Rock duo the Kills perform at 9:30 Club tonight. Photograph by Flickr user giovanni.

Thursday, February 2

In a White Stripes–less world, the Kills have stepped up to fill the bluesy boy-girl rock duo void. They’ve got a bit of a spooky edge—their songs have been used on the soundtracks of True Blood and Friday the 13th—but they’re still catchy as hell. Their show at the 9:30 Club is sold out, but lots of people are selling extras on Craigslist.

Doors at 7 PM at 9:30 Club, sold out.

A big-band supergroup composed of members of a bunch of DC Americana and roots-rock bands, the Natty Beaux play covers of American classics. Head to the Hamilton to see them perform hits by Elvis, Jerry Lee Louis, Ray Charles, and more. Best of all: It’s free.

Doors at 6:30 PM at the Hamilton, free

The Kinsey Sicks return to Theater J with Electile Dysfunction. Photograph courtesy of the group’s Facebook page.

Thursday, February 2

ART: Phillips After 5, a popular after-hours event at the Phillips Collection, returns with live jazz music, acting classes led by Arena Stage staffers, gallery talks, and more. Food and drink will be available for purchase. Tickets ($12) can be purchased through the gallery’s website. 5 to 8:30 PM.

THEATER: Constellation Theatre Company’s Blood Wedding opens tonight at Source. Written by Federico García Lorca, the Spanish tragedy is about lovers torn apart by murder and old feuds. Tickets ($20 to $40) can be purchased through the theater’s website. 8 PM. The play runs through March 4.

MUSIC: Trumpeter Andrew Balio joins the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra at Strathmore. The program will feature works by Bach, Rameau, Haydn, and Mozart. Tickets ($28 to $88) can be purchased through the Strathmore’s website. 8 PM.

Indie pop band the Jackfields are performing at the Iota Club and Cafe. The Virgina natives fuse Pink Floyd psychedelia with Beatles piano pop. You can listen to some of their songs here. The band will be joined by Aaron Thompson and Bobbie Allen. Tickets ($10) can be purchased at the door. 9 PM.

Feist plays the Strathmore on Wednesday, May 9. Photograph courtesy of the artist’s website.

Guns N’ Roses play the Fillmore Silver Spring on Thursday, February 23. Tickets ($85) go on sale Friday, February 3, at 10 AM through Live Nation. 

Singer-songwriter Feist comes to Strathmore on Wednesday, May 9. Her 2007 album, Reminder, received four Grammy nominations and took home five Juno Awards in 2008. Get your tickets ($45) starting February 1 at 10 AM from Ticketmaster.

Young Jeezy’s national profile blew up when he released “My President” in 2008; the song criticized the George W. Bush administration and anticipated what then–Democratic nominee Obama might bring to the White House. Jeezy drops in for a visit on Saturday, March 3, playing the Fillmore as part of his Hustlerz Ambition Tour. Tickets ($30) go on sale Friday, February 3, at 10 AM through Live Nation.

Country guitarist Junior Brown comes to the Birchmere on Friday, April 6. Best known for his unusual instrumentation—he plays a double-neck guitar that’s a combo of electric and lap steel—and raucous picking style, Brown has played with Bob Dylan and Hank Williams III. Tickets ($25) are on sale now through Ticketmaster.

Baltimore native Ellen Cherry takes the stage tonight at Strathmore. Photograph courtesy of the artist’s website.

Wednesday, February 1

ART: Don’t miss opening night of Deborah Willis and Hank Willis Thomas’s new exhibition, “Progeny.” The mother-son duo’s show explores motherhood, memory, and family through photographs. “Progeny” runs through February 29 at George Mason University’s Center for the Arts.

MUSIC: Singer-songwriter Ellen Cherry performs at Strathmore tonight. The Emmy-nominated musician released her newest album, (New) Years, in 2010. You can listen to some of her songs here. Tickets ($12) can be purchased through Strathmore’s website. 7:30 PM.

If you’re in the mood for something edgier, Machine Head are dropping by the Rams Head. The Grammy-nominated band toured with Metallica in 2009. The group will be joined by Suicide Silence and Darkest Hour. Tickets ($20) can be purchased through the venue’s website. Doors open at 6 PM.

BOOKS: Barney’s New York creative ambassador Simon Doonan will sign copies of his new book, Gay Men Don’t Get Fat, at the W Hotel. Guests can enjoy drink specials and door prizes. E-mail whappenings@brandlinkdcrsvp.com to RSVP. 7 to 9 PM.

Christoph Eschenbach conducts the National Symphony Orchestra in a concert of Beethoven and Strauss, February 2 through 4. Photograph by Margot Schulman.

A few months ago, I heard John Eliot Gardiner conduct a performance of Beethoven’s Symphony No. 3 that, aside from being a bit rough around the edges, bore all the hallmarks of the period-instrument style that once rested squarely on the fringes of the classical music world. I’m curious to hear how Christoph Eschenbach interprets the same work with the National Symphony Orchestra (February 2 through 4), given that so many mainstream orchestras have now adopted Gardiner’s historical approach to Beethoven—brisk tempos, limited vibrato, transparent string textures, everything lighter and brighter. Whatever your preference, the “ Eroica” is a revolutionary piece of music, both a hymn to mankind and the personal testament of a composer coming to terms with his own deafness and mortality. Also on the program: Richard Strauss’s Metamorphosen , composed in response to the desolation of Munich during World War II.

Eschenbach pairs two more monumental works for his next set of concerts with the NSO, February 9 through 11: Dmitri Shostakovich’s Violin Concerto No. 1, a searing piece of contrasting moods and ideas—by turns wild and introspective, exuberant and heartbreakingly quiet—and Anton Bruckner’s valedictory Symphony No. 9. Once, only Russian violinists, such as David Oistrakh and Leonid Kogan, performed the Shostakovich, but in the past 15 years or so, it’s become part of the standard repertoire. Here, Nadja Salerno-Sonnenberg appears as soloist. As for the Bruckner, I heard Eschenbach conduct a memorable performance of this work with the New York Philharmonic a few years ago, and the concluding Adagio sounded spiritual (as any Bruckner symphony must), spacious, eternal, and intense.

The American Ballet Theatre performs a scene from Thirteen Diversions. Photograph by Rosalie O’Conner.

Tuesday, January 31

BALLET: The American Ballet Theatre brings La Bayadére to the Kennedy Center. Tonight’s mixed repertory program features scenes from Black Tuesday, Manon, Don Quixote, and Thirteen Diversons. Tickets ($25 to $99) can be purchased through the KenCen’s website. 7:30 PM. The show runs through February 5.

WINE: Agora is hosting a French wine tasting tonight. Guests can sample a variety of wines from the Southwest region, including Domaine Laplace’s “Autour du Fruit” Madiran 2009 and “Les Sarments Rouge” Madiran 2008. Each tasting will be paired with a selection of canapés by executive chef Ghassan Jarrouj. Reservations ($30) can be made by calling 202-332-6767. 6 to 7:30 PM.

BOOKS: Historian Douglas Brinkley signs copies of his new book, The Quiet World, at the Barnes and Noble in downtown DC. The renowned author is also a Vanity Fair contributing editor and a history commentator for CBS News. Free. 6:30 PM.

MUSIC: R&B singer Marc Broussard performs at the Birchmere tonight. “His music radiates soulful Louisiana blues, but his songs blend those influences with raucous rock ’n’ roll to create unique and infectious music,” says NPR. You can listen to some of his songs here. Tickets ($35) can be purchased through Ticketmaster. 7:30 PM.

Patrick Heusinger and Patrick Breen in the Broadway production of Next Fall. Photograph courtesy of the show’s website.

Monday, January 30

ART: The National Gallery of Art’s new exhibition, “Picasso’s Drawings, 1890–1921: Reinventing Tradition,” opened yesterday. The collection, which features some 55 works, explores Picasso’s artistic development over a 30-year period. “What’s fascinating is how distinctly the exhibition traces the evolution of a style, from inconspicuous early drawings to fully fledged experiments” says arts editor Sophie Gilbert. Read the full review here. The exhibit runs through May 6. Free.