Music venue The Brewery, located on Hillsborough Street in Raleigh, will hold its final show Friday, July 29. The show will feature Embracing Goodbye, Sent By Ravens and The Demonstration at 6 P.M.

Opened in 1983, The Brewery has hosted many big-name acts in its time, including Corrosion of Conformity, Black Flag and Jane’s Addiction.  AOL CityGuide dubbed The Brewery “City’s Best” in 2007 and 2008.

The venue announced via Twitter late Saturday night that the building was bought will be torn down.

Fans responded on Twitter by sharing stories and showing support for the venue:

“They took a chance on my band & treated us with respect. Thanks for all you did for the scene.”

“Metal shows just won’t be the same without The Brewery.”

“RIP The Brewery. one of the best music venues in NC. So many memories so many stage dives. You will be missed.”

“Had one last stage dive at The Brewery tonight. Greatest bloody nose of my life.”

“So sad the The Brewery is closing… Met my wife there and had some of the best memories.”

“thanks for giving hip hop a chance over the years when many other clubs in the area were afraid to…seriously.”

Last Friday we had a Local Beat that illustrates just how many different things are going on in the Triangle at any given time.

Easy Company, courtesy of the band's Myspace page

At 5:00, rock orchestra Easy Company joined us to talk a little about who they are, what influences them, and what to expect at their show Saturday, June 6, at the Halle Cultural Arts Theatre in Apex, NC.  They also performed (as a mere 9-piece) 2 songs in the studio. Check it out below.

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The live performance of “Blue on Blue, part II”:

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The live performance of “Whisper Willow”:

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After that, DJ Cioffi took his first spin at manning the Local Beat to interview long-time local band Pivot , who is playing at the Brewery this Friday, June 5th.  They had quite a bit to say about their new album and so forth, as is evident below. Check it out:

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Lastly, DJ Mikey (who moonlights as DJ Wobble Wobble) chatted with Brian of Lonnie Walker about their new album, These Times Old Times (out on Terpsikhore Records), as well as their CD Release Show/Party.  As you have probably heard, they played at Schoolkids Records on Hillsborough Street and then moved to Adam Peele ‘s warehouse for another show and a party late night.  Check out what they had to say about the album, the label, touring, and songwriting below.

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After what was probably the most eclectic Local Beat I’ve hosted last week (Lemming Malloy, Colossus, and Caltrop),  we’ve got a jam-packed lineup this week.

At 5:00, self-described rock orchestra Easy Company will be stopping by to play a few songs in studio and to talk about a show they’re putting on June 6th at the Halle Cultural Arts Theatre in Apex.  If you thought Lost in the Trees was a crowd with an 11-person band, these guys have 17 members!  Not sure how many are coming in for the interview and performance, but this is a situation where the throwaway line “crazier things have happened” may not necessarily apply.

Easy Company Show flyer, c/o the band's Myspace page

At 6:00, resident Wednesday Local Lunch DJ Cioffi will be interviewing Raleigh-based progressive/experimental band Pivot.  They’re playing the Brewery June 5th and will be by to talk about that.

Lastly, at 7:00, Friday Local Lunch DJ Mikey P will be interviewing Lonnie Walker about the new album, These Times Old Times, their release show/party at Schoolkids Records on Hillsborough Street and the Ahpeele warehouse on Capital Blvd.  They’re also going on tour with Brooklyn-based Motel Motel in June, so Mikey will ask him about that as well.

So as you can see, we’re cramming about as much as we possibly can into luxurious post-baseball 3-hour Local Beat this Friday, 5/29.  Be sure to tune in at 88.1 FM or wknc.org/listen.

So after a short blogging hiatus, I have returned with my fourth installment to the Local Music Picture Blog. My hiatus does not mean that I didn’t attend any shows, I was just having an allergic reaction to my computer… or something like that…which seems to be carrying over to this post, as the posting of pictures just does not want to work for me . But don’t worry, you can see all my pictures clicking on my name and then clicking on Pics.

But anyways, last Thursday, I went to The Brewery to rock out with The Pneurotics, Pink Flag, River City Ransom, and The Dry Heathens, and rocking out is exactly what went down.

The Pneurotics are an alt rock based out of Chapel Hill. Their 2008 release, Forty, is relaxed alt. rock which features a few slight folk music nuances. Most of the show, however, was performances of material that will be released on the yet to be named album they intend to release in the fall of 2009. The new material is solid, driving, guitar heavy rock’n roll, and I for one can not wait til fall to get my hands on the cd. The Pneurotics next show is The Johnny Cash Bash at The Pinhook. They will be paying tribute to Johnny Cash with The Tender Fruit, Gambling The Muse, and Bull City.

Pink Flag… where to start? Pink Flag is a three piece, all girl, pop punk /grunge rock extravaganza that is based out of Durham. Now I have to be honest here, the first time I listened to  Introducing Pink Flag & The Homewrekers, I was ify about it. But having seen Pink Flag live, I do have a new appreciation for the album. And anyone that thinks they are the stereotypical, all girl bands are bad or ok at best, type of outfit; go see them live and they will destroy your brain with awesome. All the girls can play and sing great, as shown when they switched out their instruments and vocal roles. Their next show will be tonight at the Relay For Life Benefit at Local 506 with I Was Totally Destroying It and Lake Inferior. Pink Flag will also be featured at WKNC & Tir Na Nog‘s Local Beer, Local Band night on March 26th with Whatever Brains.

River City Ransom, third to take the stage, is a five man, pop group based in Raleigh. RCR’s performance was perhaps the most laid back of the night. The group’s Myspace claims the groups is Punk, but I think they are straight Indie Rock. We’ll have to wait and see what direction they choose to go in as the group as just recently added a few members. River City Ransom’s next showing will be at the Reservoir on March 23rd with The Dry Heathens and Dark Knights of Camelot.

The Dry Heathens were last on the night, and the Durham based, indie punk,  group showed up to kick ass as usual. This makes the third time I’ve seen them and I am pretty sure they get better each time. If you can not make it to their show on March 23rd, I suggest you make it to the second night of Viking Storm (the Hammer No More The Finger’s CD release celebration weekend) when they play with The Beast, Deleted Scenes, The Future Kings of Nowhere, and Hammer No More The Fingers. The show will be  freaking awesome  and worth every penny. And if you can’t make either of those shows I encourage you to listen to The Dry Heathens first releases, First Contact With Ground, because it is a truely great album.

Hopefully next week I will have pictures  in the picture blog, but in the mean time, don’t forget to check out The Rock Report and catch a great local show!

Rich of The Pneurotics came into the Local Lunch on 3/12/09 for a quick interview, live performance, and debut of brand new material.

The Pneurotics played with Pink Flag, River City Ransom, and The Dry Heathens at The Brewery last night (3/12/09).

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Tune in Thursday, March 12th at noon as DJ Murdoc interviews The Pneurotics on Local Lunch.

Chapel Hill based The Pneurotics, will be playing at The Brewery with River City Ransom, The Dry Heathens, and Pink Flag Thursday night at 8pm.

Look for Murdoc’s Local Music Picture Blog later this week for coverage of the event.

The Beast will be live in the studio for DJ J Wall’s underground show tonight at 10pm. Also Cashmere will be calling into the DJ Nominal Late Nite Mix Show at 12am. Don’t forget to check out The Beast, Edgar Allen Floe, and Natalie Steward (1/2 of Floetry) at the Brewery on Friday January 23rd at 8 pm.

The Beast will be at The Brewery with Yo Majesty, Natalie Stewart Of Floetry on January 23, 2009

Armed with keys, bass, drums, and an emcee, The Beast makes revolutionary music – revolutionary in its genre-defying compositions, imaginative lyrics and political content. Tapping into the rich wellsprings of a conscious musical tradition, one could think they were listening to Bob Marley, Sweet Honey in the Rock, Gill Scott Heron or Public Enemy, at any point during a Beast performance. Infusing the best in jazz composition and improvisation with Hip-Hop poetry and soulful grooves, The Beast is North Carolina’s own independent revolution. Beautifully rebellious and refreshingly conscious, The Beast creates music to engage/enrage one’s mentality, and impassion all bodies to get up and move.

Hailing from the city of Durham, The Beast started as a chance encounter between Pierce Freelon (of local hip hop duo Language Arts and the Blackademics blog) and his old high school friend, drummer Stephen Coffman. In deciding to hold a casual jam session with local bass phenom Pete Kimosh and award-winning jazz composer Eric Hirsh, they had no clue what journey was in store for them. The musical connection and spontaneous creation that day were so powerful that one year later, entire pieces of music and lyrics remain unchanged from their original, improvised form.