I have a routine I go thru with new music. I listen to it for a few days, then put it away for a while. Several days or weeks later, it’ll come up on shuffle on my iPod & one of two things happens: I am tempted to skip it, or it grabs me. 
NoCo’s new release Level Up grabs me. This trio of Justin, Jack & Will was up against my band CCB in the Guinness Battle of the Bands Finals in December, and I was blown away by their live show. I love me some power trio, but the energy these guys put into their show is just something special. I remember thinking to myself that this is one trio that could easily carry a stadium gig with that energy. So when Jack let me know about their new album, I was eager to check it out. It’s not easy to capture live energy in a studio recording, but I’m impressed with how much of that they were able to do. While the playing is polished and the harmonies are tight, there’s a definite raw energy that comes through on all the songs. Add to that catchy melodies & some really cool & fun arrangements, and it’s a killer combo.
Posts under ‘Independent Music’
DC Music: NoCo Level Up
Paul Pfau…Keeping the Blues Alive
Local Strat-slinger Paul Pfau was featured in American Blues News mag for his tasty blues playing recently. And I have to agree, it is quite tasty. I shared the stage with Paul this month when our bands played IOTA (with his new band Dimestore), and they rocked it! But man this guy can play the blues! Check him out:
Tony Savarino (Label-Free Friday)
BarrelHaus Gutbucket Chicken Pickin.
Browsing bandcamp.com, this track title caught my eye (& why wouldn’t it)? It’s a Danny Gatton-style romp worthy of the name, but the cool thing about Guitaring by Tony Savarino is the impressive variety of styles, everything from the above track to jazz (Take One & Blues for Bb), country (Freight Train), and new age-y Deep Blue Day.
Tony is based in Boston and, based on his website, does session work and teaches. He also has a pretty impressive collection of axes.
Hey, it’s name your price, ya can’t be that. Check it out!
bandcamp: tonysavarino.bandcamp.com
Web: www.tonysavarino.com
Twitter: @tysavias
Bad Influence Band (Label-Free Friday)
Bad Influence is a DC-area blues band that has been gitn ‘r done since 1988. They’re a local treasure and if you’re in the area (or if they’re in your area), I’d highly recommend checkin these guys out. They put on a great show & obviously love the blues. I first saw them about ten years ago, and try to catch their act as much as I can (with 3 young kids and all, gettin’ out ain’t as easy as it used to be).
They are:
Michael “Jr.” Tash – guitar (@badisblues)
Roger Edsall – harp
Bob Mallardi – bass & vocals
David Thaler – drums
If you can’t catch ‘em live anytime soon, you can download their latest album, Tastes Like Chicken for $5 from their website. It’s the usual $9.99 everywhere else. It’s a great blues album, and the fun of the group really comes thru on tunes like She What? and DC Driver.
Charles Mokotoff (Label-Free Friday)
I’m working on an interview with Charles, but in the meantime here’s an intro to this extraordinary classical guitarist, performing in March, and (below) almost 25 years ago.