Friday, October 31, 2008

From last night

Here are a few shots from the Hard Rock Cafe last night with Electric Touch
photos by Amy Willard






Hanson delivers a new sound with a good cause to VA

By Angelyn Thornton
photos by Amy Willard
It may have been a cold night outside but things were heating up at the State Theater in Falls Church, VA on October 28th. Braving the freezing winds, a line of excited fans wrapped around the side of the building with an hour still to go before the doors were set to open.
After much anticipation, the anxious crowd quickly filled the roomy venue. First on stage was Everybody Else, a 3-man band out of Los Angeles.... 

What's the Buzz?

SO!

We've got a ton of stuff we're working on here at BarricadeBuzz.com! We've got photos of Hit the Lights, Forever the Sickest Kids, Sing It Loud, and Cobra Starship by our very own Ashley Perry, followed by photos of Everybody Else, Dave Barnes, and Hanson by Amy Willard.

We've also got a review on the way from the Hanson show, AND we've got so much to tell from tonight's show at the Hard Rock Cafe in DC featuring Electric Touch and Filter.

We'll get things posted as soon as possible!!

-Barricade Buzz Staff

Wednesday, October 29, 2008

A few shots from Hanson last night

Barricade Buzz got to check out Hanson at the State Theater last night in Fairfax, Virginia.

Here are a few shots from our photographer, Amy Willard



Tuesday, October 28, 2008

Dandy Warhols rock the District

By Angelyn Thornton
photo by Amy Willard

On a chilly Monday night, the six members of The Upside Down emerged on stage for the relatively modest-sized crowd at 9:30 Club on September 22nd. Armed with harmonicas, tambourines and all the usual trappings of a rock show, the sextet rocked the house with its smooth blend of voices and alternative folk tunes. Sounding like the rock-and-roll offspring of the B-52's, The Upside Down channels a more kitschy funk into their brand of rock. Even through minor technical problems and flying pieces of tambourine, the prevailed without even skipping a beat and delivered an energetic powerhouse performance.
With echoes of “Will to the stage, please...” and the inevitable good-spirited heckling of the crowd, Darker My Love entered the spotlight as the second act of the evening. Accompanied by a trippy video background, the 5-man band contributed a different style to the evening’s sounds. Throughout their set, the boys wove back and forth between psychedelic funk-rock and folksy indie punk. Jam sessions punctuated each song while unique sleighbell accents occasionally filled the space. With an abundance of charm and appeal at their disposal, Darker My Love quickly won the crowd over and undoubtedly gained some new fans in the process.
And finally the star players took to the stage. With their dedicated fan base on display, the crowd of both young and old(er) swelled to maximum capacity within the club as The Dandy Warhols took their turn. A vivid, yet sometimes over-the-top, light show complimented the simple, no-frills setup of the stage. The set was as much about the music as it was about the spectacle. The high-energy foursome continually spun catchy tune after catchy tune that kept the fans singing along. All in all, it was night of past and present. The die-hards relived their old favorites while a new wave of younger fans was formed.

Monday, October 27, 2008

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Monday, October 20, 2008

Playlist

just listen.


"Fall" by Something Corporate
"Falling Apart" by Matt Nathanson
"Please Wait Up For Me" by Sherwood
"Cue the Sun" by Daphne Loves Derby
"Out Loud" by Dispatch
"Counting to 100" by Matt Wertz

Wednesday, October 8, 2008

Senses Fail comes up short with new album


image from Amazon.com

Life Is Not A Waiting Room
Senses Fail

Reviewed by Chris Douglass


To date, Senses Fail have put together several solid full-length albums. Still Searching presented a power that many may not have thought they had in them and although it wasn’t a ground breaking album, it stood strong in its time. Today with Life Is Not A Waiting Room, the band continues to make mature steps in their writing without ever denying who they are.

Fans who have high hopes for Life Is Not A Waiting Room may feel that Senses Fail simply fell short this time. The opening track, “Fireworks at Dawn,” is relatively sub-par and may make a new listener question whether or not they just threw their money away. This song probably should have given up its position to its follower, “Lungs Like Gallows” (which kicks so much ass it would be a surprise if it wasn’t a “Still Searching” B-Side that was just too good even for the deluxe edition). So for those doubting their purchase, rest assured this album is still a 10-spot well spent.

If it wasn’t apparent before that vocalist Buddy Nielsen has a drinking problem, he continues to let it be known on this album—seriously, it would not be a surprise if their merch table started selling shot glasses. Nielsen wastes no time in the opener by singing “Fireworks at dawn as I sip for assistance. This flask keeps me calm…” or by beginning “Four Years” with the words, “I take a shot of Jameson or Jack to start the morning off with old friends.”

Continuing on one will hear lines like “Here is my own family tradition; Following footsteps into addiction. So is there a way that I can find peace while still numbing my pain?” This is the self reflection that listeners have come to expect from Senses Fail’s lyrics about feeling sorry for one’s self. As long as one can piece together the positive aspects of the message, it can actually be a motivating album.

Unfortunately, Life Is Not A Waiting Room is not undeniably catchy like prior albums. This isn’t to say that fans aren’t going to enjoy the music, but it just won’t hold high to the memory of songs they’ve grown to love, sing, and scream.

Optimistically, guitar riffs and solos find themselves magnificently littered throughout the record, leaving one to think it was submitted as a Guitar Hero 4 tryout. Senses Fail doesn’t try to drown the songs in any sort of musical expertise or experimentation, but what has been written makes the album that much more pleasant to listen to.

It seems apparent that only a few fans are going to find a new favorite song off of this record. On the same note (and as a means of precaution), no potential fan should be introduced to this album first. Life Is Not A Waiting Room does, however, hold Senses Fail’s spot in credibility and ability to record, tour, and thrive as a band.

click here to purchase Life Is Not A Waiting Room

Sunday, October 5, 2008

Attack! Attack! makes U.S. debut


Pop-rockers, Attack! Attack!(the UK band... not the one from Ohio) will be making their debut this week with their self titled album thanks to Rock Ridge Music. Barricade Buzz had the chance to check out the album produced by Stuart Richardson of Lostprophets over the weekend.

Our first thoughts? Nothing new. Although we enjoy pop-power-rock-whatever you want to call that catchy stuff with a full band line up, there just wasn't anything truly remarkable about this album.

Don't get us wrong, we liked what we were listening to, but we felt as though we have heard it all before. To us, tracks 1-8 could have been all one song had the iTunes icon not been scrolling down the screen as we listened. The similar melodies and parallel tempos were indistinguishable. We did, however, find the last two tracks, "Lost For Words" and "Time Is Up" a good change of pace for the album, taking a more edgy approach to the pop melodies.

It seems as though Attack! Attack! was playing the "audience safe" card when pulling this record together. It wasn't until the very end that they decided to dip their toes into some instrumental experiments with more solos.

Attack! Attack! reminds us of the early days of Fall Out Boy with Fall Out Boy's Evening Out With Your Girlfriend, and Take This To Your Grave. It's definitely a good start for these South Wales rockers to gain some U.S. fans, hopefully they will take their sound one step farther.

If you're looking to add to your collection of catchiness with some potential, pick up Attack!Attack! on October 7th.

Our Buzz: 2 out of 5 volts

Suggested fans of: Kids In Glass Houses, Fall Out Boy, Boys Like Girls

click here to purchase Attack! Attack! UK

MySpace Secret Show: Baltimore

MySpace.com Secret Shows proudly presents The Kills

MONDAY
OCTOBER 6, 2008
FREE! ALL AGES!
Doors @ 8:00 PM

@ The Ottobar
2549 N Howard St
Baltimore, MD 21218


(410) 662-0069

Latest Video from the T's

"Natural Disaster" by The Plain White T's



click here to purchase Big Bad World by The Plain White T's

Friday, October 3, 2008

Because I secretly wish I was Peyton.

Three reasons for posting about Bryan Greenberg (One Tree Hill, October Road).

1. BarricadeBuzz.com was inspired by PunknDisorderly.com (One Tree Hill fans will get this)
2. Clearly the character of Peyton Sawyer was written about me (I like to think of myself as the first rebel cheerleader... and I was huge Jake/Peyton fan).
3. He's coming to Virginia next week with his guitar.


Check him out on his MySpace

and if you've got nothing else to do, catch him at Jammin' Java on the 15th.

click here to purchase mp3s from Bryan Greenberg