Friday: Diwali Rock Show at Atlas Brew Works

Diwali is approaching next week and events celebrating the Hindu Festival of Lights are popping up across the city. One unmissable event is the third annual Diwali Rock Show at Atlas Brew Works, featuring local bands led by Indian American artists including Laal Taal (a member of Bottled Up), NAYAN, Prabir Trio, and Sravani. The showcase began three years ago as a project of Richmond-based musician Prabir Mehta, supported by D.C.’s Nayan Bhula (of NAYAN). In the years since its inception, the showcase has grown into a festival featuring far more than music, now highlighting Indian art, food trucks, and clothing. It’s part of a larger celebration of Diwali, the joyous festival marking the triumph of light over darkness and good over evil. The showcase, and holiday more broadly, is an opportunity for people to come together and celebrate the good in their lives. The showcase starts at 7 p.m. on Oct. 25 at Atlas Brew Works Ivy City, 2052 West Virginia Ave. NE. atlasbrewworks.com. $12. —Serena Zets 

Friday: Loboko at Hill Center

New York’s Loboko play Congolese dance music, a style that is best known for its high-pitched, mesmerizing guitar lines, tuneful vocals, and a funky bass and drums bottom. The band was founded in 2019 by Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo-born singer and guitarist Yohni Djungu Sungu (who’s toured with Congolese acts Soukous Stars and Fally Ipupa) and drummer Morgan Greenstreet (also an acclaimed DJ and podcast producer), but the two met five years earlier when they played backup for another New York-based Congolese musician. Today, in Loboko, they’re joined by guitarist Nikhil P. Yerawadekar, whose resume includes stints playing Ethiopian and Nigerian music, and a rotating cast of bass players. Their style of Congolese dance music is also known as rumba and the genre’s tempos can sometimes vary. In 2023, Loboko released their first single, “Kanyunyi,” which features speedy guitar bursts, but draws more from the traditional mid-tempo Congolese Mutuashi rhythm. While that song has a bit of a 1970s retro flavor, the band’s founders say their live style is more impacted by the ’90s output of uptempo Congo bands like Wenga Musica and current groups that have also drawn from that era. B-side track “Ekenge” better captures that approach as it uses the fast Congolese music composition style known as seben where the dual guitars take the lead. The guitarists aren’t doing flashy rock-like solos, they’re combining on shimmering notes designed to keep people gyrating on the dance floor. The bandmates tell City Paper they have more originals and plan to self-produce an album. Expect to move your body to those songs at the show. Loboko play at 7 p.m. on Oct. 25 at Hill Center, 921 Pennsylvania Ave. SE. hillcenterdc.org. $20. —Steve Kiviat

Friday and Saturday: Ben Folds With the National Symphony Orchestra at the Kennedy Center

Ben Folds will join the National Symphony Orchestra in the Concert Hall this week for an unforgettable experience. This isn’t just your typical concert; it’s a special live recording of Folds’ new orchestral album with NSO. If you are a fan, Folds will showcase hits and new music. For newer ears, Folds has made significant contributions to music and returns to the Kennedy Center recognized as an indie icon. His repertoire includes pop rock hits from his time as the frontperson and pianist of the alt rock band Ben Folds Five and several solo albums, but he also boasts noteworthy collaborations as a musician and songwriter. Folds’ 2015 album, Concerto for Piano and Orchestra, reached No. 1 on the Billboard classical and classical crossover charts. His most recent album, What Matters Most, which he’ll perform with NSO this weekend, was released in 2023 and features a more pop rock sound with a spotlight on piano. This concert marks a special homecoming, as Folds serves as the first NSO Artistic Advisor. In this role, Folds curated a concert series pairing NSO with numerous popular artists including Sara Bareilles, Regina Spektor, and Julian Baker. Ben Folds: Recorded Live with NSO starts at 8 p.m. on Oct. 25 and 26 at the Kennedy Center, 2700 F St. NW. kennedy-center.org. $29–$79. —Anupma Sahay

Saturday: Spoons Toons, and Booze at Arlington Drafthouse

It might be inappropriate for adults to trick-or-treat without a kid, but some grown-ups still want to dress up for Halloween. For those DMVers, here’s an opportunity to put on a costume—no children or trick-or-treating required. The Spoons Toons and Booze noontime cereal-based brunch features a Halloween costume contest, free all-you-can-eat sugary cereals (Halloween-themed brands included, obviously), specialty cocktails featuring aforementioned sugary cereals, and cartoons. Lots of cartoons. The audience will choose from 150 different Saturday morning cartoons, spanning the decades from the 1940s to early 2000s, to enjoy on the big screen. Pop culture and cereal experts Michael Austin and Nell Casey lend commentary between nostalgic cartoons about witches, monsters, ghosts, and other seasonally appropriate drawn images. There’s nothing too spooky about this event—unless you’re a diabetic—but if you’re not careful, you may die from Count Chocula. Spoons Toons and Booze starts at noon on Oct. 26 at Arlington Drafthouse, 2903 Columbia Pike, Arlington. arlingtondrafthouse.com  $15. —Brandon Wetherbee

Tuesday: Halloween Cookie Class at Lost Boy Cider

Cookies and beer are on the menu at Lost Boy Cider this season. Halloween isn’t just about trick-or-treating and bar crawls; it’s the perfect setting for a fun, spooky activity with a sweet twist. At this delicious experience you can sip on award-winning cider—or nonalcoholic options—while partaking in a spooktacular Halloween Cookie Class hosted by Sugarcoated Bakery. These cookie experts will lead a creepy decorating tutorial on baking sweets shaped like pumpkins, ghosts, and more. Participants will trade in Halloween tricks for decorating tips, including piping bag techniques, and using “wet-on-wet” style for detailed designs, icing options, decorating tools, how to add dimension to cookies, and all-important guidance on fixing decorating mishaps. After the 90-minute class, participants will leave with a bag of festive cookies, an instruction manual for future baked goods, and recipes for royal icing and sugar cookies. The Halloween Cookie Class starts at 6:30 p.m. on Oct. 29 at Lost Boy Cider, 317 Hooffs Run Dr., Alexandria. lostboycider.com. $65. —Anupma Sahay

Tuesday: Billy Ocean at Warner Theatre

It’s been 40 years since the release of Billy Ocean’s album Suddenly, the double-platinum project that sent the Trinidadian English singer-songwriter’s career up the charts with the assistance of hit singles including the title track, “Caribbean Queen (No More Love On the Run),” and “Loverboy.” In celebration of the album’s anniversary, Ocean is on tour with a show scheduled for Oct. 29 at Warner Theatre. What’s surprising is that Suddenly was Ocean’s fifth album—that luxury of artist development is almost unheard-of these days. “The whole record industry has changed drastically,” Ocean tells City Paper. “Record companies then, they gave you the opportunity to grow. Now it’s very much a case of a short-lived thing. They don’t give you the encouragement. They don’t give you the finance anymore to allow you to grow.” One of the key ingredients to the success of Suddenly was the addition of Robert John “Mutt” Lange, who served as executive producer and co-wrote “Loverboy” with Ocean and producer Keith Diamond. Prior to collaborating with Ocean, Lange was primarily known for his work with AC/DC, Def Leppard, and Foreigner. “Mutt Lange had his own studio in his house,” Ocean recalls. “Mutt is an amazing producer in the sense that he hears the record in his head before he actually produces it.” (Lange continued his collaboration with Ocean, co-producing and co-writing songs on Ocean’s next two albums, Love Zone and Tear Down These Walls). After nearly 50 years in the industry, Ocean knows what audiences want to hear. “I do all the hits,” says Ocean. “That’s what they came to see. That’s what they would rather hear than you being self-indulgent and giving new songs.” Billy Ocean plays at 8 p.m. on Oct. 29 at Warner Theatre, 513 13th St. NW. warnertheatredc.com. $41–$125. —Christina Smart

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Saturday: Rebellion and Aesthetic Expressions With Phuc Tran and Elizabeth Ai at MLK Library

On Oct. 5, two authors from different corners of the literary world, Phuc Tran, author of Sigh, Gone: A Misfit’s Memoir of Great Books, Punk Rock, and the Fight to Fit In, and Elizabeth Ai, author of New Wave: Rebellion and Reinvention in the Vietnamese Diaspora, sit down with moderator Thuy Dinh to discuss their shared experiences. The core theme of their work is self-preservation as they both navigate what it means to be Asian American in today’s world. Both of their books interrogate the cycle of intergenerational trauma and cultural displacement—while celebrating the Asian American diaspora and experience. But the pair are more than just writers: Ai is a prolific director and producer of several documentaries and films and Tran is a practicing tattoo artist and Latin teacher. Dinh is a critic, author, and editor-at-large for the Vietnamese Diaspora at the Asymptote Journal. A book signing will follow the talk. Rebellion and Aesthetic Expressions book talk starts at noon on Oct. 5 at Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Library, 901 G St. NW. dclibrary.libnet.info. Free, but registration is suggested. —Meg Richards

Saturday: Meshell Ndegeocello Honors James Baldwin at the Strathmore

 The late novelist, playwright, and essayist James Baldwin was born 100 years ago and died in 1987. This astute observer on race relations, queer issues, and humanity once noted in his writing that his thoughts were exemplified in part by the Black spiritual lyric: “God gave Noah the Rainbow sign/ No more water, the fire next time!” When Baldwin wrote that in 1963, he was spelling out the destructive post-flood fate the United States would face if Americans don’t learn from the country’s past and condemn bigotry and racial segregation. On No More Water: The Gospel of James Baldwin, singer and multi-instrumentalist Meshell Ndegeocello, with the help of her guitarist and co-producer Chris Bruce and a handful of other musicians she often works with, gives us a race and gender history lesson and guidance on love and hate via music and spoken word. (The project also features poet Staceyann Chin and author Hilton Als.) The music is penned by Ndegeocello and her bandmates and half of the compositions feature sung or recited verses that include quoted excerpts from Baldwin. Based in New York for years, Ndegeocello grew up in the D.C. area, briefly playing bass for Rare Essence and others before moving on to her solo career that brought her some ’90s hits and much critical acclaim. This latest album has its roots in a 2016 theatrical effort she created and presented in Harlem called Can I Get a Witness? The Gospel of James Baldwin, which was based on his writings collected in his book The Fire Next Time. While the lyrical messages about the unending inhumane treatment of Black people—from enslavement through to the murder of Tamir Rice—are appalling and painful, Ndegeocello and her vocalists are steadfast in their desire as Chin chants assertively to “Find courage to speak for them.” The clever musical composing uses acoustic and digital instrumentation influenced by multiple eras of Black music to create ethereal jazzy funk. The track “On the Mountain” vocally goes from Als’ spoken word over squawking jazz horns to operatic soul via singer Justin Hicks, while the “The Price of the Ticket” is a ballad with acoustic guitar playing rooted in early 1960s Odetta-style folk with Ndegeocello plaintively asking a cop to put down his gun that is aimed at her. Other songs use Baptist church organ and gorgeous vocal harmonies to convey riveting emotions and to present Baldwin’s personal and timeless themes. Meshell Ndegeocello: No More Water / The Gospel of James Baldwin starts at 8 p.m. on Oct. 5 at the Music Center at Strathmore, 5301 Tuckerman Ln., North Bethesda. strathmore.org. $28–$74. —Steve Kiviat   

Ends Soon: Ikxisuluntuk (Swollen Foot), a Live Radio Play at Dandelion Collective DC

Created by Angel Rose Artist Collective, Ikxisuluntuk (Swollen Foot), a bilingual Nawat and English language audio adaptation of Sophocles’ play Oedipus the King, opened last week at Dandelion Collective DC. As someone forced to study Oedipus in high school and college, I found it thrilling to see an adaptation breathe new life into the Greek tragedy. Petrona Xemi Tapepechul, managing director of Angel Rose Artist Collective, has updated Sophocles’ story to focus on Tiutećan, the city of the Gods, as it suffers a terrible (and all too timely) curse: the loss of its ancestral language. A foreigner, Ikxisuluntuk (Swollen Foot), a fluent Nawat speaker, arrives and quickly becomes the King of Tiutećan. A lifelong curse follows Ikxisuluntuk and he’s forced to beg for answers and forgiveness from the city Elders. They send Ikxisuluntuk on a journey of self-discovery, betrayal, and self-doubt. In a press release, Tapepechul says, “Today, there are less than 50 first-language speakers of Nawat alive, making Nawat a critically endangered language as declared by the United Nations.” Tapepechul notes that Oedipus has been translated into dozens of languages, “and now, we have a Nawat-language version … for our communities who are working to revitalize this language for future generations.” The play previously ran this summer at Sitar Arts Center and the Mount Pleasant Library. This time around, this important production is only doing a 12-show run so be sure to catch it before it closes. Ikxisuluntuk (Swollen Foot), the live radio play, runs through Oct. 13 at Dandelion Collective DC, 3417 14th St. NW. angelrosearts.org. $20. —Serena Zets 

Ongoing: Diane Szczepaniak at Gallery Neptune & Brown

Diane Szczepaniak (1956-2019) was a Detroit-born painter who worked as an artist in D.C. since the 1990s. A retrospective of her work at Gallery Neptune & Brown, Meditations on Color and Light, includes a watery landscape limned in creamy oils; a large-scale, Op Art-inspired watercolor featuring cheerily colored, hand-drawn squares that communicate an oddly 3D texture; and patchwork-like assemblages of soft tones. But Szczepaniak’s most impressive works play with subtle gradations of color, created by careful layering of paint. In two works, Szczepaniak lightly spreads white highlights over understated fields of blue, creating unexpectedly radiating patterns. And in nine works that comprise the exhibit’s visual core, she replicates an L-shaped form that suggests the frame of a painting or a window. Within this repeated structure, Szczepaniak pairs tones such as magenta and various shades of blue with a dreamy subtlety that evokes the paintings of Mark Rothko, or, perhaps even more, the out-of-focus photographs of Uta Barth, some of which featured fuzzily portrayed windows into the obscure distance. Meditations on Color and Light runs through Oct. 19 at Gallery Neptune & Brown, 1530 14th St. NW. Wednesdays through Saturdays, noon to 7 p.m. galleryneptunebrown.com. Free. —Louis Jacobson

Ongoing: Power & Light at the National Archives

In 1946, coal occupied a central place in the national consciousness. That year, widespread strikes at coal mines threatened not just an industry but a crucial source of energy for the nation. The Truman Administration negotiated an agreement to end the strikes, which included one provision that’s now the subject of a National Archives exhibition: a 2,000-image survey of the coal-mining industry by Russell Lee (1903-1986), a member of the federal photography corps that documented the Great Depression. The largely forgotten survey, which spanned mines in 13 states, used black-and-white photography to spotlight both the grim working conditions underground and the families’ cramped, newspaper-lined homes, with the goal of publicizing the plight of coal workers. The subjects are notably diverse—many of the people captured on film are Black, some are Asian, and many were brought into the industry in order to keep wages low. The adults project an understandable weariness, but the children remain angelic, even when pushing a baby around in a makeshift stroller made from a discarded box of mine explosives. If images like Lee’s aren’t enough of a gut punch, the exhibit delivers an even bigger one in its final panel: A 1979 follow-up survey found significant material improvements for most mine families, but many who were interviewed voiced frustration that the nation continued to view them as backward and impoverished. Lee’s work from the 1940s “may have inadvertently contributed to this lasting stereotype,” the exhibit acknowledges. Given this, what are we to think about the value of documentary photography? At this point, I have no idea. Power & Light runs through Dec. 7, 2025, at the National Archives, 700 Pennsylvania Ave. NW. Daily from 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. archivesfoundation.org. Free. —Louis Jacobson

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City Paper’s contributors have their fingers on the pulse of what’s happening in and around the city. These arts events, however, could be overlooked if you aren’t paying attention. Lucky for you, we are.  

Below you’ll find some comedy, a folk fest and craft show, and two book talks—Emma Copley Eisenberg discusses Housemates and Bob Boilen joins Joe Boyd for a conversation on the music producer’s latest book, And the Roots of Rhythm Remain.

You’ll also get a chance to see what the two new but not yet built Smithsonians—National Museum of the American Latino and the American Women’s History Museum—have to offer with an event dedicated to Celia Cruz.

Takoma Park Folk Festival at Takoma Park Middle School  On Sept. 8

First held in 1978 and run entirely by volunteers, the painfully charming Takoma Park Folk Festival highlights living traditions of Takoma Park and Silver Spring communities and the surrounding areas. This year, the free one-day festival is featuring more than 40 acts across six stages covering a wide swath of vernacular musical stylings, plus a jam-packed juried craft show running the gamut from metalwork and jewelry to food and fiber arts. The festival runs from 10:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. in the Takoma Park Middle School gymnasium, 7611 Piney Branch Rd., Takoma Park. Free. —Amelia Roth-Dishy

Joe Boyd With Bob Boilen at Politics and Prose Union Market on Sept. 14

You know if a book begins with the sentence “Malcolm McLaren was bored,” it’s going to be great. Record producer/writer Joe Boyd (Pink Floyd, R.E.M., Nick Drake) follows up his memoir, White Bicycles: Making Music in the 1960s, with And the Roots of Rhythm Remain, a look at the history and sociology of popular music, which he will discuss with Bob Boilen at Politics and Prose. The conversation starts at 6 p.m. at Politics and Prose Union Market, 1324 4th St. NE. Free. —Christina Smart

Emma Copley Eisenberg at Lost City Books on Sept. 19 

Emma Copley Eisenberg’s road-trip novel about friendship, creation, queer coming of age, and unearthing lost histories is one of my favorite books of the year. Housemates is best enjoyed in the shade of a good tree, while listening to a nostalgic playlist your best friend made for you. Or, for one night only, it might best be enjoyed with Eisenberg, who will be in town to discuss it. The discussion starts at 7 p.m. at Lost City Books, 2467 18th St. NW. Free. —Serena Zets

An Evening Celebrating the Life and Legacy of Celia Cruz at the National Museum of American History on Sept. 20

You can’t really celebrate the life of the reigning Afro-Cuban salsa queen without a little azucar. To officially cement Celia Cruz’s legacy on the 2024 Celia Cruz Quarter, the National Museum of the American Latino, the American Women’s History Museum, and others host a free night covering all things Cruz—from panel discussions recounting her legendary status, to salsa lessons, and a dance party to the all-woman salsa band Lulada Club. The celebration starts at 7 p.m. at the Museum of American History, 1300 Constitution Ave. NW. Free. —Heidi Perez-Moreno

Craft2Wear at the National Building Museum starts on Sept. 27 

It’s D.C.’s own Project Runway, except these carefully selected designer finds are going on sale. The annual Smithsonian Craft2Wear Show will showcase jewelry, wearable art, and accessories from more than 93 artists working in contemporary American fashion. An additional 10 artists will show traditional and modern crafts from South Korea. The event runs Sept. 27 through 29 at the National Building Museum, 401 F St. NW. $20–$95. —Heidi Perez-Moreno

John Early at the Black Cat on Oct. 16

More than any other entertainer, actor, and comedian, John Early is the patron saint of dunking on millennials. Come check out his October set so you can find out how you’re still cringe, even when you’re pushing 40. The show starts at 7 p.m. at the Black Cat, 1811 14th St. NW. $45. —Alan Zilberman

William Gropper: Artist of the People at the Phillips Collection opens Oct. 17

For those looking for something quieter, a small exhibit of 30 pieces across two galleries highlighting the social realist painter and cartoonist William Gropper at the Phillips Collection will provide a jolt. The son of Jewish immigrants and a radical child of Lower East Side tenements, Gropper made unabashedly political works combining a satirical propensity for ghoulish villains—corrupt bosses and greedy capitalists chief among them—with a painterly attention to light and shadow. William Gropper: Artist of the People opens Oct. 17 and runs through Jan. 5 at the Phillips Collection, 1600 21st St. NW. $20. —Amelia Roth-Dishy 

Check out more of our 2024 Fall Arts Guide here.

Azymuth at the Black Cat on Sept. 5
This jazz-funk band formed in 1973, and while bassist Alex Malheiros is the only surviving member of that original trio, the group have continued to make music, with a pair of solid albums in 2020. Two years ago, Malheiros released his first album in more than a decade, and the Azymuth sound—rooted in the ’70s fusion but reverent of Brazil’s long pop legacy before and after—remains intact, and as vital as ever. The show starts at 7:30 p.m. at the Black Cat, 1811 14th St. NW. $35–$40. —Pat Padua

BLK ODYSSY at the Atlantis on Sept. 6
To residents of the Texas Capital, BLK ODYSSY is an artist to know. That knowledge should be spread outside Austin City limits. Words like “smooth vibes,” “sultry,” and “utterly intoxicating” are used to describe BLK ODYSSY’s sound, which throws a middle finger to genre boxes, dabbling in soul, hip-hop, and indie rock with touches of funk. Catch him touring with his latest album, 1-800-Fantasy. The show starts at 6:30 p.m. at the Atlantis, 2047 9th St. NW. $35. —Sarah Marloff  

Pillow Queens at Songbyrd on Sept. 7

Whenever a band 1) you like rocking to in your headphones 2) that hails from overseas comes stateside, you do your best to make it to the show. Ireland’s Pillow Queens would be great openers for Julien Baker (playing in D.C. on Sept. 27), Waxahatchee (at Wolf Trap on Sept. 6), or (fellow Dubliners) Fontaines DC (at the 9:30 Club on Oct. 18). Perhaps All Things Go can find a slot for this queer indie four-piece on 2025’s lineup. The show starts at 8 p.m. at Songbyrd, 540 Penn St. NE. $18–$20. —Brandon Wetherbee 

Pretty Bitter and Cherub Tree at Pie Shop on Sept. 8
Two of D.C.’s most fun live bands open for Brooklyn’s riot grrrl-inspired alt-rockers Birthday Girl. Pretty Bitter serve dreamy emo synth-pop (and they say this might be their last show for a minute), while Cherub Tree’s bubblegrunge is fueled by punk sensibilities. The show starts at 8 p.m. at Pie Shop, 1339 H St. NE. $12–$15. —Sarah Marloff  

Distrito Music Fest at Songbyrd on Sept. 14

The talent and artistry pulsing through SIE7E, Tres Minutos, Max Rosado, Soroche, and JChris has made these five local Latin American bands grow in recognition in recent years. Each of them are connected by varied influences that stretch beyond the DMV, which makes boxing them into a single genre largely impossible and it doesn’t begin to do justice to the bands’ repertoire. The raw, pulsating spirit that each act delivers with ease only gets stronger with every show, and I can’t wait to see this energy take over Songbyrd at one of the few local festivals highlighting local Latin American artists. The show starts at 3 p.m. at Songbyrd, 540 Penn St. NE. $38.63. —Heidi Perez-Moreno

Joyce Moreno at Blues Alley on Sept. 14 and 15
With chestnuts like the surprise club hit “Aldeia de Ogum,” this singer-guitarist has made some of the catchiest music of MPB, the sometimes jazzy pop music that can run from bossa nova to the more eclectic sounds of Tropicalia. She’ll be in town to play the once-lost ’70s album Natureza, and the extended version of her ebullient signature anthem “Feminina.” Moreno plays at 7 and 9:30 p.m. on both days at Blues Alley, 1073 Wisconsin Ave. NW. $40. —Pat Padua

Kehlani at EagleBank Arena on Sept. 18

Talk about a doubleheader: On Sept. 18, self-described “raging lesbian” singer Kehlani plays EagleBank Arena in Fairfax while queer pop star/celesbian drama magnet Fletcher hits the stage at the Anthem. The Fletcher show is sold out, but tickets are very much still available for Kehlani’s show, perhaps because the artist has been embroiled in personal controversy all summer. Regardless, the queer agenda did not coordinate well on this one. The show starts at 8 p.m. at EagleBank Arena, 4500 Patriot Cir., Fairfax. $35–$129. —Amelia Roth-Dishy

HFStival at Nationals Park on Sept. 21
People of the 1990s, rejoice! I.M.P. is resurrecting the annual D.C. festival formerly run by WHFS in the heyday of alternative rock radio (1990–2006). In homage to HFStival’s roots, this year features Incubus, Bush, Liz Phair (replacing Garbage), Jimmy Eat World, Girl Talk, Violent Femmes, Tonic, Filter, and Lit, headlined by the Postal Service and Death Cab for Cutie (great news for those who missed their dual anniversary tour last September). The festival starts at noon at Nationals Park, 1500 South Capitol St. SE. $150–$250. —Taylor Ruckle

LEIF at the Pocket on Sept. 23
In our Spring Arts Guide we introduced D.C. to the WRIZZARDS, a Filipino multi-genre collective. LEIF, who makes pop infused with alt rock, is part of that collective. The show starts at 7 p.m at the Pocket, 1506 North Capitol St. NW. $15–$20. —Sarah Marloff

Local H at Pearl Street Warehouse on Sept. 23
Touring behind one of their best LPs in Local H’s 30-plus year career, 2004’s Whatever Happened to PJ Soles?, Scott Lucas and Ryan Harding are lifers that fit on nostalgia bills but don’t attempt to relive the glory days. Instead they just provide excellent albums and stellar live shows that incorporate radio-friendly unit-shifters from the ’90s, introspective ballads from the ’00s, oddly effective covers from the ’10s (Lorde?), and screeds of righteous indignation triggered by right-wing politics in the 2020s. The show starts at 8 p.m. at Pearl Street Warehouse, 33 Pearl St. SW. $25–$40. —Brandon Wetherbee 

Bad Moves at the Black Cat on Sept. 27

We would be remiss not to mention the record release show for the local indie quartet recently described in this very paper as the “purveyors of anthemic guitar pop songs for underdogs.” You can also sample Ocelot Brewing’s latest musical beer collab, this time with Bad Moves and dubbed Outta My Head, a “power hop” IPA with bright, bold hops, malted oats, flaked wheat, and a 6.3 percent ABV. Added bonus: Ekko Astral open. The show starts at 8 p.m. at the Black Cat, 1811 14th St. NW. $20. —Sarah Marloff  

Outerloop at Pie Shop on Sept. 27
Not to make choices harder for you, but across town from Bad Moves’ record release show, post-punk band Outerloop are celebrating the release of their EP, which WCP critic Dora Segall says “packs a dense and eclectic array of lyrics and instrumental layers.” The show starts at 8 p.m. at Pie Shop, 1339 H St. NE. $15. —Sarah Marloff  

Adeem the Artist at DC9 on Sept. 29

Country music comes in any color you can find on a pride flag—not just the usual red, white, and blue. Nonbinary Knoxville singer-songwriter Adeem the Artist proved it on their albums Cast Iron Pansexual and White Trash Revelry, and they continue to capture the spectrum on their latest LP. Anniversary is another twangy and boldly political collection of songs that renders the culture of the American South in all its manifold hues, both light and dark. The show starts at 8 p.m. at DC9, 1940 9th St. NW. $20. —Taylor Ruckle 

Crush Fund at Comet Ping Pong on Sept. 29

“Unwanted Attention” makes for an easy two-word summary of the perils of trans visibility in 2024. In the hands of New York City queercore trio Crush Fund, it also makes for a raucous punk shout-along (produced by the incomparable Marissa Paternoster of Screaming Females). Likewise, the title of their latest EP, New Fixation, forecasts your relationship with the band, once you see them live—just be cool about it. The show starts at 9 p.m. at Comet Ping Pong, 5037 Connecticut Ave. NW. $15. —Taylor Ruckle 

Infinity Song at Songbyrd on Oct. 1

Infinity Song, a band of four Detroit siblings, will play Songbyrd fresh off their All Things Go debut a few days earlier on Sept. 29. The up-and-coming R&B band got their big break in 2016 when Jeymes Samuel sent a video of the group busking in Central Park to Jay-Z. They later signed with Jiggaman’s label Roc Nation. The show starts at 8 p.m. at Songbyrd, 540 Penn St. NE. $25. —Serena Zets

Chromeo and the Midnight at the Anthem on Oct. 3

It’s been a decade since the Montreal electro-funk duo Chromeo took the dance music scene by storm with “Jealous (I Ain’t with It),” but Dave and Pee are back with a polished yet still funky sound and tackling fraught subjects like relationships in your 40s. Complementing them is the Midnight, a band whose synth-tinged rock instrumentals hearken back to ’80s power ballads that will have you feeling like an action hero. The show starts at 8 p.m. on Oct. 3 at the Anthem, 901 Wharf St. SW. $45–$75. —Dave Nyczepir

Maxwell at Capital One Arena on Oct. 4

In the mid-’90s, Maxwell led the neo-soul charge with his debut, Urban Hang Suite. Nearly 30 years later, the hang continues. This fall, Maxwell headlines the Serenade Tour, his first in two years following 2022’s sold-out 25-date international arena run. The show starts at 7:30 p.m. on Oct. 4  at Capital One Arena, 601 F St. NW. $69.50–$79.50. —Christina Smart

Marcos Valle at the Howard Theatre on Oct. 5

Marcos Valle was a baby-faced composer when he made his 1964 debut. Since then, he’s written some of the most timeless bossa nova standards such as “Summer Samba” and “Crickets Sing for Anamaria.” Now 80, Valle has never stopped performing and growing, and his 2019 album, Sempre, is among his best. The show starts at 8 p.m. at the Howard Theatre, 620 T St. NW. $35–$50. —Pat Padua

SEB at Songbyrd on Oct. 5

Singles like “seaside_demo” and “last great american summer” might be the breezy mix of acoustics and bongos that got SEB noticed, but his wide-ranging style incorporates elements of P-pop, hip-hop, and proto-funk, among other genres. The show starts at 8 p.m. at Songbyrd, 540 Penn St. NE. $18–$20. —Dave Nyczepir

La Luz at the Atlantis on Oct. 6

Ever wish you lived inside a Quentin Tarantino-esque film about 1970s Los Angeles? This surf noir band should be your soundtrack. The show starts at 7 p.m. at the Atlantis, 2047 9th St. NW. $25. —Brandon Wetherbee 

Mass of the Fermenting Dregs at the Howard Theatre on Oct. 9

This Japanese three-piece is shoegazey and proggy, power poppy and lo-fi bedroom poppy, and more styles of music that make them difficult to categorize in the best possible way. If you’re on the fence about the live show, listen to their recently released live album and you’ll be sold. The show starts at 8 p.m. at Howard Theatre, 620 T St. NW. $20–$40. —Brandon Wetherbee

The Lemon Twigs at the Atlantis on Oct. 10

The easiest way to describe the Lemon Twigs to someone who has never heard their music is the Beatles meet the Beach Boys (or at least that’s how they were described to me before the owner of 48 Record Bar in Philadelphia put on their vinyl Everything Harmony). That’s a rather reductive explanation though, as the D’Addario brothers are two of the most creative, meticulous songwriters in progressive pop right now, which has me hoping their Merseybeat revival catches on. The show starts at 6:30 p.m. at the Atlantis, 2047 9th St. NW. $25. —Dave Nyczepir

Empress Of at Union Stage on Oct. 10

Honduran American singer Empress Of’s latest album, For Your Consideration, is all about dichotomies: English and Spanish, romantic and transactional, throwback pop and experimental dance. She’s comfortable in all of them. The show starts at 8 p.m. at Union Stage, 740 Water St. SW. $25–$40. —Dave Nyczepir

illuminati hotties at the Black Cat on Oct. 19

Sarah Tudzin’s indie-rock project first wormed its way into my ears and heart with their sad and slow cover of Whitney Houston’s “I Wanna Dance With Somebody.” Since then, illuminati hotties have fallen on and off my radar, but their latest album, Power, is an indie bop with staying power. Parts of it are reminiscent of Tegan and Sara’s Heartthrob album—the one where they got polished and started writing dance-esque tracks. But other parts of Power wash over you in a wave with its emotional tracks of stripped-down guitar and Tudzin’s haunting voice. The show starts at 8 p.m. at the Black Cat, 1811 14th St. NW. $20–$25. —Sarah Marloff

Aoife O’Donovan and Bonny Light Horseman at the Kennedy Center on Oct. 22

Continuing along the fall folk road, contemporary troubadour supergroup Bonny Light Horseman are teaming up with singer-songwriter Aoife O’Donovan for a one-night-only performance in the Kennedy Center concert hall, with support from the National Symphony Orchestra. This show is the band’s lone East Coast stop before heading to Europe on a tour supporting their excellent new album, Keep Me on Your Mind/See You Free. The show starts at 8 p.m. at the Kennedy Center, 2700 F St. NW. kennedy-center.org. $29–$79. —Amelia Roth-Dishy

Daphne Eckman at Pearl Street Warehouse on Oct. 24

The quickest way for me to explain why you should check out Daphne Eckman’s “sad girl indie rock” is this: I saw her perform in a forgettable restaurant on Kent Island over a year ago and her gorgeous voice and indie vibe left such an impact I tracked her down on Instagram and have been a fan ever since. The show starts at 8 p.m. at Pearl Street Warehouse, 33 Pearl St. SW. $15–$35. —Sarah Marloff

Hinds at Union Stage on Oct. 26 

This fascinating (and fun) indie pop project by Carlotta Cosials and Ana Perrote started as a duo, became a quartet, and in late 2022, reverted back to a duo. The loss of their drummer and bassist happened in a time of upheaval; Hinds recently split from their label and their management as well. Clearly the Madrid-based band are familiar with traversing change and their newest album, Viva Hinds, out Sept. 6, reflects their recent journey. The show starts at 8 p.m. at Union Stage, 740 Water St. SW. $25. —Serena Zets

Cyndi Lauper at Capital One Arena on Oct. 27

Hard to believe it’s been more than 40 years since Cyndi Lauper knocked the pop world on its ear with the release of her debut album, She’s So Unusual. This is your last chance to see Lauper live, because the girl who just wanted to have fun is retiring from the road. The show starts at 8 p.m. at Capital One Arena, 601 F St. NW. $59.50–$479. —Christina Smart

The Go! Team at the Black Cat on Nov. 3

Sure, this is a nostalgia tour focused on the band’s 2002 debut, Thunder, Lightning, Strike, but when was the last time you listened to “Ladyflash” or “Everyone’s a VIP to Someone”? These are earworms that will still get you moving. The show starts at 7:30 p.m. at the Black Cat, 1811 14th St. NW. $25–$30. —Brandon Wetherbee

NewDad at the Atlantis on Nov. 6

I’ve been waiting with bated breath for this foursome from Northern Ireland to tour the U.S. By far one of my favorite indie bands to emerge in the past few years, NewDad make the kind of sad, gauzy, dream-pop you can get lost in—it’s no wonder NME compared them to the Cure. With its sludgy guitar, their first full-length, Madra, dropped in January and remains one of the best albums of the year. The show starts at 6:30 p.m. at the Atlantis, 2047 9th St. NW. $15. —Sarah Marloff  

FEVER 333 at Union Stage on Nov. 7

The new-look FEVER 333 rounded out their talent with the additions of drummer Thomas Pridgen, who has toured with the Mars Volta and Thundercat, bassist April Kae, whose Instagram cover of Cardi B’s “Up” went viral in 2021, and guitarist Brandon Davis. Expect frontperson Jason Aalon Butler to keep the anti-racist, anti-fascist rapcore band grounded, even as they venture deeper into frenetic protest punk waters with tracks like “$wing.” The show starts at 7:30 p.m. at Union Stage, 740 Water St. SW. $25–$125. —Dave Nyczepir

André 3000 at the Kennedy Center on Nov. 9

André 3000 still raps, including on Killer Mike’s MICHAEL, released in 2023. He’s just not rapping on his own albums. With his solo debut, 2023’s New Blue Sun, André made a jazz album, and traded his vocals for a flute (or several flutes). Now hundreds of thousands of André, OutKast, and hip-hop fans are expanding their sonic horizons. With this show, the rapper-turned-jazz musician will make his Kennedy Center debut. The show starts at 7:30 p.m. at the Kennedy Center, 2700 F St. NW. $90.85–$310. —Brandon Wetherbee

Rare Essence & the Junkyard Band at the Howard Theatre on Nov. 10

Two of D.C.’s most acclaimed go-go bands come together over Veterans Day Weekend to celebrate the 114th Anniversary of the Howard Theatre. The show starts at 10 p.m. at the Howard Theatre, 620 T St. NW. $45–$85. —Sarah Marloff

Ratboys and Palehound at the Atlantis on Nov. 12

If you asked me to build this fall’s most exciting bill from scratch, it wouldn’t take me long to come up with the acts behind two of 2023’s finest albums: The Window by Ratboys and Eye on the Bat by Palehound. With one ticket, you get peak indie alt-country and some of the cleverest singer-songwriter work of recent memory in an intimate setting. It’s no wonder it sold out. The show starts at 6:30 p.m. at the Atlantis, 2047 9th St. NW. Sold out. —Taylor Ruckle

Haley Heynderickx at the 9:30 Club on Nov. 16

The folksy and ever-observant indie darling Haley Heynderickx is in the running for the artist I’ve seen live the most—and for good reason. She puts on a killer show no matter the venue. I’ve seen her perform in a chapel, in front of a dewy, empty field during the noon slot of a music festival, at Miracle Theatre, and the Kennedy Center’s Millennium Stage. Despite how grand (and different) each of these venues were, I don’t think anything will beat seeing her in my favorite D.C. venue this November. The show starts at 6 p.m. at the 9:30 Club, 815 V St. NW. $25. —Serena Zets

Lupe Fiasco at the Howard Theatre on Nov. 16

Stalwart Chicago rapper Lupe Fiasco has already released one of the year’s best hip-hop records. Samurai is clad in choruses hard as armor and wields verses like shining steel blades. With an understated, jazzy aesthetic and a 30-minute run time, it’s the most succinct artistic statement of his 24-year career. Oh, and it’s also a narrative concept album about Amy Winehouse reimagined as a battle rapper. The show starts at 8 p.m. at the Howard Theatre, 620 T St. NW. $45–$85. —Taylor Ruckle

Godspeed You! Black Emperor at the 9:30 Club on Nov. 19

The elders of instrumental post-rock are back with their new album and a tour to support it. As always, their shows promise to be beautiful and utterly hypnotic. The show starts at 7 p.m. at the 9:30 Club, 815 V St. NW. $40. —Alan Zilberman

Sun June at DC9 on Nov. 20

This twangy indie band from Austin made one of the best albums of 2023, and when I saw them last year at this same venue, my “I think this might be love” ratcheted up to “I’m so in love.” If it was possible to wear out a record on Apple Music, I would’ve broken Bad Dream Jaguar with the number of times I flipped it over. The show starts at 8 p.m. at DC9, 1940 9th St. NW. $18–$22. —Sarah Marloff 

Mariah Carey at Capital One Arena on Dec. 1

If you’re a fan of whistle notes (and really, who isn’t?), the self-proclaimed Queen of Christmas, Mariah Carey, will start spreading holiday cheer early in the season with a performance at Capital One on Dec. 1. The show starts at 8 p.m. on Dec. 1 at Capital One Arena, 601 F St. NW. $59.95–$580. —Christina Smart

Micky Dolenz at the Birchmere on Dec. 12

Cheer up, sleepy Jean. The last surviving Monkee, Micky Dolenz, is touring. With Songs & Stories, Dolenz will reminisce and sing about life as a member of the Prefab Four. The show starts at 7:30 p.m. at the Birchmere, 3701 Mount Vernon Ave., Alexandria. $75. —Christina Smart

Check out more of our 2024 Fall Arts Guide here.

Oh He Dead, Ugly

On 2023’s Pretty, D.C.’s alt-soul band Oh He Dead gave us the lighter side of love with tracks full of gleaming pop melodies and lyrics comparing relationship partners to cherry blossoms and honeybees (for real). On their follow-up, Ugly, things are no longer sunshine and lollipops. Actually, they’re downright … ugly. The album, released today, Aug. 23, was written and recorded prior to guitarist and co-founder Andy Valenti’s departure from the band earlier this year. (In an email, the band’s manager stated “In January, Andy moved on from Oh He Dead to pursue other projects.”) On Ugly, the band’s strongest attribute as songwriters is their ability to keep the listener guessing. Much like “Doll,” the opening track on the Foo Fighters’ 1997 album, The Colour and the Shape—aka Dave Grohl’s divorce album—Ugly’s first track, “John Song,” sets the tone lyrically. It’s short but not sweet, with lead singer CJ Johnson’s raspy tone asking “Tell me why?/ Tell me how?/ I let a love/ I let him go so easy.” While the majority of the lyrics on the album deal with the ups and downs of relationships, the soundscape expands exponentially with each track. “Strange Love” puts the listener through their musical paces, starting as an ethereal sunny pop song that quickly transforms into distorted guitars, denser drums, and even a firm tambourine shake enters the mix. On “Moonshine,” the guitars go from Tom Petty-esque to California surf (complete with handclaps) within the first minute and, good lord, there’s even a guitar solo (how old school!). “Is It My Love,” a slow, short groove, wraps up at a mere two minutes, and unfortunately, due to its brevity, lands like an unfinished musical thought. “Every Last Trail,” a contemplative acoustic ballad where Johnson, sounding a bit stalkerish, looks for a lost love, singing “I’ll hike up every last trail/ I won’t stop ’til I find you standing there.” By the time the album wraps with the five-and-a-half minute blues opus “Cover Me,” every emotion associated with heartache has been touched upon. Is it cathartic? Not exactly. But if you’re in the midst of heartbreak, and are looking for some musical companions to assist in your wallowing, Ugly will wrap you like a codependent musical blanket. Oh He Dead play at 7:30 p.m. on Aug. 23 at the Atlantis. theatlantisdc.com. Sold out. —Christina Smart

Fat Vaughn, Road To Riches

Northwest D.C.’s Fat Vaughn uses music to make sense of his own chaotic reality. A seasoned vet of the local rap scene, Vaughn has released more than 25 projects and dozens of singles since his 2016 debut EP, The Journey. His tunnel-vision approach to making and releasing music turned him into one of the most consistent artists in the city. He’s not concerned with landing on a Spotify playlist or trending on TikTok, and fame is a nonfactor. “Struggle, death, and the people I love is what motivates me to keep making music,” he tells City Paper.

On July 4, Fat Vaughn released Road To Riches, a six-track EP that provides a solid introduction into the MC’s reflective and vulnerable music. There’s a continuous theme of embracing the pain that comes with loss, and acknowledging one’s own flaws and shortcomings.

On “Self,” Vaughn mourns friends and family who tragically passed away, rapping, “Thinking bout my dogs and it made me drop a tear/ How the fuck you 6 feet deep/ You was just right here.” His struggle with death is even more prevalent on the closing track, “Stargazing,” where he details coping with the loss of loved ones, and persevering through hardships in their honor. His vulnerability throughout the EP is matched with candid honesty. On “For the Win,” he doesn’t shy away from his drug abuse and involvement in violent street culture. “15s, 30s, and up, I ain’t popping no 10s/ Stainless steel on my hip, nigga don’t wanna get cleansed,” he raps. Although Vaughn mentions living a dangerous lifestyle throughout the EP, he doesn’t glorify it with vulgar exaggerations and outlandish punchlines. His street-related bars are relatively sparse and come across as sincere and realistic.

Fat Vaughn is no stranger to singing, but Road To Riches finds the MC flexing his vocal chops. He sings every hook on the album, switches registers in his verses, and harmonizes his ad libs. The light coat of Auto-Tune on his vocals makes the sentiment in his heartfelt lyrics more palpable, and the project’s spacey and melodic production hammers this home. He’s using hip-hop to process pain, which explains his extensive discography. He’s not rapping for fame or money, he’s doing it to express himself. This attitude is clear throughout Road To Riches, reflecting Vaughn’s dedication to his craft and unrelenting spirit. —Amari Newman

Zen Warship, The Renewal

For Zen Warship’s second studio album, they’ve decided to capitalize on sounds sure to leave listeners bouncing to the infectious beats the band have become known for. But while The Renewal has the upbeat spirit of modern pop, that feel-good energy is only scratching the surface of the band’s musical influences and sounds. The seven-track release features a mix of funk-disco, funk-rock, soul, and ska elements.

The decision to emphasize these sounds on The Renewal, alongside deeper, introspective lyricism, came out of COVID. Zen Warship’s debut album, Anything That Grooves, was written before 2020 and relied on a grittier guitar and jazz-infused sound. While there are hints of these same elements in their newest work, joy is the overwhelming takeaway. Vocalist Preethy Kolinjivadi notes that the feel-good vibe was a result of the eight-piece band coming together again after the pandemic. Their first release was written by a smaller group while The Renewal gave more members songwriting credits and a chance to collaborate. The result has a more classic funk feel with nods to James Brown, funk-rock pioneers Parliament Funkadelic, Jimi Hendrix, and even the type of funk-soul-pop that Stevie Wonder helped to create. But it’s not all throwback beats. The band also credit Jamiroquai, Nile Rodgers, H.E.R., and Dua Lipa as influences. There’s no sophomore slump here. —Heidi Pérez-Moreno

Outerloop, EP 02 

It’s hard to believe that post-punk band Outerloop’s new EP is a mere 15 and a half minutes long. The EP, released on June 21, packs a dense and eclectic array of lyrics and instrumental layers into just six tracks. The wide-ranging release bears testimony to Outerloop’s expansive roots, from straight rock to jazz. EP 02 is Outerloop’s first multi-track release since parting with their old bassist in May 2022 (the band did cover Slant 6’s “Double Edged Knife” on a Dischord-inspired compilation featuring Teen Mortgage, the Dismemberment Plan, and other local groups in January). The subsequent addition of a new drummer, Marty Risemberg, and bassist Erik Sleight spurred the group’s subsequent departure from a consistently heavy rock sound into a more genre-bending direction. Risemberg, like vocalist Taisha Estrada, comes from a primarily jazz background, while Sleight brings sizable electronic experience to the project. The band step outside of their established sound in particular on “Electric Alibi,” a relatively sparse track with minimal rhythm and bass and delicate vocals compared to Estrada’s typical style. This restraint morphs into a sustained, fuzzy guitar drone on Sleight’s subsequent “bass solo.”

Perhaps most striking on EP 02 is Outerloop’s use of English and Spanish to infuse their lyrics with social commentary. On the second track, “Huracán,” they use the two languages to capture a power dynamic within Estrada’s native Puerto Rico; she sings in Spanish from the perspective of residents pushed out of their homes and in English from that of the land-grabbers: “No, I do not feel your pain/ You have 30 days.” While most of EP 02 is a listener-directed call to address issues like sexism and social media surveillance, Estrada also uses Spanish to turn inward. The final track, “Estremecido,” compares leaving a lover to Moses’ birth mother leaving him to float down the Nile River with guilt-laden lyrics like “Te dejé/ Estremecido” (“I left you/ Trembling”). 

Outerloop’s new EP may go in too many directions, but it does so with musical and conceptual integrity. From delightfully unpredictable instrumentals and moments of melodic dissonance to poignant subject matter, the project lays out a promising blueprint for perhaps more cohesive releases to come as the band continue to settle into their new lineup. —Dora Segall

Truth or Dare, “H.S.B.F.” 

If you’re looking for a pop-punk anthem to close out the summer, look no further than Truth or Dare’s debut single, “H.S.B.F.” Released on Aug. 9, the just-shy-of-4-minute track has the pulsing beats, sing-along lyrics, and sassy angst that makes you want to drive fast or dance while screaming the song’s chorus: “And if Virginia is for lovers/ And Maryland’s for fun/ Then D.C.’s for the kids who won’t sit still for anyone.” Truth or Dare is clearly a homegrown act. So is “H.S.B.F.,” which was recorded at 38North Studios in Falls Church, produced by Reese Clutter, who’s worked with D.C. bands Beauty Pill, and Cherub Tree, and mastered by Baltimore’s Mat Leffler–Schulman (Dan Deacon, Jon Batiste, De La Soul). It’s unclear who among these names is responsible for putting some more gloss on the band, whose three-track demo from January has a much fuzzier, granulated DIY sound that’s a little more punk grit than pop polish. 

“H.S.B.F.” stands for high school boyfriend and the song charts the course of teen romance and growing up. None of it’s groundbreaking, but the driving, and sometimes distorted, guitar gives you the thrill you listen to pop-punk for and shouting along with vocalist Tori—especially if you grew up in a small town like I did—feels especially cathartic. This is a track to listen to on your last road trip of the season or even on your headphones as you head out for a late August run. But it will certainly be best experienced live in a small venue where you can dance out your angst. Either way, it’s guaranteed to make you want to move. —Sarah Marloff

Strutman Lane, “Restless Nights”

Summer’s coming to an end and while I’m glad the record-breaking heat is dying down, I’m feeling restless. There’s so much of D.C. summer left to enjoy before Labor Day: outdoor concerts and movies, dips in your local public pool, bike rides, kayaking on the Potomac, sweaty Sunday mornings at the Dupont Circle farmers market, and more. “Restless Nights,” the newest single by pop funk band Strutman Lane, released July 19, is the perfect soundtrack to these last sweet dregs of summer. The band’s accompanying music video pulls back the curtain on the song’s recording and helps you see the funk instrumental arrangement come together. The song’s smart use of piano and saxophone is reminiscent of Stevie Wonder’s iconic “Superstition” and similarly makes you want to dance. —Serena Zet

Listen along to all these new tracks with our Spotify playlist.

Thursday: Mickalene Thomas at the Phillips Collection 

Best known for her complex and beautiful portraiture of Black women completed on a massive scale, New York-based artist Mickalene Thomas’ mixed-media paintings can be found across D.C. at the Smithsonian’s American Art Museum, the Rubell, and now in the Phillips Collection’s newest special exhibition, Multiplicity: Blackness in Contemporary American Collage. Her larger-than-life work usually speaks for itself, but Thomas is coming to town this Thursday to discuss the inspirations behind her pieces in the exhibition with Multiplicity’s curator, Katie Delmez. If Thomas’ words on craft and artistic vision strike a chord within you and leave you wanting to make your own masterpiece, you’re in luck. In addition to this talk, Multiplicity is hosting a slew of free artist events and collage workshops before the exhibit closes on Sept. 22. Allow Thomas’ words inspire you to let your inner collage artist free and make some art worthy of display in the Phillips (or your living room). The conversation between Mickalene Thomas and Katie Delmez starts at 6:30 p.m. on Aug. 15 at the Phillips Collection, 1600 21st St. NW. phillipscollection.org. Sold out, but standby ticketing will be offered dependent on availability on a first come, first served basis. —Serena Zets 

Friday: The Little Mermaid at the MLK Memorial

Live-action versions of beloved animated Disney classics were always inevitable. Once the technology caught up to the drawings, it absolutely made sense for the incredibly successful studio to revisit the highest-grossing films in their vaults. While Emma Watson as Belle in Beauty and the Beast was perfectly fine and Will Smith as the Genie in Aladdin was … blue, the reimagination that garnered the most attention in Disney’s transition from drawings to people was 2023’s The Little Mermaid. Interest in the film was high for its nearly five years of production (thanks COVID for the slowdown). Melissa McCarthy was perfectly cast as Ursula and Halle Bailey as Ariel helped make the young actor an icon to children around the globe. Due to those COVID delays, it also became one of Disney’s most expensive productions. Due to its quality, it became the 10th highest-grossing movie of 2023. The film once again cements The Little Mermaid as a Disney classic while—to the chagrin of racists who think a half-human, half-fish must be White—allowing kids of all races to see themselves as a little mermaid. All kidding aside, the most recent edition of Hans Christian Andersen’s 1837 fairy tale is a remarkable achievement in storytelling, technology, and British tax breaks. A year after its theatrical run, it is becoming a staple of outdoor film screenings. The most inspiring of these is at the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial as part of the Films at the Stone Series. With D.C. weather finally turning somewhat enjoyable rather than sweltering, it looks as if this mid-August screening will also be one of the most pleasant ways to spend an evening on the National Mall. The Little Mermaid screens at 8 p.m. on Aug. 16 at the MLK Memorial, 1964 Independence Ave. SW. thememorialfoundation.org. Free. —Brandon Wetherbee

Sunday: Dogs on Shady Lane at Songbyrd

Since forming in 2018, Dogs on Shady Lane have released only a handful of original songs, plus one precocious Beyoncé cover. But each entry in their short discography is a jewel, glittering softly with gauzy instrumentation and sharp confessional songwriting. Although the indie rock outfit began in Providence, Rhode Island, as lead singer and guitarist Tori Hall’s solo project, Hall has called upon her gaggle of musical friends for small gigs and recording opportunities since the beginning. Now riding as a four-piece band, the group still have the loose and affectionate feeling of the best jam collectives; the credits for 2022’s folky sleeper hit “Cole St.” shout out the contribution of “stomps and claps by many lovely friends.” Dogs on Shady Lane’s new EP, Knife, released by the discerning DIY label Lauren Records in February, signposts where the young group may be headed—away from those stomp-and-clap drum lines and plucky banjos and toward a more jagged, electric, soft emo sound. On standout track “Pile of Photos,” Hall’s hushed vocals are nestled amid feathery shoegaze textures that explode into teasingly short moments of catharsis, landing somewhere between Slow Pulp and Soccer Mommy. The band, which have recently made the quintessential art kid pilgrimage from Providence to Brooklyn, are stopping in D.C. as part of a late summer tour—the perfect season for languorous indie angst. They’re supported on the bill by a trifecta of up-and-coming alt acts from the DMV that have been adroitly selected to round out the wistful vibe: D.C. dream-pop duo GLOSSER, the exuberant Richmond-based band Drook, and local musician (and Songbyrd sound engineer) Ryan Plummer’s plaintive solo act Dumb Lucky. The show will prove a helpful scene sampler for any slowcore or pop punk veteran wondering what their Gen Z progeny might be listening to these days. Dogs on Shady Lane play at 8 p.m. on Aug. 18 at Songbyrd, 540 Penn St. NE. songbyrddc.com. $15–$18. —Amelia Roth-Dishy

Through Aug. 24: Belkin • Caldwell • Shull at Hemphill Artworks

A three-artist exhibit is an atypical format for Hemphill Artworks, but you can see how it came to be. Textile artists Sophia Belkin and Randy Shull and digital photographer Colby Caldwell share a large format and an appreciation for abstraction. Of the three, Shull’s work is the most different. He creates hammocks like those typical of Mexico’s Yucatán Peninsula, where he spends much of the year; he then paints the hammocks and lets them “cure” in the sun. Shull’s finished works feature draping, spaghetti-like strands of twine whose curlicues suggest a 3D iteration of the hand-drawn contour lines in works by Linn Meyers. “Bisagras III” adds a hammock-like shape that suggests either a smiley face or the mouth of Batman’s Joker. The Baltimore-based Belkin, for her part, uses dye painting, embroidery, and textile collage while Caldwell continues the technique he has used in recent years of deploying a flatbed scanner as a camera. The works by both Belkin and Caldwell walk the line between abstraction and realism, but Belkin’s careful stitching contrasts with the seemingly random glitching of Caldwell’s scanner patterns. (In a nice twist, some of Belkin’s imagery echoes that in Caldwell’s seminal series “How to Survive Your Own Death,” which is based on a now decades-old video glitch.) What elevates Caldwell’s works is the interaction between his floral subject matter and the cubist-adjacent geometries created by the scanner glitches. In one noteworthy image, yellow flowers alternate with electronic defect patterns that suggest sharp daggers; the image becomes a fruitful pairing of beauty and danger. Belkin • Caldwell • Shull runs though Aug. 24 at Hemphill Artworks, 434 K St. NW. Tuesday through Saturday, noon to 5 p.m. hemphillartworks.com. Free. —Louis Jacobson

Ongoing: Of Light and Shade at VisArts

Artist Alexander D’Agostino has a fascination with codes, secret symbols, and hidden messages, which becomes clear in Of Light and Shade at VisArts. The collaged images within are pulled from archival photos, broadsheets, and newspaper clippings, gay porno mags, and ritualistic texts—there’s a whiff of the illicit about them. The subject matter and the eras they come from hint at queer stories that were historically kept under wraps, as well as the usage of codes to both identify comrades and stay undetected to outside eyes. A huge array of chlorophyll prints done on real plant leaves lines the walls, and their production reveals the conundrum of revealing versus hiding oneself. Chlorophyll prints use the natural process of photosynthesis and pigments in plant leaves to create images: Placing objects or transparent images on top of leaves and exposing them to light causes the parts that are obscured to be left behind in the original shade of the leaf, while the rest of the leaf fades to yellow. Shedding light on these images brings them out, but expose the prints further and they’ll fade altogether. The walls are bedecked with tapestries printed with this collaged imagery using solar prints, which similarly use the light exposure from the sun to create prints. The most ingenious use of light comes from a series of artists’ books, accompanied on a shelf by a small keychain with a blacklight on it, which can be used as a code breaking tool. Shine the light across the pages, and reveal the hidden messages written throughout. These include some dirty little bon mots and scribbled love notes declaring the romance of Abraham Lincoln and his rumored lover David Derickson. It feels as thrilling and illicit as reading someone else’s diary by flashlight. Of Light and Shade runs through Oct. 6 at VisArts, 155 Gibbs St., Rockville. Wednesday and Thursday, noon to 4 p.m.; Friday noon to 8 p.m.; Saturday and Sunday, noon to 4 p.m. visartscenter.org. Free. —Stephanie Rudig

Opens Friday: Maurice James Jr.’s New Negro at Art of Noize

Graphic artist Maurice James Jr. is reimagining Black history through art. Although his career only started in 2021, he’s become quite prolific during those three years. By March of 2023, he was displaying his work at three overlapping exhibits, and this year he was the first artist to be featured in Homme Gallery’s new location inside Union Station; he even did a show earlier this month in Oakland, California. Much of James’ previous work has focused on imagining a Black utopia by portraying Black people in mediums they’ve been excluded from in the past—from comic book covers and movie posters to old-time propaganda. Now James plans to build on his earlier themes in his third showing at Petworth gallery Art of Noize. The New Negro: Manifest Destiny focuses on the architecture of James’ Black Utopia. The idea behind this exhibit came from his observation that, though Black architects have been recognized for their work in the past, they weren’t “necessarily building anything that added to the efforts of Black liberation.” By pairing figures from the Harlem Renaissance and portraits drawn by Winold Reiss with architectural designs, James says the exhibit shows what “true Reconstruction” would’ve meant to Black people after slavery. One such piece that captures this vision is a depiction of educator Elise Johnson McDougald with a sketching of a building meant to be the imaginary “Department of Negro Education.” James’ art is a blend of history and imagination that he describes as “AfroFuturism from the 1920s,” and a blueprint of Pan-African and Black Nationalist ideas woven into society. New Negro: Manifest Destiny opens on July 26 with an opening presentation from 6 to 10 p.m. The exhibit runs through Aug. 31 at Art of Noize, 821 Upshur St. NW. artofnoizedmv.com. Free. —Dorvall Bedford

Friday: The Pointer Sisters at MGM National Harbor

When Beyoncé released Cowboy Carter earlier this year, much fuss was made about a Black woman singing country music. But anyone with the slightest knowledge of popular music would know that R&B singers have delved into country long before Beyoncé with great success. Most notably, the Pointer Sisters, who won the Grammy for Best Country Vocal Performance by a Duo or Group for their 1974 song “Fairytales,” and were nominated in the same category the following year for “Live Your Life Before You Die.” The Pointer Sisters were so busy in their career at the time they failed to realize they had reached a milestone. “I was in shock when they said, ‘You won a Grammy,’” says Ruth Pointer. “We were like ‘For what?! We were on the road and we didn’t even go to the ceremony.” This marked the start of an extensive run of hits and accolades for the group who will be performing alongside the Commodores and the Spinners at MGM National Harbor on Friday (though her sisters, Anita, June, and Bonnie—who left the group to go solo in 1977—have passed, Ruth continues performing with her daughter Issa Pointer and granddaughter Sadako Pointer). Contrary to the belief that girl groups don’t write their own songs, the Pointer Sisters wrote several of their hits throughout their career including “Fairytales” and “I’m So Excited.” Not that producers in the industry thought these songs should automatically be included on their albums. “I remember my sister Anita fighting to get songs that she wrote, that she and me and June wrote together, on the album,” says Ruth. “Even ‘I’m So Excited’ was on the album before Break Out and it just kind of went unnoticed. Anita fought and said, ‘No! We’ve got to rerelease this song. I know it’s a hit and I’m insisting,’ and she got it back on there.” (Rereleased as part of the 1984 pressing of Break Out, “I’m So Excited,” along with the hits “Automatic,” “Neutron Dance,” and “Jump (For My Love),” helped the album go triple-platinum). And while the Pointer Sisters will perform hit after hit at their show at MGM, Ruth is most looking forward to seeing the other acts perform. “I’m a fan of all of those guys,” she says. “I’ll probably run out there and watch them before we go on.” The Pointer Sisters play at 7:30 p.m. on July 26 at MGM National Harbor, 101 MGM National Ave., Oxon Hill. mgmnationalharbor.mgmresorts.com $93.37–$235.70. —Christina Smart

Friday: Previous Industries at Songbyrd

Does Open Mike Eagle belong in the best albums about divorce? While Marvin Gaye’s Here, My Dear and Frank Sinatra’s In the Wee Small Hours pack an emotional punch both sonically and lyrically, they’re not exactly fun. Bob Dylan’s Blood on the Tracks is a bit more relatable with songs like “Tangled Up in Blue” and “Idiot Wind,” but it’s a little much sometimes—how do you top Dylan? Richard and Linda Thompson’s Shoot Out the Lights was the best of the best of the breakup records—not too heavy, a classic on par with Blood on the Tracks without the weight of Dylan. But it may now be the second best divorce album. Open Mike Eagle’s 2020 opus Anime, Trauma and Divorce is the best entry in his catalog, though it’s not the most streamed. I get it. Who wants to listen to a concept album about the end of a marriage when you can listen to more universal songs about social anxiety? If you’re not 100 percent comfortable in your relationship status, it is a good idea to stay the hell away from songs like “The Black Mirror Episode.” But if you’re not afraid of Netflix and not-at-all-chilling with your significant other, it’s the best breakup song of the decade. It’s heavy, obviously, but it’s also fun. It is possible to see the humor at the end of the road! Open Mike Eagle is not touring behind a 2020 record. This appearance is part of the new Previous Industries, a project featuring Mike and two fellow former Chicagoans/current Los Angelenos: Video Dave and Still Rift. If you like Mike’s solo stuff, this new trio’s work is in the same wheelhouse. Video Dave is on the aforementioned Anime, Trauma and Divorce and all three musicians are on the excellent 2022 single “Circuit City” and 2023 single “WFLD 32.” Previous Industries play at 8 p.m. on July 26 at Songbyrd, 540 Penn St. NE. songbyrddc.com $20–$22. —Brandon Wetherbee

Wednesday: Joan Baez at Sixth & I

Iconic folk musician and activist Joan Baez has added a new title to her illustrious resume: poet. While she played her final concert in 2019, she’ll hit the Sixth & I Stage Wednesday as an author to discuss her recently released debut book of poetry, When You See My Mother, Ask Her to Dance. Despite decades of making her voice heard on some of the world’s biggest stages (the March on Washington, Kennedy Center Honors, Rock & Roll Hall of Fame induction, and the inaugural Newport Folk Festival, just to name a few), the book marks the first time Baez has publicly shared her poetry with the world. Baez told Vanity Fair earlier this year that her creativity “just exploded as soon as I quit touring.” The autobiographical poems vulnerably reflect on critical moments, people, and places from her long and impactful life in the public eye. Baez will be joined in conversation by NPR’s Ari Shapiro. The conversation with Joan Baez starts at 7 p.m. on July 31 at Sixth & I, 600 I St. NW. sixthandi.org. $12–$45. —Serena Zets 

Wednesday: Plena Libre at Strathmore’s Gudelsky Gazebo

You don’t have to be familiar with the folkloric origins of plena, a Puerto Rican musical genre, or even speak Spanish to appreciate the rhythms and fast-tempoed flow of the Grammy-nominated band Plena Libre. Formed in 1994, the Puerto Rico-based group have modernized the way plena is sung and combined their take with the barrel-shaped conga drums of bomba with touches of salsa and jazz via horns, bass, and a keyboard. Plena Libre were founded by bassist Gary Núñez, who died of cancer in 2023. Under Nunez, Plena Libre released 15 albums and brought their lively sound to concert stages around the world. Now his son LuisGa Núñez has assumed his late father’s role as bassist and bandleader. While the unit’s music has always been rooted in traditional Puerto Rican folk styles, that doesn’t mean it’s sedate. Live, some of the frontline vocalists, who also hit handheld drums or maracas, do choreographed dance moves, and harmonize behind a lead vocalist while the horn section expertly comes in and out with riffs, and the bomba and timbales drummer pound away. There’s a lot going on, but it’s well coordinated and not atonal. Audience members can both admire the musicians chops and dance. Plena Libre play at 7:30 p.m. on July 31 at Strathmore’s Gudelsky Gazebo, 10701 Rockville Pk., Rockville. strathmore.org. Free. —Steve Kiviat

Wednesday: Reyna Tropical at Songbyrd

If you combine the Spanish words for “bad” and “happy,” you get a portmanteau that rolls off the tongue: malegría. Over two decades ago, Manu Chao used the word to name a song on his seminal 1998 album, Clandestino. This year, it serves as the title of an entire album: the debut from Reyna Tropical. In one of the many interludes sprinkled throughout Malegría, Reyna Tropical co-founder Nectali “Sumohair” Díaz says the duo’s music seeks to encapsulate that bad-happy feeling. “Being able to dance it off, it’s very important,” he once said. “When constructing a track, I think about, like, how can people move, even though the song is not the happiest song in terms of lyrics?” That question took on heightened meaning for Fabi Reyna, the other founder of Reyna Tropical, following Díaz’s tragic death in an e-scooter accident in downtown Los Angeles in 2022. “For several months I didn’t know how to perform on stage without him, or how to write music without him,” she told Rolling Stone last year. “It left me with the question of, ‘How is this going to continue? Is this fair, is this what he wants?’ But the answer was always a resounding yes.” Although he’s gone, Reyna invoked Díaz all over Malegría—in intimate interludes made of old voice memos, in lyrics tinged with grief and depression, and in its bittersweet, malegría spirit. Despite its inherent heaviness, Reyna Tropical’s stellar debut album overflows with joyful, tropical rhythms that will make you want to dance. Reyna, now a solo project, weaves together sounds from Mexico, Colombia, Peru, Puerto Rico, and other cultures in Latin America, with special attention and reverence paid to Afro-Latine and Indigenous traditions. The result is an expertly crafted statement about creative partnership and diasporic living that doesn’t shy away from the ugly (say, colorism within the Latine community, or the harmful effects of ecotourism), but also staunchly celebrates the beautiful. Reyna’s soft, enchanting voice swings between sophisticated lyrics and simple mantras, giving certain songs an almost prayer-like effect—if prayers were something you sprung up and swayed your hips to. Reyna Tropical plays at 8 p.m. on July 31 at Songbyrd, 540 Penn St. NE. songbyrddc.com. $15–$22.—Ella Feldman

For D.C. drag performer and producer JaxKnife Complex, all the world’s a stage and every night is an opportunity to perform. From the moment Jax greets you at the front door of their home bar Trade (where they also work security) to the time you exit, not a second is wasted in fully immersing you into their creative dreamworld. 

“My art is very grandiose … it’s a show from when you clock in until you clock out,” says JaxKnife Complex.

Jax has just won the fourth annual HAUS AWARD, given by D.C.’s queer production collective haus of bambi. The win is credit to Jax’s work ethic and commitment to their artistic craft. “As an artist and community member, Jax wields chaos in an enthusiastic, belligerent, and joyful disruption to the status quo,” says Bambi, haus of bambi founder and the person responsible for selecting the annual award winner. “[Jax’s] art is embedded in how they entertain a room, agitate the too comfortable, and safeguard the door.”

With the HAUS AWARD, JaxKnife Complex joins some of D.C.’s rising performers who won in the past—choreographer Greg David, drag king King Molasses, and performance artist Bumper. Aside from bragging rights, the award comes with an unrestricted $1,000 cash prize to further the winner’s artistic development. It’s gifted to a D.C. artist, at any stage of their career, whose work explores the intersectionality of queer identity. 

“This award is a reflection of my respect for these artists and what their voices say about our city and its identity,” Bambi explains. “In short, I am a fan and I want to help leverage and support our collective growth. D.C. was the first place I found a true creative home, thanks in no small part to the contributions of these artists. I, myself, have been transformed by witnessing their work. The applause they deserve [is] thunderous.” 

Jax isn’t new to performing—it’s something they’ve done almost their entire life. Jax started dancing at age 4; in high school, their attentions shifted to musical theater, but their years of dance experience put Jax in high demand. Theater teachers recommended they rearrange their class schedule to begin vocal training, which would make Jax a triple threat when it came to skills. These educators exposed Jax to every step of a production, including serving as dance captain and assisting behind the scenes with tech work. This education instilled a well-rounded love of the theater (and all that goes into it) that remains with Jax today. It even motivated them to study dramaturgy with a secondary focus on theater law at American University.

Beyond their formal education, Jax has been involved in the D.C. nightlife scene since 2009. They’ve worked at Trade since it opened in 2015. From their security perch at the entrance of the 14th Street NW gay bar, and as a performer inside the space, Jax continues to sharpen a dual perspective on D.C.’s queer nightlife and their place within it. “I’ve seen such a shift in the kind of art and the kind of drag D.C. has produced over the years. We’ve gone from what I consider ‘show-ready’ drag, made so that the crowd will love it, to now,” says Jax. “Drag in the city is becoming conduits to the artist’s expression. The majority of D.C. drag artists coming up right now are invested in the art form of drag, not the capitalistic nature of it.”

Jax’s interest in drag’s emotional nature comes across in their performances, which often draw on their life’s experiences. “My approach to drag is treating it like a theater piece or a character work piece. Drag is just another moniker, another name you put on yourself,” says Jax. “Drag artistry is sitting down in front of a mirror and painting a face of what emotions I’m experiencing that day. I let my own day impact what I look like or what songs I want to perform. That expression comes out in my work and it is coming out with all the young artists in the drag scene.” 

On Oct. 18, the previous three HAUS AWARD winners will join JaxKnife Complex onstage at Trade for the HAUS AWARDS ceremony. Together they’ll collaborate to showcase the strength, diversity, and range of D.C. queer artistry in Jax’s home bar. Jax is excited to bring the HAUS AWARD home.

“I’ve been to the awards in past years and seen the artistry, art, performance, pole work, and all of the other attributes that the past recipients have. I have some big shoes to fill. Or maybe I already filled the big shoes and now I need to recognize the work I’ve put in. It means a lot to be recognized in this way,” Jax concludes.

The HAUS AWARDS celebrating the 2024 winner, JaxKnife Complex, will take place on Oct. 18 at Trade. tradebardc.com. Ticket details and more to follow.

Daily: Progression at Multiple Exposures Gallery

It’s a project with a design so convoluted that few would dare attempt it twice within nine months. But the photographers of Multiple Exposures Gallery are game for another Progressions exhibit, in which 15 members contribute 45 images in sequence, thematically playing off the previous image with either a photograph they’ve already taken or with a new one. The new image may mirror the previous one’s subject matter, composition, or color, but there needs to be some visual or thematic linkage. As with last year’s version of Progressions, windows and chairs are a bit overused as transitional elements (this time around, I’d add clouds to the overused list, despite their loving portrayals throughout the exhibit). The intended connections usually become clear; only a couple of times was the link so obscure that I missed it. But the real test of images in the exhibit isn’t their connection to the preceding and following photographs, but whether they stand out in isolation. Fortunately, many in Progressions do. Notable images include Irina Lawton’s spindly playground structures set against a fire-red sky; Stacy Smith Evans’ gaggle of teenagers on a European street corner; Sandy LeBrun–Evans’ bracingly rough-hewn image of a cafe patron and a figure walking through a passageway in the background; Soomin Ham’s barely visible insect on a striated, translucent surface; Van Pulley’s portrayal of a sand dune that ranges in tone from sepia to inky black; and Alan Sislen’s image of a man alongside a rural road marked by zebra-like shadows, thanks to trees lining the roadway. With Progressions, come for the brainteaser, but prepare for some wide-eyed stops along the way. Progressions runs through July 28 at Multiple Exposures Gallery at the Torpedo Factory Art Center, 105 N. Union St., Alexandria. Daily, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. multipleexposuresgallery.com. Free. —Louis Jacobson

Saturday: The Last Podcast on the Left at Warner Theatre

Is this what theaters like the Warner were built for? Obviously, the architect of this gorgeous building didn’t foresee podcasting when it was constructed in 1929—the space originally screened silent movies. But watching three dudes chat about topics formerly reserved for dark bars and currently explored in dark corners of the internet actually works on a big stage surrounded by hundreds of like-minded individuals. Unlike some of the other podcasts acts able to sell a thousand tickets in most major markets, the fellas of The Last Podcast on the Left are not brought to you by National Public Radio or DraftKings. They’re also not trying to solve a murder or save democracy or threaten democracy by being bad li’l boys. The LPOTL dudes, comics Marcus Parks, Henry Zebrowski, and newest host Ed Larson, are kind of a podcast throwback, funny people exploring a topic—in this case “all things horror” (hence the name playing off Wes Craven’s 1972 directorial debut)—for 90 to 120 minutes. There are jokes, there are fun facts, there is frivolity. Close your eyes and get transported to when podcasts were better, before Spotify and your favorite public radio station helped make the art form a lot more boring. The Last Podcast on the Left starts talking at 8 p.m. on July 13 at Warner Theatre, 513 13th St. NW. livenation.com $49.25. —Brandon Wetherbee

Sunday: Folger Library Pop-Up Book Fair

If you loved the Scholastic Book Fair as a child, fell in love with William Shakespeare’s work in school, and have been meaning to check out the recently reopened Folger Shakespeare Library—or you’re just a well-rounded reader or thespian, this event is for you. This Sunday, the Folger invites D.C. residents into their renovated facilities for a free Pop-Up Book Fair showcasing literary work from the Folger’s 2024–25 season. The upcoming season, titled “Whose Democracy?”, will feature a production of Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, directed by Raymond O. Caldwell, and Twelfth Night, as well as Lauren Gunderson’s A Room in the Castle, which reimagines Hamlet from the women’s narratives. In addition to selling books, the Fair will feature a family story time, poetry reading, and literary giveaways from the Folger and local independent bookstores. Last year, while the Folger building was still undergoing massive renovations, the book fair was hosted at Capitol Hill’s East City Bookshop. This year’s event hopes to welcome the D.C. community back into the reimagined space and show that the research library meets theater has something for everyone. While you’re there, check out the Rita Dove poem carved into the west garden’s marble edge. The book fair starts at 11 a.m. on July 14 at Folger Shakespeare Library, 201 E. Capitol St. SE. folger.edu. Free. —Serena Zets 

Wednesday: Pebble to Pearl at the Wharf

The Wharf is one of D.C.’s gems—the sunsets, ambience, and liveliness accompanied by seagulls, waterfront breezes, and the smell of Old Bay from the fish market make it the perfect place to spend the summer. Its free (yes free) summer concert series Rock the Dock adds to the cacophonous sounds of the season. Presented by Pacifico, the concerts take place every Wednesday evening through Aug. 28 and offer a cool reprieve of the heat. Genres range from R&B, jazz, reggae, and go-go to country and pop covers. This week’s act is Pebble to Pearl. The local six-piece are known for playing funky, contagious dance tunes that blend R&B, blues, and soul. Lead vocalist Dari J has been praised for her powerhouse vocals and pianist Araya has been celebrated for his virtuosity. They’re sure to have you shimmying with your Dark and Stormies in hand. (Cantina Bambina is mixing some delicious drinks to make the evening that much sweeter.) Pebble to Pearl play Rock the Dock at 7 p.m. on July 17 at Transit Pier, 970 Wharf St. SW. wharfdc.com. Free. —Simone Goldstone 

Ongoing: Capital Brutalism at the National Building Museum 

The National Building Museum’s Capital Brutalism presents itself almost apologetically: The opening wall statement acknowledges that D.C.’s concrete behemoths are the city’s “most polarizing architectural landmarks,” and at one point the exhibit quotes former Housing and Urban Development Secretary Jack Kemp unflatteringly calling his own agency’s headquarters “10 floors of basement.” In fact, when the exhibit focuses on such buildings as the HUD headquarters, the J. Edgar Hoover FBI building, Georgetown University’s Lauinger Library, and the Energy Department’s James V. Forrestal Building, it spends almost as much effort discussing innovative proposals to revitalize these alienating edifices as it does on the buildings’ historical context and their current uses. Capital Brutalism presents its topic fairly, noting that in the 1960s and early ’70s, when most of these structures were built, the architectural establishment greeted them with applause. In one clipping shown, Benjamin Forgey, Washington’s leading architecture critic from 1964 to 2006, wrote in 1975, when the headquarters of what is now the Department of Health and Human Services opened, that the building was “several notches better than anything … the federal government has constructed in Washington in recent years.” (Today, this sounds like damning with faint praise, but it didn’t at the time.) Notably, the exhibit spotlights a few praiseworthy examples of the style, each of which, a close reading will indicate, are signaled by the lack of an appended how-do-we-fix-this? proposal. They include the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, with its smooth, circular exterior and rounded interior galleries; Dupont Circle’s wedge-shaped Euram Building, which, to be fair, benefits from its largely non-concrete exterior; and the semicircular concrete vaults of the Washington Metro, which, for all of Metro’s service shortcomings, still looks more attractive than New York’s subway system any day. Perhaps the thread that connects these successes is curves; the lesson for architects is, if you must go brutalist, please junk the concrete box. Capital Brutalism runs through Feb. 17, 2025, at the National Building Museum, 401 F St. NW. Thursday through Monday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. nbm.org. $7–$10. —Louis Jacobson

Some of the best ideas are born in the living rooms of D.C. group homes. Lavender Evolutions, the ever-growing D.C. collective, began as one of those ideas. While living together in the Petworth home, lovingly referred to as the Giant Peach for its vibrant peach-painted facade, Madi Dalton and Leslie Tellería continued the group house’s legacy as a gathering place for QTBIPOC friends and community members. In 2022, as Dalton and Tellería’s lease came to an end, they decided to continue making community space in the form of a collective. Lavender Evolutions was born that same year, creating an essential third space for local queer and trans people of color. 

Dalton and Tellería joined forces with Mary Ayorinde, Mikayla Bryant, and Camryn Casey to officially launch Lavender Evolutions. Each of the founding organizers brought different skills, interests, and connections to pockets of D.C.’s QTBIPOC community. “Lavender is what it is because of collaboration,” Tellería tells City Paper. “The reason for its success and its launch is because of those relationships. We don’t think about it as the five of us, you are Lavender, anyone who comes to our events is Lavender. The participants are equally a part of Lavender as we are.”

Lavender Evolutions started with a book and vinyl swap at the Saturday morning Mount Pleasant Farmers’ Market. In addition to leaving with new books to read and records to listen to, attendees left with new friends. The success of the event catapulted Lavender Evolutions into spaces larger than the Giant Peach’s living room. In the two years since, the collective has collaborated with institutions across the city including the D.C. Public Library, Trade, Mount Pleasant Library Friends, Eaton Hotel, and Lost City Books, cementing the collective as “a pop-up third space,” says Tellería. 

Third spaces, the social environments where people spend their time beyond the home and workplace, have been largely decimated in recent years due budget cuts to public services such as libraries and parks. Especially as queer spaces, particularly sapphic ones, close, the third spaces that remain are often hostile or exclusionary toward QTBIPOC presence and expression. 

“Lavender Evolutions is a queer, radical, nonracist space where I know we share similar values,” shares event attendee and LE volunteer Laura Elebesunu. “Not just in what we want for a party but in what we want for our community and how to live,”

According to Elebesunu, “a lot of spaces in D.C. aren’t as naturally inclusive” as Lavender Evolutions. “Regardless of the type of [Lavender Evolutions] event, there are going to be people I relate to on many levels. Or if I don’t relate to them, they’re open to connecting to different types of people,” Elebesunu says.

Fellow attendee and LE volunteer Lei Fletcher adds, “Navigating our day-to-day lives as people of color can be isolating and draining out here … I get tired of being ‘on’ and operating around White people but in these Lavender Evolutions spaces, I can breathe and relax my shoulders and be in my body.”

With the continued goal to uplift, educate, and entertain its participants, Lavender Evolutions hosts a range of events including book clubs, mixers, happy hours, dance parties, yoga classes, hikes, picnics, runs, and panels. (On June 16, their Pride party, Nectar, was a sold-out success.) But they also plan events in response to the emerging needs of their organizers and participants. In recent months, they’ve hosted phone-banking and wheat-pasting sessions in support of a ceasefire in Palestine and they’ve also collaborated with DC Dyke March and the DMV Dissenters. 

Beyond educating and connecting QTBIPOC Washingtonians, Lavender Evolutions fosters joy and jubilation for a community often under attack. “I volunteered at last year’s Pride party and when I was people watching and looking at the crowd, I saw how happy people were,” says Fletcher. “There aren’t enough spaces that center QTBIPOC folks and our joy … There’s a lot of value in just sitting with that [joy], reflecting on it.” 

“I would not have had the same experiences I’ve had in D.C. without Lavender Evolutions,” Fletcher adds.

Two years in, the community that Lavender Evolutions has fostered is only growing stronger, more diverse, and more inclusive with each event. 

“The amount of people I know who met their friends and lovers in Lavender spaces means the desired effect is happening,” says Tellería. We’re bringing worlds together and to be a part of that is truly an honor.” 

Lavender Evolutions’ next book club to discuss Audre Lorde’s Sister Outsider starts at 7 p.m. at Lost City Books on July 30. lostcitybookstore.com. Free.