TUESDAY >> DCist favorites the Vita Ruins are playing this very night at DC9 for $8. You're tired of barbequing and sitting around on your back porch by now, aren't ya? >> Love them? Hate them? Secretly listen to them while you take a nice warm bath and have a good cry? Keane performs to a sold out crowd at the 9:30 Club tonight. WEDNESDAY >> DCist's own Sriram Gopal will be playing some... more ›

The man with the coolest name in contemporary rock music drew the largest crowd we’ve ever seen at the Rock and Roll Hotel last night. Keep in mind that it was a Wednesday. John Vanderslice also completely demolished the "fourth wall" between the audience and the stage, handing out Mrs. Field’s cookies, inviting a gaggle of fans to the stage for a sing-along of "me and my 424," and descending from the stage to play... more ›

FRIDAY: more ›

>> The DC Independent Film Festival (DCIFF) opens tonight with a special tribute to Academy Award winning Executive Producer John Daly (Terminator, Platoon), and DCist will be there. Daly will be presented a Lifetime Achievement Award for his contributions to the film industry. Having trouble choosing between which of the 139 films being offered this year? DCist will have a slew of reviews over the course of the festival. We're especially excited about DCIFF's move... more ›

In a few short weeks, your fearless editor will finally be attending her very first Wizards game, and I'm getting more excited by the day. I've reportedly got a great seat (thanks, Matt!), the Wizards are having a fantastic season, and the game in question will find the boys facing down the Los Angeles Lakers -- a team I would be hard-pressed to despise more. Awesome. So of course, in preparation for the big day,... more ›

MONDAY >> New York's Teenage Prayers offer up a sound that leans heavily on the best kind of influences -- from Solomon Burke to The Kinks -- to the Red and the Black tonight. Should be just the right kind of band for this intimate venue. $8. TUESDAY >> The last time Art Brut came to town, DCist Kyle said, "I honestly can't remember the last time I had so much fun at a rock... more ›

Thanks to Diane "The PandaPack Winner" Shedd, DCist was alerted to this incredibly sad account posted on craigslist of poor Julie G's cat Mittens, who may have bit the big one earlier today, according to her not-very-subtle neighbor, Steve Y.

Hey Julie G, it's Steve Y-- your next door neighbor. I remeber you telling me that you read these. Sorry I don't have your cell or work e-mail, but I think your cat's dead. I saw Mittens climbing the utility pole that sits in between our houses and really didn't think anything of it. A few minutes later I heard a loud screech and then the transformer blew up. (I think you might have lost power too, so you might want to get a bag of ice on your way home.) Anyhoos, I kind of saw somtething that looked very-much like Mittens soaring into Jerry's back yard and then heard his Doberman go off the wall. Sorry you had to hear about it like this. Let me know if you need to borrow a shovel.

The summer concert season is well under way, and few surprises remain, which makes concert news that cuts through the humidity all the more exciting. Here are a few new blips on the radar that we noticed, despite our holding pattern as we await the official VFest announcements this weekend. more ›

MONDAY >> "It" band of the month Arctic Monkeys are headlining a sold-out show at the 9:30 Club with Delaware’s eccentric pop ensemble http://www.crackerbox.net/audio/spintoband/">Spinto Band. Fear not, though. NPR.org is webcasting the show starting at 8:30 p.m. as part of its ever growing and always impressive concert series. So gather around the laptop with the kids, and listen to the latest "greatest U.K. rock band of all time" play in our very own backyard. >>... more ›

It's a pretty slow Monday in the District, so watch 24, talk about how boring the Superbowl ads were, and prepare for an invasion of the sounds of 90s television over the course of the coming week. TUESDAY >> Got metal? The Giraffes play the Cat tonight with Skeleton Key and promise "pure metal joy," and lots and lots of volume. 9 p.m. on the backstage, $7. >> For the parents in the readership, Barney... more ›

Today we bring you the second installment of the November Three Stars, an interview with DJ Will Eastman. Yesterday, we reviewed Plastic Explosives, the new album from The Caribbean, and tomorrow this Three Stars will conclude with coverage of the Routineers. DCist Kyle Gustafson assisted in the preparation of this piece. DJ Will Eastman Since 1998, DJ Will Eastman has been haunting the clubs of DC, spinning the newest and best in pop (indie, Brit,... more ›

Monday: We love to start our weeks with a bang. Go have dinner in Little Ethiopia, then make your way to DC9 for some good old-fashioned punk with The Vibrators, The Screws, and Corrupted Youth. Bang! $8. Tuesday: Presumably, at some point, Sufjan Stevens is going to finish serenading the Rust Belt and start penning tributes to the Mid-Atlantic. And what we all want to know is, is he going give the District some love?... more ›

>> Hit up Fort Reno to catch performances by Partyline, teenage popsters Lemonface (at right), and Five Four. Things get started at 7:15 p.m. more ›

(Image © Kyle at Information LeafBlower) This DCist, along with DCist Kyle and DCist Rebecca (who talk about the show here and here), was in attendance at the Ash/The Bravery show last evening at the Black Cat. A good time was had by all (even though we were surprised that Ash opened for The Bravery, especially since no notification was made - The Bravery was originally to open for Ash), and the Black Cat... more ›