6 posts tagged “dc”

Last night, the downstairs neighbor knocked on my door. And when I opened it, he asked, somewhat rhetorically, whether we’d had the TV on or were listening to music after midnight the evening before.

To be honest, I wasn’t sure if we were, but it wouldn’t be out of character. We’re both night owls. I’m convinced nothing important happens before 8 a.m., and all of life’s most interesting moments happen sometime after 9 p.m.

But I apologized, because even if we weren’t guilty, I knew what it meant. It meant he can hear everything from the apartment below. And that means he’s gotten the full force of my recent obsession with Destroyer, Dan Bejar and more specifically, a guitar solo in the song “European Oils.” More on that later.

I’ve got a complicated relationship with Mr. Bejar. As a member of the New Pornographers, Dan acts like he’s too good to appear on stage with the rest of the band, like they’re just some silly side project to his real band, Destroyer. The last time I saw the New Pornographers, he behaved atrociously. He barely deigned to come on stage, and when he did, he was munching away on a bagel and drinking a Molson (what else would a Canadian drink?). It was if the audience at the 9:30 Club had interrupted Dan’s snack time.

I hate him. He’s a petulant child. And yet. He’s living proof that sometimes, we’re inexplicably drawn to assholes. Because in recent weeks, I’ve fallen totally and completely for his game. I’m now convinced he’s the driving force behind the best New Pornographers’ songs (although he’s notoriously cagey about which songs he pens). Dan’s rocketed to the top of my hate-fuck list. Oh, wipe that judgmental look off your face! Like you don’t have such a list.

I’ve been listening to Destroyer’s Rubies almost exclusively for two months, Streethawk: A Seduction non-stop in the last week. He dropped a new album recently,Trouble in Dreams, and I’ll be picking that up too. And as my downstairs neighbor can probably attest, I’ve been rocking a specific moment on the song “European Oils” like a crack addict for the past month. It occurs about a minute 45 into the song, where Dan sings the following lyrics:

“She needs release/She needs to feel at peace with her father,” and then he half shouts/half whispers “THE FUCKING MANIAC!” From there, he rips into one of the best guitar solos I’ve heard in years. Listen.

What makes his music, and this song, so compelling for me is that you never quite know where it’s going. I’m not the first to make this observation. There’s a Destroyer drinking game that has you take a drink for “moments of unexpected sweetness” in his songs.

If I take a drink for all of these moments when I see him at the Black Cat next Friday, I expect I’ll be shit faced on Dan’s unexpected sweetness. I can’t wait.

Can I give you a little truth here? A beautiful woman can get away with a lot. Men are just waiting to forgive them all sorts of sins, including the sin of being not all that interesting when it comes to music.

Look, I like Georgie James for what they are, which is a great power pop band making interesting pop music.  This isn’t done enough these days. They are not rock pretenders, which I appreciate. And they are from DC, which I’ll always give an extra pass to. But if Laura Burhenn were ugly, would we be putting up with this? As my friend said at the Black Cat show Saturday night, “she looks like the indie pop Ashley Simpson,” which is pretty dead on.

Here’s some photographic evidence from my friend Doug.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/darkwaterphotography/2392439077/

See! She fell out of the pretty tree and hit every damn branch.

Ok, that said, some notes from the show:

1.  We missed the opening band that opened for the opening band. Me and the Budz had some dresses that needed to be taken out on the town and that only gay men would fully appreciate. And they did not disappoint. Some fierce queens called us “fierce.” Mission accomplished.

2.  Olivia & the Housemates: Olivia and her mates were fucking delightful. They’re just a great hard-working pop band with a lot of heart and integrity. I worked briefly at a previous job with Olivia. Before she quit the job to tour full time with Washington Social Club, I remember she made some comment about Elvis Costello’s influence on her. We worked at opposite ends of the department, but I heard and still remember the comment, because I instantly thought, ok, there’s a kindred spirit. I’d recommend paying attention next time they play near you.

3. One of the bartenders at the Black Cat was very ironically wearing a vintage New Kids on the Block T-shirt. I cannot say he wasn’t pleased with himself.

4. Where was the breathless Bob Boilen? I expect the NPR crew to be at every show of every band they promote on Project Song.

5. Our side conversation about Big Star went on waaaay too long. Yes, they are the greatest thing ever to happen to power pop. Maybe they are the only thing ever to happen to power pop.  And yes, I will make snap judgments about people who don’t like them. But isn’t singing their hosannas a little like saying you like goodness, light and fat  babies? Do we really need to talk about this?

6. Georgie James took the stage and I reflected on what a perfectly lovely band they really are. They are tight. They are talented. It’s pop, but it’ll never get major radio play because it’s not dumb enough. And yet…I find I can’t completely get there for them. A Pitchfork reviewer once called them “wonderfully uninteresting,” which is just what they are. I’m never going to sit up nights listening to their songs on repeat. They are not ever going to be the musical pill I go to when I need something to get me through. But I’d see them almost anytime they’re in town.

Editor's Note: If this isn't news to you, I apologize, but Liz Phair is writing a novel. FS told me so.

D.C. is a ghost town. Your summer romance is over. So is your youth. Brood about it all fall to this rockin' bass line.

Murder rate is back up in DC to levels that remind us of the cracked-out Marion Barry days. Police have declared an emergency (whether this is because the crimes are happening in the more affluent hoods is difficult to say).

Attended a dinner party last night that was all talk of apocalypse, avian flu, and various strategies to escape from the city. Would a motorbike work? Answer: No, you'd just end up getting clotheslined by someone bigger than you looking to take it. Could we hole up in the Dupont Circle apartment? And if we did escape, where would we go? "What about Houston, what about Detroit, what about Pittsburgh, Pa? Why stay in college? Why go to night school?"

The Talking Heads' "This Must Be The Place" continues to be my favorite TH song. But "Life During Wartime" just feels right today. Listen to some of it on iTunes here. 

Byrne has a brilliant blog. You should check it out.

It was 1994. Summer. You wandered the DC suburbs (or wherever you lived) aimlessly. You were angst-filled and shiftless. You worked a summer job doing “something close to nothing, but different than the day before,” as Prince once penned about working life. 

Before the days of iTunes, you had to make your way to the strip-mall nightmare mega stores (Tysons Corner) to listen to music you didn’t already own. This dates me.

Pavement had just released their sophomore effort, “Crooked Rain, Crooked Rain.” So on this humid (high of 91) Washington summer day, I go back to Steve Malkmus et. al and to those gold soundz…

Because Ted Leo is loyal to DC. Because he loves the Clash. Because he likes soccer. Because you have to be a real misanthrope not to like his music. Because people actually dance at his shows, unlike most indie rock performances where people think they're too cool to move. Check it out below.