Tuesday, 8 January 2013: Jucifer and LTW - Black Cat (Backstage)
It's always impressive to see sludge-metal band Jucifer cram its stacks and stacks of speaker cabinets onto the Black Cat's tiny Backstage-- but the wall of sound that these two musicians make is totally worth it. There's a surprising amount of nuance behind all that racket, though (if you don't believe me, check out L'Autrichienne, their 2008 concept album about Marie Antoinette). Tickets are available on ticketalternative.com for $12 plus a $3 fee for a total of $15. Tickets can be also be purchased at the Black Cat any night the club is open (8PM - midnight) for $12 in cash.

Wednesday, 16 January 2013: Freakwater - DC9
Chicago alt-country band Freakwater hasn't toured around here in what feels like years (perhaps not since the 2009 Big Shoulders Ball at the Black Cat?), and they certainly haven't released an album since 2005's Thinking Of You (which was, at the time, their first album in 6 years). In short: who knows what the heck these guys have been up to, or what they sound like now?! You can get a sense of their recorded sound of yesteryear with their video for "Drunk Friend" or with their songs "Good For Nothing" and "Gravity". Tickets are available via ticketalternative.com for $12 plus $2.10 in fees for a total of $14.10, or at the door on the night of the show for $12 in cash.

Saturday, 26 January 2013: King Giant, Kingsnake, and Fire Faithful - Empire (formerly Jaxx) (Postponed from 11/3/12)
For those of you who have been waiting to see local southern rock/metal band King Giant play a show since its CD release show last January, now is (finally!) your chance. And it's certainly going to be worth the wait; as good as the group's latest album Dismal Hollow is, these songs totally slay live. To get a sense of what they sound like, check out the video for their song "Appomatox" or stream some of their songs on reverbnation. Tickets are available on ampedandalive.com for $10 plus a $3 fee for a total of $13. The venue also typically raises ticket prices on the day of the show, so bring a few extra bucks if you're planning to buy at the door.

Thursday, 7 February 2013: Kathleen Edwards and Sera Cahoone - Birchmere
Kathleen Edwards headlined the 9:30 Club almost exactly one year ago, so it's a nice treat to see her come back through town again and play in a smaller venue. She's still touring behind her album from last year, Voyageur, which has such a gorgeous, hushed, understated beauty thanks to some production help from Bon Iver's Justin Vernon. We're still over-playing the gorgeous "A House Full of Empty Rooms", over a year after the album's release. Tickets are available on ticketmaster.com for $25 plus fees of $8.95 for a total of $33.95. Tickets are also available at the Birchmere Box office for $25 plus a $4.50 fee for a total of $29.50, in person from 5-9pm, any night there's a show at the club.

Thursday, 14 February 2013: Retribution Gospel Choir and Deathfix - DC9
This show is on Valentine's Day, but forget going out to a fancy dinner, and go eat some delicious garlic fries at DC9 instead. Performing is the Retribution Gospel Choir, a trio featuring Alan Sparhawk of Low. RGC doesn't share Low's sparse minimalism; the trio (which also includes Steve Garrington on bass and Eric Pollard on drums/vox) is a high-energy rock band; their third album 3 is available now on vinyl and MP3 (note: it's less than $2 from Amazon as of this writing-- what a bargain!). Check out their songs "Hide It Away", "Workin' Hard", and "Destroyer". Opening this show is Deathfix, a local group that features Fugazi's Brendan Canty, songwriter/producer Rich Morel, Faraquet/Beauty Pill drummer Devin Ocampo, and Medications/Chain & the Gang's Mark Cisneros. Tickets are available in advance via ticketalternative.com for $10 plus a $2 surcharge, for a total of $12, or $10 at the door on the day of the show.

Monday, 18 February 2013: Pentatonix - Fillmore Silver Spring
We don't usually gush about reality show winners, but vocal quintet Pentatonix is something a little different. The group won the third (and final) season of NBC's The Sing-Off, thanks to their innovative arrangements of songs like "Love Lockdown" and "Video Killed the Radio Star". Since winning the competition, they haven't just rested on the songs they performed during the show; the group regularly posts new songs to its youtube channel, sometimes even taking requests from fans, and they included a few original songs on their debut EP PTX Vol. 1. Their two local shows in December (at the Howard Theatre and at Baltimore SoundStage) both sold out, so it's great that they're coming back through town again so quickly. Tickets are available on livenation.com for $25 plus fees, and there's also a VIP option as well (which includes a meet-and-greet, poster, T-shirt, etc.) for $75-$125(!).

Friday, 8 March 2013: Drop Electric, Atlas At Last, and Hurlebaus - Comet Ping Pong
If you like supporting local bands and you like quirky venues, then this show is definitely for you. The show is at Comet Ping Pong, which (as you may have guessed from the name) is a ping-pong and pizza joint in in Upper Northwest, a few doors down from Politics & Prose bookstore. Playing this show are the excellent instrumental post-rock band Drop Electric (check out their album Finding Color in the Ashes), post-hardcore band Atlas At Last, and emo/psych band Hurlebaus. Tickets are available at the door for $10 cash on the night of the show, and more information can be found on the event's Facebook page.

Wednesday, 13 March 2013: Alleghany St., Blasberg & Sgroi, Matt Tarka, Folk Rock Taking Over, and Ethan Schaefer - Jammin' Java (@JamnJavaDoorGal's Local Scene)
Jammin' Java's Mei, who tweets under the name @JamnJavaDoorGal, has been putting together a ton of locals-only shows, which is great-- we love to see the local music community coming together like that! This edition features the brother/sister folk duo Alleghany St (check out their original "All Roads Lead Here" and their cover of Ellie Goulding's "Lights" to get a sense of what they sound like), the duo Blasberg & Sgroi, singer-songwriter Matt Tarka, the string ensemble Folk Rock Taking Over, and newbie singer-songwriter Ethan Schaefer. All in all, looks like a great night of local acoustic/folk music! Tickets are available in advance via jamminjava.com for $10 plus $3 service charge, for a total of $13, or for $13 at the door on the night of the show.

Thursday, 21 March 2013: Behold the Arctopus - Empire (formerly Jaxx)
Behold the Arctopus is an instrumental technical progressive metal band made up of two guitarists: Colin Marston of Krallice, Dysrhythmia, and Gorguts, and Mike Lerner. These guys are seriously talented technical guitarists, so if you're at all into math-rock, prog, or jazz, you should definitely check these guys out. They've got a new drummer, too, Weasel Walter (from the Flying Luttenbachers and about a million other projects)-- he's a sick drummer, so the combo of the three is just going to be awesome. Tickets are available from ampedandalive.com for $10 plus a $3 surcharge for a total of $13, or in cash on the night of the show-- note that even though Empire's site says that tickets are $10, they tend to raise the price a bit on the day of the show, so bring a few extra bucks in case they do that this time.

Thursday, 28 March 2013: Borracho, Been Obscene, El Grande, and Supervoid - Velvet Lounge
If you're at all into southern rock and/or stoner metal-- bands like Down, Clutch, Fu Manchu, King Giant-- then this is definitely a show you should check out. As a bonus, it's the 7-inch release show for locals Borracho, who have been hard at work recording a new album (a follow-up to their killer 2011 debut album Splitting Sky), but for this 7", they dusted off a few of their 2009 recordings and polished them off so nicely you can't even tell that they were demos-- seriously! You can listen to the "Mob Gathering" 7" via Borracho's bandcamp page here and hear for yourself. There are two other great bands on this bill as well, Austria's Been Obscene (on their FIRST US tour!) and Pittsburgh's stoner/doom band SuperVoid, which will make for an awesome lineup here. Tickets are available for $8 at the Velvet Lounge on the night of the show, or you can enter our giveaway to win tickets and copies of the 7"!

Friday, 29 March 2013: Pig Destroyer, Darkest Hour, Old Lines, and LTW - Black Cat (Mainstage - presented by Surly and 3 Floyds - to celebrate the release of 3 Floyds "Permanent Funeral" Pig Destroyer beer)
Last September, local grindcore band Pig Destroyer had the album release show for the awesome Book Burner up in Baltimore. It was a great show, and we're glad that they're playing here in DC now-- they don't play out all that often, so this is a rare chance to see them play a club show! As an added bonus, since it's Craft Brew Week in DC, this is also a show celebrating the 3Floyds Pig Destroyer beer "Permanent Funeral", which is awesome. Also playing is local metalcore band Darkest Hour, Old Lines, and LTW. Tickets are available on ticketalternative.com for $15 plus a $3 fee for a total of $18. Tickets can be also be bought at the Black Cat any night the club is open (8PM - midnight) for $15 in cash.

Tuesday, 7 May 2013: Tiffany Thompson, Derek Evry, Tara Mills, and Christopher Graham - Jammin' Java (@JamnJavaDoorGal's Local Scene)
We've praised Jammin' Java's Local Scene shows (put together by Mei aka @JamnJavaDoorGal), and this is another fantastic lineup of local singer-songwriters. Headlining is Tiffany Thompson, whose soft-spoken voice reminds me of Jewel (in a good way), and she accompanies herself on both piano and guitar (not at the same time!), which gives her songs a nice sonic variety. Fellow performer Derek Evry has a pop-rock sound, and the other two performers-- Tara Mills and Christopher Graham-- have more of a folk feel. You can read more about the performers here and pick up tickets in advance via jamminjava.com for $10 plus $3 service charge, for a total of $13, or for $13 at the door on the night of the show.

Saturday, 11 May 2013: Peter Bradley Adams (full band) and Molly Parden - Jammin' Java (Early show - 7 PM)
This show was originally scheduled for March 6th, but it was postponed due to snow-- so you now get a second chance! Peter Bradley Adams might be better known for his former band, eastmountainsouth; although the duo released only one album (2003's self-titled eastmountainsouth), its songs have been featured all over movies and TV-- check out the songs "So Are You To Me" and "You Dance" and see if they sound familiar. Adams's solo career has been more prolific; he's released four solo albums and has another one due out this year; I'm particularly fond of 2008's Leavetaking (check out the song "The Longer I Run"), but 2011's Between Us is also great. Opening this show is singer-songwriter Molly Parden. Tickets are available in advance via jamminjava.com for $12 plus $4 service charge, for a total of $16, or for $15 at the door on the night of the show. Note that tickets for the 3/6 date will be honored at this show.

Monday, 13 May 2013: Ghost B.C. and Ides of Gemini - 9:30 Club
You may have once known the band Ghost B.C. by its former name, Ghost, but they added the "B.C." a few months ago (PS - this is the Swedish metal band not the Japanese experimental noise group). And really, they're more of a 70s rock band than a metal band anyway; their debut album Opus Eponymous is full of super-catchy riffs and sing-along vocals (I've never seen metal audiences sing along as much as they have at Ghost concerts). They've got a new album out now, Infestissumam, which is good but isn't quite as catchy or as riff-heavy as their earlier one. You can check out videos for their songs "Secular Haze" and "Year Zero" (NSFW!). Tickets are available via ticketfly.com for $20 plus a $4.75 service fee and a $4 order processing fee, for a total of $28.75. Tickets can also be purchased at the 9:30 Club box office for a total of $21 (the club charges a $1 fee, even for purchasing with cash at the box office), any time the box office is open (12-7 PM M-F OR on show nights: 12-11 PM M-F, 6-11 PM Sat, and 6-10:30 PM Sunday).

Friday, 17 May 2013: Priests, Give, Xanax, and Hand Grenade Job - Comet Ping Pong
We always love local DC shows, and this is a killer lineup at an awesome venue (seriously, if you haven't been to Comet Ping Pong yet, this is a good chance to do so-- get there a little early and eat some of their delicious pizza!). Headliners Priests are a post-punk trio that has been getting an enormous buzz recently, in no small part due to their incredibly energetic live sets (you can also check out DCist's interview with the band, here). Then there's Give, a melodic post-hardcore band (incidentally, neither of these bands is easy to google!). Then there's the dark Americana band Hand Grenade Job and the one lone out-of-towner, Philly's Xanax. Tickets are $10 at the door, and you can find out more details via the event's Facebook page here.

Saturday, 18 May 2013: Borracho, Cortez, Weed Is Weed, and Wasted Theory - the Pinch [3548 14th St NW, WDC] (Borracho Smokin' Brown Ale Release Show)
This is an awesome show for three reasons: (1) it's a killer lineup; (2) it's free!; and (3) you'll have the opportunity to taste a limited-release smoked brown ale courtesy of Port City Brewery in Alexandria. The beer is a collaboration with the band Borracho, who is headlining this show. Borracho is a DC-based stoner rock/metal band whose 2011 debut album Splitting Sky is awesome. They've been playing out a lot recently (you can see some footage I took of their April show opening for Fu Manchu here)-- if you've seen them, you know how much energy they have live, and if you've missed them, then here's another great opportunity to watch them while you sip their namesake brew! The other bands performing are Boston's Cortez, DC's Weed Is Weed (featuring Dave Sherman of Earthride & Spirit Caravan), and Delaware's Wasted Theory. As mentioned previously, tickets are completely unnecessary because this show is free! You can find out more information on the event's Facebook page, here.

Wednesday, 22 May 2013: Lorelei and Talk It - Black Cat (Backstage)
Yet another great locals show: Trio Lorelei is still going strong after a year back from its first album in 16(!) years (Enterprising Sidewalks still gets a lot of stereo time around the ShowlistDC headquarters). Also playing is the band Talk It, featuring two former members of the Teenbeat band Eggs. Tickets are available on ticketalternative.com for $10 plus a $2.50 fee for a total of $12.50. Tickets can be also be bought at the Black Cat any night the club is open (8PM - midnight) for $10 in cash.

Wednesday, 19 June 2013: Kylesa, Blood Ceremony, White Hills, and Lazer/Wulf - Rock & Roll Hotel
Kylesa's last area headlining show was in 2011 at the Black Cat's tiny Backstage, and it was packed. (I reviewed that show for the Washington Post's Express, and you can read my review here). The Savannah sludge band has just released another great album, Ultraviolet (check out the song "Unspoken"), so this should be an another awesome show-- on a slightly bigger stage. They'll still rattle the walls off the place, with their double drum kits and rumbling sound (bring earplugs!). Opening the show are Toronto's doomy Blood Ceremony, NYC's White Hills, and Georgia's instrumental Lazer/Wulf. Tickets are available on ticketalternative.com for $15 plus fees in advance, or $18 on the day of the show.

Thursday, 18 July 2013: Jucifer - Black Cat (Backstage)
We seem to recommend Jucifer every time they come to town, and for good reason: these two musicians create a wall of sound in front of their wall of speaker cabinets. If you listen closely, you might hear some tunes from their new album rising above the din. Be forewarned: this might be the loudest show you've ever been to, so bring earplugs. Tickets are available on ticketalternative.com for $10 plus $2.50 in service fees, or for $12 on the night of the show. Tickets can also be purchased at the Black Cat any night the club is open (8 PM to midnight) with cash.

Friday, 19 July 2013: Borracho, Lo-Pan, Weed Is Weed, and Kingsnake - Rock & Roll Hotel
We absolutely can't get enough of Borracho, DC's awesome stoner rock/metal band. They've had quite a busy year: they've already released a 7", collaborated with Port City Brewery on a smoked brown ale (which was delicious), and now they're releasing a solid new album, Oculus (check out this review on DCHeavyMetal.com). The coolest thing is, they're giving away free download cards to anyone who comes to this show, so for your ticket price, you're getting a great show (featuring Lo-Pan, Dave Sherman's Weed Is Weed, and Kingsnake) AND a copy of Borracho's new album. What else could you possibly want? Tickets are available on ticketalternative.com for $10 or in cash on the day of the show.

Thursday, 17 October 2013: Tone and Sansyou - DC9
Admit it-- sometimes you just don't want those pesky vocals interfering with your music. If so, you're in luck: this show features two great DC instrumental bands: longtime guitar army Tone and trio sansyou (fun fact: sansyou started as a guitar duo and recently added Lorelei's Davis White on percussion). Tone's last album was 2011's Priorities, and we've heard that they've been working on some new tunes recently-- so we're stoked to hear those at this show. You can check out sansyou's music via their bandcamp page. Tickets are avaialble for $8 in cash on the night of the show; for more information, check out the Facebook event page and/or the venue's event page.

Saturday, 19 October 2013: the Osedax, Hush, Fortress, and Thrain - Velvet Lounge
Bring earplugs: this show will be LOUD. Local doom metal band The Osedax has been recording a new album, and we cannot wait to hear these songs rattling the walls of the Velvet Lounge. And speaking of wall-rattling, Hagerstown's Fortress are unbelievable live (seriously: this is a band I will never pass up the chance to see live). Their Facebook page describes them as "slow terror", and that's pretty accurate: they are fierce and HEAVY. Also playing this show are local black metal band Thrain (featuring a member of Salome) and out-of-towners Hush (from Albany). Tickets are available for $8 in cash at the door on the night of the show, and more info can be found at the Facebook event page.

Friday, 25 October 2013: Cluster and Euphonism - Strathmore (Education Wing, room 402)
It's not every day a vocal group from Italy performs in DC, so have a listen to the five-piece group Cluster. Apparently they're quite popular back in their home country-- they performed on X Factor Italy back in 2008, and their first album Cement was the top-selling album on iTunes Italy when it came out. But it's not just about their popularity: these five musicians are immensely talented; their harmonies are tight, and their musicianship is incredible. They'll do some amazing tricks live (their ability to slow down, speed up, and change pitch together as a group is the best I've seen live-- they really do think as one voice), and to get a sense of their musicianship, check out some of their "Cluster Sings the YouTube Hits" videos live: they take a home recording they find on YouTube and then sing along with it, matching the pitch and tempo changes with a beautiful serenity (it's eerie and a bit challenging to listen to, but it's amazingly precise: check out "Someone Like You" and "Barbie Girl"). Their first U.S. show ever was at Strathmore last summer, so it's only fitting that they come back to the same venue on their return. Tickets need to be purchased in advance, from eventbrite.com, for a $10 minimum donation (remember these guys came all the way from Italy), and more information can be found on the Facebook event page. Note that this show will be in a room in the Education Wing (NOT the Mansion or the Music Center), so keep your eyes open for signs when you get there, and note that the show starts at 9 PM.

Friday, 25 October 2013: Zola Jesus and JG Thirlwell with Mivos Quartet and Raphael Montanez Ortiz - Hirshhorn Museum [700 Independence Ave SW, WDC]
We have no idea how or where bands play at the Hirshhorn-- and please note that if the government shutdown continues, this show will be cancelled. But assuming the show goes on, this will be a cool one: electronic/experimental singer Zola Jesus re-recorded her songs with a string quartet, with the help of Foetus's JG Thirlwell, and earlier this year released the album Versions. They're doing a short tour, and (assuming the government shutdown doesn't get in the way), this should be an incredible show. Tickets are available via hirshhorn.si.edu (and/or by phone) for $30. - this show has been cancelled due to the government shutdown.

Thursday, 12 December 2013: Heavy Breathing, the Jet Age, Tereu Tereu, and DJ Sets from Screen Vinyl Image & Paul Vodra of Hometown Sounds - Tropicalia [2001 14th Street NW, WDC] (ShowlistDC & Hometown Sounds DC Showcase)
While it might seem a little gauche to recommend one's own show, we wouldn't have put this lineup together if we didn't think this was a killer lineup: we here at ShowlistDC have teamed up with the good folks at Hometown Sounds for this awesome all-DC lineup. Headlining the show is Heavy Breathing, a band featuring core members of the Apes who perform with a non-human singer called the Rhythm Machine that creates vocal melodies and chants by splicing, rearranging, and pitch-shifting words and syllables suplied by anonymous vocalists. indie-rockers The Jet Age will be returning to a DC stage after over a year(!) and will be debuting songs from their forthcoming album Jukebox Memoir, and noisy guitar-driven post-punkers Tereu Tereu will be playing with samples, loops, and electronics and are likely to be performing a number of songs from their excellent Quadrants, released this year on indie DC label Bad Friends Records. In addition to those three bands, we've also got the folks from Screen Vinyl Image spinning tunes plus DJ Paul Vodra from Hometown Sounds, as always spinning exclusively DC music. Tickets are available for $10 from showclix.com or in cash at the door on the night of the show, and more information can be found on the Facebook event here. You can also listen to this week's Hometown Sounds podcast here, which features songs from all the bands on the showcase (and I'm a guest podcaster!). And check out this rad poster!