gig bag

After an amazing few months, the summer is coming to a close. But not before we take a moment to shed some light on some of the things that have helped to make this the hottest season on record for us here at DZ HQ. And now without further adieu, your last day of summer camp update:

First up on the docket I am proud to announce the release of the latest work from the always entertaining (and sometimes bemusing), the one and only Sitcom from Baltimore.

Since its digital release earlier this year, "Gig Bag" has already received some kind press from the likes of Stereogum, Tiny Mix Tapes, and GoldFlakePaint, and is available now for the first time on professionally dubbed pink cassettes with five-page liner in a limited run of 100.

"those who keep a keen eye on the U.S bedroom-pop scene will probably be aware of Jake Lazovick’s talent; one of those precocious, prolific acts that the country seems to have an abundance of, now and forever... there’s certainly a buried strain of implacable magic to his work, the kind of half-buried feeling you’re unsure of where it came from, or where it belongs, but which constantly tugs at you from the very heart of his weirdly wonderful songs. The new record does this from the outset." - GoldFlakePaint 

"Jake Lazovick’s latest album under his Sitcom moniker sounds like both his loneliest and most accomplished to date. Gig Bag feels like a largely solitary endeavor — with only background vocals from Joanna Smith occasionally penetrating the fold — but it’s never alienating. In fact, most of these songs sound like they’re begging for connection, yearning and presumptively hopeful... Lazovick makes muted pop songs for small spaces, insular notes that appeal to the introvert in all of us." - Stereogum 

"What on this surface of his live shows looks like flailing sketch of 101 Things to Learn in Art School, Lazovick’s worked his way into downtempo and house-influenced dance jamz with an oblique awareness of the performative body, the manic space between smile and frown, the body as DIY punchline. I guess it’s appropriate that the project’s been known as “Sitcom;” Lazovick’s performance feels like the taut ethos of a Seinfeld or Friends episode without the laugh track, a hit or miss confidence that’s probably essential these days in performance. Like Phil Elverum’s more stream of conscious efforts turned Demetri Martin one-liners (with maybe a dash of the Wiggles), Lazovick combats the roaring chaos of punk with a fearless gesture, a wonky boom-bap, an uneasy chuckle from the back of the room." - Tiny Mix Tapes

Tapes will start shipping early next month and your first chance to pick one up in person will be on September 7 at The Crown in Baltimore when Sitcom plays with Outer Spaces and Gun Outfit (more info can be found here).

Moving along to some more news that gives me the windows-down breeze-in-your-hair feeling that could only come from a stretch on the old American highway system, both Big Hush and Wildhoney are prepping to hit the road and take the country by storm before the next ice age sends us the way of the mastodons.

  

Big Hush will be putting the pedal to the metal starting this weekend, so keep up with the band and find out where they're playing in your town by clicking the tour poster above.

And as if I weren't already the luckiest boy in the world, I'm thrilled to say that I will be accompanying Wildhoney on their trek in support of Cymbals Eat Guitars and Field Mouse starting mid-September! Needless to say, I'm overwhelmingly excited to join my friends on their nationwide tour, so check out the dates above and come chat me up at the merch booth, where I'll have the full DZ distro on display and freshly pressed copies of the band's new "Continental Drift" 4-way split vinyl with The Spook School, Mercury Girls, and Tigercats from Slumberland Records which premiered on BrooklynVegan earlier this week (listen here).

But before hopping in the van, there's three DZ gigs going down 24 hours prior to my departure:

Thursday, September 8 at The Lilly Trotter Tea Lounge

Donovan Wolfington, Caddywhompus, and Dove Lady

(click here to RSVP)

Saturday, September 17 at The Lilly Trotter Tea Lounge

Hovvdy, Yours Are The Only Ears, and Airhead DC

(click flyer to RSVP)

Sunday, September 18 at Hole In The Sky

Escape From DC Brunch XV: Yohuna, Cat Be Damned, and Slip Disco

(click flyer to RSVP)

Like there weren't already enough awesome things happening in this post, here's a brief recap of some of the more spectacular moments since the last update:

Half Waif was featured on the Best New Track section of Pitchfork, who had this to say about one of my favorite tracks from the record:

"Plunkett’s beautifully ornamented melodies—intricately woven, as if using harmonies to climb into the sky—recall Judee Sill’s flanged poise, or more so, the New Age webbings of Enya. Still, grounding the glassy “Turn Me Around” is a searing double-dutch beat that points square at pop radio. The music contains dark shadows as well as sugar—were you to text this Bandcamp link to a friend, the most appropriate emoji pairing might be a crystal ball and a lollipop." - Pitchfork

For more personal insight on the album, check out this recent interview Nandi did with The Village Voice, where she talks about blending analog atmospheres and digital recordings, her musical influences growing up, and more.

Down south, DZ alum Adam Torres has been prepping for the release of his upcoming album "Pearls To Swine" on Fat Possum Records, and the folks over at NPR have been keeping the new tracks on repeat. Just earlier this week, they featured "High Lonesome" on their Heavy Rotation feature, and last month they premiered the video for "Juniper Arms" which you can watch below:

Last month's half-decade celebration was a stellar success, featuring nine incredible bands playing to a packed crowd and enough free seltzer and ice cream to keep everyone sweet and bubbly the whole night through. The folks from Femchord used the chance to record an interview with Mal Devisa (which you can listen to here), Melted Magazine took some time to chat with Swings (which you can read here), and Julia Leiby took some intimate performance photos (some of which are below, the rest you can see here).

Mal Devisa

Dove Lady

Middle Part

Leapling

Before signing off, I want to send my love and gratitude to all the bands and friends who came together to make the anniversary show the most infinitely special time I've had all my years at the helm of this rinky-dink operation, and I'm impossibly grateful for all the support you all have shown me for the past five years. Cheers to ever-growing friendships and more marvelous music for many years to come~ ♥

trying

First off, my apologies for totally slacking on the blog front. Things have shifted into the next gear and while it's great that there are plenty of fun things to share (see below), plastering them on the antiquated blogspot has fallen down my list of priorities. Now with that being said, here's a look at the goods...

[DZ21] Mal Devisa is the project of Deja Carr from Northampton, MA in which she conjures up a soulful mix of driving bass melodies, funk-laden chord progressions, and hypnotizing harmonies to create her own uniquely sincere and entrancing musical poetry. In conjunction with her phenomenal new full-length album Kiid, DZ TAPES is releasing this self-titled compilation cassette that collects her two 2014 EPs along with some previously unreleased tracks.

You can catch Mal Devisa at the Women’s Jazz Festival in New York, NY on 3/21 with Alicia Hall Moran, and at MACROCK XIX in Harrisonburg, VA on 4/1 with a slew of great acts including Shana Falana, Abdu Ali, Dogs On Acid, Container, The Obsessives, and more.

[DZ22] Shya is Nate Sher from Oberlin, OH, and his debut long play "Trying" is a mellow yet emotive slacker rock gem. This bedroom pop project is teeming with candid lyricism and luscious chord progressions that will surely rouse your heart from the doldrums of winter just in time to soak up the bittersweet sadness of springtime. The full album will be released later this month, but for now you can check out "Food Poisoning" which premiered on ThrdCoast just a few weeks ago.

Shya will be hitting the road to play a few out-of-town dates later this month, stay woke:

3/20 in Athens, OH w/ Yours Are The Only Ears, Frozen Lawn, and Wasted Champs
3/22 in Boston, MA w/ We Can All Be Sorry, Ricecrackers, and LINA
3/24 in Philadelphia, PA w/ Joy Again and Addie Pray
3/25 in Washington, DC w/ Swings, Long Beard, and Fraternal Twin
3/26 in Kenyon, OH w/ Food Court and Teddy Farkas

* * *

Big Hush are also busting out into the wild for a spell in March, touring the coast and going as far west as my alma mater in bobcat country.

3/11 in Baltimore, MD w/ Outer Spaces, Bless, and Which Magic
3/12 in Richmond, VA w/ Pinkwash, Mad Existence, Burn/Ward, and Conflation
3/13 in Athens, OH w/ Governess, Just Curry, and Pasture Weeds
3/16 in Brooklyn, NY w/ Teeth People, WVFRMS, and Adios Ghost
3/17 in Easthapmton, MA w/ Digital Prisoners Of War, Halfsour, and Temple Cats
3/18 in Philadelphia, PA w/ Marge, Hot Tears, and Lonesome Leash
3/20 in Washington, DC w/ Mercury Girls and Airhead DC
3/25 in Washington, DC w/ Wildhoney and Expert Alterations

* * *

And finally, here's a few more DC gigs coming up to close out the last couple weeks of winter. Check back soon for more goodies in the near future~

3/11 at St. Stephen's - Hemlines w/ Pinkwash, Valencia, and Mirror Motives
3/13 at Hole In The Sky - Escape From DC Brunch XI w/ Big Huge, Bleary Eyed, and Kid Claws
3/17 at The Lilly Trotter Tea Lounge - Beverly Tender, High Bloom, Foozle, and Golden Papi
3/19 at Songbyrd Music House - Nice Breeze w/ Puff Pieces and Jack On Fire

who's smoking your spirit?

ICYMI: The new Big Hush EP is out now in a limited run of 100 gorgeous goldenrod cassettes! After all the pre-orders and tapes that were snatched up at the release show (which received some kind words in the Washington Post), there are less than 10 copies left in the merch store, though you can still get them directly from the band at all upcoming gigs. ✌

"Who's Smoking Your Spirit?" has already received some solid coverage from the likes of WAMU Bandwidth, Post-Trash [1] [2], Washington City Paper [1] [2], and DC Music Download [1] [2].

"[Who's Smoking Your Spirit?] exposes the band’s knack for infectious hooks. On “Cold Shoulder,” pulsing guitar and bass ride distortion to the front of the mix, while the dual vocals seem to exist on another plane entirely. Then, more than two-and-a-half minutes into the track’s gurgle and feedback, a pop song breaks out, with Ludwig momentarily winning a battle with the music, long enough to deliver the album’s catchiest refrain. It’s just a moment, of course. Big Hush still dabbles in shoegaze even when the drift and reverb seems to be holding a decent pop song’s head underwater." - Washington City Paper

"The EP’s five tracks, which merge together like ingredients in a murky stew, sound like an updated version of [My Bloody Valentine]" - WAMU Bandwidth

"Halfway between shoegaze and surf guitar is Big Hush, a DC band that makes a lot more noise than their name would suggest." - Black Cat 

"Mournful, sighing melodies sink deep as they play with surf and post-rock rhythms, while shoegaze feels more and more limited as a descriptor with every release." - Washington City Paper

Thanks to all the publications above and to everyone who has supported the release thus far! Stay tuned for more gigs in the near future, and don't miss these great lineups coming to the District:

Saturday, December 12 at Songbyrd Music House

Hemlines w/ The Effects, Wing Dam, and Wet Brain

(click flyer to RSVP)

Sunday, December 13 at Hole In The Sky

Escape From DC Brunch IX: Princess Reason, Go Cozy, and Airhead DC

(click flyer to RSVP)

Sunday, December 20 at Songbyrd Music House

Rick (from Pile), Snail Mail, Mattress Financial, and Charlie Down

(click flyer to RSVP)

And if all that weren't enough, there's one more bit of happy news coming out of Romantic States' camp. The band was able to raise enough money from fan purchases to adopt a manatee through the Save The Manatee Club! Margarito is an endangered West Indian manatee, known for being very curious, friendly, and social. He can be identified by a number of scars from watercraft strikes, and from his missing left flipper, which he lost after it was badly entangled in fishing line. Please dispose of your fishing line properly and be kind to animals!