The music of Daniel Bachman is known as American primitive guitar, but some may consider that a misnomer. The complex, plucked arrangements distinctive to the Fredericksburg native are anything but simple. Many of his songs stretch past the 10-minute mark, and some are entirely instrumental. With any other musician, leaving your voice out of your […]
The music of Daniel Bachman is known as American primitive guitar, but some may consider that a misnomer. The complex, plucked arrangements distinctive to the Fredericksburg native are anything but simple. Many of his songs stretch past the 10-minute mark, and some are entirely instrumental. With any other musician, leaving your voice out of your […]
Overcoming injuries, battling “drinking issues” and months at a time on the road would change, possibly derail, most bands. But Sons of Bill put its collective heart on its sleeve and used these challenges to craft its newest album, Oh God Ma’am. Released in June, the record shows an increased maturity in the band’s sound, […]
On an overcast and humid evening on the Downtown Mall, multi- media artist Golara Haghtalab seems to fill the Mudhouse with light. She recognizes a barista from when she worked there “a long time ago,” and though Haghtalab can’t remember his name at first, she still strikes up a spirited conversation. With that same palpable, […]
“The root of my inspiration—pun intended—is firmly planted in the natural world,” says local artist Sam Gray. “When I’m feeling crazy, the best medicine is to go into the woods and be with the mosses, trees, herbs, fungi and critters,” she says. “I find a lot of magic in that connection.” That connection between the […]
Fifty years after Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated, and several days before the first anniversary of last summer’s white supremacist rally in Charlottesville, UVA’s Heritage Theatre Festival unveiled its production of The Mountaintop, a play that reimagines the final hours of King’s life and celebrates the humanity of its hero. Written by Katori Hall […]
Rob Cheatham is an ideal modern country artist—his twang echoes the sounds that currently dominate the genre, while his lyrics harken to the storytelling abilities of forebears like Willie Nelson or Merle Haggard and cover topics such as love, be it unrequited or shared, and hard drinking as a remedy for life’s ills. He shares […]
Ever since he was a kid, Tony LaRocco has been enamored with cosmos—both the Carl Sagan show and the concept powering it, seeing the universe as a “well-ordered whole.” It’s an obsession that permeates his musical life, from lyrics to sound choices to the name of his band, Pale Blue Dot, a reference to a […]
For a series where every installment feels more like a product of inevitability than inspiration, credit is due to the Mission: Impossible series for its commitment to one-upping itself. If the cost of entry is an insane Tom Cruise stunt show every few years that’s punctuated with some spy silliness and a couple of laughs, […]
In stressful times, as the current American climate could be labeled, many people seek out comedy as a means of release. David Cross might seem like he fits that bill, but only if you can handle some seriously jarring jokes. Known for his “Arrested Development” role as the bumbling Tobias Fünke, his standup routine is […]
Alternately imagined as a musical, Disney film and an opera, Into the Woods is itself a reimagining of classic Brothers Grimm stories and other fairy tales. Charlottesville Opera pulls together performers from Broadway, the Metropolitan Opera and the New York Philharmonic to play characters like Cinderella, the Wolf and the Witch. The lives and problems […]