Axum Lounge is a very small, cozy venue. The downstairs is an Ethiopian restaurant, but the upstairs is kind of a dive bar. I was pleasantly surprised to find the restrooms to be as clean as they were. I usually expect places like that to have restrooms to resemble that of seedy gas stations, but this place was a refreshing boon in that regard. Considering I had to drive not too long after having just gotten there, drinking was totally out of the question for me, so I can't really make any comments about the bar. The bottled water that Stacey Campbell's boyfriend, photographer Daniel Sergei, bought for me didn't seem shady, so I guess that's a plus. My only real complaint with the place was that the volume on the speakers was a bit too high for the size of the room. It was difficult to have any sort of conversation in the venue, regardless of wherever I stood.
Anyway, how were the bands?
The first band that popped on stage was Nila Kay. I did not envy their opening role for this event. It seemed like the crowd wasn't into them, although this band certainly wasn't bad. Their music reminded me of some 90s pop. Des'ree instantly popped into my mind, although some of Nila Kay's songs were a bit more danceable than what Des'ree did. I'm definitely not an expert on this kind of music, so I can't really get into too much detail about my opinions. I do think they might have gotten a more energized crowd though had they been booked for a venue with music more like theirs.
Here was their set list:
1. Tonight
2. Turn It Up
3. Drive
4. No Escape
5. Tongue-Tied
6. Hand Jive
7. Wallflower
8. Soda Pop
Nila Kay had this to say about the concert:
"This was a fun show at Axum, I was happy that there was a sound person there this time. The bartender was just as characteristically unenthusiastic as she was the last time I was there, ha ha. She does not look happy to be there! Although the turn out was bigger at the last show I played here, I still had a good time. The band after us was pretty good and they had a lot of funny drunken friends...I sold a C.D. and a couple people signed my mailing list.
...Just another night I guess. Onto the next show!"
I'm totally not commenting on that part about the bartender. Those two can duke it out. Heh heh. That being said, let's talk about These Future Saints.
(Property of These Future Saints, used with explicit permission)
(Property of These Future Saints, used with explicit permission)
These Future Saints played after Nila Kay, and they seemed to be pretty much the cookie cutter definition of indie rock. Again, this was another band that I really didn't feel overly qualified to comment on, since their genre is outside of my interests, but they had a good enough sound, I guess. Nila Kay was quite accurate in mentioning the drunk population during the set though. Many people seemed rather -- energized in the crowd. I think a good number of people too went specifically to see them play and didn't stick around for the rest of the bands.
This is what they played at Axum:
1. Love and Excuses
2. Catch and Release
3. Take Care
4. I Can't Win (The Strokes cover)
5. Come Around
6. Fit for a King
7. Separation
8. Reverie
9. Blackjack
Here is what the band had to say about that night:
"Our set at Axum Lounge was our second official show. As a band starting out, we're constantly working to improve and perfect our live performances, and with each show we're getting more tighter and comfortable with the audience. At Axum, the small crowd provided a fun, intimate setting for our set that was well received. We had a great time, and look forward to providing our audience with the best show we possibly can.
The upstairs at Axum Lounge had a decent setup given the size limitations. There were some sound issues ranging from a lack of monitors to overbearing PA speakers near the back of the room that really could have been shut off. Despite these issues everything sounded reasonably well and we easily moved past them and into a good show.
Overall we did not enjoy the venue, and we will likely not return, which is unfortunate because DC desperately needs more venues that support live original music. Through setting up and performing this show, it became clear to us that they were not interested in supporting or respecting the musicians that choose to work with them. The focus was the venue making a quick buck off bands looking for places to play."
I can't really comment on the venue's role in scene politics. I had never been there before this concert, and I don't know the people who run the establishment at all. I do hope this grievance is resolved between the two parties though, because venues do need to have feedback from all stakeholders to get an adequate idea of how to maintain good business.
Now, onto talking about the band that I paid to see, Spider Lilies.
(Property of Sergei Photography, used with explicit permission)
For one, Stacey Campbell was just getting over laryngitis. She had gone on an intensive regimen earlier in the week to make sure she could sing by concert day. I think she did a bang-up job getting into the necessary shape. Also, Chad VanPelt wore an I:Scintilla hoodie to the show, and I noticed that right away. Considering how anyone who reads this blog knows just how absurd I am about doting on I:Scintilla, needless to say, I couldn't help myself but to compliment Chad on his choice of apparel. Furthermore, all in all, Stacey, Chad, and Daniel (Stacey's boyfriend) were all incredibly nice, sociable people, and I found them to be totally down-to-earth.
Here's what they played at this event:
1. Metaphor (live footage)
2. Soft Green Eyes (live footage)
3. Follow (live footage)
4. Surgery (live footage)
5. Idolatry (live footage)
6. Within (live footage)
7. Serene (live footage)
8. Mirror in the Dark (live footage)
9. Pay (live footage)
Stacey had this to say about the show:
"It was a fun, intimate little show. The sound wasn't bad, and a bunch of our favorite people were there."
Chad had this to say:
"It’s always great to get out and play live, especially local shows. We’re in the process of working on the new album, so shows like this that pop up are a nice way to keep connected to our local fans and let folks know that we’re still around and still active even if we’re not playing shows all the time right now. Sharing the bill with friends, other local bands, is also a plus."
Wait -- did you just say "new album", good sir? Mr. VanPelt, you must tell me more about this "new album" of which you speak. But anyway, I need to give some article space to the other bands of the night. The next one that came on stage was dharmata 101.
So class, what do you get when you mix Buddhist philosophy with good old-fashioned industrial and EBM? The correct answer to this question is dharmata 101, obviously. At the show, it looked like the band might have been having technical difficulties, so it was a good while, about twenty minutes after scheduled start time, before dharmata was able to start. It was definitely worth the wait though. The second song in their set, "Magnetic Stripe Down", was probably my favorite. It was a cold, slightly uncomfortable explanation of why lusting after money is the root of all evil. I found "Oxygen" to be the most danceable song of the night and would totally recommend it to any DJ who wants a song that will get people moving. Overall, I thought dharmata 101 had a good thing going here, and I would definitely be interested in seeing where they go from here.
This was their set list for the night:
1. Mile One2. Magnetic Stripe Down
3. Oxygen
4. Emoticon
5. Emancip8
6. Hello Cruel World
7. > I (Dada In Motion)
8. The Five Shackles
JSun Bruner, frontman for dharmata 101, had this to say about the show:
"We think the concert went splendidly, save a couple small technical issues at the beginning of our set. Though short a member (our bass player isn't old enough to perform at a 21+ establishment), we ran through the bulk of the music from our forthcoming concept album 'the five shackles' (the first half of which can be heard at https://soundcloud.com/dharmata-101/the-five-shackles-part-1). We were extraordinarily lucky to have shared the bill with both Spider Lilies and Lenorable, who rounded out a wonderful night for all in attendance."
Chad VanPelt commented on the dharmata 101 performance, too:
"Dharmata 101 keeps evolving his live show and that’s been great to see over the years, adding Ace on keyboards for this incarnation of the band. Jsun’s got new D101 material in the works so getting an ear on some of that in a live setting is cool."
I thought dharmata 101 had an excellent stage presence throughout the whole thing. They didn't have a huge stage to work with, but they knew work really well with what they had.
Unfortunately, I had to leave after this set, but there was one more band who played. After having listened to Lenorable's stuff at home after the show, I really wish I could have stayed, because this is the kind of stuff that's right up my alley. I especially liked the video for "Ligeia".
I didn't get to see the show, so I can't comment directly on their performance. Here is their set list though:
1. The Prince
2. She Waits
5. Disconnect
6. Ligeia
7. Charlie Darling
Here is what Ian Graham, Lenorable guitarist, said about their experience at the event:
"We didn't know what exactly to expect at Axum, since we'd neither played there before nor had we worked with their promoter, and a 1:30am set is late for DC shows. We've always considered our music to be at least related to modern gothic rock, since we're so heavily influenced by bands like Siouxsie and the Banshees, Joy Division and Clan of Xymox. When you label yourself with a term like 'goth,' which is so near and dear to so many people, you hope you do it justice. It was cool to see fans of Spider Lilies and Dharmata 101, who both have stronger ties to the DC goth scene than we do, react to us positively."
From what I hear, you all did just fine. Here's what Chad VanPelt had to say about the Lenorable set:
"Lenorable is a relatively new band that I’ve been introduced to and always look forward to seeing. They have a really nice post-punk shoegaze sound that really translates well live. Guitarist Ian Graham’s shoegaze presence is balanced out well by Vocalist Lisa Reed’s energetic movement between verses."
So, there you have it. Five bands in one night in a tiny upstairs room in DC. Overall, I had tons of fun. Obviously, I would have been happy to just see Spider Lilies for ten bucks, so seeing quality shows out of the rest of the bands was an incredible bonus. I would really like to see a five or six-band megashow once again, although I would like there to be more of a cohesive theme next time around. Although Nila Kay and These Future Saints were certainly decent bands on their own, I think both of those bands would have gained a lot more benefit from being in concerts with bands similar to theirs. Likewise, I think Spider Lilies, dharmata 101, and Lenorable would rock if they did another concert, especially if another goth/industrial band or two were to get thrown into the mix. Final verdict: If you didn't go, you really, really missed out.
Excellent write up Chris. It was a pleasure to meet you that night. Such a great concert.
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