XL102′s Chili Cook Off, one of Richmond’s biggest hard rock and metal fests, has announced its lineup for this year’s festival. It’s a mix of old and new as Three Days Grace, Matt & Kimand Eve 6 headline the show along with Flyleaf, Twenty One Pilots, Churchill, Breaking Laces and local rockers Against Grace (congrats, guys!) are all on tap for rocking out with chili.
Reaction to the lineup is mixed (Let’s just say a lot of people are NOT happy about it) and fans are making themselves vocal on XL102′s Facebook page. The comments are hilarious.
The Chili Cook Off takes place on Saturday, April 20 at the Richmond Raceway Complex. Tickets go on-sale to the general public on Friday, March 8 for $15 at XL102Richmond.com.
Against Grace has a big year ahead of them. The group is now down to three members, a new musical direction and a brand new single entitled “This Is Your Story.” The group was supposed to premiere the single with a show at the Hat Factory two weeks ago, but that had to be rescheduled.
Tonight, the band will be joined by former guitarist Tyler Bland at Wabi Sabi and on Monday, Dec. 31, head to the Hat Factory for a New Year’s Eve party where you can watch the new video premiere on the jumbo screen and party with the band into 2013.
With all the amazing shows we had in RVA this year, it’s incredibly hard to narrow it down to just 10. Most local shows I saw such as Black Girls or Goldrush, who I saw multiple times this year go without saying as being incredible. But there a good number that stand out this year as being my favorite.
The Head and the Heart at the National – March 21
I had been listening to The Head and the Heart for a while and was eagerly waiting to catch them live since I heard their shows are amazing. Never before have I seen the National full of so much excitement, but still respectful of the band and fans at the same time. Best part of the evening was during “Lost in My Mind,” when all the bands jammed together on stage. It’s obvious that all three groups on tour got along well and just like to have fun. Hands down, the best show I’ve seen at the National this year.
The Protomen at Kingdom – March 27
I had been listening to the Protomen for years and was always missing them whenever they came through Richmond. I finally got the chance this year when the Mega Man-inspired rock outfit played at Kingdom. It was like watching a video game come to life . It was a spectacle with costumes, scarred battle helmets and laser light shows as they performed songs based on the video games, including stories of Dr. Wily’s robots taking over the world, Dr. Light’s creation and final battles.
This one’s actually from their show at Plaza Bowl last year, but you get the idea. Video by b0xxmann
RVA Playlist Birthday Party at the Camel – May 30
Like this show wouldn’t be on the list. To celebrate my blog’s two-year anniversary, I decided to throw a big birthday party at the Camel, one of my favorite music venues and got some of my favorite local bands to play. Against Grace started off the night with a bang, Dead Fame made everyone dance and Marionette kept the party going to the late hours. I had so much fun putting this together and I cannot even begin to thank everyone who made the birthday party such a success. I couldn’t have been prepared by the sheer amount of people who showed up. The place was packed with people enjoying music and I couldn’t have asked for a better crowd.
Tom Tom Fest – May 11-12
All right, so this one’s not technically a local show, but there was plenty of local bands participating. The Tom Tom Founders Festival in Charlottesville had a ton of bands playing a bunch of different venues around the Downtown Mall and while there was a lot of back and forth that night, it was absolutely worth it to see some great musicians. Some of the acts I checked out included The Walkmen, Erin McKeown, Birdie Busch (a regular at the Listening Room) and Richmond’s favorites NO BS! Brass Band. Other artists playing the festival included the Great Unknown, Dead Fame, Birdlips, Hospitality and Josh Ritter. Definitely worth a trip out of town.
Dean Fields final show at Capital Ale House – June 29
When singer/songwriter Dean Fields announced he was moving to Nashville, I was happy and bummed at the same time. While I was excited to see him grow in his music career, I was upset that he won’t be around Richmond as often. He is seriously one of the best musicians this city has had in the past few years. He put on one hell of a farewell show at Cap Ale for all his fans that proved why he’s headed for greater things.
Alabama Shakes at Friday Cheers – June 22
When I heard Alabama Shakes was going to play Friday Cheers this summer, my jaw dropped. Here was an up and coming group that was getting a lot of attention and playing in my own backyard for cheap… and I wasn’t able to go. Unfortunately, I was stupid enough to have to work when the excitement on Brown’s Island was heating up. Luckily I was close enough to the venue to hear everything going and the band sounded great and the crowd was eating it up. I’m counting this as attending.
WRIR and The Commonwealth of Notions Presents: Volume II at Gallery5 – July 14
Musician, journalist and WRIR DJ Shannon Cleary put together “WRIR and The Commonwealth of Notions Presents: Volume II,” a night of amazing local music benefiting WRIR and Gallery 5, two groups that are instrumental in helping the local music scene. The night featured ten bands playing throughout the venue including the main stage, a floor set up on the first floor and the upstairs. The evening included performances by Bermuda Triangles, Canary Oh Canary, Dogs on Main Street, Swordplay, the Blue Rajas, the Colloquial Orchestra, the Low Branches, the Milkstains, the Snowy Owls and White Laces. Not only was this a great collection of local bands playing in one space, the show went like clockwork. Bands set up and played in a timely manner and there was no waiting forever for the next band to play. This made the show so much more enjoyable.
Andrew Bird at Lewis Ginter – July 11
I don’t think there was a better way for Andrew Bird to celebrate his birthday than with an incredible night at Lewis Ginter. The weather was beautiful and the crowd was the perfect size. Once Andrew Bird took the stage, the crowd was silent. Everyone wanted to hear the music. I was not that familiar with his work but found his songs to be very enjoyable. And the man can whistle! Holy crap, can he whistle! I seriously loved everything he was playing and found myself in a musical trance on a cool summer night in the garden.
The Ataris at the Camel – Oct. 3
Seeing The Ataris, one of my favorite pop punk bands from the early 2000s perform a kickass show at the Camel brought me back to my college days with a collection of fun songs and a very eager crowd. Once the Ataris took the stage, the stage was ready to lose it. They kicked off with “In This Diary” and the place went apeshit. The hardcore old school Ataris fans lost it even more. A fight even broke out during the middle of one song and Roe stopped playing and threw them out, telling them to “take that shit to a hardcore show and let everyone else have fun.” They left and we did.
Delta Rae at the National – Oct. 17
Thanks again to JessiRVA for constantly reminding me about this group. When I saw them perform at the National, I saw what incredible musicians they were. I was blown away at the amount of energy they had on stage and the multitude of talent they each possessed.
Pop rockers Against Grace have some new music recorded and will be releasing their new tune, “This Is Your Story” and its music video with a show at the hat Factory on Saturday, Dec. 15. The band will debut three songs off of the new record, which should be reading in early 2013, and will debut the music video for “This Is Your Story” on the big screen.
In the meantime, here’s an acoustic version of the new tune.
I cannot even begin to thank all of you who came out to the birthday party last night. I honestly thought it was going to be a few fans of the bands and the friends that I had browbeaten into coming. I couldn’t have been prepared by the sheer amount of people who showed up. The place was packed with people enjoying music and I couldn’t have asked for a better crowd.
Major thanks go out to the Camel for hosting the event.
Thank you to Against Grace for starting off the night with a bang, Dead Fame for making everyone dance and Marionette for keeping the party going to the late hours.
And finally, I want to thank all of you who retweeted links, spammed your friends on Facebook, drew Scott Pilgrim-inspired pictures, made a surprise show banner, sent me messages about how excited you were and everyone who showed up for a show when they could have been doing something else that evening. It seriously meant the world to me and none of it went unnoticed.
If I had planned a speech to give, it would have gone EXACTLY like this.
I’ve been told that I must throw another birthday party next year and after this night, I’m happy to do so. Also, I will be on Radio Rubber Room tonight at 10 p.m. on 102.9 FM with members of the RVA Beard League to talk about the party and music in general. Make sure to tune in.
Well, tonight’s the night. If you haven’t been paying attention to the spamming I’ve been doing recently, then you’ll need to know that the birthday party celebrating RVA Playlist’s 2-year anniversary is tonight, May 30, at the Camel featuring Against Grace, Dead Fame and Marionette. I am beyond excited for the show and hope all you lovely readers can make it out to this free show. There’s cake, too.
I am seriously getting excited for the upcoming birthday party next week at the Camel. A cake is being made and posters are up all around town (except on VCU’s campus where someone tore it down…) and the bands are all ready to play – that would be Against Grace, Dead Fame and Marionette if you’re not familiar. Click on the lightning bolt wearing headphones on the sidebar for more information.
Meanwhile, I’ve been getting a huge amount of support in the community. My buddy Eric made this really cool Scott Pilgrim-inspired drawing for the event. Awesome, right??
And Chris Bopst wrote a great feature piece on me and the event in his latest “The Hear & Now” column for the Richmond Times-Dispatch and I can’t thank him enough for all the nice things he said about me.
“He is a tireless champion of his hometown music scene, motivated not by financial incentive or vested interests but the simple desire to expose people to music he thinks needs to be heard.“
It’s been two years since starting up RVA Playlist and that calls for a celebration. Since there was nothing done for the first birthday, what better way to celebrate Year 2 than by throwing a big music party?
As a thank you to all you readers and to have an excuse to throw a party, the good people at the Camel are helping me present a night of great music on Wednesday, May 30 featuring a bunch Richmond bands who have been very supportive of the blog since its beginnings – Against Grace, Dead Fame and Marionette.
Doors open at 8 p.m. Show starts at 9 p.m. sharp. You know how I am about shows not starting on time, so get there early. And to top it off, this is a free event. So come out, have a great time and help me celebrate two years of supporting Richmond music. Word is there may be cake.
Happy Earth Day everybody! What better way to celebrate taking care of our mother Earth than by partying over in Manchester with free food, activities and live music. The Earth Day Festival takes place on Saturday, April 21, from 12-7 p.m. at Hull and 1st Street.
Friday night, you need to go to Strange Matter and check out the amazing Marionette, Ocean vs. Daughter and Canary Oh Canary. Seriously, you just need to. Marionette is one of the best Richmond bands around and OvsD provides plenty of dreamy folk pop.
On Saturday, March 17, head down to Shockoe Bottom for Shamrock the Block. The all day drunk fest outdoor festival will feature music all day from great local acts Downbeat Switch, Rosie Soul, Against Grace, 4Play and headliner Sleeper Agent, which sounds like a fun get up and dance type band.
Sleeper Agent – Get Burned
The Shamrock the Block Afterparty heads to Hat Factory (excuse me, Epic Theatre) for a performance by country singer Chris Cagle. He had a bunch of hits in the early 2000s and I admit to getting into his “Chicks Dig It” song. Then, he disappeared for a while, got in domestic disputes with his girlfriend and is now apparently working on a new album.
Chris Cagle – Got My Country On
And of course, don’t forget over at the Richmond Coliseum…
Elton John – I Guess That’s Why They Call It The Blues
Pop rockers 
I cannot even begin to thank all of you who came out to the birthday party last night. I honestly thought it was going to be a few fans of the bands and the friends that I had browbeaten into coming. I couldn’t have been prepared by the sheer amount of people who showed up. The place was packed with people enjoying music and I couldn’t have asked for a better crowd.
I am seriously getting excited for the 
It’s been two years since starting up RVA Playlist and that calls for a celebration. Since there was nothing done for the first birthday, what better way to celebrate Year 2 than by throwing a big music party?
Happy Earth Day everybody! What better way to celebrate taking care of our mother Earth than by partying over in Manchester with free food, activities and live music. The Earth Day Festival takes place on Saturday, April 21, from 12-7 p.m. at Hull and 1st Street.
Friday night, you need to go to Strange Matter and check out the amazing 
On Saturday, March 17, head down to Shockoe Bottom for 
The Shamrock the Block Afterparty heads to Hat Factory (excuse me, Epic Theatre) for a performance by country singer 
