RVA Shows You Must See This Week: July 31 – August 6
FEATURED SHOW
Friday, August 2, 4 PM
804 Day, feat. Nickelus F, Erin & The Wildfire, Ant The Symbol, Holy River, Los Hermanos Alcranes, Weldon Hill, Rein, Knifing Around, Kadencia, Palmyra, Flight Club, Dead Billionaires, Weekend Plans, Niiasii, Vexine, The Sugar Hollows, Sweet Potatoes @ 17th Street Market – Free!
We’re entering the very hottest part of the summer here in Richmond, and that’s unfortunate, but we do have one consolation coming to us via the calendar: the arrival of 804 Day, the day on which the calendar looks just like the area code within which the entire Richmond metro area sits. That day is, of course, August 4, aka 8/04, which falls on a Sunday this year. But much like a whole bunch of other yearly holidays get bumped to the nearest Monday purely for the convenience of the capitalist working week, this year’s 804 Day is apparently being observed on Friday, August 2nd instead. This would all make a good bit more sense to me if 804 Day fell on, say, a Wednesday this year, and not just a different day of the weekend. But I won’t pretend to know the motives of the 804 Day organizers — who are also using this celebration to kick off a Richmond Music Week that’s apparently nine days long this year. Instead, I’m just gonna sit back and enjoy the plentiful bounty on offer.
Said bounty consists of over a dozen of the best local music acts this city has to offer, performing at various spots around the 17th Street Market in Shockoe Bottom on four different stages over the course of five hours. The touch of grey to this silver lining is that there’s no way you’ll be able to catch every band — choices like “at 5 pm, do I see Dead Billionaires on the 17th St. Market stage, Rein on the Shockoe Records stage, or wait 15 minutes and catch Palmyra at the Loving’s stage?” will plague the truly tapped-in Richmond music fan, who should know enough to realize that all of these are valid, worthwhile choices, and that the real bummer is that you can only pick one of them. But regardless of what route you plot through the crowded schedule of 804 Day’s stages, you’re sure to see at least half a dozen or so excellent local acts. And considering that this show is free to attend, that’s one heck of a deal.
By now, you should know that this show is well worth your time, regardless of who you end up seeing, but before we stop talking about it, let’s focus on some of the particular standouts on this bill. There is, of course, Nickelus F, the guy closing out the night, who has been one of the best rappers this city’s ever produced for something like two decades now. Twenty years after his debut mixtape, he continues to crank out stoned, antisocial hip-hop brilliance on a prolific basis; for proof, see the two excellent albums (2023’s The Specimen: Issue 00 and this year’s Mmcht) he’s released in the past 12 months alone. Then there’s Erin & The Wildfire, who continue to chart a path from folky indie tunes to 80s-style new wave brilliance with recent single “Lightning So Blue;” if anything, I feel like they sound most like Destroyer these days (though that reference will probably only make sense to the Canadaphiles among my readers). The day’s toughest choice will probably be between Holy River’s ambient folk brilliance (6 pm on the Shockoe Records stage) and Knifing Around’s hectic electro-postpunk mania (6:15 on the Loving’s Stage), though a close second will certainly be between the punky grunge-pop of Dead Billionaires (5 pm on the 17th Street Market stage) and the queer folk-punk anthems of Palmyra (5:15 pm on the Loving’s stage). Indeed, it wouldn’t surprise me to see people running across the Market complex at from one set to the other during these two schedule confluences. That’s maybe what this whole event is about — if anything, there’s almost too much going on. But hey, it sure is a great way to kick off your weekend. Think of it this way: you’re definitely getting your money’s worth.
Wednesday, July 31, 7 PM
Spaced, Autoignition, Jailbird, Stockpile @ Cobra Cabana – $10
This one’s for the hardcore kids. And really, not just any type of hardcore kids — the open-minded hardcore kids. The ones who are stoked to see bands as musically diverse as MSPaint, Militarie Gun, and Scowl pushing the genre into directions that are simultaneously unexplored territory and manage to rhyme with some of the previous musically expansive movements the genre’s gone through in the past. I hear exactly that kind of thing going on in the music of Buffalo, New York’s Spaced, whose new EP, This Is All We Ever Get, simultaneously recalls heavy post-hardcore groups of the early 90s, like Snapcase and Quicksand, and Turnstile’s excellent early work. I know people freak out about rapcore and what a terrible idea it is, but this is one band that manages to integrate a hip hop influence that is subtle, tasteful, and not at all cringe, even as they also update the chugging strut of classic NYHC bands like Sick Of It All and Madball for a new millennium.
So yeah, Spaced gets highest possible marks from your favorite over-the-hill HC nerd. But there’s a lot besides Spaced to love about this Wednesday night bill at Cobra Cabana, and I’m not (just) talking about the Snake Plissken burger, either. For starters, there’s Spaced’s tourmates Autoignition, who also hail from Buffalo. These bands are certainly simpatico enough to tour together, but there’s quite a bit of daylight between their sounds, as Autoignition channels classic Lifetime/Saves The Day-style melodic hardcore on their brand new album, This Is Moving Forward. They also add a strong flavor of raw punk energy to keep things fun and down-to-earth — and that’s always a good move. Richmonders Jailbird and Stockpile will offer local support, with the former’s classic take on angry midtempo hardcore punk pairing well with the latter’s burly hardcore toughness. This one will be a perfect midweek evening for today’s modern hardcore kids (of all ages).
Thursday, August 1, 6 PM
Telltale, If Not For Me, Sun Against Artemis, Sterling @ The Canal Club – $15 in advance, $17 day of show (order tickets HERE)
It’s been damn near four decades since Thrasher Magazine irritated Ian MacKaye by referring to his band Embrace as “emocore,” and that genre label has expanded, mutated, and transformed to the point that “emo” can now mean a whole lot of different things. And hey, I’m just one random middle-aged lady, but if you ask me, almost every type of music people call emo in 2024 has a lot to offer. That definitely includes the music of Telltale, a Richmond band on the come-up who released their self-titled LP back in May (at least according to my streaming service of choice), but are only now getting around to doing an LP release celebration. Better late than never, I say — especially since it’s given everyone that much more time to get familiar with what these four young men are dishing out on their latest 10-song offering. Specifically, it’s given us all extra time to learn the many singalong choruses that litter the length of this album.
Telltale have more to offer than a few singalong choruses, though; at various points on this album they dip into everything from the heartfelt pop-punk vibes of groups like Knuckle Puck and Real Friends to the melodic hardcore of Four Year Strong, the introspective indie grooves of Into It. Over It. and the heartbroken yet radio-ready emo hooks of Basement. All of it mixes into a sound that’s sure to come across wonderfully at The Canal Club — which is always a great place to see a high-energy show. There’s plenty of energy being brought to the room by the other bands on the bill as well, first and foremost from If Not For Me. This Pennsylvania band has an undeniable Linkin Park influence running through their emotional metalcore sound, an undeniable musical imprint on a younger generation that works better than any of us would have predicted back in the day. As for Sun Against Artemis, I feel like this youthful quintet has been around this city’s music scene for longer than you’d expect considering their ages. These days, they’re in full flower as a progressive, emotional metal band with some impressive guitar shredding to show off — expect this set to be an early-evening highlight. Things will get going with a set from local newcomers Sterling, whose melodic take on post-hardcore is a delightfully fun note to get this evening started with.
Friday, August 2, 7 PM
Tentative Decisions, Blab School, Nomad Showers, Charm Offensive @ Cobra Cabana – $10
Friday night at Cobra Cabana (a place we’ll be visiting several times over the course of this week) finds two excellent local bands joining forces with two bands from several hours beyond Richmond’s borders (in two different directions). And since we’ve talked about both of the Richmond bands on this bill quite a bit over past columns, we’re going to start by delving into the two out-of-towners on this bill first. Specifically, by mentioning that both bands — Durham, NC-based Blab School and DC quartet Nomad Showers — feature former members of the Florida pop-punk band Discount. I saw that band when they came through Richmond on tour in support of their second album; I’m pretty sure that was 27 years ago. All these years later, I’m just glad to know that all of us are still here, still part of the underground musical community.
OK, enough of my emo shit, let’s talk about this music. First, Blab School, who released their self-titled debut LP last month. It’s a ripper, too, full of energetic, semi-ramshackle postpunk-damaged punk-pop tunes with plenty of energy and a snarky attitude that comes through brilliantly on tracks like “Quit Yr Job” and “(Don’t Forget To) Give Up.” DC’s Nomad Showers have a similar vibe on their 2022 EP Invitation, though they definitely delve more deeply into the frantic, herky-jerky side of the whole postpunk thing on killer tunes like “Sexy ER.” If you love Talking Heads circa Fear Of Music, “Rock Lobster”-era B-52’s, and can easily fall into nostalgic reverie at the thought of Romeo Void, you’re probably gonna get a big kick out of Nomad Showers. Tentative Decisions are coming from a similar approach (which you know if you didn’t have to google to find out that their name comes from a first-LP Talking Heads song), and really ramped things up on their brand new single, “Stable.” I’m looking forward to what’s coming next from this group, and we’ll get our first listen at this show Friday night. As for Charm Offensive, I’m not entirely sure that everyone in Richmond has gotten a taste of what this killer indie-gaze quartet has to offer as yet. But if you’re late for the train, you’ll want to take this opportunity to jump on, because these kids are headed straight to the top. You heard it here first.
Saturday, August 3, 6 PM
Summon The Plague, Kuru, The Get Off, Bend The Knee, The Charleston Swing, Death Mask @ Black Iris Social Club – $15
OK, folks, it’s time for a showdown. Saturday night at Black Iris will find six bands facing off to defend the honor of their respective states. Three will stand up for the good ol’ Commonwealth we all call home, while three others will arrive in town to defend the honor of that most-popular-kid-in-high-school of states, New York (yawn). OK, I admit it, I’m just having fun here — even if I’ve lived in Virginia all my life, I certainly don’t have any sincere interest in arguing the superiority of one state over another. Besides, all it takes is one look at this mega-stacked bill of ludicrous heavyosity to realize that the real winners at this one will be the audience. Brought to us all by Rival Booking, who have been proving themselves throughout this year to be an unimpeachable source of incredible live lineups, this is another one for the ages, and you’ll all want to limber up and put on your best moshing shoes before heading out to Black Iris this Saturday night.
At the top of the bill is one of the three New York competitors for the evening, Summon The Plague, and this band excels at bringing the heaviness without ever getting predictable. They’ve got plenty of brutal breakdowns and harsh scream-along mosh calls (“Eat shit, you stupid bitch,” from “Sly & The Glass Table,” is particularly memorable), but they also know how to play fast as hell and keep the song structures from ever getting predictable, so they’ve really got the entire package. Queens natives Kuru bring some harsh and heavy hardcore on their outstanding EP Kill Us Ruin Us, and I can imagine they’ll lay waste to all comers when they take the stage here in Richmond. Our third NY competitor, The Charleston Swing, don’t have too much music online, but what I’ve heard is harsh, complex, and metal as fuck. So we’ve got that to look forward to. On the Richmond side of things are some more familiar but still always welcome names — Bend The Knee, for one, whose 2023 LP Eyes Behind The Algorithm is still getting regular spins from me. Heavy, raw metallic hardcore that at times reminds me of the legendary Burnt By The Sun — what more could you ask for? The Get Off are probably the least metal band on this bill, but their fast, angry three-chord tunes still have plenty of hardcore fury to please those who just have to have it heavy as hell. Richmonders Death Mask round out the bill with some outright death-metallic beatdown insanity. People tell me they had some live footage shot at a 7-11 go viral recently, but I don’t mess with the internet enough to know anything about that. Besides, one listen to their track “Trash Bag Burial” was enough to let me know exactly what I was in for. I welcome it, and you should too.
Sunday, August 4, 7 PM
Quivers, Young Scum, Drug Country @ Get Tight Lounge – $12 in advance, $15 day of show (order tickets HERE)
I haven’t exactly made it a secret over the past few years that I’m way into anything coming out of Australia these days — and that’s only partly because Australian punk rock is my wife’s favorite musical genre. Honestly, the whole strain of jangly indie pop that’s been one of the leading musical exports of the Antipodes over the past four decades or so mostly slides right by my wife, but I’m every bit as into Courtney Barnett or Scott And Charlene’s Wedding as I am into louder stuff like Mini Skirt and Pist Idiots, so I’m definitely tuned into what Quivers are bringing into the world. And with this Melbourne-based indie pop group all set to release their third album, Oyster Cuts, on legendary North Carolina indie label Merge Records in just a few weeks’ time, there’s never been a better opportunity to get on board with what these folks have to offer.
That’s the main reason I’m advocating that you head down to Get Tight Lounge this Sunday night; to enjoy the catchy melodies and killer guitar-rockin’ moments Quivers bring to an always-thrilled United States. But there’s more going on than just that, and you’ll definitely want to tune in from the very beginning of this musical evening to catch it all. For one thing, we get a relatively rare live set from Richmond jangle-pop heroes Young Scum, who’ve only released one song over the past six years but from all accounts are still able to bring their Postcard Records-style lovelorn melodies to brilliant life in the live environment. If you miss this chance to see them, it seems likely that you’ll have to wait at least six months to catch them again. Don’t blow it, folks. Opening this one up is Drug Country, a new project from Gnawing’s John Russell in which he indulges a bit more of his cravings for twang than he usually lets loose in his main project. Let’s be real, though, if you dig the early-90s proto-grunge vibes Gnawing brings to the table, you’ll get a kick out of Drug Country as well. Show up on time for this one and rock n’ roll all night.
Monday, August 5, 7 PM
Fuera De Sektor, Muscle, Checha, DJ Gatubela @ Cobra Cabana – $15
Going back to the mid-80s, there has always been this intriguing corner of the classic hardcore punk scene in which bands playing straightforward punk tunes suddenly take a half-step to the left and find themselves channeling bright gleaming New Wave pop sounds, even as they maintain the energy and attack of the classic punk sounds they’d been doing the year before. I can’t confirm that Barcelona ensemble Fuera De Sektor ever had a more straight-up punk phase, but when I listen to their rad new album, Juegos Prohibidos, I feel like I can hear both the raging punk intensity and the glittering New Wave/postpunk melodies happening at the same time. Really, though, whether this crew landed on this sound out of the clear blue or evolved into this isn’t all that important — what really matters is that we all get to rock out to it.
That’s definitely what all of us should be doing this Monday night at Cobra Cabana, as Fuera De Sektor bring the sounds of Catalonian punk to the United States and charm us all with it. I can’t really pin down the sound these musicians are making with a convenient band-to-band comparison, but if anything that speaks well for their relative originality, even as they explore a time-honored niche of the wider punk rock musical world. Baltimore band Muscle aren’t quite coming from the same punk niche, but they’re just as essential a listen, so it’s great to have them on this bill. Their garage-punk riffage and harsh, snarky feminist lyrics combine to create the impression of Good Throb collaborating with Naked Aggression or Be Your Own Pet. And if those band references don’t connect for you, just understand one thing — it’s fucking awesome. Mysterious Richmond artist Checha, who I haven’t heard much by but appears to be working in a techno-electro-vapor-pop space, will represent the local scene on this bill, and the whole thing will kick off with some tunes from DJ Gatubela, about whom I know basically nothing. That being said, anyone on a bill this powerful is sure to have something awesome to offer. Show up early, grab a burger, rock out all night. It’s really just that simple.
Tuesday, August 6, 7 PM
Cole Chaney, Brennan Edwards @ The Camel – $15 in advance, $18 day of show (order tickets HERE)
We’ve spent enough time getting loud over the course of this column, right? I think so. Why don’t we change it up to wrap up our show-column week with an acoustic showcase over at The Camel — our always-reliable source of early-week live music. This time around, the headliner is Cole Chaney, a fellow from Kentucky who has a strong investment in the classic sound of Appalachian coal-mining country. His modern twist on those old-time folk and country sounds shines bright on his 2021 debut LP, Mercy, and it’s sure to move quite a few listeners when he takes the stage at The Camel this Tuesday night.
The evening will also feature a set from Brennan Edwards, a Winchester-based singer-songwriter who mixes classic country and folk sounds with gospel vibes on his 2023 LP Yeshua. I’m not one for religion, personally, but I always love a great musical sensibility, and Edwards has plenty of those. So hey, I don’t mind if he wants to sing about Jesus; I’ll still tap my foot. If that’s gonna bug you, consider yourself warned. But the rest of us can ease our weary bones at this excellent showcase of acoustic tuneage from Appalachia. It’ll be the early-week pick-me-up we all need in these troubled times.
Email me if you’ve got any tips for me about upcoming shows (that take place after the week this column covers -– this week’s column has obviously already been written): rvamustseeshows@gmail.com
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