RTP-area local music and culture

[grady <grady AT ibiblio.org>]

Saturday, January 10
Joe Romeo & the Orange County Volunteers 
(http://www.myspace.com/joeromeomusic)
The Cave, Chapel Hill

Joe Romeo & his Orange County Volunteers are holding down both the early 
& late slots at the Cave with their brand of quirky, character-rich 
literary country-rock.



Saturday, January 10
Kaia    (http://www.kaiawilson.com/)
Shawn Luby
The Hushpuppies
The Pinhook, Durham

Kaia Wilson used to front local indie/pop/punk band The Butchies; she's 
joined here by former Butchies/Ex-Members drummer Melissa York.



Saturday, January 10
Cool Ethan    (http://www.myspace.com/coolethanrock)
Hey Euphony    (http://www.myspace.com/heyeuphony)
Left on Cates    (http://www.myspace.com/leftoncates)
New Resolution    (http://www.myspace.com/newresolutionmusic)
Local 506, Chapel Hill



Saturday, January 10
Kolyma    (http://www.myspace.com/kolyma)
The Trousers
Slim's Downtown, Raleigh

As unholy rackets go, the one created by Kolyma is hard to beat.



Sunday, January 11
Flicker    (http://www.chapel-hill.nc.us/flicker)
Cat's Cradle, Carrboro

It's the first 2009 installment of the semi-regular local film festival 
Flicker. Short films, door prizes, and cookies!



Sunday, January 11
Billy Joe Winghead    (http://www.winghead.com/)
Jimmy & The Teasers    (http://www.geocities.com/booze1031/teasers.html)
The Cave, Chapel Hill



Sunday, January 11
Sunfold    (http://www.myspace.com/sunfold)
Lafcadio    (http://www.myspace.com/lafcadiorocks)
Boroughs    (http://myspace.com/Boroughstheband)
Local 506, Chapel Hill

Sunfold are the fraternal twin of Annuals; more or less the same lineup, 
but performing songs by guitarist Kenny Florence (vs. Annuals' Adam Baker).



Monday, January 12
Tauri Wind    (http://www.myspace.com/tauriwind)
Starfish HQ    (http://www.myspace.com/starfishhq)
Mark Belk
Marvell Building, Durham



Monday, January 12
The Movement    (http://www.themovementvibe.com)
Wu-Tang Clan    (http://wutangclan.com/)
Lincoln Theater, Raleigh

A couple of things: just because it says the Wu-Tang Clan, this does not 
mean that you will actually get to see the Wu-Tang Clan.

There is *one* guarantee: the 8:00 p.m. listed start time is, ahem, 
overly optimistic. Add about 6 hours to that & you'll be getting closer.



Wednesday, January 14
The Villians    (http://www.myspace.com/thevillians)
Marvell Building, Durham

Ghoul-makeup band from Raleigh, but they're neither Misfits ghoul-punk 
nor Black Metal -- they're more sort of atmospheric, theatrical 
goth-metal, I guess.



Wednesday, January 14
Pink Flag    (http://www.myspace.com/pinkflagnc)
Pistil    (http://myspace.com/pistilband)
The Cave, Chapel Hill

Pink Flag are young & raw & their ideas sometimes outstrip their 
execution, which is one of the reasons I dig 'em so much. They're 
working on becoming so much more than an all-woman pop-punk trio, and 
it's an evolution that's fun to watch.



Wednesday, January 14
Harmute    (http://www.myspace.com/harmute)
Lake Inferior    (http://www.myspace.com/lakeinferiormusic)
Nightlight, Chapel Hill



Thursday, January 15
des_ark    (http://www.des-ark.org)
Polar Opposite Bear
Ava Luna    (http://www.myspace.com/avalunaband)
The Pinhook, Durham

des_ark are currently a modified power-trio, with Aimee Argote and Noah 
Howard (ex-Strunken White) on guitars, and Evan Rowe (Maple Stave) on 
drums. Unless this is an Aimee-solo show, in which case you can probably 
figure that out.

Ava Luna are from Brooklyn, and the demo they sent is a weird (WEIRD) 
mix of stripped-down electro beats, kinda-overbearing frontman dude-vox, 
and a multi-woman choir of girl-group-style backup singers. I couldn't 
really handle it on CD for more than a few minutes, but I did think to 
myself "this'd probably be pretty fucked-up live." So we'll see.



Thursday, January 15
Dead to Society    (http://www.myspace.com/deadtosociety101)
Have Nots    (http://www.sonicbids.com/havenots)
The Cave, Chapel Hill



Thursday, January 15
Brett Harris
The Jackets    (http://www.reverbnation.com/TheJackets)
Tir Na Nog, Raleigh

This is part of the Thursday Local Bands, Local Beers series. Brett 
Harris is from Durham; he put out two EPs in 2008, one he recorded 
himself, of a mix of Americana & Beatlesy pop, and one recorded with his 
live band, which was more straight-ahead pop-rock. For whatever reason, 
the second was less interesting than the first one, although I do 
occasionally "Not Coming Back," stuck in my head.



Friday, January 16
The Never    (http://www.trekkyrecords.com/never.html)
Lost in the Trees    (http://www.lostinthetrees.com)
Paleface
Von Der Hayden Pavilion, Perkins Library, Duke Uni, Durham

This is part of the Campus Concert Series, but rather than having it at 
the Armadillo Grill at the Bryan Center, they've switched to the Von Der 
Hayden Pavilion at Perkins Library, which is maybe a better venue for 
the orchestral pop of Lost in the Trees. I'm assuming the show is still 
free & still starts at 5:30-ish.



Friday, January 16
Titus Andronicus    (http://www.myspace.com/titusandronicus)
Los Campesinos    (http://www.loscampesinos.com)
Cat's Cradle, Carrboro

Titus Andronicus have built themselves quite a following around here, 
based almost entirely on the strength of a few hi-energy spazzy shows, 
none of which I managed to see.

Los Campesinos I know only via a single MP3, "Don't Ask Me to Do the 
Math," which somehow wound up on my hard drive. It's great, in a 
precocious British girl/boy call-and-response pop kind of way.



Friday, January 16
Explorers Club    (http://www.myspace.com/explorersclub)
Huguenots    (http://www.myspace.com/thehuguenotsmusic)
Local 506, Chapel Hill

According to the papers, Explorers Club : Beach Boys :: Huguenots : 
Beatles. My limited exposure to Huguenots, entirely via CD, left me 
feeling like someone had cherry-picked all the twee-pop aspects of the 
early Beatles without enough of the 4 a.m. Hamburg grrrrrowl that lurked 
just under the surface.



Friday, January 16
Gray Young    (http://www.myspace.com/grayyoung)
Birds & Arrows    (http://www.myspace.com/birdsandarrows)
The Cave, Chapel Hill



Friday, January 16
Transportation    (http://www.myspace.com/transportation)
Joe Romeo & the Orange County Volunteers 
(http://www.myspace.com/joeromeomusic)
Slim's Downtown, Raleigh

Transportation are a longstanding Chapel Hill power-trio whose affection 
for the rock of the '70s tends towards the Queen/Wings/Styx axis. It's 
fascinating & entirely unique, around here, anyway.

Joe Romeo used to front the mysterious literate Mod-invasion band Fake 
Swedish; his Orange County Volunteers are in more of a country-rock 
vein, but the strange lyrical vignettes and odd narratives are still in 
effect.



Friday, January 16
Colossus    (http://www.myspace.com/thecolossuswillcrushyou)
Freedom Hawk    (http://myspace.com/freedomhawk)
Death Came Down the Mountain 
(http://www.myspace.com/deathcamedownthemountain)
Reservoir, Carrboro



Saturday, January 17
Untied Laces
Pure Vida    (http://www.myspace.com/purevidagus)
Before Night Falls
Wholesome News
Falls End
Marvell Building, Durham

This is a good old-fashioned punkrock (I guess) matinee . . . doors open 
at 4:30 and first band starts at 5:00.



Saturday, January 17
Dirty Little Heaters    (http://www.myspace.com/thedirtylittleheaters)
The Bootlegs    (http://www.myspace.com/thebootlegsband)
The Pinhook, Durham

The Bootlegs used to be called Minnie Skirt and the Bootlegs, which, 
while kinda retarded, at least had the distinction of being highly 
google-able. Either way, they're a large (8-9 piece) soul band from Durham.

Dirty Little Heaters you know about by now. Note to misguided 
Indyweek.com commenters: try actually coming to the show, and then see 
whether you still feel compelled to hate.



Saturday, January 17
Aminal Music    (http://www.myspace.com/theaminalmusic)
Longwave    (http://www.myspace.com/longwaveofficial)
Mike Garrigan    (http://www.myspace.com/mikegarrigan)
Local 506, Chapel Hill



Saturday, January 17
Schooner    (http://www.schoonermusic.com)
Ghost to Falco    (http://www.purevolume.com/GhosttoFalco)
Embarrassing Fruits    (http://www.myspace.com/embarrassingfruitsband)
A is Jump    (http://www.myspace.com/aisjump2)
Nightlight, Chapel Hill

Mixed bag of local indie-rock, from the brilliant, subtly-weird mix of 
croon and indierock spazz of Schooner, to the grew-up-in-the-'90s 
Archers/Pavement/Sebadoh classicism of Embarrassing Fruits.



Saturday, January 17
Kenny Roby's Mercy Filter    (http://www.kennyroby.com)
The Cave, Chapel Hill



Sunday, January 18
Resist Not    (http://myspace.com/resistnot)
Endless Mike and the Beagle Club    (http://www.myspace.com/beagleclub)
Clawform
Snakes Are We All
Bull City Headquarters, Durham

This is a mid-evening (8:00 p.m.) show. Catherine E. says:

Resist Not: Super awesome DIY sing-along political acoustic punk

Endless Mike and the Beagle Club: Contagious best-friend optimism with 
dark subjects from Johnston PA.

Clawform: Makes you wonder if the whole genre of black metal was 
intended for the banjo

Snakes Are We All: VERY FIRST PUNK SHOW EVER!!! (As we all know, these 
are the best).



Sunday, January 18
Goodbye, Titan    (http://www.myspace.com/loudestsilenceever)
Mute    (http://www.myspace.com/mutespacemusic)
Natasha El-Sergany    (http://www.myspace.com/thelasttrack)
The Cave, Chapel Hill



Sunday, January 18
Jam Pain Society    (http://www.jampainsociety.com)
Mother's Finest    (http://www.mothersfinest.com)
Lincoln Theater, Raleigh

Jam Pain Society are, in many ways, the Guns-n-Roses of Raleigh.



Monday, January 19
Swan Quarter    (http://www.myspace.com/swanquarter)
The Flying Eyes    (http://myspace.com/theflyinggeyesmd)
Local 506, Chapel Hill



Tuesday, January 20
Hamell on Trial    (http://www.myspace.com/hamellsramble)
Local 506, Chapel Hill



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