Matt Nathanson, armed with a full band and arsenal of vulgarity, returned to the 9:30 Club for two sold-out nights on his All Night Noise tour.
The San Francisco singer-songwriter took to the stage before 10 PM, kicking off nearly a two-hour performance with “Mercy,” of off his 2011 release, Modern Love. Ditching his guitar for the album’s title track, Nathanson busted out the moves of Patrick Monahan of Train, with whom he toured this summer. The night included many an F-bomb, the discussion of Jon Bon Jovi’s penis and how it resembles R2D2 (don’t ask…), an impromptu cover of “La Bamba,” shout-outs to divorcees, Whitesnake and Prince covers, oh and his popular hits, “Faster” and “Come On Get Higher.”
Check out the images of “Mark Nickerson” (apparently a common name shouted by drunk meet-and-greet attendees on the Maroon5/Train tour):
On Monday, L.A.-based American indie rock band Foster the People gave D.C. residents the opportunity to dance all night long with back-to-back sold-out shows at the 9:30 Club.
The Vinyl District caught the late show, opened by the Cults, a female-fronted indie-pop group from New York.
As the staff quickly ushered early show concert goers out, scrubbed the floor, and reset the stage for Round Two of Foster the People, a massive line formed around the block on V Street NW.
When the brain children of a band go their separate ways, it is always interesting to see how creative types will move on, into the future. For Jeff Tweedy and his former bandmates from Uncle Tupelo, Ken Coomer (drums), John Stirratt (bass), and Max Johnson (mandolin, banjo, fiddle), the decision was simple: move on with a new band called Wilco.
While the lineup has changed since their debut in 1994, this Grammy-winning American rock band will be rolling into the Merriweather Post Pavilion on Sunday (9/25), and we have a pair of lawn tickets burning in our back pocket!
With eight studio albums already under their belt, Wilco will release their ninth record in less than a week, titled The Whole Love. According to Rolling Stone, “the album includes a seven-minute track, ‘Art of Almost,’ which starts with shadowy electronics, gently turns into a haunted vocal section, then sprints into a Krautrock-style blowout. There are also two country-flavored songs.”
Washingtonians can kick their weekend off right by catching Seattle-based band Fleet Foxes and The Walkmen on Friday (9/23) at the Merriweather Post Pavilion. If you thought we were done with TVD giveaways for September, think again; we have a pair of lawn tickets to this show!
To follow up their self-titled debut album, Fleet Foxes took three years to refine their sound for their second full length, Helplessness Blues, released back in May via Sub Pop. Having had such a successful debut in 2008, it is hard to believe the band would have any trouble writing a follow up, but according to Pitchfork, “in late 2009, Fleet Foxes had an album’s worth of songs ready, but the tracks were mostly scrapped before mixing.”
On Sunday, September 11th, California based rock band, Incubus, rolled into the Merriweather Post Pavilion in support of their seventh studio album, If Not Now, When? Opening for the tour is up and coming indie rockers, Young the Giant, who introduced Columbia, MD to their soul-seeking sound and got the crowd dancing with “My Body.”
Shortly before 9 PM, Incubus took to the stage, led by the voice of the band, Brandon Boyd, and his humble grin. The set kicked off with “Megalomaniac,”* and transitioned into “Wish You Were Here,” which Boyd dedicated to the victims of the September 11th attacks.
Ding! What’s that sound? It’s Round 2 of our 9:30 Club September preview. Brace yourself; we’ve got another handful of shows to throw your way. We’ll be giving away tickets to each of these shows later this month!
Peter Hook and The Light return to the 9:30 Club, following up their 2010 “Unknown Pleasures” show. Fans of Hook’s original post-punk rock band, Joy Division, are in for a special treat as the band will play JD’s seminal second album, Closer, live and in its entirety. When was the last time you heard “Love Will Tear Us Apart” live? Could we keep our fingers crossed for a New Order song or two? Probably not, but hey a little Joy Division will keep your bass driven, English rock-loving heart happy. Local DJ Stereo Faith will be throwing down some monster tracks before the show. One of you may just get to experience this rare evening on us… Stay tuned, maybe… tomorrow?
If you’re as sick of the weather as much as we are here at TVD, then you are probably counting down the minutes to this weekend when we’re looking at only a 30% chance of rain. So what does that mean?
It means you have no excuse not to come out to the Merriweather Post Pavilion on Sunday for Incubus and Young the Giant. Sure, you and your friends might be nursing a FreeFest hangover, but that doesn’t mean a weekend of great music stops there.
No, no, head to Merriweather early to get the Gate Crashers experience—we’re talking $4 Bud and Bud Lights and free food samples from California Tortilla. (My mouth is already watering!)
Still sitting there reading this going “but I don’t have a ride!” ? Stop that. Rock & Bus has you covered! With two pick-up and drop-off locations serving DC and VA, you honestly can’t pull the no-ride excuse for Merriweather shows anymore. Make your reservation today!
L.A.-based band Lifehouse returned to the District on Saturday, only this time to a most peculiar venue: Nationals Park, home of the Washington Nationals baseball team. Lead guitarist Ben Carey began the night’s events with a Jimi Hendrix rendition of the National Anthem prior to the first pitch—thrown by drummer, Rick Woolstenhulme. The full band united on stage in centerfield to conclude the evening with a free post-game concert.
Now that Labor Day has come and gone, it is time to prepare for the fall season. This, however, does not mean the doors to the Merriweather Post Pavillion are shut until the spring. No no no, there are still a handful of great shows left, including Incubus with Young the Giant this Sunday (9/11).
TVD is giving away a pair of lawn tickets to this show, so forget begging to borrow a car, Washingtonians, and reserve your spot on the new Rock and Bus service from DC to Merriweather, since you won’t want to pass this up!
You know the deal. We preview the 9:30 Club shows you should be checking out. You can enter later this month for a chance to win tickets to each of them.
Listen up TVD readers! If you thought the concert scene here in the District was dying down now that summer is coming to an end, well you thought wrong. It’s time to put that Calendar feature on your fancy phone to work folks; we’ve got so many shows for September that we’re running not one but two previews for 9:30 Club this month!
English synth-pop duo Vince Clarke and Andy Bell, together known as Erasure, are expected to release their new album, Tomorrow’s World, on October 4th and will take over the club for two nights. Their emotionally-charged electro-pop beats blend a touch of contemporary soul and synthetic melody. Fans of Depeche Mode and The Assembly (Clarke a founding member of both) will not want to miss these new-wave-pioneering Brits as they bring over twenty-five years of hits to the District. To celebrate, we may just have a little something for one of our groovy TVD readers… today?
Headed to the beach for one last weekend of R&R on Friday? Why not give your mini vacation the encore it deserves by treating yourself to the ever-enjoyable indie rock tunes of The National as they take the stage at Merriweather Post Pavilion on Tuesday, September 6th. Better yet, if you are not one of the fortunate to get away this weekend, let TVD hook you up with a mellow night of music by entering to win a pair of lawn tickets to the show!
The National, an Ohio indie rock band now based in Brooklyn, NY, are known for their calm, warm, but melancholy tunes. (See album titled Sad Songs For Dirty Lovers.) Fear not, the band’s latest release High Violet is actually a less depressive album, and is sure to please audiences as they sway in the breeze at Merriweather.
With a 10:30 AM call to doors at the 9:30 Club (after a late night at My Morning Jacket the night before… thanks Jon…), my initial thought was, “I’m pretty sure I’ve never seen the Club in daylight.” I arrived to an anxious line on V St NW composed of parents, siblings, aunts, uncles, and grandparents—needless to say not the crowd to which I’m most familiar.
Beyond the glass doors and into the main room were the sounds of giggling girls, peppy volunteers, and inspirational posters hanging from nearly all of the wall space at the 9:30 Club for the annual Girls Rock! DC showcase—yep, this wasn’t my typical assignment. As the slide show presented on the backdrop paused, a rowdy crowd of young professional females took to the stage with an insurmountable amount of energy and spirit.
The quirky costumes and spunky personalities kicked off the showcase with an uplifting presentation about Girls Rock! DC, whose summer camp TVD had been following all week long. The morning event featured a roster longer than Day 1 at Lollapalooza and songs written and performed by the campers themselves. As a first-time audience member, I felt both inspired and amazed at the talent witnessed that day. While the Neon Pandas were my favorite, I have to give it up to the young girl who busted out the opening bass line from “Seven Nation Army” by The White Stripes. (Insert obligatory “you go girl!”) Check out some of the showcase highlights:
You know the deal. We preview the 9:30 Club shows you should be checking out. You can enter later this month for a chance to win tickets to each of them.
While District residents hope the temperature in August will drop, things are just heating up in the summer concert season. Check out some of the great shows presented by our friends at 9:30 Club, Merriweather Post Pavilion, and IMP coming to the DC Metropolitan area for August:
Washington state-based Queensrychereturn to 9:30 Club with their American progressive metal sound. Having released Dedicated to Chaos in late June, the album marks the band’s twelfth studio album. The band describes the release as “a clash and slash of musical experimentation anchored by the pulse of digital code.” Queensryche will hit the District as part of their 30th Anniversary tour. Metal fans might want to pay attention to a very special perk that comes with these tickets… Maybe later today?
On Tuesday, a grown generation, donning over-worn concert t-shirts made their way into the Patriot Center in Fairfax, VA to fill a long standing void in their grunge loving hearts.
Shortly before 9:00PM the house lights dimmed to reveal a glowing backdrop, while warm cheers from the crowd welcomed Soundgarden back to the stage they left nearly 13 years ago. As the amplifiers hummed, the band opened their 2 hour set with “Searching With My Good Eye Closed.”
“It’s been a while. But it’s great to be back, and we’re not going anywhere, we’re going to be around for a very long time” declared lead singer and guitarist, Chris Cornell, as he took a moment to take in how many people had filled the arena before beginning “Jesus Christ Pose.”
When you think of a singer-songwriter, you probably think of a soft spoken man, stereotypically from the south, armed with an acoustic guitar and whole lot of heart break.
Well, Matt Nathanson is a singer-songwriter full of heart ache, but he is definitely not from the south and he is not soft spoken by any means.
This 38 year old, originally from Boston, Massachusetts, now calls San Francisco home and is set to release his 7th full length Modern Love on June 21st via Vanguard Records. It is almost hard to believe that this talented musician has had nearly two decades of releases and yet has practically gone unnoticed in the music world.
I say ‘practically unnoticed’ because for Matt Nathanson fans, a loyal following in a class all their own, he is a superstar. Just ask the hundreds of fans who crashed the ticketing site for Jammin Java in Vienna, VA within minutes of receiving a street team email about a secret show.
Or how about he die-hard fans lined up outside the venue by noon for an 8PM set? Or how about the young woman who drove from Pennsylvania all the way down to Virginia just to see her favorite singer-songwriter.
So, what makes Matt Nathanson so special? To answer this, we stood in line for four hours outside of a small café in Northing Virginia to experience this secret performance.
As doors opened, a diverse crowd eagerly made their way to the back of venue, toward the small scale stage, lined in back with a black curtain. Men and women, young and old, and of all fashion styles quickly filled the room to capacity for this sold out event.
An anxious room waited as the clock ticked past 8:10PM and a bearded man, resembling Don Juan finally appeared, along with another man, who could be a long lost Foreman (Switchfoot) brother or Beatle?
Setting his 6-string guitar over his shoulder, Nathanson opening remarks are, “it’s great to fucking be here, like seriously, it’s really fucking great to be here.” With two proud F-bombs fire away within the first 60 seconds of being on stage, we realize this is not going to be any ordinary show from any ordinary singer-songwriter.
