Arts Desk » Swans

Double Trouble: Bodycop and Trophy Wife Tonight at Hole in the Sky

Ryan Little — Wed, 15 Dec 2010 17:47:05 +0000

Less is so much more with Trophy Wife. The guitar-drums duo, featuring former D.C. resident Katy Otto on percussion, pummel without any need for bass. It's an onslaught of mathy, screamo-inspired rock 'n' roll, and it's always refreshing to see the physicality of only two members pulling that off.

As dark and heavy as the latest WikiLeak, Bodycop is gut-kickingly evil. Pitch-shifted vocals dredged up from the abyss, slow Swans-inspired drums, and guitars that want to tear you apart. The band is still shrouded in mystery and surrounded by rumors; there's very little information about the group to be found online, and it's gained its punk following primarily by word of mouth.

Both bands are playing the DIY spot Hole In The Sky this evening at 7:00 PM.

LISTEN: Trophy Wife – Pregnancy

WATCH: Bodycop

Far Out vs. Hot Dang, Vol. 7

Joe Warminsky — Fri, 01 Oct 2010 16:51:07 +0000

We've got spies, vices and vagina—you know, all the stuff that Official Washington totally loves. But do not accuse Far Out vs. Hot Dang of catering to anyone. This weekly assemblage will confound you at times. But its mysteries are thrilling. Are you strong enough to handle them?


New agers actually have bodies and make noise	"The vagina, I further learned, undergoes profound changes."
"the collateral damage of a lifetime of keeping secrets"	"Back in the early days there was this nose doctor in Hollywood and all of a sudden it seemed like everybody had the same nose. It was kind of scary."
DJ Eurok nerds-out and Kokayi sings like a woman	Beauty Pill: "I think my voice goes up an octave when I'm nervous. Which means if I ever meet Prince, it will seem like I'm doing an impression of him."
Kinda like going to Fight Club, except it's a musical, and it's about spies	"I feel like I taught a self-defense class at the Wavves show Monday night."
"The idea of going into school without makeup on was totally foreign to me."	TRUCK DOG
Everything you could possibly want to know about the new Arena Stage building	The seduction of the Fredric Wertham scholars
MAN WITH CIGARETTE	Kim Chi Ha: "Southeast asians may be ghettoier than Japanese n koreans but at least we got COFFEE"
Swans at the Black Cat	"Fortunately, 75 percent of those illiberal, testosterone-fueled party-crashers died of binge-drinking later that evening before they could further sabotage the performance or commit sexual assault."

Clip Job: Five Minimalistic Indie Bands with Soul

Jonathan L. Fischer — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 19:38:06 +0000

Former Black and White Jacksons guitarist Tim George formed Dizzy Spells with Kelela Mizanekristos, and the group's songs can be ethereal and deeply felt or playful and jagged. The band describes itself as "Rock/Americana/Neo-Soul," which is pretty apt, but it ignores the woozy trip-hop sound that's all over "Laser Light." You can stream that song and others at Dizzy Spells' MySpace page. The District-based group, now a four-piece, performs tonight at 9 p.m. at the Velvet Lounge. Tickets are $8.

More soulful, minimalistic indie bands after the jump: gothy bawlers, Brits lip-syncing to R&B, and a poorly timed Michael Jackson cover!

Zola Jesus (2006-present): Twenty-year-old Wisconsin native Nika Roza Danilova has a large voice and some really scuzzy-sounding synths—not a bad set of circumstances, since she can wail like Aretha Franklin and mope like Michael Gira, whose band Swans took gothy '80s post-punk and made it arty and iconoclastic. Which perhaps explains how Danilova hooked up with another purveyor of emotive, rough-around-the edges spookiness—Xiu Xiu frontman Jamie Stewart—for her newest project, Former Ghosts.

The xx (2005–present): This restrained London four-piece, whose music is very hushed and extremely slow, is one of 2009's buzzier acts—at least partially because of its blog-pleasing covers of Aaliyah's "Hot Like Fire" and Kyla's "Do You Mind?" So it's a comforting thought that a band responsible for such thoughtful, self-serious music clearly spent its teenage years bawling along to American R&B in front of a bedroom mirror. The xx performs at DC9 on Nov. 15.

Discovery (2005–present): This dreamy, genre-hopping side project featuring members of Ra Ra Riot and Vampire Weekend isn't quite appropriative, but it's clearly a plate for the semiguilty musical tastes—and apparent affinity for high hat—they're willing to only partially absorb into their day bands. The duo's debut album dropped 12 days after Michael Jackson died, so its cover of "I Want You Back" felt pretty poorly timed—but still well-meaning, and certainly audacious.

Wildbirds & Peacedrums (2006–present): This Swedish husband-and-wife duo makes erratic songs with nothing but percussion instruments and steamy vocals, yet it comes away with a sound that's full-bodied, exciting, and utterly singular.