It's been nearly a decade since Southern Rock Opera -- a perceptive, engrossing, and very loud meditation on Lynyrd Skynrd, race relations, and growing up and getting out -- brought the Pitchfork crowd into the ever-broadening tent of Athens, GA's Drive-By Truckers. Maryland-based documentarian Barr Weisman's new DBT documentary, The Secret to a Happy Ending, will make its world premiere Sunday afternoon at the AFI Silver Theater. (It was originally booked for Feb. 5, but there was this little snowstorm.) Founding Truckers Patterson Hood and Mike Cooley, as well as Weisman and long-serving DBT drummer Brad Morgan, will be on hand to take questions following the 5:30 screening on Sunday. Another screening will follow at 8:30. more ›

Singer/songwriter/guitarists Patterson Hood and Mike Cooley had already been struggling to make music together for more than a decade when they formed the Drive-By Truckers in 1996. As the 1999 live album Alabama Ass Whuppin’ documents, this early incarnation of their band — which also featured drummer Brad Morgan, the only other founding member who has remained amid several lineup changes — was an explosive unit that specialized in bitterly funny slice-of-life alt-country-rock, mostly about working-class or sub-working-class characters (many of them non-fictional), all from the South. more ›

Walking into Jammin’ Java Friday night, here’s what I knew about Philly rockers Marah: 1) High Fidelity and About a Boy author Nick Hornby, a man who has documented his musical preferences at least enough for me to know I largely share them, loves on this band so much he devoted one of his book columns in Believer magazine a couple of years ago to their largely unsung magnificence. 1a) Stephen King --Josh Ritter... more ›

>> Must Love Trash, DJ Adrian Loving and DJ Gavin Holland have all volunteered their services at Wonderland tonight to benefit a group putting together a Columbia Heights Day festival. The party starts at 9 p.m. upstairs. Help these guys get their web site and street festival off the ground by having a good time. For more details about Columbia Heights Day, email ColumbiaHeightsDay (at) gmail.com >> The Hej Hej DJs, DJ Yum Yum... more ›