In the District, Aaron Thompson has made a small name for himself recording emotional, indoor-kid laptop folk, but over the last year—during which time he moved to New York City—the singer has stepped more and more outside. His strong 2010 full-length and instrumental commissions were mostly delicate and womblike, with lots of glitchy ambience gurgling [...]
Afro-Peruvian slaves toiling in the silver mines and sugar plantations were barred access to drums, so they had to make do with what they had around them—wooden boxes called cajon and donkey jawbones. Centuries later, singer Eva Ayllon and music and dance ensemble Peru Negro will bring those Peruvian percussion instruments and more to the [...]
Three years ago, bass player, DJ, and then record store owner Andy Noble and singer and tailor Black Wolf (born Jesse Davis) decided to put together an old-school soul band to play once a month in Milwaukee. Kings Go Forth, named after a Frank Sinatra movie, ended up with 10 members, all talented players or [...]
Good morning! This is the fifth post on this Web site about the death of Alex Chilton. I found out about it last night via Twitter, and an hour later, the influential Big Star leader was beginning to feel overmemorialized. Everybody wants their piece of Chilton's death.
And that, especially in this case, is OK: For [...]
Dear David Byrne,
First off, thanks for the kind Thanksgiving wishes and the unusual hyperlink to various turkey-shaped items! I thought that my access to such Web oddities would be cut off once my aunt forsook Hotmail. But no!
It's also pleasant to hear that you and Mr. Slim are back together—for months I lay awake, fearing [...]
Washingtonians rarely get an opportunity to experience Brazilian forro music, but Saturday night they'll get two opportunities. The Brazilian Film Festival will be featuring "The Man Who Bottled Clouds/O Homem que Engarrafava Nuvens", a documentary about Brazilian forro composer Humberto Teixeira, while National Geographic will be hosting a concert by New York City-based Brazilian ensemble [...]
Friday
X, Steve Soto & the Twisted Hearts. 9:30 club. $25. All ages.
Alex Rhoads, Midnight Ride. Bangkok Blues. Call for price.
Dean & Britta, Cheval Sombre. Black Cat. $15. All ages.
Viva Voce, Cut Off Your Hands. IOTA Club & Cafe. $15. +21.
The Kennedys. Jammin’ Java. $18.
Threat Signal w/ The Agonist, Flatline, Thy Will Be Done, Cab [...]
David Byrne's had his hands in many a cookie jar. The ex-Talking Head and Luaka Bop label founder played a building (literally), designed cheeky bike racks, and released one of 2008's best records with fellow '70s-era musical-genius-who-just-won't-quit Brian Eno. Now Byrne's got a new concept album in the works (via Stereogum via BBC).
Inspired by Imelda [...]
With the new year comes not-so-new traditions: purging your closet of heinous holiday sweaters, resolving to dissolve your waistline and, if you're Rolling Stone , looking to Top 40 lists and tired-and-true troubadours to compile your list of the 50 "Best" Albums of the Year.
What is David Byrne interested in as a musician? What does he like, and what makes him cranky? There's probably no multiplatinum-selling rock frontman who's more deliberately Sphinx-like—he's usually had some complaint or other to make about consumerism, but he's more likely to soak those messages in abstraction ("Heaven") or irony ("[Nothing But] Flowers") than [...]
