https://washingtoncitypaper.com/article/660977/the-runaway-was-going-to-close-but-now-its-not/
The Runaway DC survives as it got its rent lowered.
But “We’re gonna continue doing shows, but probably doing more on the DJ side. And we’re going to be more selective on the shows,” says Lilyea, excited for the possibilities. “Now we have a chef and having the landlord reduce the rent so significantly—it’s huge …”
― curmudgeon, Wednesday, 24 January 2024 15:27 (eight months ago) link
Former Burnt Sugar pianist & synth & organ player Marc Cary, who also played piano with Dizzy Gillespie , Abbey Lincoln & other jazz greats plus Erykah Badu, now lives near Baltimore and is doing a birthday gig for himself Saturday at Takoma Station in Maryland near DC with his group Marc Cary and Indigenous People. The group membership varies but always includes DC go-go musicians because of Cary's lifelong love of go-go and that he played in go-go bands in high school
https://washingtoncitypaper.com/article/661091/marc-cary-tick-tickboom-and-more-best-bets-for-jan-25-31/
― curmudgeon, Thursday, 25 January 2024 18:49 (eight months ago) link
Hmmm, now the Runaway DC has a go fund me. Their website still lists no music events after January 21. An IG story just showed a mid February clothes and records sale
https://www.gofundme.com/f/we-were-going-to-close-now-not-still-need-help?utm_campaign=p_cp+share-sheet&utm_medium=copy_link_all&utm_source=customer
― curmudgeon, Tuesday, 30 January 2024 05:45 (seven months ago) link
Runaway dc now lists a few shows on their Facebook, while some locals are grumbling about how their booking policy wasn’t so great in the past either.
Not many are supporting their go fund me. Can’t blame anyone for not doing so.
― curmudgeon, Wednesday, 31 January 2024 18:12 (seven months ago) link
https://washingtoncitypaper.com/article/662317/el-laberinto-del-coco-bonnie-and-clyde-city-lights-for-feb-1-7/
I previewed the Thursday night February 1 El Laberinto del Coco gig @ U of Md Clarice Smith Center plus the Friday February 2nd showings on WHUT-HD , Howard U PBS, at 11 am and 11 pm of Beverly Lindsay Johnson's new film "DC Street Jocks Rocked the House," with DJ Kool, Arthur Maniac McCloud, and Sam the Man Burns and more. Doc will also be showing at other times through Feb 18 on HU PBS .
― curmudgeon, Thursday, 1 February 2024 03:37 (seven months ago) link
Future Band DC got play go-go in Cuba and were there with Ron Moten and Professor Natale Hopkinson from the Dont Mute DC organization.
Wammy awards voting is going on now. I don't know who many of the nominated acts are . It's the usual goofy thing where folks are begging on their Instagram for friends to vote for them
― curmudgeon, Tuesday, 6 February 2024 17:37 (seven months ago) link
My partner had a bad experience booking a show at the Runaway. The people were perfectly nice as people, but they were not up front about the money / room fee. Certainly left me feeling a bit indifferent about the music side of things going away there.
― grandavis, Tuesday, 6 February 2024 20:36 (seven months ago) link
Sounds like that has been the experience of many with the Runaway.
Nobody is giving to their go-fund me
― curmudgeon, Monday, 12 February 2024 17:17 (seven months ago) link
Throughout this process, much has been said about the challenges of city life — street artists, for example, and crime
DC Mayor Bowser’s letter re retaining Wizards and Caps blames “street artists “ first!
She has failed to get the DC crime lab working , the number of cops and private security folks in the area dropped over the years, but yeah let’s blame loud percussionists , buskers, graffiti.
― curmudgeon, Monday, 12 February 2024 17:22 (seven months ago) link
$75 raised of $25,000 goal
oof
― B. Amato (Boring, Maryland), Monday, 12 February 2024 17:57 (seven months ago) link
Ooof indeed. As an aside, my partner had trouble getting any local bands to join the bill. Several have noted after the fact that they didn't want to play there.
― grandavis, Tuesday, 13 February 2024 17:28 (seven months ago) link
https://washingtoncitypaper.com/article/679074/a-gatsby-party-and-billy-dee-williams-city-lights-for-feb-15-21/
My preview of Friday Feb 16 Chicago r& b singer and poet Jamila Woods at the Howard Theatre is included in the link
― curmudgeon, Thursday, 15 February 2024 15:29 (seven months ago) link
Haven’t listened yet to new J Robbins album Basilisk or the new Mary Timony singles out before the release of her new album
― curmudgeon, Thursday, 15 February 2024 15:47 (seven months ago) link
Reuben Jackson, who alternates as dj with Larry Appelbaum on WPFW on Sundays 4 to 6, who used to write for City Paper a bit, who is a published poet, jazz archivist at the Felix Grant collection at UDC, and a busy social media poster just had had a massive stroke about 10 days ago, and has been moved to hospice. Tragic news. Jackson spoke for a lengthy period of time to me for my Greg Tate obit that focused on Tate's life in DC. Jackson was friends with Greg Tate and his brother Brian growing up in DC. A good guy.
― curmudgeon, Thursday, 15 February 2024 16:23 (seven months ago) link
Folk-artist and performer Lonnie Holley will be backed by Lee Bains from Alabama Joe Lally, and Brendan Canty at the Kennedy Center Millennium Stage tonight from 6 to 7 pm Eastern US time. The show is free but ticketed. It will also be streamed on the Millennium Stage Youtube & Facebook page
https://www.kennedy-center.org/whats-on/millennium-stage/2024/february/lonnie-holley/
― curmudgeon, Friday, 16 February 2024 18:38 (seven months ago) link
https://www.vermontpublic.org/local-news/2024-02-16/one-of-a-kind-poet-dj-and-jazz-scholar-reuben-jackson-dies-at-67
Damn , this hurts. RIP Reuben Jackson. I will cherish that long phone call we had where you told me about going to Greg and Brian Tate’s house as a teenager where they had jazz records at one end of a room and punk records at the other. You told me about the poetry scene then and the early days at dc space and so much more about your DC and how self-proclaimed awkward Black nerds like yourself fit in.
― curmudgeon, Saturday, 17 February 2024 06:53 (seven months ago) link
Rare Essence streaming from K Ctr tonight
https://www.kennedy-center.org/whats-on/millennium-stage/2024/february/rare-essence/
― curmudgeon, Saturday, 17 February 2024 23:11 (seven months ago) link
https://www.washingtonpost.com/dc-md-va/2024/02/21/j-robbins-concert-dc/
I want to love the new J Robbins album ( he’s best known from being in Jawbox and Government Issue), and like how he mentions steps he takes to keep his new album and live show fresh, but on first listen it’s to me just good and not innovative enough
― curmudgeon, Wednesday, 21 February 2024 23:16 (seven months ago) link
The Wammies voters again did not nominate any of the Capital Bop top jazz albums for Wammies awards. Washington Post Chris R&chards fave dc rapper Wifi Gawd had one of his top 2023 albums of the year, but no Wammy nomination. Some guy named Ethan Spalding got nominated for best rock artist and best rap artist at Wammies. Anybody know his music?
― curmudgeon, Thursday, 22 February 2024 15:43 (seven months ago) link
Spalding calls his sound traprock
― curmudgeon, Thursday, 22 February 2024 15:45 (seven months ago) link
WAMU just suddenly shut down DCist
― curmudgeon, Friday, 23 February 2024 15:00 (seven months ago) link
They’re even blocking insult to the site. Fuckers.
― Chris L, Friday, 23 February 2024 15:15 (seven months ago) link
https://dcist.com/story/20/04/30/two-local-ethiopian-jazz-greats-have-new-albums/
Blocking access to my 2020 freelancer article for them on Hailu Mergia and Selam Woldemariam
― curmudgeon, Friday, 23 February 2024 16:07 (seven months ago) link
https://www.ninaprotocol.com/articles/no-ones-moving-to-dc-to-get-famous-maybe-thats-why-the-music-is-so-good
interesting article on dc high bpm techno dance club music, dc experimental rap, and dc rhizome experimental jazz , but I wish article could have also mentioned Green Zone middle eastern djs, Adobo DMV, Ethiopian live music & dj scene ; dc Caribbean DJ scene. Article acknowledges dc go-go and dc punk as historic & still alive
― curmudgeon, Tuesday, 27 February 2024 18:50 (seven months ago) link
https://www.washingtonpost.com/dc-md-va/2024/02/28/new-thing-exhibit-american-university-museum/
Early 70s DC in exhibit
― curmudgeon, Wednesday, 28 February 2024 18:08 (seven months ago) link
https://washingtoncitypaper.com/article/681410/when-the-music-stopped-remembering-reuben-jackson/
ALona in City Paper re Reuben Jackson
― curmudgeon, Wednesday, 28 February 2024 19:31 (seven months ago) link
Dorothea Lange: Grab a Hunk of Lightning doc plus a doc short on great current photographer Dee Dwyer who is best known for her SE DC photos and is a go-go fan; Sat March 2 from 2 to 4:30 @ngadc . See the great Lange exhibit too
https://www.nga.gov/calendar/film-programs/art-films-special-screenings/dorothea-lange-grab-hunk-lightning.html/2024/03/02/1400
― curmudgeon, Thursday, 29 February 2024 22:25 (six months ago) link
https://theforeigncorrespondentsdc.bandcamp.com/album/lovin-you-aint-easy
The Foreign Correspondents is a power pop band with Brendan Canty , and former DCers Ted Leo, Michael Hampton, and Sohrob Habion
― curmudgeon, Friday, 1 March 2024 20:03 (six months ago) link
Sounds interesting! Ted Leo was, of course, in Chisel with my former colleague John Dugan. Next time I saw him he was out with Aimee Mann and Liz Phair. Brendan has been around forever. I confess I don't know the other two.
― alpaca lips now (Ye Mad Puffin), Friday, 1 March 2024 22:50 (six months ago) link
Michael Hampton was in DC hardcore band Faith , and then in some other bands . Lives in NY now I think
Sohrob was in dc postpunk band Edsel, and I think is now in postpunk band Savak. He lives in NY or Jersey now too.
― curmudgeon, Sunday, 3 March 2024 15:26 (six months ago) link
DJ RBI mix of classic old and obscure new hiphop on Saturday nights 9 to 12 midnight last night on WpFw was so good.
I listened for a bit in the car as my wife and I were coming back from Baltimore where we saw the Ethiopian art at the Walters Museum and heard dc Ethiopian Ras Band there with guest vocalists. They had free tej Ethiopian honey wine samples and food too. We ate a full Ethiopian meal at Tabor afterwards.
― curmudgeon, Sunday, 3 March 2024 15:31 (six months ago) link
https://wtop.com/music/2024/03/michael-reidy-dynamic-front-man-of-revered-dc-rock-band-razz-dies-at-73/
Michael Reidy was a great, charismatic front man for rock/ proto-punk band (the) Razz in late 70s/80s in DC. He was also a clever artist /painter who had art exhibits in local galleries, and designed cool flyers and zine ads for the band.
― curmudgeon, Wednesday, 6 March 2024 19:05 (six months ago) link
https://washingtoncitypaper.com/article/682485/2024-spring-arts-guide/
I previewed late 70s early 80s Urban Verbs rock band talk ; Orquesta Akokan; Amaarae; Ms Kim; Arushi Mudgal dane & music ; & George Pelecanos for City Paper Spring Arts 2024. The Pelecanos one is under “books” but that Palisades Backstage event will have music too. Details in the preview DC rock fans. Also, the new Pelecanos book is kind of wacky -- written from the perspective of a dog who gre up in a public housing project, and later lived with a drunk, and then a drug dealer among others
― curmudgeon, Thursday, 7 March 2024 18:48 (six months ago) link
If you pluck my name from there and enter in blogspot as well, you can find my March 2024 DMV calendar with some gigs by touring acts in various genres plus local bands and djs I am interested in from such genres as Ethiopian music, go-go, Latino genres, rock, r& b, rap, South Asian, old-school and new school African genres. A bit of jazz and experimental but not as comprehensive for jazz as the Capital Bop list
― curmudgeon, Thursday, 7 March 2024 21:52 (six months ago) link
Love your monthly list
― from a prominent family of bassoon players (Boring, Maryland), Thursday, 7 March 2024 22:39 (six months ago) link
Thanks.
Typo above, should read - Arushi Mudgal dance and music (her sister is 1 of 2 vocalists for that event)
― curmudgeon, Friday, 8 March 2024 00:30 (six months ago) link
Saw the crappy 9 and 53 Washington Wizards win a basketball game last night @ Capital One & then we stuck around of course for Northeast Groovers and Backyard Band go-go . we had bought 2 tickets for $25 total via a special deal. Huge turnout for the go-go.
― curmudgeon, Saturday, 9 March 2024 16:22 (six months ago) link
https://www.washingtonian.com/2024/03/08/a-dc-indie-rock-musician-is-now-ceo-of-amtrak/
Member of 90s art pop groups Lorelei and Chessie is now head of Amtrak
― curmudgeon, Saturday, 9 March 2024 19:49 (six months ago) link
Me on Michael Reidy of late 70s DC rock band Razz and his provocative visual art for galleries, Razz ads in the Unicorn Times , Razz record sleeves, Washington City Paper , and punk fanzines
https://washingtoncitypaper.com/article/685208/remembering-michael-reidy-musician-and-visual-artist/
― curmudgeon, Wednesday, 20 March 2024 16:51 (six months ago) link
Dear Rhizome community,
An UPDATE, and an INVITATION…
1. We have NO NEWS on when/if we are ever going to actually get kicked out of everyone's favorite house on Maple Street. We're still there, and still going strong.
2. We have YES NEWS on a potential "forever home" for Rhizome, and we want to share it with you.
VERY BRIEFLY: We have an opportunity to purchase a building nearby with the help of a big grant from the DC Arts Commission.
We will be hosting a TOWN HALL on TUESDAY March 26 at 7pm to share information about the building and how YOU can make it happen. (Yes, we need HELP!)
To attend meeting by zoom you need to register on their google doc. Look for a link in their social media or on their website
― curmudgeon, Friday, 22 March 2024 16:05 (six months ago) link
Very interested to see what Rhizome figures out. Hopefully they end up in a great spot and can keep things rolling along.
― grandavis, Friday, 22 March 2024 16:33 (six months ago) link
The Urban Verbs nostalgia talk at Palisades yesterday/Sunday was the same time as the WPFW jazz dj, poet, archivist , writer Reuben Jackson memorial poetry tribute service at Josephine Butler Center, so I chose the latter. Very emotional and touching. Poets read Jackson poems and then read their own work about Jackson. Plus they showed an Ellie Walton 6 minute video interview with Jackson. Some of those Jackson poets hit hard .
― curmudgeon, Monday, 25 March 2024 15:36 (six months ago) link
https://washingtoncitypaper.com/article/686524/washington-women-in-jazz-festival-city-lights-for-march-28-to-april-3/
Some of these events are a bity pricey, but once a year DC's Washington Women in Jazz fest happens with a range of styles
― curmudgeon, Thursday, 28 March 2024 14:48 (six months ago) link
Leonsis just did a make nice tweet to Ron Moten of Dont Mute DC, while simultaneously I am seeing this:
Axios -What we're watching: Another Leonsis lament, noisy street buskers, are also included in the terms. Monumental proposes creating an 'Entertainment District' around the arena with rules against vending, loitering, and noise
― curmudgeon, Friday, 29 March 2024 16:55 (five months ago) link
January W Post article on the buskers
https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2024/01/18/ted-leonsis-street-musician-noise-gallery-place/
― curmudgeon, Friday, 29 March 2024 17:22 (five months ago) link
https://www.capitalbop.com/rhizome-dc-community-investment/
Rhizome is gonna try to buy a building on Alaska Ave off of Georgia Ave in DC. They got a $350,000 grant from DC Arts , and the hard part is going to be raising 400, 000 more via loans and donations. I think if they raise 200 grand , they then get a bit more time before having to come up with remaining 200 grand
I listened to the Zoom. New location is not near a Metro station, just near Metro bus routes. They seem more optimistic about raising the bucks than I would be
― curmudgeon, Friday, 29 March 2024 22:25 (five months ago) link
I’d be willing to donate, but the document I saw is that they are going to crowdsource loans of a minimum of $2,500.
― Slorg is not on the Slerf Team, you idiot, you moron (Boring, Maryland), Saturday, 30 March 2024 00:17 (five months ago) link
They are supposed to based on my listening to the zoom have a separate donation link to a go fund me . But yeah for the loan they want more - 2500 . Which they say they will pay back in 10 to 15 years
― curmudgeon, Saturday, 30 March 2024 01:00 (five months ago) link
https://givebutter.com/rhizomedc
Link for Rhizome donations
― curmudgeon, Saturday, 30 March 2024 23:39 (five months ago) link
Thanks! If they haven’t used their email list yet to blast the link, they should.
― Slorg is not on the Slerf Team, you idiot, you moron (Boring, Maryland), Sunday, 31 March 2024 01:58 (five months ago) link