Wormhole Weekend

Buddy Holly. Psyche Delly. Tone. Food for Thought. Blob's Park.

Time portals are opening all over the place this Saturday.

First the Buddy Holly Tribute Show, featuring a plane load (sorry) of local acts, has traveled over the years from Del Ray (I think) to Chick Hall's Surf Club, and lately to Blob's Park up in Jessup. This field trip is well worth the gas to see a true throwback Bavarian beer hall, never mind a night full of live music with nine bands including David Kitchen and Ruthie and the Wranglers. Sadly this event will have to find a new home next year when Blob's shuts down with a farewell polka party at the end of March.

Beat Hotel, a kind of funky New Orleans driven band, will haunt the Harp and Fiddle on Cordell Avenue in Bethesda where countless local bands like Root Boy, Switchblade and the Slickee Boys once happily corrupted our youth. You might not recognize the space that once was the Psyche Delly. The bar's a lot cleaner now since morphing into an Irish pub, but the good news is live music can still be found here.

Finally Tone, an ever changing and creative band with deep roots in DC will be on the main stage upstairs with The Black Clouds and Highway Cross at the Black Cat. Club owner Dante Ferrando grew up with his parents' vegetarian restaurant Food For Thought right there on Connecticut Avenue, played in bands and was a regular at dc space and the old 9:30 Club. He was missing the niche that dc space provided when he opened his own place in 1993. With a nod to Food for Thought in the form of a cafe on the first floor, there are bars and performance spaces both upstairs and down. The Black Cat has become an important venue for independent under the radar type bands both local and national, as well as one of the few all ages venues to be found in this town.

So there you have it. Peer into the past; stumble on something new.

Who's Afraid?

Government shut downs, school closings and dire warnings of wind chill factors.
Are we being weenies about this polar bear-tex thing? Doesn't all this cold drama make things like steam heat and hot chocolate that much better? Or are you all done with the snow days and ready to eat your young like a gerbil or turn on your mate like good ole George and Martha?

Martha: You make me puke.

George: That wasn't a very nice thing to say, Martha.

If you can last long enough, there are alternatives to being housebound this weekend. The ever warm and enchanting Mary Battiata and Little Pink will be opening up for Amanda White at Ebenezer's coffee house on the Hill on Friday.

And this Saturday's dance event includes a rare appearance by the Rhodes Tavern Troubadours out lettering the billboard when they open up for NRBQ at the Hamilton downtown.

Don't Make Me Choose

If DC ROCKS comes to you via email, you can read it right there in your inbox with your feet up, or you can hit the link which will take you to the website.  There you will find a little calendar in the side bar which serves as a memory prompt for me and a rock alert for you. This Saturday the waning full moon brings too many shows to write about. In fact from 7 Door on Friday through the School of Rock on Sunday and finally The Tender Thrill Sunday night, there's plenty to choose from.

 You be the decider.

Thrillbillys Ten Years After

The Thrillbillys are a perfect example of why DC rocks. Musicians forever, these guys have been together for ten years now, and that means there's a lot of musical know-how packed into one band.

This Saturday help celebrate their anniversary with a rare "across the river" appearance at the Quarry House in Silver Spring.

Too Cool for Tuesday

Keep the Lights On

A good friend of mine was over yesterday admiring my Christmas tree. Yep. It's still up even though a  truck from the Department of Public Works already whipped by to pick up all those curb side discards early this morning. I keep it up for the lights more than anything else, especially this dark cold week here in Ice Station Zebra.

But it's good to know there's a green, gold and purple glow at the end of this cold dark tunnel. Mardi Gras isn't until March 4th this year, but Carnival season is already upon us, and with it come parties and king cake and a lot of things not native to Washington. Still in the dark?  Little Red and The Renegades can catch you up to speed this Friday at Haydees in Mount Pleasant.

Plan to dance.

Colder Than the Frost

Even bunnies are gonna need clothes tonight. The wind is howling as I write, and my rosemary plants are hunkered down under tablecloths. The thermometer is threatening to drop to a mere 9 by morning time here in DC. Hopefully it will warm up Wednesday when Bunny with Clothes gets on stage at Jammin Java's Battle of the bands.

Renew Thyself

Happy 2014. Time to rethink things a little. Make a resolution or two. Out with the old and in with the new. Clean out those closets. Get rid of that duct taped racket from high school. (No, you are NOT going to take up tennis again.) You might as well get rid of that half empty can of balls, too. Except the dog next door might want one. How about that skinny tie with the wine stain shaped like Texas? And that box of old birthday cards? (No, wait. Is that a ticket stub from the Cramps' show at Hall of Nations stuck in between the business card from the Joint Possession and that blurry snap shot of whatshername?)

Ok, the tie can stay... but only if you wear it to The Vi-kings' basement show this Saturday at Clyde's.  No cover. Just music and the usual suspects.

But please. Get rid of the tennis racket.