Local Flavor - Crue "Free Fall(ing)"

I'm always surprised when people don't realize how diverse and talented the DC music scene is. Crue represents that portion of the scene that doesn't fall neatly into one label. Her alternative R&B/Soul reminds me of Erykah Badu, Little Dragon, and Lylit at times. Did I mention she plays the violin, piano, and guitar. AND she writes, composes, and produces.
Check out her DA CAPO EP and the rest of her stuff here.

Throwback Thursday - Ruff Endz "No More"

This one goes out to the '99 and the 2000s! The fact that it has been 14 years since this song came out, is disturbing me. The outfits...the outfits, haha. If you are wondering what they are up to, they put out a self-titled album in 2013. And they are from Baltimore, who knew.

Local Flavor - B Side Shuffle "Castle Sky"

They are pretty funky, I can dig it, haha. Check them out here, and catch them on Halloween at Rock N Roll Hotel.

Throwback Thursday - Rare Essence "Pieces Of Me (Ashley Simpson Cover)"

This is still one of the best go-go covers ever. Especially when you consider the original.

Local Flavor - Black Alley "Bad Girl"

One of the best bands in the DC music scene, especially live. You have to see them if you haven't. Their debut album Soul.Swagger.Rock.Sneakers is available on iTunes.

New Music - Misun "Nothing Else"

The vocals sound a little off in the beginning. It's a bit underwhelming, which means I'll probably love it after a few more listens.

Local Flavor - The Beanstalk Library "The Only Things I'll Take With Me"

We've all felt this way at some point; depressingly upbeat, haha. The Beanstalk Library blend folk, pop, and rock for a 90's alt-pop mixed with 70's folk-rock sound. Listen to more of their music and check out their show dates here.

Local Flavor - See-I "Soul Hit Man"

"Long time Thievery Corporation vocalists - Arthur “Rootz” Steele and Archie “Zeebo” Steele bring their band’s unique brand of Reggae – injected with heavy doses of Funk, Soul, Dub and Rock – with their debut self-titled album."
Catch them at their album release party on July 23rd at the Black cat. And pick up their self-titled debut album on July 28th.

Local Flavor - Alison Carney ft. Awthentick "Lifetime's The Right Time"

Her performance was shot at Vitamin Water's Uncapped Live. I didn't get a chance to see her there, but the space is pretty cool so I can see how it would have been a great concert. And it looks like she was having fun, which I love to see. You can download her new album Alison Wonderland on her bandcamp page here.

Local Flavor: U.S Royalty

U.S. Royalty - Equestrian from U.S. Royalty on Vimeo.

U.S. Royalty is a DC based band that don't sound like they are from DC. They sound like they are from L.A or some region of California. There is a driving down the coast feel to their music that makes their music easy to just let play. But there is a bit of a sharp edge to their stuff that is common with DC based bands.You should get familiar, if you haven't, here, download their stand out track "Equestrian," here, and catch them on tour when you can. Sadly, members John and Paul Thornly's father passed away recently, so they have left the tour for now.

Local Flavor: Tereu Tereu

The DMV natives are another up and coming band to keep your eye out for. Sounding like a mix of Phoenix and Young The Giant, especially on songs like "Furwinked," Tereu Tereu makes good pop-punk indie music. So good they landed a gig opening up for D.C's much revered The Dismemberment Plan when they played their reunion show at the Black Cat. And they are currently on tour with fellow DMVer Carol Bui, which had them playing shows at SXSW.

"This is a band that just keeps getting better and better, and you’re going to want to be able to say that you knew them before they got big."

Check out more of their music and see when and where they are playing here.

Local Flavor - The State Department

"The State Department, the governmental entity, spreads the American Way with money and missiles; the band does it with guitars and whiskey. The State Department takes basic four-piece rock structures and suffuses them with post-punk subversion and the howling passion of lead singer Mike Medlock." Being a band made up of members of other bands, The State Department's sound seems to reflect that. And that is best shown in "Mount Pleasant," which I assume is about the city of the same name. It has all the makings of a great garage/post punk/rock song; rebellious electric guitar, angst ridden drum, and and barely audible lyrics. They have potential to become much more than just another DMV band. Watch their show at the Black Cat above.

Local Flavor: Kenton Dunson

Kenton Dunson - Creative Destruction from Richard Stine on Vimeo.
Kenton Dunson is a native DMV artist that gives me hope for hip hop music. Just like Carolyn Malachi, he has music in his blood; both of his parents had music backgrounds. His stuff reminds me of Kenna with less rock; a mixture of genres without sounding confused. Sometimes artist think just by adding elements of many genres it will come out as beautiful eclectic music, but it's not that simple; you have to know what you are doing. Dunson is one of those artist that knows what he is doing. Quitting his job to work on music full-time, he produced and wrote his first solo album The Kenton Dunson Progressions; out June 3. You can listen to and download his albumCreative Destruction on his site here, and above is a mini-documentary on the making of the album. If you like J.Cole, Drake, and/or Rockie Fresh, you will most likely like him. Stand out tracks on Creative Destructions: "Dope," "The Worst Beat Ever"