It's been made pretty clear that these dudes have put out one of the finest albums of the year in On The Water, and today they hit the road with Ed Schrader's Music Beat.
Tonight Future Islands play Black Cat's main stage down in D.C. with Javelin on support for the first leg of their massive tour. William Cashion, Sam Herring, and Gerrit Welmers celebrated the release of their new record last week at the intimate confines of The Depot, and Valerie was there to capture all the action.
Tour dates are right here, and more photos after the jump.
Warpaint played the Ottobar before, with our friends Lands & Peoples, and they rocked a beautiful set. These ladies are one EP deep, a release that comes highly recommended and includes the track above called "Elephant". Dreamy psych pop at its best.
We've been lucky in town to have the chance to get pretty familiar with Javelin's live set, as they've rocked a handful of shows in Baltimore over the past few years. They were a highlight at Whartscape this year, and should make for a solid reason to come out tomorrow night. Look for some live Javelin sounds from us soon too.
Beach Fossils are one of the handful of rad bands that Captured Tracks has released this year. The debut LP is full of some of the catchiest lo fi pop music around, perfect for lightening up those nasty late summer heat waves, and an act that is more than certainly worth showing up early for.
Last weekend's fifth annual Whartscape was likely the last, but the festival more than certainly went out on a high note. Over 100 acts descended upon a Baltimore parking lot and warehouse, all made possible by the folks at Wham City.
Friday's lineup sported a good deal of hip hop from the more mainstream sounds of the Get Em Mamis, to the off-the-beaten-path vibes of Height with Friends, and even to the jaded blunt-smoked rambles of Lil B. Friday also featured some rock and roll of the more noisey variety with killer performances from Teenage Souls and Weekends.
However the highlight of the day had to be Oxes, who presented Whoxesscape. The seldom seen and freshly reformed trio played inside the window in front of Current Space, which overlooked Howard Street. This allowed whartscapers, random pedestrians, and light rail riders to hear and watch the band at random moments throughout the day. At one point Marc Miller and Nat Fowler took advantage of their wireless guitars, bringing them out on to the street in the middle of a song. This made for some precious moments and interesting encounters to say the least.
At night there were also options, ranging from the lush soundscapes of Avocado Happy Hour, to the bewildering guitar chops of Dustin Wong, to the lo-fi sonics of Romantic States. Valerie was there to capture as much of the event as she could, and her shots from Friday are after the jump. Javelin
While here we usually tend to focus on the local talent for Whartscape, this year sports a whole lot of amazing sounds from outside of Baltimore. I put together a bit of a sampler to help folks get a feel for a taste of this year's Whartscape, but in no way does this cover all the touring acts that will be performing.
The rest of the week we'll likely be focusing efforts on the ongoings of Baltimore natives playing the 5th annual Whartscape. Friends Records is stoked to be a part of this year's event, and will have a tent set up each day with new releases available that will all be featured this week. Look for some sounds and the details regarding the new INEVERYROOM album later today. THURSDAY JULY 22 CHARLES THEATER
5pm – 12am
MINK STOLE (LECTURE) NAI CAMEYAK Q&A SHANA MOULTON BEN COONLEY RAM ONES BRYAN ZANISNIK PETER GLANTZ & THE IMAGIN ARY CO BENJAMIN BEAST ERIN GLEESON MASON ROSS A FUNNY CLOWN ALAN RESNICK BLUE LEADER APRIL CAMLIN DANIEL HIGGS LIZ DONADIO SANTA DADS ADAM ENDERS JOHN PILSON 10 MINUTE PLAY FESTIVAL UNSADDEST FACTORY R.M. OBRIEN MARTIN & LAWRENCE SANTA DADS BALLSOROY
FRIDAY JULY 23 CURRENT SPACE
12pm – 10:30pm
SPANKROCK LIL B SCOTTI B ERIC COPELAND GET EM MAMIS DJ DOG DICK HEIGHT JAVELIN SO PERCUSSION CLUB LYFESTILES LORD SCRUMMAGE RAPDRAGONS OFIRE NEEDLE GUN WE USED TO BE FAMILY AMI DANG CUP CACHE TEENAGESOULS PLURAL MC WITCH HAT WEEKENDS SMALL SUR
H&H BUILDING 10:30pm – 2am
PICTUREPLANE TEEN GIRL FANTASY YIP YIP CHANDELIERS DAN FRIEL DJ YO YO DIETING BIG DIGITS CULLEN STALIN DEEP IN THE GAME NADASTROM ADVENTURE MOSS OF AURA JARED PAOLINI LESSER GONZALEZ ALVAREZ DUSTIN WONG MICKEY FREE ABIKU GRAVEBANGERS NARC ROMANTIC STATES AVOCADO HAPPY HOUR POLYGONS 400 CLOAKS
SATURDAY JULY 24 CURRENT SPACE
12pm – 10:30pm
LIGHTNING BOLT ARAB ON RADAR NO AGE DAN DEACON ENSEMBLE PONYTAIL DOUBLE DAGGER ZACH HILL THANK YOU ED SCHRADER CHILD BITE ALTERED STATES DREW SWINBURNE SUPER VACATIONS THE CONVOCATION OF ENTERTAINMENT SYSTEM AMIL BYLECKIE BAND BEASTMASTER SMALL SUR
H&H BUILDING 10:30pm – 2am
UNIVERSAL ORDER OF ARMAGEDDON SICK WEAPONS TWIN STUMPS MAGNET CITY KIDS THE NEW FLESH LANDLORDS DOPE BODY HOLLYWOOD NARWHALZ (OF SOUND) DREAM HOUSE PC WORSHIP SEWN LEATHER TEETH MOUNTAIN SOCIAL JUNK LAZY MAGNET DUST MELISSA MOORE OWEN BRITEMAN CHILD BRIDE GAY BOMB KAFFE MATTHEWS TWIG HARPER ANDREW BERNSTIEN SEYJANO DJ JOHN EATON DJ ALEX DONDERO
SUNDAY JULY 25 CURRENT SPACE 12pm – 10:30pm
BEACH HOUSE HEALTH XIU XIU DEAKIN TALK NORMAL CELEBRATION FUTURE ISLANDS LOWER DENS WYE OAK DUCKTAILS PRINCE RAMA QUIET HOOVES IN EVERY ROOM PEARLY FARMS INOCULIST H&H BUILDING 10:30pm – 2am
ONEOHTRIX POINT NEVER BURNING STAR CORE ZOMES JASON URICK KOEN HOLTKAMP & CHRIS FORSYTH FAMILY BATTLE SNAKE LEPRACHAUN CATERING LITTLE HOWLIN’ WOLF THE CREEPERS DINOSAUR FEATHERS ARCHER TWINS HUME LONNIE WALKER ART DEPARTMENT BOBBY EAR PWR BETHANY DINSICK CASTANETS LIVING THINGS CORAL LEGS HUMAN HOST THE DODGERS
Future Islands played their last local show for a little while, as they headlined Jesus Camp Sunday night with Javelin, 400 Cloaks, and Grandchildren all on hefty support. Going out and dancing at the Megachurch in Hampden on a Sunday night proved worthy, as all acts made going to church plenty fun.
Pictured above is just some of the fantastic antics that took place during Javelin's set. They made you want to dance, they were lively as all hell, and they've created some pretty infectious pop songs. You''ll find a Javelin remix of the Future Islands track "Flicker and Flutter" on the upcoming Post Office Wave Chapel via Future Islands and Free Danger. The band kindly hooked us up with the exclusive premiere of said track.
Stream this one in all it's glory and peep all photos of this show after the click. The upcoming Future Islands remix EP has it's NYC release party this Thursday at Death by Audio, with Javelin, Jones, Moss of Aura, and Pictureplane - all of which lent a hand to the record. Future Islands synth wizard Geritt Welmers donated his Moss of Aura project's take on "Beach Foam", utilizing riffs from No Age's "Eraser". Jones is responsible for the remix of "Little Dreamer" that features Beach House's Victoria Lengrand, and Pictureplane reworked "Old Dreamer".
Sunday night was the trio's last hometown show for a little while, but look for big things to come in 2010 from these guys including a Friends Records split 7 inch with Lonnie Walker, and their debut Thrill Jockey full length. We will also have a podcast of an acoustic house session hitting waves soon, with brand new tracks, a super fantastic organ, and Sam somehow sitting down while singing.
Here's the premiere of the rad Javelin remix on the upcoming 12 inch, and more photos.
This weekend isn't so much a clusterfuck, as their seems to be a pretty clear path of adventures to choose. These particular adventures also happen to be some of the raddest in awhile.
Friday night, I suggest kind of sort of taking it easy. There's a lot ahead of you, and burning out too quickly this weekend will result in failure. However, with a 25 piece band covering Fela Kuti tunes for the masses, this might prove difficult.
The Baltimore Afrobeat Society is holding their yearly event at the H&H, dubbing it this year the "Fela Anikulapo Kuti Dance Party". This is always a great event, and provides plenty of an ass-shaking good time. The event is kindly asking for 10 bucks, and the show starts at 11. Sleep in late after this one, as Saturday will provide a full day's worth of awesomeness. Saturday is the epic throwdown at Floristree, with four of Baltimore's biggest bands on one bill. Double Dagger, Ponytail, Videohippos, and Ecstatic Sunshine will all melt faces in grand fashion. This is a rare matinee show, with doors opening at 3 PM and the show starting at 4 PM.
Each band will perform two sets, with video intermissions in between each set compliments of Mark Brown, Evan Devine, Matt Porterfield, and Robby Rackleff. This show has absolutely zero potential of sucking, and might prove to be one of the more epic lineups of 2009. Double Dagger even promised a taco cart in an email yesterday... a taco cart people!
After having your mind completely blown all afternoon, head to the Zodiac to continue adventuring. SHDWPLY heavyweights, The Super Vacations, will be in town with labelmates Gary War. More on their new jams here, and opening will be the always entrancing Lands and Peoples.
If you are still alive after Saturday, and man will you hope you will be, this Sunday proves not just to be the day of rest. Jesus Camp (megachurch in Hampden) is throwing their first big big show, with Future Islands, Javelin, Grandchildren, Mark Brown, and 400 Cloaks (Meredith Moore, Andrew Burt). This lineup is stacked from start to finish, and should prove worth heading out on a Sunday. Javelin is responsible for one the best remixes on the new Future Islands remix 12 inch by Free Danger, and the rest should keep it more than interesting as well.
