FRIDAY: >> Bay Area songstress Goapele’s (pictured) musical background is almost as diverse as her ethnic background. Born to a South African political exile father and a mother whose parents survived the Holocaust, she studied at the Berklee College of Music and later would form musical partnerships with the likes of hip-hop acts like the Hieroglyphics crew and E-40. However her 2005 release, Change It All, established her as especially talented when it comes to......

>> Woolly Mammoth's popular One Man Star Wars Trilogy is back, written and performed by Charles Ross. Tickets are $28 for the 8 p.m. show. >> The Alliance Francaise and Twins Jazz present the Dupont T quartet, a group led by bassist Hubert Dupont, a major player in the jazz scene in Paris. Tickets to the 8 and 10:30 p.m. sets are $20. >> Take the opportunity to check out the new Busboys and......

Local favorites Le Loup came to the Black Cat Monday night as part of their short road trip with last night's openers, Margot and the Nuclear So and Sos. At first glance, both bands seem to subscribe to the same basic trends in rock: the two bands feature a total of fifteen members between them, complete with non-traditional instrumentation. However, the comparisons ended there as the guys and gals from the District showed just how......

Monday >> It’s Saint Lucy’s Day! Hej Hej, the DJ night dedicated to Scandinavian pop and rock, is getting festive for this start of the Christmas season with drink specials and holiday hits in addition to their regular fare. Pop into Café St.-Ex in your finest crown of candles, and you might even get a free drink. 10 p.m., FREE. >> Le Loup are also celebrating tonight, in a homecoming of sorts for the local......

FRIDAY: >> Ted Leo and the Pharmacists are at the 9:30 Club with Kristeen Young and Partyline, $15, 9 p.m. Also Saturday with Kristeen Young and Ris Paul Ric. >> DC9's Liberation Dance Party hosts Brooklyn's Jaguar Club. $6, 9 p.m. SATURDAY: >> The Historic Sixth and I Synagogue hosts The Eight, D.C.'s part of a "worldwide Hannukah party" featuring the LeeVees, DeLeon and D.C.'s own Black and White JohnsonsJacksons. $12/$18, all ages, 9 p.m.......

>> Detroit garage rockers Gore Gore Girls are at DC9 with two local acts: the Highballers and the Droptops. 9 p.m., $10. >> Don't miss our full preview of the Stones Throw concert tonight at Black Cat. 8 p.m., $20. >> Looking to crash one of those well-monied D.C. holiday parties for free food and drinks? Via BrightestYoungThings, a handy list. >> Thievery Corporation's Rob Garza's latest side-project, Dust Galaxy, will be at the musician's......

MONDAY >> Those looking to kick the month off with a bang might be out of luck, as it looks like there's not a whole lot going down tonight. Still, it's not a total wash, as all the usual suspects — the Black Cat, DC9, the Velvet Lounge and the Rock and Roll Hotel — will have their bars open and waiting for the District's disillusioned masses. >> DJ Jahsonic has a new Monday night......

FRIDAY: >>Great quadruple bill comes to the Rock and Roll Hotel: Three Stars alums Jukebox the Ghost (pictured right) and tour diarists These United States join DCist fave Ra Ra Riot and Sam Champion. All that for the low, low price of $10 before, $12 at the door. Show 9 p.m. >> The Black Cat once again hosts Cryfest, everyone's favorite dance party that pits The Smiths vs. The Cure, brought to you by DJs......

>> The Black Cat's backstage is going to be pumping out the punk noise tonight as Antelope stops by, with Thank You and The Andalusians. $8, 9 p.m. >> DC Scores, a local nonprofit that provides innovative after-school programming to Washington kids, is hosting its 10th Annual Poetry Slam tonight. The event will feature 300 of the District's public elementary and middle school students competing for the coveted Golden Mic trophy -- obviously it......

>>Dinosaur Jr. just can't stop re-uniting. Their relatively recent comeback album, Beyond, was a solid return to form, and despite the years, these guys still bring it with their feedback-drenched power-trio jams. An odd combination of opening band names: Awesome Color and Dead Confederate. At the Black Cat, $20, 8 p.m. The Woggles -- that ageless bunch of garage-dwelling retro-rockers from Georgia -- plays DC9. They'll be joined by D.C.'s terrific purveyors of garage,......

MONDAY >>Satisfy your cheese cravings as former American Idol star (and Richmond, VA native) Elliot Yamin plays the 9:30 Club, with the Last Goodnight and Josh Hoge. $25, Doors at 7 p.m. >>Australian pop singer Ben Lee -- he of the short-lived Bens and "Catch My Disease" moderate fame -- comes to Alexandria's Del Ray neighborhood to play the Birchmere. Joining him is are Cary Brothers. $19.50, 7:30 p.m. TUESDAY >>Dinosaur Jr. just can't stop......

>> The silent film version of the original Chicago will be presented with live musical accompaniment at the AFI Silver Theater. 7 p.m. >> New Yorker music critic Alex Ross will be at Politics and Prose to read from The Rest is Noise, a history of the 20th century through its music. 7 p.m. >> Brooklyn's Black Dice are at the Rock and Roll Hotel with Ecstatic Sunshine, Baltimore's Ponytail and The Methamphetamines. 8......

FRIDAY: >> Local comic book store Fantom Comics is celebrating the grand opening of their new Union Station store tonight with a party from 6 to 10:30 p.m. They'll be serving up free pizza on the early side and the comedy stylings of the Geek Comedy Tour during the second half of the night. There will also be a trivia contest with $500 gift certificates up for grabs. The party is inside the Union......

>> Open City, the coffeehouse, diner and bar in Woodley Park, is celebrating its 2nd birthday tonight by offering diners their choice of a free cup of Tryst blend coffee, a glass of champagne, or a piece of chocolate birthday cake. >> Homegrown online fashion purveyors Unsung Designers are heading to New York, but tonight they'll be hosting a final D.C. trunk sale from 6 to 9 p.m. at 2412 18th Street NW in......

Monday >> If you’re not a Springsteen fan, the place to be Monday night is the Black Cat for an evening of dance-punk. Kentucky’s VHS or Beta (pictured) are supporting the recent release of Bring on the Comets along with Los Angeles' Moving Units, whose catchy 2004 single “Between Us and Them” is reason enough get you up and moving. Local favorites Soft Complex will be opening. $13, 8 p.m. Tuesday >> The Austin Chronicle......

FRIDAY: >> It’s been over six years since he last had a properly released album, but crooner Bilal (left) has still managed to catch people’s attention with some of his latest material. Too bad it was illegally leaked and now his label is threatening never to let the refined product see the light of day. Regardless, his Black Cat performance should be noteworthy. 9 p.m., $22. >> We’ve told you about Deleted Scenes many times......

Rogue Wave is what you might call the paradigmatic 2007 indie band: their hooks are pretty, their lyrics are incomprehensible, and their singles appear regularly on both elitist music blogs and network television soundtracks. Accordingly, the question facing Rogue Wave is the one facing all the other Pitchfork wunderkind of similar vintage: Are they a small band that, for the moment, is big, or a big band that, for the moment, is small? Last......

MONDAY >> Performing as Phosphorescent, Matthew Houck (right) dropped his latest effort, Pride, at the end of last month. Reviews for the album have been glowing for the Southern-bred multi-instrumentalist. He’ll be making an appearance at the Black Cat with the help of his touring band. 9 p.m., $10. >> With an album titled Heavy Deavy Skull Lover, you’d be right to guess that The Warlocks aren’t exactly members of a pep squad. Still, their......

The National Symphony Orchestra is about to lose its captain, when Music Director Leonard Slatkin steps down at the end of this season. Slatkin is clearly not ready to retire, although he has hinted that he is all too ready to move past the discomforts of his tenure in Washington. He will split his time among the Detroit Symphony Orchestra, the Royal Philharmonic in London, and the Pittsburgh Symphony, as well as teaching at Indiana......

We're a little short-staffed today, so if you've got any picks to add for this weekend, please leave them in the comments. FRIDAY >> This weekend the Uptown Theater is playing the final cut of everybody's favorite movie about replicants running amock, and young Darryl Hannah being super sci-fi hot, Blade Runner. >> If an apocalyptic future isn't exactly what you're in the mood for, try on Seattle's dream folk rockers, Band of Horses, for......

We would like to take a moment to thank this week's advertisers on DCist. AMEX Urban Adventures, because big cities are full of little adventures. Rogue Wave, playing the Black Cat on November 5th. NYC Visit, where you can find out all about things to during November in NYC. Busted Tees, where you can get free shipping with the purchase of three shirts! If you're interested in advertising on DCist or any other site in......

>> We interviewed former Grandaddy member Jim Fairchild earlier today, so be sure to check out his show tonight at Black Cat under the moniker All Smiles. Fairchild opens for David Bazan, formerly the driving force behind Pedro the Lion, will open along with Lavender Diamond. 8 p.m., $12. >> Palace of Wonders is hosting a special Day of the Dead performance of Philadelphia's The Squidling Brothers' Clown Centrick Sideshow, a vaudeville and burlesque......

It's hard to identify Jim Fairchild without first acknowledging that he was formerly the guitarist in the Modesto, Ca. group Grandaddy. Fairchild, however, has kept himself busy since the group's demise in 2006, touring with numerous other bands and also finding the time to record and release his first solo record under the moniker All Smiles. The resulting Ten Readings Of A Warning, a collection of charming, laid back lo-fi pop that belies his......

Happy Halloween, Washington! From the looks of things, Mayor Adrian Fenty is in a festive mood for the holiday, and had a great time right alongside everyone else at last night's 17th Street High Heel Race. The Examiner isn't so sure Fenty's high spirits will last though, as members of the D.C. Council are ticked off at the Mayor for snubbing their hearings by not sending a representative from his office to attend them. Hopefully......

We've written at length about England's The Go! Team and their fantastic live shows. The last time they were in town, they drove the Black Cat crowd into a frenzy, and now they'll be doing the same thing at the 9:30 Club tonight for a late show (10 p.m. doors). We recently spoke to Ninja, the band's energetic female MC who serves as the live show's focal point, on the phone from Los Angeles where......

MONDAY >> Do you like screamo? How about metalcore? Us neither, but if you do, get yourself to the 9:30 Club, for Underoath and similarly sinisterly-named Every Time I Die, Poison the Well, Maylene and the Sons of Disaster, and Belle and Sebastian. Just kidding about the last one. 6 p.m., $18. TUESDAY >> Stevie Wonder needs no introduction. He's coming to the Verizon Center today. Tickets start at $68, so get your wallet ready.......

I'm one of those music fans who tends to stick toward the grittier and more experimental end of the rock spectrum. Mention the words “cute,” “twee,” or “precious” and I’ll likely write off an act, or listen to an album for the sake of trying something new…and then subsequently send them in the direction of my recycle bin. So for those listeners out there who share my musical leanings, take note: writing off Jens Lekman......

We would like to take a moment to thank this week's advertisers on DCist. AMEX Urban Adventures, because big cities are full of little adventures. Rogue Wave, playing the Black Cat on November 5th. Busted Tees, where you can get free 2nd day shipping when ordering 4 shirts! If you're interested in advertising on DCist or any other site in our network, check out our online mediakit.......

FRIDAY: >> It's raining, and you've got some serious partying to do tomorrow night, so we'd recommend taking in a movie and saving your strength. Don't miss our movie picks for the weekend here, including special Halloween screenings of Nosferatu at the AFI Silver Theater. Also of note tonight, The American City Diner screens Alfred Hitchcock's Psycho at 8:30 p.m. >> If you’re more in the mood for getting your eardrums absolutely destroyed, Japanese metal......

>> It appears as if there are still tickets available to see handsome Swedish crooner Jens Lekman at Black Cat tonight, which is preposterous. The box office opens promptly at 8 p.m., so get yourselves over to get in line for what will surely be a spectacularly moody rainy day show, with Patrick Cleandenim and Viktor Sjöberg. Tickets are $14 at the door, and the show begins at 8. >> Don't miss our lengthy......