Revolt Tour
Ft. Hollywood Undead, with
10 Years, Drive A and New Medicine
Tuesday, April 19, 6 PM
HOB, 225 Decatur St., 310–4999
Rock rappin’ the House of Blues this Spring, Hollywood Undead headlines the Revolt Tour. Riding the wave of success off of Swan Songs, their first album, this band of hockey-shock crusaders are promoting their hot second album, American Tragedy. Single “Hear Me Now” has been racing up the modern rock charts. Named after their now infamous masks, Charlie Scene, Da Kurlzz, Danny, Funny Man, J-Dog, and Johnny 3 Tears forged this LA-based band in 2005. There is power and presence in a Hollywood Undead performance and the music resonates in epic metal shards of rock tension with a hip hop swagger. Make your reservations online at HouseofBlues.com. With special guests 10 Years, Drive A and New Medicine, there’s no doubt the house will be a’rockin’. This is an all-ages show; standing room only. Tickets are $25. Doors open at 5:30 PM.
—Dionne Charlet
DJ T-Roy
Thursday April 21, 10 p.m.
Blue Nile, 532 Frenchmen St., 948-2583
I’ll be the first to admit that I have my qualms about DJ’s in a city with a such a strong presence of live music, but it’s that same prejudice that then gives birth to hardened veterans of the turntable as DJ T-Roy. Somtimes, you just want music to dance to and if you love Reggae, then I already know what you’re going to be doing this Thursday on April 21st. Make it out to the Blue Nile and DJ T-Roy tear it up. If you aren’t privvy to the Dancehall and Reggae scene in New Orleans, then make it out, you’ll never find a better way to spend a Thursday Night.
—John Valdespino
Force Feed Radio
Friday
April 22, 10 p.m.
Republic, 828 S. Peters St.
Two of the Republic’s regular DJs—Bryan Normand aka Kid Kamillion aka DJ Jive, and Patrick Bowden aka Money P aka DJ Kemistry—and their multi-genre fusion remix project, Force Feed Radio, will warm up the Republic stage and dance floor for the Jazz Fest after-parties to ensue the following weekends. When these two laptop-wielding turntablists combine their talents and ear for hot beats, the result is a high-energy, booty-bouncing blend of classic and top40 pop, hip hop, indie, rock and a slew of electronic subgenres and badass samples. Their recently released Fresh 2 Death mixtape features remixes of sucks artists as Afrojack, Caspa, Apex, The Proxy and Lil Wayne to name a few, and follows up their previous mixtapes, Blood on the Dance Floor and Creatures of the Night, among other releases. Having already shared stages with the likes of deadmau5, Pretty Lights, MSTRKRFT, Reid Speed and Boys Noize, this pair of electro mixologists are on a path to mounting success in the local late-night dance party scene. Give their SoundCloud a good listen and you’ll be hooked.—Carolyn Heneghan
Cut Copy with Holy Ghost!
Saturday, April 23, 10 p.m.
Republic, 828 S. Peters St.
After kicking off their North American tour at this year’s Ultra Music Festival, Australian electro-pop outfit Cut Copy will close out their U.S. visit with a set chock-full of bubbly synth leads and booty-dropping breakdowns right here in New Orleans. Their most recent release, Zonoscope (Modular Records, 2011), recorded over six months in a rented Melbourne warehouse, debuted at #2 on the US Dance/Electronic Album charts. The album features “Need You Now,” a sweet, sparkly tune that successfully adapts the tension-and-release ploys mastered by other electronic artists. Moving from bright and poppy to more pensive and hypnotic, the overall product is still as mesmerizing as Bright Like Neon Love (2004) and In Ghost Colours (2008) before it. Cut Copy seems to be finding themselves maturing in structure and texture, while still maintaining an air of confidently breezy pop and synth sensibility—a perfect fit for the Republic stage.—Carolyn Heneghan
Anamanaguchi with Peelander-Z and
The Local Skank
Tuesday, April 26, 9 p.m.
One Eyed Jacks, 615 Toulouse St.,
The soundtrack for Scott Pilgrim vs. The World: The Video Game may be their current claim to fame, but Brooklyn 8-bit quartet Anamanaguchi and their re-circuited NES and Game Boy synthesizers will land the “chiptune” genre a spot among other electro-pop genres soon enough. Chiptune artists generally depend on the circuitry of forgotten computer and video game technology to create synthesized sounds, but Anamanaguchi also incorporates live electric guitar, bass and drums into their music. If Super Mario, Samus, Link and Donkey Kong formed a blip-based electro-punk band, Anamanaguchi would be their source of inspiration. While on an extensive national tour, they’ve performed at big-name festivals such as SXSW, and have recently released Airbrushed, their first of a series of 7” vinyls to come. Catch them at One Eyed Jacks opening for Japanese “action punk” band Peelander-Z with local ska sweethearts, The Local Skank.—Carolyn Heneghan
Tin Men and Walter “Wolfman” Washington & The Roadmasters
Wednesday, April 27, 7 PM & 10 PM
DBA, 618 Frenchmen St. 942-3733
Tin Men will be starting the night off at 7 PM with their interesting synthesis of guitar, sousaphone, and washboard. The group features a renowned cast of local musicians fusing a diverse mix of styles including folk, jazz, and jug band. The group’s primary songwriter, Alex McMurray, has an uncanny ability of writing songs abounded with animated lyrics, sometimes evoking an intoxicating air of drunken sailor sea shanties. It’s not uncommon for the group to also perform songs of the Tin Pan Alley variety, hence the moniker for all you knuckleheads. Be sure to begin your night early and come check out one of the most entertaining local bands. At 10 PM Walter “Wolfman” Washington is scheduled to perform with his band the Roadmasters. Washington, a local favorite, has been on the scene since his late teens, having performed with the likes of Irma Thomas, Johnny Adams, and Lee Dorsey. With the Roadmasters, Washington provides a hybrid amalgam of funk, blues, jazz, soul, and R&B. Acclaimed as both, a guitarist and a signer, his vocals and guitar playing alike are permeated with highly articulate soulful expressions. His undeniable talent can be construed as a statement of his enduring tenure as a local favorite. Certainly, this elder statesman of the Nola music scene provides a galvanizing performance that should be experienced.
—Stephen Benson
Threadhead Records Presents
Shamarr Allen & The Underdawgs, New Orleans Nightcrawlers, Alex McMurray Band,
Ensemble Fatien, Paul Sanchez & The Rolling Road Show
Thursday, April 28, 6 p.m.
City Park Botanical Gardens, 684-2449
FREE for an evening in City Park? That’s right. Free! The Robert B. Haspel Outdoor Garden Stage is the place to bring your blankets and chairs, sit under the stars, let your hair down and listen to the best genre-challenging local talent around for no other charge than the charge you’ll get from the energy onstage. Box Who In? is the perfect segway, and album title, as Shamarr Allen leads his band, The Underdawgs, on a rocky Funk ride through Jazz and hip-hop, breaking all neutral ground in his path and making an even bigger name for himself than he did as a member of the Rebirth Brass Band. Up for a mix of Jazz and Rhythm & Blues with a little polish and a slew of horns? New Orleans Nightcrawlers are right up your alley. Corky guitarist Alex McMurray challenges the easy listener not to instantly fall in like with him. African Jazz with a deep-seated appreciation for the sounds of their New Orleans heritage, Ensemble Fatien are an exotic blend of tradition, spice and everything nice. Rounding out the evening, Singer/Songwriter Paul Sanchez (formerly of Cowboy Mouth) & The Rolling Road Show bring it home with a love for the city that pours out with every note and lyric.—Dionne Charlet
