The Week In... Trying to Make a Point
I dumped last week's column literally right before I posted it. I had written a tongue-in-cheek how-to about manning a merch table at a concert. I liked it, thought it was funny. But I didn't post it. Why? Because BigYawn is not about me writing to hear myself talk. Everything on the site should have a point, even if it is hard to find. And my column didn't have one. Not even close. With the propensity of music blogs springing up out of nowhere – much like numerous varieties of odd bugs in your home – this got me to think about the point of blogs or websites like BigYawn; what we are trying to accomplish and more importantly, what actually gets accomplished.
From a goal perspective, our goal at BigYawn – if I may paraphrase – is to open up the minds of DC music listeners to good music, whether it is here at home, or on the other side of the world. And along the way it is great if we find a way to get some exposure for local acts, or get someone not from DC interested in the music scene here. Contrary to popular belief, our goal is not to promote every DC band that sends us a CD. Nor is it to hype up every show that happens in this town. Like everyone else, we are picky music consumers. But, because of who we are and what we do, we tend to get exposure to a lot of artists many of you don't. And we want to tell you about the good ones, and help you become an educated consumer regarding the bad ones. It doesn't mean we're always right, but we hope we can at least give you the tools to help decide for yourself.
So, it is hard to know if we actually accomplish our goal. Plenty of people tell us we are, but there are enough people who have literally crapped all over us as if we ran over their dog in the driveway, too. So far, the positives outweigh the naysayers, and as long as that keep happening, we'll keep plugging along and trying to figure out how to make this place better. In the meantime, if you have any suggestions – the mere fact you are reading this shows you care – feel free to send them to us.
Stuff I'm listening to and expected to hate:
The new Rainer Maria album, Catastrophe Keeps Us Together, is really good. I guess you could say this trio has really moved away from the emo scene they sort of, maybe, kind of, used to hang out with. The title track and first single, "Catastrophe," is one of the better pop songs I've heard so far this year.
The new Gomez CD, How We Operate, really surprised me. The one known British jam band has really come into their own. To be honest, I wasn't planning on even giving this album a chance, but my iTunes happened to just hit it randomly, and low and behold, it was Gomez. A bit more twang for your buck perhaps? More pop less prog? This is a huge improvement over their recent material. Oh, they are still playing Bonnaroo this year though. But so is Radiohead, so beware calling a duck a duck until it quacks.
www.rainermaria.com
www.gomeztheband.com
Stuff I am liking a lot lately:
Mr. Beast. The more I hear Mogwai the more I think they are capable of evoking an entire day of my life, all the ups and downs, in a single 5 minute track. I honestly still haven't come to terms with the live post-rock show (except for Slint, I HAD to go see Slint), but Mogwai may finally help me get there.
www.mogwai.co.uk
Stuff I am not quite sure of yet:
TV on the Radio's sophomore album, Return to Cookie Mountain. Some of it is a hit, some a miss, maybe? This will take more research, but I love the first track, “Wolf Like Me.” I'm a huge TVOTR fan, so expect a breakthrough soon.
www.tvontheradio.com
Stuff I'm listening to right this second:
This dude named Dave Curtain passed along some tunes to my girlfriend. He lives in this zany mansion up in Potomac, along with lots of other artists. Bellflur practices up there. Anyway, he's a singer/songwriter of sorts, but his more worked out material tends towards electronica as well. This particular CD is called Sunchild, but I'm not sure if that is the official artist title or the name of the material. He has another disc called Breakfast. Again, not sure what is called what. Not bad, but I prefer the more worked out songs. No links for this guy, but be on the lookout.
Shows this week worth seeing (according to me):
Monday
-Locals Deleted Scenes @ DC9
Tuesday
-Islands w' Why? @ Black Cat
-Lets French @ DC9
Wednesday
-Fruit Bats @ Black Cat
Thursday
-Two if by Sea w' Telograph@ DC9
(the final night of thier residency)
-(Sound of) Kaleidoscope w' Oranges Band @ Black Cat
-SpankRock @ Ottobar (Make the trip to see Spank in his hometown!)
Friday
-Antibalas Afrobeat Orchestra @ 9:30 Club
Might see me at DC9 this week, and while I'd love to head to Charm City, it isn't likely to happen.
