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somesurprises / TALsounds / John Karvonen

Tue, May 14

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Rhizome DC

somesurprises / TALsounds / John Karvonen
somesurprises / TALsounds / John Karvonen

Time & Location

May 14, 2024, 7:00 PM – 11:00 PM EDT

Rhizome DC, 6950 Maple St NW, Washington, DC 20012, USA

About the event

Tuesday May 14 * 7pm * $15-25 * TICKETS

somesurprises is a dynamic four-piece live band lead by Seattle-based songwriter and guitarist Natasha El-Sergany. Motorik beats, reverb-drenched vocals, washes of fingerpicked guitars, and hazy synths expand El-Sergany’s delicate and blissful songwriting. Their stage presence is otherworldly, meditative, and spectral, exuding a transcendent calm "highly unusual for a rock band" (Dave Segal, The Stranger.)  They’ve drawn comparisons to Broadcast, Stereolab, Neu!, Grouper, Spiritualized, and Mazzy Star, “but somesurprises is nothing if not its own thing, with plenty of ambitious/unexpected moves that may, er, surprise you! A very good thing" (Tyler Wilcox, Aquarium Drunkard.)

Their upcoming tour is in support of their second full-length release, Perseids, to be released by LA's Doom Trip Records in April 2024.

TALsounds (Natalie Chami) is a Canadian-born Lebanese American musician and educator. Known for her work in drone, ambient, and improvisational music, she has cultivated a distinguished solo career over the past 14 years, crafting a distinctive blend of personal and transporting music. Her compositions seamlessly integrate synth work, operatic vocals, and meticulous atmosphere crafting. Chami has released albums on various labels, toured internationally, and earned acclaim for her significant contributions to the avant-garde electronic scene. Her upcoming third album, Shift, is a departure from her signature warm analog synth sound, embracing a crisper, digital palette. Notably, Chami collaborated with fellow Southwest Asian and North African (SWANA) women in the production, art, and photography for the album. Shift is slated for release on NNA Tapes on November 3, 2023.

John Karvonen is a Palestinian-American electronic artist based in DC. He started exploring synthesis and music production in 2020. In 2022 he began studying the piano and music theory with Natalie Chami (TALsounds) as his teacher. This is John’s first performance and he feels immense gratitude in being able to share his musical explorations with others.

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