Libertarian-leaning Republican presidential candidate and hero of the Internets Ron Paul has gotten himself a blimp, and it's headed this way. According to a just-released flight plan, the blimp, which will read "Who is Ron Paul? Google Ron Paul" on one side and "Ron Paul Revolution" on the other, will launch from Elizabeth City, N.C., Monday and flyover Washington circa 3 p.m. the same day, with a rally planned for 4 p.m. and another re-launch... more ›

When the once dominant Rawkus Records, and the East Coast generally, fell on hard times earlier this decade, hip-hop’s underground-loving backpack brigade was left without a label to champion. Perfectly positioned to pick up the slack was an imprint from Los Angeles led by a guy who called himself Peanut Butter Wolf. Wolf (aka Chris Manak) started Stones Throw Records in 1996 when he released an album he’d recorded three years prior with his close... more ›

When the Dismemberment Plan decided to call it quits in 2003, D.C. lost the one hometown act that just about everyone could agree on. The years since have been filled with high expectations for all of the band's former members, though none of the post-breakup projects have managed to incite the level of excitement that always seemed to surround the Plan. As you'll probably recall, the first out of the gate was Travis Morrison with... more ›

Washington has a ton of good things, but also a lot of problems. One we often hear about is a general lack of customer service in some local businesses — sometimes people are slow, rude, forgetful, or a combination of the three. We've seen it all over, from fancy joints to Mickey D's, but it seems to be worse here than elsewhere on the East Coast. Somebody could make a lot of money by renting... more ›

Editors Note: We enjoyed the tour diaries J. Tom Hnatow wrote for us as part of These United States' last tour, so we asked him if he wouldn't mind doing it again as the band embark on their first ever intercontinental tour of the UK and Europe. He graciously agreed. This is the fourth and final installment of this series. The Paris entry: Thursday October 25th After our marathon, 14-hour, pre-dawn-to-post-dusk trek from Bath to... more ›

By DCist Contributor Aaron Morrissey Dogfish Head Alehouse, the third (and we assume not the last) in a planned series of eateries that serve lovers of the venerable Delaware-based brewery with the American basics, is now open in Falls Church, and DCist popped by to survey the scene in advance of Tuesday night's official Grand Opening party. There’s nothing outstanding about the place upon entering. The immediate thought was the episode of The Simpsons in... more ›

DCist's highly subjective and hardly comprehensive guide to the most interesting movies playing around town in the coming week. Repertory: D.C. Labor FilmFest Strictly speaking, the D.C. Labor FilmFest isn't a repertory festival, but with over half of their programming falling into that category, plus a dedicated retrospective to the great Ken Loach, we'll go ahead and shoehorn it into the category this week. The festival is put on by the Washington Metro Council of... more ›

California Governor, Arnold Schwarzenegger, has declared September “California Wine Month” for the third consecutive year. Since September is almost over we thought we would get into the spirit and raise a glass to the California wine industry (not that we think they need their own month). We would have celebrated sooner but we were busy getting tipsy off our own local Virginia Wines, as you may recall. The Wine Institute, a.k.a. the self-proclaimed “Voice for... more ›

FRIDAY: >> Octogenarian fiddler Joe Thompson (at right), said to be the last black traditional string band player, plays a free show at The Kennedy Center's The Millennium Stage with fellow folk musicians Wayne Martin on fiddle and Bob Carlin, a clawhammer style banjoist. 6 p.m. >> Space rockers The Gulf sold out their D.C. show in April, and are coming back to play at the Red and the Black with the Joonies, Twin Earth,... more ›

Monday >> Ben Harper recorded Lifeline in a studio in Paris, directly after his European tour. As a result he and the Innocent Criminals have put together an album from the heart and at the top of their game that captures his signature modern take on classic soul music. Kick back with them and Piers Faccini tonight at the Warner Theater. $40, 8 p.m. >> Canadian post-punk instrumental rockers, Do Make Say Think have moved... more ›

When New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg sent undercover agents into Virginia gun shops to sniff out illegal sales earlier this year, he had one point to make -- Virginia's guns are ending up plenty of other places, where they have contributed to a number of killings. Predictably, Virginia officials were incensed at Bloomberg's interstate investigation, issuing the equivalent of a cease-and-desist letter and pushing a local gun rights group to organize a "Bloomberg Gun... more ›

To be honest, Washington, it's taking everything we've got not to put up eight or nine posts today just indulging in our need to whine about how nasty hot it is outside. Apparently the humidity today and tomorrow is going to be so intense, it could feel like it's 105 degrees. Can we all agree that this is not OK? OK. Thanks. We'll move on to the headlines then, and by "move on" we don't... more ›

The Ponys play the Black Cat Backstage tonight with Jay Reatard. $10, Doors at 9 p.m. The Ponys are one of those buzz bands that seem perennially plagued with the “next big thing” tag. Hailing from Chicago, a city full of legends of all sorts and more than a few hype-worthy up-and-comers, theirs is a difficult task. But 2006's Turn the Lights Out picked up where Celebration Castle left off and took it one step... more ›

D.C.'s jazz community lost its matriarch when Ronnie Wells (pictured right) succumbed to lung cancer in March 2007. One of D.C.'s premier jazz vocalists, Wells began her career in the mid-60s when she started performing at clubs throughout the city. Over the course of her career, her music took her to festivals and around the world. In 1983, she accepted an appointment to the University of Maryland's music program, where she designed a jazz vocal... more ›

>> Since Tuesday is the new Thursday, we'd recommend heading over to Rock and Roll Hotel for a stellar line-up of DJs including Ken and Juan of East Coast Boogiemen, Lexus King, Devin Byrnes of Exit Only, Aaron Sparks and Keenan. 8:30 p.m.- 1:30 a.m., free all night long. >> Montreal's The Besnard Lakes play with Dirty On Purpose at the Black Cat's backstage, 9 p.m., $10. If you can't get enough of the... more ›

MONDAY >> If you'd like to see how infinity is treating them, Souls of Mischief, of the album '93 to Infinity fame (released in 1993 of course), will bring mid-90s hip-hop to the Black Cat tonight. We assume they've updated their sound a bit since then, but quite frankly, we'll take some throwback hip-hop any day. With DJ Lex, Icon the Mic King, Kaze and Zeph & Azeem. 9 p.m., $10. TUESDAY >> For our... more ›

The last time DCist reviewed a Morrissey concert -- in September of 2004 -- the Mighty Mozzer had canceled two shows in California the week before taking the stage at D.A.R. that night. As you might know, Morrissey was forced to postpone four shows last week due to a chest cold, proving once again that the more things change, the more they stay the same. And for Morrissey, that's not a bad thing at all.... more ›

This week you could be a busy classical listener, and hearing a concert almost every day, sometimes twice, without paying anything. The problem is that not all free concerts are equally strong, but who can complain about hearing music for free? MONDAY: >> The women of the Salem Academy Glee Club will give a free lunchtime concert (February 26, 12:10 p.m.) at the National Museum of Women in the Arts. The program will consist of... more ›

Hopes are high for the Baltimore Symphony and Marin Alsop, the first woman to be appointed Music Director of a major American orchestra. Last night at Strathmore, Washington got a taste of the adventurous programming we may expect from Alsop, who has made a name conducting contemporary music, especially by American composers. In a brief introduction to this program devoted to the music of Philip Glass, born in Baltimore 70 years ago this year, Alsop... more ›

It's a slow beginning to the week as every venue in our purview seems to be dark Monday and Tuesday, but it'll give us all a good chance to refuel before the '07 concert season kicks into high-gear later this week. If you've got any tips for musical destinations this week, particularly tonight and tomorrow, let us know in the comments. WEDNESDAY >> Emily Haines of Broken Social Scene and Metric comes to the 9:30... more ›

Perhaps you’ve been to one of those shows where the crowd – for whatever reason – keeps a ten foot distance between themselves and the stage. We’ve seen it before (last summer’s Clientele show at Iota comes to mind), but it baffles us every time. Seems to be that those expecting a night of folk-pop or softer stuff don’t want to get too close to the stage, lest they embarrass the performer or something. Luckily,... more ›

The only thing DCist likes more than going to concerts is giving away concert tickets to our readers. And since it's the holiday season and all, we are in the giving mood. We have a pair of tickets to see Robbers On High Street this Thursday at the Rock and Roll Hotel to give away to a lucky reader. Also on the bill are Monopoli and the hotly tipped Chicago outfit Office. The Robbers released... more ›

FRIDAY: >> It's going to be a stormy, steamy night in the District, so we'd recommend heading over to catch one of the Capital Fringe Festival's most buzzed-about plays, Rorschach's The Arabian Night, at the Sanctuary Theatre at Casa Del Pueblo. The space doesn't have air conditioning, so take a cue from our theater critic: "All in all, the dreamy, smoldering Arabian Night is worth every sweltering moment. But follow the cue of the play's... more ›

It doesn’t matter where they say they came from or how they were formed, one thing that will immediately draw listeners to The Roosevelt is their sound. It’s surprising to hear a new band write such polished songs with memorable hooks. Maybe there is something in the water at the building in Northwest that they're named after. As of right now, the band’s discography consists of a handful of mp3s available on their site. But... more ›

When Steve Earle, Lucinda Williams, Ian Hunter, Son Volt, and Calexico make a record to save your life, you’ve achieved icon status in the music world. Yet despite his performing in bands since the '70s and solo since the early '90s, Texas-native Alejandro Escovedo is hardly a household name for those who appreciate roots music. And he rarely sells out East Coast shows. But things are changing. Over the course of the past several months,... more ›

We're going to be the first ones to call it: the SILVERDOCS: AFI/Discovery Channel Documentary Festival is all grows up. Yeah, you heard us. As of this year, it's a real-deal film festival, the kind of event any filmmaker who knows anything would be thrilled to participate in. And we're not just blowing smoke. The lineup of more than 100 films and special events between today and Sunday isn't just impressive, it's overwhelming. With all due respect to FilmFestDC, its programmers kinda dropped the ball this year, and despite their wider range, the documentary-only SILVERDOCS has grown to be so robust, it could take FilmFestDC in a street fight anyday. Granted, a good deal of it has to do with luck; It certainly doesn't hurt the festival's growing reputation that feature-length documentaries are about 1000 time more saleable than they were 4 years ago (hat tip, Michael Moore). When Werner Herzog showed up to SILVERDOCS in person last year with his film Grizzly Man, we knew something was up. But when Martin Scorsese and Jim Jarmusch come by just to shoot the shit, well, that my friends is what you call a destination film festival. Right here in our own back yard. Hallelujah. Amen. more ›

A day late, a buck short. If it had run when it was supposed to, Transit on Thursday would have brought you big praise for Mr. Customer Service, talk of toll lanes on I-95, some trouble on the Wilson Bridge, and an official insult to D.C.'s drivin' skillz. Photo by Burnt Pixel... more ›

Perusing the dessert menu, we’re always a bit skeptical when we come across something such as “ice cream (chocolate, vanilla, strawberry)” or some permutation thereof. If nothing else seems appealing, and we’d like a bit of ice cream, then we take the chance. If we’re lucky, we’ll get some good local stuff from Thomas Sweet or Gifford’s. Or on the corporate side of things, we’ll likewise feel honored to scarf down some Haagen-Dazs, particularly any... more ›

Tired of all those museums, monuments, bars, restaurants and other entertainment options that the District has to offer? Head on out to Fairfax County. There might be something in it for you. From an email we received today: You might be aware of Fairfax County's efforts to increase tourism. In a way, you could say that they are trying to become the next Orange County, CA or Kissimee/Orlando, FLA. Tomorrow, Visit Fairfax will have a... more ›

Before we get into this week's installment of the inane, insane, and profane, I first want to acknowledge the incredibly funny parent of this little feature, Mike Malice's Overheard in New York. He has graciously allowed us -ists to borrow the concept as long as we throw a little love and a link his way, so here's a big DCist smooch to our paterfamilias. As for our version, it is only as good as the... more ›