At Limbo

Not of the website variety but of the Limbo sort! I just wanted to apologize to everyone – music fans and bands especially! – for having been MIA as of late. Real Life has been quite the foe and I’ve been sick on top of it! I’m hoping my posts will be getting back to normal soon, starting tonight with my heading out soon to see Adrian Hardkor headline IOTA for his digital album release party. The album is great (as if I don’t know all of his music just from seeing him live so many times, lol) with work from some truly talented local and national artists, so you should definitely check it out! I’ll have coverage of the show up this week, as well as an exclusive download of Adrian doing his take on “Pinky & the Brain”, so be sure to check us out soon for some great stuff!

Don’t forget to come out tonight for the show! 8pm @ IOTA in Clarendon, and save me a dance if you do!

I’ve skipped nearly a month’s worth of Friday I’m in Love entries! Blog Fail, I know. But I’m back with possibly the best Friday I’m in Love ever. Wanna know why? Because people are charitable and awesome, and I’m going to The Happiest Place on Earth.

First up… IOTA‘s Haiti Benefit for the Red Cross. This showcase include performances by 15+ local artists (some of my favorites are on the bill!), and IOTA’s asking for donations with all proceeds going to the Red Cross for the rescue and clean up efforts in Haiti. I’ve been looking forward to this event all week and have been pestering everyone I know to come on down to Clarendon for the night. Artists ranging from Rene Moffatt to Helo, Tom McBride to Brother Shamus, Derek Evry to No Second Troy – you really, really don’t want to miss out tonight. Show starts at 8pm and your donation is your entrance fee (so even the smallest amount you can give will help!). The “full” list (because they’ve been adding all week and knowing this group someone will pop up and join in out of nowhere!) of artists can be found at IOTA’s website.

Second, and a bit of a warning in itself, is that I’m winging it to Disney World Sunday morning! As my family finally celebrates the holidays with our annual get together, we will be showing my young nephews (6yrs & 8yrs) the big Mouse house for the first time. And so, I probably won’t be around much until the end of the month/beginning of next month.

However! I am so excited about February! Some great shows (Drunk Tigers & New Rock Church of Fire @ IOTA springs immediately to mind, but No Second Troy’ll be at the 9:30 Club, too!), some fun stuff here (did I mention me and my boy BP are having a photo shoot on Saturday?! If you’re a musician/into the scene in the area and want to join us, get in touch via email!), and I’ll be (finally) starting my guitar lessons so there will be much in the way of “OMG WHAT WAS I THINKING?! I WRITE ABOUT MUSIC, I DON’T PLAY IT!” posts to amuse you.

Have a great end of January, folks, hope that 2010 is living up to all the expectations you’ve had so far!

It has been a truly beautiful evening. One of great music, new friends, delicious food, and a view of the Mall from Virginia without another soul in sight. I really do need to remind myself more often why it is I love this place so much. Goodnight, moon. Goodnight, Mall.

Let’s see, Limbo’s had her head in the clouds as of late, but I’m working on bringing my feet back to solid ground and diving in head long (without the aid of my usual dose of 1+pack of nicotine a day, thanks to a new round of bronchitis and strict instructions that my “trying to quite smoking” must become “have already quit” as soon as is humanly possible).

In the meantime: couple of things I’m currently obsessed with and something new & exciting in the works!

• DC’s comedy set has a new kid on the block to check out for. Well, 10 of them, to be more specific. In the best showcase I’ve seen in DC in ages, Recessions has opened it’s doors on Wednesday nights to WayneMan comedy and his rotating group of local and national stand up comics, ComedyX10. New faces – local radio personalities – and standards (Seaton Smith showed up last minute and brought the house down with some of the best bits I’ve seen him do, and I’ve seen him probably half a dozen times now). The crowd was thick, rolling along with every punch the ten (12, actually, for the first night) were throwing and by the end of the night, the DJ taking over, we couldn’t believe it was nearly 11. ComedyX10 is back this week, Wednesday 8-10pm (free admission) and with great food and drink hitting just the right mix of sit-down show/hopping bar, so be sure to check it out.
• Umm… The Coachella line-up was announced. Please say someone wants to do a ridiculous road-trip/vacation/something/anything to get us East coast peeps out there for this three day festival of AWESOME. Tickets go on sale this week, I feel an early Feb purchase coming on… is anyone in?
• Coming up at At Limbo we’re going to be releasing (exclusively! How cool is that?!) Adrian Hardkor Krygowski’s cover of the Pinky & the Brain theme song from this month’s Spelling for Bees Collective at Velvet Lounge. Adrian took the slightly creepy song and gave it a ‘hardkor’ (haha) make-over, turning out what seemed to be the favorite Saturday Morning Cartoon theme song of the week (SfB’s theme for January, naturally).

Okay, that’s it for me this lunch break, at least I got this much together, right?! Really would love suggestions for concentration, online to do lists, and any other “let’s get Limbo through yet another week of being sick and miserable” tricks and treats you might have! This afternoon I’ll have up a preview of IOTA’s massive Haiti relief benefit concert with such At Limbo favorites (plus at least a dozen others!) as Rene Moffatt, Derek Evry, and No Second Troy.

I’ve made no secret of my love of IOTA, in Clarendon (it is positively the only reason I ever venture south of the District unless I’m skipping VA entirely). However, I’ve always felt something might be missing. Something like The Nine at DC9, or those chill nights at Dahlak on U St. Evenings of singer/songwriter showcases, listening room vibes with musicians doing their thing with as little flash and pomp as possible.

And what happens when we wish really, really hard for something we want? Eventually, the Music Powers That Be (MPTB) listen, and it starts tonight! This week is non-stop for awesome, cheap, local entertainment, so what are you waiting for?

Rather than pretending to be an authority on any subject or fandom, I’ve decided to simply to a series of posts that encompass my favorites of 2009, rather than the ‘best of’ anything in particular. And so, here they are, my favorites, brought to you via graphics & lists by yours truly (in no particular order).

My Favorite… Live Music Venues

IOTA (Arlington VA)
Goodbye Blue Monday (Brooklyn, NY)

Honorable Mentions

DC9, Galaxy Hut; Asylum; Solly’s U St.;
The Barns at Wolftrap; The Market Commons (Myrtle Beach, SC);
The Living Room & Googies (NYC)

My Favorite… Albums

Merriweather Post Pavilion, Animal Collective; Grand, Matt and Kim;
All I Ever Wanted, Kelly Clarkson; Battle Studies, John Mayer

I and You and Love, The Avett Brothers; It’s Not Me, It’s You, Lily Allen;
Veckatimest, Grizzly Bear; Hot Mess, Cobra Starship; The Fame Monster, Lady Gaga

The Time of our Lives (EP), Miley Cyrus; Heartbeat Radio, Sondre Lerche;
Break Up, Scarlett Johansson & Pete Yorn; The Resistance, Muse; Kris Allen, Kris Allen

Soundtrack – Where the Wild Things Are, Karen O;
Soundtrack – Glee (vol 1 & vol 2), The Glee Cast

After the jump, check out my favorites and my disappointments, as well as missed opportunities in TV and movies!

Read the rest of this entry →

from the Washington Examiner

As I have already promised that I am, indeed, NOT a scrooge, I am in the mood to cheer myself up! This holiday season I have a delightfully packed music schedule, lots of time to sleep in (oh, what life would be like if all I had to do was go to concerts and write here at At Limbo!), and good friends coming back into town just in time for New Years. What more could a girl want for Christmas?

I may not be decking the halls with holly this time of year, but I’m not one of the women profiled in the Daily Mail either. Really? The holidays as a “test” of “feminine wiles”? Cat ladies? I can understand not liking the holidays, even disliking the pressure to like them (isn’t that what I was just complaining about a week or so ago?), but to be made depressed by these things? To let it affect how you treat those around you and your general well-being? Oy! I’d have to say I’m much more of the “let’s make the holidays fun and pampered” variety. Last year I was absolutely devastated at the thought of being single for the holidays (having just gone through the Break Up of Doom), but this year I embrace it. As a single adult I have the opportunity to start making my own traditions and spending my time in the ways that I want, both things I’m looking forward to.

Most importantly, the shows. I absolutely love the fact that I get to spend my holiday doing what I love more than anything else – checking out great venues and getting lost in some awesome music.

I’ll be kicking off the holidays by checking out Billy Woodward & The Senders at DC9 tomorrow night. Something about the promise of “vintage r&b that all the kids are talking about” and the look of this band just makes me giddy with the thought of chilling out with a drink, some fried pickles (an addiction of mine at DC9), and good music all by my lonesome the night before Christmas Eve. After the show, I’ll be turning the corner onto U St. for some Kostume Karaoke action at Solly’s U St.

The day after Christmas, I’m excited to have the chance to see the full Justin Trawick Group yet again, headlining at IOTA (with Promiselab opening). Some funk, folk, rock, hip-hop, country, pop will be sure to chase the holiday blues away!

Sunday night, before heading back for another short work week, Molly Hagen headlines IOTA with the rare treat of a full band. This alum of The Nine always puts on a great show (I’ve seen her play solo and once – at IOTA as well – with back-up acoustic) and I can’t wait to see what she does will a full band behind her. Her vocal layering can only go to the next level in this show, it should be a blast!

I plan on taking the two days in between to rest, stay warm, ward off any lingering cold symptoms, talk to long-distance family and friends on the phone (an incredibly foreign concept for me!), and catch up on some reading. Ok, maybe there will be a lot of NCIS marathon-ing in there, too, but I refuse to find that at all depressing.

Hey guys! It’s last minute but there’s an amazing show going down tonight at IOTA in Clarendon. Come out and chill with Limbo to see Idea Track, Citizen*, and Sam Grow celebrate the long weekend with a show that goes all night! I’ll be there around 8pm and the show starts at 9, don’t miss it!!

Best Concert Poster Ever.

The Vampire Diaries; from scifiscoop.com

That was an unexpected little hiatus; my apologies. I blame four distinct factors: 1) I haven’t been feeling well for the last few weeks. 2) Too many shows to count (rundown of what I’ve seen is below). 3) A whirlwind weekend in beautiful Detroit for the wedding of two good friends and all the hot tubbing and cheap Midwestern beer one could ever desire. and 4) The series premier and my subsequent addiction to The Vampire Diaries.

First things first, though, this being a music blog and all. Who have you seen lately? Any great venues that I’m missing out on? Shout ‘em out! Let me know! I’ve recently fallen in love with the bar/restaurant The Light Horse in Alexandria, where I saw Idea Track (including solo sets by bassist Joanne Kim and frontman Derek Evry) play a great late night show (I believe we rocked out until roughly 2am on a Wednesday?). From then on my sights were set on Michigan and a weekend of awesome forgetfulness turned out to be truly unforgettable. The wedding was gorgeous (you can check out all the hijinks from it at the twitter hashtag #erinandbrock!), and got me wondering once again about this whole concept of Limbo, but that’s for another post entirely. Shows. Concerts. Live Music! I was lucky a couple of weeks ago to get to see Kings of Leon up at Merriweather Post Pavilion and while I highly doubt I’ll ever see a show at that venue again (being car-less makes the MPP roughly 42 times harder to deal with as a favorite spot), the band was truly amazing. They, almost weirdly in my opinion, sound exactly like you expect them to. I mean, there wasn’t even any banter. They played like machines for nearly two hours straight. And granted, they played really well and I would probably listen to them count blades of grass through a microphone if given the chance, but it was an odd experience for a show.

I’ve also recently seen Alex Parez play a bunch (mostly at Solly’s nights, you gotta check it out!) and Peter Buck (of REM!) with his side project The Minus 5. I got to see Brian Bonz roughly an hour after he got off the Chinatown bus from NYC; they had some great stories about that bus trip! Caught another Justin Trawick show, this time to benefit a Virginia hospital and celebrate the birthday of Iota’s Burns. The birthday celebrations included Idea Track, Molly Hagen, and a bunch more.

All of the running around at live events has been accompanied by discovering new watering holes (Looking Glass, Marvin), trying to take time to actually rest for once, trying to take stock as we enter cold months of housemate evenings in and hang up our beach partying ways for the winter. I’ve been drinking a lot more tea. Spending more time with those I consider true friends rather than those who toss the title around. Also, obviously, watching a lot of cwtv.com. Gossip Girl is back, too.

I’m just feeling tired, I suppose. The cold has set in and with it Fall allergies, longer nights, and a thoughtfulness that hangs over everything. Reality has set back in, the waning sun has risen. All the running around and romance of summer has finally taken its toll on me…

Best Regards,
from limbo

from weheartit

If you’re not taking a cue from our furry friend above and getting some rest this Autumn weekend, then you’ve got some great options for shows, free movies, and general mayhem throughout the rest of this week. I’m jealous of all the talent in the city this weekend as I’ll be at the wedding of two good friends in Detroit (forfeiting my Weakerthans ticket). And so, here’s an early edition (including Wednesday night) of this weekend’s Must See Shows.

Tonight; Matt & Kim are playing a sold out show at the Black Cat. If you got tickets to this you’re one of the lucky few but it might be worth it to chill out in the red room of the venue for the evening – the indie pop darlings are sure to have appreciative audiences and a fun party before and after.

Tonight; in Alexandria, Idea Track plays a late night show of pop-punk fun at The Light Horse, a fun restaurant and bar not far from the heart of Old Town. This band is easily my favorite local act, with songs that make you think while making you just have to get up and dance. They’ve recently added a second guitarist, too, and the full sound is seriously working for them. You don’t want to miss this!

Tonight; don’t forget that every Wednesday is also the open mic night at IOTA, possibly the best venue in town (well, NoVa) for pop-rock and singer songwriter styles.

Tomorrow; Yo La Tengo comes to DC! They’ll be hitting up the 9:30 Club for what I’m sure is going to be a surprising, indie, rock-fueled evening. Come on, the band played The Velvet Underground in ‘I Shot Andy Warhol’ – does it get much better than that?

Tomorrow; if you’re in a movie mood, the space movies series continues on the SE Waterfront with a showing of the modern classic Toy Story.

Friday; a great double header at the 9:30 Club sees Ingrid Michaelson playing the early show (I’d love to see her live sometime, gotta admit!) and Moby brings the house down in the late show – all ready sold out, sadly, but if you’re really jonesing for good mixing, check out The Horrors and friends at Baltimore’s it spot, Sonar.

Saturday; I missed both the Adams Morgan Day Festival and the DC VegFest last Saturday due to a ridiculous morning of a cappella (care of AU’s On a Sensual Note), Teabaggers’ traffic, a last minute brunch in Mt. Pleasant, getting lost in Columbia Heights, and general exhaustion – this weekend I will also be missing the H St. Festival, sadly. H St. has quickly become one of my favorite corridors in the city, beat only by U St. currently, with some of the best bars, cheapest food, coolest neighbors, and rockingest music venues in DC. Don’t miss up a chance to get to know this awesome artsy and low key hipster haven, and if you love it like I do head on out to show your love!

Saturday night; if you got to any show at all this week and weekend MAKE IT THIS SHOW. The Weakerthans are playing the early show (doors are at 7:30) at the 9:30 Club, and word was when tickets first went on sale that they sold out immediately. Because the venue is kind and dear, more tickets were put up and you can still get in on the best band to come out of Canada since Great Big Sea first started singing sea shanties in Newfoundland. How can you not love boys who took their band name from a line in the film of Marguerite Duras’ The Lover: “Go ahead, I’m weaker than you can possibly imagine.” Friend and local singer-songwriter Adrian “Hardkor” turned me on to these guys and you can’t beat their punk/folk/rock with its “literate, witty, introspective lyrics”, true musicianship on a range of interesting instruments, complicated combinations of sounds (no one uses a simple tinkling bell like they do), and an overall sound that’s been compared to The Constantines and Ted Leo and The Pharmacists. I cannot say enough good things about this band. They very rarely make it to DC. Do yourself a favor and go.

Sunday night; Cap off your weekend with MGMT at the Kia Soul Collective Warehouse – the venue, on NY Ave in Kenilworth, will be open with free concerts all weekend (Wale, The Creepers, and Dan Deacon also hit the lineup) as part of a national tour of get-up-and-go concerts to spread the word about the Kia Soul. Corporate sponsorship aside, any chance to spend a Sunday night on the dance floor with the best of ‘shape-shifting psychedelic pop’ (as Spin magazine appears to have called them) is good enough for me.

And that’s about it from me today; been a ridiculous week all ready (thanks to starting off on the best foot with @alextheredparez and friends at Solly’s on U St.) and I’m seriously looking forward to a weekend out of the city (it’s been ages! and not to mention, two of my dearest friends are getting married!). Any suggestions for must-see attractions/watering holes in Detroit? Hit me up here or on twitter and in the meantime I’ll catch you all tonight at The Light Horse (right? Right).