Ticket Giveaway: Ra Ra Riot @ 9:30 Club
DC Ra Ra Riot fans rejoice! The band just announced that they will be stopping by the 9:30 Club on Wednesday, January 23rd. Tickets will not go on sale until this Thursday, November 1st, but lucky for you we have a pair of tickets to give away before then. What do you have to do to be the first people to get tickets for this awesome show?
The Syracuse natives will be releasing their third studio LP, Beta Love, early next year via Barsuk. In the comments below, sound off on what your second-favorite — or beta — dream concert line-up would be. We don’t want your favorite. We want sloppy seconds. The more detailed of an explanation, the better. Best answer gets two tickets. You have until Thursday to enter. Comment away!
STREAM: Ra Ra Riot – “Can You Tell”
- Posted by ATG
- 11 Comments
This was probably one of the hardest things for me to come up with.
The Wombats with Strange Talk and The Royal Concept.
The Wombats are an amazing band but they come in second next to Vampire Weekend and The Arctic Monkeys.
Strange Talk is a relatively new band compared to a lot of other bands that would have been on my number one line up and they have less songs. This doesn’t always mean much but it’s nice when a band plays a bunch of songs that the crowd can sing along with as well as a couple new songs as well.
The Royal Concept is even newer than Strange Talk so the same problem with the amount of songs arises. However they have great stage presence from when I saw them with Wolf Gang and their music is great.
ALEX WINSTON + MISUN…
My alpha would be something cray like Regina Spektor and Ingrid Michaelson, a girl power combination that would make me weep (also two people I’ve seen in concert twice). My beta, however, would be The Black Keys and PIckwick because the amount of soul that would exist in that concert would be near to unbearable. I recently found Pickwick on youtube and cannot stop listening to Hacienda Motel.
My dream concert would be a White Stripes reunion, since I never got to see them live — and I’ve pretty much seen every one of my favorite bands. No opener. Just the Stripes playing for 3 hours.
So, beta lineup would be:
Grizzly Bear opening for Arcade Fire. I wouldn’t mind throwing Local Natives in there as a second supporting act. Arcade Fire is my second favorite show ever (LCD Soundsystem’s last show at MSG is No. 1), so it’s pretty appropriate as far as No. 2′s go. I just saw Grizzly Bear last month for the first time, and they pretty much blew my mind. Local Natives would round out the indie art/pop theme of the night.
Yeah, sloppy seconds or not, if this could happen, I’d pretty much die of live music happiness.
Side note: Can’t wait for this new album. Still sad Alexandra left the band, though.
It would be a line-up of all cover/tribute bands
The Faux Fighters, Maybe Winehouse, & Buddhist Priest
My sloppy-second concert line-up: favorites, but not the most favorite-
Opener: Belle & Sebastian. A good opener for me would be one with lots of dancing, and while I’ve seen B & S numerous times, LCD Soundsystem was a raucous good time. B & S, my second-best option.
Jack White: I never saw White Stripes, although I’ve been listening to them since my best guy friend in high school and I became close and he gave me “Apple Blossom” on a mix cd. Icky Thump on Under Northern Lights is still one of my favorite live songs to listen to. Jack White is amazingly talented, and I would love to see him… Just not as much as White Stripes.
Closer: Talking Heads. I love Talking Heads. If I had to choose between Talking Heads, or David Bowie from the 70′s or Queen from the early 80′s, or Pete Seeger or Bob Dylan from their prime, Talking Heads would lose out to the other by a small amount. And so, sloppy seconds fantastic closing act.
I would have Alphaville open by playing that 80s song Forever Young (you know, the one from Napoleon Dynamite).
Then I would have the Beta Band get back together and headline.
Sloppy second super line-up: Arcade Fire, Neon Indian & The Hold Steady.
Opener should be something energetic and young. First choice for that would probably be Ted Leo & the Pharmacists. So second in that vein I went with the Hold Steady.
Next up needs to be something dancey and happy. This was a toss-up between Savoir Adore and Neon Indian, but since I think Savoir Adore puts on a great show, I went with Neon Indian as second.
My dream headliner for this show would be Radiohead & second choice is Arcade Fire. I think Arcade Fire is a sold choice for a headliner because it would make a powerful ender & it’s always great to be part of a show where everyone knows the words and is singing along.
Because Prince, Foals and St. Lucia is slightly unlikely, I could probably settle for a full concert of St. Lucia playing Prince covers.
Beta, dream line-up: Glowbug, The Naked & Famous, and Blackbird Blackbird or Foxes. Glowbug, Naked & Famous, and Blackbird Blackbird are secondary to M83, because the artists/bands give off a similar new wave, ambient feel. Daniel Anderson of Glowbug seems to be an up-and-coming artist that can mix some fantastic, feel-good music. Blackbird Blackbird does the same, but adds a little electronica to the mix (love their song ‘All’). Naked & Famous is a little more upbeat, really fun and something you could dance to. Foxes may be a little different from this grouping; but a really great female vocalist… secondary to other female electronica artists. Nonetheless, she’s awesome.
The best way I can think of to design a beta concert line-up is to take a group of my favorite bands, then think of bands that copped their style, but copped it in a studied, somewhat reverent manner. So I’m not talking about a Pearl Jam / Silverchair situation here; more of a late 90′s Radiohead / early 00′s Muse sort of thing. So here’s mine:
First opener: Uncle Dave Huber. A local Baltimore folk singer/songwriter who channels Bob Dylan in style and manner. Uncle Dave does perform many Dylan covers, but also his own tunes and traditionals. Would be a great way to open the show with style.
Second opener: Owl City. I know, I know, Owl City is teen-pop, right? Well, I think he started out as basically a Postal Service tribute act, and I think he’s talented enough to hold his own as the middle act here. Plus, after a brooding initial set by Uncle Dave, Owl City would be a perfect way to bring up the crowd for the headliners.
Headliner: Robbers on High Street. When this Brooklyn band first started out they sounded like they had listened to Spoon’s first three albums, couldn’t wait for the fourth, and decided to make it on their own. Their track “Japanese Girls” has all the elements of a classic Spoon mid-tempo jam. They have since developed a sound of their own (or have they stayed the same while Spoon has evolved?), though they have been quiet for the past few years. Bring them back together to headline Betapalooza.