First: I refuse to call Disco Rodeo “the Ritz”, even if they have big stupid red letters on their building calling it that. Disco Rodeo is a big old cave of a venue in an old storage building in an office park, and it is not the Ritz. Jesus Christ. Second: I have spent seven…
Category: opinions about concerts
yep roc 15
Full set from all three nights of Yep Roc 15, a celebration of Yep Roc Records’ 15th birthday party, is here. Write-up will be on Speakers In Code tomorrow or Tuesday. Thanks for inviting me to your party, y’all. It kicked ass. (I shot every band on the lineup but Liam Finn — who I…
antibalas & the brand new life @ cat’s cradle
I’ve had a bit of a week: I’ve shot gothic Americana, kickass lady punk, electro-synth indie pop, and last night, a double bill of great, great Afrobeat. To be honest, I was almost completely ignorant of Afrobeat as a genre or a movement until I started going to see my friend Seth’s project, the Brand…
stars @ cat’s cradle
Top to bottom: Stars; Diamond Rings; California Wives. Full set here.
the corin tucker band @ local 506
Corin Tucker can flat-out rock. That’s what I took away from last night’s show; it was an aural assault of highly danceable tunes from her airtight band off Kill My Blues, her latest solo release on Kill Rock Stars. It’s excellent, her show was excellent, and I’m kind of ashamed that I didn’t tell her…
delicate cutters @ motorco garage
I still believe in the record label; that is, I believe in finding the small labels curating a select roster of bands and, if you like the bands they have, trusting them to find you new ones. One of those labels, for me, is Skybucket Records out of Birmingham, who used to release the Dexateens’…
bristol rhythm & roots reunion 2012
If you ask me, Bristol Rhythm & Roots is the best bang for your festival buck in the country — $40 gets you a weekend of the best traditional and new Americana artists out there, plus you get to watch the Tennessee/Florida game with Tennessee fans, and the quality of the street food is top-notch….
tift merritt @ carrboro town commons
No way to make my heart swell with love for where I live than a free show outside on a perfect fall evening, featuring three of North Carolina’s most beloved. Tift Merritt made me cry (for some reason, “Mix Tape” just destroys me) and made me laugh, Megafaun blew the crowd away by swinging between…
will johnson & anders parker @ haw river ballroom
If you have a chance to catch Will Johnson and Anders Parker on their current (mostly) living room tour, you need to do it — it was one of the most intimate, reverent, and fun evenings I’ve had in a long time. The third balcony of the Haw River Ballroom sounds just as good as…
bristol rhythm and roots 2012, day one
Started the Bristol evening with Lydia Loveless, finished with the Deep Dark Woods. That’ll do for a Bristol first night.
brand new kind of photography 