Battelle Atrium was tightly packed last Friday for Capitol Boogie, WVAU’s biggest event of the semester. This year, local act Ekko Astral headlined, supported by fellow D.C.-based band Argo and the Violet Queens.
Argo and the Violet Queens opened with a lively set of their 70’s funk-inspired songs, including tracks from their newest EP, “Kings of Industry.” The quintet mixed jazzy solo breaks with moments of noisy rock, and the audience couldn’t help but groove along to the lead guitarists’ dancing duets. At the band’s urging, the first mosh pit of the night broke out to the final song of the set, but take it from Argo and the Violet Queens—as they say, it’s always important to “mosh safely!”
The crowd buzzed as Ekko Astral took the floor next. The set opened with an intimate rendition of “Body Generation”; lead singer Jael Holzman’s vocals soared over plodding strums of her bass. The energy rose throughout the night, hitting a fever pitch in one of the most memorable moments of the show: In a bit of banter, Holzman asked the crowd how they were doing and if anyone was “worried about their futures” as they completed their degrees. The audience responded with scattered whoops and yells that gradually swept into a wave of top-of-the-lungs screaming in collective catharsis. Holzman also encouraged the crowd to let out their frustrations as she led them in a chant decrying Elon Musk during an unreleased song titled “Capitol Riot.”
The band closed with a selection of three songs from their debut album, “pink balloons”—“head empty blues,” “baethoven,” and “uwu type beat”—that they played through without pause. A massive mosh pit opened in the center of the floor, and it was obvious to see why Ekko Astral describes their music as “mascara mosh pit” as the crowd came together and let the music move them.
Check out Argo and the Violet Queens’ new release “Kings of Industry” and Ekko Astral’s debut album “pink balloons,” both accessible on the WVAU Rack. If you weren’t able to catch the bands at Capitol Boogie, keep an eye on their socials for upcoming live performance dates!
Feature image by Megan Ray