Category Archives: The Features

These are our features. They come back either weekly, bi-weekly or monthly.

Sports Fix
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Redskins defeat Browns 38-21

Photo courtesy of Keith Allison
Pierre Garcon
courtesy of Keith Allison

Remember back to last April when Kirk Cousins was drafted and the move was criticized by some. The point that was perhaps being missed, and more recently has been missed in the should RGIII run or not debate, is Griffin plays a dangerous style of football. In order to be as effective and dynamic as possible he needs to run and put the fear of running into the defenses. While most compare RGIII to Warren Moon, Randall Cunningham, and Michael Vick there is a much better and more accurate comp, and that is Steve Young.

Steve Young was both an accomplished runner and passer, and he played the game with a fast and loose style much like RGIII. The other big thing about Steve Young is he had Elvis Grbac, and that is where Kirk Cousins comes in. Yesterday against the Browns was Kirk Cousins first NFL starts and while he looked good in relief of RGIII last week against the Ravens there was a little mistrust going into this game. It is human nature to fear the unknown and it is the DC sports’ fans nature to distrust management. The drafting of Cousins was viewed as just another mistake made under Snyder and no one knew exactly what level of play the Redskins would receive on Sunday.

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Weekend Flashback
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Weekend Flashback — Dec 14-16

Nutcracker Karon

The holidays are in our midst. Hanukkah ended last night, and we’re just a week short of Christmas at this point. The lights of the Downtown Holiday Market will illuminate Penn Quarter through the week, and Hogo popped up this weekend, which provides just a perfect level of cognitive dissonance with our unseasonably warm weather.

This was a weekend for Christmas Pageants, for Holiday Concerts, and meant for merriment. I can’t but think we’re all a little slower for this weekend’s serious side as well. I found my own joy tempered by loss, and my own emotions running higher than normal.

Have a good week, DC. We’ve got a lot up our sleeves to try to work on all this.

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Food and Drink, The Features
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First Look: Trademark Drink + Eat


Courtesy of Three Lockharts PR

I have to imagine being the first restaurant to land in a neighborhood you’re trying to beef up is no easy task. Will the locals end up coming back? If you’re off the beaten path, can you still draw a crowd? How do you bring any foot traffic off the sidewalk and into a seat at the bar? When I visited Trademark Drink + Eat a little more than a week after their opening in November, their boisterous, mostly full bar and high-top tables on a week night seems to indicate they’ve figured it out.

Named after the neighboring U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, Trademark the pub is located just beyond Old Town in the Carlyle District. Google maps says it’s an eight minute walk from the King Street metro, which isn’t far if you’re looking to head somewhere different for drinks and a bite to eat in Alexandria.

Trademark has both casual bar fare like warm pretzel bites or deep-fried pickles, and more sophisticated, hearty dishes such as the Chesapeake pot pie with piping hot crab, rockfish, shrimp, roasted corn, peas and potatoes wrapped in a buttery dough. Sit at the bar for a short while and you’ll find yourself devouring the restaurant’s version of corn nuts, a pleasant reminder that the little bowls of bar snacks do not have to be stale or overly salty. While you’re at it, don’t pass up the bacon candy, which is a thick slice of bacon on a stick with a sweet yet light, sugary coating. I should have had you at bacon. On a stick.
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Sports Fix
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Redskins Week Fifteen: The Browns

Photo courtesy of Erik Daniel Drost
Trent Richardson
courtesy of Erik Daniel Drost

The biggest question facing the Redskins this week is if Robert Griffin will play or not. With him on the field the offense is dramatically different than if they had a standard pocket passer like Kirk Cousins. Cousins did a great job in helping to win the game against the Ravens but he is no RGIII and without the threat of the run the offense is drastically reduced. The zone read option plays that have opened large gains in the passing play and for Alfred Morris as well as RGIII are a stable of the Redskins offense, and those simply won’t be as effective if Griffin doesn’t play. These are also the thoughts the Ravens had in the fourth quarter when Kirk Cousins ran a QB draw on a two-point conversion so even from the bench the threat of RGIII’s running ability is a weapon.

Looking at the Browns record and the Redskins should be favored over them. The Redskins are coming off a win over the best team in the Brown’s division, but did lose earlier in the season to .500 or worse teams in the Rams and Panthers. That was without Garcon who has been the biggest difference maker during the Redskins four game winning streak. Any offense would be different with a number one passing threat on the field as opposed to the sidelines. Garcon’s ability to create yards after the catch will help whichever quarterback is starting for the Redskins.

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Entertainment, The Features, We Love Arts
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We Love Arts: A Trip to the Moon

Karen O’Connell as Laika and Katrina Clark as the Moon in Synetic Theater’s production of A Trip to the Moon. Photo credit: Johnny Shryock.

Over the course of this theatrical season’s start, I’ve seen three productions that represent (for me, anyway) the future direction of theater: Folger Theatre’s The Conference of the Birds, Synetic Theater’s A Trip to the Moon, and Studio Theatre’s The Aliens. Though each style follows a different track, all three are dedicated to resuscitating the living magic of the stage. As a consequence, I’m more excited about theater at this moment than I have been in a long time.

“Following” may not really be the right verb for visionary director Natsu Onoda Power, who takes the digital and makes it flesh in A Trip to the Moon. Earlier this year, Onoda Power showed us a daring combination of technical innovation and wistful emotion with Astro Boy and the God of Comics at The Studio 2ndStage. I loved it. So did Paata Tsikurishvili, artistic director of Synetic Theater, who consequently was inspired to ask the Georgetown professor to create a piece for his award-winning company. The fact that opportunities for such collaboration exist now in DC is cause for an ovation itself.

A Trip to the Moon is a paen to our very human need to understand that cold, lonely orb in the sky – we dream of it, we long to possess it, we both love and fear it. The safe choice would be to concentrate on the ethereal, romantic quality of its beauty – but we’re in the realm of risk-takers here, so there’s an attraction/repulsion aspect to this production instead. It’s not as balletic as previous Synetic offerings, and gives us goofy space explorers, glowstick hair, and moon dogs sniffing each other’s butts.

Risk-taking means there will be flaws. But there will also be brilliance.

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Food and Drink, The Features
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Bryan Voltaggio’s Range Set to Open in Friendship Heights

Range by Bryan Voltaggio bonappetitfoodie

Get ready, DC—Bryan Voltaggio is coming to town. And he’s making a bold entrance with a 14,000 square foot, 300 seat, multi-station restaurant complete with tatted up, Converse-sporting staff in Friendship Heights. RANGE is set to open to the public on December 18th.

The open and airy RANGE (yep, in all caps) is built around the concept of an open kitchen with individual stations dedicated to specific foods–a charcuterie station, raw bar, rotisserie, wood fired hearth, baker, dessert and candy and coffee bar. However, the entire menus is available wherever you decide to sit.

Much like the restaurant space itself, the menu is expansive, ranging in dishes such as a smoked trout roe with potato-shallot tots, to headcheese with a sunchoke relish, to roasted pork cheeks with celeriac and moustarda. If our taste of kimchi linguini with briny uni and bay scallops was any indication, there’s going to be a very long wait for a table here. Other highlights included a refreshing kampachi (similar to a yellowtail tuna) tartare with pine nuts, lemon and coriander, and a creamy ricotta ravioli with braised meat ragu. The added bonus was extremely thin crust pizza topped with bacon and charred onions.

Prices don’t appear to put you over the edge. Entrees hover around the $15-$30 range, though there are the obvious ones that are more pricey, such as the 36-day-aged new york strip, wagyu beef tenderloin or rotisserie lamb neck. Sides and smaller plates go from $3 for dishes like cornbread with bacon marmalade up to $13 for specific charcuterie.

Cocktails on the menu run the gamut from simple, “the name says it all” drink is just a vodka with soda, to more complex punches like the “serpentine overtone” with tequila, cranberry, hum liqueur, lime and black pepper. Draft beers and wine are also available by the glass. If you’re going for non-alcoholic drinks, there are some house sodas that we can’t wait to get our hands on, like grapefuit and ginger beer.

After the jump, you’ll find a photo slideshow of RANGE that We Love DC caught a sneak peek at. Make sure you check out the retail space on the side of the restaurant, where you’ll find kitchen tools that Voltaggio has worked with Williams Sonoma to pick out, a rotating selection of goodies from the chef’s purveyors and more.

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Sports Fix
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Redskins Defeat Ravens 31-28

Photo courtesy of Keith Allison
Kirk Cousins
courtesy of Keith Allison

When Robert Griffin got knocked to the turf on a 13 yard scramble the hearts of Washington area football fan collectively stopped. The Redskins were in need of a touchdown and a two-point conversion to tie, and all season long RGIII has been the shining beacon of hope. Griffin’s uniform was covered in mud from the beating the Ravens defense had laid upon him all day long. The Ravens knew about Griffin’s speed and his dynamic ability to make something happen so they treated him accordingly. They leaned on him. Griffin got the Redskins off to a fast start, but the Ravens defense was able to recover while their offense responded, and from then on they made it a long day for RGIII.

Every chance the Ravens had to lay a hand on Griffin they took it, knocking him to the ground, bumping him as he released the ball. They treated him how a slower fighter would treat a faster one, pushing him against the ropes and trying to take the air out of him, hitting him with body shot after body shot until his legs were jelly. Then it happened. Griffin was down and slow to get up, and when he did he headed to the sidelines for Kirk Cousins to come in. Cousins was in for all of one play while RGIII caught his breathe and became aware of his surroundings.

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Weekend Flashback
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Weekend Flashback

Great Lens Adventure-DC-7 Tony DeFilippo

The somewhat rainy but warmer-than-usual weekend has come and gone, bringing Hanukkah and the flurry of holiday season preparations with it. You may be ready to rejoin the working world but I’m not. So let’s take a minute and mentally say NUH-uh through some photos, shall we?

National Menorah 9 tedeytan
Let the Parade of the Strollers begin! (ZooLights at National Zoo) wolfkann
remains of fall ekelly80
Mormon Temple Festival of Lights vpickering
band ekelly80
Bethesda Row vpickering
We Love Arts
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We Love Arts: Les Liaisons Dangereuses


Photo of Theatre de l’Atelier’s production of Les Liaisons Dangereuses, presented at the Shakespeare Theatre Company. Photo by Gaspard Leclerc.

Les Liaisons Dangereuses is in a limited run at Shakespeare Theater Company’s Lansburgh Theater – just five more performances after last night’s opening. One tonight, two each on Saturday and Sunday. It’s an import from Théâtre de l’Atelier in Paris, where it was directed by John Malkovitch… whose breakout role was as the lead opposite Glenn Close in the 1988 Hollywood movie. Unlike that version, this one is entirely in French and subtitled. Or super-titled, rather, since the captions are projected onto a spot above the stage.

It makes for a challenge if you’re not a fluent French speaker, and my wife mentioned what might be the most valuable thing I can impart to you if you’re going: wear your contacts. In your glasses you’ll have to move your head up and down to follow both the action and the text, rather than just moving your eyes.

In the interest of putting this review out in time for it to do you any good, I’ll be brief. [cue sighs of relief everywhere] The show is an imperfect but highly entertaining staging of the story. Some of the flaws are structural, others might be simply a matter of watching a captioned work.

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Music, The Features, We Love Music
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We Love Music: The Faint @ 9:30 Club — 12/5/12

The Faint @ SXSW 2007 kk+

When I was growing up, my fellow kids and I used the term “dark wave” to describe a certain kind of band. They were gloomy, yes, and they used synthesizers. But they also seemed more committed to putting their stamp on that thing we called “new wave,” which also consisted of a lot of rockers who picked up synths. “Dark wave” bands like The Cure, Depeche Mode, and Siouxsie and the Banshees, to us, wanted to make more distinct sounds with the same set of instruments.

When I think of this subgenre today, the first contemporary band that pops into my head is The Faint. To me, the term dark wave captures what The Faint are all about. They aren’t goth and they aren’t exclusively always about being down. In fact, some of the actual music can be quite bright, snappy, and upbeat. But they are not always the most optimistic people when it comes to human nature. And nowhere does the band capture all of these elements better than on its outstanding album Danse Macabre.

The Faint’s former label, Saddle Creek Records of Omaha, Neb., remastered and re-released Danse Macabre in October, some 11 years after its first release. The timing of this remastered project is somewhat mysterious — it seems like it comes a little too soon. Nonetheless, The Faint haven’t had a new full-length album since 2008’s Fasciinatiion, so they seized the opportunity to tour on the reissue of Danse Macabre, playing all nine songs of the album in a row in the middle of a robust set that served as an excellent career retrospective.

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Sports Fix
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Redskins Week Fourteen Preview: The Ravens

Photo courtesy of Tony DeFilippo
FedEx Field after a Victory
courtesy of Tony DeFilippo

The focus this week has been on how the Ravens have won 15 of their last 15 games after a loss. That of course means that fate will intervene this week and hand the Redskins their fourth victory in a row, or it is a statistical novelty only proving that the Ravens have been a very good football team for multiple seasons and don’t lose many games overall. Of the Redskins remaining games this is the toughest and the truest test of if RGIII is ready for the big stage. The Ravens will be without Lewis or Suggs, and possibly Ed Reed. If Reed plays he will be the biggest threat to RGIII, but without him this game could become very interesting.

With a fully intact defense the Redskins offense vs. the Ravens defense would be a fun match-up. As it stands right now though this is starting to look like one of those match-ups where the team with the ball last will win, and for the last two weeks the Redskins have been able to be that team. The one bright spot for the Redskins is that the Ravens are not an offensive team Their passing offense ranks 15th in the NFL with 240.8 yards a game while their rushing offense ranks 23rd with 102.4 yards a game despite Rice being considered one of the best rushers in the league.

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Sports Fix
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Hockey in DC: The AHL Showcase

AHL Showcase

AHL Showcase at Verizon Center, photo by author

The AHL Showcase brought hockey back to Washington on Thursday, though not the Caps game that everyone had hoped for. As the NHL and NHLPA continue their drawn out labor negotiations that have curtailed the Capitals season through at least December 15th, the Caps’ AHL affiliate from Hershey took the ice to face the Norfolk Admirals (Anaheim Ducks).

Though the Showcase was planned well ahead of the dispute, everyone had hoped that this would be a pleasant interruption in the usual routine, not the only hockey that DC has gotten since May 9th, 2012. 

Coming to the ice for the Hershey Bears were several familiar faces for Caps fans, though, lead by goalie Braden Holtby. Dmitry Orlov also received a loud ovation from the crowd, though he’d leave the game in the 2nd with an upper body injury and will be day to day while he recovers.

The Admirals struck almost immediately after puck drop, rifling in a shot to the glove side of Braden Holtby, and it would take the Bears almost five minutes to find their stride again, and another eight thereafter to even the score, which Evan Barlow did on a beautiful one-timer in front of the net.

While the game progressed at Verizon Center, a game of a different sort was being played out in front of cameras in New York, as negotiations surrounding the labor stoppage in the NHL proceeded. As the game began, it appeared dark for the season, but in the first period, the players came out with some strong statements on compromise, as they made what appeared to be reasonable agreements with the ownership – including some givebacks that indicated there was compromise to be had – and the mood improved. Could this be the end of it? By the first intermission, though, the NHL had broken up with the NHLPA via voicemail, like on a bad teenager-focused sitcom.

The second period was dominated by the press conference from NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman and Vice Commissioner Bill Daly, and their take on the latest round of negotiations (hint: it wasn’t good. It wasn’t going to be good after they demurred via voicemail.) As the period began, the beneficiary of the NHL/NHLPA spat was clearly AHL Commissioner David Andrews. He spoke with reporters as the puck dropped to talk about the AHL Showcase here in Washington, as well as the upcoming AHL Outdoor Classic due in January, and mentioned the AHL was having a “banner year” when it came to attention, thanks to the lack of other options. Andrews was quick to note that they wouldn’t be here at all without the NHL, though, and they’re benefitting this season from 125 NHL players in the AHL currently. 

As the third period began, the Bears made a push for the lead, and put a beautiful one-timer together with Steve Oleksy feeding Evan Barlow in front of the net. As the NHL/NHLPA drama faded into the background, it was hockey once again at Verizon Center drawing the attention. Braden Holtby made some saves, the Bears would press and press the Admirals defense, and the final result put the Bears at 10-11-1, still in 4th in the East.

Something, though, didn’t feel right the whole night. The Verizon Center crowd was fairly tepid most of the evening, and devolved into chants of “Fire Bettman” during the third period. A holiday greetings video staring Slapshot was uncharacteristically booed during the third period. The animosity from the crowd, despite clearly enjoying the game itself, turned into the story.


No one felt good about it, Goat. Not one person. 

Bring back the NHL.

We Love Weekends
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We Love Weekends: Dec 7-9

Play an exhilirating game of Paintball at elevation Squaw Valley

Marissa: Armed with a Livingsocial deal, a few of my friends and I are piling into the car and taking a trip out to Pev’s Paintball for an afternoon of paintballin’. Since we will be using the newest paintball sniper rifles I’m quite eager to go and try them but also hoping I don’t end up with too many bruises, be they physical ones or just a bruised ego.

Other weekend plans include checking out the Off the Walls art sale at the Corcoran and maybe some ice skating at the Sculpture Garden. Come Sunday it’s probably time for a boozy brunch somewhere new. Suggestions in the comments section are more than welcome.

Socialising at the Royal Ball, Brisbane, 1954 State Library of Queensland, Australia

Rachel: Ah, the weekend. I’m so glad it’s back. This one is a simple yet eventful one for me. It kicks off with a relaxing Friday that then transitions into a Saturday complete with my favorite party of the year: Classy Christmas. While I don’t personally celebrate the holiday (Happy almost Hannukah to my fellow tribe members), I do love a good night full of friends, fancy outfits, themed cocktails, and Christmas music. The true highlight of my weekend, though, will be Sunday night at U Street Music Hall. Virgina native Rachael Yamagata is performing and she never fails to impress. Tickets are still available.

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Food and Drink, The Features
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Matchbox Arrives on 14th Street NW

Matchbox on 14th Street NW bonappetitfoodie

Good things come in threes at the new Matchbox on 14th street—three levels of seating, mini burgers in multiples of three—chances are you’ve been to one of their other locations before, so you get the idea. The newest addition to the matchboxfoodgroup’s restaurants is their location over on 14th and T streets, NW.

Housed in a building that was once a bowling alley and pool hall in 1907, an automobile showroom, the former Club Bali jazz club and rehearsal space for Arena Stage Theatre Company, the restaurant is giving the space new life while paying homage to some of its previous iterations. For example, you’ll notice the counter top at the bar is designed to look like a bowling lane, as it stretches out and morphs into a semi-open kitchen. Look up and you’ll notice the restaurant group kept the original ceiling and steel girders; look to the side and you’ll see the building’s original, exposed brick bring a warmth to the atmosphere.
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We Love Arts
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We Love Arts: A Commedia Christmas Carol

Production photo from A Commedia Christmas Carol.
Presented at Gallaudet University, Nov 29 – Dec 23.
Left to Right: Joel David Santner, Toby Mulford, Tyler Herman,
Sandra Mae Frank, Jessica Willoughby and Paul Reisman.
Photo by Second Glance Photography.

I know, you’re sitting around thinking man, I could really go for some Dickens this holiday season, but the lack of creepy masks and physical humor has always made me think it could be better. Well, good news: there’s a production company in town looking to serve your needs. And through December 23rd you’ll have your chance to see it.

And you really should.

Faction of Fools’ A Commedia Christmas Carol is a great re-imagining of the classic we’re all (painfully?) familiar with – Scrooge’s disdain, Cratchet’s deranged optimism, the three nocturnal poltergeists, Tim and his enthusiastic well-wishes for a world that feels compelled to comment on his height every time they address him. Directory Matthew R. Wilson sensibly looked at this less sensible play and found the right places to slather on some shenanigans – as well as the right places to play it straight.

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We Love Arts
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We Love Arts: My Fair Lady


Courtesy of David Willis and the excellent webcomic Shortpacked!

Now that scene above, Molly Smith, would represent “a completely fresh interpretation” of the 50 year old musical.

What we really get, press releases to the contrary, is the same old My Fair Lady we’re all familiar with – a story of a poor, uneducated girl who is transformed by the teaching of an older man into someone who can pass in upper-crust society. Once her Stockholm Syndrome has fully settled in she finds herself in love. Arena’s take is attractive and consistent, minus two odd transgressions, but it’s nothing you haven’t seen before. If that’s what you want, great – here you go. It’s the perfect production to take your parents to while they’re visiting over the holidays and it’s a lovely night out in the theater.

The high points are certainly Nicholas Rodriguez as Freddie, the inexplicably passed-over suitor, and the staging and choreography. The low point would be the lack of attention paid to the last fifty years of feminism and any sense of why Professor Higgins and Eliza Doolittle would come together in the end in a romantic relationship. Some of that is where we are as a society compared to when the orignal was penned, but some of the blame has to fall on the directoral decisions and how Benedict Campbell portrays Higgins as not just absent-minded and detached but as somewhat spitefully mean.

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Entertainment, The Features, We Love Arts
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We Love Arts: A Killing Game

Theatres near and far have tried many ways to integrate social media into their business from tweet seats to rehearsal tweet-ups. Dog and Pony DC has taken the social experience to a new level with their latest endeavor, A Killing Game. Not only does the show encourage you to follow the conversation on Twitter, but it allows audiences to tweet during the show, which is about a viral outbreak that wreaks havoc onto a small town. There is plenty of time to check Twitter during frenetic scenes of actors pacing around the small blackbox theatre at the Capitol Hill Arts Workshop. Even though silence fills the room, the airwaves are a buzz as the actors type on their smartphones to tweet about the spread of the disease. Following the twitter handles of the in–show characters offers a modern-day glimpse of how panic, information, and fear of an outbreak can spread faster than the disease that is to blame.

Performance live tweeting is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to audience participation for this show, which is more of an improv show than a traditional play. Audience members are handed cards upon arrival which contain instructions and actions to perform during the course of the show. The tasks range from “dying” on the delivery of a certain line to stepping into a role alongside the actors as a town official dealing with the outbreak. The results are a  highly interactive and enjoyable romp that is mash-up of Clue and Whose Line Is It Anyway?

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Downtown, History, Interviews, People, Special Events, The Features
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Crossing the Northwest Passage the Modern Way: Kite Skiing

Courtesy Sarah McNair-Landry and National Geographic

On December 6, an adventurous brother-sister team visits the National Geographic Museum to share about their experience kite skiing over two thousand miles through Canada’s arctic archipelago. Eric and Sarah McNair-Landry grew up with the Arctic Ocean and sled dogs in their backyard and have trekked across the polar regions since they were teenagers. Their journey saw them fend off polar bears and coping with extreme weather conditions along the way.

Their expedition traces the 1906 Roald Amundsen route through the Northwest Passage. That was the first time that it was actually successfully navigated by anyone following centuries of explorers hoping to discover a way through from the Atlantic to the Pacific north of Canada. The journey began in Tuktoyaktuk, located in Canada’s Northwest Territories and traveled east through Kugluktuk, Cambridge Bay, Gjoa Haven, Taloyoak, and Arctic Bay, before finally reaching the finish line at Pond Inlet on Baffin Island.

Sarah stopped by WeLoveDC to talk about their experience. Continue reading →

Entertainment, Music, Night Life, The Features, We Love Music
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The Winning Ticket: Drive By Truckers @ 930 Club, 12/30/2012

 

photo courtesy of Drive By Truckers

Today We Love DC is giving away a pair of tickets to see Drive By Truckers at the 930 Club on Sunday, December 30th! Drive By Truckers are playing three nights in a row at the legendary 930 club– December 29th, 30th and 31st, for three times the fun! Tickets can be purchased for all three nights through Ticketfly, the 930 club website, or at the 930 club box office.

For your chance to win a pair of tickets to the December 30th show, simply leave a comment on this post using a valid email address until 4pm today. One entry per email address, please.

For the rules of this giveaway…

Comments will be closed at 4pm and a winner will be randomly selected. The winner will be notified by email. The winner must respond to our email in 24 hours or they will forfeit their tickets and we will pick another winner.

Tickets will be available to the winner at the will-call window of the 930 Club on the night of the concert. The tickets must be claimed with a valid ID. The winner must be old enough to attend the specific concert or must have a parent’s permission to enter if he/she is under 18 years old.

Comment away!

Entertainment, Interviews, Music, People, The Features, We Love Music
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Q&A with The Young Rapids

photo courtesy of The Young Rapids

 

The Young Rapids are an indie-rock quartet based in Washington, DC. Their sound blends moody and melodic guitar, melancholic vocals, keys and percussion into an often dreamy, sometimes dancey blend. Check out their album Day Light Savings here.  The Young Rapids plays DC9 this Wednesday, November 5th. We Love DC’s Alexia recently asked the band a few questions, and here’s what they had to say.

Alexia: How did Young Rapids come together as a band?

Colin: We’ve all been musicians in one way or another in a lot of different projects, but Dan and Joe started playing music together in 2009. A year later they called Nick up to play guitar. As a trio, they wrote songs and played a few shows. About a year later, I crossed paths with them. The former sound of the band eventually gave way to a new and more ambitious one that’s still being explored and tempered with.

Alexia: How would you describe your sound to people who haven’t seen/heard you?

Nick: We’d probably call ourselves an “art rock” band. We definitely give 110% at our live shows, and try to have as much energy as humanly possible. I’d say check us out if you appreciate music that is somewhat challenging, yet rewarding in scope. We try to offer as much honesty as we can in every way. Instrumentally, lyrically, and even through our recording techniques.

Alexia: Was there one artist/song/album that made you fall in love with rock music?

Joe: Definitely not just one. I can remember the white album being played a lot when I was a kid. I was always so intrigued by the “number 9” song. I thought it was crazy weird, so it caught my attention. My dad was a huge Zappa fan. He used to tell me about these parties he’d have with all Zappa playing all night. That always sounded like my kind of party.

Alexia: Are you all originally from the DC area? If not, where are you from? What do you feel about DC’s creative community/scene?

Nick: I’d day Colin is closest to being an actual DC native. He grew up off Macarthur Blvd., which is only a few minutes from the city. The rest of us are from the suburbs. Rockville, Potomac, Germantown. WE LOVE DC :) Really though, we’ve met the nicest people, and played such awesome shows. We receive great support from the artistic community, and we think that people who say nothings going on in DC are crazy. Our favorite artists are from this city.

Alexia: If you could collaborate with one artist/band who would it be?

Dan: I think we’d all agree that it would be someone we actually know. Our friends are in awesome bands that blow us away every time we see them. If we could get some of the folks in PREE, some from The Sea Life, and some from Teen Mom, we’d have a pretty bangin’ lineup. Throw some Shark Week in there for good measure, and that would be pretty unstoppable.

Alexia: What inspires you?

Colin: Everything inspires us to be honest. We just recently moved out away from the city, in a kind of farm house, and it’s really invigorated our creativity. We’re also very inspired by each other. Often times, another persons input can be the most awakening perspective, and that usually gets everybody really excited. All of our newer material is extremely collaborative.

Alexia: Any bands you’re listening to right now that really excite you?

Dan: New PREE songs are stuck in our head right now. Deleted Scenes has been on repeat since we saw them at Red Palace a few months back. We’ve all been delving pretty deep into our record collections which have become communal. Recent mainstays include Donovan, Oscar Peterson, and Paul Simon. Those are literally just pulled right off the top of the record stack. I also just saw this awesome band called Caddywhompus from New Orleans at Paperhaus and they were unreal. Unbelievable.

Alexia: What’s on the horizon for Young Rapids?

Joe: Touring! We’re working on solidifying road partners and a route, and we’ll be on the road in February. We’ve also been writing a lot of new songs, so I’m sure we’ll give a go at recording some of them soon. We have to develop a new recording scenario in the new house, and we’re excited for that. We might try to do some Zeppelin-esque drum recording in our foyer. We’ll see. But yeah, TOUR!

Check out their song “Goods” here. See The Young Rapids play this Wednesday, November 5th at DC9!

The Young Rapids

w/Villains Like You

The Kickback

& Bobby E. Lee & the Sympathizers

Wednesday, Nov. 5/8:30pm/$8

DC9