Things to Do

Music Picks: Rodrigo y Gabriela, the Wombats, the Fiery Furnaces

Our recommendations for the best in live music over the next seven days.

Ye gods—somehow Creed’s concert on Tuesday is sold out, but you can still get tickets on Stubhub. Lucky you. Photograph by Flickr user kindofadrag.

Thursday, April 19

Eleanor Friedberger‘s band, the Fiery Furnaces, formed in Brooklyn before forming in Brooklyn was cool. They’ve won over plenty of indie rock fans, but Friedberger’s solo stuff is just as catchy. She manages to get a lot of sound out of a single electric guitar, which you can witness for yourself at Black Cat.

8 PM at the Black Cat, $15.

Fountains of Wayne enjoyed their 15 minutes in the spotlight in 2003 with the release of “Stacy’s Mom”–which has the distinction of being one of the first songs to top iTunes’ charts. Since then, they’ve been trying to convince people they still got it goin’ on–with five albums dating back to 1996, they’re not quite a one-hit wonder. They play the 9:30 Club tonight.

7 PM at 9:30 Club, $25.

Friday, April 20

In the late ’70s, one of the best bands Washington ever created were banned from playing any venues because crowds went so
bonkers when they performed. More than 30(!) years later, H.R. and his band,
Bad Brains, are more than welcome. They’ve mellowed a ton since their early days, playing more reggae-tinged stuff these days. Catch
them at Howard Theatre tonight.

6 PM at Howard Theatre, $29.

It’s hard to hear
Trampled By Turtles‘ banjo and mandolin and
not be instantly pulled in. The Minnesota-based group blend elements of
bluegrass, pop, and folk
music to make something that’s beautiful and transfixing, which
you can hear at the 9:30 Club if you can snag a ticket
somewhere.

8 PM at 9:30 Club, sold out.

Hall loses Oates Friday at the Warner Theatre–Daryl Hall has been performing live webcasts since 2007. He’s taken that show on the road, playing some of his solo stuff, and will
hopefully spring in some of Hall & Oates’s bigger hits.

8 PM at Warner Theatre, $79 to $143.

Saturday, April 21

The people behind Listen Local First are partnering with the new Water Street Project art space in Georgetown to bring you
a host of local bands you probably haven’t seen much of–for free. Groovy instrumentalists
Les Rhinoceros, indie rockers
Young Rapids, and throwback rockers
Shark Week are among the bands playing.

8 PM at Water Street Project, free.

Chairlift have been featured on an iPod
commercial, which is usually a recipe for becoming popular for ten
minutes and then disappearing,
or for being Bono. Neither one of those happened for the
now-Brooklyn-based duo (they’re originally from Boulder), and it’s
probably better that way. They make synth pop, but not in the
same manner as Passion Pit or other dancey band–it’s sparser
and prettier, and you should check them out at U Street Music
Hall
.

7 PM at U Hall, $13.

Sunday, April 22

Contraception, the economy, Mitt Romney’s wife, and
pretty much everything else has overshadowed the fact that the oceans
are turning into one big bowl of seafood soup, so it makes
sense that the free Earth Day concert on the Mall this year is
a little crappier than usual. There wasn’t one last year, so
maybe people are starting to care again–but while you got Sting,
John Legend, and the Flaming Lips a couple of years ago, you
get aging rockers
Dave Mason and
Cheap Trick today. Enjoy.

Noonish on the Mall, free.

It was probably weird for
Needtobreathe, who have been topping Christian
rock charts for more than a decade, to open for 20-year-old Taylor
Swift on her tour. It
must have worked, though–the band got two nights at 9:30 Club,
sold out the first, and still haven’t been forced to use
spaces.

7 PM at 9:30 Club, $25.

Monday, April 23

Sooo when will someone release a song called “2005” to remember
Bowling for Soup? I guess not soon enough,
because the band are still playing “1985” and their other minor hits. Go
listen to “1985” and count
up the “present day” references–were Limp Bizkit really popular
that recently? Did Ozzy ever actually become an actor? Did
you know this band have released 11 albums? Between this show
and Fountains of Wayne, you can have your own version of one
of VH1’s I Love Recent History
shows.

7 PM at Jammin’ Java, $15.

Apparently if you’re from Liverpool, you’re called a Liverpudlian. Liverpudlians
the Wombats
are the rare band that can make
dance music without resorting to synths, samples, or other electronic
riffraff.

7 PM at 9:30 Club, $20.

Tuesday, April 24

I have a longstanding belief that when you have the chance to see a band that’s widely despised, you do it. According to top
Google results,
Creed and Nickelback are in the running for
worst band ever. It’s worth wasting one night for the story you’ll have
after–see Creed
perform “Six Feet From the Edge,” “Higher,” and other songs
that haunt your dreams for the low, low price of whatever you
consider your dignity to
cost.

8 PM at Warner Theatre, somehow sold out but starting at $35 on StubHub.

Wednesday, April 25

Back to the good stuff.
Rodrigo y Gabriela
‘s upbeat Latin rhythms are
transfixing, impressive, and would make good background music for an
old-school saloon standoff
or a bank robbery. Keep that in mind if you’re planning either.
Though they stick to acoustic guitars, they’re both totally
into metal, and it shows with their intricate guitar picking
and
arrangements.

8 PM at Warner Theatre, $70.

If you had to pin
Lucero
to a genre, it’d be country–but they’ve
always been a part of the punk scene, touring with Against Me! back
when they played
in basements. Like that band, they also signed with a major
label, but their fanbase didn’t revolt completely. Lucero have
gotten more rock-y as they’ve
matured.

7 PM at 9:30 Club, $25.