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Ain’t Life Beautiful: Weekend Playlist by Dharma Bombs

RVA Staff | November 8, 2019

Topics: country, Dharma Bombs, folk, indie, local music, music, Playlist, rock, rva magazine weekend playlist

Every Friday night, RVA Mag brings you an essential playlist curated by Virginia’s most influential artists, musicians, and institutions.

This time around, we’ve got a selection of tunes from Richmond’s premier old-time string band, Dharma Bombs. With strong connections to the heart of Virginia, this acoustic ensemble has been bringing the powerful sound of Appalachian roots music to the river city for over half a dozen years now. Their new album, Enjoy The View, finds them embracing their local heritage for their strongest collection of tunes yet.

Dharma Bombs’ playlist brings us a fine collection of country, jazz, blues, Americana, and beyond, both pulling from decades past and incorporating the latest up-to-the-minute sounds. It all adds up to a great listen that’s sure to get you stoked for their next show. And you won’t have to wait long — they’ll be headlining a triple bill of excellent Virginia groups, along with Piranha Rama and Chupacabras, tomorrow night at The Camel. Get tickets and more info here, and warm up your cold evening with this excellent set of tunes courtesy of Dharma Bombs.

Take it home, Virginia.

Open this playlist from mobile in your Spotify app HERE.

Music Sponsored By Graduate Richmond

Old Home Place: Weekend Playlist by Woody Woodworth & The Piners

RVA Staff | November 1, 2019

Topics: acoustic, Ashland Theatre, Bluegrass, country, folk, indie, music, Playlist, River City Revue, rock, rva magazine weekend playlist, Weekend Playlist, woody woodworth, woody woodworth and the piners

Every Friday night, RVA Mag brings you a playlist curated by Virginia’s most influential artists, musicians, and institutions.

This time around, we’ve got a great set of folk, country, blues, Americana, and more from Woody Woodworth & The Piners. Bandleader Woody Woodworth says of the playlist, “I just wanted to highlight all the things that influence me and hit me hard — the kind of tunes that are often undiscovered — and to showcase artists from the past that set the bar.”

Woodworth has recently paired up with Ashland Theatre and the Broadberry Entertainment Group to create a recurring event known as the River City Revue. The first edition will take place on Saturday, November 2 at the Ashland Theatre, and will feature performances by Richmond-area luminaries like Paulo Franco & The Freightliners, Justin Golden, Slack Family Bluegrass, and more.

The intent of the River City Revue is to capture the spirit of not only the radio barn dances of the mid-20th century but also the yearly Capital City Barn Dance events of late 90s/early 00s Richmond, which were masterminded by Wes Freed and first brought the Drive-By Truckers to the river city. Says Woodworth, “For me, The River City Revue is about showcasing the vibrant and wonderful music here in Richmond, and acknowledging Virginia’s influential musical past.”

Featuring live music, comedy performances, storytellers, and other unique acts, the River City Revue will bring this eclectic, down-home spirit to the Ashland Theatre this Saturday — you can grab a ticket at Eventbrite and go check it out for yourself tomorrow night.

To get psyched up in preparation for the festivities, enjoy this playlist created exclusively for RVA Mag by Woody Woodworth & The Piners. It features plenty of classic folk, country, and Americana sounds to put a smile on your face, as well as some great local flavor and a taste of all the groups you’ll encounter at the first River City Revue tomorrow night.

Tune in and get down, Virginia.

Open this playlist from mobile in your Spotify app HERE.

Music Sponsored By Graduate Richmond

Game Is My Middle Name: Weekend Playlist by Chrissie Lozano

RVA Staff | October 25, 2019

Topics: chrissie lozano, indie, local artist, local music, music, Piranha Rama, Playlist, rock, rva magazine weekend playlist

Every Friday night, RVA Mag brings you a playlist curated by Virginia’s most influential artists, musicians, and institutions.

This week’s comes to us from local bass queen Chrissie Lozano, who is currently holding down the low-end in Piranha Rama, as well as acting as one of the group’s many vocalists. She has been in all sorts of other Richmond-based combos over the years — Gouda Mayhem, Ladygod, Fear Of Music, Are You Fucking Serious!?… and probably more; it’s a longer list than even I know, and I pay close attention to this kind of stuff.

Speaking with us about the playlist she put together for this week, she said, “It’s reflective of my love of lady vocals and harmony in general, and how this bunch of tunes is influential to me.” In Piranha Rama, where Lozano often harmonizes with bandmates Angelica Garcia and Kenneka Cook (both of whom appear in solo form on this playlist), the influence of these tunes can clearly be heard. You can see Piranha Rama live at The Camel on Saturday, November 9 with Dharma Bombs, but until then, liven up your weekend with this solid-as-a-rock eclectic collection of postpunk, soul, folk, electronica, and more.

Sing it loud, Virginia.

Open this playlist from mobile in your Spotify app HERE.

Music Sponsored By Graduate Richmond

Richmond’s Heart Beats to the Sound of Telltale

Alicen Hackney | September 23, 2019

Topics: bryce marshall, Edgar Allan Poe, john carter, local music, music, pop punk, punk, rock, tell tale heeart, Telltale, tim fogg, Timeless Youth, travis slack

With their latest album, Telltale embraces early 20-something life with a timeless pop punk sound. 

Pop punk is alive and well in Richmond. Its heart beats to the sound of Telltale’s timeless message, for those who face the challenges their many pop punk brethren have faced before them. With the release of their new album, Timeless Youth, the guys of Telltale deep-dive into the issues of early 20-something life that they hope others can relate to. 

“It kind of has been overdone, but we don’t really care,” said Telltale guitarist Bryce Marshall. “A previous tourmate of ours actually suggested we call it Timeless Youth just because he felt we were naive. It’s the theme we’ve embraced as a band.” 

“At the end of the day, it’s primarily a creative outlet for ourselves, what we’re dealing with and going through,” said John Carter, the band’s vocalist. 

Photo courtesy Telltale

This message they carry forward rings true to each generation as they pass from their teenage years into adulthood. While the message may seem to be unnecessary with the trailing off of many pop-punk bands in the larger scene, there is no shortage of audience members who continue to face these growing pains today. 

“If we can connect to people be them younger or older, that’s great. But if it’s not something somebody identifies with, then it’s not for them,” said Carter. “It’s not the message they need to be hearing at this time, and maybe they need a message from somewhere else.”

As they’ve blossomed into a prominent Richmond band over the years, the members of Telltale made friends they’ve kept close who uplift their message across genres, and who they support as well. The guys have ensured that within their re-emerging genre, they continue to extend their reach into other places to reach anyone who might need their message. 

“We see support out of the pop punk scene, but also out of the hardcore and folk scenes,” said Carter. “You pull influence and fans from, and send fans to, other genres inside the community between us all.” 

“We’ve felt a lot of support from bands we’ve looked up to for a while,” said bassist Tim Fogg. “The bands we’ve looked up to are actually starting to see us as a contender within the music scene, and it’s established this really unique friendship that also gives us a lot to learn. It’s been nice to have everyone backing us as we’ve been ‘on the come up,’ as they say.” 

In the midst of support from different bands and different genres, the guys have found their niche in the scene and know what they want in sticking to it. While they recognize that their name (which is a reference to Edgar Allan Poe’s short story “The Tell-Tale Heart”) could lead them to include more horror themes in their music and performances, they want to leave that to those who already do horror well, and instead appreciate the art in the writing itself. 

“There’s tons of bands named after assorted books and elements from writing, us included,” said Fogg. “Someone might see we’re into Edgar Allan Poe, that they’re familiar with, and understand we’re out here making art just like everybody else.” 

Photo courtesy Telltale

“Life is scary enough, and there’s enough horrific things out there to write about, so you don’t really need to write about horror novels in the songs,” said Carter. “As cool as that would be, there’s already bands out there that are doing a great job of that. It’s just not really us.” 

“We’re nerds,” added drummer Travis Slack. 

In finding their place as up-and-comers, Telltale has hit a couple bumps along the way, but they have stayed focused and worked through each of them. During the creation of the first two music videos filmed for Timeless Youth, the guys had to pull together ideas last minute. While that may not be how they prefer to have things done, they have made it work time and time again. 

“We actually were supposed to go shoot them out of state with hired actors and this whole set-up and everything, and then at the very last minute we got notified we were going to be filming it in Richmond. It was like 36 hours before we had to shoot it,” said Carter. “By the seat of our pants and without much preparation is how those have gone in the past.” 

“We’re definitely a band that prefers to have everything planned out months in advance with everything laid out,” said Slack. “We like having everything prepared, and knowing everything we possibly can know.”

Photo courtesy Telltale

However, even in planned scenarios, things don’t always go as expected. When the guys showed up to shoot a music video back in January, they thought they’d get to keep warm in their coats — but the director had other ideas. 

“The ‘Rose’ video was shot in a cold warehouse near Shockoe Bottom, and my skin ripped off my arm when we were supposed to be ‘going hard,’” said Slack. 

Telltale has big plans moving forward, and absolutely no plans on slowing down. Fans can expect new music soon, including two new singles out this fall, and a whole lineup of shows. 

“We never want to have all the music we have recorded out and nothing that we’re holding in our hands,” said Marshall. “So as we go into the fall and have these songs out, we want to have more stuff recorded. We’re getting things together for whatever the next release might be.” 

Timeless Youth can be found on multiple platforms, including Spotify, the Sharptone Records website, Amazon, and the official Telltale website, where you can also find tour information and links to recently released music videos. 

Top Photo courtesy Telltale

Music Sponsored By Graduate Richmond

Meet Me At The Movies: Weekend Playlist by Fuzzy Cactus

RVA Staff | September 20, 2019

Topics: alternative, Fuzzy Cactus, hip hop, indie, local music, metal, music, Playlist, rock, rva magazine weekend playlist, rvamag playlist, venue, venue playlist, Weekend Playlist

Every Friday night, RVA Mag brings you an essential playlist curated by Virginia’s most influential artists, musicians, and institutions.

This time around we’re bringing you a playlist curated with love by the staff of Richmond’s best new music venue 2k19 (that’s right, we’re calling it now): Fuzzy Cactus. They’ve been open for something like a month and a half and have already put on a ton of essential live shows, with a whole lot more coming in the near future. Indeed, this weekend alone features tonight’s performances by local electro/alt-rockers Opin and RVA-via-NYC experimental musician Ghost Piss, tomorrow’s Surf N’ Turf dance party featuring DJ Devolved and DJ Dogpants spinning tunes all night long, and Sunday’s appearance by raging Catalonian punks Irreal and local maniacs Benderheads.

There’s a lot more where that came from too, so stay tuned to Fuzzy Cactus’s facebook page for updates, and while you’re getting ready to head out to the show tonight, rock to this excellent playlist from the Fuzzy Cactus staff! It’s got a ton of no-frills rock n’ roll to keep your feet moving and get you ready to rage all night long, plus some awesome local artists to remind you that, while this place is still brand new, their knowledge of Richmond music is deep.

Get rockin’, Virginia.

Open this playlist from mobile in your Spotify app HERE.

Music Sponsored By Graduate Richmond

The East Virginia Blues: Weekend Playlist by Graham Stone

RVA Staff | September 13, 2019

Topics: Bluegrass, country, folk, Graham Stone, graham stone music, rock, rva magazine weekend, rva magazine weekend playlist, Weekend Playlist

Every Friday night, RVA Mag brings you a lovely and wonderful playlist curated by Virginia’s most influential artists, musicians, and institutions.

This week, we bring you a lengthy list of jams from Graham Stone, a Richmond based singer-songwriter whose rollicking style pulls from folk, country, and American roots music. He released his second album, Bad News, earlier this year, and has stayed busy ever since, playing regularly around the Richmond area and across the Mid-Atlantic region. You can catch him at The Camel two Fridays from now on September 27, with fellow local favorites Dalton Dash and Muther Goose.

Until then, this playlist full of country, blues, old-time music and good ol’ rock n’ roll is sure to keep you tapping your feet and help you build up anticipation for Stone’s next live gig. It mixes legends of 20th century Appalachia and the best of the current Americana scene in alongside a variety of talented locals, adding up to hours of fun.

Tap your toes, Virginia.

Open this playlist from mobile in your Spotify app HERE.

Music Sponsored By Graduate Richmond

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