MONDAY >> The Library of Congress Mary Pickford Theatre in the James Madison Building kicks off 5 weeks worth of free Monday night rock and pop films with a rare showing of the 1966 documentary, The Big T.N.T. Show. David “Man from Uncle” McCallum hosts Ray Charles, Petula Clark, the Lovin’ Spoonful, Bo Diddley, Joan Baez, the Ronettes, Roger Miller, the Byrds, Donovan, the Seeds, the Modern Folk Quartet, and Ike and Tina Turner taped…

Good morning, Washington. Feeling alright? We just thought we’d ask — there are two heart-trouble-related stories in the news today, and it’s gotten us a little superstitious. First, Senator John Warner is in the hospital undergoing procedures to correct an atrial fibrillation that manifested itself yesterday morning (it sounds like he’ll be fine). Second, Etan Thomas missed the first day of Wizards training camp due to a newly-detected cardiac irregularity. There’s no word yet…

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…

Casiotone for the Painfully Alone may be an unusual name for a band, but it makes sense: basically a solo project by Owen Ashworth, the band uses mostly battery powered keyboards and electronics recorded on a four track. The results on his first three albums were intimate, ethereal electronic pop songs. On the most recent disc, “Etiquette,” Ashworth decided to expand his sound to include guitars, strings, pianos and so on, especially on songs like…

Those who showed up at the 9:30 Club on Saturday night with any doubts about The Kooks’ talent were certainly persuaded, and maybe even wooed into super-fan territory. The four lads from Brighton played a pitch-perfect set that had all the classic elements of an epic rock show, including crowdsurfing and a young woman who threw her underwear up on stage. The Kooks have been on the fast track to superstardom since forming in 2004,…

If you ask around, you’ll find a fair share of people who offer Fullerton, California’s Cold War Kids much affection. If your thing is fluid melodies, for instance, or taut pop hooks, you won’t find them in their repertoire. Their music could fairly be called repetitive. If you dressed sexy enough, I certainly wouldn’t kick you out of bed for calling them derivative. Some think their decision to release a full-length record distilled from previously…

> > Gerald Ford, remembered. [WTOP] >> The Metropolitan Police Department alerts us that the FBI will be doing a “fly over” above Washington, DC tonight until midnight. No, we don’t have the slightest idea what this means either, but why take chances? Tonight, conduct your illicit activity from the safety of your own domicile, where, as the courts seem to agree, you have a reasonable expectation of privacy. >> Of course, as far as…

Seeing as we’ve already effusively reviewed them twice, we figured that it was about time to step back and solicit your thoughts on The Hold Steady and their magical concert abilities. Were you at their Black Cat show Saturday night? Did you swig Budweiser and Jim Beam along with the band members? Were the songs lighter-worthy, or yawn-inducing? Did you find their presence powerfully earnest or overrated? A quick spin around the blogosphere shows that…

We’ve talked about the lineup, interviewd the organizer, and even talked to a couple bands. Now we want to give you the chance to hear what’s coming our way with some MP3 previews of a few DAM Fest bands. The music staff got together, divied up the lineup, gathered some files together and is now serving up brief breakdowns of a few bands D.C. will play host to this weekend. If you’ve got some insight…

By DCist contributor Graham Hough-Cornwell In 1974 after watching a show at the Harvard Square theatre, rock critic Jon Landau famously wrote, “I saw rock and roll’s future, and its name is Bruce Springsteen.” Now anyone who’s spent any time with rock history knows this as a defining point in Springsteen’s career, after which he graced the covers of Time and Newsweek (simultaneously) and would never have to play another dingy bar again in his…