Music
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Get Cultured (in a Comfortable Seat) at An die Musik
By Chris Yarrison
Without much of a window display, most people probably walk by An die Musik Live and think it’s closed, if they notice it at all.
“We’re working on that,” says George Manning, who’s worked there since before the CD store cum concert venue moved to Baltimore.
“There are plenty of places in Baltimore to see rock, pop, hip-hop,” says owner Henry Wong, “but nowhere really to find some culture.”
He means it’s hard to find a place in town to see an affordable and accessible ...
Sheryl Crow will Croon about Life, Love and War
By Alan Sculley
Like scores of rock and pop artists, Sheryl Crow knows the days when she’ll see her albums routinely sell several million copies have passed. With downloading and file sharing, record sales are down significantly in every genre.
So how will Crow keep her career on track in this environment? The best strategy, Crow said, is simply to stay true to her earthy brand of pop music and the heartfelt lyrics that populate her songs.
“The best I can do is make records that matter to me, that I think have integrity and just...
The Wayfarers Share Heartfelt Alt-Country
By Michael Wiles, Lead Music Writer
Every once in a while a band gets it just right. It’s a hard moment to capture, because so much goes into striking the right balance. Be too narrowly focused and you’re easily pigeon holed, be unfocused and you’ll be ignored. But, if you understand your art, your audience, and yourself from the inside out, you’ve got something truly unique and refreshing: You’ve got local alt-country band The Wayfarers.
Poised to release Sorrow & Snakes, their third album in eight years, on May 30th with a p...
36 Years Later, Bertha’s is Still a Bastion of Jazz & Blues
It’s been 36 years since music lovers (and successful classical musicians) Tony and Laura Norris bought a bar on the corner of Lancaster and Broadway in Fells Point.
Since then, Bertha’s has maintained its stake as not only a Baltimore landmark, but also a haven for local music lovers. Today, the bar and restaurant has a steady rotation of eight stellar house acts, which range from jazz to blues to dixieland to rock.
“We have some of the best jazz and blues in the city,” said Bernard Lyons, who works as a bartender and handles Bertha’s music.
<...Josh Ritter Crafts Inspired Folk Ballads
By Leah Scarpelli
Josh Ritter’s music speaks. His words and music are his — honestly, undeniably his, but all the while offering something for the every man, and creating endless capacity for individual interpretation. “The Temptation of Adam,” for example, one of his most beautiful songs, reads as a metaphor of man’s war-driven psyche even under the throes of an endearing romance, or the un-reality of love itself – how it lives underground, inside, with something (the always-near silo missile) threatening to destroy the euphoria.
Dark Meat will unleash the mayhem
Dark Meat is a 17-piece band from Georgia that is set to play the Talking Head this Friday. Leah Scarpelli went to their show in DC last weekend, to give you a sneak peek of what kind of mayhem is to come in Baltimore.
By Leah Scarpelli
Self-described “free-wheelin” group Dark Meat arrived in mass, later than expected, in a bright green 1972 GMC coach taking up nearly half of H Street. It was difficult not to notice the giant vintage bus parked in front of The Red and the Black; it demanded attention, much like the umpteen band member...
Warped Humor: Habersaat’s Punk Comedy Tour Hits the Sidebar
By Chris Yarrison
Comedian, publisher, and old schooler J.T. Habersaat sets out this month on Altercation Records’ Punk Standup Tour. He kicks off in Austin, Texas, on April 3 for the release of his new DVD, and will join up with the Vans Warped Tour midsummer, passing through the Sidebar April 14.
Habersaat runs modest indie/punk holdings Altercation Magazine and its recent spin-off Altercation Records. Starting out in New York City, he and his wife moved to Austin because they were “tired of all the snow.” From...
The Music Lives on with Bob Weir and Ratdog
By Matt Carr
The Grateful Dead name may have been put to rest in 1995 alongside Jerry Garcia, but the music has been kept alive through the band’s various postmortem incarnations. From the respectfully defined The Other Ones to the unfixed Phil Lesh & Friends, the songs of the Grateful Dead have proven to be a timeless and dependable live form of art.
The most consistent offshoot of the band has proven to be Ratdog. Led by singer and rhythm guitarist Bob Weir, Ratdog has maintained a reliable lineup and touring schedule for over a decade.
Ra Ra Riot Will Make You Smile
In just two years, Ra Ra Riot has made a name for itself with a cheery brand of indie-pop. Check out Syracuse’s darlings at the Ottobar with The Little Ones and Kadman on April 22.
The sextet formed in 2006 at Syracuse University, where most of them were current or former students. The band was swept out of the local venues at a head-spinning pace, recording a self-titled album with the Rebel Group, and touring with The Editors in their first year.
Several of the band members left school to tour with the band, including cellist Allie ...
Santana Opens the Season at Merriweather with New Jazz Sound
By Alan Sculley
Carlos Santana first blasted on the scene in the late 1960s with a landmark performance at the Woodstock music festival in 1969 and a trio of albums – “Santana,” “Santana II” and “Abraxis” – that offered a mix of rock, blues and Afro-Cuban music and plenty of instrumental fireworks.
The trailblaizing musician will open the season at Merriweather Post Pavillion in Columbia with an April 6 show, but a lot has changed for Santana since you may have last seen him.
Since the 1999 release of his blockbuster album Supernatural, Santana’s mus...
