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Old favorites, new hopefuls highlight spring’s indie scene

Electropop group Goldfrapp follows up their last critically acclaimed release, “Seventh Tree,” with

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Electropop group Goldfrapp follows up their last critically acclaimed release, “Seventh Tree,” with their fifth studio album, “Head First” on March 23. Alison Goldfrapp and Will Gregory have modified their sound over their career from electronic balladry to electropop dancebeats. This release wouldn’t be out of place in the ’80s with its retro sound and visual images evoking Xanadu-era Olivia Newton John.

Five-piece Norwegian band Serena-Maneesh are back March 23 with a new release, “S-M: Abyss in B Minor.” The band has been compared to My Bloody Valentine with their use of guitar distortion effects that create their noise pop sound.

Glam rock-disco favorites Scissor Sisters return with their first album in four years, “Hurrah! A Year of Ta-Dah.” Singer Jake Shears said in promotional materials that this release will sound more “masculine.” He also said he will be singing with a “deeper” voice as he would not be relying as much on the falsetto heard in previous albums. The album is due out later this month.

Erykah Badu follows up 2008’s “New Amerykah Part One (4th World War)” with “New Amerykah Part Two (Return of the Ankh)” on March 30. Expect Badu to tap into her feelings about romance and relationships. First single and video “Jump In The Air (Stay There)” features Lil’ Wayne.

Last year, gay Sigur Ros frontman Jónsi released with his partner Alex Somers, “Riceboy Sleeps.” On April 6, he will release a solo effort, “Go.” It features acoustic and string arrangements by Nico Muhly who has previously worked with Björk and Anthony and the Johnsons.

For those seeking something with a bit more R&B/soul feel, Sharon Jones and the Dap Kings release their fourth studio album, “I Learned the Hard Way,” on April 6. Throughout their previous releases, they have continued their sound fronted by Sharon Jones, who has a vocal range that is reminiscent of early Tina Turner and Aretha Franklin.

MGMT return with their follow up to 2007’s critically acclaimed “Oracular Spectacular” with “Congratulations” on March 16. The new release will be a complete piece rather than containing individual singles as on their first album. First released track “Flash Delerium” has them sounding less poppy than before.

Electronic group Javelin recreate the digital sounds of the ’80s on their new album, “No Mas.” Expect the unexpected as they deliver their new release on April 20.

Gay indie singer-songwriter Rufus Wainwright returns on April 20 with his sixth studio album, “All Days Are Nights: Songs For Lulu.” This release is mostly produced by Wainwright himself. Of the 12 songs, three include adaptations of William Shakespeare’s sonnets.

Singer and songwriter Kate Nash debuts her next album “My Best Friend is You,” on April 20. Bernard Butler, ex-guitarist of Suede produced her album. First track and video, “Do Wah Doo,” sees Nash delivering “girl band” pop.

After a four-year hiatus, Sweden’s The Radio Dept. releases their third album, “Clinging to a Scheme,” on April 20. File this one under ethereal dream pop for those lazy Sunday afternoons.

New York-based electronic duo, The Golden Filter, release their debut album Voluspa on April 26. First track, “Hide Me,” sounds like a cross between Goldfrapp and Dot Allison.

The New Pornographers head back into the indie scene with their fifth release, “Together,” on May 4. The album features appearances by Zach Condon of Beirut and Annie Clark of St. Vincent.

Swedish duo Club 8 will release their seventh album, “The People’s Record,” on May 12. First track “Western Hospitality” shows influences from Bow Wow Wow of the ’80s.

On May 18, ex-Everything But the Girl’s Tracey Thorn, comes out with a follow up to 2007’s “Out of the Woods,” which saw her once again drifting into the electro-pop arena. If first single, “Oh, the Divorces!” is an indicator of what’s to come, this could be a less dance-driven affair given its violins and piano accompaniment.

San Francisco band Ariel Pink’s Haunted Graffiti will be releasing their new album, “Before Today” in late spring. They have already released their first single off the album, “Round and Round,” which has them sounding more produced while retaining a unique and eclectic sound.

Local musician Tom Goss recently released an ep called “Politics of Love,” which is available on his web site, tomgossmusic.com/PoliticsOfLove. The ep explores his emotions about recent events surrounding marriage equality. Goss will be playing songs from the CD at the DC Center on April 1 at 8 p.m.

Submit a tip about the local music scene to [email protected].

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Music & Concerts

Underdog glorious: a personal remembrance of Jill Sobule

Talented singer, songwriter died in house fire on May 1

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Writer Gregg Shapiro with Jill Sobule in 2000. (Photo courtesy Shapiro)

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.

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Music & Concerts

Tom Goss returns with ‘Bear Friends Furever Tour’

Out singer/songwriter to perform at Red Bear Brewing Co.

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Singer Tom Goss is back. (Photo by Dusti Cunningham)

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.

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Music & Concerts

Kylie brings ‘Tension’ tour to D.C.

Performance on Tuesday at Capital One Arena

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Kylie Minogue visits D.C. on Tuesday.

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.”

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