RTP-area local music and culture

[grady <grady AT ibiblio.org>]

Friday, April 4
Vetiver    (http://www.vetiverse.com)
Gary Louris    (http://www.myspace.com/garylouris)
Cat's Cradle, Carrboro

I'm told everybody in the room cried like a baby last time Vetiver came 
through town, so maybe it's not even necessary to point out their local 
connection -- at least half of 'em are from Greensboro, including 
frontman Andy Cabic (ex-Raymond Brake) and guitarist Sanders Trippe 
(ex-Rebar).

Gary Louris was in the Jayhawks.



Friday, April 4
Polynya    (http://www.myspace.com/polynyapolynya)
Airspace    (http://www.myspace.com/airspacemusic)
Israel Darling    (http://www.myspace.com/israeldarling)
Nightlight, Chapel Hill

Polynya merge the longtime Smiths/Cure obsessions of some of their 
members with a lighter, breezier synth-pop sound -- think little dashes 
of Stereolab or even Pizzicato Five.



Friday, April 4
The Busy World    (http://www.myspace.com/thebusyworld)
Shapiro    (http://www.shapiropeople.com)
The Chuttesville Speak
Jack Sprat Cafe, Chapel Hill

I'm told the Chuttesville Speak[s] involves members of Sweater Weather.



Friday, April 4
Stratocruiser    (http://www.stratocruisermusic.com/)
Howlin' Rain    (http://www.birdmanrecords.com/howlinrain/index.html)
Nightstick    (http://www.myspace.com/nightstickband)
Local 506, Chapel Hill



Friday, April 4
Dexter Romweber and the New Romans 
(http://www.myspace.com/dexterromweber)
The Cave, Chapel Hill

Dexter's New Romans are his big band, with brass section, keys, multiple 
guitars & percussion. At their best, they're how his music was always 
meant to be heard.



Friday, April 4
Sir Arthur and His Royal Knights 
(http://mannsworld.blogspot.com/2007/08/sir-arthur-his-royal-knights.html)
Rocket Cottage
Slim's Downtown, Raleigh



Saturday, April 5 - Sunday, April 6
Durham Art Walk    (http://www.durhamartwalk.com/performers.php)
various downtown venues, Durham

The Durham Art Walk is one of those all-over-downtown events with a lot 
of open galleries, and a few stages scattered around downtown with live 
music. It runs Saturday and Sunday. A full lineup can be found here. The 
highlight for folks in search of, um, "rock" would definitely be 
Saturday afternoon at CCB Plaza, right there in front of Major The Bull, 
so named because of his Major Testicles. Saturday afternoon's lineup:

2pm - 2:30pm Girls Rock NC - teen indie rock
2:30pm - 3pm Eclipse Productions - modern ballet with a hip, hop flair
3pm- 4pm Future Kings of Nowhere – acousticore
4pm - 5pm Minnie Skirt and the Bootlegs – neo-funk and soul
5:15pm - 6:15pm Water Callers – Americana
6:30pm - 7:30pm Dom Casual – indie rock

You oughta also check the schedule for other interesting stuff, 
including the Soundpainting Orchestra on Sunday morning, and a second 
Girls Rock NC show at some point.



Saturday, April 5
Ben Davis + The Jetts    (http://www.lovitt.com/artists/bendavis.html)
Schooner    (http://www.schoonermusic.com)
Hammer No More the Fingers    (http://www.hnmtf.com)
Wil Donegan and the Apologies
Billy Warden & the Floating Children
Cat's Cradle, Carrboro

This is a farewell party for Schoolkids Records, which has left East 
Franklin Street after 33 years. In addition to the bands listed above, 
you've got North Elementary, Michael Rank & Mark E. Smith of Snatches of 
Pink, ColaSC's Heist & the Accomplice, and (apparently) more. All the 
proceeds go to Orange County Elementary Music Program.

And yes, you read that correctly: Legendary Triangle band Billy Warden & 
the Floating Children are reuniting to play this show! They go on first, 
at 5:00, so don't be late.



Saturday, April 5
Cantwell, Gomez, Jordan    (http://www.cantwellgomezandjordan.com)
Beloved Binge    (http://www.myspace.com/belovedbinge)
Eberhardt    (http://www.myspace.com/eberhardtnc)
Duke Coffeehouse, Durham

This is a triple-CD release party for Eberhardt, Beloved Binge & 
Cantwell, Gomez & Jordan. I've heard the latter two bands' CDs, and I 
have to say that in both cases it's their best work yet. Beloved Binge 
are really perfecting their weird cadences and their "we both sing 
different things at the same time" thing, and fewer of the songs sound 
like two dissimilar songs chopped up & Frankensteined back together.

Cantwell Gomez & Jordan are so completely in control of their sound that 
there's never any doubt about who you're hearing, or about the 
intentionality of what they're playing, no matter how fucked-up it gets. 
Magisterial.



Saturday, April 5
Hearts and Daggers    (http://www.heartsanddaggers.com/ )
Boxbomb
Left Outlet    (http://www.myspace.com/leftoutlet)
Pour House, Raleigh

Hearts & Daggers are an honest-to-goodness cowpunk band, although they 
don't have the '80s-style matching-black-denim sartorial discipline of 
their forebears.



Saturday, April 5
Honored Guests    (http://www.thehonoredguests.com/)
Pico vs Island Trees    (http://www.picomusic.com/)
The Modern Skirts    (http://www.modernskirts.com/)
Local 506, Chapel Hill



Saturday, April 5
DJ Family Vacation    (http://1200problems.org)
Bass Invadurrz    (http://www.myspace.com/bassinvadurrz)
DJ Ron Morelli
$tinkworxx
Nightlight, Chapel Hill



Saturday, April 5
Lake Inferior    (http://www.myspace.com/lakeinferiormusic)
Our Velvet Revolution
Jack Sprat Cafe, Chapel Hill



Saturday, April 5
Monsonia    (http://www.monsonia.com)
The Curtains of Night    (http://myspace.com/thecurtainsofnight)
Slim's Downtown, Raleigh

Once again Slim's provides a dose of the dark murky Chapel Hill/Carrboro 
sound to the starving ears of Downtown Raleigh.



Sunday, April 6
David Dondero    (http://www.futurefarmer.com/davidd.html)
Dawn Chorus    (http://www.myspace.com/dawnchorus)
Wood Ear    (http://www.myspace.com/woodear)
Local 506, Chapel Hill



Sunday, April 6
Athens    (http://www.myspace.com/athens777)
A Legion of Thieves    (http://www.myspace.com/alegionofthieves)
Reservoir, Carrboro



Monday, April 7
Savage Knights    (http://www.retroactivedynamics.com)
Mount Weather
Health    (http://www.myspace.com/healthmusic)
Downtown Event Center, Raleigh

Health (the semi-well-known one from California, not the criminally 
underappreciated one from Greensboro) were described to me as Krautrockish.

Savage Knights are a jazz/spazz/rock band from Raleigh with Crowmeat Bob 
switching off between guitar & sax. They're straight-up awesome.



Monday, April 7
Auxes    (http://www.myspace.com/auxes)
Shag Athlete    (http://www.myspace.com/shagathlete)
Hell, Chapel Hill

It's Hell's 11th-anniversary week, and all week long they're showcasing 
bands that feature current & former Hell staffers.



Tuesday, April 8
Auxiliary House    (http://www.trekkyrecords.com/auxhouse.html)
The Nothing Noise    (http://www.myspace.com/thenothingnoise)
The Chuttesville Speak
Nightlight, Chapel Hill

This is a benefit for Advocates for Grassroots Development in Uganda.



Tuesday, April 8
Anaturale    (http://www.myspace.com/anaturale)
Athens Boys Choir    (http://www.myspace.com/athensboyschoir)
Scream Club
Local 506, Chapel Hill



Wednesday, April 9
Maple Stave    (http://www.maplestave.com)
Dark Inside the Sun 
(http://music.ibiblio.org/pub/multimedia/puzzle/dits/)
The Whole World Laughing    (http://www.myspace.com/twwl)
Bull City Headquarters, Durham

Maple Stave make mathy rock that's more of the "epic" than the 
"endlessly repetitive" variety. The Whole World Laughing are 
barely-controlled chaos, moreso than you'd expect of just two guys.



Wednesday, April 9
The Frequency
A is Jump    (http://www.myspace.com/aisjump2)
Fujiyama Roll    (http://www.myspace.com/fujiyamaroll)
Local 506, Chapel Hill



Wednesday, April 9
Michael Holland    (http://www.bigjohnsrecords.com)
Sweet By and By    (http://www.myspace.com/sweetbyby )
Pomegranates    (http://www.myspace.com/pomegranatesart)
Nightlight, Chapel Hill



Wednesday, April 9
Our Velvet Revolution
Hell, Chapel Hill



Thursday, April 10
Dark Inside the Sun 
(http://music.ibiblio.org/pub/multimedia/puzzle/dits/)
Projexorcism
Cab Caligari    (http://www.subscapeannex.com/caligari/)
Nightlight, Chapel Hill



Thursday, April 10
The Shucks with Christy Smith
Tir Na Nog, Raleigh

This is the weekly Thursday Local Bands, Local Beers night. Christy 
Smith was in the awesome Raleigh country-rock band Nola, so I'm psyched 
to see that she's got a new thing going.



Thursday, April 10
Murder By Death    (http://www.murderbydeath.com/)
Thunderlip    (http://www.thunderlip.com/)
O'Death    (http://odeath.net/)
Kiss Kiss
Local 506, Chapel Hill



Thursday, April 10
Spider Bags    (http://www.myspace.com/spiderbags)
Turpentine Brothers    (http://www.myspace.com/turpentinebrothers)
Limes    (http://www.myspace.com/limesrus)
The Cave, Chapel Hill

I may not need to tell you that Spider Bags are a bunch of boozy 
country-rock ingrates. I don't know anything about the other two bands, 
but their names make the whole bill sound like good company (for each 
other--bad company for you).



Friday, April 11
Alias Smith & Jones    (http://www.myspace.com/aliassmithandjonesband)
Spindale
Sadlack's Heroes, Raleigh



Friday, April 11 - Saturday, April 12
Signal Electronic Music Festival    (http://www.signalfest.com/)
various locales, Chapel Hill

This is the third(?) year for the Signal Electronic Music Festival, 
which is pretty admirably wide-ranging, from more traditional 
DJ-oriented electronica to freaked-out blips-and-bloops & some crazy 
noise stuff. It's happening Friday & Saturday nights at venues all over 
Chapel Hill & Carrboro, including Cat's Cradle, Nightlight, Local 506, 
the Mansion, Tallula's, etc. Way too much to list here in detail, so 
check the lineup at the website.



Friday, April 11
In the Year of the Pig    (http://www.southernloveprod.com/ityotp.htm)
Chest Pains    (http://www.myspace.com/thechestpains)
Ettrick    (http://www.myspace.com/ettrick)
Bull City Headquarters, Durham

The best news I've had all year came last week in the form of an email 
from local label Holidays for Quince, outlining their release calendar 
for 2008. On the schedule: CDs from Caltrop, Curtains of Night and the 
animal-hatted bass/bass/drums/drums/freakout wall-of-genius In the Year 
of the Pig.



Friday, April 11
Casiotone for the Painfully Alone 
(http://www.tomlab.com/front/index.php?action=artist_detail&artist_id=4)
Clue to Kalo
Duke Coffeehouse, Durham



Friday, April 11
Kenny Roby    (http://www.kennyroby.com)
Jon Shain    (http://www.jonshain.com)
Broad Street Cafe, Durham



Friday, April 11
Bull City    (http://www.bullcitytheband.com/)
Simple    (http://www.myspace.com/httpwwwmyspacecomsimple)
Fighting Poseidon    (http://www.myspace.com/fightingposeidon)
Jack Sprat Cafe, Chapel Hill

Three youngish bands packed full of local-music veterans. Bull City 
boast not only Jim Brantley (ex-Ashley Stove) but also Scott Carle 
(ex-Dillon Fence). Fighting Poseidon guitarist Eric Mann did quite a few 
years in Kudzu Wish. And Simple frontman Chip Smoak did time in that 
extended North Elementary wooze-pop family.



Friday, April 11
Joe Romeo & the Orange County Volunteers 
(http://www.myspace.com/joeromeomusic)
The Cave, Chapel Hill

Joe used to be in Fake Swedish, though by now there are probably more 
folks who know him for his Volunteers, given their warm reception at 
places like the Carrboro Music Festival. Joe's still a wordy 
motherfucker, but his band's loping country-rock seems to hold the 
attention of even those folks who dislike a lot of words.



Friday, April 11
Transportation    (http://www.myspace.com/transportation)
Juan Huevos    (http://www.myspace.com/juanhuevos)
Hell, Chapel Hill

It's still Hell's 11th-anniversary celebration week, and tonight 
features the bands of two former Hell staffers. Juan Huevos is a 
creepy-suave hip-hop persona; Transportation are rabid fans of 70s 
pop-artrock tropes, from Queen to Wings.



Friday, April 11
Proof    (http://www.prooftheband.org)
Edmund II
Slim's Downtown, Raleigh

Proof are basically an entirely different band now than they were back 
when they emerged from the ashes of the taut, mathy Cole. Last year they 
added ex-Greatest Hits frontman Jeramy Lowe as a permanent member (he'd 
joined them briefly before when they became Fugazi for the King's 
Cover-Up, a seemingly impossible task that by most accounts they 
actually pulled off).



Saturday, April 12
The Loners    (http://www.demonbeachrecords.com/loners.html)
Sadlack's Heroes, Raleigh

Guitar. Drums. What more do you need?



Saturday, April 12
Megafaun    (http://www.myspace.com/megafaun)
Horseback    (http://www.myspace.com/horsebacknoise)
Nick Schillace    (http://www.burlytime.com/artists/)
Eric Carbonara    (http://ericcarbonara.org/)
Broad Street Cafe, Durham

This is a CD-release for Detroiter Nick Schillace, who somehow hooked up 
with Durham's Burly Time Records. Also on the bill, the reclusive 
Horseback, the gorgeous drone project of the ever-busy Jenks Miller. And 
Megafaun, of course, who'll doubtless be asking you to sing & play with 
them, so don't act surprised when it happens.



Saturday, April 12
Gambling the Muse    (http://www.myspace.com/gamblingthemuse)
Caleb Caudle & The Bayonets
The Cave, Chapel Hill



Saturday, April 12
Rat Jackson    (http://www.myspace.com/ratjacksonmusic)
Pneurotics    (http://www.myspace.com/pneurotics)
Jack Sprat Cafe, Chapel Hill



Saturday, April 12
Twilighter    (http://twilighter.net/)
Guitar Bomb    (http://www.guitarbomb.com)
Claws of Paradise    (http://www.clawsofparadise.com)
Reservoir, Carrboro



Sunday, April 13
Megafaun    (http://www.myspace.com/megafaun)
WXDU 88.7 FM, Durham

This is the third time in a row that I've managed to book a band to play 
on the day after another gig. Thus far results have been mixed; the 
first band was kinda worn down, but then the second band was if anything 
*more* perky than normal.

Megafaun are such innate performers--the kind of folks whom you could 
easily imagine singing & playing their way through most of their daily 
activities, like a Hollywood musical, only with much more facial 
hair--that I suspect they'll just do what they always do, which is to 
play, beautifully.

If you come stand outside the station, they'll probably hand you some 
petit percussion and invite you in. 4:00 p.m. 88.7 FM or wxdu.org.



Monday, April 14
Salt to Bitters    (http://www.myspace.com/salttobitters)
Western Civ.    (http://westerncivrock.com)
Local 506, Chapel Hill

This is a 506 Free For All, which means that the admission and the 
secondhand smoke are both free.



Monday, April 14
Mowgli    (http://www.myspace.com/mowglimowgli)
Church of the Snake    (http://www.myspace.com/churchofthesnake)
Hell, Chapel Hill



Tuesday, April 15
Bibis Ellison    (http://www.myspace.com/bibisellison)
Tigersaw    (http://www.tigersaw.com)
Cathy Catholic
Nightlight, Chapel Hill



Tuesday, April 15
snmnmnm    (http://www.snmnmnm.com/)
American Aquarium    (http://www.americanaquarium.com/)
American Princes    (http://www.americanprinces.com/)
Local 506, Chapel Hill



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