For two weekends beginning September 28, a traveling fair entitled the Carnival de Resistance will visit Charlottesville and set up a mobile village in the parking lot of the Sojourners United Church of Christ on Elliott Avenue. The carnival theme is centered on four performances featuring earth, air, water, or fire, and combines dance, music, […]
The term “indie rock” is so widely used that it has come to mean drastically different things to different people. It’s had a strange life over the past 25-odd years, one that weaves its way through significant changes in musical styles and cataclysmic shifts within the record industry. In many ways, the story of the […]
Light House Studios, the award-winning program of filmmaking workshops for local youth, will present its 12th annual screening of student work on Friday, September 13th at the Jefferson Theater. “This year we have more narrative films than usual, including an FX-heavy Sci-Fi adventure called Space Girl.” said Light House program director Jason Robinson. The program […]
In 2010, The Fire Tapes were virtual unknowns in Charlottesville. Made up of recent transplants from D.C. and Richmond, they had a strong sound and solid songs, but had yet to gather a following or make local connections. Three years later, they’ve become a beloved staple in the rock community. Their second album, the excellent Phantoms, […]
Magik Markers is one of America’s finest contemporary noise rock bands and its greatest asset is frontwoman Elisa Ambrogio. Her commanding and hypnotic vocals recall Sonic Youth’s primary songwriters combined, which can range from sweetly mysterious Patti Smith-esque poetic declarations to cathartic, frightening moments of unhinged aggression. Ambrogio’s raw, wild playing suggests a constant push-pull […]
In 1961, Murry Wilson founded The Beach Boys, a family act consisting of his sons Dennis, Carl, and Brian, their cousin Mike Love, and family friend Al Jardine. Combining the vocal harmonies of the doo-wop era with the instrumentation of surf rock, and subject matter rooted in West Coast youth culture, The Beach Boys were an […]
“If you go to the parking lot of the Ix building, you can hear the creek under you,” said Matthew Slaats. “It sounds like someone’s left their water running, but there’s actually a creek right there. There’s a ton of other underground creek spaces throughout the city. It’s something you never think about.” Slaats is referring […]
Led by teen singing sensation Alex Chilton and studio mastermind Chris Bell, the band name Big Star and the album title #1 Record were picked in jest, but the choice became increasingly ironic as the band failed to find any commercial or popular success. Though critics adored them, the group often played to near-empty venues. […]
In early July, The Southern Café and Music Hall announced that it had entered into a partnership with Starr Hill Presents, the concert promotion arm of Red Light Management, which also operates The Jefferson Theater and the Pavilion. The Southern closed for several weeks for minor renovations and re-decorating, and will re-open on August 22. “We’re […]
Ian Svenonius has been one of the major figures in D.C. punk for the past 25 years. He began in the late ’80s with Nation of Ulysses, who along with other Dischord label contemporaries like Fugazi, was rethinking what a “hardcore” band was supposed to sound, look, and act like. Ulysses was simultaneously backward-looking and […]