Monthly Archives: June 2012

Music, The Daily Feed
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Hot Ticket: The Hundred in the Hands @ Rock and Roll Hotel, 6/19/12

Photo courtesy of rockzoom_de
The Hundred In The Hands – 25.05.2012 #11
courtesy of rockzoom_de

Brooklyn-based dream-poppers The Hundred in the Hands have a second album, Red Night, and they are touring on it at the Rock and Roll Hotel tonight. They have what I consider perfect symmetry: one man on a guitar and one woman on a synthesizer. And they appear to have added more layers and textures to their sound since their first album release two years ago.

Tickets are available online or at the door for $10. Openers include DC-based Dance for the Dying and vorhees of New York City.

Entertainment, The Features, We Love Arts
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We Love Arts: Memphis


Photo: Paul Kolnik

Unable to read or hold down a job, Huey Calhoun(Bryan Fenkart) isn’t what you would expect in a civil rights leader. One look at his loud blazers and one listen of his yokel drawl doesn’t really inspire images of Martin Luther King. However what he lacks in charisma and manners he makes up for in his rebellious nature.

He’s always flying off the handle, he says exactly what’s on his mind, he’s always in motion.

He’s the perfect poster child for the new sounds of R&B and Rock and Roll.

The Kennedy Center recently welcomed the national tour of Broadway’s Memphis, winner of the 2010 Tony award for Best Musical into the Opera House. Loosely based on the story of Dewey Phillips and other DJs who crossed the color lines in radio music, Huey falls in love with the R&B music scene in 1950’s segregated Memphis after stumbling into a Beale Street music club. The club’s owner Delrey (Quentin Earl Darrington) is quick to point out that Huey is out of place in his black establishment but as Calhoun puts it, the Rhythm and Blues is “The Music of My Soul.” Huey becomes a fan and ardent promoter of the local R&B scene, which includes Delrey’s sister Felicia (Felicia Boswell). Huey goes on a mission to spread the word about Memphis’ underground music and knocks on radio stations doors until he earns a gig as a radio DJ.

Continue reading →

Essential DC, Music, The Daily Feed, The District, We Love Music
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Fort Reno 2012 free concert series starts tonight!

The Fort Reno concert series is a DC institution. I have fond memories of the series from when I was in high school- getting to see Fugazi (and other cool acts) for free, outdoors in the summer. The threat of rain is always looming, but the reward is a unique concert experience.

The concert series is an all volunteer enterprise, which has presented free shows in the park for more than 40 years. The season goes from mid-June through August, with shows on Monday and Thursday evenings starting around 7pm and going until dark. It features only bands based in the DC/metro area. All ages are welcome.

The series is notorious for announcing their lineup last-minute, and this year is no different. So far only the first two shows have been announced, and only on the Fort Reno facebook page. Tonight, (6/18) the first night of the season, features Teen Mom, Alarms & Controls, and Upforth.

Thursday’s (6/21) lineup features Edie Sedgwick, Art Sorority for Girls, and BRENDA.

Fort Reno Park is at Chesapeake Street and Nebraska Avenue NW. All ages, dogs, and food are welcome. No glass bottles or alcohol!

Fort Reno has a weather hotline! 202-355-6356 You can also check their twitter feed, or facebook page!

*update- as of this afternoon, the weather line is not up and running, but you can still go to Fort Reno’s twitter feed or facebook for updates on the weather situation*

The Daily Feed
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Nats Fall 5-3 in the 14th, Lidge Charged with the Loss

Photo courtesy of oddlittlebird.
Zimmerman
courtesy of oddlittlebird.

By the end of the 4 hour 49 minute, 14-inning Nats-Yankees game at Nationals Park Saturday afternoon, it was easy to forget that right-handed pitcher Jordan Zimmermann even started the game. The Nats took a 5-3 loss, their fourth extra inning loss this season, after reliever Brad Lidge gave up a two-run double to Yankees first baseman Mark Texeria in the fourteenth. Continue reading →

The Daily Feed
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Nats Drop Series Opener 7-2 to Yanks

Photo courtesy of Keith Allison
Derek Jeter
courtesy of Keith Allison

While the Nationals were busy mopping up wins against the bottom of the AL East the Yankees were busy dominating the middle of the NL East. With both teams in first place in their respective divisions and each riding a six game winning streak a sellout crowd was on hand to see if the Nationals could hang with the big boys. For six innings that is what the Nationals did, but the power and the patience of the Yankees was too much for the Nats to overcome.

Over the years the Yankees have made a habit of frustrating pitchers by refusing to swing at any pitch that may be close to the strikezone. The Yankee batter would rather make a pitcher go to 3-2 and strikeout than ground out on the second or third pitch. In this way they or one of their teammates will be able to get that pitcher later, and that is what the Yankees were able to do to Gio Gonzalez.

Continue reading →

We Love Arts
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We Love Arts: First You Dream

First You Dream 2: (l-r) Patina Miller, Heidi Blickenstaff and Leslie Kritzer in the Kennedy Center production of First You Dream: The Music of Kander & Ebb. Photo by Joan Marcus.

A revue can be a strange beast. Typically a small cast comes together for a night of songs wholly unrelated to each other except a common lyricist or composer. The music often has very little context surrounding it, which can be alienating if you’ve never heard the tunes, but fun if you’re familiar with the material and can enjoy the variety.

Rarely does a revue break from that framework, and First You Dream: The Music of Kander & Ebb is no exception. A project conceived and directed by Eric Schaeffer of Signature Theatre, First You Dream contains all the cheese you would expect in a revue, with the glitz and glam of a Kennedy Center production backed up with an all-Broadway cast of James Clow, Heidi Blickenstaff, Matthew Scott, Alan H. Green, Leslie Kritzer, and Patina Miller..

Continue reading →

News, The Daily Feed
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Poker on the Potomac?

Photo courtesy of Play Among Friends
Paf Poker Challenge Final Table 2012
courtesy of Play Among Friends

National Harbor and MGM Casinos have today announced plans to bring a 4,000 slot, 250 table games luxury casino to Prince George’s County in the shadow of the Wilson Bridge. This is by no means a done deal, thanks to the gaming laws of the State of Maryland. While the plan represents a $1B investment in the National Harbor area, it hinges on an act of the Maryland legislatures, which must approve all casino developments including the new slot online casino.

Maryland currently has five casinos, the newest is Maryland Live! which was packing in the visitors during its opening weekend recently.  The Post’s Michael Rosenwald recently visited the newly opened venue amid the outlets and declared it “the strangest location in America for a large gambling venue,” between the TJ Maxx and the Burlington Coat Factory. National Harbor, which already sports a number of destination restaurants and convention opportunities, might be a better fit for the glitz and glamor of the James Bond casino image, with its Baccarat tables and snappy croupiers.

The table games would likely be a bigger draw for the DC area than the video slots. DC’s poker options were, for a long time, limited to jaunts up, at least until the HUD for PokerStars came in to the picture. the coast to Atlantic City’s shabby and sad poker parlors.

Refer more at https://thienhabet.me/soi-cau/xsmb

Within the last few years, West Virginia’s expanded table games options made a card game a closer possibility by enabling the online gaming at https://casinofair.com/, but anyone who’s sat in that traffic knows better than to want to head out there for the weekend. Having a good close option for a card game might be a solid boost for the National Harbor development, but there are many opponents to gambling in the Maryland legislature, so look for this one to be a hard sell for a Fall emergency session of the Maryland body.

Entertainment, Interviews, Music, Night Life, The Features, We Love Music
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Q&A with Eternal Summers

 

all photos courtesy of Eternal Summers

Eternal Summers is a dreamy, indie-pop trio hailing from Roanoke, VA. They’re currently on North American tour in support of their second album, Correct Behavior, coming out on Kanine Records July 24th. They’re making a stop in DC at Comet Ping Pong this Saturday, June 16th. We Love DC got the chance to chat with Nicole Yun Hirschmann of Eternal Summers this week about being on tour, having Sune from The Raveonettes  as a fan, the effects of cool older sisters, and some of her musical inspirations.

Alexia: So I first met you in the music school at JMU, and knew you as a very talented pianist and cellist. How did you first get into writing your own music and playing in rock bands?

Nicole: Well I have played in bands ever since I was in the eighth grade, when my sister Eileen bought me a bass guitar for my birthday.  I started playing bass for Rubber Policeman, which was basically a Rage Against the Machine cover band at my school.  I started writing songs when I was a Junior in high school and started focusing more on guitar.  I know I really annoyed my parents with the scrappy songs I was plunking away at in my room!

Alexia: What were some formative bands or albums for you growing up?

Nicole: Smashing Pumpkins early work until Mellon Collie, the Verve and Pulp, Liz Phair’s Exile in Guyville album, as well as the Velvet Underground, the Clash and Bjork were all huge for me.  I was the lucky benefactor of cool older sisters!

Alexia: How did Eternal Summers come together?

Nicole: It came together as an outlet to write more pop based songs.  I had just been in a band called Mommies that was more angular and mathy and was really looking for a way to write some nice melodies.  Daniel joined super casually because we just wanted to play a show and record a few songs.  Three years later… Continue reading →

We Love Weekends
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We Love Weekends – Jun 15 – 17

Photo courtesy of mofo
Topaz
courtesy of mofo

Marissa: This weekend is a busy one for me. I’m kicking it off a little early with Kimpton’s 2012 Crave party tonight. Come Saturday afternoon, I’m heading to see the New York Yankees face the Washington Nationals. Nothing is more emblematic of summer than a baseball game with friends, chili dogs and some cold beer. Then Sunday it’s off to the Fancy Food Show with more than 180,000 food products from 2,400 exhibitors from 80 countries and regions (phew!). I’ll report back on how that goes next week, so stay tuned.

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Don: Another year, another Flag Day party. A party celebrating it – not other things, dammit – is our big weekend event, though we’re going to preface it with playing hooky from work on Friday and floating down Gunpowder Falls. Which is poorly named, based on any of the tubing areas we’ve seen; the only falls are the ones we’ve taken trying to drag our tipsy selves back up the riverbank when we come to the end. Sunday it’s back to indoor activities and basically grown-up behavior with press night for STC’s The Merry Wives of Windsor. Before any of that, however, I’m off to the Black Cat tonight to see the And I Am Not Lying show. I’m a geezer and will be at the 8p show but they’ve added one at 10p if you want to make a last-minute jump for spoken word & burlesque glory.

Photo courtesy of LaTur
Midnight Rendezvous
courtesy of LaTur

Addison: [REDACTED BY THE WLDC DECENCY BOARD. HIDE YOUR VALUABLES. WARN YOUR LIVESTOCK.]

Photo courtesy of Chris Rief aka Spodie Odie

courtesy of Chris Rief aka Spodie Odie

Tom: This weekend, I’m off galavanting to Canada to commune with the maple leafs and the hockey hall of fame, but in my heart, I’ll be in DC for this weekend’s Tour de Fat at Yards Park with all my favorite New Belgium beers and bicycles, and Sunday is the DC Record Fair, which is always great people watching if you’re like me and don’t own a turntable. My garden has begun to take shape, but I need to get down to Frager’s for some more dirt & mulch, but since they deliver, maybe I can just call them?

Photo courtesy of moonlightbulb
Brave Combo at the Cat’s Cradle
courtesy of moonlightbulb

Fedward: I’m with Don. Literally. Friday after the tubing adventure I plan to go see one of the best live bands in the world, Brave Combo, at The State Theatre. After Saturday’s Flag Day party I plan to head to the Destroyer show at the 9:30. And Sunday we’ll hit the Passenger for our usual hangover brunch.

Photo courtesy of Michael T. Ruhl
Come and Get Me
courtesy of Michael T. Ruhl

Carl: Friday night I will be spending time with Beautiful Girlfriend and will probably take her to a nice dinner somewhere in downtown Silver Spring. Saturday I will be working on a nice amber ale I have been commissioned to make for an upcoming picnic and then will be bringing my Pants-Optional Pilsner to Don‘s house for his birthday. He and Darling Wife have insisted that the party not be pants-optional, though. Bummer. On Sunday my big mission is to sit in the sun and drink whatever Don doesn’t finish on Saturday.

Photo courtesy of furcafe
1577-36Crop
courtesy of furcafe

Alexia: starting my weekend of rock (what else?) tonight, playing a show with my band The Torches at Rock & Roll Hotel. Also on the bill: Get a Tan, Shy Violet, and Recons. Come on out! Friday night heading to Artomatic (my 3rd trip there this season) for the amazing, soul-explosion that is Coup Sauvage & the Snips. They’re hosting a variety show, and if their dance-spectacle/extravaganza of a show at Comet Ping Pong a couple weeks ago is any indication, it’s gonna be a blast! Saturday night heading to one of the coolest venues in town, Comet Ping Pong, for Roanoke sweeties/dream-pop Eternal Summers. Oh yeah! Sunday, if I’m still standing, I’ll be heading over to the Black Cat for the Ladies-only intro to DJing workshop, hosted by K La Rock & Junebullet. What a weekend!!! Summer of rock!

Entertainment, The Features, We Love Arts
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We Love Arts: Beauty & The Beast

Photo: Joan Marcus

A show has pretty high expectations when it is production of a show that was nominated for nine Tony awards back in 1994. The bar is even higher when that show was based on a wildly successfully animated feature that was nominated for a Best Picture Oscar.

Here for a two week stint at the National Theatre, a new national tour of the Broadway musical version of Disney’s Beauty and the Beast arrives just in time to entertain families and kids jumping into their summer break from school.

Continue reading →

Entertainment, Music, Night Life, The Features, We Love Music
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The Winning Ticket: Eternal Summers @ Comet Ping Pong, 6/16/2012

photo courtesy of Eternal Summers

Today we are giving away a pair of tickets to see Eternal Summers, Go Cozy, and Beach Week at Comet Ping Pong, Saturday, June 16th. Roanoke’s Eternal Summers bring sunny, reverb-drenched indie-pop, and are on tour now in support of their new album Correct Behavior, out July 24th on Kanine Records. Check out their new video for the album’s first single, “Wonder.”

For your chance to win these tickets simply leave a comment on this post using a valid email address between 10:30am and 4pm today. One entry per email address, please. 

For the rules of this giveaway…

Comments will be closed at 4pm and a winner will be randomly selected. The winner will be notified by email. The winner must respond to our email in 24 hours or they will forfeit their tickets and we will pick another winner.

The winner will be on the guest list at Comet Ping Pong. The tickets must be claimed with a valid ID. This is an all-ages show!

Comment away!

Georgetown, The Daily Feed
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Restaurant Birthdays: 1789 Turns Fifty

Photo courtesy of philliefan99
embossed menu
courtesy of philliefan99

It’s not everyday that a restaurant turns the big 5-0. 1789 is celebrating their 50th anniversary, making it one of the oldest restaurants in the city.

You can find staff for your restaurant on-demand, getting employees now while lowering labor costs.

The restaurant first started when Georgetown alum Richard McCooey purchased the Federal home in the 1960s and opened The Tombs in the basement as a casual spot for university students and faculty. Eventually, McCooey purchased the adjacent properties and the evolution of 1789, The Tombs and F. Scott’s (the former art deco nightclub) began.

“A lot of the credit goes to Richard. He set the place up for all the right reasons,” says Tom Meyer, president of Clyde’s Restaurant Group, adding that McCooey wanted the restaurant to be a welcoming place for Georgetown residents, the university population and out of town guests. “It was designed classically and smartly from the beginning. [1789] is quintessential Washington. It’s a genteel, wonderful environment to dine in.”

But just because 1789 happens to be older than some of its peers, doesn’t mean they’re keeping the status quo. “We’re not of the ‘if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it’ mentality,” says Meyer. He adds that the restaurant has adapted to the public’s changing tastes, while maintaining respect to the original concept. “Nobody gets off a plane or out of a cab and says, ‘What’s the oldest restaurant?'” says Meyer. “Just because you’re one of the oldest [restaurants] doesn’t automatically mean people like you. You almost have to try harder if you’ve been around longer.”

When I asked if Meyer could pinpoint any specific memory or cool moment in the restaurant’s history, he wasn’t able to pick just one. Instead he rattled off a list of former presidents and dignitaries that had dined at 1789–further proof of the restaurant’s staying power.

To celebrate the restaurant’s 50th, 1789 is offering a five-course tasting menu for $50 per person (excluding beverages, tax and gratuity). You can select any three dishes from the soups, salads, cheese and pasta sections of the menu, an entrée and a dessert. The summer special menu is available June 4th through September 13th on Sundays from 5:30 to 10 PM and Monday through Thursday from 6 to 10 PM. Mention the special to your server.

Sports Fix, The Features
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Washington Nationals Becoming Cornerstone for DC Community

MemorialDay4

A lot of folks living in DC grew up with baseball. They’re Cubs fans from Chicago, or Red Sox fans from somewhere in New England that isn’t really Boston. But for people who grew up here, the closest thing we had was the Orioles, just over an hour from from DC. For some families it did the job. But there’s a difference between doing the job and serving as part of the foundation of a community.

So when I sat across from Washington Nationals Senior Director of Community Relations Israel Negron and he told me “When we talked about the benefits of bringing a team to DC, this is what we talked about,” I saw what the Nationals have become. The team’s success is combining with larger community relations events than ever before, and the Nationals are becoming a cornerstone of community activity in the DC area.

This year’s Washington Nationals Memorial Day Baseball Tournament – a partnership with Kyle’s Kamp benefiting Children’s National Medical Center – was exactly the kind of event that binds a community to its team. The numbers speak for themselves: last year’s tournament was not held in partnership with the Nationals, and 24 local youth baseball teams raised $12,000. This year, in partnership with the Nats, the event grew to over 160 teams and raised over $400,000 by the tournament’s first night, when 4,000 local youth baseball players came out to Nationals Park to participate in the opening ceremonies. Continue reading →

Downtown, Food and Drink, Penn Quarter, The Daily Feed
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Del Frisco’s Grille Opens July 14

Photo courtesy of wfyurasko
This used to be Les Halles
courtesy of wfyurasko

Who said DC was moving away from steakhouses these days? Del Frisco’s Grille, an American bar and steakhouse, announced yesterday that it will be opening its downtown location on Saturday, July 14. Del Frisco’s will occupy the old Les Halles space on 1201 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW.

The Penn Quarter restaurant will feature 100 seats on their outdoor patio and a “wall of wine” with more than 5,000 bottles from more than 400 types of wine to choose from.

Leading the kitchen is a familiar face: executive chef Rob Klink, who was previously at the nearby Oceanaire. “The Grille definitely comes from steakhouse roots, but our menu is about variety, with a twist around every corner. From our prime burgers to our fresh seafood dishes, the focus is on quality and flavor,” said Klink in a press release. “I’m especially excited to introduce DC to its new favorite crab cake. After 20 years in the area, I have to say, there’s a new sheriff in town.”

Del Frisco’s Grille menu will feature flatbreads, hearty salads, fresh seafood, sandwiches, prime steaks and “shareable sides,” according to a press release. At the bar, you’ll fine your usual beer, wine and cocktails along with signature shots on tap, such as the Honey Badger, a mix of Tuaca and pineapple.

Del Frisco’s Grille will be open for lunch Monday through Friday from 11:30 AM to 3:00 PM and for dinner from Monday through Thursday from 5 to 11 PM, Friday and Saturday from 5 PM to midnight and on Sunday from 4 to 9:30 PM. The bar will stay open a little longer–until 11 PM on Sundays, midnight Monday through Friday, and 1 AM on Saturdays.

Entertainment, Special Events, The Features
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Summer 2012 Guide to Outdoor Movies

Photo courtesy of Chris Rief aka Spodie Odie
DSC_1556.jpg
courtesy of Chris Rief aka Spodie Odie

Summertime in the city–the daylight lasts longer, the outfits get shorter and the city has so many things to offer you outdoors. We’ve rounded up the outdoor movies in the DC area and put them into one comprehensive guide. Break out the popcorn and blankets and get ready to see what films are rolling this summer.

Washington, DC:

Screen on the Green
Where: On the National Mall, between 7th and 12th streets, NW
When: Begins at sunset
Movie Lineup:
Monday, July 16th: Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid
Wednesday, July 25th: It Happened One Night
Monday, July 30th: From Here to Eternity
Monday, August 6th: Psycho

Follow @SOTGinDC for updates and more information.

Capitol Riverfront Movies
Where: Tingey Plaza (behind U.S. Department of Transportation), New Jersey Avenue and Tingey Streets, SE
When: 8:45 PM/Sundown
Movie Lineup:
Thursday, June 14: National Treasure
Thursday, June 21: The Goonies
Thursday, June 28: Raiders of the Lost Ark
Thursday, July 5: City Slickers II: The Legend of Curly’s Gold
Thursday, July 12: O Brother, Where Art Thou?
Thursday, July 19: The Da Vinci Code
Thursday, July 26:  Muppet Treasure Island

Follow @CapitolRvrFront for more information.

Continue reading →