The Scene

MusicDetour.com’s commentary on music, performances, and the DC metro area music scene

On Monday evening I attended the third Fort Reno show of the summer.  Fort Reno is one of those “real DC” experiences that anybody living in the area needs to at least check out.  Part of what makes it great is that the bands seem to be chosen specifically because they would not normally be scheduled to play togehter.  Does pretty much any club in the area offer a superior concert experience?  Yeah, probably.  However, they have an excellent sound system run by a professional engineer.  The main difference is that the crowd is not necessarily there to see the bands as much as they are just there because it is the summer, so they have to go to Fort Reno  A description of the experience and review of the entertaining shows by Batala, the Small Doses, and Cigarbox Planetarium follows after the jump.

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The park takes its name from Fort Reno, a Civil War-era sandstone fort constructed on the highest point in the District.  The main tower really looks like something one expects to find in Europe, not America, as it looms over the park.  The stage, simple but permanent, allows for a crowd of a few hundred to arrange itself a few steps from Chesapeake St., where a very smart ice cream man had parked his truck.  If only a vendor with a hot dog cart would join him.  I would have enjoyed a soda and a couple of halfsmokes during the show.

Christian Lander could find inspiration for several Stuff White People Like entries at Fort Reno.  I have to admit that the ethnic demographics of Fort Reno are no more diverse than any indie rock show, but that folks who come out for the shows do otherwise represent a broad spectrum.  People of all ages, including parents with very small children, arranged themselves on blankets.  Most ate some form of picnic dinner, many dining from Whole Foods shopping bags.  Dozens of younger folks, most teenagers, threw frisbees on the hillside behind the stage.  They reminded me of my friends growing up, as we spent Summer Sunday evenings at the drive-in theater, usually ignoring the movie.  We had the drive-in and they have Fort Reno.  I think they win.

As I arrived, Batala, an all-female Afro-Brazillian percussion band, had just begun to perform on the grass in front of the stage.  I’m definitley a layman here, but it seems to me that what separates them from any other drumline has less to do with their playing and more to do with their selection of instruments and their presence.  The ladies all wear loose-fitting patterned chaps that look like skirts from a distance with emblazoned t-shirts.  Batala’s set consisted of three ten-minute songs, each featuring poly rhythms that rise and fall.  Their sensuous rhythms and movements are infectious, but did not inspire dancing among this crowd.  Batala offered an excellent aparatif, something that few attendees probably expected leading off an evening that would generally consist of flavors of indie rock.

That is exactly what we got with the Small Doses, who took the stage, which had the names of the evening’s three bands spray painted on its front. Perhaps I’m naive, but I expect a three-piece band to be more bluesy, while the Small Doses bring more of a pop-punk sound.  Their songs are very fun and catchy.  However, the only attendee dancing was an adorable little girl down front who formed a one-toddler circle pit.  These Aussie emigres are an excellent addition to the DC music scene, and I look forward to seeing them again.  “Purple Lipstick,” which I have listened to over and over on their MySpace, may be their best song, but I cannot wait to hear their full-length release that they claim is in the works.  Thanks to the kids who set up a bake sale by the stage, as their brownie really hit the spot during this set.

As the sun set and the line of streetlights that run through the park, with one right over the stage, took effect, Cigarbox Planetarium hung a sign that looked like a list of available ice cream flavors but which was actually their setlist.  It is odd that only one of the evening’s three bands included a vocalist, and that one of the instrumental bands was the headliner.  Cigarbox Planetarium blend very modern sounds with bossonova and other well-aged elements.  The darkness chased dozens of teenagers down off the hillside and they gleefully danced in big group in front of the stage.  I planned to leave a couple of songs into their set, but Cigarbox Planetarium held my interest.

Check out the Fort Reno schedule.  You probably won’t be blown away by all three bands on any night, since each show offers such variety.  However, if you find one band you really want to see I bet you will find that whole evening delightful.  Amanda Mackaye, wife sister of Ian, and the other volunteers do a great job of organizing the series (though a few Port-o-Johns would be nice).  In addition to accepting donations by PayPal and check they sell t-shirts at the side of the stage.  Even though the shirts themselves are cheap and they only go up to XL (I wear a XXL), they do have neat designs to them, and I considered the $10 purchase my donation to the cause.

I will definitely attend and review the finale at the end of the month, as I cannot wait to see Casper Bangs and the Title Tracks.  Is there another night that I would be a fool to miss?  If you think so, let me know in the comments.

Thanks to Brian Smith for the pictures, which I swiped from Facebook.