Ed Schrader’s Music Beat

Mac McCaughan

Ex Hex

“All Kindsa Girls,” the catchy opener on The Real Kids’ 1977 debut, was an anthem in Boston’s budding punk-rock scene. The Real Kids were formed by John Felice, who had played in The Modern Lovers early on, and this song later became the name of a documentary about The Real Kids’ evolution.

Ex Hex has covered “All Kindsa Girls” live before and their version also showed up on Merge Records’ limited-edition Or Thousands of Prizes collection, but this is the first it’s been released digitally, according to NME.

Stream this hunk of rock below (and check out Bandwidth’s studio session with Ex Hex if you missed it):

Between Sept. 26 and 27, 42 bands played across five stages in the relatively secluded West Potomac Park along the banks of the Potomac River. Ten percent of the event’s proceeds benefited the Trust for the National Mall, the nonprofit set up to preserve and restore the federal land called America’s front lawn. With more than $750 million in backlogged repair work needed — and 39 years since the park’s last major renovation — the National Mall could use the help.

But the festival didn’t escape criticism in the lead-up to last weekend: a Washington Post article raised questions about whether public land should be given over to a private commercial event, particularly one with VIP tickets in the thousands of dollars. Not that the controversy appeared to dampen the spirits of 20-somethings who forked over their wages to see headliner Drake and the fireworks he brought with him Saturday night. (The Canadian emcee was one act Bandwidth didn’t get a chance to photograph; he only approved a handful of media outlets. See images at the Post or Fuse.)

Those with plebeian-level tickets (from $105 to $175) experienced a smoothly running festival — notable for any major concert’s inaugural year — with bands running largely on schedule both days. Attendees wandered freely between the stages to catch their favorite acts, with conflicts seemingly kept to a minimum, with only two or three bands playing at any given time.

But the vending operation was another matter. If Landmark returns for another year, it will need to get its food and beverage service in line. Food stands from local restaurants offered tasty variety, and there was plenty of beer to go around — but lines became unbearable Saturday as the day went on. Other reviews mention difficult parking, scarce toilet paper and sound bleed between stages.

Below, what Bandwidth spotted at Landmark Music Festival — in alphabetical order, and without the long lines.

All photos by Matt Condon

Ace Cosgrove

Albert Hammond Jr.

alt-J

Avers

Ben Howard

Chromeo

Chvrches

Empresarios

Ex Hex

Hiss Golden Messenger

Manchester Orchestra

Miguel

Rhiannon Giddens

The Joy Formidable

The London Souls

The Strokes

The War On Drugs

Twin Shadow

U.S. Royalty

Vandaveer

Wale

Ex Hex’s July 18 set was reportedly cut short by torrential rain — but Pitchfork managed to capture the band playing “Waterfall” and “Waste Your Time” before the skies opened. Both songs appear on the band’s debut album, Rips. Watch Pitchfork’s two videos below.

Want more Ex Hex? Check out the band’s Bandwidth session.

That quote has context — MacKaye was talking about his old band Minor Threat’s if-you-can’t-beat-’em-join-’em solution to shirt bootlegging — but in general, D.C.’s best-known record label really doesn’t do band swag. You won’t find any accessories, posters or clothing in the official Dischord store, not even from non-Dischord bands it distributes. If you want to buy a Dischord tee, you’ve got to go elsewhere, like Pedestrian Press, a company owned by the imprint’s other founder, Jeff Nelson.

But most touring D.C. musicians probably don’t share MacKaye’s position, and if they once did, they are probably rethinking that in the age of tepid physical sales.

So what D.C. bands and labels make the best merch-table fodder, besides records? Tough question. Bandwidth contributors put their heads together and came up with this list of creative standouts from local artists and record labels.

If you’d rather get your music from Soundcloud or Bandcamp, fair enough — you can support local music by buying this swag instead.

Note: We can’t guarantee that all of these items are still available.

Via Bandcamp

Coup Sauvage And The Snips’ “Your Condo Will Not Protect You” T-shirt

The D.C. dance-pop ensemble calls its music “a soundtrack for the children to watch the first world burn” — and this T-shirt won’t assure wealthy urbanites that they’re safe from the flames.

Via Tumblr

Ras Nebyu’s “Washington Slizzards” gear

The uptown MC christened his crew the Washington Slizzards, a name that even he acknowledges doesn’t mean much. Nebyu says he came up with the Wizards pun when he was joking around with his friend, and they thought it was funny, so they rolled with it. Then it blew up on Twitter. So Nebyu recorded a song by the same name and cranked out some T-shirts. That did it: the Washington Slizzards are totally real now.

Via Bigcartel

Moshers Delight sweatpants

The D.C. hardcore label makes its own sweatpants, probably for cozy roundhouse kicking in the pit.

Marijuana paraphernalia from Weed Is Weed and Dying Fetus

Both heavy Maryland bands have sold ganja supplies in the past: Dying Fetus slapped its name on an “herbal grinder,” and Weed Is Weed had its very own glass pipe. These guys understand their fans.

A Sound of Thunder “Blood Vomit” T-shirt

This shirt makes no attempt at subtlety. Then again, neither does the over-the-top metal band that commissioned it.

Via Bandcamp

Jack On Fire matchbook

From the band that wrote “Burn Down the Brixton” comes D.C.’s most black-humored merch: an official Jack On Fire matchbook — complete with a disclaimer, in case you get any funny ideas.

Via Bigcartel

Shy Glizzy’s “FXCK RAP” beanie

D.C.’s biggest street-rap up-and-comer takes a utilitarian approach to music: He said in a Fader interview with Bandwidth’s Briana Younger that he raps to make a living, calling hip-hop a “last resort.” His song “Fxck Rap” makes that much clear. “I know how to hustle, so f**k rap,” he says on the track. It’s all a little meta — a rapper rapping about the uselessness of his own rapping — and this rap beanie (yours for $10!) doubles the effect.

Via Causticcasanova.com

Caustic Casanova’s Bullets-style T-shirt

Dig stoner rock and D.C. sports history? Caustic Casanova has got the shirt for you.

A mildly NSFW shirt from Coke Bust

D.C. hardcore stalwarts Coke Bust sell an elaborate hand-drawn T-shirt designed by Brazilian punk rocker Xavero. Mind the nudity.

Via Silver Sprocket

Lemuria comic book

I wouldn’t doubt that the Syracuse/D.C. indie-pop band has loads of fun on tour, but this 40-page Lemuria comic book has them “travers[ing] the vast landscape of Russia, dodging roves of violent Nazis, crooked cops, mobster shakedowns, gunshots, a tropical storm, rabid dogs and a substandard German pizza.”

Windian Records 45 spinner

You can’t play most releases on the D.C. garage-rock label without one of these little guys.

Via Sean Gray

Accidental Guest’s “Morrissey Still Sucks” button

Record label owner (and Bandwidth contributor) Sean Gray seems to take glee in bashing musicians he dislikes, and these (free!) buttons make that contempt wearable.

Ex Hex tote bag

D.C.’s best rock band doesn’t sell any swag online, but catch the three-piece on tour and you’ll probably spot one of these simple tote bags at the merch table.

Via PPU

Peoples Potential Unlimited leggings

Andrew Morgan’s boutique funk record label makes excellent merch for vinyl obsessives, including slipmats and record bags that come in two sizes — for 12-inches and 7-inches — but I can’t think of another D.C. label that makes its own glamorous leggings like these ones designed by Lisa Stannard.

Via Facebook

Gloom sunglasses

If one day our world is destroyed by an exploding sun, our oblivion will probably sound like blackened death-metal band Gloom — and we’ll want to be wearing these shades to go out in style.

What merch did we miss? Drop us a comment or an email.

Photo by Flickr user Barb Crawford modified and used under a Creative Commons license.

Now D.C. rock band Ex Hex has a new video for “Don’t Wanna Lose” based on that flop (today considered a cult classic). Directed by Lara Gallagher, who helmed the band’s first music video, “Hot and Cold,” it turns Ex Hex members Mary Timony, Betsy Wright and Laura Harris into the teen punks originally portrayed by Diane Lane, Laura Harris and Marin Kanter — with no shortage of hot lipstick and hair product.

NME premiered the video today. Check it out, above. (Ex Hex also played the rockin’ song live in WAMU’s studio for Bandwidth. Watch that session here.)

Mary Timony is a wordsmith steeped in the tradition of rock ‘n’ roll.

(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, “BEAST”)

MARY TIMONY: (Singing) Was it my imagination? Did you come out of the past?

GARCIA-NAVARRO: Timony is 45, making her a kind of rock elder stateswoman. In the 1990s, she was one of the few female musicians to make a name in Washington, D.C.’s male-dominated rock scene. This year, she released “Rips,” a new record with a new band. To kick off our series The Ones That Got Away, stories we just didn’t get around to covering this year, NPR’s Neda Ulaby reports on Mary Timony and her new album.

NEDA ULABY, BYLINE: As a young musician, Mary Timony remembers how thrilling it was to see female punk rockers like Kathleen Hanna storm the stage after growing up on a dudely diet of D.C. musicians – macho guys, like Henry Rollins and Fugazi.

TIMONY: It was just a crazy energy. Kathleen getting in fights with people in the audience and I was just – my mind was just blown. It was really inspiring.

ULABY: Timony made her own name as a powerful presence in two influential indie bands of the 1990s – Autoclave and Helium.

(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, “VIBRATIONS”)

HELIUM: (Singing) Vibrations every day, in the dark you feel OK.

ULABY: Timony’s one of those people who seems taller than she actually is, especially when she’s holding a guitar. Her features are soft and she is white-set green eyes. Four years ago, she joined what was billed as an indie rock super-group with three other prominent musicians – all of them women. Wild Flag put out one critically acclaimed record and accrued a passionate fan base. But Timony says it was sort of a one-off.

TIMONY: It was a fun, wild ride.

(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, “ELECTRIC BAND”)

WILD FLAG: (Singing) All right, say my name. Say it again and I’ll make it rain in…

ULABY: Everyone in Wild Flag lived in different, far-flung cities, complicating rehearsals. And the band broke up after just a few years, when two of its members decided to get their old band, Sleater-Kinney, back together.

TIMONY: It was really hard because I knew that was going to happen for a long time, but I couldn’t say anything about it. People would ask me why the band broke up and I was like well, I don’t know.

ULABY: Nevertheless, critics raved about Timony’s technical brilliance and her rare mixture of showmanship and generosity. She’s brought that quality – what you might call an understated swagger – to her new band, Ex Hex. It’s also, as it

happens, all women.

(ELECTRIC GUITAR MUSIC)

ULABY: They’re rehearsing now in a big, raw, industrial loft space in the suburbs of D.C., running through songs from their debut album, preparing for a tour of the South next month.

(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, “RADIO ON”)

EX HEX: (Singing) You take my love and you waste my time. How can I help it when it sure feels fine? I don’t mind.

ULABY: Mary Timony’s band mates, Betsy Wright and Laura Harris, are both in their early 30s, 10 years younger than she is.

TIMONY: I didn’t really have a specific type of person in mind to play with. I wasn’t, like, limiting it to only women or – you know, only women of a certain age.

ULABY: Timony wrote nearly all the songs on the album, but bass player Betsy Wright contributed a few. She says Timony’s career help her get serious about playing guitar.

BETSY WRIGHT: I’ve been a fan of Mary for a long time. I’d go home and I’d try to figure out her guitar solos and stuff like that.

(MUSIC)

ULABY: Ex Hex reminds rock critic Killian Young of The Ramones.

KILLIAN YOUNG: Just in terms of that fearless energy.

ULABY: Young writes for the online magazine Consequence Of Sound. His favorite track is the album’s single, called “Hot And Cold.”

YOUNG: It’s kind of a slow burning riff, and I was spinning that all summer.

(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, “SO HOT SO COLD”)

EX HEX: (Singing) So hot, so cold. So young, so old. You look at me with snake-like eyes.

YOUNG: You look at me with snake-like eyes. I can’t see through your disguise, kind of about getting mixed messages from a guy.

ULABY: This album juxtaposes uncomfortable emotions and intimate disclosures with big, hooky, power-pop chords. The tension works for Killian Young.

YOUNG: Kind of what I saw was the overarching theme is calling out guys on their bad behavior or being mixed in their messages. I guess it kind of makes me think about how I act in relationships or how I communicate with people that I’m close with.

TIMONY: I tend to have, like, this cynical view of people and maybe, like, the songs kind of – a lot of them are sort of cynical takes on people that I really love.

ULABY: Still, there’s not much that seems cynical about Mary Timony when she’s perched on a stool in her basement completely focused on teaching a teenager guitar.

(PLAYING GUITAR)

ULABY: Timony’s taught guitar for a long time. She’s worked with this student, Anna Wilson, since Wilson was in second grade. Now she’s 15, taller than Timony and wearing a Wild Flag pin on her camouflage jacket. Proudly, she tells her teacher she has a show of her own coming up.

TIMONY: You do?

ANNA: Yeah, I do. Yeah, The Electric Maid. Yeah.

TIMONY: Oh my God, that’s so cool.

ANNA: Yeah.

ULABY: In typical teenage fashion, Anna is too cool to gush about having Mary Timony as her guitar teacher. Timony says maybe that’s because it’s just not a big deal for a woman to be a rock guitarist anymore.

TIMONY: When I was younger, I almost felt like you were like a woman car mechanic or cab driver or something. It’s, like, unusual, like, people, like, look at you weird. But now, I really think it’s so different now.

ULABY: And Mary Timony likes that. Neda Ulaby, NPR News.

(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, “HOW YOU GOT THAT GIRL”)

EX HEX: (Singing) Maybe I’ve changed but I don’t worry. You’re not going to bring me down. I used to cry, cry, cry. Now I don’t remember why…

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Copyright 2014 NPR. To see more, visit http://www.npr.org/.

Some of this year’s most unforgettable local songs didn’t come from comfortable experiences. They sounded fed up, and particularly urgent in a year marked by growing inequity at home and multiple slayings by police in places that didn’t feel far away.

In one of the year’s rawest rock songs, Thaylobleu cranked up its guitars to tell a personal story of police harassment. Chain and the Gang and Jack On Fire assailed gentrification with wit and hyperbole. Punk band Priests declared everything right wing. Two remarkable hip-hop works channeled frustration and fatalism among young black Americans: Diamond District’s Oddisee cried, “What’s a black supposed to do — sell some crack and entertain?”, while Virginia MC GoldLink rapped about all the glorious things he imagines happening to him — when he dies.

Not that peace and love felt impossible in 2014: In a touching song released two years after his death, Chuck Brown sang of a “beautiful life” enriched by the warmth of community. Promising newcomer Kali Uchis made us kick back with a soulful number steeped in giddy infatuation. Experimentation thrived in D.C. music: Young artists built on the region’s strong punk pedigree and expanded its boundaries. Mary Timony’s band Ex Hex embraced a classic sound and made one of the country’s best rock ‘n’ roll records. Local bands with shorter but distinctive resumes — like Laughing Man, Two Inch Astronaut and Deleted Scenes — sounded better and more creative than ever before. A Sound of Thunder and Gloom reminded us that the D.C. area is still a reliable producer of top-notch metal.

As expected, Bandwidth contributors faced hard choices while making this list of the year’s best local songs, and not only because it’s our first one. Up until deadline, we were still hearing new D.C. songs we wanted to include. But in a place where mounting wealth has created a challenging environment for art, that’s not a problem, really. It’s a testament to a music scene that perseveres despite long odds. —Ally Schweitzer

Warning: Many of these songs contain explicit lyrics.

To commemorate Bandwidth’s not-quite-first year, I’ve skimmed through our YouTube channel and picked out some of my favorite videos from the 75 we published in 2014. Some were shot by Bandwidth video director and co-founder Raul Zahir De Leon in his own Wilderness Bureau studio; others we shot at WAMU headquarters in the room normally used by WAMU’s Bluegrass Country. Some earned hundreds of likes and one highly unexpected shout-out from Paul Krugman; others are still hidden gems. But across the board, I think we succeeded in capturing superlative performances from a remarkable set of independent artists — and we’re only getting started.

Here’s a look at the best stuff we caught on camera this year. Want more? Check out our playlist of all our videos so far.

Most-watched
Sylvan Esso, “Coffee”

Something about electronic-pop duo Sylvan Esso makes people swoony and crazy, and this video — our most popular to date — is solid proof.

Most unfairly ignored
Los Master Plus, “Suave Leve”

Not many people have watched our two videos with Mexico’s hammy, machismo-skewering Los Master Plus, and I haven’t been able to shake the feeling that a great injustice has been done. The duo’s over-the-top performance of “Suave Leve” was the most fun we’ve had yet in the WAMU studio. If you love fun, you know what to do, folks.

Most adorable
Frankie Cosmos, “Birthday Song”

The indie-pop songwriter otherwise known as Greta Kline (daughter of actor Kevin Kline) sparkled this year, propelled by her tuneful collection of simple little songs, Zentropy. Kline doesn’t seem to care about guitar wizardry, big statements or tracks much longer than two minutes. But she’s got a fantastic ear for melodies — the kind you can’t easily dislodge from your head. For her session at the Wilderness Bureau, Raul and his crew went all out: They threw her a birthday party with the sparkle (and cuteness) that made Zentropy such a special release this year.

Best ending
Phox, “Kingfisher”

This performance from rising pop band Phox is one of my favorites for the lovely song alone — Monica Martin’s voice! — and one passerby on the street felt it deserved a round of applause, too.

Best D.C. band performance
Ex Hex, “Everywhere”

Loudest. Session. Ever. D.C.’s own Ex Hex nearly shattered the window in our studio with this monstrous performance of a standout from their debut album, Rips.

Most British
The Clientele, “Porcelain”

The Clientele wasn’t the only British act we filmed this year, but the indie-pop greats encapsulate a sound that I can only associate with rainy England. The band’s live take on “Porcelain” — a highlight from their 2003 record The Violet Hour — was also one of our most pristine and beautifully recorded. Worth many repeat listens.

Best wardrobe
Sierra Leone’s Refugee All-Stars, “Ghana Baby”

This low-key backyard performance from one of the world’s most acclaimed Sierra Leonean ensembles is wonderful in many ways — its intimacy and sense of humor, the group’s unquestionable mastery of its sound — but I still find myself revisiting this video just to giggle at bandleader Ruben Koroma’s T-shirt: It’s golf-themed, and it says “Teerific Grandpa.”

Most likely to make you cry
Rodrigo Amarante, “The Ribbon”

I was unaware of Brazilian songwriter Rodrigo Amarante until this year, and that’s my bad. At least I had the brains to help bring him into Raul’s studio, where he delivered the most soulful performance captured there this year — and made it look so effortless.

Best use of harp
Mikaela Davis, “Feels Like Forever”

Try not to be enchanted by this.

Best arm movements
My Brightest Diamond, “Lover Killer”

My Brightest Diamond’s Shara Worden was already well on her way to blowing our minds with her intense performance at the Bureau — and then she busted out these striking arm movements, ratcheting the whole thing up a notch. She’s incredible.

Most celebrity-studded
Deer Tick and Vanessa Carlton, “In Our Time”

I’m happy I was (somehow) unaware that this was the same Vanessa Carlton that recorded THAT SONG until after we finished this great session with her husband’s band, Deer Tick. It means I was able to converse with her like a normal human — and without once thinking of Terry Crews in that scene from White Chicks.

Best harmonizing
Mark Mulcahy, “Badly Madly”

I love the studio-recorded version of this earworm from Mark Mulcahy, but seeing his bandmates gamely belt it out alongside him on the couch reminds me why we got into this whole video business in the first place.

The Bandwidth videos never stop on our YouTube channel. Subscribe here.

Hear World Cafe‘s full conversation with Timony — about growing up in D.C., going to early DIY shows, and seeing Fugazi — at the audio link. Hear individual songs from the band’s set below.

Copyright 2014 WXPN-FM. To see more, visit http://www.xpn.org/.