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VA Shows You Must See This Week: December 18 – December 25

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FEATURED SHOW
Saturday, December 22, 9 PM
L’Amour, Sick Bags, DJ Sam Slug @ Mojo’s – Free (Donations appreciated)
It’s time to go back to the dawning days of Richmond punk — long before White Cross or Death Piggy, back when punk hadn’t yet become a pedal-to-the-metal speed competition, before it was all about rage and fury. Back in the late 70s, the Ramones, Dead Boys, and Dictators were still kings of the US punk scene, and here in Richmond, our earliest punk exports fit into much the same mold; mixing teenage hormones, class-clown goofiness, and no-frills rock n’ roll into a potent cocktail of melody, energy, and fun.

1979 was the year that L’Amour, one of the foremost bands in that first wave of RVA punk, released their sole EP. It featured two songs, “Sunglass Party” and “Someday,” and preserved the group’s blend of Stonesy catchiness and New York Dolls-style gleeful trashiness for posterity. There was a lot more where that came from, but it was much harder in those days to record and release music than it is today, so the rest of it spent decades languishing unheard on tapes buried in former members’ basements.

Thankfully, this year has seen a resurrection of L’Amour’s greatness, as VA label Beach Impediment has collected all of the band’s known recordings onto an excellent 14-song LP entitled Look To The Artist. To celebrate its long-overdue release, core L’Amour members Tom Applegate and David Stover have regrouped, recruited a young rhythm section from among the fertile talent pool of today’s Richmond punk scene, and returned to action for this incredible reunion show at Mojo’s Saturday night. Most of us probably missed L’Amour the first time (I was three, and I’m OLD), so this is a golden opportunity to be present for a return to the very roots of this city’s near half-century of punk greatness. And how can you possibly turn that down?

Wednesday, December 19, 7 PM
A Very Butcher Holiday, feat. Butcher Brown, R4nd4zzo Big B4nd @ The Broadberry – $12 in advance/$15 at the door (order tickets HERE)
Christmas time is here, and Butcher Brown knows it. This excellent quintet is getting into the holiday spirit at the Broadberry tonight with an excellent set of jazzed-up Christmas standards, paying tribute in particular to the Vince Guaraldi Trio’s classic soundtrack for A Charlie Brown Christmas. They’ll be joined by the R4nd4zzo Big B4nd, a fifteen-or-so-piece project led by Butcher Brown’s very own bassist, Andrew Randazzo, which brought us much the same tribute last year, as captured on their Tribute To Vince Guaraldi LP, released back at the beginning of this year.

Considering Guaraldi often worked at the head of a simple piano-bass-drums trio, this brassy, expanded treatment from a group that includes multiple trumpets, trombones, and reeds is different from the original in significant ways. However, the jazzy spirit of Christmas that makes Guaraldi’s original album the objective best holiday music ever (yeah, I said it) remains intact, even as the group’s inspired new arrangements allow for considerable creativity. Whether you’re a fan of A Charlie Brown Christmas in particular or the holidays in general, and even if you just like good jazz music no matter the season, this show’s got a lot to offer you. Be there, and get into the spirit the Butcher Brown way.

Thursday, December 20, 7 PM
Snail Mail, Bleary Eyed @ The Broadberry – $15 in advance/$18 day of show (order tickets HERE)
Look, I admit it — I’m just discovering Snail Mail. I’m a big-time music nerd (as you may have gathered) and I catch a lot, but sometimes things are gonna slip past my radar until way past time that I should have heard them. Snail Mail is one such thing; somehow I missed their debut full-length, Lush, when it was released this past summer and proceeded to score Best New Music plaudits from Pitchfork. Oops.

I mean, I always take that website with several grains of salt, so don’t get me wrong, but this time they are totally correct — Lush is an absolute tour-de-force. Where downcast indie-pop songwriting is concerned, Snail Mail frontperson Lindsey Jordan has an incredible gift, and songs like “Speaking Terms” cut to the heart of the tremendous difficulties inherent in all human relationships, even as they wash your tears away with beautiful vocal melodies and perfect chiming guitars. This is an album that will resonate with the awkward emo nerd inside us all, even the jaded denim-clad metalheads among our number. I will go so far as to say this — if you’ve ever in your life had feels about a thing, you need to be at the Broadberry this Thursday night. Snail Mail’s gonna make you feel all those feels all over again, and in much more wonderful ways.

Friday, December 21, 8 PM
Camp Howard, Twain, Recluse Raccoon, Kenneka Cook @ Gallery 5 – $5 in advance/$7 day of show (order tickets HERE)
Get ready for a lovely night of gorgeous indie sounds at Gallery 5 this Friday. This quartet of excellent Virginia artists will ease you into the weekend before Christmas and all the hectic travel plans you’re sure to be executing in the days that follow. Reliable RVA mainstays Camp Howard are at the top of the bill, and that’s always a good place for them; it may have been a year and a half since most recent EP, Juice, but Nic and the boys have established such a reliable track record of glittering post-punk power-pop over the past several years that everyone in RVA knows what these boys have to offer.

Where this show is concerned, though, Camp Howard is just the beginning. Twain hail from Franklin County, a rural region just south of Roanoke that has legendarily been known as “the moonshine capital of the world,” so you know this band understands how to have a good time. Their 2017 LP, Rare Feeling, is full of beautiful songs that bring an understated, pensive touch to a style landing somewhere between indie and alt-country. They’re simultaneously reminiscent of Sturgill Simpson and My Morning Jacket, and just as excellent a listen as those two, so they’re well worth your time. Recluse Raccoon are a good bit more social than the name suggests, and in fact they recently released a gorgeously weird self-titled LP that makes quite an impression with its introspective tunes embroidered by a variety of unconventional instruments. And of course Kenneka Cook is always someone you should catch, even if it means showing up early — her excellent voice and skillful compositions are worth the price of admission all by themselves.

Saturday, December 22, 8 PM
Planned Parenthood Fundraiser, feat. Occultist, VV, Kuni, Trapcry @ Gallery 5 – $5 to $10 suggested donation
With Strange Matter sadly shuffling off this mortal coil, there seems little doubt that we’ll all be spending more time at Gallery 5 in the near future. Their focus on the DIY community and support for causes that matter to the less-privileged inhabitants of the river city makes the gallery the obvious torchbearers for the sort of local scene support that Strange Matter was so good at. This Saturday night, they prove it for the second time in 24 hours with an amazing benefit for Planned Parenthood — an organization that’s been constantly under siege for several years now, and does crucial work within the local community, from ensuring your right to reproductive freedom to such important things as providing essential health care for transgender people without other options (like me, for instance).

Occultist are headlining this shindig, and it’s great news, considering how difficult it’s been to catch these thrash-metal ragers in a live setting over the past year or so. It’s been quite a while since they brought us any new studio recordings, and at this point they’re sure to have some new material to bring you, so get ready to headbang with a grateful fury. VV are an excellent addition to any bill, and their vitriol-drenched, synth-laced postpunk attack is particularly apropos for a Planned Parenthood benefit — smashing patriarchal faces for the win. Kuni’s queer electro-punk and the seductive techno-dance sounds of Trapcry will round this bill out perfectly. You’ll dance, you’ll rock, you’ll smash the patriarchy… it’s the most wonderful time of the year.

Sunday, December 23, 8 PM
Marc Rebillet, DJ Harrison @ The Camel – $10 in advance/$12 day of show (order tickets HERE)
Marc Rebillet is a phenomenon that’s not that easy to explain. What I’d heard from other people before I checked out his music led me to expect one thing, but what I found was something significantly different. People will tell you this guy’s a bit of a comedian, and certainly he approaches his electro-funk music with an irreverent, humorous attitude, but the results he gets from synthesizers, beat loops, and most importantly his unforgettable voice are not only entertaining but seriously intriguing.

His Loop Daddy EP, released a couple of months ago, finds Rebillet, who got his start on YouTube, in loverman mode, sounding a bit like Baltimore electro-goof Dan Deacon if he was able to expertly channel R. Kelly. However, he’ll occasionally put the whole damn thing on pause to holler ridiculous improvised exhortations, and yeah, you’re gonna laugh at those times. Mostly though, Marc Rebillet’s gonna get your booty shaking with a rhythm that might seem totally out of place this close to Christmas but is, if anything, exactly what you need to survive another awkward dinner at Grandma’s house. So head to the Camel this Sunday and get in the pool. You know what I’m talking about.

Bonus Hampton Roads Picks:

Friday, December 21, 8 PM
Demons, Shy Low, Ladada @ Taphouse Grill – $5
Shit is always pretty heavy down Tidewater way, I’ve found. There are indie shows down there at times, but a lot of what I find coming out of that geographical region of Virginia is hard as fuck and taking its best shot at crushing your skull. The same is true of Demons, though instead of super-heavy deathcore stuff, this band is aiming for more of a thick, metallic sound on latest EP Made In The USA. The resulting pummeling lands somewhere between Far Beyond Driven-era Pantera and early Every Time I Die. And when it lands, it lands on its feet and starts charging straight at you. Be there to meet the onslaught at Taphouse Grill this Friday, and you’re sure to be glad you did.

This show will also bring you a performance from Richmond’s own Shy Low, who’ve been less active recently than they were a few years ago. However, their most recent release, Burning Day, was only a year and a half ago, and it showed that they’d retained their powerful approach to the instrumental post-rock sound on which they made their name back a half-decade or so ago. So you can certainly expect a reliable (post-)rocking from these guys, and you’ll get a bonus set from openers Ladada, who have a catchy indie-pop sound that’s sure to delight. All in all, it’s a fine Friday night in Norfolk. Enjoy!

Sunday, December 23, 4 PM
Shaka’s Appreciation Show, feat. The Unabombers, Beggar’s Row, Accident Prone, Pushing On, Evade, Faded, Freebase, Chain Breaker, Catalyst, Semtex @ Shaka’s – Free!
It’s a sad story, one that those of us here in Richmond know all too well. Norfolk live music mainstay Shaka’s is celebrating its tenth anniversary this month… but it’s also closing its doors forever. That’s not happening after this Sunday matinee show — their last show is actually the Doyle gig on New Years Eve — but it is one of the last chances the Norfolk area will have to show their appreciation for a venue that’s filled much the same role in their scene that Strange Matter has in ours. What a shame.

The show itself will be a glorious occasion, though, with longtime VA punk veterans The Unabombers taking care of business at the top of the bill. These guys have been rocking the Hampton Roads area and beyond for over 20 years now, and they’re the perfect band to send Shaka’s off on a high note. And there’s a ton of hardcore punk on the bill besides, from the speedy metallic rage of Beggar’s Row to the brutal pummeling mosh of Evade to the angry punk/HC of Pushing On. There are a whole bunch more bands on this one too, and the price is certainly right, so if Shaka’s ever meant anything to you, there’s no time like the present to both show it some love before it disappears and to enjoy the Hampton Roads hardcore/punk scene’s past, present, and future all in one great place.

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Email me if you’ve got any tips for me about upcoming shows (that take place after the week this column covers –- this week’s column has obviously already been written): [email protected] [and yeah, there’s plenty more of my writing to read over at GayRVA — come say hey.]

Music Sponsored By Graduate Richmond

RVA Shows You Must See This Week: 4/4-4/10

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FEATURED SHOW
Thursday, April 5, 5 PM
Official United Blood Pre-Show, feat. Naysayer, The Flex, Arms Race, Primal Rite, Hangman @ Strange Matter – $12 (order tickets HERE)
The 12th annual edition of the United Blood hardcore fest is happening here in Richmond this weekend, and I did not make it our featured show. There’s a reason for that — I hate writing about shows that sell out before my readers can read about them, and with very few tickets for United Blood remaining for sale, I’m a little concerned that by the time this goes to press, you won’t be able to get them at all (though you’re certainly welcome to give it a shot — maybe you’ll get lucky). I’m feeling slightly more secure about the Thursday night pre-show, so that’s what I’m sending you to. After all, it’ll give you a good taste of what United Blood is all about, and at 15 percent of the ticket price! You can’t beat that.

Naysayer are our headliners. This Richmond hardcore band had fallen into that sort of twilight state of existence that seems to take over a lot of long-running local hardcore bands, where most of the time they’re completely inactive, but they come back and play a really big local show every now and then. Naysayer briefly awoke from this somnambulist state a couple of years ago, releasing Nation Of Greed, their first new material in five years. That was two years ago now, though, and whether they’ll slip back into inactivity in future is an open question. Fortunately for you, you’ll be able to see them Thursday night, and this dose of their hard-hitting crossover-style hardcore is not something you should miss if you know what’s good for you.

Naysayer will be joined on this bill by a murderer’s row of heavy hitters, starting with a double-shot of UK hardcore in the form of The Flex and Arms Race. The Flex have that raw, blown-out sound that makes everything sound urgent as hell, while Arms Race are a bit darker in feel, but both deliver powerful shots of old-school velocity. Not to be outdone, San Francisco’s Primal Rite have a ripping, thrashing, metallic hardcore sound that’ll remind you of Power Trip if they were more focused on pure headcrushing breakdowns. The bill is rounded out by New Yorkers Hangman, who bring more of that metallic mosh you’re all craving. This show won’t last all weekend, but it certainly will pack plenty of power into its brief span. So whether you make it to the festival itself or not, you’d still be smart to head for Strange Matter the night before it starts.

Wednesday, April 4, 8 PM
Bettye LaVette @ The Tin Pan – $42.50 in advance/$47.50 at the door (order tickets HERE)
Sharon Jones and Charles Bradley may be gone, but that doesn’t mean there aren’t any more classic soul singers in the world. Bettye LaVette is still kicking, and she’ll be bringing her excellent voice and unpredictable choice of material to the Tin Pan tonight. Having made her first record during the original soul music boom in the early 60s, LaVette has been working hard ever since. However, it wasn’t until the release of 2005’s I’ve Got My Own Hell To Raise that the mainstream really started paying attention to the talent LaVette’s been offering the whole time. The album featured soulful re-interpretations of female artists and songwriters including Fiona Apple, Sinead O’Connor, and Aimee Mann, among others.

Since then, LaVette’s recorded an album with the Drive-By Truckers — 2007’s The Scene Of The Crime — and an album of songs originally by British rock bands — 2010’s Interpretations — among others. Now she’s turned her attention to the music of Bob Dylan with her brand new album, Things Have Changed. Her powerful soul sound helps transform Dylan songs both well-known (“It Ain’t Me Babe,” “The Times They Are A-Changin'”) and obscure (“Don’t Fall Apart On Me Tonight,” the title track), often revealing new sides of the material by rewriting the lyrics to focus on a female perspective. This sound, and this perspective, are among the things LaVette will bring to the stage of the Tin Pan tonight, and the results are sure to be unique, fascinating, and powerful. Don’t miss it.

Thursday, April 5, 11 PM
Slump(oids), Haircut, Benderheads @ En Su Boca – $5
Hey, here’s a venue we haven’t heard from in a while. En Su Boca, the little taco joint inside a former adult bookstore had been doing shows for a bit last year, but has been inactive in the live music scene for several months. Now they are back with an all-local gig intended to raise some money for a permanent PA system, so that they can become a more reliable spot for live music. Sounds good to me! And if this sounds like a good idea to you too, you can support it by coming out late this Thursday evening (after the UB pre-show) and catching some loud punk rock.

At the top of the bill is Slump (or maybe they’re called Slumpoids now, the facebook event page is somewhat confusing), who have been bringing this city a hazy, smoggy take on psychedelic punk for a couple of years now. Remember that brief period when The Men were interesting, before they turned into total dad rock? Slump brings that sound back to life every time they take the stage. Meanwhile, Haircut are much more straightforward, smacking you in the mouth with some fast, angry, no-frills hardcore punk that’s sure to wake you up if the late hour has you nodding off at the bar. Benderheads, who round out this bill, have apparently got a tape coming out on Vinyl Conflict soon. If you want to know more than that, you’ll have to show up to this show. So hey, do it. And grab a taco while you’re at it.

Friday, April 6, 8 PM
Withered, Wake, Vorator, Lore @ Strange Matter – $10 in advance/$12 day of show (order tickets HERE)
Things are getting heavy once again over at Strange Matter, and all of us are the beneficiaries. Friday night sees an incredible double bill of super-heavy bands (brought to us by the letter W) hitting the stage to level us all. Withered hail from the Southern locale of Atlanta, but their sound is straight out of the Delta swamps that birthed Eyehategod. On their 2016 album, Grief Relic, they manage to simultaneously summon the sludge terror of NOLA’s most depressive sons and the blackened rage channeled by fellow swamp-rats Thou. While doom is certainly a part of Withered’s sound, they spend just as much time going fast and ripping it up black metal style as they do trudging through this ugly world at the pace of a steamroller. Either way, you end up flattened by their sheer heavyosity. And that’s always a good time.

Canadians Wake take a totally different approach. Up North where they’re from, you have to play really fast sometimes just to keep warm, and Wake keeps the pedal to the metal on their brand new album, Misery Rites. They’re sure to do the same thing when they hit the Strange Matter stage, where they’ll infuse their all-out speed destruction with a darkened atmosphere that will evoke terror even at 1000 miles per hour. A dynamic duo of locals, in the form of thrashing-mad ragers Vorator and spooky black metallers Lore, gets things rolling in fiery fashion.

Saturday, April 7, 9 PM
Acid Dad, Camp Howard, Moonwalks, Winstons @ The Camel – $12 (order tickets HERE)
This one’s for all the kids out there who love to hear loud guitars spin perfect melodies out of fuzzy haze. Acid Dad hails from the now-completely-gentrified land of Williamsburg, Brooklyn — but don’t hold that against them. Their brand new self-titled LP sees the three-piece busting out some prime psychedelia, 90s alt-rock style. Tinges of The Stone Roses and Ride come through at times, while others see them evoking early Radiohead (back before they’d been eaten and spit back out by a computer) and even The Strokes — who, yes, are post-Y2k, but at this point who’s counting? The point is that these boys have some real energy behind their songwriting, and they’ll both keep you smiling with their glorious pop hooks and rock hard enough to ensure that you can’t stand still at any point during their set.

It’s appropriate that Acid Dad is joined on this bill by local pop fiends Camp Howard, who utilize much the same formula for success — great melodies, vaguely psych-damaged guitars, and an ever-present sense of youthful energy. The local diehards who show up to catch yet another set from Nic, Wes, and the boys will surely be pleased by what Acid Dad has to offer, and vice versa. This show will also feature some bonus performances by two other touring acts. The Moonwalks are coming to us from Detroit with the most overt psychedelic sound of this entire bill, cranking the loud guitars and getting somewhat of a Brian Jonestown Massacre vibe going. The Winstons originate in New York and go straight for the old-school garage-punk sound, bashing and thrashing with a side of rhythm and blues just like the early Stones. This is an absolute can’t-miss evening — you know what to do.

Sunday, April 8, 7 PM
Manatree, Your Dream Coat, Butt, Grandma @ Gallery 5 – $5
For those of us who keep up pretty obsessively with the local music scene, this one has some interesting things to offer. A live set from the latest incarnation of Manatree is first and foremost on that list. It’s admittedly been a few months since I caught them live, and the latest word from their facebook page is that these days, they’re down to a two-piece and getting more and more interested in the possibilities of electronic music. I would never have predicted this when I first heard Manatree, but then, that’s over five years ago when they were still in high school. Clearly a lot has changed since then, and how this latest round of changes will make themselves known in live performance remains to be seen. So let’s see it at Gallery 5 Sunday night, shall we?

Another intriguing offering on this bill comes from Your Dream Coat, a Brooklyn band who appear to have recently erased all evidence of their music from the internet. So if you ever wondered what things were like back in the 90s when you just had to show up to the show first, and find out if you liked the band second, this is a great opportunity for you to take it back to the old school in this fashion. I don’t really miss it, but hey, we can all handle it every once in a while, right? Local up-and-comers Butt have an intriguing name and a really primitive demo, but to really know what’s up with this band’s weirdo rock n’ roll, you’re gonna have to show up and see them too. Finally, Grandma is a new project from Haybaby’s Leslie Hong, perhaps initiated because Haybaby’s members live in multiple towns. You’re guess is as good as mine, but all will become clear at Gallery 5 this Sunday night, so you know what to do.

Monday, April 9, 7:30 PM
GRID, Ryan Easter @ Black Iris – $6-10 (sliding scale)
I’ve been noticing more and more happenings in the local jazz scene lately, and I guess this show counts as jazz too, since GRID are a trio featuring sax, bass, and drums. However, this one will prove challenging for both newcomers to jazz and dyed-in-the-wool fans. Therefore, since challenges are always a good thing, I’m encouraging you to head over to Black Iris Monday night and catch GRID. This trio features bassist Tim Dahl of the confrontational noise-rock band Child Abuse and drummer Nick Podgurski of math-proggers Extra Life backing saxophonist Matt Nelson (who has played with Tune-Yards and Battle Trance) as he goes completely nuts.

The maniacal sounds Nelson creates by running his sax through distortion and other, weirder effects might make you think of Tom Morello’s weirdest solos for Rage Against The Machine at times, but at others they are more likely to evoke the experimental jazz soundscapes saxophonist Colin Stetson created for his New History Warfare LPs. Regardless of where things stand at any particular moment in the set, the sum total of what these three New Yorkers are creating is sure to knock you off your feet, especially if you show up looking for just another jazz combo. But you shouldn’t be looking for that anyway. Special bonus opening set from Ryan Easter, a local trumpeter and producer who has played with Boston-based live hip hop group Tiger Speak and made records with locally-celebrated rapper Chance Fischer. What he will bring to the table is anyone’s guess, but it won’t bore you.

Tuesday, April 10, 7 PM
Sea Of Storms, Canadian Rifle, Naked Pictures @ Gallery 5 – $6
This Tuesday night promises to be an excellent night of melodic, emotionally-driven punk rock with heart and soul. That is, assuming you do the right thing and head over to Gallery 5 for this show. Sea Of Storms aren’t exactly the fastest-moving band, but then, they aren’t as young as they once were either. Since their first LP in 2015, the group has grown from a trio to a quartet with the addition of former Landmines guitarist Nick Bergheimer, and word has it they’ve been working on a second LP. That’s been the word for a while, honestly, but one thing you can be sure of is that they’ll be playing new material at Gallery 5. Show up so you don’t have to wait for them to finish the album to hear the new jams.

Chicago’s Canadian Rifle are another crew of seasoned veterans who aren’t moving quite as quickly as they once did. Their brand new album, Peaceful Death, is their first since 2013, and judging from first impressions, it was totally worth the wait. For a melodic punk band, they’ve got a harsh and powerful approach, adding the sort of grit and rough edges that keep bands like this interesting and fun as the years go on. The new record shows that their command of melodic choruses that make you feel some feels has in no way diminshed, but it also might be their heaviest record yet, and I have no idea why that’d be anything other than a good thing. So let’s all get stoked to see these two excellent bands once again, especially since we’ll also get an opening set from rockin’ local shredders Naked Pictures to kick the whole thing off. What could be better?

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Email me if you’ve got any tips for me about upcoming shows (that take place after the week this column covers–this week’s column has obviously already been written): [email protected] [and yeah, in case you’re wondering, more awesomeness from my cracked and bleeding fingertips is available at GayRVA — come say hey.]

Top Photo by Ken Penn

Music Sponsored By Graduate Richmond

Camp Howard Premiere New Tracks in Audiotree Session

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Richmond’s upbeat indie quartet Camp Howard has been super busy recently with a tour in December, promoting their latest EP, Juice, which dropped this spring via Egghunt Records. And this month, they stopped in at Chicago-based music company Audiotree, best known for their in-studio live concert series, to play a couple of tracks we know as well as record a few surprise songs.

The guys played six songs over their session, including “Mismo”, which is in Spanish, “Haircut”, “Juice” and “I Will” off their newest EP, along with two new songs, the dreamy “Light on the Moon” and “Placid”.

If you’re into some catchy light-hearted pop and some groovy bass lines you’ll enjoy their latest album and the two newer tracks deliver some fun and laid back sounds that will keep you wanting more. We had a chance to catch up with Camp Howard about their Juice EP in our Summer 2017 print issue, which you can check out here.

You can catch Camp Howard’s next performance at Strange Matter on Mon., Jan. 29 along with The Nude Party and Piranha Rama. 8 PM, $10 cover. You can snag your tickets here.

RVA Mag: Best of Arts and Culture 2017

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Looking back at 2017, it was such a whirlwind politically for the country, as well as for Virginia and Richmond, that it’s easy to forget that our city has such a vibrant, thriving, and unbelievably diverse culture. From muralists and other artists, to emerging fashion trends, to the ever-burgeoning local craft beer scene, to becoming a top food destination, and a plethora of up and coming bands spanning multiple genres, this year RVA Mag has seen some of the coolest and most interesting people shape and transform our culture as a city.

As Editor-in-Chief, we cover so much on a daily basis and we cross paths with so many wonderful and talented people living right here it was hard for me to narrow down what summed up our year in arts and culture best. I think, with the help of the rest of the RVA Mag crew, we’ve put together a great list that really captured the stories that stood out the most to us. Enjoy and see you in the New Year!

Citrus City’s Rise From Loose Online Origins to Solid Richmond Roots 

Started by Manny Lemus and his college buddy Rene Franco in 2014 to give a platform for bands they met and liked, this local indie record label has produced some of the coolest acts to come out of Richmond in some time. Putting out tapes for shoegaze group Fat Spirit, an EP for lo-fi slacker rock band Lance Bangs, the debut album for indie-rockers Camp Howard, and Antiphons, its been exciting to follow them see who they discover in our little city. And the label isn’t just churning out tapes for local musicians and bands, Citrus City has worked with such bands as the London-based Teen Brains and Madrid’s Lois. If the acts they introduce to us in 2018, are anything close to what we saw in 2017, music fans are in for a treat.

Emily Herr of “Her Suite”

in an effort to change media depictions of women as one-dimensional objects and one beauty standard, local artist Emily Herr started painting women in small murals all around Richmond in public spaces, on houses, and the sides of buildings. Back in the summer, Herr and her crew embarked on a “Girls! Girls! Girls!” tour, inspired by her original mural, to paint murals of as many real, everyday women as they could up the East Coast all the way to Burlington, Vermont.

It was so empowering to see a young artist giving women of all sizes, shapes, ethnicities, and ages a platform to feel beautiful and be represented in art on a large scale. Showing real women who aren’t a magazine’s or Hollywood’s stereotypical image of perfection made her a highlight for me to cover and with each mural, she’s changing not only the way the world views women, but the way we view ourselves one small step at a time and that made me super proud to cover for our magazine in a time when our political leaders, movie stars, and even our own president continue to disrespect and humiliate women.

RVA Mag Eats Grasshoppers at Flora 

Branching out a little from our normal restaurant coverage, RVA Mag got the chance to try out something a little weird and different back in June. Some of our staff visited Flora to eat one of their more interesting appetizers on their menu: grasshoppers. Chef Sergio Gomez, who has designed the menu after his hometown of Oaxaca in Southern Mexico, served up “Chapulines”, as they’re called, prepared with oil and spices and the crew washed it down with some fine mezcal. It was a weird day to say the least, but it was great to get out and try something new and unusual that Richmond has to offer. Probably won’t be the last weird food review you see on our site.

Candyland RVA: Confessions of A Former VCU Sugar Baby

This story came to us from former staff contributor Caley Sturgill, and it was beyond fascinating. VCU ranked 7th earlier this year for its number of students seeking out sugar daddies to help offset the cost of tuition. SeekingArragement.com is a website that connects sugar babies and sugar daddies and Sturgill happened to know a former VCU sugar baby so we had to reach out and get the lowdown. Sturgill did a wonderful job diving into “Ava”’s story, how the website and relationships usually work, and a look at why so many female college students resort to seeking out this sort of relationship.

Terracotta Soldiers, Virginia Museum of Fine Arts

By far, one of the most mesmerizing and extensive exhibits this year and even to date to come to the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts was the Terracotta Army: Legacy of the First Emperor of China. Opening in November, the exhibit features 130 pieces of art including 10 life-style terracotta figures straight from  Xi’an, the capital of the Shaanxi province in China.

Meant to capture the strength of the Qin Dynasty and the First Emperor of Unified China, Ying Zhen, better known as Qin Shihuang, the exhibit is a rare opportunity for Richmonders to learn about that history as well as see the sculptures that they would not have had the opportunity to see anywhere else unless they’ve traveled overseas. Terracotta will be on display at the VMFA until March 11.

Chef Mike Ledesma

Chef Mike Ledesma was definitely one of the movers and shakers of 2017. One of the hardest working chefs I’ve met, his story of how he came to Richmond and helped open some of the most successful restaurants around made it into our Fall 2017 print issue. Head Chef for Richmond Restaurant Group for a few years, Ledesma designed the menus and helped open The Daily Kitchen & Bar, The Hardshell at Bellgrade, Pearl Raw Bar, East Coast Provisions. He’s most recently moved to Kabana Rooftop as Executive Chef serving up his take on seasonal dishes. The busy chef is also behind the Passport Popup Series that takes place once a month at Belle & James and in the middle of all this, and creating menus for pop up beer and cider dinners, he’s been planning a solo restaurant venture, Perch, which will open in Scott’s Addition in the New Year.

Virgil Ortiz

As part of the Hear My Voice exhibition at the VMFA, nationally recognized Native American artists were brought together to express the story of oppression by the United States government against their people. Through their art you can see the history and pride of the First People and the work of Virgil Ortiz touches on both the past and the future of Native American folk art. Having him within our pages of our Winter 2017 issue allowed us to understand the enormity of our past aggressions while contemplating his current work which addressed the struggle of his people today to keep their sacred lands and rituals from being wiped away completely. His is a fight to keep the very existence of the First People and one that Virginians should understand is not something in a far away land, but one happening in our own backyard.

Craft Beer Scene in 2017

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Our craft beer scene has been exploding for the last few years now and Richmond is getting more and more recognition nationally and internationally as a top beer destination. This year, though, I think was the year for craft beer. We saw a surge in Scott’s Addition again, with Vasen Brewing and Twisted Ales, Goochland’s Lickinghole Creek expanded with its Goodwater Brewpub in Shockoe Bottom, Garden Grove rebranded as a brewery and winery, Powhatan got its first brewery with Fine Creek Brewing Company, Center of the Universe opened its sister brewery, Origin Beer lab, also in Ashland, and Henrico got another brewery with Intermission. Chesterfield’s Steam Beer Works also announced expansion plans for its Fan brewery, Canon & Draw. We also saw Charlottesville-based Champion Brewing expand with a brewery here. Established breweries like Strangeways Brewing expanded to Fredericksburg, Richmond staple Legend Brewing opened a location in Portsmouth, and Hardywood expanded with a Charlottesville and Goochland location which will open this month. Manchester is slated to get its own brewery with Dogtown Brewing next year along with Tabol Brewing, a first for Northside.

RVA Mag has closely followed the ever-growing scene, and its plans for 2018 for it are already overflowing if you will, and hopefully the bubble doesn’t burst anytime soon because we can’t get enough of all the different styles and varieties.

McKinley Dixon

We can’t talk about the hot acts in the Richmond music scene in 2017 without mentioning McKinley Dixon. The young jazz/hip hop artist emerged onto the scene and picked up fans with his debut mixtape Who Taught You To Hate Yourself? And Dixon has played an important role in shaping the conversation in our current political climate with his music, which covers everything from racism, police brutality, and the struggles of the modern Black American. The artist already has another album in the works, The Importance of Self-Belief, which will focus on the perspectives of Black women and transgender individuals and based on his first mixtape and energetic, raw live performances, RVA Mag is expecting nothing but great things from Dixon.

VCU’s Institute for Contemporary Art

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The big white oddly-shaped modern building that towers over the streets at the corner of Broad and Belvidere is one residents saw under construction for months and anticipated its unveiling, which is slated for this April 21. The arts center and museum, designed by NYC-based Steven Holt Architects, will showcase a fresh slate of changing exhibitions, performances, films and special programs and features a large entry space, a café, a sculpture terrace, and an auditorium that can hold up to 240 people. For a city, that has become known for its art with its ever-growing mural scene, the Richmond Mural Project, top-ranking art university, all sorts of galleries, and up and coming artists providing Richmond with their talent that spans all mediums, the ICA will put Richmond on the map for art for anyone who already didn’t realize what a thriving and vibrant arts community we have.

From House Shows to Egghunt Records, A Look At The Rise Of Camp Howard

Another band featured in one of our print mags, and one that RVA has been following almost since they started two years ago is eclectic indie rock group, Camp Howard. Songwriter Nic Perea and the rest of the gang sang their way into our hearts with the hazy, poppy “You’ve Been Misled”, the first single off their debut self-titled album, and have been captivating us with songs like “Llorando Y Furnando” and “She Doesn’t Mind” ever since. The four-piece gained prominence in the Richmond scene through house shows which led to them getting their first album recorded. After playing bigger shows with Egghunt Records acts Manatree and Avers, Camp Howard was able to land on the local label’s “Hatched” EP series, which would lead to them putting out their followup album Juice, their most creative yet, through Egghunt. Following this band’s success with two great albums under their belts and seeing their performances around this year has made them one of my favorite bands to watch this year and it leads me to believe that we are only going to see them blow up from here.

Stunting with Jason Levesque, The Resourceful Artist Known as Stuntkid 

As one of the few nationally recognized artists out of the Norfolk area, Jason Levesque touched on the struggle to make it as an artist in a region not built to support their own artists. With few places to exhibit and a lack of financially supportive or able patrons, what choice do these artists have but to leave for greener pastures? The formation of Norfolk’s NEON District is a step in the right direction for future artists but for the ones that have spent over a decade building a following the options are few, so they have to leave.

The Rise of An Epidemic: Opioids, Their Impact on Virginians, & Efforts to Combat the Growing Crisis

This was such a compelling story that one of our former contributors, Nidhi Sharma, spent weeks working on and it’s an issue that’s only plaguing the nation, but an epidemic that’s steadily been on the rise right here in our own backyard. Sharma did a wonderful job telling the personal and devastating story of a  young girl with an opioid addiction and her recovery. She also spoke with officials who run the Virginia Center for Addiction Medicine who informed RVA Mag that every three weeks, 3,000 people die in the US from an opioid overdose. The article delves deep into the history of why doctors began prescribing them, the tremendous increase the amount getting prescribed over the years, and a fascinating look at how the drug affects someone’s body, breaking it down scientifically. Sharma also discusses addiction and what policies and bills Virginia officials are introducing to help combat the crisis. It was heartbreaking and eye-opening at the same time to read about one drug having such a powerful hold on so many people.

The Passing of Richmond Hip Hop Legend Honorable Sleaze

The death this past July of local rap veteran The Honorable Sleaze was a huge blow for the hip hop scene in RVA. Always an incredibly active participant in the scene, Sleaze was also valuable for his constant presence at the center of the discourse around hip hop locally and beyond. He had a strong social media presence through which he acted as both a provocateur for discussions of controversial issues and a well-informed critic and fan. Even bigger than the hole he’s left in the world of local music is the hole he’s left in the local cultural conversation–not to mention the one he’s left in the hearts of everyone who knew him.

Sunday Stroll: Our Love Affair With Books

Our Editorial Director Landon Shroder delved into Richmond’s rich literary history in a great piece this year included in our new weekend section, “The Sunday Stroll”. He takes an in-depth look at Black Swan Books and the authors, poets, and characters who make up the shelves at the longtime local bookstore and why, in a digital world with ever-changing technology, its still important, more than ever, to remember and understand the perspectives of those who came before us.

 

Brothers from Richmond’s Ruth Good Discuss Debut EP ‘Spliff’ Ahead of Smatter Show Tonight

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Whenever siblings or family members get together to make music it’s always a good time and there’s always a good story (or five) to be told. You can feel the closeness and love in the music, making it all the more fun to listen to.

Such was the case when I chatted with brothers Jonathan (JP) and Wes Parker, the duo behind Ruth Good, an up and coming bedroom/indie pop band in Richmond’s music scene.

You might recognize Wes’ name from his solo projects, or his bass playing and songwriting in the indie pop band Camp Howard. The two also play in Poser, a local jazz/alt-rock band along with their brother Alan, but the brothers have recently been toiling away at their own project, much different than the music they both have been making. During our chat at Chiocca’s on a rainy evening over beers recently, we talked music, Stranger Things feelings, musician beefs, and everything in-between, but more importantly, their new debut EP, Spliff.

The boys just dropped the seven-track EP via Richmond label  Citrus City Records and musically, it ebbs and flows ever so slightly depending on who’s singing on which track.

The two started recording around April and into the summer, at what they call “Chili Dog”, which is really their dad’s house, in Bon Air.

“Getting out to Chili Dog enables us to get some decent sounding drum takes and experiment with micing drums,” JP said.

But the brothers also did a fair amount individually in their own houses for the split EP, with the first four tracks attributed all to Wes, and the last half of Spliff featuring all vocals and instruments by JP. Wes does all the instruments on his songs and JP plays them all on his, with mostly separate writing. Their brother Alan also plays bass and lead guitar on “Shooting Range” and lap steel on “Ice Water” making it truly a DIY family affair.

“That’s why they all sound kind of different and the mix is all different,” JP said.“I have equipment that I’ve had forever, but we recently got this analog {mixing} board that was given to us from a friend of mine (David Wattenbaugh} who works at Overcoast Music, ” he added explaining the recording process.

Spliff draws you in from the get-go with the catchy 42-second intro, “Mosquitoes”, and keeps your interest piqued with tracks like “Milkshake Boyz” and the second track, “Got My Penz” is equally catchy, fun, and poppy- paving the way for the rest of the EP.  The love song called “YLIF” (Your Love Is Enough) is one of my favorites and a bit of a different tone, and very personal for JP.

“When I moved back from Charlottesville, that’s the reason we were both ready to start working on music, we were both so bent out of shape,” JP said of the song. “It’s not the first time I’ve gone through shit like that, but {I had} anxiety to the point where you’re always at a simmer…I wasn’t really working and I remember lying on the living room floor in between recording takes…”

At the time, both brothers were going through serious breakups, and with any sort of heartbreak or pain, stems good music.

“I think recording and having something to focus on was our thing,” Wes added.

JP and Wes formed Ruth Good, which is named after their grandmother, around the time JP moved back from Charlottesville, but it wasn’t really a conscious effort, they just wanted to make music and get it out there.

“At that point, we were up at Shamrock Pub and it was just kind of a fantasy at that point,” Wes said. “I wanted it to happen I just didn’t know if it really would.”

JP added the two talked about putting their music out when they started recording material at their dad’s house. Wes was also writing extra songs that didn’t make it into Camp Howard’s sets that he wanted to put to use.

“We never really started Ruth Good, but we started recording each other’s own songs,” JP said. “Wes had songs that Camp Howard wasn’t necessarily going to do…”

JP described their sound as “slacker pop, jangles, and weed” which I think pretty much sums it up, but I will let you guys be the judge. “Slacker Pop” was actually a term given to them by Manny Lemus, the mastermind behind Citrus City, whom they met through fellow Citrus City band Lance Bangs. Lemus found the duo’s music online and a partnership sparked from there.

“Weston put up some songs online and Manny listened to them and was like ‘Dude this awesome take ’em down! We’ve got to do a tape'” said JP.

After that, the two dropped Spliff Oct. 18 and listeners will be able to cop cassettes courtesy of Citrus City.

Ruth Good hope to embark on a mini-tour sometime soon perhaps by next year, and the brothers are already recording new material and hoping to churn that out sometime in the spring so be in the lookout for those as well.

You can catch Ruth Good performing tonight, Nov. 21 at Strange Matter alongside Furnsss, Joy Again, and fellow Richmond band Big Baby. Doors: 8PM. Music: 9PM $7 cover.