Correction: The ICA Full House event was mistakenly listed on Friday in a previous version, it takes place on Saturday, Aug. 23.
Thursday, Aug. 21
Bronwyn Keith-Hynes with Garden Variety String Band at The Camel
Charlottesville native Bronwyn Keith-Hynes is a renowned instrumentalist who you know has chops, because she’s won two International Bluegrass Music Association awards for Fiddle Player of the Year as a Grammy for her work with Molly Tuttle and Golden Highway. Also on the bill, Garden Variety String Band, an award-winning bluegrass group out of RVA. $18 in advance and $22 day of show. Doors at 7 p.m. and show at 8 p.m.
Chloe Kimes with Brady Heck at Richmond Music Hall
The Nashville to Richmond tour connection keeps kicking with this Americana artist and songwriter coming to town and performing w/RVA’s Brady Heck. Doors at 7 p.m.
Friday, Aug. 22
“Ikiru” (1952) at The Byrd Theatre
“Ikiru” (“Too Live”) is a classic Japanese drama directed by Akira Kurosawa about a terminally ill Tokyo bureaucrat. Actor and rising director Bill Hader recently called it his all-time favorite film and noted that it weirds out his friends. $9 and 7 p.m.
Big Holler with Justin Paciocco at Brambly Park
You’ve heard the singles. Now it’s time to hear the whole dang thing. Since May, Richmond based rock band Big Holler has been giving us glimpses of a full-length album that was recorded at Spacebomb Studios – one that, according to the group’s socials, was “shaped by our ties to the Blue Ridge Mountains while trying make a living in the city.” Each tune shared so far, from the aching balladry of “Quit on Me” to the low-key swagger of “Small Town Thrills,” has boasted its own set of country-fried credentials, aligning the group with stated influences like Zach Bryan and Chris Stapleton. It’s all been building to the release of “The Valley,” which comes out in full on Friday, Aug. 22. Big Holler will mark the occasion with a family-friendly release show happening that evening at Brambly Park. Music starts at 5:30 p.m. Admission is free. Justin Paciocco of Villages will perform an opening set. For more information, visit bramblypark.com.—Davy Jones
Freezing Cold with Sports Bar, Memory Hole and Carnivorous Flower at Another Round
This overlooked Chamberlayne bar and grill/venue is hosting up-and-coming power trio, Freezing Cold. The New York-based band’s recent reception, clinched by its latest album on Don Giovanni Records, runs hot with fuzzy hooks and pop-punk nostalgia. It’s not the first time local chapter champs, Sports Bar, have packed a sports bar, and hopefully not the last (members concentrated on their new project Camo Face this year). Memory Hole is one to keep on your radar after its confidant self-titled EP was released last year; they’re reviving Richmond’s past penchant for angsty and angular hardcore. New kids on the block, Carnivorous Flower, are anything but, and have even been described as a “low-key supergroup” by New Noise Magazine. Now they’re low-key releasing their s/t debut album next week on Dead Broke Records. Doors are at 7 p.m. and the show is all ages.—Tim Abbondelo
The Chesterfield County Fair at Chesterfield County Fairgrounds
We may be done with the worst of the heat, so why not enjoy a fair outdoors with rides, horses and pigs and who knows what else. $6-$12. Through Aug. 30. Ages 17 or younger only admitted with parent. For events and more info, visit the website. 10300 Courthouse Rd.
Saturday, Aug. 23
Full House at the ICA at VCU
Billed as “a summer celebration of the Richmond Arts community,” the Institute for Contemporary Art at Virginia Commonwealth University will host a kind-of neighborhood potluck on Saturday.
In addition to showcasing the three newest exhibitions at the modern art museum, “ICA Full House” will offer up food, music, activities and fellowship with representatives from more than two dozen local arts groups in attendance. Most importantly, for artists, there will be panel discussions that discuss a creative future rendered uncertain by AI and recent cuts in federal arts funding. Read our full preview here. Runs 1 to 4 p.m. Free.
RamFest 2025 at Stuart C. Seigel Center at VCU
Are you a diehard fan of the Black & Gold? Then come out to meet and greet with VCU student-athletes and spirit squads; there will be men’s and women’s basketball players signing autographs, a DJ and live music, exclusive merchandising, and games including a dunk tank. 2-4:30 p.m. at 1200 W. Broad St.
Opin, Brookhouse, Sincerely Iris at Bellwether Garage
Change of plans: Initially billed as a solo set for Opin’s tallest member, Landis Wine, the stars and music industry machinery have aligned to allow the Richmond-based avant-pop group to continue on its recent parade of local shows with the new album, “Embrace the Gift,” in hand. Fusion-jam act, Brookhouse, is sure to play their latest single “Sing to Me” which is just as likely to evoke a fit of Bowie-and-Jagger-level dancing in the street. Singer/songwriter Todd Murray will perform a set of material culled from his long-running songbook under the Sincerely, Iris moniker. If you haven’t had a chance to attend one of these pop-up concerts in Church Hill sponsored by Overcoast Music ‘n’ Sound, grab a folding chair and head for the brick garage at the corner of E. Clay and N. 31st Streets at 7 p.m. All donations go to the performers.—T.A.
Richmond Water Lantern Festival at Dorey Park (Henrico)
Henrico has its own version of InLight, the Richmond Water Lantern Festival which brings folks together for a celebration of light and community, with food trucks, activities and thousands of lanterns lighting up the night. Tickets are selling fast, they say. Visit their website for more info or follow them at @waterlanternfestival. 5 to 9 p.m. $28.99 – $55.99 website (www.waterlanternfestival.com)
RVA Pro Wrestling at Dogwood Dell
As part of the 68th Festival of the Arts, you’ll get matches from Sledge Gibson defending his RVA Pro Wrestling Heavyweight Championship against Caleb Konley; also Leah Night, Erica Leigh and Jordan Blade and Amanda Kiss compete in a four-way match for the women’s championship. Special guest Shagg Carpet will also appear. 8 p.m. All ages.
Romperayo at Révéler Experiences
For those playing attention, the Secret Planet/Electric Cowbell connection is responsible for the lion’s share of adventurous world music coming to RVA. Bogota-based Romperayo both embraces and revitalizes Colombian cumbia with glittering bits of electronic sample weaving through hypnotic Latin rhythms. The name does not directly translate, but “romper” in Spanish means “to break or shatter.” In this case, what is being disrupted is tradition. Master percussionist Pedro Ojeda is the axis of the sound with Ricardo Gallo on synthesizers and Juan Manuel Toro ion electric bass. (According to the Révéler website, Meridian Brothers’ genius Eblis Alverez, whose local shows have always been spectacular, is providing samples.) The sound has both the heartbeat of tropical ritual spiced with spacey urban touchers — snatches of vocals, chickens, shimmering growls. The songs build in repetitive cycles, charming without overstaying their welcome. On their recordings, individual cuts are brief, most three to four minutes long. Live, they may stretch out a lot more. There are enough textures and unwinding variations to follow a trancelike path deeper into the layered rhythms or get up and chase them onto the dance floor. The latter is likely to be crowded in the eclectic club on Saturday night. $25. 8 p.m.—Peter McElhinney
Deadguy, Pageninetynine, Private Hell, Pretty Baby and Jealous God at Studio Two Three
This precursor to the return of Dark Days, Bright Nights — the world-class underground punk festival happening in Richmond next month — checks all the boxes for a must-see show, featuring revered legacy acts and an exciting crop of new local talent. Deadguy’s first show in nearly 30 years is noteworthy for heavy music fans, whether they were around for the innovative New Jersey-based metalcore band’s first run, or more likely, not yet conceived. In both cases, the influence of the band’s crushing output lives on. Not to bury the lead though, well documented Virginia punk legends, Pageninetynine, are recently reformed and playing what is likely to be their only Richmond show of the year. Tickets cost $25. Doors are at 7 p.m. and all ages.—T.A.
Sunday, Aug. 24
“Sunset Boulevard” (1950) at the Byrd Theatre
The classic dark comedy noir directed by Billy Wilder and beloved by geniuses like David Lynch. $9 at 2 p.m.
“Wild at Heart Forever” at Gallery5
A fiery poetry reading and variety show with shocking and salacious truths from Jasmine Blooms, Catherine Carson, Lena J, and Allison Titus, followed by a killer set from Rikki Rakki’s Erika Blatnik and a scandalous burlesque show from Kayy Lovely. 7-11 p.m. 200 W. Marshall St.
Sunday Soundtracks featuring Dave Watkins, Tag Cloud, and Scott Clark at Révéler Experiences
“Sunday Soundtracks” is Révéler’s monthly innovative musical showcase. Which is to say the musical language is going to be a bit more unconventional than a standard gig. The artists in this lineup have experience making experimental soundtracks safe and charming for open-eared audiences. Dave Watkins is a luthier whose specialty is brightly melodic, electronically enhanced loops and lines that develop into layered compositions. Tag Cloud, a.k.a. DC-based modular synthesizer wiz Chris Videll, creates ambient soundscapes that evolve into different moods and impressions. Local hero, drummer Scott Clark is best known for his work with any number of bands and genres. His solo work is rhythmically sophisticated, deeply poetic and moving. It is no mean feat to coax engaging music out of the harmonic limitations of percussion; Clark is a master at it. Creative music like this can seem as daunting as a foreign language. Afternoons like this are an appealing way to increase your vocabulary. 4-6 p.m. General admission. Pay what you can.—P.M.
