With point guard Antonio Daniels out for 2-4 weeks with a sprained knee, the Washington Wizards were more than shorthanded going into Saturday night's game against the visiting Sacramento Kings. Rookie Nick Young started in Daniels' spot in the back court and scored five of the team's first seven points, but it was the hot hand of DeShawn Stevenson that led the Wizards to a 92-79 win. Stevenson played over 44 minutes and connected......

MONDAY >> It wasn't too far from here -- just a couple hours south in Midlothian, VA, where Aimee Mann got her start. Now the guitar playing song weaver is a bonafide modern music legend. She's treating The Birchmere to her 2nd Annual Christmas Show, and it's not something you should miss. $45.50, 7:30 p.m. >> Roofwalkers (pictured), the band formerly known as Pagoda, are treating the Galaxy Hut crowd to an evening of......

This weekend the Capitals decided not to add a great goalie to pull them up from the dregs of the standings. After losing seven of eight games, the Caps were in last place. This gave them the first chance to pick up Ilya Bryzgalov, a goalie placed on waivers because he didn't enjoy playing backup on the Stanley Cup champion Anaheim Ducks. Two years ago, Bryzgalov posted one of the greatest playoff shutout streaks in......

>> One of the biggest names in smooth jazz, altoist David Sanborn, begins a five night stint at Blues Alley tonight with daily 8 p.m. and 10 p.m. sets. Tickets are $50 + $12.50 minimum/surcharge. >> Our first must see of the week takes place at Twins Jazz, where the club will feature three ensembles under the direction of local saxophonist Brad Linde. The University of Maryland Jazz Chamber Ensemble will play the first set......

>> Could Harptallica actually be a Metallica tribute band consisting entirely of harp players? Yes, yes it could -- see video above for proof. At Iota, opening for recent Three Stars alums Yeveto. $12, 8:30 p.m. >> Bar Rouge is hosting Lolita and Gilda's Burlesque Poetry Hour, which will feature writers Dean Smith, Piotr Gwiazda and Remica Bingham reading from their work and then auctioning off a piece of clothing off their backs at......

To cut through all the verbal foreplay and just get right to it, last night, Kings of Leon put on the best concert I've seen all year. Maybe even longer. Not since The Strokes at DAR have I seen a band so well-rehearsed and completely together. And the boys from Tennessee blew Mr. Casablancas and company out of the water. The set heavily favored older material, mainly bringing in songs from their most recent,......

MONDAY >> This ain’t not J-Pop, we swear. If you want good old-fashioned Japanese rock ‘n’ roll (OK, it’s true, we don’t really know what that’s supposed to sound like either), The Captains from some place in Japan (the city name on their MySpace page uses Japanese characters) will drop by The Red & The Black tonight. They will be supported by Sugarcane Crawl, formerly known as Blues Hammer, and D.C.'s The Bourbon Dynasty. 9......

MONDAY >> This is a grand week for Three Stars Alums. First up, we have the magical lyrics of new-wave pop rockers LeJeune(***) playing D.C.'s beloved Fort Reno Park. Also playing tonight are Pup Tent and Engine Room. Show starts at 7:15 p.m., free. >> Next in line, take in the Dischord-influenced sounds of Cataract Camp (***) as they play the backstage at the Black Cat. Back in 2006, we predicted that this band would......

In a best of seven playoff series, any team with a 3-1 lead has distinct advantage. This is entirely false when that team is the Washington Capitals, and it holds that slim advantage over the Pittsburgh Penguins. The Capitals blew 3-1 leads against the Penguins in 1992 and 1995, and blew a 2-0 lead to the Penguins in 1996. Since this season's Hershey Bears are one-third composed of players from this season's Washington Capitals, they......

> >UPDATE: As a commenter notes, The Dismemberment Plan tickets for the second show, Friday, April 27 are on sale NOW. Go, friends, go! > > Best birthday present ever? Hmmm. Submitted for your approval: How about booking the Thievery Corporation? To play the birthday boy's living room? Well played, ma'am. Well played. [The Upstate Life] > > Why isn't Butterstick playing in the snow like his parents? Maybe it's because he doesn't want to......

Things were going according to plan for the Wizards last night when disaster struck. Almost. Comfortably up 17 points with just over eight minutes remaining against the visiting Sacramento Kings, the Wiz saw their lead diminish rapidly due to turnovers, sloppy play and a red hot Mike Bibby. Bibby, who many thought would be wearing a Cleveland Cavaliers jersey before the end of the day, celebrated staying with his current club by hitting four......

Here at DCist, we're all bout doing things bigger and better in 2007, so get ready for Unbuckled 5, coming your way next month. We thought we'd break from tradition a bit with this edition and (gasp!) book a band from out of town. Now before everyone goes and gets their knickers in a bunch, just relax. The District will be well represented at the show, but we had a chance to book Brooklyn's......

FRIDAY: >> Seems like it's an unofficial Film Noir Week all over town. The National Film Registry is rolling out all their classic Noir prints at the Library of Congress' Mary Pickford Theater — we'd recommend the chance to catch a free screening of Blake Edwards' 1967 feature film version of the classic television detective, Gunn, at 7 p.m., preceded by a 30-minute episode of the show it's based on, ABC's Peter Gunn, from 1959......

FRIDAY: If loving Busta Rhymes' new album, The Big Bang, is wrong — well we sure as hell don't want to be right. Yes, Busta has always been one of those charismatic rap superstars without much substance to back him up, and yes, there was a time when his shortcomings had become awfully grating. But now that he's hooked up with Dr. Dre's Aftermath label, that time appears to have ended. This is what summertime......

MONDAY >> Tom Kierein tells us that this is our last day of "comfortable humidity," before that familiar wet hot D.C. summer returns. Seize the day and head to Fort Reno to take in Wooly Mammoth, Len Bias and Polynation. 7:15 p.m., free. TUESDAY >> Leave it to Canada to fuse punk and folk. The Weakerthans @ the 9:30 Club, with The New Amsterdams and Raising the Fawn. 7:30 p.m., $14. >> Three Stars alums......

MONDAY >> You scream, I scream, we all scream for British and 70s-inspired rock. Double your pleasure tonight at the Black Cat, as The Points (Fredericksburg's answer to Kings of Leon) and The Cuts (think The Cure meets The Thrills) work the back stage. $7, 9 p.m. >> We caught The Parachute Musical a while ago, opening for Deleted Scenes (who you may have seen at last week's Unbuckled). They turn out impressive piano pop,......

Don’t misunderstand. We are well aware of the fact that Palena, Harry’s Tap Room, Sonoma and many others in the D.C. area sling a pretty good hamburger. But when the Bosnians do it, the burger is elevated from mere junk-food/pub food status to an ethnic cuisine epiphany. Cosmopolitan—a Bosnian carryout in a shopping center on N. Kings Highway in Alexandria—serves a terrific pljeskavica, or "Bosnian Burger." An enormous slab of mildly spiced beef is sandwiched......

FRIDAY: Anyone in need of a little funk infusion tonight would do well to check out Sharon Jones and the Dap-Kings at Black Cat. The DCist staff list today was full of sentiments like "I've heard great things about these guys," and Jones' background suggests she probably has more than a passing understanding of the world of soul: She was born in Augusta, Georgia (hometown of James Brown) and spent her teens in Brooklyn, NY.......

Sarah Kryscio (pronounced "Krissy-O") is a Wisconsin transplant to the D.C. area. When this DCist asked her if she had any voice training, she meekly answered "some." Perhaps she was embarrassed, but 'some' would be an understatement. You could even tell that at her gig opening for Mike Holden at Revolution Records, where she impressed the intimate (no mics) crowd with her singing chops, her note-holding chops, and her lung-capacity chops. That's a lot......

I am looking for information on Mexican bakeries in the D.C. area where I might be able to get a Three Kings Cake next month. Thought you folks at DCist might have ideas. Whether it’s called Rosca des Reyes, Dreikönigskuchen, Galette des Rois, or a Three Kings Cake, it’s time to start thinking about ordering one, should you choose to extend your holiday celebrations into the new year. January 6 marks the Christian Feast of......

My baby loves a bunch of authors, but this week, it’s all about the holiday, and our dedicated men and women of letters deserve a chance to be home with their families, enjoying what is now the mid-point of the Christmas season and elevating their tryptophan levels. MONDAY Did you know that in 2007, our very own Kennedy Center will be mobilizing local, national, and international forces to bring DC a six-month long, no holds......

MONDAY: >>Lucinda Williams brings her raspy voice to the D.C. tonight. Her Tom Petty-inspired brand of roots rock can be heard on her latest album, Live At The Fillmore. Or you can catch the real thing tonight at the 9:30 Club. $35, 7:30. >>Grab your Coke, gel your hair, and spend the evening with the man who made teenagers and soccer moms wear out their voting fingers in 2003. Clay Aiken at Wolf Trap, $25......

When U2 originally announced dates for their "Vertigo" tour, in support of their new album "How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb", local fans must have been upset. The closest the Irish rockers were coming to D.C. was Philadelphia's Wachovia Center -- a road trip that wouldn't dissuade the most hardcore fans, but would leave more casual fans without the chance to see the band's live show. But local fans have reason to celebrate: U2 is......

Truth be told, we're still coming down off our high from Sunday's Arcade Fire show. And if you are, too, make sure to set your Tivo tonight - they'll be playing on the Conan O'Brien show. In other news, February's actually got a rather great line up of shows to see. As always, we don't know jack about anything beyond annoying shoegazing indie pop rock, so make sure to check out the Post's recommendations for......

If you've grown up in the D.C. metro area, you've probably heard of Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology (better known simply as TJ). The school, located in Alexandria, is a Fairfax County public school that was turned into a magnet school for technology in the early 90s. Over the weekend, the Post published an article about four young alumni of TJ (math and computer geniuses, naturally) who designed a multiplayer online game......

Lost amid the Redskins “playoff push” and the whole DC Baseball brouhaha has been a quiet but impressive start to the season by that other pro sports franchise in town, the Washington Wizards. The Wiz were shot down by the Miami Heat last night 98-93, making them 0-4 against the Heat this season, but take away those 4 losses and the team is a very impressive 12-4. Even with them, their record is good enough......

As if things weren’t bad enough for the Redskins this season, rookie standout Sean Taylor was pulled over and charged with DUI early Wednesday morning. Virginia State Police Lt. Harry Newlin pulled Taylor over at 2:45 a.m., on the Beltway. Taylor was taken into custody after he failed a sobriety test at the scene and then refused a breathlizer. He was later released on a $5,000 personal recognizance bond and is due in a......

The Freer and Sackler galleries are encouraging visitors to take a final peek at Do-Ho Suh's "Staircase-IV" (at left) as its final weekend on display is fast approaching. The translucent red nylon work is a 1:1 scale reproduction of his New York apartment staircase, complete with architectural detailing. The artist says the "work starts from a reflection on space, especially personal space. The space I'm interested in is not only a physical one, but an......

(By DCist contributor Hemal Jhaveri) You loved him in Rushmore and now you can ask him whatever obscure little question you want. Of course, there's no guarantee he'll answer. Actor Jason Schwartzman, and director David O. Russell (Three Kings) will be online today at 12 noon for a chat on Washingtonpost.com. Schwartzman and Russell are out promoting their new movie, the existential comedy I (Heart) Huckabees, which also stars Jude Law, Dustin Hoffman, Lily Tomlin,......