The lessened novelty, the rain and the timing – before local students have gotten back into the swing of things – all conspired such that this past weekend’s second iteration of Avant Fairfax wasn’t quite as well-attended as the first. But that didn’t stop eight bands (and one filmmaker) from putting on an entertaining spectacle in an unfinished second story of a nameless commercial building in downtown Fairfax.

Some personal highlights:

• Janel and Anthony’s set was my favorite, a cello/guitar duo that bounced between experimental noise and beautiful, pastoral melody.
• Max Ochs (pictured above) performed a Turkish song, confessing that he doesn’t know a word of Turkish. His lyrics were a “trans-phoneticism” (his term) instead of a translation – he basically took the original Turkish vocals and turned them into their closest English analogue by sound alone.
• Gondola played a single long jam with gobs of head-nodding riffs, psychedelic wailing and no dynamics whatsoever. They’ve got the Earthless-style heavy psych-rock thing down to a T.

More thoughts and photos after the jump, and see the full gallery here.

Read More “Photos: Avant Fairfax II” »

April’s inaugural Avant Fairfax festival was such a success that the organizers immediately turned around and starting working on the next installment. The second iteration of the festival is now upon us, and will feature a diverse lineup of eight performers (from the folk stylings of Max Ochs to the psych-rock of Dark Sea Dream and Gondola) as well as a short film.

It’s scheduled for 5pm-1am tomorrow, August 22, 2009; here’s hoping for tighter timing, as the original fest went overtime and forced headliners Cheer-Accident to cut their set short. The venue this time around is the ” . ” (Point in Space) Gallery in Fairfax City [3940 University Drive, Fairfax, VA 22030]. Suggested donation $5.

Check out the lineup after the jump or visit Avant Fairfax at Myspace.

Photo: John Stanton of Kuschty Rye-Ergot, from the first fest.

Read More “Avant Fairfax Returns Tomorrow” »

Apparently it’s a big day for festival announcements. This afternoon, organizers Andrew McCarry and Chethan Kenkeremath unveiled the initial details for the next installment of their Avant Fairfax festival. Currently set to run on August 22 from 5pm until 1am, the first three acts announced are Max Ochs (check out a December 2008 interview with Ochs by BPB’s Cole Goins), Scarcity of Tanks and Moon Pie. Ochs needs little introduction; Moon Pie is an interesting ambient/psych duo from D.C., and Scarcity of Tanks is based in Ohio but otherwise might as well be called Scarcity of Information for all that I can find out about them.

The venue for this Avant Fairfax episode is the Point In Space Gallery. Check out Avant Fairfax at Myspace for all the details available to date.

Photo: Stag Hare performing at the first Avant Fairfax back in April.

Tomorrow night the Velvet Lounge offers a very special treat: Outsider folk hero Max Ochs will celebrate the release of his new album, Hooray for Another Day, which features all-new instrumental recordings and poetry from the 67-year-old Annapolis native.

Along with John Fahey and Robbie Basho, Ochs was among the East Coast Blues Mafia that ushered in the tradition of “American primitive guitar” in the ’50s and ’60s. Along with his influential recordings on “Contemporary Guitar ‘67″ — the first compilation on Fahey’s Takoma recordings — Ochs also composed a piece entitled “Imaginational Anthem,” released via the Fonotone label in 1969. The recording was unearthed by Tompkins Square label-head Josh Rosenthal, who contacted Ochs and asked him to re-record the track for a compilation honoring the American primitive guitar tradition, which would also bear the name Imaginational Anthem. Now in its third volume (the latest of which was released earlier this year, along with a box set containing all three), Imaginational Anthem offers a fascinating document of guitar music past and present, revealing the links between luminaries like Ochs, and the newer crop of pickers like Jack Rose and Cian Nugent.

I recently caught up with Ochs via phone to talk about the new record, his life in Annapolis, and his musical evolution over the years. You can read more about Ochs via the previous City Paper feature, written by Mike Keefe-Feldman in 2005, or chat with him yourself tomorrow at the Velvet Lounge. Details for the show below, Q&A after the jump.

Max Ochs
Skeleton$
Kuschty Rye Ergot
Chris Grier

Thursday, December 4th
Velvet Lounge
9:30pm
8$

Read More “Interview: Max Ochs” »