Video: Bethany Dinsick - "Bad Lil' Boy"

It's been two years since Bethany Dinsick released her delicately beautiful Bottle Tree. However, a few weeks ago Dinsick disclosed to me that she'd have the album's first video ready soon. Sure enough, Bethany sent over the short for "Bad Lil' Boy" today.

The song was produced by Chris Freeland, who also co-stars quite youthfully in this colorful affair. Bethany also stars in the short, which was directed by Eric Alexandar Gonzalez. Filmed in Brooklyn Park, Chris plays the "bad 'lil boy" while Bethany is the girlfriend in this psychedelic take on Romper Room meets Fresh Prince of Bel Air.



The short also features dancers Pilar Diaz, Monica Mirabile, Caroline Marcantoni, and Katherine Ralston. Bethany promised more soon as she gears up to work on new music.

Bethany Dinsick Promises Spring

Folks often let me know of upcoming shows, but few promise they'll turn winter into spring. Bethany Dinsick did just that the other night, with a show set for tomorrow at the Zodiac. In addition to astral endoresements, I was passed along this track.



Bethany recorded and emailed me this song from a bar in Wilmington, North Carolina on Tuesday. Recorded on Garage Band, let's accept this is as a vocal blessing from the road.

Bethany has recently made a habit of producing such aural blessings, in particular with her debut under her own moniker. This was one of my favorite pieces of last year, and here's the title track from her debut, Bottle Tree.



The homecoming show tomorrow night is with her recent tour mate Teaadora, along with Secrets Secrets. Bethany promises, "there will be astral communication and connections, seances, celestial pop, meditational r&b, and the winter will be shed due to the fact that the show is the day before the spring Equinox." I'm pretty sure we're all down for the shedding of winter. The show Friday night starts at 10 PM.

Photos: Lizz King, Videohippos, Bethany Dinsick, and Holy Sheet at the Windup Space

Last Friday night the Windup Space played host to a stellar lineup, all in light of sending off Lizz King on her first headlining tour in support of her new album. Her fantastic new record is called All Songs Go to Heaven, a release that's almost six years in the works. Ehse Records is offering the album in vinyl, compact disc, and digital form.

This was as packed as I've seen the Windup in awhile, with an additional performance space set up in the back where both Lizz and Bethany Dinsick played. Lizz King began her set sitting down playing her more melodic folk pop tracks, but not without swinging her rather elaborate boots. When it was time to highlight the the more lively romps, Lizz was quick to get up on her feet and rock her typical dancing and antics.

The rest of the evening proved just as enjoyable, with my only complaint being that the crowd was way too chat-happy during another beautiful set from Bethany Dinsick. Videohippos seem to keep getting tighter and tighter as a four-piece, and Holy Sheet was a welcome and noisy change-up to the vibes. Peep the full photo set after the click.

Videohippos


Bethany Dinsick


Holy Sheet


Lizz King



Photos by Chrissy and Valerie

Tonight: Bethany Dinsick and Teaadora

Bethany Dinsick is a Baltimore artist, who creates art of all varieties. One of Bethany's creative outlets, her Square Pi project, is an experimental voyage into healing one's mind with sound and visuals. One of Square Pi's more interesting works is a cover of Lil' Wayne's "Mrs. Officer", and is a solid representation of a "rap song played backwards".

More recently, Bethany released Bottle Tree, a full length under her own moniker. It's been in steady rotation since I picked it up at Soft Fest, and has been the perfect accompaniment to some stone cold chillaxin'. Stream "Oklahoma Alley", get deets on tonight's show, and more after the click.

Bethany Dinsick sounds like a blend of the warped and natural loops that are elegantly layered in the works of Grouper, with the mind altering vocals of Joanna Newsom.

The self made loops are particularly worth noting, as Bethany samples sounds from vibrators, gunshots from a keyboard, a Lion King audio storybook, kazoo loops, and wine glasses. Not to mention a white noise machine for babies, and even the sounds of herself getting an MRI on the second track, "Whore of Baltimore".

"Oklahoma Alley" was inspired by a tornado Bethany witnessed, and is an eerie and hypnotic venture through that memory. The soft noise which starts out the track isn't unlike what one might hear when dreaming about being in a tornado, and fills out a steady paced and beautifully creepy folk song. Hear for yourself:

You can catch Bethany in Baltimore tonight at the Pet Cemetery, kicking off a tour with Teaadora. The tour hits parts of the east coast, and will feature Bethany and Teaadora helping out on each other's sets. Don't forget to grab a copy of Bottle Tree.

Photos / Review: Dustin Wong, Avocado Happy Hour, and Bethany Dinsick at Soft Fest

Saturday night was yet another clusterfuck of shows in the city that reads, but those who chose Soft Fest were not disappointed. Of the handful of acts I was able to catch, Avocado Happy Hour, were just another exemplary showcase of Baltimore's more quiet tunes. The duo began their set playing a pair of large xylophones in the back of the space, setting the tone for their dynamic ambient pop sound.

A full range of hypnotizing electronic and organic keys painted the background of their pieces. Amanda's voice chimed in and mesmerized, creating mystery with simple melodic notes. A very peaceful and fulfilling set, and not the only of the night.


Dustin Wong's LP Seasons exemplifies what can be accomplished with multiple layers of guitar. Pulling this off on an album that spanned years of home sessions is one thing, but creating a live show based off these ideas is entirely different.

Armed with an arsenal of pedals and an electric guitar, Dustin Wong coated sheet upon sheet of looping melodies, all seamlessly interwoven with one another. This was an incredibly beautiful set, as Dustin dropped the jaws of onlookers within the entire space.

Bethany Dinsick played Sunday night, a folk singer with a stunningly luminous voice. The obvious comparison might be Joanna Newsom, but Bethany's voice is far less erratic and alien-like (in a good way). She painted pictures of tornadoes attacking hospitals and trees that can heal wrong with the aid of a bottle, and did so pretty freaking elegantly.

The use of hushed and hypnotic background noise tied things together, particularly with the application of a baby's white noise machine. I picked up copy of Bottle Tree from Miss Dinsick, an album that I look forward to indulging in quite a bit more. She described it to me as "meditational R&B", and I look forward to featuring more of Bethany Dinsick here in the near future.


Photos by Valerie

Bring Pillows: Soft Fest

Another weekend in Baltimore, and yet another heap of shows to choose from. One event certainly stands out, spanning both Saturday and Sunday. Soft Fest features some of the areas finer mellifluous tunes.

Both days get going at 6 PM and run until midnight, with over ten acts each night all worth checking out. Organizers promise other activities of a more humbled variety, including chess tournaments, silent films, and Tom Selleck. Yup.

I was even told that the entire space would be lined with blankets. All mellow vibes aside, there's some pretty extraordinary talent lined up. Start clicking below:

Saturday
6:45: Run DMT
7:00: Semya
7:20: Holy Ghost Party
8:00: Each Others
8:20: The Bow Legged Gorilla
9:00: Turquoise Cats
9:20: Soft Cat
10:00: Poor Mouth
10:20: Avocado Happy Hour
11:00: Dustin Wong
11:20: M.C. Schmidt

Sunday
7:00: Daytime
7:20: Comeback Ranch
8:00: Bethany Dinsick
8:20: Happy Family
9:00: Andy Abelow
9:20: Lands and Peoples
10:00: Pilar Diaz and Lindsay Rowzinski
10:20: Secret Mountains
11:00: John Somers and Liz Meredith
11:20: Lesser Gonzalez Alvarez

I've highlighted a bunch of these artists before, as a lot have contributed some of the more beautiful tracks from within 695. Dustin Wong's magnificent Seasons has found its way to my turntable often, an LP drenched in unique textures and layers.

Avocado Happy Hour are currently working on their next album, with much to look forward to. They kindly sent me over a couple live tracks from an acoustic set they did at Sonic Circuits. Below is "Sitting Down", performed with a vibraphone, marimba, glockenspiel, and Amanda singing through a megaphone.

Happy Family had an EP titled Sound Farm that had me pretty excited s few months back, with one of the catchier floaty bedroom pop jams I've heard. Check out "Cups" below.

And Lands and Peoples have shown much promise, as their hand-sewn sleeved EP is lush with dreamy folk pop sure to have you thinking of some of the better acts possessing similar sounds. Check out EP standout "Bad Habits".



There are others playing that I've pointed out before, and many of which I hope to recommend in the future. Stop by and stay awhile on Saturday or Sunday, or both. I've been asked to provide you with this email address, in case you need to know the location of said gathering. With a flyer like the one below, and Tom Selleck promised to be in attendance, showing up is a no brainer.