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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