No, nothing’s wrong with your hearing, so don’t mind the static. It’s just time for Sonic Circuits Festival of Experimental Music, which is back for its ninth year and starts tonight at the Clarice Smith Performing Arts Center at the University of Maryland. The festival will hit a diverse group of venues, from the Kennedy Center to tiny Pyramid Atlantic hidden in downtown Silver Spring. The group of performers this year is just as diverse, ranging from avant-garde icons and highly lauded musicians to artists that eschew musical instruments entirely to create their sound.

For those who have never checked out the Sonic Circuits Festival in previous years (or any of the Sonic Circuits events held throughout the year), now might be the time. Mayor Fenty just endorsed the festival (whatever that means) and a new District of Noise compilation including many of this year’s local performers just hit the streets. If our guide below doesn’t answer your questions about the festival or its performers, just check out the Sonic Circuits website. We’ll also have a second preview for the last half of the festival for you on Thursday.