Every Tuesday, Listen Up! brings you songs of bands and performers coming through town in the next week. Listen up, then go check them out live.

This week, two of the acts featured in our fall-preview playlist, The Dandy Warhols and Alanis Morissette, are in town—and on the same night, no less. Both the Warhols and Morissette have seen better days, and while Morissette seems to be back in shape (nothing like ScarJo stealing your man to get those creative juices flowing!), Courtney Taylor-Taylor and his band seem to be suffering from an excess of unrestrained creativity on their last album. Hey, just as long as they play “We Used to Be Friends,” we’ll be happy. . . .

Also stopping through town are two Canadian bands: Miracle Fortress and Sunset Rubdown. Another offshoot project from Wolf Parade’s Spencer Krug, Sunset Rubdown crafts whimsical pop tunes often layered with keyboards and synths—a sound shared by Miracle Fortress, though its result tends to be less atmospheric.

Rounding out this week’s playlist is the reunited Brit band James, which, to no one’s surprise, sold out the 9:30 Club. Local crooner Vandaveer will open a show for Canuck chanteuse Basia (pronounced Basha) Bulat at DC9. Check below for our playlist and the schedule of this week’s Listen Up! concerts.

Playlist no longer available. 

Schedule
September 16:
• Miracle Fortress at the Black Cat
September 17:
• Basia Bulat and Vandaveer at DC9
September 18:
• James at the 9:30 Club
September 19:
• Sunset Rubdown at the Black Cat
September 22:
• The Dandy Warhols at the 9:30 Club
• Alanis Morissette at DAR Constitution Hall

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