Would it really be that bad if we all just quit our jobs and spent all of our time doing whatever we want? Yeah, you’re probably right, it would be awesome. But I guess we could just look at some photos from the weekend and mentally quit our jobs for a few minutes instead. If only to keep the country running for a little while longer. Continue reading
courtesy of philliefan99
It was plain and simple at Nationals Park on Thursday night — the Atlanta Braves out hit the Washington Nationals to secure a 3-0 victory in game one of a very important four-game series in D.C. The two teams are currently fighting for the top spot in the National League East and not even a strong performance from right-handed starting pitcher Jordan Zimmermann could slow down Atlanta.
Zimmermann pitched seven innings and gave up two runs on seven hits while striking out six batters and walking one on 97 pitches (64 strikes). The biggest blemish of the night for Zimmermann came in the fourth inning when a string of four consecutive one-out singles hit by the heart of the Braves’ batting order yielded two runs, thereby giving them a lead to hold onto for the duration of the night.
By Mickey
Two years ago, I wrote to a girl friend to describe my love of the Kaiser Chiefs. When doing so, I chose 10 great songs by the band by which to describe their music.
Today, the Kaiser Chiefs have a great new album, Education, Education, Education and War, so you’ll have to excuse the lack of tracks from that album (such as “Meanwhile Up in Heaven,” above). But this list may still serve as a good primer for what to expect from the lads from Leeds, who perform tonight at the 9:30 Club before appearing in Delaware at the Firefly Festival on Saturday (5:15-6:15pm on the Lawn).
By Joe Newman
You’d think that a full moon that falls on Friday the 13th would have some sort of menacing, fear-inducing nickname. Apparently “Blood Moon” was taken because the moon we saw on Friday was called “Honey Moon” for its sweet, amber color. According to the WaPo, the last time a full moon fell on a Friday the 13th was 14 years ago on Oct. 13, 2000. It won’t happen again until Aug. 13, 2049. Hopefully, the next time it falls on Friday the 13th, they’ll call it something more apropos, like “Evil Orb of Destruction.”
By Joe Newman
How many photos of the Abraham Lincoln statue inside the Lincoln Memorial have you seen? Chances are you’ve seen quite a few of Honest Abe perched in his chair, the weight of the world on his shoulders. A lot of tourists who snap a photo of the iconic statue try to get all of Lincoln in their frame. Or they focus on his head and the inscription on the wall behind him.
I like what J.D. did here: He focused on a single detail of the statue — Lincoln’s right hand. I’ve always felt that the hands on the statue really tell a story. There is so much tension in those hands. Meanwhile, Lincoln’s face is in the background, slightly out of focus. I think the result is a much more interesting photo than the standard full-on shot of a seated Lincoln.
By Mickey
Wednesday morning update: Morrissey announced the cancellation of the entire tour on Tuesday evening.
“It is with great sadness that the remainder of the U.S. Tour has been cancelled. The respiratory infection Morrissey contracted in Miami has worsened, and in the interest of making a full recovery, all further touring plans have been halted. Morrissey thanks his fans for their compassion, understanding, and well-wishes during this difficult period as he recuperates,” according to a statement on his official Facebook page.
Get well soon, Morrissey!
As every Morrissey fan undoubtedly already has heard, the Man from Manchester has rescheduled tonight’s performance in Baltimore and tomorrow’s performance in DC for dates two weeks later.
In a statement late Monday, I.M.P. Productions, which is supporting both shows, said, “At the advice of Morrissey’s medical team, Baltimore at the Joseph Meyerhoff Symphony Hall is now rescheduled for June 24 and The Lincoln Theatre in Washington, DC, is rescheduled for June 25. All tickets previously purchased will be honored for the new dates.”
Shortly before the cancellation announcement, I.M.P. announced the availability of more tickets for the previously sold-out Baltimore show. As of this moment, there are still tickets remaining for that show on Tuesday, June 24. It’s definitely worth considering, as refunds will be made available if Moz cancels the date.
The show at the Lincoln Theatre also had been sold out, but the rescheduling apparently has freed up tickets as refunds are issued for those who cannot make the new date. So if you were thinking of going to see Morrissey at the Lincoln on Wednesday, June 25 (and even do so in a general admission show), now also is your chance!
Moz of course is promoting his new album, World Peace Is None of Your Business, on this tour. Above he appears in a promo with Pamela Anderson for the album.
In an apparently unrelated development, opening act Kristeen Young has left the tour. Morrissey performed in Boston on Saturday, June 7, without an opener.
Morrissey
Meyerhoff Symphony Hall
Baltimore, Md.
Tuesday, June 24
Doors @7pm
$75
All ages
Morrissey
The Lincoln Theatre
Wednesday, June 25
Doors @6:30pm
$75
All ages
By Mickey
Elly Jackson, with her fair skin, fiery hair and slight frame, seems like a mythical creature who could disappear in a puff of pixie dust if you looked at her sideways.
And disappear she did for a few years while working on the second album for La Roux.
But thankfully, La Roux and her lovely soprano vocals made a welcome return to the 9:30 Club late Sunday night in a sold-out performance that included some strong new songs in addition to first-album favorites.
Jackson opened the set with new song “Let Me Down Gently,” a wonderfully lovelorn, mature recognition that love may not be going your way. Thematically, the song is a bit of a departure from most of the songs on the self-titled first La Roux album, which dealt largely with romance largely from a capacity of being unavailable, whether due to suffering heartbreak (“Bulletproof”), gaining wisdom (“I’m Not Your Toy”) or just being too awesome (“In for the Kill”).
By Brian Mosley
By Mickey
The start of June finds the music reporters of We Love DC in far-flung quarters at the moment, as Rebecca is away at Governors Island catching up on all of the latest bands and Rachel is off actually creating new music somewhere! That leaves yours truly to present a brief concert round up for you this month.
La Roux
9:30 Club
Sunday, June 8
La Roux, aka Elly Jackson, is an act that could have been perfectly designed to appeal to me. Spunky female lead! New Romantic synths! Catchy and meaningful lyrics! Visual flair! Terrific debut album! Well, it took Ms. Jackson three attempts to finally perform at the 9:30 Club in support of the first album, so here’s to better luck seeing her this time around in support of the second La Roux album, Trouble in Paradise. Sadly, the brilliant Ben Langmaid is gone from the second record, but initial reports suggest that it too is wholly amazing.–Mickey
By Patrick Pho
(Maryjoanna Grisso and Jarrad Biron Green. Photo: Amy Boyle)
The “Tonight Quintet” in West Side Story, the song that ushers in the show’s first act finale, is one of my all-time favorite ensemble numbers. It is second only to “One Day More” from Les Miserables. When I first heard the opening brass vamps of the Quintet song I bounced a little bit in my seat inside the National Theatre. However there was something different about this particular performance of the song. The verses sung by the Sharks were in Spanish, like many other numbers throughout the show that were sung by Puerto Rican characters. Those changes, new to me and perhaps those that haven’t seen the West Side Story apart from previous versions or the iconic 1961 film, were originally incorporated into the 2009 Broadway revival of the show for which the current tour is based off of. The result is a West Side Story that is more modern and offers something different to audiences who think they know the Bernstein and Sondheim masterpiece.
By Brian Mosley
Sometime you just need a cute duckling photo in your life. Phil is happy enough to oblige us with his above shot.
Phill is our group’s most prolific contributor, in addition to being a skilled wildlife photographer. He certainly shows his skill here, capturing the young ducks mid-shake, with water drops flying every-which-way. He even managed to get the shot at the duck’s eye level, giving a very unique angle for the viewer. You can almost feel the fluffy feathers of the little birds!
By Joe Newman
Stop me if you’ve heard this one. A cop pulls over a driver with a giant panda in the front seat. “What are you doing with that panda?” he asks. “You should take that panda to the zoo!” The next week, the cop pulls over the same car and sees the same man and panda. “WTF!” the cop says. “I thought I told you to take that Panda to the zoo?” To which the man smiles and says, “I did. We enjoyed it so much that this week we’re going to the beach.” Da da dum. I’m here all week, folks.
Here’s hoping you got out with your favorite panda and enjoyed the fantastic weekend weather. Continue reading
By Tom Bridge
Tom: I am so ready for this weekend. Short weeks are always murder on my schedule, and weeks with jury duty are the same and this week was both! Amazing! Anyhow, this weekend looks to be about perfect, and that means I’m headed out on my bike. This weekend I’ll be taking Charlie down to Tour de Fat at Yards Park, as the bike festivals in DC are always a good time. Hopefully we won’t need a support vehicle. Sunday we’ll be heading to the Nats game to see if the Nationals have any spark this year or if they’re bound for another year of suffering.
Rachel: After a much needed night of rest and Netflix on Friday — and perhaps a quick pit stop at The Front Page for a lil’ happy hour action before — my weekend will include a stop off at Nats Park as they face the Texas Rangers and then a sweet jam session on Sunday as part of my FIRST Flashband experience. I signed up for the June Flashband project because the theme is “The Seven Songs of Country Music” and I freaking love country. So — if you like country too and wanna checkout this whole Flashband thing, be sure to stop by Hill Country Live on Sunday June 29!
Fedward: A convergence of events means we’re babysitting the Niecelets the same weekend that Sunny and Licorice (directed by none other than the Social Chair) opens, so we’re taking them on Saturday. If you’ve got young kids (target ages 2-5, but all are welcome) this odd couple of orangutans should be just the ticket. The show runs through June 14 so you’ve got plenty of opportunity to see it. Hashtag shameless plug. After babysitting duty ends Sunday evening we’ll head to the Passenger for a much needed brunch.
Joe: Is it really time to mow the lawn again? I should have read the fine print in that new home ownership manual more closely. Hopefully, I’ll be done in time to head over to RFK Lot 8 on Saturday afternoon to join the Screaming Eagles for the best tailgate in town (seriously). Then it’s time to root against the hated Sporks, also known as Sporting Kansas City as they take on the DC United at 7 p.m. A win moves the United into 2nd place in their conference — a huge step forward from last year’s disaster of a season. On Sunday, we’re hoping to finally make it over to the National Gallery of Art to see the Garry Winogrand photography exhibit before it leaves town June 8.
By Mickey
DC9 is hosting a strong bill of indie dance bands on Sunday, June 1, featuring Canadians Nightbox and Brooklyn’s Rush Midnight — both of whom have recent releases on Toronto’s Last Gang Records (notably home to Chromeo and formerly to Metric, Crystal Castles and other amazing bands).
Nightbox formed in Wicklow, Ireland, before relocating to Toronto in 2010. They have released several EPs, most recently The Panic Sequence, which the band produced and wrote with the assistance of from Al-P of MSTRKRFT and from Sebastien Grainger of Death from Above 1979.
The quintent—vocalist Jacob Bitove, drummer Nick Bitove, bassist Andrew Keyes, guitarist James Tebbitt and synths James Shelly—recently shared a video for their single “Burning” from the new EP.
I saw the band open for Albert Hammond Jr., guitarist of The Strokes while on a solo tour, at U Street Music Hall on Nov. 3. Their material is smooth and crisp, and it sounds very much like what you would expect from folks who work with dance collaborators like Death from Above and MSTRKRFT. Their sound makes them musical cousins to the likes of Holy Ghost! and Two Door Cinema Club, in my humble opinion, and their performance is very much that of a “polished” rock band.
Rush Midnight, born Russ Manning in Brooklyn, likes to keep things a little funky. He confesses to listening to Michael Jackson and Kool and the Gang when he was younger, but he also takes inspiration from likes of The Police. Rush Midnight released his first full-length, a self-titled 11-track record, only on Tuesday. He debuted a video for the song “Closer” last month.
Nightbox and Rush Midnight are joined by Philadephia’s Bel Heir. Buy tickets at Ticketfly or at the door.
Nighbox
w/ Rush Midnight and Bel Heir
DC9
Sunday, June 1
Doors @8pm
$10
All ages
perfect night for a game
courtesy of ekelly80
The Nationals suffered a tough 8-5 tenth inning loss in Washington on Wednesday against the Miami Marlins despite several opportunities to end the night with a win. Right-handed pitcher Jordan Zimermann started the night well enough by cruising through the first three innings. He gave up two hits in the first inning and faced 10 batters before the game broke open for Miami in the fourth.
Zimmermann lasted a total of five innings pitched and gave up four runs (three earned) and eight hits while walking one and striking out three on 80 pitches thrown (53 strikes). The fourth inning is when Miami did their greatest damage of the night to take the big 4-0 lead that would keep them ahead of Washington all evening.
Phoneography is arguably one of the most popular, if not the most popular, ways to take a picture. Cameras in many phones are now better quality than some of the original digital cameras that were released onto the market years ago and the size comparisons are a joke. Aside from the ease of portability and the excellent quality of the images is the ability to edit and share the photos on the same device with which they were taken. Hundreds of apps have been created that let you add any number of filters; adjust contrast, brightness, and saturation; crop and straighten; add text and emoji; upload to social media sites; and ultimately become an internet (and sometimes real-life) famous photographer*. Instagram is perhaps the best example of this. Flickr and Twitter have even jumped on the filter preset bandwagon. Love it or hate it Instagram created a platform for many brilliant photographers to showcase their talent. It also created the much maligned “selfie” and millions of photos of lunch. And dinner. And cappuccino art. You win some, you lose some I guess.
Many of the photos that get posted to our Flickr group and that we share with you in our photo posts were taken with phone cameras. This excellent shot by DoctorJ.Bass being one of them. The geometry of the lines and shapes of the parking garage and buildings across the street combined with the dramatic contrast in light and dark make for a very eye catching photo. It can still be hard to believe that such an amazing image was captured with a phone. Not only that but instead of having to use a computer to download and process the photo DoctorJ was able to open an app, import the photo (unless the app was used to take the photo), and select a filter preset. Once saved the photo was exported to Flickr for everyone to see.
I personally have at least a dozen photography related apps on my phone that I use regularly but I’d say the one I’m drawn to the most lately is VSCO Cam, which is what DoctorJ. used to edit this photo. I love the presets but it also allows you to edit the photo on your own – tweak the contrast, brighten, saturate, crop, straighten, fade, change the hue, and more. It has recently added a social media-esque feature they refer to as Grid. Users can edit their photos and upload them to their own grid where others can view them. You even get your own nifty website address. The beauty of Grid (or downside, depending on where your need for constant reassurance and confirmation of your greatness lies) is that while you can follow people, and have their photos show up in your feed, there are no “likes” to be exchanged or collected and you have no idea how many people are following you. It’s simply a clean, aesthetically pleasing way to post your photos for the world to see**. Of course the photos can also be saved to your phone and uploaded to any social media platform or photo site you want.
Are there any apps that you prefer? Maybe some that we haven’t heard of? Feel free to let us know in the comments. And you’re welcome to post your Instagram name, or VSCO page, or Tumblr, or whatever, as well. We always want to see your photos no matter the platform.
*results may vary
** For the record I am in no way affiliated with VSCO, I just happen to like their app.
By Brian Mosley
By Don
Oh wonderful long weekend, we’re so happy to see you here again. Why don’t you come more often? Oh well, we promise to enjoy you. A lot.
Tiff: Memorial Day weekend means summer is starting, which means getting a jump on all the warm-weather stuff the kid isn’t yet old enough to appreciate but we’ve been wanting to do. Berries at the new Brookland farmers market? Check. Splash park opening up at the Turkey Thicket Rec Center playground? Check. Pitchers of bourbon cherry lemonade with some new neighbors? You know it.
Esther: Although the weather will be lovely and there will be outdoor activities, dining, and drinks a-plenty to be had, my entire weekend will be spent at 1st Stage in Tyson’s Corner, for the opening of Bat Boy. Tickets are still available for the Saturday (2 pm and 8 pm) and Sunday (2 pm and 7 pm) shows. And did I mention that as much fun as it is to be enjoying the first weekend of summer outdoors (did spring really skip us entirely this year?), spending at least part of the weekend seeing Bat Boy at 1st Stage (1524 Spring Hill Road in McLean) is recommended. Oh yeah, and in case I failed to mention it, come see Bat Boy at 1st Stage (running weekends through June 22).
By Mickey
Comedian Michael Ian Black takes over the 9:30 Club Twitter account to answer questions on Friday, May 23 at 3pm before visiting town for his show at the 9:30 Club on Tuesday, May 27. (You may remember him from Wet Hot American Summer, Ed, The State and many other appearances.)
Be there! Both times!
Twitter Takeover!
Michael Ian Black
@930Club
3pm
Friday, May 23
All ages
By Mickey
“Ooh baby, I love your way, everyday
I wanna tell you I love your way, every way
I wanna be with you night and day, ooh yeah”
Everybody over 30 likely recognizes the lyrics to “Baby, I Love Your Way,” arguably the biggest hit from English guitar hero Peter Frampton.
And arguably, Frampton will play this classic, which itself turns 40 years old next year, when he comes to town on July 8 to perform at the Lincoln Theatre in DC!
Here’s a live rendition of it from a relatively recent performance at a radio station:
A glance at recent setlists by Frampton reveal that he plays his own classics as well as occasionally some surprising covers, like “Black Hole Sun” by Soundgarden? And “While My Guitar Gently Weeps” by the Beatles.
Those of us who have the young Frampton (circa his hit live album, Frampton Comes Alive!) stuck in our heads may recall that he has an association with the Beatles through his performance with the Bee Gees in Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band.
It’s on avaialable on Netflix and for rent on YouTube (through UniversalMovies) if you’re looking for something to completely distract yourself late, late at night sometime. :)
Peter Frampton
The Lincoln Theatre
Tuesday, July 8
doors @6:30pm
$55-$75 and VIP $175
All ages
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