This Valentine’s Day, D.C. is getting hit with a hot mess of glitter, corsets, and long satin gloves that likely will be pulled off, finger-by-finger, with teeth.

For all of the impressive albums, singles and mixtapes that local acts released this year, 2012 was actually pretty rough year for the D.C. scene.

H Street’s burlesque house and performance venue Red Palace will close out 2012 by closing its doors.

Ahead of their show at the Red Palace and an opening slot on Radiohead’s tour, we caught up with the guys (and girl) from Other Lives to talk Ethiopian food, van music and Neil Young.

When we talked to Adam Granduciel last week, The War on Drugs‘ singer mentioned that the most important element for their live band was, “just about getting comfortable with the songs and the feel of the songs.” This emphasis on the spirit rather than direct recreation of material was clearly apparent seeing them Friday night at Red Palace.

It’s difficult to enjoy EMA’s music. It makes sense that the Red Palace was half-empty last night, but for those who stood and listen, they found words and melodies that stick with you.

Is there anything more satisfying than knocking off work a few minutes early and heading to your local pub of choice to soak in a couple rays while downing an ice cold beverage? (Answer: no.) Now you can add the Red Palace to your outdoor drinking itinerary: the H Street bar/concert venue/burlesque joint opened an outdoor space yesterday.

“You are extremely quiet for a sold-out crowd,” emoted Merrill Garbus, the creative force behind tUnE-yArDs. “That isn’t a bad thing,” she explained. “It means that you can see that I’m working hard.” Indeed, tUnE-yArDs songs appear to have a plethora of components; sounds quickly created and looped by Garbus for very complex and patterned compositions. Yet, but for her admission of heavy concentration, Garbus’ work appears to be second nature. Her flow from looping one instrument to another was seemingly effortless so of course the audience was quiet; they were closely following her every move.

By the time The Fresh & Onlys took the stage on Monday night at Red Palace, we had already seen two unexpectedly fun sets from two other California bands — Crocodiles and Young Prisms. But there’s a good reason why the evening’s headliners are being considered the leading exporters of San Francisco’s New Garage Rock.

It is a rare crowd that will shush themselves when a performer takes the stage, but Sharon Van Etten’s faithful did at the Red Palace last night, supporting the singer-songwriter through the final night of an eight-week tour.