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I was driving from work today, and for some reason, I had absolutely nothing on radio to listen to. This got me wondering for a bit (because I was stuck in Traffic with the top down and nothing to listen to except for silence), what is the sound of DC?
I wondered about it. What sound defines DC? What music is the keystone of DC??
I grew up listening to Classic Rock (Allman Brothers, Doors, etc) and all of the hip hop and raps in Atlanta. I thought about what defines a city besides a food place (haha), then I came blank for DC.
Is there such thing as a music that defines a city? If yes, what music defines DC?
So... The true sound of DC is the whisper of a hyrbid car driven by an eco friendly **** in a scarf slurping on organic root milk in a recyclable cup.
The closest thing you can get to ever really defining DC's past sounds - aside from deafening gun blasts on the other side of the city from where Mr. Green Car reigns supreme - would be the traditional and unique to DC GO-GO music of the black community.
There were some good punk and politically minded kind of jammers back in the day. To name a few : Minor Threat , Bad Brains (first black real punk band) Fugazi (older remnants of Minor Threat) Iron Cross, Immoral Discipline hmm that's all I got now.
Go-Go is the undisputed sound of DC...or was......im willing to bet these spoiled brat yuppies probably cried and whined about that too.......DC doesnt have much of a soul or a local culture anymore.....
Go-Go is still the staple sound of DC. And Go-Go has plenty of different sounds too, be it Hip Hop-style Go-Go, or R&B Go-Go, or Bounce Go-Go, or Gospel Go-Go, etc.
DC's Rock scene was dominated by Punk and hardcore rock back in the 80's. DC actually had one of the most important and vibrant Punk Rock and Hardcore Rock scenes on the East Coast at the time as well.
DC is also becoming a growing hotbed for Electronica/House music too. And The City's Hip Hop scene is definitely on the come up as well, not at the level of New York, Chicago, or LA but it's getting there.
The Caribbean music scene is most likely fairly good as well due to the fact that DC and the entire metro area in general has a pretty sizeable Caribbean population.
Go-Go is still the staple sound of DC. And Go-Go has plenty of different sounds too, be it Hip Hop-style Go-Go, or R&B Go-Go, or Bounce Go-Go, or Gospel Go-Go, etc.
DC's Rock scene was dominated by Punk and hardcore rock back in the 80's. DC actually had one of the most important and vibrant Punk Rock and Hardcore Rock scenes on the East Coast at the time as well.
DC is also becoming a growing hotbed for Electronica/House music too. And The City's Hip Hop scene is definitely on the come up as well, not at the level of New York, Chicago, or LA but it's getting there.
The Caribbean music scene is most likely fairly good as well due to the fact that DC and the entire metro area in general has a pretty sizeable Caribbean population.
I also forgot to mention that DC has been VERY influential in the Soul, Funk, Gospel, Jazz, and R&B genres as well. As well as being the inventor of Quiet Storm too.
So... The true sound of DC is the whisper of a hyrbid car driven by an eco friendly **** in a scarf slurping on organic root milk in a recyclable cup.
The closest thing you can get to ever really defining DC's past sounds - aside from deafening gun blasts on the other side of the city from where Mr. Green Car reigns supreme - would be the traditional and unique to DC GO-GO music of the black community.
There were some good punk and politically minded kind of jammers back in the day. To name a few : Minor Threat , Bad Brains (first black real punk band) Fugazi (older remnants of Minor Threat) Iron Cross, Immoral Discipline hmm that's all I got now.
I was driving from work today, and for some reason, I had absolutely nothing on radio to listen to. This got me wondering for a bit (because I was stuck in Traffic with the top down and nothing to listen to except for silence), what is the sound of DC?
I wondered about it. What sound defines DC? What music is the keystone of DC??
I grew up listening to Classic Rock (Allman Brothers, Doors, etc) and all of the hip hop and raps in Atlanta. I thought about what defines a city besides a food place (haha), then I came blank for DC.
Is there such thing as a music that defines a city? If yes, what music defines DC?
GoGo is the lifeblood of the DMV. It is alive and well all over the region.
In D.C., you can hear GoGo bands every week at the following venues depending on the night:
-Liv (2011 11th St. NW)(Black Alley Plays Tonight)
-Indulj (1208 U St. NW) (Back Yard Band Played Last Night)
-Love Night Club (1350 Okie St. NE) (Rare Essence Plays Tonight)
-Bar 7 (1015 1/2 7th St. NW) (Black Alley Band Played Last Night)
-Lux Lounge (649 New York Ave. NW) (Suttle Thoughts and Da Mixx Band Played Last Night)
-Capitale (1301 K St. NW) (Back Yard Band Played Last Night)
-Ibiza (1222 1st St. NE) (Back Yard Band Plays Tonight)
-Scene (2221 Adams Pl. NE) (Back Yard Band Plays Tomorrow)
-Aqua Lounge (1818 New York Ave. NE) (Back Yard Band Plays Mondays)
-Twelve Restaurant & Lounge (1123 H St. NE) (VYBE Band Plays Tonight)
-Dynasty (2210 14th St. NW)
-Martin’s Lounge (1919 9th St. NW)
In Maryland, you can hear GoGo bands every week at the following venues most nights:
-Half Note (4881 Glenn Dale Rd. Bowie, MD) (Be'La Donna Plays Tonight)
-Icon (2106 Crain Hwy. Waldorf, MD) (Junk Yard Band Played Last Night, W.H.A.T?! Band Plays Tomorrow)
-The Zone (5753 Crain Hwy, Upper Marlboro, Md) (VYBE Band Played Last Night)
-Upscales (3900 Bexley Pl. Suitland, MD) (Da Mixx Band Plays Tonight)
-Marygolds
-Tradewinds
This doesn't even touch on the bounce beat GoGo band scene. There are a ton of other bands playing in a ton of other venues, but I don't have time to search for everything. There are venues in VA too with bands playing.
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