This is apparently the last show Don Babylon will play as a local band, and I must admit that whenever I hear this sort of thing, I always worry. After all, this isn’t the 80s anymore. Moving out to LA to “make it big” isn’t nearly as sure a thing as it once was, and even back in the day it wasn’t all that guaranteed (ask Johnny Hott how it worked out for House Of Freaks, for example). Hopefully Don Babylon are just moving to Iowa to get master’s degrees or something. Regardless, they will be a big loss for the RVA alt-rock community, and they demonstrate that fact with aplomb on debut album Babe, co-released earlier this year by Trrrash Records. They’re leaving town initially to head out on tour in support of Babe, and I’m sure their high-energy rock show will win over plenty of new fans in new towns. Don’t forget us back here in Richmond, guys!
Don Babylon will be joined this night by out-of-towners The Lounge Act, who hail from New York and aren’t really a lounge act at all. They don’t sound all that inspired by the Nirvana song of the same name either, really, but these days you kind of have to figure Nirvana’s in every rock musician’s blood on some level, don’t you? Anyway, The Lounge Act should appeal to those who love Don Babylon in this town. Though they have a bit more mellow of an approach, they still have plenty of killer melodies, and know how to bring the rock when the time comes. The evening will begin with sets from Black Mold Jesus and 3-Legged Dog, a couple of the most evocatively named bands on the Richmond scene right now. Will their music live up to the mental pictures their names conjure up? Only one way to find out.
