Trilogy Sound Studio is Passionate about Music Education
“Trilogy Sound Studio is a minority and veteran-owned, woman-led music studio based in Burke, Virginia” that was founded in 2021.”
I spoke with CEO Sarah Benrazek about the studio’s mission and overall work, as they are quite prominent within the DMV community – the studio is the 3x Winner of Washington City Paper’s “Best Recording Studio” Award in 2021, 2022, and 2023.
Trilogy’s “vision is to build a platform for music independence for artists, creators, and music students.” Its “mission is to empower artists through music education and technology in our full-service recording and music production facility. The studio’s values are: “Creativity, Personal Ownership, Mindfulness, Innovation, Eclectic Collaboration,” and “Inclusivity.”
Celebrating NHHM with “Tropical Rockstar” Xinola
Dominican-Colombian singer-songwriter, art director, and audiovisual producer Xinola “is an experience ‘ni de aqui ni de alla (not from here, not from there)’.”
The musician is described as “authentic Caribbean fruit” with “Latin flavor and American flow. A jazz singer whose language is Spanglish inspired by the strength of all women and the eternal sound of migration.”
I had the pleasure of chatting with her about what Hispanic Heritage Month means to her, and why celebrating it is so important. I also asked about her amazing music, such as “Shapeshifter” and its accompanying video that gives off a signature island summer vibe. You can feel her bright energy through the screen that perfectly goes along with her beautiful voice, (Spanglish) lyrics, and melodies. Her style is extremely unique, and she is a total (tropical) rockstar that is sure to go far.
“Everything started freestyling bachata and folklore in a Santo Domingo colmado,” says her website.
Hardcore Quintet Detachment Release Visceral Debut Album
Long Island hardcore quintet Detachment discuss their debut album, what it takes to make it as an independent artist, and memories of the D.C. area.
On Oct. 13, Long Island hardcore band Detachment released their debut album, Lack. The 10-track project, which features standout singles “Slug” and “BackBreaker,” delivers an immediate adrenaline rush from the very first blistering note to the last, creating a piercing lens under which to examine issues ranging from mental health to the search for meaning.
Join Alchemical Records as they connect with Detachment to discuss how Lack differs from the band’s previous work, the most important message behind the project, strategies the band uses to make their shows an experience that feels “worth it” for fans, and Detachment’s most memorable moments the D.C. area (one of which involves a guy falling off of a speaker at a festival).
Traveling with The North Country
Give a listen to the new single “The Invisible Hand” from D.C.’s own North Country, and see what comes to mind. Its influences are many, including—to my ears—1980s New Wave and Radiohead. But Andrew Grossman, the band’s frontman, would rather its DNA be apparent to the ear of the listener rather than strictly defined by its songwriter.
“It’s funny the stuff that people said they hear in that song,” Grossman said. “And it’s all been stuff that I’ve listened to and liked, but maybe wasn’t explicitly thinking about when I was writing it and when we were recording the whole thing.
“It wasn’t deliberate, but I’m sure it filtered down and came out somehow.”
Indeed, The North Country is making a name for itself in the capital area with its experimental soundscape. The group, which will be playing DC9 on Oct. 26, entails Grossman and five other musicians. Grossman met drummer Kirk Kubicek when they both studied at the University of Maryland’s arts scholar program. Many of the rest of the group met at our city’s dearly departed Bathtub Republic—where Grossman also lived for a time.
A Talk with Mixit Studios’s Ever-Innovative Jhosua Rodriguez
Jhosua Rodriguez has seldom had a moment in his life not surrounded by music. He grew up in Cali, Colombia, a city brimming with constant dancing and musical influences from all over the globe. His upbringing was instrumental to what would become his life’s work. “I started writing songs at the age of ten,” he said, “and I’ve been just in love with music. It’s been my essence, ever since I found out that I had some sort of talent for it.”
Though he is now primarily a producer, Rodriguez’s beginnings were rooted in singing and songwriting. Rodriguez’s knack for music was spurred further by winning a local award for “the best rock singer” in Cali. This title brought him some regional fame when he was only a teenager, inspiring him to constantly tour with his band for three years. As he progressed as a musician, he took up more interest in the behind-the-scenes of his songs.
L.A. Bluesman Coco Montoya Returns to D.C. for Double-Header
Career bluesman Coco Montoya discusses his upcoming D.C. area shows and how he carved out his own unique sound after taking advice from Albert King and B.B. King to heart.
For a career bluesman like Coco Montoya, having the great Albert Collins as a mentor set the then-young man on a lifelong path to follow in the spirit of his late musical counselor.
“I was pretty green when I went on the road in 1972. He was like a father figure,” Montoya said of learning under Collins’s able wing. “It reached beyond the music. He was constantly looking out for me.”
Though Collins died in 1993, Montoya continues to keep his mentor’s music alive and well in his own output, including on the new album “Writing on the Wall,” which debuted at #1 on the Billboard Blues chart. Touring behind the album, Montoya and his ensemble have two stops in the capital region this week, Oct. 10 at the Rams Head On Stage in Annapolis and then AMP by Strathmore in North Bethesda Oct. 13.
aSanTIS: ‘You Are a Part of the Highest Form of Creation’
Flow-bending artist aSanTIS discusses art, culture, and whether sound can solve the world’s problems in celebration of Hispanic Heritage Month.
My interview with Amy Santis aka aSanTIS began in the most unexpected way. The Maryland-based flow-bending artist and lyrical storyteller came prepared to engage in conversation around questions I had posed – and she also brought one or two of her own thoughtful prompts based on her curiosities around my view of learning.
This practice of taking in her surroundings deeply through observation and inquiry has come naturally to aSanTIS ever since she was a young child. In terms of her early starts in music, she notes that she began as a discerning listener. “Just listening to music from my mom, on the radio, just being a consumer in the world of sound. But I think mainly, my mom has always loved dancing and listening to music, so that was sort of like second nature. We play music at gatherings, we play music in the car, and these songs are sort of like diaries that take us into a specific place.”
Stay Afloat with Soft Punch — Above Water
Soft Punch, aka Rye Thomas, of Washington D.C. released his debut album, Above Water on September 15th, after years of working on it.
The album is a labor of love that Soft Punch, the stage name of Rye Thomas, has been working on for years since the diagnosis of his chronic illness. It takes you through the highs and lows, mourning the freedom lost, and celebrating the things that he is grateful for in his day to day life. I had the opportunity to sit down and talk to him about his process of writing the album.
The titles of albums are the first thing that an artist sees. That, and the artist’s name. When I first heard the name ‘Soft Punch’, I was intrigued. It was gentle but intentional. “I don’t know if I had a specific ‘A-ha, Lightbulb’ moment, but I was interested in words that sound good together and have multiple meanings,” Thomas said. “It’s a gentle hit, and a nonalcoholic punch. It’s the image of something harsh and something soft is interesting to me. I think I lucked out.”
Zaii Valdes of Violet Silhouette Discusses Musical Heritage
Zaii Valdes of Violet Silhouette discusses new album and proud roots in honor of Hispanic Heritage Month.
The sound of Violet Silhouette is unlike anything else you’re likely to hear. Their music blends rock and electronic with dance—with a great deal of mystery tossed in for good measure. But however it’s classified, their sound is rather unique.
Singer/guitarist/drummer Zaii Valdes is joined in the group by Dan Potvin and Justin Gianoutsos. The group’s latest EP, “FEVERBLUE,” drops October 20. In anticipation of the latest release, Valdes spoke with Alchemical Records about the new record and, in honor of his Cuban extraction, Hispanic Heritage Month—which kicks off September 15.
How did you first get involved in music?
Being of Cuban heritage, music and dance were very much a part of [my] cultural and familial experience. Not to mention, there was a spiritual aspect to it—trance states and such that could be achieved from rhythm and beat.
Vakili Band Drops The Intrinsically Organic “Honey”
On September 8th, Vakili Band released their third album, Honey. The album is a raw look at human sensuality, and all the messiness that surrounds it. It’s a forceful 9-track album that leaves the listener thrumming with the energy of the band. I had the opportunity to sit with the front-woman of the band, Lily Vakili, to discuss the album with her.
The album is filled with the nostalgic tropes of rock music that Janis Joplin, Patti Smith and Joan Jett planted into my childhood. There’s been a lot of newer music coming out that have these classic sounds to it. “I draw from a lot of different inspirations,” Vakili starts, “and sometimes it’s where the band is at. And this is where we got to for this album, this feeling we want to generate. We’re hitting on that drum, bass, guitar, and we’re, uh, we’re having a blast with it! So you know, I’m happy if that’s coming through, that’s great.”
