new format = more space, woohoo....
FRIDAY
In a weekend jam-packed with options, 930 Club hosts the hottest bill. The Music??s gritty britpop has been the toast of the UK for four years ?? an eternity in their notoriously fickle scene. Openers ?? and fellow Brits ?? Kasabian are just beginning to make waves across the pond with infectious, electro-tinged rockers like ??Club Foot.?
Jazz fans have been salivating over this date for months. Legends Herbie Hancock, Roy Hargrove, and Michael Brecker take the stage at Warner Theatre for their Directions in Music tour. The unique collaboration started in 2001 by honoring Miles Davis and John Coltrane, and now celebrates everything from free jazz to Ray Charles.
Products of the 90s roots-rock explosion, local favorites Pat McGee Band once flirted with major label success, but now stick to the well-worn club circuit. Catch their syrupy harmonies and white bread hooks in their second of two nights at The Birchmere.
SATURDAY
Before Will and Grace and Queer Eye, there was Jill Sobule??s ??I Kissed a Girl.? The cheeky folk tune about a one-off lesbian tryst catapulted Sobule into the limelight. Unbeknownst to most, Sobule ?? at the 930 Club opening for nebbish folkster Martin Sexton ?? has spent the last ten years releasing albums and honing her songwriting talent.
Ukrainian political refugee Eugene Hütz and his bizarre gypsy-punk outfit Gogol Bordello, at Black Cat, play frenetic Eastern European tunes and stage one of the most unique shows you can find in a rock club. Local supergroup Weird War (aka Scene Creamers) opens.
The grand dame of DC indie rock, Mary Timony (of Helium fame), headlines a $6 show at the cozy Warehouse Next Door with Panoply Academy, Horses, and Edie Sedgwick ?? a self-styled ??transgendered reincarnation? of the famed Andy Warhol Superstar.
SUNDAY
Washington Social Club, headlining Black Cat for the 50th time in the past year, continues to establish their reputation as the hardest working band in town. Their energetic power pop and stick-in-your-head hooks keep the mop-headed crowds coming back for more.
Prince Dance Party, at Modern in Georgetown, features DJ Dredd mashing up Prince classics against Madonna hits.
Goldfinger, headlining at 930 Club, was one of the few members of the mid-90s So-Cal ska-punk craze ?? which included Sublime and No Doubt ?? that didn??t break through to the mainstream. Openers include synth-rock new wave throwbacks theSTART.
MONDAY
While we in the States lean heavily on derivative punk-pop and shrill emo for our ??modern rock,? those crazy Brits keep fawning over innovative guitar bands like The Futureheads. Headlining 930 Club, The Futureheads have a similar herky-jerky post-punk feel as countrymen Franz Ferdinand and Bloc Party.
The Birchmere features legendary singer/songwriters Lyle Lovett, John Hiatt, Joe Ely, Guy Clark, and Paul Brady in their third performance at the Shush-mere in two weeks. The previous two shows both sold out at $100 per, but it appears that there are still a few tickets left for tonight??s performance.
