DC History Rocks

( 7th Street NW circa 1921)

Washington D.C. has seen its share of important events, and a lot of people have come here to make history, but not a single president was born here. Marvin Gaye was born here as was Duke Ellington, but they found their fame in places like Detroit and New York. I think the award for true Washingtonian has to go to Bob Berberich who was not only born in Washington, but the Berberich family has been here longer than anyone I know- including my own clan.
And Mr Berberich has been rocking this area for quite a while- his drumming days include gigs with The Hangmen and Grin. (Check out this link for a great little piece by local film maker Jeff Krulik) But Bob is still a powerful force on the music front and is now in the transfixing trio known as Ottley! with ex-Slickees' master of guitar, Marshall Keith and slayer singer, Martha Hull.

Be part of it. You can watch history in the making THIS FRIDAY night when the "Birthday of the Dead Celebration" takes place at the always intimate Velvet Lounge. The line up includes Ottley! as well as the venerable Beatnik Flies -a band with its own history and staying power around here- four musicians that can still deliver the goods and how. Plus Pup Tent will round out the bill bringing on more psychedelic garage band kind of brain-rock.

(Note to self and readers: Do I ever write about jazz or country or easy to label music?
Answer: No.)

I am psycho I mean psyched about this Friday night when TWO of my favorite bands Prabir and The Substitutes and Ottley play The Quarry House. I know I rave about Prabir and The Substitutes ad infinitum, but not all of you are listening. And the last time I recommended this band to someone I mentioned that they are the only band to ever make me want to scream. (I am not a screamer. I shriek now and then, but rarely full out screaming. The last time I remember really screaming involuntarily was when I was in labor with my first child which is another story.)
Anyway this person wrote me back and asked- would that be good screaming or bad screaming?

Good point I thought.

Well, it's good screaming- a scream of joy. Prabir tends to have an infectious scream like other people have infectious laughs- and the whole band gives all they've got whether it's a full room or an almost empty room which is a beautiful thing to do.

And Ottley. Ottley puts me in a trance. A really good trance- a rock and roll psychedelic up to the stratosphere and back down to earth kind of trance that takes three ace musicians to produce- Marshall Keith, Martha Hull and Bob Berberich. If you don't know who they are- just look 'em up in the Bible of Local DC Rock. (i.e. here on my blog)

The Quarry House can only hold so many people and so much talent so if I were you I'd get there early and please-save me a seat!

Thirty Years and Back Again

prabir and the subs with the silver beats back stage

The Silver Beats sold out the 9:30 Club last Friday night turning the space into a roaring arena. But Prabir and The Substitutes rose to the occasion knocking out all of us who knew them, and grabbing the attention of everyone else with their charm and good looks.
(Oh, and they rocked the house down.)
The next night, back at 9:30, there was a smaller but still respectable crowd- older rock and rollers-some with youngins in tow. It was hard to believe that all six Thirty Years Over DC bands weren't the newest thing or haven't been playing together forever-as everybody was vibrant - each delivering a strong set. According to Mark Noone, show-biz guy-"Killer drummers were everywhere." A straw poll showed it hard to pick a favorite, but I thought Howling Mad put on their best show that I've seen. Michael Reidy was irrepressible as usual- making fun of the club's new panini sandwich. And Ottley might have to be the Who's who of DC's bands-all three are such veterans. Martha Hull's voice is still as bewitching as ever.
One of my favorite old time moments came when Dan Palenski (former Slickee Boy) sat in with Ottley and delivered his signature cover of I'm 18 while Boyd Farrell (Black Market Baby, Rustbuckit) was front and center in the audience singing along.
The evening ended with 9353, and I thought they were particularly mesmerizing and powerful. I don't know where I was, but I missed them at 9:30 last summer.


9353 /photo: Kathleen Hellington

If you missed this show, Ottley and The Rambling Shadows, plus other bands from way back when will be at The Quarry House later this month. Keep an eye on their schedule.

P.S. Thanks to Lisa and the 9:30 Club for making this particular show possible and for recognizing the importance of getting us together for the heck of it, and not for a funeral.
Hail hail rock and roll-
and life.

Rock out Rockville This Thurs/ Oct 25

(Ottley! named themselves for this guy
Hangman,Dave Ottley)

Once upon a time there was a Band, or maybe I should say once upon a time there was a Garage which begat a band called The Reekers which begat a band called The Hangmen which were so dang hot they locally knocked the Beatles off the charts according to Garage Hangover: "What A Girl Can't Do knocked the Beatles' We Can Work It Out/Day Tripper out of the top spot of the charts for Arlington radio station WEAM on Feb. 7, 1966."

How's that for deep cut trivia?

If you don't believe it, you can ask Bob Berberich himself this Thursday night when he plays with Ottley! at the big rock show that Joe Lee (of Joe Lee's Record Paradise) and Damian Einstein are putting on. Bob was there- playing drums with The Reekers and The Hangmen, and he's here now keeping the beat in Ottley! with Marshall Keith and Martha Hull of Slickee Boys fame.

But that's not all. The Beatnik Flies and The Howling Mad are also on the bill. I could go on and on, but all three of these bands played last summer at the d.c.space reunion at the 9:30 Club, and I can testify that all these veterans can still kick you know what-and are quite possibly better than ever.

So how much would you pay to see these local legends?

(Three of these guys are in The Howling Mad)

Twenty? Fifteen? Would you believe a mere 8 clams gets you into this extravaganza?
(And you can spread the love-take the kids- and get another generation going-it's an all ages show- just $5 for the student set)


(The Flies took their name from this song.)

When I was a kid I thought Rockville, MD was pretty much nowhere, (and the way things have turned out, it still pretty much is) but this Thursday, October 26 should prove the exception.
It's all happening at 7 p.m. at El Boqueron II, 1330 East Gude Drive.

Come out and see Rockville rock.


(I can only guess where The Howling Mad got their name.)