Tag Archive for 'the splints'

50 STATES IN 50 WEEKS…WEEK19: VIRGINIA

Published by BethanyLeavey on October 20, 2009 in Playlists. 0 Comments Tags: , , , , , , , , .

Home Of: George Washington, Dave Matthews Band, Patsy Cline, The Carter Family, Timbaland, Clipse, Gwar, The Dismemberment Plan, Lamb of God

Fun Facts: State flower; American Dogwood, State dog; American Foxhound, State bird; Cardinal

The Venues:

For a unique live music experience, check out The Wolf Trap Foundation for the Performing Arts, the only national park for the arts in the United States. There are two venues in the park: The Filene Center, a 7000 seat outdoor amphitheatre and The Barns, a smaller indoor venue.

The Birchmere in Alexandria, VA is one of the leading folk clubs in the country. Artists like Mary Chapin Carpenter, Linda Ronstadt and Vince Gill all played here early in their careers.

Like roots music? Head to the 36th annual Blue Ridge Folklife Festival on October 24th. The festival celebrates the folk traditions of the area, including Blue Ridge ‘mountain music,’ played by musicians native to the area. This year’s festival will also be honoring Virginia’s part in the history of rockabilly music.

The Music:

PPMLSOPAIOJQ-320x240The Honey Dewdrops – Listening to The Honey Dewdrops is like stepping into a time machine. Their old-timey twang and close vocal harmonies bring to mind the music of The Carter Family and their contemporaries. Their throwback sound impressed the staff of A Prairie Home Companion, who named The Honey Dewdrops the first place winners of their “People in their Twenties Talent Show” in March 2008. The band is currently touring in support of their May 2009 debut album If The Sun Will Shine, so check out “Wandering Boy” and catch The Honey Dewdrops in your town!

KSNDIBJSVVIR-520x520The Splints – The Splints’ punk influenced rock ‘n’ roll hits you like a kick in the chest, so it comes as no surprise that their rhythm section includes an ex-Marine. The band’s first full length, Love Letters And Broken Bones, was engineered by the legendary engineer Steve Albini (Nirvana, Pixies, PJ Harvey), with the track “Linoleum” winning a Top 10 achievement in the October 2008 Punk Channel.

HRXMDPHIWQAA-520x520My Radio – Boston music scene staple JP Powell thought he was moving to Roanoke, VA to give up rock and roll for good. He couldn’t have been more wrong. After a chance meeting with hard-hitting drummer Hunter Johnson, the two decided to form the Rock/Pop powerhouse that is My Radio. The band recently signed with music publishing company Ocean Park Music Group, and their song “Yeah Yeah Yeah” will be the soundtrack of the Fox Sports Cleveland Cavaliers halftime highlights for this upcoming NBA season.

Check out these acts and other great Virginian artists in the playlist below! Who are your favorite OurStage Virginians? Where do you like to see live music in Virginia? Let us know in the comments!

Staff Picks: Essential College Rock…

Published by brianw on April 9, 2009 in Editorial, Playlists and Rock. 0 Comments Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , .

…And, who they influenced!

My first installment of Staff Picks! I finally get my chance to share my list of the three college rock bands that I think we owe the most thanks to. I’d had this list on my desk for weeks before our editor Jessica finally let me publish it – apparently all I had to do was “ask”.

College rock is one of the most important forces driving the evolution of music forward. Where would we be without the bands that met in the basements of dirty dorms to howl and screech instead of writing papers? That is not a world I want to live in, I can tell you that.

they might be giants

3) They Might Be Giants.

Sure they’re nerdy. Of course you don’t hear an accordion used in rock music often. But when it’s done well, people listen. They Might Be Giants came from humble beginnings, including recording some of their first songs on an answering machine as the greeting in order to spread the message about their songs. Their unique sound took them from gigs in front of an answering machine to one of the best-recognized rock bands of our time.

REM

2) R.E.M.

Allmusicguide said it best when they wrote, “R.E.M. mark the point when post-punk turned into alternative rock.” No other single band so clearly straddled the gap of turning a fringe movement of complicated vocals and carefully laid out guitar work. Everyone remembers Automatic For The People as one of the immortal albums.

 

the pixies

1)Pixies.
While they weren’t a massive commercial success, the Pixies turned out to be one of the most important bands to sparking the grunge and alt rock revolution of the early 1990’s. Even Kurt Cobain of Nirvana attributed much of his own success and inspiration to listening the Pixies. In a 1994 interview, Cobain said:

“When I heard the Pixies for the first time, I connected with that band so heavily I should have been in that band – or at least in a Pixies cover band. We used their sense of dynamics, being soft and quiet and then loud and hard.”

These bands, in addition to shaping the future of modern rock music, have played a heavy hand in shaping alt rock on OurStage as well. Check out some of the below artists for a sample – they the cream of our crop, all with powerful influences from some of the bands mentioned above.