Weekend Wind-Down No. 13: We (Still) Love The 90s
–Words and list by Kevin Madert
Did I not tell you we’d be taking more trips to the 90s in the near future? Admittedly many of us are better versed in the plaid-clad one-hit wonders than the more emotive and relaxed numbers, but I’d be surprised if you didn’t recognize at least a few of the songs included on this list. We start off with one of the best B-sides ever released in “Yellow Ledbetter” (your status as a great band is cemented when your outtake tracks outshine the entire catalogs of other groups) and hit a myriad of genre stops along the way. Enjoy, and we’ll surely meet you in the past again soon.
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AltFreq Weekly Planner (12/21-12/24)
–Written by Kevin Madert
The impending holidays mean it’s a quiet week in the DMV – here’s to you and yours having nothing but the best season, no matter your celebration of choice.
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Weekend Warm-Up No. 13: We Love The ’90s
–Words and list by Kevin Madert
Perhaps no decade in the last half-century is as nostalgized and obsessed over than the 1990s. Sure, we still enjoy many things from the ’50s, ’60s, ’70s, and ’80s, but the ’90s possess some inexplicable, unquantifiable hold over us. Nowhere is this more evident than in the decade’s contributions to the world of music. For me, that made constructing this playlist a hell of a task, so I made an executive decision. Rather than pick ten upbeat tunes to encapsulate my relationship with the entire decade, I picked the first ten tracks of what in my mind is a much larger list – one you’ll see more of if you continue tuning in for our Warm-Ups.
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AltFreq Weekend Planner (12/18-12/20)
–Written by Kevin Madert
It’s nearly impossible to keep track of all the events going on in the area, so we’re here to let you know what’s happening in live music over the next few days. Watch out on Sundays for our “Weekly Planner,” where we’ll cover the remaining four days of the week.
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New Tune Tuesday (12/16/14)
–Written by Kevin Madert
Soohan – Made In Baltimore
DMV natives in the know are plenty familiar with the multi-genre hijinks of Soohan. He’s played more events in the area than can be counted. As the co-founder of Baltimore-based company Manifest, he’s been responsible for a steady stream of talent – from Ott to Moon Hooch and plenty in between – gracing venues in and around the city in the past few years. And this week he’s given us even more, in the form of his debut album Made In Baltimore. Labeling it is difficult, but if I had to generalize I’d call it intelligent booty bass – it’s a trappy, bouncy romp delivered with a self-aware wink. The eclecticism contained in these 11 tracks is commendable even for a man of as many talents as Soohan, and the sound design and sampling is consistently wonderful – borrowing from Mulan and Ace of Base in the same song is an instant win in my book. It’s free on Soundcloud and pay-what-you-want on Bandcamp; we encourage you to support local music and buy it if you can.
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Weekend Wind-Down No. 12: Anjunadeep
–Words and list by Kevin Madert
For every yin there is a yang. After warming it up with the upbeat side of Above & Beyond-purveyed music, I decided our wind-down should explore the deeper side of things. Enter Anjunabeats sub-label Anjunadeep, where the releases are more subdued and the focus placed on more progressive and varied styles. I tried to represent that breadth in these ten songs; “Neon Feel” is plenty funky, “Lost In You” and “Every Night” are deep and vocal, and “Gaff’s Eulogy” stands out as the only tune on the list that’s not steady beat at all.
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