In less than two months, Shannon Cleary will be presenting the third annual installment of WRIR And The Commonwealth Of Notions Presents, the annual live music series in which he presents a variety of local bands that have caught his fancy over the past year. He’s got big things planned for this year, so without further ado, here is Shannon to tell you all about it!
In less than two months, Shannon Cleary will be presenting the third annual installment of WRIR And The Commonwealth Of Notions Presents, the annual live music series in which he presents a variety of local bands that have caught his fancy over the past year. He’s got big things planned for this year, so without further ado, here is Shannon to tell you all about it!
Since 2009, I have been hosting a radio program entitled The Commonwealth of Notions on WRIR. It airs Wednesday nights from 11PM to 1AM. The program spends its two hours examining and heralding the local music scene. It’s a love letter to the sounds that emerge from this city.
In 2011, I decided to develop a proper extension of the radio program. This evolution resulted in WRIR and The Commonwealth of Notions Presents. Two nights were spent in May of 2011 at the Firehouse Theatre and Gallery 5. The lineups included the last performance by Orioles, Amazing Ghost joined by members of No BS! Brass Band, one of the last sets by The Veins, as well as several others. In it’s first year, the table was set, and the possibilities were endless for the second year. In July of 2012, WRIR took over Gallery 5 for WRIR and The Commonwealth of Notions Presents: Volume Two. The roster included Swordplay, Canary Oh Canary, The Blue Rajas, The Low Branches, White Laces, Dogs on Main Street, Bermuda Triangles, The Colloquial Orchestra, The Snowy Owls, and The Milkstains. The ten-band line-up was ambitious, but it ended up being an incredible experience for everyone involved.
For our third year, in an effort to showcase many of Richmond’s finest, we have raised the stakes even higher. Over the weekend of July 18th through the 21st, WRIR and The Commonwealth of Notions Presents: Volume Three is going down. The event will be hosted at four different venues over the course of four evenings. Hopefully this will prove to be a weekend and an event that never ceases to grow. Richmond deserves it’s own festival and a means of offering acclaim for our tremendous music scene. If anything, it’s a perfect opportunity to check out what Richmond has been up to since we left you after Volume Two.
On Thursday, July 18th, the weekend kicks off with a showcase at Strange Matter. With this late show, we will be inviting four acts to get things started right. On Friday, July 19th, we drop by Balliceaux to celebrate the return of one of Richmond’s most beloved. A simple hint as to their identity is that they haven’t played a show in their full incarnation in close to a year. On Saturday, July 20th, we return to Gallery 5 to see what mayhem will ensue this year, as we assemble an eclectic line-up of artists showcasing several different approaches to their respective genres. If last year’s ten-band bill is an indicator, everyone should be prepared for a pretty epic night of music. On Sunday, July 21st, we close out the weekend at Bandito’s, and begin looking forward to next summer.
The line-ups are being kept secret at this point. Over the next ten days, various music blogs and publications will be revealing details about participants. Be on the lookout for these updates, and when everything is put out there, we will unveil the poster for this year’s WRIR and The Commonwealth of Notions Presents: Volume Three. After that, July should be here before we know it.
