RTP-area local music and culture

[grady <grady AT ibiblio.org>]

Saturday, June 6
The Great White Jenkins    (http://www.tgwj.com/)
Phil Cook
Bull City Headquarters, Durham

Second chance to see Phil Cook et al, if you aren't able to make the 
Central Park School benefit Friday night.



Saturday, June 6
Nathan Oliver    (http://www.nathan-oliver.com)
Luego    (http://luegomusic.com/)
Mike Slaton    (http://www.myspace.com/mikeslatonandthewheels)
The Pinhook, Durham



Saturday, June 6
Erie Choir    (http://www.eriechoir.com)
Magic Babies    (http://www.myspace.com/themagicbabies)
The Travesties    (http://www.myspace.com/travestiesnc)
Local 506, Chapel Hill

Show of the week for local-music fans. Erie Choir's "Slighter Awake" is 
still a high-water mark for 2000s-era local releases. The Travesties 
take the original Jett Rink formula, slow it down & groove it up a 
little. Magic Babies are from Raleigh, but they're more Badfinger than 
Foghat.



Saturday, June 6
Inspector 22
Wild Wild Geese
The Cave, Chapel Hill



Saturday, June 6
+/-    (http://myspace.com/plusslashminus)
By Any Means Necessary
Nightlight, Chapel Hill

It's FrequeNC Records night, so you also get DJs Juan V and Ryan Martin.



Saturday, June 6
The Loners    (http://www.demonbeachrecords.com/loners.html)
Chrome Plated Apostles    (http://www.demonbeach.com)
Reservoir, Carrboro

Two full barrels of dirty garage-stomp.



Saturday, June 6
Oedipus Dick    (http://www.oedipusdick.com/)
The Trousers
Slim's Downtown, Raleigh



Sunday, June 7
Blag'ard    (http://www.blagard.com/)
Where the Buffalo Roamed    (http://www.myspace.com/wherethebuffaloroamed)
Pushy Lips    (http://www.myspace.com/pushylips)
Reservoir, Carrboro



Sunday, June 7
The White Cascade    (http://www.myspace.com/thewhitecascade)
Drakes Hotel
Slim's Downtown, Raleigh



Monday, June 8
Detroit Cobras    (http://www.motorcityrocks.com/cobras.htm)
The Dex Romweber Duo 
(http://www.bloodshotrecords.com/artist/dex-romweber-duo)
Local 506, Chapel Hill

Everybody's abuzz about Jack White taking the Dex Romweber Duo into his 
studio to record a new single. What isn't said enough is that when Jack 
White cites Dex & Flat Duo Jets as a primary influence, he's just 
stating the obvious (and I'm sure he'd freely admit that he's still 
working up to recording something/anything as brilliant as, say, Go Go 
Harlem Baby). Still, it's nice when the out-of-towners acknowledge the 
truth.



Monday, June 8
The Begin-Agains    (http://www.myspace.com/thebeginagains)
Ascetic Parade    (http://www.asceticparade.com)
The Cave, Chapel Hill



Tuesday, June 9
X    (http://www.xtheband.com)
Steve Soto and Twisted Hearts 
(http://www.myspace.com/stevesotoandtwistedhearts)
Cat's Cradle, Carrboro

The last time X came through, I broke my longstanding "no reunion tours" 
rule and, as is usually the case, I wound up regretting it. Don't get me 
wrong: they were tight, and energetic, and they played the shit out of 
their back catalog. It sort of alternated between feeling like I was 
listening to the records, and feeling like I was watching the world's 
best X cover band.

But that's not why I go see bands I love. I go see bands I love to see 
what's new, to hear them play new material, or old material different 
ways, or to learn more about them via their choice of covers. I go 
because I like watching great musicians (or great people on the way 
towards becoming great musicians) learning from each other, and growing 
in the process.

So the hardcore X fans will have to forgive me if I came away 
disappointed that this band, whose music I still love dearly, seemed to 
be playing it awfully safe. For a band who built a whole second career 
around their love for classic country music, for instance, I found it 
just-plain-odd that the *only* cover they played all night was "Soul 
Kitchen," which is as much their song as the Doors', at this point.



Tuesday, June 9
Swan Quarter    (http://www.myspace.com/swanquarter)
Cheer Up Charlie    (http://www.myspace.com/cheerupcharlierocks)
Local 506, Chapel Hill

Swan Quarter just released an EP, "Holly Wood," whose melodic pop is cut 
through with an undercurrent of weird.



Tuesday, June 9
Future Kings of Nowhere    (http://www.thefuturekings.net/)
Rebekah.Ann    (http://www.myspace.com/eberhardtnc)
Andy Gardner    (http://www.myspace.com/andygardner)
The Cave, Chapel Hill

This is the new/current, fixing-to-move-away Shayne-only solo version of 
the FKoN.



Tuesday, June 9
The Alcazar Hotel    (http://www.myspace.com/thealcazarhotel)
Panda Force    (http://www.myspace.com/pandaforceband)
Hokums Heroes
Nightlight, Chapel Hill



Wednesday, June 10
The Rosebuds    (http://www.therosebuds.com/)
Sarah P. Duke Gardens, Durham

The Duke Performances folks seem to have come to some sort of agreement 
with The Heavens, because while dark clouds gathered & glowered last 
Wednesday for Thad Cockrell's outdoor show at Duke Gardens, I only felt 
perhaps a half-dozen drops. See if they can maintain their streak this 
week, as they welcome The Rosebuds to their bucolic outdoor stage. $10 
($5 for Duke staff, free for students), 7:00 p.m. Bring a chair/blanket 
(and a picnic, if you like).



Wednesday, June 10
Citified    (http://www.citifiedband.org/)
Basalt    (http://www.myspace.com/nickyisbasalt)
Local 506, Chapel Hill

Greensboro invasion! Citified just released a new EP, "Absence," that 
cements their reputation as the Triad's masters of shoegaze-pop. Swirly 
guitars, yards of echo, sweet-n-distant vocals.

Basalt are a duo fronted by Nicky Trimiar, who was a founding member of 
the original psych-pop version of the Mercury Birds. Basalt are 
psych-pop as well, but stripped down to the minimal gtr/drums essence.



Wednesday, June 10
Veronique Diabolique    (http://www.veroniquediabolique.com/)
Humble Tripe    (http://www.myspace.com/shawnluby)
Post Honeymoon
Nightlight, Chapel Hill



Wednesday, June 10
Boat Burning    (http://www.myspace.com/boatburning)
Rat Babies    (http://www.myspace.com/ratbabies)
Candy Maldonado    (http://www.myspace.com/candymaldonado)
Reservoir, Carrboro



Thursday, June 11
Clawform
Actual Persons (Living or Dead) 
(http://www.myspace.com/actualpersonslivingordead)
Rat Babies    (http://www.myspace.com/ratbabies)
Akris    (http://www.myspace.com/akrisband)
The Pinhook, Durham

Colin Booy's Clawform -- a solo metal project involving a laptop, a wall 
of amps (including a speaker cabinet built from a nightstand), and banjo 
-- keeps evolving, in ever more interesting ways. If you haven't seen it 
lately, you've missed out.

Actual Persons Living or Dead involves Dave & Kerry Cantwell & Joyce 
Ventimiglia, whom you might remember most recently from her patriotic 
groove band America's Next Top Models.



Thursday, June 11
Swan Quarter    (http://www.myspace.com/swanquarter)
Due Panic
Sleep Control
Nightlight, Chapel Hill



Thursday, June 11
Whale Watchers    (http://www.myspace.com/thewhalewatchers)
Starmount    (http://www.myspace.com/starmountmusic)
The Story Changes
Tir Na Nog, Raleigh

This is part of the weekly Local Bands, Local Beers series. Starmount 
are a swirly instrumental space-jazz group involving a pedal steel & 
some nice reverb (and local recordist Greg Elkins, who used to play 
guitar in Vanilla Trainwreck, Orifice, and Daddy).



Thursday, June 11
des_ark    (http://www.des-ark.org)
Naked Gods    (http://www.myspace.com/nakedgods)
Slim's Downtown, Raleigh

Des_ark you probably know about by now; perhaps you *don't* realize, 
though, that Aimee has recruited Evan Rowe (Maple Stave, Grappling Hook) 
to play drums, and Noah Howard (Strunken White, TigerBearWolf) to play 
guitar.

Naked Gods are from the Mountain West of NC, and they make rockmusic 
that's somewhat rooted in Southern Rock, but strays pretty far afield in 
some entertaining ways.



Friday, June 12
Deer Tick    (http://www.myspace.com/deertick)
Farmer Dave    (http://www.thecalmingseas.com/members/dave)
Jenny Lewis    (http://www.jennylewis.com/)
Cat's Cradle, Carrboro



Friday, June 12
Dirty Little Heaters    (http://www.myspace.com/thedirtylittleheaters)
Dry Heathens    (http://www.myspace.com/dryheathens)
Rat Jackson    (http://www.myspace.com/ratjacksonmusic)
Broad Street Cafe, Durham

Three kindred bands, united in their love of three chords & beer. Or 
maybe make that three chords & beer until you can only manage two chords.



Friday, June 12
Black Dice    (http://www.epitonic.com/artists/blackdice.html)
Awesome Color    (http://awesomecolor.net)
Local 506, Chapel Hill

The latest Black Dice album, "REPO," sounds like a beat-up cassette of 
homebrew techno that someone recorded over with a series of radio-dial 
sweeps of afropop & then left out in the sun on the car dashboard for a 
few weeks.



Saturday, June 13
des_ark    (http://www.des-ark.org)
The Strugglers    (http://www.thestrugglers.org/)
Mount Moriah    (http://www.myspace.com/mountmoriah)
Embarrassing Fruits    (http://www.myspace.com/embarrassingfruitsband)
Megafaun    (http://www.myspace.com/megafaun)
Piedmont Biofuels, Pittsboro

This is the now-annual all-afternoon TRKfest, which gets underway around 
2:00 p.m. & includes the following artists:

Butterflies
Megafaun
Lost in the Trees
Ivan Rosebud
Embarrassing Fruits
Hammer No More The Fingers
Des Ark
Midtown Dickens
The Never
The Strugglers
Mount Moriah
Vibrant Green

In other words, it's the local-music blowout of the season. More info 
here: http://www.myspace.com/trkfest



Saturday, June 13
Birds of Avalon    (http://www.myspace.com/birdsofavalon)
Dark Meat    (http://www.myspace.com/darkmeats)
One Man Machine    (http://www.myspace.com/onemanmachine)
Local 506, Chapel Hill

If you like your rock huge & psychedelic, this is the show for you. 
BoA's new single is even more spacey than the stuff on their great OUI 
EP, but live they still bring the hammer-down dual-guitar rock action.



Saturday, June 13
D-Town Brass
The Pinhook, Durham



Saturday, June 13
Fever and the Fallin' Rain    (http://myspace.com/feverandthefallinrain)
Son Cats
Cabinet of Natural Curiousities
Nightlight, Chapel Hill



Saturday, June 13
The Kinksmen    (http://www.myspace.com/jeffhoo)
Slim's Downtown, Raleigh



Sunday, June 14
Meat Puppets    (http://www.themeatpuppets.com)
Retribution Gospel Choir    (http://retributiongospelchoir.com)
Cat's Cradle, Carrboro



Sunday, June 14
Ryan Gustafson    (http://www.myspace.com/ryangustafsonmusic)
Josh Moore    (http://www.myspace.com/joshuamoore)
Twelve Thousand Armies    (http://www.myspace.com/12000armies)
Local 506, Chapel Hill



Monday, June 15
Sunset Rubdown    (http://www.absolutelykosher.com/sunsetrubdown.htm)
Elfin Saddle
Witchies
Local 506, Chapel Hill



Monday, June 15
Zee Avi
Matt Hires
Nightlight, Chapel Hill



Tuesday, June 16
Peaches    (http://www.peachesrocks.com)
Drums of Death    (http://www.drumsofdeath.com/)
Cat's Cradle, Carrboro

The fact that Peaches had a "moment" at all (in part courtesy of "Lost 
in Translation, I guess) is bizarre enough on its face that I'm inclined 
to discount it entirely . . . meaning as far as I'm concerned, she's 
still fighting the good fight to nail down her weird little corner of 
turf (and *not* riding the downhill side of the cruel cruel fame curve).



Tuesday, June 16
Eula    (http://www.eulamusic.com/)
The Cave, Chapel Hill

Eula are from NY; I really like the weird Deerhoof/Mikachu pop 
dissonances in their "Fight Riff". 
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2wsn8_Sbo1A&fmt=18



Tuesday, June 16
Gray Young    (http://www.myspace.com/grayyoung)
The Bronzed Chorus    (http://www.myspace.com/thebronzedchorus)
Unit Breed
Nightlight, Chapel Hill

Bronzed Chorus are a gtr/drums/keyboards instrumental duo from the 
Triad. Gray Young are members of the ever-growing local shoegaze-revival 
movement.



Tuesday, June 16
The Cotton Jones Basket Ride 
(http://www.myspace.com/thecottonjonesbasketride)
The Antlers    (http://www.myspace.com/theantlers)
Local 506, Chapel Hill



--------> http://www.trianglerock.com <--------