Washington, D.C., is not the first place that comes to mind as the center of folk and bluegrass music, but there’s a long history of accomplished players from the capital city, including Eric Brace and Peter Cooper, who honor their peers on the recent album, C&O Canal. The Grammy-nominated collaborators’ engaging songwriting, quick wit and […]
In the epilogue of her book, Scattering Ashes: A Memoir of Letting Go, Charlottesville-based author Joan Z. Rough describes the process of writing about her aging alcoholic and emotionally abusive mother as “the day-by-day knitting together of a broken bone.” In this way, she says, “The writing of the book was probably the most healing […]
Everyone knows that girls rule and boys…well, boys, too, will be wildly entertained by The Sally Rose Band and Erin and the Wildfire, two of Charlottesville’s most prominent female-led outfits. Sally Rose’s saucy Southern rock tunes about witches and ghosts, heartaches and moons, are packed with mother-daughter blood harmonies, good old-fashioned rock ’n’ roll riffs […]
Found footage movies, though often disparaged as too heavily reliant on gimmicks, jump scares and bad writing, have arguably grown up in the last few years. Creep, currently viewable on Netflix, was a production involving only two people on the screen, yet was far more terrifying than most big-budget horror films of the last decade. […]
When people talk about Rachael Yamagata’s musical style, names such as Bonnie Raitt, Tom Waits and Roberta Flack get tossed around. So when her new album, Tightrope Walker, is released on Friday, fans can expect more of the soulful eloquence and intense production that frames her dark, modern pop. Yamagata is after themes of perseverance […]
A couple of years ago, while home on winter break from the College of William & Mary, Will Marsh found himself feeling overwhelmed by thoughts that drift, and often race, through young minds. Marsh was studying English, playing in a few bands on campus and worried about choosing a path—the right path—then facing the consequences of […]
The sound of Wild Child is hardly categorical. With horns and strings, it’s orchestral; with tap-your-feet basslines, it’s all groove; with ukelele-based riffs, it’s easy listenin’; and with bare piano arrangements, it’s full of soul. Fronted by Kelsey Wilson (vocals, violin) and Alexander Beggins (vocals, ukelele), the Texas indie- pop outfit has honed its blend […]
For the sound of the Blue Ridge Mountains, look no further than the Prism Coffeehouse series. For the better part of 40 years, beginning in the ’70s, the Prism was the heart of the local music community for folk, bluegrass, blues, jazz, Americana and traditional music. After personnel and location changes, the Prism is enjoying […]
Even under ordinary conditions, a road trip can be the ultimate test of a relationship. But when torrential rain and tornado warnings cross the path of an already tense couple, it creates the perfect storm. Hannah Pittard’s third novel, Listen to Me, explores the interior of a marriage that has been shaken by recent trauma. […]
With toe-tapping, head-bobbing songs about vegetarianism, the apocalypse and everything in-between, local music mainstay New Boss takes to the outdoors for the next installment of the Levitt AMP Charlottesville Music Series. The band, which dubs its sound “tweeboogie,” plays hella catchy tunes that are equal parts grunge, glam, indie and straight-up rock ’n’ roll. With […]