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Big Something @ The Broadberry

Justin Mcclung | January 6, 2020

Topics: Big Something, Broadberry, concerts, live music, Things to do in Richmond, things to do in RVA

A 6 piece powerhouse with a sound that is both unique and timeless, Big Something fuses elements of rock, pop, funk, and improvisation to take listeners on a journey through a myriad of musical styles. It’s no secret why this group has quickly become one of the most exciting new bands to emerge from the Southeast. Soaring guitars, EWI (electronic wind instrument), synths, horns and alluring vocal hooks rise to the top of their infectious collection of songs and represent a sound that has caught the ears of such revered stalwarts as Umphrey’s McGee, Moon Taxi, Galactic, moe., Robert Randolph, and even The B52s, who have all tapped Big Something as direct support.

The band released their 5th studio album The Otherside on April 20th, 2018 as a follow up to their 2017 album Tumbleweed. The Otherside was recorded at Echo Mountain Studios in Asheville, NC with the help of Grammy-nominated producer and Carolina Music Awards Lifetime Achievement recipient – John Custer (Corrosion of Conformity) who has produced all 5 of the bands albums.

Big Something is Nick MacDaniels (vocals, guitar), Casey Cranford (sax, EWI), Jesse Hensley (lead guitar), Ben Vinograd (drums), Doug Marshall (bass), and Josh Kagel (keys, trumpet).

Big Something Kicks Off Big Tour With Two Nights At The Broadberry

Aviance Hawkes | January 30, 2019

Topics: Big Something, Jouwala Collective, live music, The Broadberry

Take a ride to the improv crossroads of rock, pop, and funk with one of Virginia’s longtime visitors. Burlington, NC’s BIG Something uses the unique feng shui of their sound to build songs around movie characters, almost making them into comics with each lyric.

“It’s almost like we bring the characters to life,” said Nick MacDaniels, lead vocalist and guitarist.

Growing up, MacDaniels took an interest in hip hop and harder rock genres, before mellowing out. Drawn more to the singer-songwriter styles like bluegrass, MacDaniels set the foundation for his work today with his current decade-old six piece. BIG Something’s members hail from individually-abstract backgrounds and lifestyles, which come together in a melting pot of sorts through their shows. Those shows kicked off their current tour in the River City last weekend.

“Everyone’s on fresh legs and in positive mindset,” said Nick MacDaniels. “It’s always fun playing in Richmond, especially since we’re kicking off a great long tour.”

This time around, though, the Carolinians had different plans. Last Friday and Saturday, The Broadberry hosted their first two-night special, is the first stop of many on a tour visiting some legendary places: like Colorado’s Stanley Hotel, inspiration for The Shining and film site for Dumb and Dumber. The Stanley was turned into a music venue in its Estes Park home, where people can stay overnight and enjoy musical acts.

Jouwala Collective

BIG Something’s Richmond show started off with a beautiful introduction from Jouwala Collective. Their blend of Gnawa music, traditional African and spiritual songs, is characterized by hypnotic chant-like rhythms mixed with contemporary influences of funk, jazz, rock, soul, reggae, blues, and electronic. This distinct sound excited the crowd, leaving an exceptional first impression for their first show at The Broadberry.

Electrified fans were eager when BIG Something opened up the show with tracks from their 2017 album Waves, along with a combination of various covers. All members contributed to an eccentric sound with individual instruments and voices, collaboratively working to leave the crowd echoing on about their “astounding” sound. It seemed that everyone present had been following them loyally for years.

Beyond their life on the road, BIG Something has something special hidden up their dozen collective sleeves. The Big What?, a BIG Something-organized music festival that hosts an abundance of mutual bands, live artists, and painters while opening up a large art gallery, is coming back for its eighth year for supporters and fans. Further info will be coming as the year rolls on.

Not only do they produce a fun time, BIG Something also strives to make their sets interactive and involve their audience. It’s almost like “one big art project,” according to MacDaniels, and they’re more than excited to get on the road and share their work with the world. For Richmond to be their first stop was a BIG honor.

Photos by Aviance Hawkes

Music Sponsored By Graduate Richmond

Ride The Wave: Weekend Playlist by Big Something

RVA Staff | January 25, 2019

Topics: Big Something, Bluegrass, classic rock, coutnry, indie, rock, rva magazine playlist, Weekend Playlist

Every Friday night, RVA Mag drops a ridiculously amazing playlist curated by influential artists, musicians, and institutions.

This week, we receive a potent musical dispatch from Big Something, the North Carolina alt-rock group with strong enough ties to Richmond to have released a live album recorded at The Broadberry. This weekend finds the group returning to The Broadberry for their first-ever two-night stand here in Richmond, which promises to liven up the weekend for the entire town.

But in the meantime, we’ve got a set of incredible music that truly shows off this band’s eclectic tastes and wide-ranging influences. From jazz to hip-hop to the kind of rockin’ they’ve led us to expect, Big Something previews the live performances they’ve got on tap for tonight and tomorrow with what amounts to an excellent DJ set you can jam while you get prepped for the gig.

Check it out, Virginia! And grab your tickets to see Big Something tonight or tomorrow (or both!) at bit.ly/BigSomethingRVA.

Music Sponsored By Graduate Richmond

PHOTOS: The Best of Lockn’ Festival 2018

RVA Staff | August 29, 2018

Topics: Big Something, Blues Traveler, Butcher Brown, Dead & Company, Erin & The Wildfire, George Clinton & P-Funk, John Mayer, Keller Williams, Lettuce, Lockn Festival, Matisyahu, Moon Taxi, music festival, People's Blues of Richmond, rva music, Sheryl Crow, Umphree's Mcgee, VA music

This past weekend, thousands of jam band fans, deadheads, festy fiends, and music lovers of all kinds flocked to Infinity Downs Farms in Arrington, Va. to see their favorite national, regional, and local acts perform at the annual Lockn’ Festival. Over 25 bands and musicians filled the bill for the four-day jam and rock music fest, which launched back in 2013, including major acts like Umphrey’s McGee, Lettuce, Dead & Company, funk legend George Clinton, Sheryl Crow, Matisyahu, and Widespread Panic. Of course, the usual suspects were there as well, with multiple performances by Keller Williams, along with Bob Weir and friends.

Lockn’ saw several Richmond acts take the stage including the psychedelic rock circus that is People’s Blues of Richmond and instrumental funky jazz group Butcher Brown, along with Charlottesville’s Erin & the Wildfire and Disco Risque. Although the music is what brings in attendees, the sense of camaraderie, good vibes, activities, and overall camping experience is what keeps them coming back year after year. All throughout the day, people could be seen doing yoga, riding around the campgrounds on bikes, hula-hooping, swimming in the Tye River, and dancing into the wee hours to late-night sets. A newer addition to the festival was Garcia’s Forest, a late-night dance party with DJs blasting the music of the Grateful Dead legend himself.

Also, new this year, was Hamageddon, a 14-inch high metal pig sculpture that cooks a pig-on-a-spit in its “belly” and shoots fire from both ends. LOCKN’ partnered with Chef Craig Hartman at Virginia’s BBQ Exchange to serve Hamageddon pulled pork sandwiches all weekend long. Yeah, you missed out if you weren’t there.

Photo Courtesy of Lockn Festival

RVA Mag was there to capture all of the great performances, barefoot dancing, chill vibes, and more. Below, check out what you missed, or relive the magic from Lockn’ Festival 2018:

John Mayer and Bob Weir

Lettuce

Butcher Brown

People’s Blues of Richmond

Tim Beavers, People’s Blues of Richmond

George Clinton

Erin Lunsford of Erin & The Wildfire

Sheryl Crow

Photos By: Branden Wilson and Darienne Skye Montgomery, Intro by Amy David 

 

Music Sponsored By Graduate Richmond

Big Something Makes A Big Noise At The Camel

Andrew Lucas | January 27, 2014

Topics: Big Something, The Camel

Big Something, previously known as Anonymous, is a band out of North Carolina that blends various styles of music into their own oversized rock groove. On Thursday, January 16, the Camel’s walls were bursting at the seams due to Big Something’s BIG sound, which has been referred to as arena rock. The members of the band all have different musical interests and /influences, yet somehow, they come together to create catchy songs that sound as natural as any one genre on its own. From electronica to folk and Americana, they combine it all, yet through their musical expertise, each song still has it’s own Big Something sound. One way or another–whether it be with Nick MacDaniels’s emotional vocals and thought provoking feel-good lyrics, Jesse Hensley’s psychedelic guitar solos, the funky keyboards of Josh Kagel, Casey Cranford’s sax lines, which get you shaking your bottom half unknowingly, Doug Marshall’s rhythm-thumping bass, or Ben Vinograd’s nonstop energy on drums–this band will catch your interest.

While Big Something plays at many festivals filled with jam bands, they can just as easily appeal to people that prefer more structure in their songs. As the word on this band slowly gets out, their shows in Richmond become more and more interesting and fun. As the Camel has recently been forced to stop the music by 11pm on weekdays, I was worried about the crowd size this time around, since most people don’t even get their until 11pm when I attend shows here. However, this proved to be an unnecessary concern. In fact, this show was possibly the biggest crowd they’ve drawn yet at The Camel. The light show was also the best that I’ve seen them have at this venue. Many people in the crowd seemed to be singing along, which led to Nick flashing his contagious smile even more constantly than usual. The crowd was into it, and the band responded. They played sincerely, high-fiving fans and seeming happy the entire show. These guys really love to rock people’s faces off, especially when there is a sympathetic relationship with the crowd.

Playing 16 songs, including only one cover (“Sledgehammer” by Peter Gabriel), they played through their entire two-hour time slot, as I expected. They ripped through a large selection of some of their older songs, and also played a few newer songs that are featured on their new self-titled album (which you can stream for free at their Bandcamp page). This perfect album shows that they are a great studio band on top of being a great live act. The sound quality and production is impeccable. Songs that appeared on their previous live demos can now be heard in an entirely different way, thanks to the band’s precision and creativity in the studio. Although it is free to stream, I do still recommend supporting these guys and purchasing a hard copy of their album whenever you get a chance.

With this philosophy on getting their music out there to as many people as possible, Big Something have the potential to make it big (no pun intended). It can be tough for bands that have yet to be established in larger venues to get some people to give them a chance. However, bands who are willing to play small clubs and improve their craft over the long haul can end up with an edge due to the quality of their live product. The path Big Something is on now could lead to them playing arenas as big as their sound. Their cooperative attitude towards working with other bands and holding multi-genre shows should help Big Something to gain popularity through unconventional or untraditional ways. They even hold a festival every year in North Carolina called the Big What where they invite a lot of regional bands out to come play. They radiate positive feelings through the music and atmosphere of their live shows, which will ultimately make fans out of anyone willing to give them a chance. I recommend checking these guys out the next time they come to Richmond. You won’t regret it.

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