RVA Shows You Must See This Week: August 21 – August 27
FEATURED SHOW
Thursday, August 22, 6 PM
Poe Goes Punk, feat. Bat Boy, Doll Baby, Teens In Trouble @ The Poe Museum – $12 (order tickets HERE)
There’s probably not much that longtime Richmond residents agree with first-time local tourists about, but I can think of one thing: we all know The Poe Museum is cool. Housed in the Old Stone House, which is the only residential building left in Richmond from the Virginia colonial era, The Poe Museum was founded over a century ago by a group of Edgar Allan Poe fanatics, who initially tried (and failed) to create the Commonwealth’s first monument to a writer. They later salvaged the remains of the Southern Literary Messenger building, which had housed a 19th century periodical where Poe was a staff writer, and used the bricks from that now-demolished building to construct a memorial shrine to Poe behind the Old Stone House.
It’s that backyard shrine that plays host to the Poe Museum’s occasional Unhappy Hours, which combine drinks from local brewhouses with excellent local music for “a miserable time from six to nine.” Don’t worry, though; the installment of the Poe Museum Unhappy Hour that’s coming to the Enchanted Garden behind the Old Stone House this Thursday night won’t actually be miserable in the least. For one thing, the event is sponsored by Funktastic Meads & Beer along with 1115 Mobile Kitchen, both of whom will have tasty foods and beverages (not necessarily in that order) available for your consumption and enjoyment. For another thing, there are three incredible punk rock bands playing this event, each of whom is ready, willing, and able to brighten up your whole week — even if that does leave them in total defiance of this event’s stated theme.
Take Bat Boy, for example. This Richmond/Philadelphia trio, consisting of former members from Spraynard, Sundials, and Hold Tight, released an incredible album called Fun Machine in 2023, which I feel like didn’t get enough recognition in this town. If you missed out on its heart-on-sleeve grunge-punk emotion, this show is your opportunity to make up for lost time and get on the Bat Boy train. You won’t regret it; even if you’ve never heard any of their songs before, you’ll be singing along with this trio by the end of their set. As for the Raleigh-based group Teens In Trouble, they operate in a similar musical vein to that of Bat Boy, and their new album, What’s Mine, is also on the label that released Bat Boy’s latest album, Asian Man Records. It’s got a slightly off-kilter element, replacing the grungier aspects of Bat Boy’s sound with subtle resonances of Devo and Weezer. In other words, it’s just as awesome as Bat Boy. Doll Baby rounds out this bill with their slightly twangy take on Southern-style melodic punk, which reached a whole new level of awesomeness with the recent release of their debut full-length, Heirloom. When these three bands combine their powers with the intense atmosphere of the Poe Museum, you’ll have a recipe for musical awesomeness that’s as life-affirming as it is spooky. We could all use more of that.
Wednesday, August 21, 7 PM
Inter Arma, Edhochuli, Loud Night, ROTWLCFTSCBMH @ Cobra Cabana – $15 (order tickets HERE)
An interesting way for me to remind myself that I’ve been doing this column for a very long time is to search long-running bands like Pittsburgh legends Edhochuli and see how long it’s been since the last time I wrote about them. In fact, it’s been five years, going back to just a few months before the pandemic would shut down the entire live music world for 18 months or thereabouts. At that time, Edhochuli had already been around for at least a decade, and I even wrote about how it had been several years since their last LP, and how they should hopefully be bringing us a new one before too much longer. Turns out it took until just a few months ago for Edhochuli to release Higherlander, their third overall album and first since 2015. That’s nearly a decade — certainly long enough for some people to lose faith that they were ever going to bring us another album. Fortunately, those who kept the faith were richly rewarded, as Higherlander‘s five intense tunes (which average eight minutes in length) take the classic Edhochuli sound to new levels of intensity. Seeing these guys come through town once again to regale us all with dark metallic screamo epics will be a wonderful way to spend a Wednesday evening, and to celebrate bands that know how to have a lengthy career without getting boring (or cringe).
As for Inter Arma, they played with Edhochuli last time I wrote about them back in 2019, and they’ve also recently released a new album for the first time since that show half a decade ago. This set won’t find them airing out the best of their latest LP, New Heaven, though; nor will it find them returning to classic tunes of their early days. Instead, Inter Arma are celebrating Halloween two months early by giving us a set full of Neil Young covers. While these local legends are far more brutal and metallic than Mr. Young ever thought about being, it’s a weirdly fitting pairing — there’s a certain type of heavy-guitar epic that Neil Young returns to regularly over the course of his career that feels like it would only take a little modification to turn it into the sort of scorched-earth metal tour de force that is Inter Arma’s stock in trade. If you’re a fan of both Neil and Inter Arma, I’m sure you’re way ahead of me in predicting this setlist (“Cortez The Killer,” “Down By The River,” “Fuckin’ Up,” maybe “Powderfinger”?), and in predicting how awesome it will sound. Opening sounds for this festival of beautiful noise will be provided by local punks Loud Night and Richmond grindcore rookie sensations ROTWLCFTSCBMH — always a treat so get there early.
Thursday, August 22, 7 PM
Kelly McFarling, Scott Hirsch, [eli]zabeth 0wens @ Richmond Music Hall at Capital Ale House – $17 (order tickets HERE)
This Thursday night bill at Richmond Music Hall will give us all a chance to both get mellow and dive deep into the mood created by these artists. Kelly McFarling and Scott Hirsch may come from very different backgrounds, but their current sounds are aligned in harmony, and show exactly why these two are perfect tour partners. McFarling is currently on tour with a five-piece backing band, who help her recreate the thick sonic textures of her most recent album, 2022’s Bed Of A River. That album found the singer-songwriter with a folk background expanding into the world of mellow psychedelia and post-Laurel Canyon Americana. Her subdued vocal moods hide a depth of feeling that comes through once you start paying closer attention to her intricately woven song structures, which are favored by the glittering lead guitar layers added by her band.
Scott Hirsch creates a similar mood on his most recent full-length, 2022’s Ghost Of Windless Day, which mixes alt-country and indie structures with a subtle soul-funk backdrop. The fact that this album connects so strongly with what Kelly McFarling is up to might surprise you if you know Hirsch’s musical background, which finds him working alongside MC Taylor in a variety of bands. The first of their collaborations was as part of 90s California hardcore band Ex-Ignota, but they soon moved in the direction of indie, alt-country, and Americana sounds — first with The Court And Spark, and later with Hiss Golden Messenger. Departing the latter combo after their sixth album, Hirsch struck out on his own to explore further sonic reaches that aren’t so easily defined by a particular genre label. We’ll all get the benefit of that exploration when he takes the Richmond Music Hall stage this Thursday night. We’ll also get to enjoy an opening set in which talented local veteran (Eli)zabeth Owens takes their music to a land far beyond any sort of genre definitions you might care to apply. It’ll be intriguing, unpredictable, and a great way to kick this one off. Don’t miss it.
Friday, August 23, 7 PM
Thra, Urine Hell, Lair, Disrotter @ Cobra Cabana – $12 (order tickets HERE)
Things are getting heavy over at Cobra Cabana this Friday night, as they often tend to at the home of the snake. Indeed, before we go on, we should all give a great deal of respect to this worthy local establishment, which has moved in the post-pandemic era from a place that mostly just serves great food and tasty beverages to a spot that has several amazing shows happening every single week. And the food’s still great, too! Let’s all give thanks to Cobra Cabana for that. And let’s be clear: shows like this are the reason why, pairing two excellent up-and-coming touring metal groups with two underrated local ensembles of a similar musical mentality for an evening crammed full of headbanging from start to finish.
Let’s start with the two touring bands: Thra, whose name looks to me like someone stopped writing it in the middle of the word but has been fact-checked and is spelled correctly, hail from Arizona and bring a scorching sludge-grind metal sound with hints of mid-period Neurosis mixed in. Their 2023 album Forged In Chaotic Spew is plentiful evidence that the scorching desert metalcore legacy of legends like Unruh, Suicide Nations, and the rest of the King Of The Monsters Records stable has not gone extinct — which is a lovely thing to discover. Chicago’s Urine Hell are definitely not a band I’d associate with the term “lovely,” and not just because of the terrifying mental picture their name conjures up. Their intense, angular take on metal is fitting for a band from the same town as Shellac (RIP Steve Albini), and features the occasional film-noir vocal monologue that adds a downright spooky atmosphere. I for one am here for it. The two Richmond bands on this bill cover a similar musical spectrum, with Lair’s harsh, metallic sludge fitting in right alongside the sound of Thra, even as Disrotter’s deathgrind blasts start the evening off on a note of fearsome headbanging rage. This one’s gonna be awesome.
Saturday, August 24, 7 PM
Future Projektor, King Bastard, Silico, visuals by Plastic Pyramid @ Cobra Cabana – $10
It can be tough when there’s one band on a bill who approaches every live show as if they’re out to create an entire alternate universe within which their music exists. That’s definitely the policy of instrumental metal trio Future Projektor, whose most recent album, The Kybalion, is literally a single 40 minute track, divided into seven movements and synchronized with a full film presentation that they screen behind them when they play. It’s an incredible visual and musical experience, for sure, and I have no doubt that it’ll be incredibly powerful when it’s unleashed this Saturday night at Cobra Cabana. The tough thing, though, is when the other bands on the bill inevitably have to try and compete with that kind of thing. It’s hard to make an impression on an audience when you’ve got the almighty Future Projektor experience closing out the show. How do you avoid being totally forgotten in their wake?
To their credit, Rival Booking has attempted with this show to create an evening that features visual spectacles throughout, pairing the other two bands on the bill with visuals by local artist Plastic Pyramid. This should ensure that the entire evening is a multimedia spectacle in its own right, the sort of thing that expertly augments the overwhelming audio-visual presence of Future Projektor with similarly mind-blowing presentations for every band throughout the evening. The psychedelic metal epics of New York’s King Bastard will certainly benefit from this presentation; their latest album, From Whence They Came, features a 2001-style monolith on the cover and generates the exact sort of epic noise you’d expect based on said album cover across four songs and 31 minutes. Expect a similar sort of awesomeness from their set at Cobra Cabana this Saturday night. The evening will open with a set of thrashing metallic hardcore from local up-and-comers Silico, who’ve recently followed up their 2022 debut EP with a couple of absolutely raging singles that indicate some really good things to come in the near future. Get stoked for this one; it’s going to be mindblowingly awesome from beginning to end.
Sunday, August 25, 7 PM
Annie Collette, Valentin Prince, Juniper Tree, Dhemo @ Bandito’s – $10
By the end of the weekend, it’s always nice to hear something a little more chill. After all, we have to pack most of the life we really get to live, and not just sell in return for rent and bills and food, into those two-and-a-half days or so (that’s if we’re lucky enough to get a weekend at all — much love to all y’all who spend every weekend night at your jobs). Of course we’re a little tired by the end of it all. Of course we need a slightly quieter evening to wind us down before we struggle back into work on Monday morning. And that’s why it’s always great to find a Sunday night show that gives you exactly that sort of thing. After all, what else are you going to do — go home and go to bed early?
Annie Collette, the New York-based singer-songwriter who is headlining this Sunday night’s musical festivities over at Bandito’s, is great at supplying quietly entrancing musical beauty, without being the least bit sleep-inducing or predictable. On her 2023 album, Baby Of The Year, she mixes slightly soulful touches into moody, folky alt-rock tunes that end up reminding me of 90s legends like Luscious Jackson, or the early works of Fiona Apple. Her voice is incredible, and her songs are hypnotically gorgeous, drawing you in despite their relatively sedate volume. And then there’s Valentin Prince, whose name makes him sound like a nobleman from the Renaissance-era Holy Roman Empire even as his tunes cast more of a Mac DeMarco-ish air. His solo work often features lush arrangements that evoke 70s-style Philly soul productions, transmuted into a sort of post-Y2K slacker rock milieu. Whether he’s playing by himself or at the front of a significant ensemble, he always sounds great. Then there’s the heartfelt folk melodies of Juniper Tree, a Richmond-based duo who capture lovelorn passion with gorgeous tenderness. They’ll have a full band with them at this show, and the musical depth added to their songs should only make them that much more unforgettable — as they did on last year’s self-titled debut full-length, which really is lovely. Talented local indie-funk singer-songwriter Dhemo will get this one started on a smooth and groovy note. Should be an awesome way to relax into the end of the weekend.
Monday, August 26, 7 PM
Those Dogs, Peach Rings, Rat Fight, White Beast @ Bandito’s – $10
Monday night and we’re back at Bandito’s again, this time to enjoy a bill of four bands whose names all feature two one-syllable words. The lineup almost reads like song lyrics, at least if you’re the kind of weirdo who makes up songs to sing to your cat while you’re feeding them (I’m really just talking about myself now). Let’s move on from this tangent and talk about these bands. The two out-of-towners, Those Dogs and Peach Rings, both come from Boone, North Carolina, and recently released a very enjoyable live split EP, which finds both bands loose, rollicking, and full of upbeat punk rock energy. Those Dogs seem a little bit more inclined to get aggro, while Peach Rings are more inclined toward melody, but let’s be real — both of these bands are primarily driven by the need to rock hard and get the whole place dancing. If your idea of punk rock is largely centered around sweaty goofballs dancing and screaming along with catchy songs played slightly out of tune, you’re going to be in punk rock heaven when you hear these two bands.
You’ll probably also rejoice at the sounds cranked out by the two Richmond bands that are getting this whole thing started. Rat Fight have a rip-roaring hardcore snarl that does a lot to liven up the proceedings on their 2023 demo. What’s more, their song “Kids On Meth” finds them taking a left turn into the exact kind of passionate midtempo octave-chord screamfest that made legends out of early 90s emocore pioneers like Merel or Inkwell. I for one can’t wait to see what these kids come up with next — and the easiest way to do so is to show up to this Monday night Bandito’s throwdown. The evening will get started with a set from local bass-drum heavy grunge-core duo White Beast, who recently added Destructo Disk’s Molly Gordon on drums and cranked up the rock power on recent singles “Jakarta Is Coming” and “The Beer.” What have these folks got in store in the near future? Once again, showing up on time is the best way to find out! Plus, if you arrive early enough, you can crush some happy-hour tacos. Always a winning move.
Tuesday, August 27, 6 PM
Knife Wound, Hipfire, Torment, Infernal Gaze, Companion Of Fools, Deathmask, Undermined @ Bandito’s – $10
Wrapping up our week with three visits to Bandito’s in a row? Well, you know my nacho-loving ass isn’t complaining, but actually, this was never the plan — this show had to be moved after short-lived Scott’s Addition venue The Workshop closed down. Thankfully it was able to find a welcoming home in the Diablo Room, because this showcase of heavy-as-fuck awesomeness needs and deserves to be seen. Atlanta’s Knife Wound are the stars of this show, bringing a metallic sound that mixes super-tough mosh-tastic hardcore of the mid-90s into 21st century deathcore paradigms to create a whole new world of brutality. The fact that their latest EP, W.O.U.N.D., is an acronym standing for “We owe you no devotion” should tell you something about the sheer hateful attitude this band is bringing. Come to this show prepared to be the main character in the legendary DRI song “Thrashard” for one night.
To be clear, that’s not just because of Knife Wound — we’ve got half a dozen other incredible heavy-as-fuck bands on this bill too, all of whom will add to the madness in their own special ways. For starters, there’s Torment, the maniacal local quartet who earned a notorious reputation for breaking out light tubes, Combat Zone Wrestling-style, in the midst of their sets full of raw metalcore mosh panic. Hopefully they won’t smash too much shit up at Bandito’s, because no one wants light tube dust in their nachos, but even if they don’t break a single thing, you can bet their set will be one of the piledriving hardcore highlights of the evening. Then there’s Baltimore hardcore up-and-comers Hipfire, who let the world know what they’re about with the release of their recent EP, Baltimore Hate, and are on hand to bring us ultra-heavy mosh brutality from the northern end of the DMV. I’m not quite sure where in Virginia Infernal Gaze are from, but I know it’s the Appalachian end of the state, and they’ve definitely got a strong death-thrash vibe to their sound, which to me seems fitting. Expect major headbanging and moshing for these folks. The evening is rounded out by the raw metallic straight-edge violence of Harrisonburg’s Companion Of Fools, the guttural goregrind of Richmond’s Death Mask, and NoVA metalcore newcomers Undermined. An absolute festival of thrash. You love to see it.
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
Please consider supporting my Patreon, where I’m documenting my progress on two different novels and (sometimes) writing about music of all types. patreon.com/marilyndrewnecci
