DC based analog rock & rollers Modern Man were recently voted by the people as DC Deli’s Band of the Month, so we tracked down guitarist Zach Goodwin to find out his thoughts on our scene and what MM is all about. Here he tells us about their upcoming EP release, Eddie Vedder, and the power of a koozie… (Click here for full interview.)

Modern Man will be performing on the mainstage at the Black Cat on Friday 5/20 with DC’s post-Americana band Shortstack and DC’s acoustic folk artist Brandon Butler. 9 PM $10. -Dawn

1957 (2011) by ModernMan

Need something awesome to do this Sunday afternoon? Well the 2nd annual Soundbites fest is going down on May 22 at the 9:30 Club and we’ve got some passes to give away to the local music/glorious food extravaganza! All you have to do is email us here and let us know why you must get in on this! Deadline is May 20 @ 3 PM, and the winner will be chosen randomly, emailed back, and announced on the blog. In the meantime, check out some of locals that will be there…

DC’s dance rockers Ra Ra Rasputin will provide a perfect electro beat to help you reel in the energy induced by delishy samples from Dangerously Delicious Pies. Speaking of pie… "D.C.’s finest ska" band the Pietasters will be on deck with their octet of brass power, that’ll pair quite nicely with DC Slices straight off the truck, or DC Empanadas, or Radius Pizza,… getting hungry over here!

After the DC based rock/soul quartet the Honeyguns were pushed to the lead in a recent poll DC Deli held to determine it’s early May band/artist of the month, we were able to track down guitarist Henry Appy, who let us in on what being a Honeygun is all about. Check it out here…

And also catch them live at the Rock & Roll Hotel on Friday June 3rd with DC’s alt. rockers The Chance, and DC’s rock band the Electric 11s.

This week is the week before the week of Memorial Day Weekend Vacation. So, you know what that means, right? It means you’ve totally forgotten about this week and you need plans, that’s what it means.

But fret not, loyal Deli reader. Alex Vans will be at Velvet Lounge with The Go and the Brooklyn-based, Arcade Fire-esque art rock band, My Other Friend on Tuesday, the 17th. I recognize that there were a lot of nouns in that sentence, so let’s recap:

Alex Vans
My Other Friend
The Go

Tuesday, 5/17 7:30 PM
Velvet Lounge
$8

This is going to be a great show to see in the intimacy of Velvet Lounge, so be there!

–Jarrett

DC’s Title Tracks latest release In Blank is full out fantabulous. John Davis (singer/guitar/writer) brought 10 new songs to the table and was joined in studio by Michael Cotterman (bass) and Andrew Black (drums), creating what will most likely be the soundtrack of DC’s summer. With a killer cover in the mix (a freakin’ cute summer love spin on Flamin’ Groovies "I Can’t Hide"), Davis has melded together a great run of rock grooves.

Drama sounds fun in "Turn Your Face", a pumped up shoulder swayer with drum and bass keeping up the pace as the guitar chords enhance Davis’ chorus "..turn your face into wounds that don’t define you. No one’s chasing you when they walk behind you." Moving in every possible way.

"Forget the Ghost" is accompanied by a boardwalk friendly organ, acoustic guitar, and harmonic vocals that soar on about something deeper than a ghost story. It’s what I’d imagine a Brian Wilson take on power-pop to sound like. Gorgeous.

Title Tracks will be at the Golden West Cafe in Baltimore 6/17. 10 PM $5.  –Dawn

Wyoming Exploded, a four-piece Baltimore rock band, performed at the Ottobar on Friday, 4/29. The 45-minute set, featuring songs from last summer’s At Our Worst EP and the band’s forthcoming LP, garnered praise from young and old and even impressed the bartender. Descriptions of the band’s music and performances have included comparisons to a Billie Joe Armstrong-fronted Guided By Voices (by author James Greer) and The Ramones on crack (by Friday’s headliners, Leadheart Deadbird). See the band perform at Bourbon Street Ballroom on Friday, May 27th.

Get to know more about the giant collaborative DC based band The Ash Lovelies, who were voted by the people as DC Deli’s Artist of the Month (April.) We touched base with Lou Black (vocals/guitar/+) who had the low-down on their early shoegaze-infused folk style, data analysis on band name creation, and the love of a Yamaha guitar synthesizer. Full interview here…

Milk Machine will be celebrating the release of their new full-length album, Bees on the Vine, at Red Palace on May 7. You can be reasonably certain that this will be the only rock record release in D.C. this month that prominently features tuba bass lines, accordion riffs, and soaring trumpet melodies.

The amazing thing about the sound emanating from Bees on the Vine is how Milk Machine is able to take the instrumentation of a traditional polka band and squeeze out dramatic, legitimitely rocking songs. The songs often carry the edge of a New Orleans funeral march in a very "This is a great show to drink whiskey at!" sort of way. So, come prepared.  

Red Palace, Doors @ 9:00, Show @ 10:00, $8

-Jarrett

This Sunday things are gonna get epic up at the Merriweather Post Pavillion during the Sweetlife Festival with the Strokes and Crystal Castles and all that going on. Sharing the stage with them are some great locals, so get there early to check them out.

Like Modern Man, a DC based rock band that just got started last year and recently put out their debut EP (out in April according to their site.) Check out some of their fresh analog rock & roll anthems below.

And DC’s rockers U.S. Royalty will be joining them, a band that other bloggers have compared to the Strokes. If you missed our interview with them earlier in the year, you can check it out here. Recently, DC experimental duo Bluebrain remixed their track "Equestrian" from their debut album Mirrors that was released back in January. Check out the stellar result here.

Sweetgreen announced that the set times will be posted on their site on 4/28 so stay tuned for that. Maybe they’ll reveal the other local bands that apparently will be gigging in the VIP tent area, which is still top secret. (*Fort Knox Five just announced they’ll be doing a DJ set in the tent about 10 minutes ago!) Party.

Our early April DC Deli Artist of the month Flo Anito, a DC based pop songwriter, recently tuned us into her latest music video for the song "Uh-Oh." Directed by Francisco Campos-Lopez, they kept it truly at home by filming it at the Capital City Diner, and then premiered it at a gig she had at the Rock & Roll Hotel back in December. Recently however, the track was one of the 5 finalists chosen in Cosmo Radio’s Breaking the Band contest and has been getting regular plays on Sirius. Check out the video below!

Baltimore foursome Ponytail have released a new video for "Honey Touches," off their third full-length, Do Whatever You Want All the Time, out this week.  The video – directed by Bill Benz and Mike Giambra, also known as MENZ – chronicles "man’s everlasting battle with fruit and the pursuit of making the ultimate smoothie." PS- The amazing cover art for the release (above) was designed by EYE of the Japanese rock band Boredoms. –Big Hassle

Baltimore’s folk-noise duo Wye Oak have collaborated with B-more artist Katherine Fahey and photographer Michael O’Leary to make a sweet video for "Fish" from their latest album Civilian, which was also featured as DC Deli’s Album of the month back in March. Check out the video below.