Slaughter Beach, Dog (solo)
– ALL AGES- STANDING ROOM ONLYSLAUGHER BEACH, DOG (SOLO) Hey, I just got off the phone with Jake Ewald. He says hello. I called him to tell him I’ve been digging the new Slaughter Beach Dog album he’d sent me. I’d been playing it around the house a lot, and had a question about it. He picked up on the first ring and told me that it’s called Crying Laughing Waving Smiling and that it’s going to come out on September 22nd on Lame-O Records. That wasn’t really my question, but I guess it’s good to know.I actually called to ask him if his van really got stolen. He mentions it in one of my favorite songs on the record, called “Engine”. I’ve been a fan of Slaughter Beach Dog for a little while now, and I know that Jake can tell a fantastic story, though I also know a great storyteller can stretch the truth. But Jake said his van really did get stolen in 2020, right at the top of the pandemic. It’s also true that just a little while later he moved from Philadelphia, where he’d been living for a decade, to a house in the Poconos. Once there, he found he had less distraction and a calmer mind. He started going for walks and listening to music. He found some new appreciation for the “old guys”, as he said on the phone- Neil Young, Randy Newman, Tom Waits, those types. Personally, I’d call them the “classic guys”, but I’m a bit older so I’m probably somewhat defensive about age. Anyways, to me it seems like some of this might have led to an old school approach to making a record. In July 2022, the whole Slaughter Beach, Dog band (Jake, Zach, Ian, Adam, Logan) gathered at their long time studio The Metal Shop back in Philly with a bunch of songs Jake had written over the past two years. Jake would show them a new song, singing and playing an acoustic guitar, and then the band would all play what they were hearing for the song. Classic, human, and not overthought. They’d talked before entering the studio about this approach: emphasising the instinctual, not being afraid, listening to each other. The band caught fire. They captured fifteen songs in the first five days. The priority throughout was serving the song. I’ve been listening for days now. I can tell you these songs got served. There’s beautiful space in everything. It’s patient and aware. A few months back I watched Slaughter Beach Dog play a sold out club in Brooklyn. The band was awesome, and the audience sang every damn one of the words to their songs back to them. It was impressive. But I know it’s not effortless, and Jake Ewald has been persistent. Starting with Modern Baseball, he’s led two different bands over countless tours of this country. He’s gathered fans around the world. He’s dedicated his life to rock and roll. He told me that sounds dramatic. Probably, but it’s also true. So as much as it speaks to our own modern age, my favorite part of this record is its timelessness. Before I got off the phone with Jake, I told him that this sounds like a record we’ll listen to in ten years, twenty years, beyond. It should get more and more people into Slaughter Beach Dog and the already deep catalog of music they’ve built. Next time I see the band, there will be even more people singing every word of every song. I’ll be in the back of the room, raising a toast to my pal Jake, congratulating him on the success of this fantastic record. I just hope he’ll still take my calls. – Craig FinnERIN RAE
Hex Wizard w/ The Beard Cult
– ALL AGES- STANDING ROOM ONLYHEX WIZARDComing out of Asheville, North Carolina, Hex Wizard brings the party with their high energy rock-n-roll, along with the entrancing psychedelic melodies that scream “rock is not dead!” Formed in the late summer of 2022, Hex Wizard is an original power trio comprised of front performer Michael Seng (guitar & vocals), Casey Willis (bass & visual effects), and Lee Rubenstein (percussion). Hex Wizard will always bring more music to your ears, and less dead space between songs in a live setting. “Heady shredders from Asheville with a melodic, funky yet decidedly heavy take on psych rock. Recommended if you like Jimi Hendrix, Black Sabbath, All Them Witches.” – Compass/Blank Newspaper, Knoxville TNTHE BEARD CULTThe Beard Cult based out of Asheville NC deliver a unique blend of stoner rock that pulls the listener in. With Shawn McCoy on lead guitar and vocals, Brett Spivey on bass and backing vocals, Brad Justice on rhythm guitar and Papillon DeBoer (Poppy) on drums. Let them take you on a journey into altered states with their churning and chugging riffs and melodic vocals. Feel the massive thunder clap of sound these 4 emit from the stage. Let them help you find your inner heavy.
Bit Brigade performs “Ninja Gaiden” + “Double Dragon” LIVE
ALL AGESSTANDING ROOM ONLYBIT BRIGADE PERFORMS “NINJA GAIDEN” + “DOUBLE DRAGON” LIVE Bit Brigade performs rock covers of full NES game soundtracks as their gamer speed runs the game live on stage.”When was the last time you attended a live music performance with a genuine element of risk involved? And no, going to a Gwar show with a white t-shirt on doesn’t count. When Bit Brigade takes the stage your mind will frantically oscillate between “Oh! Agh!! Please don’t die!!” and “YES! He’s doing it!!” Combining the dread and daring of a live video game speed run with the spot-on technique of a live band covering the musical accompaniment to everything you’re seeing on-screen in real time, Bit Brigade will have you swinging between the two mediums. From thrashing about to live renditions of your favorite stage themes, fingers yearning to the sky in a rock ‘n roll parody of sea anemones seeming to silently plead, “Please, feed us more fretboard pyrotechnics!,” to being locked in stock-still rapture as the infallible maestro of the d-pad, Noah McCarthy, takes on the final boss and risks his video game life under the threat of intense peer scorn (or the reward of night-long glory and a credits score). No matter the outcome, Bit Brigade must play on until the deed is done – which it always is – on the first (and last) try. Once Noah’s NES buzzes on, there’s no turning back.” – Metalhead Mike of The Shizz, summer 2011
Eric Slick w/ Scott McMicken
ALL AGES – STANDING ROOM ONLY ERIC SLICK Eric Slick is a singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist from Nashville, TN. He’s performed and recorded with Dr. Dog, Taylor Swift, The War On Drugs, Waxahatchee, Kevin Morby, Ruston Kelly, Adrian Belew, Ween, and many more. Eric has several studio albums, including 2020’s acclaimed Wiseacre. SCOTT McMICKEN Scott McMicken has always thrived on switching things up. As a founding member of Philadelphia rock mainstays Dr. Dog, McMicken and his bandmates consistently explored new sounds and new ways of writing songs across 10 gleefully eclectic albums before their 2021 hiatus. While McMicken has quietly released solo projects via cassette and vinyl on his own label Press On Records, for his latest effort, he’s done something he’s only done once before: started a band. With Shabang, out March 31, 2023, via ANTI-, comes the debut album from Scott McMicken and THE EVER-EXPANDING, and he’s made some of his freest and most adventurous music yet: a wonderfully collaborative collection of songs that feel lived in and true. Part Basement Tapes and Paul Simon, and part a globetrotting foray into progressive sounds, Shabang is some of the most exploratory music of McMicken’s career. There are elements of jazz, dub reggae, country, and bossa nova throughout these 13 tracks, each exuding the excitement of being in a room with several other curious musicians. Opener “What About Now” originally started as a folk-rock dirge but when McMicken decided to add some bounce to the rhythm, the whole thing opened up. Even songs that dig deep into personal conflict like “Reconcile” radiate with a joy that’s tangible and rocking.“I’m constantly trying at all costs to avoid feeling like a singer-songwriter,” says McMicken. “I would like to create a welcoming place that we can share rather than trying to yank you into my inner world.”
Loving w/ Fog Lake
– ALL AGES- STANDING ROOM ONLYLOVINGLoving is the musical collaboration of David Parry, Lucas Henderson and Jesse Henderson. The band formed by way of a long-distance recording project (Victoria – Toronto) that resulted in the creation of their debut self-titled EP. After the unexpected embrace of this work, the band reconvened in Victoria, BC to begin playing live shows and work on new material.Following in the path of their debut EP, If l am only my thoughts was home recorded and represents a deeper exploration of the band’s creative process – a process marked by an appreciation for the generative limitations of recording to tape. The resulting album constructs a warm and dreamy sonic landscape kept adrift by existentially oriented lyrics and an unspecified all-encompassing sense of nostalgia.At present, their live performances showcase the talents of Evan Cheadle (guitar), Justin Devries (drums), and Patrick Rendell (bass+backup vocals). Previous touring members include Bren Davidson of Subject (RIP), and Keenan Mittag-Degala of Elan Noon. LOVING is currently working on a new LP to follow up their 2020 release, If I Am Only My Thoughts. FOG LAKE Fog Lake is the solo project of Newfoundland, Canada artist Aaron Powell. Over the last ten years, his lo-fi recordings, described as “harrowing nostalgia,” have explored the dark valleys where everything has settled and must be understood. On his new album, Tragedy Reel, he reflects on small-town alienation and loss spanning his years living in rural Newfoundland. Lost friends, lost love, addiction and vignettes of high school disillusionment are interwoven in Powell’s somber yet hopeful melodies, which combine the soaring highs of nostalgia with the sinking feelings of disappointment and regret. The album was recorded in the summer of 2020 during a 3-month stint in his hometown (population: about 2,000.) Powell combines downtrodden acoustic guitars with muffled pianos, and enveloping synth work by Warren Hildebrand of Foxes in Fiction, who also mixed the record. Across these songs, Powell uses music as a vehicle for healing, repentance and forgiveness in order to craft something deeply personal and therapeutic for himself, and hopefully in turn for others.
SUB-RADIO: “Past Selves” Tour
– ALL AGES- STANDING ROOM ONLYLIMITED NUMBER OF “PAST SELVES” VIP PACKAGES AVAILABLE, INCLUDING: ⁃ 3 song acoustic set before doors (including never before played parody) ⁃ Meet & Greet and photo with Sub-Radio ⁃ Signed Limited Edition Poster ⁃ Official Tour Laminate- Early entry and first access to merch SUB RADIO Few independent bands have had a career as varied and unpredictable as the indie pop sextet Sub-Radio. Founded in Washington DC by a group of childhood friends, the band released a series of EPs between 2018 and 2020, blending the pop-punk they grew up on with the indie-pop stylings of WALK THE MOON and The 1975. Forced online by the COVID-19 pandemic, they found enormous viral success on Reddit and TikTok in 2021, streaming their high-energy live performances to more than 20 million viewers and driving a huge new audience to their single “Flashback”. The band signed with indie label Th3rd Brain in early 2022 and released their latest EP, Past Selves in February of 2023. In support of the new release, Sub-Radio announced The Past Selves Tour which kicks off in August of 2023.MOONTOWER
OUTPOST: Indigo De Souza
– ALL AGES- STANDING ROOM ONLY- RAIN OR SHINE This is a benefit show for a dear friend’s medical bills and needed procedure.Indigo De Souza – indigodesouza.comAstoria – facebook.com/astoriamusicofficial
Hannibal Buress / Eshu Tune
– ALL AGES – STANDING ROOM ONLY- LATE SHOW (9:30 doors/10pm show)HANNIBAL BURESS / ESHU TUNE For Buress, the work is all infused with love. He truly adores music and piecing a song’s puzzle together. He finds both joy and honor in the endeavor. It’s truly admirable. Buress could be doing more Marvel movies. He could be going into some Netflix special or sitcom. He could be leveraging the work he’s already done to live fat off the land, so to speak. Instead, he’s challenging himself, doing something he loves—yes—but in many ways starting from scratch. JACOB UITTI – AMERICAN SONGWRITER
OUTPOST: Yesterdays Clothes
– ALL AGES- STANDING ROOM ONLY- RAIN OR SHINE Yesterdays Clothes A fresh & vibrant indie alternative rock band hailing from Asheville, NC. As a brand new band, Yesterdays Clothes is all about having fun, being genuine, & rocking the stage. Their exhilarating performances are a testament to their camaraderie and desire to create a welcoming & inclusive atmosphere for fans. They thrive on the energy exchanged between the stage & the crowd, ensuring that every show is a memorable experience for all. With a deep love for music & a passion for the outdoors, Yesterdays Clothes finds inspiration in both realms. When they’re not creating infectious melodies, you’ll often find them camping & exploring the natural wonders around Asheville. This sense of adventure infuses their music, creating a unique blend of indie alternative rock. Embrace the thrill of their irresistible rhythms & be part of the incredible adventure that is Yesterdays Clothes.BlankState Weaving heartfelt lyrics into danceable indie tunes, the three-piece indie project “blankstate.” has cut their way through the Charlotte music scene since their formation in 2018. The trio fine-tuned their sound through 3 years of live performance prior to releasing studio music. With traces of everything from alternative rock to bedroom pop, blankstate. creates unforgettable music and an even more unforgettable live act. Their years of live-performance experience make for an explosive show that can fill any space, shake any room, and move any crowd. The band capitalized on the attention garnered by their debut EP with the release of their first full-length album, “The World is Not Kind to These Things.” On any stage, blankstate. creates a captivating and one-of-a-kind experienceBlissful Thoughts
MJ Lenderman + Pile: Burial Beer’s Burnpile Afterparty
– ALL AGES- STANDING ROOM ONLYMJ LENDERMAN MJ Lenderman is a songwriter born and raised in Asheville, North Carolina. The anatomy of an MJ record might go something like this: warped pedal steels and skuzzed out guitar; a voice reminiscent of the high-lonesome warble of a choirboy. Songs snake their way from a lo-fi home recording to something glossier made with longtime friends at Asheville’s Drop of Sun studios, but the recording setting doesn’t seem to matter much — at its core, a Lenderman song rings true. These are stories about everything from a relationship disintegrating outside the high-end butcher shop to a sighting of football star Dan Marino at the local Harris Teeter; from a love song built around a t-shirt kiosk at the airport, or the malaise of a grill rusting in the rain. And those are just some of the things you might find across his three solo records: MJ Lenderman (2019), Ghost of Your Guitar Solo (2021), and break-through acclaimed studio debut, Boat Songs (2022). Lenderman’s songwriting is simple and true, stories delivered with a loping, easy vibe — a shrug of the shoulders, off-the-cuff guitar riffs fuzzy, a tangle of pedal steel and rock ‘n’ roll distortion culminating in alt-country cacophony. An MJ Lenderman song feels like a postcard from a hazy memory, the unpredictable bits and details that end up sticking — bird songs from the rafters of a hardware store, a real good Bob Dylan cover — and what make a story whole.PILE “I want to do what makes me feel like a kid: experimenting, having fun, and trying to discover new things about this work,” says Pile’s Rick Maguire about All Fiction. It’s his band’s eighth record, and one that finds the ambitious group assembling its most texturally complex material yet—despite the fraught inspiration underscoring its restive lyrics. Alongside the blistering drums and scorched-earth riffs that first galvanized Pile’s dedicated fanbase, the band has incorporated elegiac strings, mystifying vocal corrosions, and haunting synths. From the creeping fear of cinematic opener “It Comes Closer” to the euphorically ascending keys on ego-shattering closer “Neon Gray,” All Fiction is an ornate, carefully paced study on the subjectivity of perception, the data-shaping despotism of big tech, and the connections between anxiety and death. In its most vital moments, it’s also a resolute recommitment to the restorative significance of art and imagination. For fifteen years, Pile’s evolving take on rock has earned the group one oft-repeated superlative: “your favorite band’s favorite band.” Ceaseless touring took its members from Boston’s basement circuit to international festivals, hitting loftier technical apexes with each new record. Maguire—the fastidious composer, evocative guitarist, and potent voice behind the solo-turned-punk project—gives musical body to his interior world in scream-along-able lyrics that skew surreal. Drummer Kris Kuss’s time-defying performances, layered over gnarled basslines, have garnered widespread acclaim.PREWN
