Tonight's the night, folks. Come join us this evening at DC9 if you can, where $6 gets you the music, the free stuff, and the chance to see us all drink beer and dance.

Yesterday, Olivia Mancini answered a few questions for us about herself and her band; today we're very pleased to bring you a short question and answer session with The Hard Tomorrows, who'll be finishing the show off tonight.

So, tell us about yourselves.

Rob: I'm 26 ¾ years old. I used to wear a leotard when I was younger and I played on apparatus like the pommel horse and rings. I did gymnastics competitively for 12 years…for serious. I tried out for the winter Olympics last year, but I did not qualify; apparently gymnastics is not a winter sport.

Kyle: I am the son of a chicken farmer. Now that I live in the big city, I run a recording studio out of my basement. People tell me that I speak in a regional dialect.

Casey: I played guitar and sang in a couple of DC bands and then all of a
sudden I’m playing keyboard in a much better band. What the fuck is that?
But it’s fun and it works better than medication.

Rishi, what's with the injuries?

Kyle: We are all cursed, and we’d rather not talk about it.

Rishi: What's strange is that Rob cut his index finger about a week after I cut mine. That's 11 stitches for two fingertips, which is kind of alot. I would say that we're really tough, that we were injured in hand to hand combat with a bear or something, but the truth is that I had just finished slicing carrots into julienne and Rob was playing arts & crafts with posterboard and a razor. So I guess that I am not alone. At least that's what my mom tells me when I'm crying myself to sleep at night.

You have a fantastic EP that's been out for a while, now. What are your plans for future recording?

Rob: Thank you, I’m glad you like the EP. We have a new record coming out hopefully in May. We’re very excited about it.

Kyle: We are working with an outside producer named Uncle Punchy. It has been a great experience, so different from the EP.

Rishi: We were joking about naming the record “Beat the Baby.” Punchy’s wife Claire was a few months pregnant when we started tracking, and we worked pretty hard to finish before she was due, but we weren’t able to. Apparently a single cell can transform itself into a little baby human faster than we can make record. Sad. P.S. We don’t really want to beat the baby, his name is Finn and he is far too cute for that.

The past year has been an exciting one for local musicians. Big signings, some national love for local albums, and so on. What do you guys think the big news from 2006 will be in D.C. music?

Rob: I can see the future, but I cannot tell you the secrets that it has shown me. I can tell you that in 2006 people will realize that iPods are stupid and start buying CDs and Records again. That won’t happen, but wouldn’t it be nice?

Kyle: People don’t buy cds anymore? I wish someone had told me. I spent a third of my income last year on cds.

Rishi: I started buying vinyl again because I got tired of sharing music with people in such an impersonal way. One of my favorite things to do growing up was to go over to a friend’s house with music I had just bought and put it on and stare at the album art. Digital music is great but sometimes I miss that. But to answer your question, doesn’t Svenonius have a book coming out?

What do you like best about the local scene? Who are your favorite acts?

Rob: I really like Dead Meadow and the Sounds of Kaleidoscope. Both of them are excellent bands. It’s also really great to have a record store like Crooked Beat in the neighborhood. Those guys are awesome! I have the best time shopping there, and I can’t wait to do an in-store there.

Casey: I like Justin Jones a lot. He’s sort of southern rock but darker and
bittersweet. He doesn’t really fit with the indie scene here, I was sad to
hear he’s moving to Austin in a few weeks, the bastard.

Rishi: Greenland, Dead Meadow, Medic, Medications, These United States. I also like that there are a bunch of joke/cover bands around. MacAttack, Dell & the Faction, Ghoul Cobra, etc. DC is a pretty serious town; at least its musicians don’t take themselves too seriously.

Unbuckled graphics designed by Holly Tegeler. Band photo courtesy of The Hard Tomorrows.