Remember Grime? When we all loved that “Run the Road” comp on Vice Records because Vice Magazine told us to? I know, its like, so 2005. Here’s what I remember: it was really good. And it turns out UK crunk didn’t die after Lady Sov’s underwhelming (but better than it gets […]

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Come out tomorrow evening as we drop a tea bag of talent in boiling hot Relative. We have plenty of folks on hand to teach people about HIV and how to go about getting tested. This issue is very important to a lot of people closely associated with RTR and […]

Tuesday brings the long awaited release of a new Pharoahe Monch album, “Desire”. Pharoahe Monch, despite his troubles getting an awful lot of material released, both solo and as half of the groundbreaking Organized Konfusion in the 90s, is on the short list of emcees who are not Ghostface that I’ve seriously pondered the […]

image from Beirut’s Website
For those of you who are unaware (we’re a day or so late announcing this), young Zach Condon (19? 20? Help me out) who brought us heartfelt Balkan pop with 2006’s Gulag Orkestar, and then grabbed an 8 piece back up band to make one of the year’s best E.P.s Lon […]

July brings a release I know Krystle and I have been waiting for nearly a year now. The Knife’s “Silent Shout” was my number 4 best album of 2006. Of releases last year, that and Scott Walker’s “The Drift” are still routinely on my playlists and in an uncanny, terrifying place in my […]

Well, let’s just say a lack of knowledge regarding certain new releases in the world of music is something that we all suffer from, even for us record store employees. I honestly can’t be everywhere at once! So according to the Southern Records website, remastered versions of both The Grey EP and the […]

Neon Neon just posted their first single, coming out in July on Lex. Entitled “Trick for Treat”, it’s kind of goofy and features Spank Rock, who I like, and Sean Tillman, who I don’t so much. Neon Neon is a collaboration between Boom Bip, an experimental beat maker who has done some beautiful work on […]

Photo From Myspace
We here at Relative Theory and The Boot have done a great deal in celebration of this community and Hampton Roads, but alas it seems we’ve forgotten to really honor this great nation we live in. So not to be mistaken for Anti-Federalists, we’re opening The Boot Monday July 2nd (that’s right, […]

Staten Island Afro Soul on Daptone from the same funky melting pot of cool, hyperskilled professionals that brought us Antibalas and the Sugarman Three. Need I say more? New record comes out in July, check out the mp3 for “Chicago Falcon”.
The Budos Band - Chicago Falcon | mp3 |
External Links
The Budos Band
The Budos Band Myspace
Daptone […]

Tuesday brings the release of what looks to me like one of the most interesting releases of 2007. Stone’s Throw has a knack for teaming up with great, unexpected artists (Gary Wilson, Galt McDermott, etc.) to present wonderful new projects. Now, three percussionists from Chicago experimentalists Tortoise are releasing a concept breaks record called “Bumps,” […]

Dear Friends and Lovers,
Today we sincerely announce the indefinite slumber of your record store Relative Theory Records, 271 Granby St. - Norfolk, Virginia 23510. It is not sustainable for we must let it go. During this time we shall reside on the interweb while we assess this cultural climate and search for a new home. […]

Tomorrow Night (Wednesday), we have one of those shows happening where in two years we’ll all be standing around amazed that when we landed it it wasn’t that big of a deal. Chris Garneau plays airy nighttime piano songs that catch you breathing slowly and soaking in the beautiful silent Earth, with a falsetto […]

Pictured is Klaxar, twentysomething space warlock from the past. He will be hosting a strange, vulgar, and beautiful comedy show at the Boot tonight at 10. Expect sketches, interactive business with the audience, and a special presentation of “Zardoz” starring Sean Connery, complete with live comedic commentary a la Mystery Science Theatre 3000. […]

FRIDAY JUNE 8th AT THE BOOT
10 PM / $5
Locksley is coming | myspace

throwback Beatles or maybe Tommy James, Locksley is one of Relative’s favorites and I will say their live show is an energetic buzz. Not to mention their charming personalities will get you going like nobody’s business. Little known fact - the […]

A month ago Frog Eyes dropped a new record called Tears of the Valedictorian, and I’m not sure how anybody else at Relative feels about it but it’s found it’s way back to my cd player like a bad habit almost everyday since its release. Carey Mercer leads the group (which includes his wife […]

The good people of Soul Jazz have taken a break from digging up and compiling the best of the old to look forward with a compilation of brand new Future Dub and Dubstep. Entitled “Box of Dub,” it includes contributions from artists such as Burial, Digital Mystikz, and Kode 9. Not only do […]