Music & Concerts
Banner year for alt music
This year brought an abundance of new alternative music that you may have missed. If you’re looking for something new to listen to or are holiday shopping for the music lover in your life, here’s a rundown of some of the strongest releases of 2009.
4AD released “Dark Was the Night,” a compilation to benefit the Red Hot Organization, an international charity that raises funds and awareness for HIV/AIDS. This release, which was produced by Aaron and Bryce Dessner of The National, boasted a wide array of musicians including such talents as: Grizzly Bear, Feist, Riceboy Sleeps (Sigur Ros’s Jónsi Birgisson’s side project), Sharon Jones & the Dap-Kings and David Byrne.
Baltimore’s Animal Collective released its eighth studio album, “Merriweather Post Pavilion.” If you’re not familiar with them, think electronic Beach Boys on acid. Standout tracks include “My Girls,” “Summertime Clothes” and the addictive “Brother Sport.”
St. Vincent’s Annie Clark returned with her second studio release, “Actor.” Her approach to songwriting is very cinematic. The album draws upon Clark’s life as an actor. Tracks like “Actor Out of Work” have her singing about how these experiences affected her life. First single “Marrow,” has Clark singing over a funky, thumping baseline. Other great tracks: “The Party” and “The Stranger.”
English musician Jack Peñate, whose vocals sound like a poppier Robert Smith of the Cure, delivers one of the best alterna-pop releases of 2009. With a large array of influences and musical styles “Everything is New” offers a wide range tracks from the title track, “Tonights Today,” “Give Yourself Away” and “Pull My Heart Away.”
British electropop musician, Frankmusik (Ex-musician of Brit pop group Fascination), released his debut album “Complete Me.” Many who had been following his career in the last two years were eagerly awaiting this release and it didn’t disappoint. Tracks like “Boyfriend,” are instantly catchy and have a beat perfect for the dance floor. Other great tracks: “Better Off as Two,” “Confusion Girl (Shame, Shame, Shame),” “3 Little Words,” “Wonder Woman” and “Done Done.”
Ian Brown, ex-lead singer of Stone Roses gave us “My Way,” a great return to form. Few musicians are able maintain their relevance after 20 years and Brown proves he still has a lot of music within him. Lead track “Stellify,” the first single, didn’t disappoint. Definitely his best album since his first solo outing, “Unfinished Monkey Business.” Other notable tracks: “Just Like You,” “Always Remember Me,” “Vanity Kills” and “Laugh Now.”
Gay musician Bradford Cox of Deerhunter, released another album with his other band, Atlas Sound. “Logos” had Cox collaborating with indie artists such as Lætitia Sadier (Stereolab) on “Quick Canal” and Noah Lennox (Panda Bear) on “Walkabout.”
Rejkavik’s Gusgus, now a trio, and once again including original singer, Daniel Ágúst, returned with 24/7. One of their more ethereal releases, this is dance floor music for the indie crowd — something this band has always done well. Originally a nine-piece collective, over the years they have established their own sound that has often been imitated, but never outdone. Select tracks: “Thin Ice,” “Add This Song” and “On the Job.”
Mike Silver, recording under the name CFCF gave us “Continent” which includes a version of Fleetwood Mac’s “Big Love.” Other tracks of note: “Invitation of Love,” with its super sexy bass beats, are reminiscent of early ’80s disco. “You Hear Colours,” which starts with droning drum beats and layered guitar work is the one the best instrumental indie tracks this year. Think modern day Alan Parsons.
Sweden’s Johan Angergård (Acid House Kings) returned to his side project, The Legends and released “Over and Over.” Ranging from noise pop to post punk, this album offers several diverse selections: “Seconds Away,” Monday to Saturday” and “Something Strange Will Happen.”
Portland-based producer Johnny Jewel of Chromatics and Glass Candy fame formed Desire with vocalist Megan-Louise. Their first release, “II,” continues the sound that Jewel has perfected with his other projects — sparse female vocals washing over blissful electronic analog synthesizers. Standout tracks: “Mirroir mirroir,” “Don’t Call,” “If I Can’t Hold” and “Under Your Spell,” which could easily have been an indie pop track from the mid-’80s.
The Big Pink crashed onto the music scene with several singles before releasing “A Brief History of Love,” old school alternative music in the vein of Jesus and Mary Chain. This album contains the hit singles, “Velvet” and “Dominos.”
“Broadcast and the Focus Group Investigate Witch Cults of the Radio Age” is a collaboration between indie group Broadcast and their designer Julian House (aka the Focus Group). The always-talented Broadcast returned with an effort that pushed their eclectic sound to a more experimental area than their previous releases.
“XX” was released by young British hopefuls, The XX. The album delivers slow-paced, bluesy indie pop with such tracks as “Basic Space,” “Islands” and “Shelter.”
Early ’80s electronic pop was present on The Juan MacLean’s “The Future Will Come.” Obvious influences of the Human League on their first single “One Day” and “The Simple Life.”
Röyksopp released “Junior,” which gave us several great tracks, such as the haunting pop of “You Don’t Have a Clue” and “This Must Be It.”
Other notable releases this year:
Baltimore band Celebration recently decided to start releasing their own music and cut out the middleman. They’ve released three new tracks through their site, celebrationelectrictarot.com.
England’s Saint Etienne came back with a limited edition remix version of “Fox Base Alpha,” their first release. “Spring” is one of its most beautiful songs — a must find.
Brooklyn group, ZaZa released their ep, “Cameo.” It contains six dreamy gems.
The Breeders proved they can do it all by producing and manufacturing their latest ep “Fate to Fatal,” offering continued proof that they are the real “Deal.”
Kitsuné Maison Compilation, Vol. 7 gave us a new compilation which works from new band Two Door Cinema Club, Phoenix, La Roux and Delphic.
Best Coast, a fizzy pop band from California, gave us the addictive new single, “When I’m With You.”
Canadians Music Go Music released “Expressions,” which contained “Warm in the Shadow” and “Light of Love” — both evoked Blondie and ABBA. Another gem.
Mew released its third album, which contained one of the best indie pop singles of the year, “Beach.”
Massive Attack gave us a teaser of their upcoming album in the form of a new ep, “Splitting the Atom,” this time working with guest vocals from Guy Garvey from Elbow and Tunde Adebimpe from TVOTR.
Submit a tip about the local music scene to [email protected].
Music & Concerts
Underdog glorious: a personal remembrance of Jill Sobule
Talented singer, songwriter died in house fire on May 1

I’ve always prided myself on being the kind of music consumer who purchased music on impulse. When I stumbled across “Things Here Are Different,” Jill Sobule’s 1990 MCA Records debut album on vinyl in a favorite Chicago record store, I bought it without knowing anything about her. This was at a time when we didn’t have our phones in our pockets to search for information about the artist on the internet. The LP stayed in my collection until, as vinyl was falling out of fashion, I replaced it with a CD a few years later.
Early in my career as an entertainment journalist, I received a promo copy of Jill’s eponymous 1995 Atlantic Records album. That year, Atlantic Records was one of the labels at the forefront of signing and heavily promoting queer artists, including Melissa Ferrick and Extra Fancy, and its roster included the self-titled album by Jill. It was a smart move, as the single “I Kissed A Girl” became a hit on radio and its accompanying video (featuring Fabio!) was in heavy rotation on MTV (when they still played videos).
Unfortunately for Jill, she was a victim of record label missteps. When 1997’s wonderful “Happy Town” failed to repeat the success, Atlantic dumped her. That was Atlantic’s loss, because her next album, the superb “Pink Pearl” contained “Heroes” and “Mexican Wrestler,” two of her most beloved songs. Sadly, Beyond Music, the label that released that album ceased to exist after just a few years. To her credit, the savvy Jill had also started independently releasing music (2004’s “The Folk Years”). That was a smart move because her next major-label release, the brilliant “Underdog Victorious” on Artemis Records, met a similar fate when that label folded.
With her 2009 album “California Years,” Jill launched her own indie label, Pinko Records, on which she would release two more outstanding full-length discs, 2014’s “Dottie’s Charms” (on which she collaborated with some of her favorite writers, including David Hadju, Rick Moody, Mary Jo Salter, and Jonathan Lethem), and 2018’s stunning “Nostalgia Kills.” Jill’s cover of the late Warren Zevon’s “Don’t Let Us Get Sick” on “Nostalgia Kills” was particularly poignant as she had toured with him as an opening act.
Jill was a road warrior, constantly on tour, and her live shows were something to behold. My first interview with Jill took place at the Double Door in Chicago in early August of 1995, when she was the opening act for legendary punk band X. She had thrown her back out the previous day and was diagnosed with a herniated disc. To be comfortable, she was lying down on a fabulous-‘50s sofa. “I feel like I’m at my shrink’s,” she said to me, “Do you want me to talk about my mother?”
That sense of humor, which permeated and enriched her music, was one of many reasons to love Jill. I was privileged to interview her for seven of her albums. Everything you would want to know about her was right there in her honest lyrics, in which she balanced her distinctive brand of humor with serious subject matter. Drawing on her life experiences in songs such as “Bitter,” “Underachiever,” “One of These Days,” “Freshman,” “Jetpack,” “Nothing To Prove,” “Forbidden Thoughts of Youth,” “Island of Lost Things,” “Where Do I Begin,” “Almost Great,” and “Big Shoes,” made her songs as personal as they were universal, elicited genuine affection and concern from her devoted fans.
While she was a consummate songwriter, Jill also felt equally comfortable covering songs made famous by others, including “Just A Little Lovin’” (on the 2000 Dusty Springfield tribute album “Forever Dusty”) and “Stoned Soul Picnic” (from the 1997 Laura Nyro tribute album “Time and Love”). Jill also didn’t shy away from political subject matter in her music with “Resistance Song,” “Soldiers of Christ,” “Attic,” “Heroes,” “Under the Disco Ball,” and the incredible “America Back” as prime examples.
Here’s something else worth mentioning about Jill. She was known for collaboration skills. As a songwriter, she maintained a multi-year creative partnership with Robin Eaton (“I Kissed A Girl” and many others), as well as Richard Barone, the gay frontman of the renowned band The Bongos. Jill’s history with Barone includes performing together at a queer Octoberfest event in Chicago in 1996. Writer and comedian Julie Sweeney, of “SNL” and “Work in Progress” fame was another Chicago collaborator with Sobule (Sweeney lives in a Chicago suburb), where they frequently performed their delightful “The Jill and Julia Show.” John Doe, of the aforementioned band X, also collaborated with Jill in the studio (“Tomorrow Is Breaking” from “Nostalgia Kills”), as well as in live performances.
On a very personal note, in 2019, when I was in the process of arranging a reading at the fabulous NYC gay bookstore Bureau of General Services – Queer Division, I reached out to Jill and asked her if she would like to be on the bill with me. We alternated performing; I would read a couple of poems, and Jill would sing a couple of songs. She even set one of my poems to music, on the spot.
Jill had an abundance of talent, and when she turned her attention to musical theater, it paid off in a big way. Her stage musical “F*ck 7th Grade,” a theatrical piece that seemed like the next logical step in her career, had its premiere at Pittsburgh’s City Theatre in the fall of 2020, during the height of the pandemic. The unique staging (an outdoor drive-in stage at which audience members watched from their cars) was truly inspired. “F*ck 7th Grade” went on to become a New York Times Critic’s pick, as well as earning a Drama Desk nomination.
In honor of the 30th anniversary of Jill’s eponymous 1995 album, reissue label Rhino Records is re-releasing it on red vinyl. Jill and I had been emailing each other to arrange a time for an interview. We even had a date on the books for the third week of May.
When she died in a house fire in Minnesota on May 1 at age 66, Jill received mentions on network and cable news shows. She was showered with attention from major news outlets, including obits in the New York Times and Rolling Stone (but not Pitchfork, who couldn’t be bothered to review her music when she was alive). Is it wrong to think that if she’d gotten this much attention when she was alive she could have been as big as Taylor Swift? I don’t think so.
Music & Concerts
Tom Goss returns with ‘Bear Friends Furever Tour’
Out singer/songwriter to perform at Red Bear Brewing Co.

Singer Tom Goss will bring his “Bear Friends Furever Tour” to D.C. on Sunday, June 8 at 8 p.m. at Red Bear Brewing Co.
Among the songs he will perform will be “Bear Soup,” the fourth installment in his beloved bear song anthology series. Following fan favorites like “Bears,” “Round in All the Right Places,” and “Nerdy Bear,” this high-energy, bass-thumping banger celebrates body positivity, joyful indulgence, and the vibrant spirit of the bear subculture.
For more details, visit Tom Goss’s website.

Aussie pop icon Kylie Minogue brings her acclaimed “Tension” world tour to D.C. next Tuesday at 7:30 p.m. at the Capital One Arena. Tickets are still available at Ticketmaster.
The show features songs spanning her long career, from 1987 debut single, “The Loco-Motion,” to “Padam, Padam” from her album, “Tension.”