The fast-approaching inauguration will bring more than just droves of people to Washington—it’ll also bring a couple of good shows. First up is “Change? Let’s Start With Dancing . . . ,” the 9:30 Club’s inauguration kickoff party with Moby behind the turntables for a DJ set on Sunday, January 18. Tickets ($35) went on sale this morning.

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Thursday, January 8: Always hunting through thrift stores for that treasure? Can’t get enough of Antique Roadshow? Then you’ll want to head to the Washington Antiques Show, which kicks off today at American University’s Katzen Center and goes through the weekend. Over 40 antiques dealers will be showing off their wares. Tickets are $15 at the door.

Good news, craft cocktail lovers: there’s a new happy hour in town, just for you. Punch Club at the Warehouse Theater is a weekly night of cocktails, held every Thursday, conjured up by bartender Dan Searing of the Looking Glass Lounge. Head over from 6 PM to 11 PM to get your fix.

Looking to add a little, say, spontaniety to your life in 2009? You should check out the free intro to improv workshops that excellent local improv group WIT is holding this weekend. From 7 to 9 PM today and Sunday, the group will be showing you the ropes of how to get up on stage and improvise, hilariously so. Email topher@washingtonimprovtheater.com to request a day and more information.

Every new year requires new resolutions—it’s, like, written in the Bible or something. This year, of course, the notion of a new beginning and the quest for self-improvement carry a little extra weight, thanks to a winning political campaign based on the message of change.

Now, statistically speaking, about 80 percent of people who make New Year’s resolutions are back to old habits by Valentine’s Day, says the New York Times. We say, it’s the effort that counts!

To celebrate the exhilarating, if short-lived, spirit of renewal that comes with a new year, we’ve compiled a list of songs that carry a strong message of resolve—whether it’s simple (Nada Surf’s Matthew Caws chanting “I’m gonna have a party” in “Blankest Year”), ambitious (the Proclaimers’ “I'm Gonna Be (500 miles)”), or even downright creepy (Death Cab for Cutie’s “I Will Posses Your Heart”). Have any suggestions? Leave them in the comments, and we’ll add them to the playlist. Also, if you feel like sharing your New Year’s resolutions, drop us a line or two.

As for our New Year’s resolutions? We have only one: To venture outside our Internet cave more and explore the world. We hear it’s pretty.

Monday, January 5:
Cultural historian and author Steven Johnson brings his newest book, The Invention of Air, to Politics & Prose at 7. In the book, Johnson chronicles the life of Joseph Priestley, an 18th-century scientist who discovered oxygen and helped influence the Founding Fathers.

Tuesday, January 6:
The Library of Congress screens Pick Up on South Street at the Packard Campus’s Mount Pony Theater tonight at 7. Samuel Fuller’s 1953 film stars Richard Widmark as Skip McCoy, who winds up with a piece of a top-secret microfilm after picking the purse of Candy, played by Jean Peters. Call 202-707-9994 for more information.

Wednesday, January 7:
The Corcoran’s Wednesday Jazz Series continues with the Frank Russo Trio today at 12:30 in the Frances and Armand Hammer Auditorium.

In 2006, Rolling Stone magazine said the Whigs “may well be the best unsigned band in America.” Nearly three years later, the rock trio from Athens, Georgia, is touring with Kings of Leon and Band of Horses before embarking on its own slew of shows in March. The band’s headlining tour kicks off on Wednesday, March 4, at the Black Cat. Tickets ($12) go on sale Friday, January 2, at 5 PM.

As 2008 wraps up, we—doing our best Carrie Bradshaw impression—can’t help but wonder: What songs best capture the mixed bag of feelings that accompany the arrival of a new year? After all, if Death Cab for Cutie has taught us anything, it’s that not everyone welcomes the new year with excitement, a bottle of André, and a sloppy, wet midnight kiss with a significant other . . . or a total stranger, depending on your level of inebriation—but that, dear reader, is the subject for a separate playlist. (Oh, foreshadowing!)

Whether you see 2009 as an opportunity to clean the slate and start fresh or as just another reminder of the inexorable passing of time that brings you one step closer to the grave, we want to know what you’ll be listening to when the clock strikes midnight. Leave us your suggestions in the comments, and we’ll add them to the playlist.

That’s it. We’re really out this time. We’ll be back in 2009—we hope a bit wiser but no less fun. We promise.

10. 9. 8. 7. 6. 5. 4. 3. 2. 1 . . .

The Dance Party is an ’80s new-wave, dance-punk, pop quartet. Don’t take the name lightly because the guys come with one motive: to make you dance. Singer Mick Coogan delivers high-energy vocals and catchy lyrics on top of synth-pop beats that have you wishing you’d busted out leg warmers before hitting the dance floor.

Backing up Coogan are Kevin Bayly on guitar, Drew Doucette on keys and synth, Jeff David on drums, and Danny Hoag on bass. The band’s debut full-length album came out in 2007, and since then the guys have been working on new hits.

“We have killer recordings in our possession, waiting for release,” Coogan says. “And we have hot jams in our pocket. We have what you want.”

Coogan’s favorite Dance Party jam is the new and addictive “Sasha Don’t Sleep.” With lyrics that go, “Gotta get up get up get up / It’s what she lives for / kissing on the dance floor / Sasha oh you’ve got your eye on me / Sasha Oh I know you don’t sleep,” the song describes a girl who lives to dance and that’s about it. It’s not earth-shattering content, but the song’s got a hook that your body can’t deny.

“Sasha Don’t Sleep” is posted in its entirety on the band’s MySpace page. Unfortunately, Coogan says there are legal implications for the band’s producer if they release entire songs anywhere other than on an album, so fans can only stream clips of other songs online. Bummer. But be careful where you listen, because a dance sesh could break out at any moment.

The best way to enjoy the band is to join in the dance party at a show. If you haven’t had a good make-out session in a while, Coogan says the band might give you the opportunity if you come to their next show. The guys will perform at the 9:30 Club on Saturday, December 27.

To tide you over until then, check out our Q&A with Coogan.