Time-honored rituals of the rock 'n' roll experience were observed on Thursday at the (incongruously-named) Jiffy Lube Live, as the erstwhile Nissan Pavilion hosted a characteristically impassioned performance by Pearl Jam and a commensurately fervent showing from one of contemporary music’s most loyal fan bases. Many “Jammers” arrived hours in advance to tailgate in the parking lots, trade stories about past shows, and animatedly speculate on the evening’s set list. Once inside, they stood at rapt attention throughout the concert, snapping photos continuously, raising lighters occasionally, and shouting along so loudly to every song that Eddie Vedder eventually yielded the mic, letting 25,000 voices belt out the first verse of “Better Man” as he strummed along on guitar. Only the most jaded observer would fail to be impressed by such an ardent and earnest crowd response. more ›

In the song "Elderly Women Behind The Counter In A Small Town", Pearl Jam's Eddie Vedder sings, "I changed by not changing at all," a statement that also holds true for his band. Pearl Jam has made a career out of non-conformity, innovation and being one of the best live bands on the planet, and last night's show at the Verizon Center offered further proof that the band's endless summer shows no signs of slowing down. more ›

Ragged Glory plays tonight at the Velvet Lounge. Can’t afford to pay $100 for a cheap seat at Neil Young’s upcoming DAR stop in November? You’re in luck. During our last chat with Ryan Walker from The Beanstalk Library, we found out he also put together a Neil Young cover band a few years back. They call themselves Ragged Glory, and the lineup plays something like a who’s who of up-and-coming local bands: Brian Kent... more ›

Texas is thawing, the Northeast is freezing, and a sort of natural order seems almost restored to the Ist-A-Verse. Almost. Londonist HQ—that is to say, the city of London—was battered by heavy winds, making it a bad time to be a twelve-meter (nearly forty-foot) tall snowman. Still, not everyone decided to keep warmly covered. Meanwhile, back indoors, the Big Brother racism is now causing all kinds of headaches for international diplomats, and Londonist got into... more ›

A sentiment, as defined by Houghton Mifflin is "a thought, view, or attitude, especially one based mainly on emotion instead of reason." The title is quite apt for the local DC rock outfit of the same name. The band is the brainchild of frontman Mike Medlock, and is as much his cathartic medium as his weekend playpen. Medlock is a passionate frontman, but doesn't take himself too seriously, and wears his heart on his sleeve.... more ›

Though the week was shorter than usual, plenty happened. We found out how many Metro workers it takes to change a light bulb, interviewed Aberdeen City, demanded that out-of-staters register their cars, and welcomed the Inter-County Connector. We discussed how to best secure a bike, cooked up some karahi, demanded some accountability from local cabbies, and found out that the District was getting screwed on federal anti-terror dollars. We checked out Pearl Jam, found... more ›

Written by DCist Contributor E.K. Eckert. DCist's angst-ridden inner teenager was summoned last night to the Verizon Center to party with the only grunge band from the mid-90s to have managed to avoid heroin overdoses and general disintegration. Pearl Jam, in short, rocked. Opening with “Release,” an atmospheric track off their first album Ten, Eddie Vedder’s iconic voice soared through the indoor stadium and never sounded better. After such a soothing opening, they jumped... more ›

TUESDAY: >> All hail the mighty Pearl Jam! Their show tonight with openers My Morning Jacket has yet to sell out, so fulfill your duty as a child of the 90s and head to the Verizon Center at 7:30. $54. >> The locals alight on Arlington, as Pontiak, These United States and Brandon Butler take the stage at Iota. >> In "huh?" show #1 of the evening, T Bone Burnette and Jakob Dylan -- remember... more ›

LAist has so much fun this week! They go to E3, where they overhear the timeless remark "Man, this is where nerdy girls get laid." Is that a promise? They also give us this week's best CDs and make us realize that LA is the best place to use Zillow. Ah, Houstonist. They're biking to work, that is, if they can figure out how to get there. That's right, Mapquest says "Houston had the... more ›

The weekly Ist wrap-up is written by Seattlest editor Dan Gonsiorowski. Torontoist throws down the gauntlet and challenges all comers: pillow fight, bitch. They also stand up for a fellow blogger taking heat from the TTC and welcome city-wide WiFi. SFist can finally admit it: It's possible that Bary Bonds juiced. Is Bay Area artist (tempted to put quotes around that) Thomas Kinkaid "kinda crappy" or "explosively crappy" or does he just like marking territory?... more ›

In yesterday's first installment of January Three Stars, you met Hello Tokyo. Today we're covering local guitarist/singer Mike Holden, and tomorrow we'll round things out with Ris Paul Ric (aka Chris Richards). Mike Holden We saw Mike Holden play this past Friday at Revolution Records, where he was promoting his EP, Level, alongside Sara Kryscio. His music is equal parts rock and folk. The guitar playing is mostly in the folk sphere, and his vocals... more ›

This is the second installment of December's Three Stars. Yesterday, we covered The Bonapartes, and tomorrow we'll be discussing LeJeune. Today, we bring you The Lucky Bastards. The Lucky Bastards DCist caught The Lucky Bastards at a laid-back show at the Black Cat one cold, late November evening. Having gone into the show not knowing much about the band, we came out pleasantly surprised at the group's ability to comfortably mix sounds from 70s-tinged soul,... more ›

Continuing on with the WHFS obituaries ... Today marks the first full day in over 20 years that FM 99.1 has not carried HFS. It could be argued that the end of WHFS was inevitable. The station began going downhill some time ago -- perhaps at the introduction of "Loveline" in the place of the Top 11 at 11, the inexplicable addition of Metallica to the playlist, or the mainstreaming of alternative music in the... more ›

If you were hoping to attend Moveon.org's 'Vote For Change' megaconcert at the MCI Center on October 11, prepare to fork over some dough. An email sent yesterday to MoveOn members registered for the pre-sale listed the prices as $90 and $175. The concert will feature Bonnie Raitt, Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band, Dave Matthews Band, The Dixie Chicks, Jackson Browne, James Taylor, John Fogerty, John Mellencamp, Jurassic 5, Keb� Mo�, Kenneth �Babyface�... more ›

(From DCist contributor Kanishka Gangopadhyay) A national star-studded musical tour organized by the online organization Moveon.org will culminate with a massive concert on October 11th in Washington D.C.'s MCI center, the group announced today. Thus far, the artists have been touring the country separately as individual participants in the nationwide Vote For Change Tour. The concert will most likely be the largest concert event to hit D.C. this fall. The concert's eclectic 13-performer lineup includes... more ›