sunday, July 16
Concrete Bombers (http://www.myspace.com/concretebombers), A Warm Gun
(http://www.myspace.com/awarmgun), Cobra Noir
(http://www.cobranoir.org), Wanko Honcho
(http://www.myspace.com/havingarager)
Chaz's Bull City Records, Durham

Cobra Noir are coming all the way from Quebec to play this show. If
you speak French, ask them why their website is so la-di-da that it
requires Flash 8, which isn't available for Linux yet, hence I dunno
what it looks like. Punk rock!



Sunday, July 16
S.C.O.T.S. (http://www.scots.com/), Malamondos
(http://www.malamondos.com/)
The Flying Anvil, Greensboro



Monday, July 17
Midtown Dickens (http://www.myspace.com/midtowndickens), Southerly
(http://www.dharmakayamusic.com/), Lauren Hoffman
(http://www.forlauren.com/)
Local 506, Chapel Hill



Monday, July 17
John Harrison, David Nahm (http://audubonpark.blogspot.com), Eric
Roehrig (http://www.eriechoir.com)
Fuse, Chapel Hill

John Harrison is frontman & chief songwriter of North Elementary.
David Nahm is prime mover of Audubon Park, as well as a damn snappy
dresser. Eric Roehrig sometimes plays guitar & sings for Sorry About
Dresden, and is about to release the first full-length Erie Choir
album, after two marvelous EPs.



Monday, July 17
Genghistron (http://www.genghistron.com/), Wanko Honcho
(http://www.myspace.com/havingarager), Cloacal Kiss
(http://www.myspace.com/cloacalkissband)
Kings, Raleigh



Tuesday, July 18
Billy Sugarfix (http://www.soundclick.com/bands/8/billysugarfix.htm),
Opening Flower Happy Bird
(http://www.myspace.com/openingflowerhappybird), Auxiliary House
(http://www.trekkyrecords.com/auxhouse.html), The Notes and Scratches
(http://log.tenseforms.com/notes/)
Wetlands, Chapel Hill

This is Trekky Records Night at Wetlands, although only Auxiliary
House are actually a Trekky band. They're the Trekky house band, in
fact, featuring members of various Trekky bands such as Alvarez
Painting, Vibrant Green, and Mortar and Pestle.

Billy Sugarfix you know about; he'll write you a custom song for a
reasonable price, he'll play you Classic American Songs on the
theremin, and if you're lucky he'll even bust out that hot summer hit,
"It's Carrboro."

Opening Flower Happy Bird are half from Carrboro & half from Richmond;
they make mid-fi gtr-keyboards-drums popsongs with an air of
melancholy & some great vocal hooks.



Tuesday, July 18
Concrete Bombers (http://www.myspace.com/concretebombers), Wasteland
DC (http://www.myspace.com/wastelanddc), Body Soil
(http://www.myspace.com/bodysoilband)
Kings, Raleigh



Wednesday, July 19
Bibis Ellison (http://www.myspace.com/bibisellison), Instruments
(http://www.orangetwin.com/), The New Sound of Numbers
(http://www.thenewsoundofnumbers.com/)
Local 506, Chapel Hill

Two bands loosely affiliated with the Collective Formerly Known as
Elephant Six, now reborn/rejuvenated, I guess, under the name/label
Orange Twin. The instigator of both the Instruments and New Sound of
Numbers is (http://www.heathermcintosh.com/) ] Heather McIntosh who
just moved to Brooklyn after 12 years in Athens, so there you go,
Brooklyn's not over yet, at least not if you're from Athens.



Thursday, July 20
Tiger Bear Wolf (http://www.tigerbearwolf.com), Body Electric
(http://www.myspace.com/be)
Wetlands, Chapel Hill

Tiger Bear Wolf are a huge wound-up but still-sloppy Greensboro
rockband that lately sound like Lemmy sitting in with that overblown
but entertaining 90s Southern Rock band Raging Slab. I'm sitting here
trying to translate that sentence into English but I'm not sure it's
possible.



Thursday, July 20
The Vints (http://thevints.us/), Shotgun Romance
(http://www.myspace.com/shotgunromanceband)
Kings, Raleigh



Thursday, July 20
John Howie, Michael Rank
(http://www.sleazegrinder.com/teensleazehanoi.htm), Calico Haunts
(http://www.myspace.com/calicohaunts)
Fuse, Chapel Hill

John Howie, Jr, has for many years fronted the $2 Pistols; before that
he played drums for that great 90s Raleigh Rock band Finger. Nowadays
he also drums for Snatches of Pink, the band Michael Rank has been
Mick/Keith/JohnnyThunders-ing in for the past 20+ years.

Howie's playing solo; Rank will be joined by current Snatches
guitarist Marc E. Smith. Calico Haunts is someone I don't know.



Friday, July 21
Wolverines (http://www.wolverinesrock.com/), Toru Okada
(http://www.myspace.com/toruokada), Architects
(http://www.myspace.com/wearearchitects), Dialogues
(http://www.myspace.com/dialoguesharrisonburg), Screaming Females
(http://www.screamingfemales.com)
Chaz's Bull City Records, Durham



Friday, July 21
The Cartridge Family (http://www.cartridge-family.com/), On Three
(http://www.myspace.com/ericonthree)
The Cave, Chapel Hill

On Three is the new-ish project of ex-Fake Swedish guitarist Eric
Haugen. The Cartridge Family are a boozy bar-rock band from Raleigh.
Their first album, "Here Come the Rock Stars," has flashes of
brilliance, and does a remarkable job of integrating the various
bandmembers' simultaneous loves of "Blonde on Blonde" and the New York
Dolls.



Friday, July 21
Proof (http://www.prooftheband.org), Heads on Sticks
(http://www.thisisstrange.org/), DMVB (http://www.myspace.com/dmvb)
Kings, Raleigh

Proof are a Raleigh trio; they formed from the ex-rhythm section of
the Slinty 90s Chapel Hill band Cole, plus Goner bassist Greg Eyman.
They can be Slinty at moments as well, but the vocals are sung more
passionately and the songs are elastic in a different way.

DMVB is a bunch of folks from other Raleigh bands whose names I don't
necessarily know; I *do* know that at last year's Kings Cover-Up they
wore fake moustaches and covered obscure children's TV show themes.

Heads on Sticks is the solo side-project of Strange frontman David
Mueller.



Friday, July 21
Honored Guests (http://www.thehonoredguests.com/), Little Light
(http://www.myspace.com/littlelight), Dirty5thirty
(http://www.myspace.com/dirty5thirty), The Cheap Seats
(http://www.cheapseatsrock.com/)
Local 506, Chapel Hill



Saturday, July 22
Eight Eyes, Twilighter (http://www.twilighterband.com/)
The Cave, Chapel Hill

Eight Eyes is the early set; Twilighter is the late set. Eight Eyes
(which is the popmusic project of Durham music teacher Brad Newell)
put out an album a few years ago which, in addition to some fine
quirky pop, contained a gripping, ominous-sounding cover of "Livin' La
Vida Loca" that really got to the paranoid heart of the song.



Saturday, July 22
North Elementary (http://www.northelementary.com), Hotel Lights
(http://www.hotellights.net/), Jennifer O'Connor
(http://www.jenniferoconnor.net/)
Local 506, Chapel Hill

Hotel Lights is a pop band fronted by ex-Ben Folds drummer Darren
Jessee. Their debut album was recently re-released by Bar None, and
it's so full of interesting textures and brilliantly sad popsongs that
I keep waiting to read about them in the Mainstream Media. Or, shit,
hear them on NPR.



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