doors: 8:00 pm / show: 9:00 pm
$15.00 – $18.00

Steve Moakler

After moving to Nashville from his blue-collar hometown in Western Pennsylvania, Moakler first established his foothold as a songwriter in Music City with cuts by Ashley Monroe, Jake Owen, Ben Rector, and perhaps most notably, Dierks Bentley (“Riser”). In 2017, Moakler released his fourth studio album, Steel Town, an album that celebrated the hardworking people where he grew up. Moakler was called an “in-demand artist” by Taste of Country, and has earned recognition by more than 20 outlets as an “artist to watch,” including CMT, Huffington Post, Nashville Lifestyles, Rolling Stone Country and more. Steel Town, with more than 15 million combined streams, produced fan-favorite “Suitcase” that People Magazine called “romantically honest,” “Love Drunk” that AXS called “intoxicating” and the title track that Rolling Stone Country called a “wistful, mid-tempo acoustic ballad [that] pays tribute to the resilient people of his hometown just south of Pittsburgh: the factories they work in, the bars they unwind in, and the solace they take in their community.” For more information visit stevemoakler.com.

Corey Kent White

“I didn’t choose music – it chose me.” – Corey Kent White

Back Where It All Began: At just 23 years old it’s hard to believe someone could have 12+ years of touring experience under their belt, but Corey Kent White does. At age 11, a couple of Western Swing Hall-of-Famers took Corey under their wing, made him the frontman of a young Western Swing band, and put him on stages all across the United States. After 5+ years of touring with the likes of the Oak Ridge Boys, Roy Clark, & other country music legends, Corey had learned a thing or two about the life of an entertainer. By age 16 he was a solo-artist in the Tulsa music scene, playing every weekend with his blues trio. “Back then, I was playing for tips & free BBQ. At first, we were just background music for the dinner crowd. But after a few months, we were exceeding the fire occupancy in the venues!”

A Life-Changing Night: Later that year, a man named Willie Nelson came through Corey’s hometown to perform. Willie invited the young artist up on stage with him to perform Milk Cow Blues, an old Bob Wills western swing standard. At the last note, the crowd went silent for a moment in disbelief, then erupted into applause. From that moment on, Corey was all-in on carving out a career in music. The Oklahoma-native graduated high school a year early, moved to Nashville at age 17 & spent his so-called ‘senior year’ writing songs.

The College Years: A year later, Corey moved back to Stillwater, OK where he attended Oklahoma State University & earned a business degree. A demand for his music quickly spread from campus to campus, keeping his band on the road every weekend. “I remember one weekend in particular I had booked us a few shows at Clemson, Georgia Southern, Georgia, and some small college in Kentucky. The 6 of us rented a U-Haul, hooked it up to my Jeep (which only has 5 seats) & made our way across the country. Even though we had 6 full grown men crammed into that Jeep, we had the time of our lives on the road. I don’t think I’ve ever laughed as hard as I did on that trip.” Corey would eventually start missing class because of his touring schedule, at which point, he switched to online courses. This allowed him to move back to Nashville & finish his degree while touring the country.

The Latest: Since then, Corey’s music has spread like wildfire, selling 85,000+ downloads and millions of streams on Spotify. His latest EP, Long Way, broke into the iTunes Top 10 Country Albums & his songwriting landed him a publishing deal with Warner/Chappell. “It’s humbling to be surrounded by the best songwriters & publishers in the world. Everybody at Warner is incredible at what they do & it forces me to continually push myself. I’m honored to have a team that believes in my music the way that they do. The best part is… We’re just getting started!“

Sale Dates and Times:
Public Onsale : Fri, 26 Jan 2018 at 10:00 AM
Artist Presale : Wed, 24 Jan 2018 at 10:00 AM
LOCAL PRESALE : Wed, 24 Jan 2018 at 10:00 AM

Modest Mouse comes to the Thomas Wolfe Auditorium on Thursday, April 26th at 8pm. Tickets go on sale Friday, January 26th at 10am and will be available through the USCC Box Office, online at Ticketmaster.com, and by phone at 800-745-3000.

Modest Mouse was formed in 1993 in Issaquah, Washington and over the last decade has become the indie rock standard and one of the few bands capable of treading the narrow path where massive popularity is possible without sacrificing their longtime fans.

WHERE: Ambrose West, 312 Haywood Road, 28806
WHEN: Thursday April 26, 2018
DOORS: 7pm | SHOW: 8pm
GENRE: americana / country / singer-songwriter
AGES: all ages
SEATS: seated general admission
TICKETS: $10 adv. / $12 d.o.s. / $15 VIP (guaranteed seat in 1st 3 rows!)
WEB LISTING: http://www.ambrosewest.com/aa

Amanda Anne Platt & The Honeycutters:

WEBSITE: www.honeycutters.com
HEAR SOME MUSIC: https://soundcloud.com/amandaanneplatt
SEE A VIDEO: https://youtu.be/K168ib7ltTc

Amanda Anne Platt has been described as “easily one of the best songwriters coming out of Western North Carolina these days” (Martin Anderson, WNCW), with a voice that “sings like Carolina farmlands after a rainstorm” (Harvey Robinson, Monkeywhale Productions). She is the songwriter, lead singer, and producer of the Asheville-based Americana group The Honeycutters. With The Honeycutters she has shared the stage with Guy Clark, Amy Ray, Tedeschi Trucks Band, Tony Rice, The Seldom Scene, Donna The Buffalo, Jill Andrews, The Steep Canyon Rangers, Jim Lauderdale, Ray Wylie Hubbard, and Langhorne Slim. Her song “Little Bird” won First Place in The Great Lakes Songwriting Competition (2011) and Second Place in the General category in the Chris Austin Songwriting Contest at Merlefest (2011). The Honeycutters fifth studio album, Amanda Anne Platt and the Honeycutters, features thirteen of Platt’s original compositions and has been met with critical acclaim across the USA, Canada and the UK.

“Platt’s voice is fair magical. Clearly annunciated, every word is infused with poetic loveliness, made all the more appealing for the slight twang that causes syllables to rise and fall at the end of lines. Like Joy Lynn White once upon a time and Zoe Muth more recently, Platt can sing of desperation and despair while retaining pride of steel… throughout On the Ropes Platt delivers personal devastation that touches universally.”
-Donald Teplyske, Lonesome Road Review

“Amanda Anne Platt has a voice that’s complex, sweet and aching. Even more potently, she writes songs that folks are citing as up there with the best of the field, such as Mary Gauthier and Lucinda Williams.”
-Craig Havighurtst, Music City Roots Host

Show : 9pm
Doors : 8pm
$15 – $75
Ages 18+

Twiddle hails from the hills of Hubbardton Vermont, and has always sought to write and perform music that is diverse and groovin’, but also intricate and expressive. In the relatively short time since forming, this quartet’s music and songwriting has progressed by leaps without bounds, earning them steadily growing recognition. While tapping many parts of the globe for diverse musical and cultural influences, Twiddle maintains a vibe of modern rock and funk with traditional jazz, classical, reggae, and Latin overtones – all in the spirit of intertwining improvisation and structure. The band has been able to kick back and find itself at home on whatever stage they’ve played on, be it at a club, college, downtown park, historic theatre, or rowdy festival. Twiddle’s shows are always high energy, but with plenty of time, tempo, and mood changes to keep the ears engaged and the brain wondering what’s next.

twiddlemusic.com

Genre: Reggae/Rock
Cover: Donations @ Door
Show: 10PM
Ages: 21+

SEE WATER

See Water is the love child of reggae and punk rock. This up-and-coming band from Charleston, SC will take your ears on a roller-coaster ride through laid-back jams and hard-hitting rock riffs. Their style is similar to that of a mosh-pit on the beach at sunset. If their music was a cocktail, it would be a long island iced tea; at first you think, “There’s no way you can mix all of that together,” but sure enough, you take a sip only to find that it’s delicious and intoxicating.

See Water has been proving themselves in all their unorthodox glory at The Music Farm and Charleston Pour House, and venues throughout the east coast and the USVI, while performing alongside acts such as Passafire, Badfish: A Tribute to Sublime, The Hip Abduction, Fear Nuttin Band, Sun-Dried Vibes, TreeHouse!, and Of Good Nature. See Water has released their debut EP, entitled ‘Diluted Acoustica’, and quickly began work on their next project. Their first full-length album ‘Hit The Moon’ is to be released February 2017 with the first single, ‘Echo’, leading the way.

“When you see a body of water, whether it’s calm or violent, it makes you feel something, and that’s what we’re here to do.”

web: http://www.seewatermusic.com/

vid: https://youtu.be/w6sRQO-jRyQ

Swim In the Wild

Swim in the Wild is the Adventure Alternative Band- A Sound Born in the Rock & Rolling plains of the Carolina’s with East Coast Vibes and flavors of Appalachian Folk.

web: http://www.swiminthewild.com/

vid: https://youtu.be/JYqkG2isFYc

Todd Snider
by todd snider

i started making up songs in 1986.

i made an album in 1994.

i also started a tour in 1994

and that tour is, in a way, still going.

i never made a record so good

that i could just sit home

or did a show so bad

that i had to.

and man, i’ve done some shit shows,

shit albums too.

some of them are pretty good though,

but you know,

it’s been a while.

i really need to put out a good album soon

or i’m finished.

sometimes these days i sing with a band.

i think we made a good album.

david schools of widespread panic is our leader.

i make up our lyrics….we’re a jam band.

our songs only go on about an hour or so but they’re still pretty long.

cool people jam with us all the time and we have like a million shirts and shit.

i personally think we’re the seventh best band in the whole jam thing.

on this tour i am coming to town with nothing but my guitar and stories

like the old days.

you know…

pick a little

talk a little

pick a little

talk a little

cheap cheap cheap

talk a lot

pick a little more.

and not to brag,

but i also wrote a book that everybody loves

so i am an author now.

plus i play everywhere,

pretty much all the time

everybody shows up

and they pretty much always love it.

WHERE: Ambrose West, 312 Haywood Rd., 28806
WHEN: Friday April 27, 2018
DOORS: 7pm | SHOW: 8pm
GENRE: improv comedy
AGES: all ages
TICKETS: $10 g.a. / $15 VIP (guaranteed seating in 1st 3 rows!)
SEATING: seated general admission
WEB LISTING: http://www.ambrosewest.com/rpb

RPB at our new spot! Come on by and see our show in our new location. Change can be hard…but not this time! It’s all good and nothing but better as we launch off from Ambrose West. “But, but but…I’ve never heard of that place before.” I hear you say. Because, It’s new. It’s awesome and it’s your new favorite thing. Discover it with us! Enjoy beer, improv comedy and a quasi religious experience in this quasi religious location.

$10 advance / $12 day of show

JGBCB – JERRY GARCIA BAND COVER BAND
Formed in Athens, GA in 2012, JGBCB has been filling a hole in the Grateful Dead scene by offering up spirited covers of classic songs pulled exclusively from the repertoire of the Jerry Garcia Band, Garcia’s long-running side-project. JGBCB has played shows from Key West to Colorado, exciting audiences with performances of beloved Garcia tunes not found within the traditional Grateful Dead catalog.

The Jerry Garcia Band (famously known to Dead Heads as “JGB”) was as much a songwriting outlet for Garcia as it was a chance for him to cover the music he loved. With Jerry and bassist John Kahn as the band’s staples (playing together as far back as 1970), a varied set of keyboardists, drummers, and backup singers filled out the lineup over the years, each bringing their own unique character to the band. Over the course of it’s existence, JGB played a number of diverse musical styles, covering artists such as The Beatles, Van Morrison, Bob Dylan, The Band, Jimmy Cliff, Smoky Robinson, The Rolling Stones, the Wailers, J.J. Cale, and Ray Charles. The list goes on and on, recalling the names of rock, soul, and folk royalty.

It is with a deep love of Jerry Garcia’s music and the music that he loved that the members of JGBCB approach this project. The band came together for a single show in December 2012, which led to a local weekly residency in Athens. The positive response they received ultimately led JGBCB to tour around the country, giving fans all over a taste of the music of the Jerry Garcia Band. Count on hearing different material from night to night, consisting of JGB staples and deep cuts. How sweet it is!

doors: 8:00 pm / show: 9:00 pm
$12.00 – $15.00

Surfer Blood

Winter

Winter is the project of songwriter Samira Winter, who’s love for guitar music and nostalgic imagery inspired the dream pop/indie rock four piece. Samira grew up in Curitiba, Brazil listening to her American father’s punk records, and her Brazilian mother’s MPB (Brazilian Popular Music) tunes. While living in Boston during her college years she found a love for shoegaze which led to her collaboration with Nolan Eley who recorded and produced Winter’s first EP “Daydreaming” and LP “Supreme Blue Dream”. In 2013 Samira relocated to Los Angeles where the band currently resides working on their upcoming album “Ethereality.” Winter aspires to connect people to their inner child by making blissful, beautiful, dream pop.

Genre: Funk/Rock
Cover: Donations @ Door
Show: 10PM
Ages: 21+

ShwizZ

ShwizZ is a unique cast of characters reigning from New York. Best described as a melting pot of funk and progressive rock, this giant original sound will be sure to put a smile on your face. The band’s variety and depth allows for lovely twists of improvisation and spontaneity spiked with technical prowess and musical complexity.

Over the years the group has shared bills with many notables including Jeff Beck, Primus, Jordan Rudess (Dream Theater), Kung Fu, Particle, Dopapod, Consider The Source and more. ShwizZ can be found gigging all over the northeast and you won’t be surprised to find them playing at your favorite festival or club for years to come.

web: http://www.shwizz.com/

vid: https://youtu.be/-MCV9N93kr0

Genre: Mushroom Jazz/House
Cover: $15 ADV // $20 DOS
Show: 10PM (Doors 9PM)
Ages: 21+

Mark Farina

Mark Farina has thrilled crowds globally, entertaining over 1 million fans per year. As one of the most ubiquitous DJs in Dance Music, Farina’s known for both his unique style of mixing Jazz, Downtempo and House Music as well as being the creator of Mushroom Jazz: West Coast jazzy, organic productions combined with East Coast Hip-Hop, Urban beats.

Drawing from his vibrant youth, which included being a trumpet player in marching band, a drummer in a nu wave cover band and a guest DJ, Friday nights on WNUR (Chicago), Mark found his passion for the luscious world of vinyl, turntables and nightclubs. At 16, Farina began his DJ career as a resident at Chicago’s underage mecca, Medusa’s. At the same time Mark joined forces with emerging DJs Derrick Carter and Chris Nazuka then moved into a loft space called Rednail.

Rednail became infamous not only for raucous parties but also as the home to the trio’s first productions under the moniker, Symbols & Instruments. Their release,”MOOD,” sold 35,000 copies in the US & UK and is credited as “the first ambient house track.”

Farina relocated to San Francisco in 1992. Fans embraced Mark’s downtempo style and he started co-hosting a weekly Mushroom Jazz club night in ʻ93. In 3 short years, Farina established a fanatical, cult-like following for his Mushroom Jazz sound and in 1996, OM Records released the first mixed comp CD, simply titled, Mushroom Jazz. Other notable releases include OMʼs Seasons, San Francisco Sessions Vol. 1, Connect, House of Om, Live in Tokyo, and Fabric 40.

When Mark’s not touring the world, you’re likely to find him in his studio working on new releases & podcasts for his label, Great Lakes Audio. On days off he’ll be cruising his ’68 Toronado with his son, Dylan (aka “little peanut”), and his Yorkie, Pumpkin.

Voted as one of the top DJ’s in the world by URB, MUZIK and BPM magazines, Mark Farina’s taste making skills continue to turn the heads of seasoned Dance Music veterans as well as newcomers to the scene.

web: http://www.djmarkfarina.net/

vid: https://youtu.be/_qaqGx1qUXY

It’s finally here – 828ROCKFEST 2018 returns on Saturday, April 28th and Sunday April 29th @ Pisgah Brewing Company. Featuring 30plus bands… 2 stages… 2full days of non-stop hard hitting rock n roll!

RockVillians always get the best price on tickets!
Get your 2 Day Pass now for $20 before the gate price goes up. Also don’t miss your chance to gain VIP access and a tour of Pisgah Brewing Company with VIP ticket packages.

This will be THEE BIGGEST ROCK PARTY OF THE YEAR!
#828Rockfest #RKFTS2018 #AVLROCKFEST2018 #LocalLive

EVENT PAGE: http://www.pisgahbrewing.com/shows/828rockfest/

TICKETING: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/828-rockfest-tickets-43937028836

WHEN: Saturday April 27, 2018
DOORS: 7pm | Show: 8pm
GENRE: rock
AGES: all ages
Standing room only, general admission
TICKETS: $15 adv / $18 day of show

Lydia Loveless
Blessed with a commanding, blast-it-to-the-back-of-the-room voice, the 25-year-old Lydia Loveless was raised on a family farm in Coshocton, Ohio—a small weird town with nothing to do but make music. With a dad who owned a country music bar, Loveless often woke up with a house full of touring musicians scattered on couches and floors. She has turned this potential nightmare scenario (eww….touring musicians smell…) into a wellspring of creativity.

When she got older, in the time-honored traditions of teenage rebellion, she turned her back on these roots, moved to the city (Columbus, OH) and immersed herself in the punk scene, soaking up the musical and attitudinal influences of everyone from Charles Bukowski to Richard Hell to Hank III.

Loveless’s Bloodshot debut album Indestructible Machine combined heady doses of punk rock energy and candor with the country classicism she was raised on and just can’t shake; it was a gutsy and unvarnished mash-up. It channeled ground zero-era Old 97s (with whom she later toured) but the underlying bruised vulnerability came across like Neko Case’s tuff little sister. Indestructible Machine possesses a snotty irreverence and lyrical brashness that’s an irresistible kick in the pants.

On her second Bloodshot album Somewhere Else, released after a few 7″ singles and an EP, Loveless was less concerned with chasing approval – she scrapped an entire album’s worth of material before writing the set – and more focused on fighting personal battles of longing and heartbreak, and the aesthetic that comes along with them. While her previous album was described as “hillbilly punk with a honky-tonk heart” (Uncut), this one couldn’t be so quickly shoehorned into neat categorical cubbyholes. No, things were different this time around—Loveless and her band collectively dismissed the genre blinders and sonic boundaries that came from playing it from a safe, familiar place. Creatively speaking, Indestructible Machine was an all-night bender, Somewhere Else was the forlorn twilight of the next day, when that creeping nostalgia has you looking back for someone, something, or just… anything.

2016’s Real is one of those exciting records where you sense an artist truly hitting their stride, that their vision is both focused and expansive, and that their talent brims with a confident sense of place, execution and exploration. Whether you’ve followed Lydia’s career forever, like us, or if you are new to her ample game, Real is gonna grab your ears.

​On her first two Bloodshot albums, there were fevered comparisons to acknowledged music icons like Loretta Lynn, Stevie Nicks, Replacements, and more. She’s half this, half that, one part something else. We hate math. But, now Real and Lydia Loveless are reference points of their own. Genre-agnostic, Lydia and her road-tightened band pull and tease and stretch from soaring, singalong pop gems, roots around the edges to proto-punk. There are many sources, but the album creates a sonic center of gravity all its own.

​Always a gifted writer with a lot to say, Lydia gives the full and sometimes terrifying, sometimes ecstatic force of the word. Struggles between balance and outburst, infectious choruses fronting emotional torment are sung with a sneer, a spit, or a tenderness and openness that is both intensely personal and universally relatable. It is, as the title suggests, real.

​Lydia Loveless has toured with artists such as Old 97’s, Drive-By Truckers, Jason Isbell, Iron & Wine, Scott H. Biram, and the Supersuckers. Her music has been praised by Rolling Stone, NPR, Pitchfork, SPIN, Stereogum, Chicago Tribune, and more.

Loveless penned an original song for the 2015 film I Smile Back, starring Sarah Silverman, and was the subject of the 2016 documentary Who Is Lydia Loveless?, directed by Gorman Bechard.

David Earl Tomlinson
Part carnival barker, part preacher. Part con man, part mystic. David Earl’s Southern American roots rock band hails from the Mountains of Asheville, North Carolina. Compared to The Band, Ryan Adams, the Boss, and even Lucinda Williams, Earl’s potent harmonies and powerful performances have had a lasting effect on audiences across the Southeast. On March 18th, 2017 David Earl released his third studio album “Catch a Thrill”.

Cutting his teeth on the early American field recordings of Alan Lomax, David Earl sang along with Lomax’s haunting recordings of field workers, chain gangs, blues legends, church quartets, folk singers, and cowboys. From his co leader in the Kuumba and David Earl Band he learned African Spirituals that opened him up to new magic that compels him to this day.

David Earl’s songs simmer with the wisdom of a recovering addict and the humor of one who has come too far to take himself too seriously. He opens for Lydia Loveless at Asheville’s beautiful new Ambrose West listening room on Saturday, April 28, with full band.

Superchunk
The urgency of current events after the demoralizing 2016 election gave Mac, Laura, Jim, and Jon of Superchunk the momentum to make something new sooner than later. “It would be strange to be in a band, at least our band, and make a record that completely ignored the surrounding circumstances that we live in and that our kids are going to grow up in.” Enter What a Time to Be Alive, Superchunk’s first album in over four years. It’s a record, says Mac, “about a pretty dire and depressing situation but hopefully not a record that is dire and depressing to listen to.”

Indeed, like so much of Superchunk’s music in the band’s nearly three decades together, the songs on What a Time to Be Alive meet rage and anxiety head-on with the catharsis and exhilaration of loud punk fire and vulnerable pop energy. Like 2013’s I Hate Music, which focused on death, loss, and the role of music in an aging life, What a Time to Be Alive brings spirit to the frontlines of pain—it’s as defiant as it is despairing, as much a call to arms as a throwing up of hands.

Written almost entirely between November 2016 and February 2017, What a Time to Be Alive was recorded and mixed by Beau Sorenson, who also worked on I Hate Music. The record also has more guest backing vocalists than any previous Superchunk album, including Sabrina Ellis (A Giant Dog, Sweet Spirit), Katie Crutchfield (Waxahatchee), Stephin Merritt (The Magnetic Fields), Skylar Gudasz, and David Bazan.

The Rock*A*Teens
Chris Lopez composed and recorded the majority of Sweet Bird’s basic tracks on keyboards and guitar at Rob Gal’s studio, and then lugged the tape machine back to the band’s Black Box rehearsal space at the end of Krog Street in Cabbagetown, GA to finish. During the next few months, things got peculiar (at least by Rock*A*Teens standards, that is). Band members Will, Justin, and Lopez would each go in on his own time and add his own flourishes to each track without the others’ knowledge. This unusual hands-off collaboration progressed for months during the spring of 2000. The ladies from Ultrababyfat (Shonali and Michelle) laid down Phil Spector-esque backup vocals on “If I Wanted to Be Famous (I’d Have Shot Someone),” and Shannon Wright sang an achingly spare duet with Chris on “It’s Destiny.” Anthemic. Majestic. Shimmering. Heart-aching brilliance. The Rock*A*Teens focused it all into Sweet Bird of Youth.

When Sweet Bird was released, the band was approaching the end of its existence. A few tours went by. 2001 turned into 2002, and the band was barely doing anything at all. Understandably. The band members all had their own lives, their own jobs, and their own destinies. The band’s final concert on New Year’s Eve ’02 wasn’t sheepish but rather a triumphant farewell. Lopez sang without his guitar on, standing on the monitors and screaming “I am the car, and I am the driver!” The crowd was as jubilant as the band.

Much like their performances back then, their body of work is a true catharsis. They were a truly homegrown band from Georgia that couldn’t possibly be mistaken for being from anywhere else. For anybody that ever wants a glimpse into what Cabbagetown was all about back then, the Rock*A*Teens’ Sweet Bird of Youth is a glorious introductory step.

Show : 9pm
Doors : 8pm
$24 – $26
Ages 18+

The way Corey Smith sees it, he owes a debt to his fans. And it’s one he is determined to repay with his 10th album, While the Gettin’ Is Good. The project, released on Sugar Hill Records, marks the first time that the singer-songwriter, a wildly popular touring artist who has produced all of his past efforts, has turned over the reins to a bona fide country music producer in Keith Stegall. The result is Smith’s most ambitious record yet, as well as a return on the investment made by the fans who have supported him since his first album in 2003.

“A lot of start-up acts are using fan-funded programs to finance their record. That’s what my whole career has been: Kickstarter before Kickstarter. When my fans show up and buy a ticket and a t-shirt, they’re investing in what I’m doing,” says Corey. “It’s my responsibility to invest it wisely and give them the best album I can. That’s what led me to While the Gettin’ Is Good.”

coreysmith.com

The Soft Moon
http://www.thesoftmoon.com

w/ Boy Harsher
http://boyharsher.com/

VIA
http://www.livevialove.com/#media

‘Criminal’, THE SOFT MOON’s fourth studio album, is a confessional work. Through the stark lens of shame and guilt that has followed Luis Vasquez since a violent childhood growing up within the humming ambient sprawl of 80s Mojave Desert, here he documents the gut-wrenching sound of going to war with himself. Battling with his own sanity, self-hatred, insecurity, self-entitlement and grappling with the risk of these things transforming him into a person he despises, Vasquez has laid his feelings bare with this: his confession and most self-reflective work to date.

“Guilt is my biggest demon and has been following me since childhood. Everything I do strengthens the narrative that I am guilty” Vasquez reflects. “The concept of ‘Criminal’ is a desperate attempt to find relief by both confessing to my wrongdoings and by blaming others for their wrongdoings that have affected me.”

‘Criminal’ marks a striking and important chapter in his self-exploration, both artistically and emotionally. As a young musician living in Oakland, Vasquez began to try and process the narrative of his difficult upbringing veiled through musical exploration. Taking krautrock’s motorik beats and Post-Punk deconstructions and honing them into a hushed percussive incantation, The Soft Moon’s self-titled debut album took shape. The album was released in late 2010 by Captured Tracks and was praised by critics and emulated by contemporaries.

In 2012 the apocalyptic conceptual work of Zeros emerged, shortly followed by Vasquez moving to Venice, Italy in 2013, acting as a catalyst for 2014’s release, Deeper. While previous albums were primarily instrumental records, where Vasquez’s voice was diffused amidst the music as another instrument, Deeper marked the beginning of a new musical direction where vocals and lyrics became something more than a mere presence. Deeper was a descent into the womb of childhood trauma, anxiety and fear, and although Vasquez survived this dark exploration of himself, he did not return alone.

Working once more with Maurizio Baggio, who produced Deeper, at La Distilleria in Bassano Del Grappa, Italy, ‘Criminal’ sees Vasquez further explore putting his lyrics at the forefront and letting his raw emotions flow. The album begins with a confrontation with his true self through the torrid bass lines and searing vocals of “Burn”; a song evoking a loss of control akin to demonic possession, stating: “Eyes, reflecting the person that I am, and it burns”. In this track Vasquez’s guilt bores deeper and deeper into a condemnation that ultimately is: “Fire, hell is where I’ll go to live, so I burn”.

“Burn” is followed by the caustic bass, mechanized rhythms, and numbing emulsions of “Choke,” a song about the amplifying and anesthetizing effect of cocaine, a drug whose darker side Vasquez is not unfamiliar with. The next track “Give Something” is a subterranean love song from the deepest depths, with harrowingly despondent lyrics, seeking hope in a sea of shame.

The album continues its thematic inner conflict in the Industrial/EBM percussion and distorted high attack bass of “Like a Father”, a song reflecting Vasquez’s anger towards the father that abandoned him. “This head is a problem/You’re the ghost of my problem/Something’s got to give” pleads Vasquez as revving guitars invoke chainsaws before the song’s final lines search for closure: to kill the father within himself.

The album closes with title track “Criminal”; a despondent resignation to guilt; bereft, broken, and bruised, with lyrics that confess: “It’s the way I cross the line, it’s the way I open, it’s the way to my decline, it’s the way I’m broken”. The song, like the album itself, is Vasquez’s way of holding himself accountable and seeking redemption for the abuse he inflicts on himself, and acknowledges roots in the abuse which, inflicted upon him as a child, broke him.

‘Criminal’ will be released on February 2nd 2018 with a new home on New York label Sacred Bones.

doors: 6:00 pm / show: 6:30 pm
$15.00 – $18.00

Hawthorne Heights

Formed in 2001 as A Day In The Life, the band soon went through some changes in lineup and musical direction, which led also to a name change.

They released their debut album, “The Silence In Black And White”, in 2004 on Victory Records.

On November 24th, 2007, Casey Calvert died in his sleep while being on tour with the band.

Lineup:
Casey Calvert (deceased) – guitar, backing vocals
Chris “Poppy” Popadak – drums
Mark McMillon – vocals, guitar
Matt Ridenour – bass
JT Woodruff – vocals, guitar

Listener

Listener is a band/project founded by Dan Smith in the early 21st century. With Dan Smith as a permanent fixture, other musicians have become part of the line-up such as composer Chris Nelson who joined in 2005 and drummer Kris Rochelle in 2011 onwards.

Hotel Books

“Hotel Books is an expression of spirit conveyed through spoken-word poetry and ambient music.”
Hotel Books is based out of Porterville, CA and lead by singer-songwriter Cam Smith who started the band in 2012. In early 2014 they signed to InVogue Records.

Sienna Skies
Sienna Skies are a six-piece post-hardcore act from the city of Sydney, Australia.

Twenty years on from first signing to Warner Bros. Records, Built To Spillis set to return in 2015 with its eighth studio album, Untethered Moon. That’s now two complete decades that one of America’s leading “indie rock” bands has happily made its home on a major label, and in the process redefined that clumsy descriptor of independence by operating wholly and consistently under its own steam, taking the proper time to craft timeless songs and playing endless, epic shows to a growing grip of fans each year. Under the command of its constant leader, Doug Martsch, as well as a new rhythm section, Built To Spill’screative process continues to ebb, flow and evolve in its own orbit, reemerging on record for the first time since 2009’s There Is No Enemywith ten new songs that fit at once into the band’s resonant catalog while infusing fresh energy into that signature sound.

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The California Honeydrops spring into 2018 with the Call It Home Tour to promote the release of a new double album, Call It Home: Vol. 1 & 2. The California Honeydrops have a reputation as being among the most exciting and dynamic live bands on the planet. With unrelenting energy and a near-encyclopedic knowledge of musical styles, genres and idioms, the Honeydrops have spent a decade playing everywhere from subway stations in their native Oakland, California to sold-out shows in theatres and at festivals all across the globe. In addition to their own non-stop touring, 2016 and 2017 saw them honored to support Bonnie Raitt on her extensive North American tour, following past support slots with such icons as B.B. King, Allen Toussaint, Buddy Guy and Dr. John. Whether in those high-profile performances or in more intimate venues where the band itself can leave the stage and get down on the dance floor, the California Honeydrops’ shared vision and purpose remain: to make the audience dance and sing.

The band has come a long way since vocalist, guitarist, and trumpeter Lech Wierzynkski and drummer Ben Malament started busking in an Oakland subway station. With the additions of Johnny Bones on tenor sax and clarinet, Lorenzo Loera on keyboards and Beau Bradbury on bass, they’ve built a powerful full-band sound drawing on diverse musical influences from Bay Area R&B to funk, Southern soul, Delta blues and New Orleans second-line. All while staying true to the organic, street-level feel of their origins. More like parties than traditional concerts, their shows feature extensive off-stage jamming and crowd interaction. “The whole point is to erase the boundaries between the crowd and us,” Wierzynski says. “We don’t make setlists. We want requests. We want crowd involvement, to make people become a part of the whole thing by dancing along, singing, picking the songs and generally coming out of their shells.”