So now you know who we loved locally this year. Here’s our list of the live shows that came through town and left a lasting impression in ’07. Dismemberment Plan Reunion Shows @ Black Cat DCist Ian says: The Plan’s much anticipated reunion to benefit Cal Robbins, the son of Jawbox/Burning Airlines frontman and recording engineer J. Robbins, sold out in under five minutes. So Travis Morrison & co. added a second show. In all…

So who do you turn to if you’re an embattled administration facing an unpopular war, bitter criticism both at home and abroad, an exodus of senior staff, and the barrel of a long year’s worth of lame ducked-ness? A retired general? Nope. A political mastermind? Nah, that would be too easy. Perhaps a captain of industry? They’re too busy starting and running multi-billion dollar foundations. Well, then how about someone who made his name by…

A group of friends gathered last Friday night at a rain soaked campground just outside the village of Cooperstown, NY for a weekend that had been in the works for over a decade. All of us, just north of 30 and pals since high school, grew up in D.C.’s Maryland suburbs and were in town to celebrate the induction of Cal Ripken, Jr. into baseball’s Hall of Fame. The event was so much more than…

Mayor-For-Life Marion Barry continues to amaze us. Not only is he utterly untouchable by the long hand of the law, but he is an amazing politician; he just keeps getting elected to practically anything for which he’s run. Now, he’s even won a race he wasn’t actively campaigning for: Barry (or his likeness, rather) was selected to fill the last slot at the forthcoming Madame Tussaud’s Wax Museum in Penn Quarter. The museum, which will…

Let’s get right to it: The Dismemberment Plan is reuniting for one night only, and tickets are going on sale tomorrow at 5 p.m. (via TicketMaster and the Black Cat). It’s been announced on the band’s website, and both Pitchfork and the City Paper are reporting the news (the CP is helping to organize the concert, in fact). In other words: don’t take getting a ticket for granted. This show might give last Saturday’s Arcade…

Tonight, George Michael, by far Washington’s best known and most dynamic sports reporter, leaves his post at Channel 4. The move, announced in November, comes amid a swath of cutbacks at NBC which claimed fellow sportscaster Wally Bruckner along with Susan Kidd, Arch Campbell, I.J. Hudson and Clay Anderson. While Michael was offered a generous deal to stay, it would have come at the cost of cutting half his staff. After 27 years at Channel…

FRIDAY: >> Nothing wrong with another strong all-local lineup: Washington Social Club, These United States and Let’s French will be on Black Cat’s mainstage. DCist has interviewed two of these bands before, and we’re set to get up close and personal with the third. So check ’em out. 9:30 p.m., $10. >> We’re definitely impressed with the speed at which DC Rollergirls have gotten their act together since hosting a series of recruitment happy hour/arm…

Okay, okay — we know, this is a Nats town now. But it’d be churlish not to congratulate Cal Ripken Jr. on his election to the Baseball Hall of Fame. Many Washingtonians regularly made the trek to Camden Yards during his streak, and to them Cal felt as much like a hometown hero as any athlete. So it’s good (if unsurprising) to see Ripken receive the nod. And he did it in style: Ripken’s name…

Instead of the usual end of the day roundup, we all felt strongly that we wanted to relay some upsetting news that comes to us from DeSoto Records. Local recording engineer and indie rock luminary J. Robbins and Janet Morgan have learned that their son Callum, born early this year, has been diagnosed with Type 1 Spinal Muscular Atrophy. From the DeSoto page about Cal: The facts are brutal: SMA kills kids. The disease affects…

>>H Street is already doing well as our new go-to for beer and good music; now they’re adding some art to the neighborhood. Dissident Gallery officially opens its doors this weekend with a reception tonight at 7 p.m. Check out Kid Flash’s textile and paint explorations of gender and class, Valentina Loi’s photo transfers that use childhood games as metaphors for relationships, and works by Piero Passacantando. >>Irvine Contemporary opens a group exhibit that shows…