Bed Maker's origins date back to summer 2019, when bassist Arthur Noll (Light Beams, Kid Congo Powers) and drummer Vin Novara (The Crownhate Ruin, 1.6 Band), each having played in Alarms & Controls, invited guitarist Jeff Barsky (Insect Factory, Time Is Fire) to collaborate and see what might happen. By autumn, they invited Amanda MacKaye (Desiderata, Routineers) to join them, and the chemistry was immediate. In February 2020 at DC's Rhizome, Bed Maker played their first show and then paused their activities the following month, as did most people.

 

Due to the state of the world in 2020 and 2021, they continued writing music through sharing recordings. Mike Schleibaum assisted by assembling home recordings of their individual parts into working demos. This allowed them to keep momentum, and by the time in-person rehearsals resumed, a handful of songs and new ideas were close to fruition. Bed Maker resumed playing shows in November 2022.

 

Following a self-released digital single ("Miss Dickens") and an EP (Three on the Tree) -- each recorded with Schleibaum and Matt Michel at Viva Studios -- Bed Maker began work on their self-titled LP in May 2023 with Ian MacKaye and Don Zientara at the original Inner Ear Studio in his basement in Arlington, VA, and with Mike Schleibaum at his home studio in Maryland. 

 

Today, you can listen to the new song "Ballad of Tokitae" on Bandcamp.  

The record is now available for pre-order on our website and Bandcamp page.




Please note that if you order any additional items along with this, the entire order will be shipped together on the release date.

Fidelity Jones broke up in 1990. In 2023, the four of them came together for the first time since then to do an interview for a podcast. In the conversation they were reminded that they often included different cover songs in their live performances. Onam (formerly Tomas) mentioned he heard a song that would have been a great candidate back in those days, which led to a joke about booking time at a studio. That joke evolved into a session. Two years spent honing two cover songs, one unrecorded old original, and one new song has resulted in the Magdeburg Lad EP.  Fidelity Jones will remain an ongoing recording entity with plans on making more music in the future.

You can listen to the new song "JOY" on Bandcamp.

On February 2nd, Dischord will release J. Robbins' second full-length solo album, Basilisk, on LP and digital formats. Basilisk is eleven songs records at J. Robbins’  Baltimore-based studio, The Magpie Cage, between 2021 and 2022 with the assistance of Brooks Harlan (bass), Darren Zentek (drums),  Gordon Withers (cello and guitar), John Haggerty (guitar) and Dave Hadley (pedal steel).

Today, you can listen to the new song "Exquisite Corpse" on Bandcamp.  

In February, Robbins will tour the east coast and midwest with a full-band, including stops in Brooklyn, Chicago, Pittsburgh, and DC. Find a complete itinerary on our website.  

Basilisk is now available for pre-order on our website and Bandcamp page.

Please note that if you order any additional items along with this, the entire order will be shipped together on the release date of Basilisk.

In January 1983, Minor Threat went into Inner Ear Studio for the first time as a five-piece (Brian Baker had moved from bass to second guitar and Steve Hansgen was now playing bass). They had six new songs that would end up being the center piece of what became the Out of Step 12" EP.  The band had also decided to re-record the song "Out of Step" with some extra language to try to clarify the lyrics, as well as "Cashing In", a tongue-in-cheek song about the DC punk scene which they had only played live once.  After much debate, "Cashing In" was added as a hidden track on the original vinyl release though not listed on the cover or label. There was still blank tape on the reel, so they decided to record an instrumental with the working title, "Addams Family" and then recorded new versions of "In My Eyes" and "Filler" to hear what they sounded like with two guitars. "Addams Family" ended up being used as a coda to "Cashing In", but the other two songs were never mixed and largely forgotten for over 35 years until the multitrack tapes were taken into the studio to be digitized in 2021. Surprised by the discovery, Ian and Don Zientara mixed the two songs along with the complete take of "Addams Family". These outtakes are now released on a 7" to mark the 40th anniversary of the release of Out of Step. The 7" of these outtakes is available now for ORDER. 

On November 10, Scream will release 'DC Special,' the band's first new music in more than a decade. Today, you can listen to one of the tracks from their upcoming album, titled ''DC Special Sha La La." The album is now available for pre-order. 

The album was recorded at Inner Ear with Don Zientara and Ian MacKaye and features the Still Screaming lineup -- Pete and Franz Stahl, Skeeter Enoch Thompson, and Kent Stax — along with contributions from Ian MacKaye, Dave Grohl, Martha Hull, Joe Lally, Jerry Busher, Amy Pickering, Mark Cisneros, Onam Emmett, Bob Berberich, John Goetchius, and other voices from Scream's longtime community.

Scream and Soulside will be playing shows together in October on the West Coast and December on the East Coast.  Tickets on sale locally this Friday (July 21st)  at 10am. Click here for more information.

Washington DC’s Black Eyes will reunite for three shows this spring in celebration of the 20th anniversary of their S/T debut album. Dischord will also reissue the record, bringing it back into print on LP for the first time since 2009. 

Black Eyes formed in 2001. The band was together only two-and-a-half years, but left a lasting mark in DC and beyond. Across 200 shows and two albums (2003’s S/T and 2004’s Cough), the group maintained a feverish and experimental energy, with shows that often melted into ecstatic percussive free-for-alls. Shows are currently scheduled in DC, New York, and Philadelphia. Find the complete schedule and venue information here.

Soulside’s new record “A Brief Moment in the Sun” will be released on Nov 18th.  The record was written from four different locations during the heart of the coronavirus pandemic and then recorded in person by J. Robbins in November 2021 at Magpie Cage Studio in Baltimore.  Soulside is Alexis Fleisig (drums), Scott McCloud (guitar and vocals), Bobby Sullivan (vocals), and Johnny Temple (bass).

The band will play 5 East Coast shows with Verbal Assault starting this week and are planning tours in the US and Europe in 2023 to support the new album. 

The record is up for pre-order via our website and also through our Bandcamp page.

Hammered Hulls’ debut LP Careening will be released on Oct 28th. A new band of long-time players, Hammered Hulls’ music hews close to some of their early influences. Alec MacKaye is the voice, Mark Cisneros is the guitarist, Mary Timony is the bassist, and Chris Wilson plays drums. Careening includes 12 songs records at Inner Ear Studios by Don Zientara and Ian MacKaye. The record is up for pre-order via our website and also through our Bandcamp page. The band will be performing shows throughout the fall and winter.