Nightlife Agenda

Thursday | Friday | Saturday | Monday | Tuesday

Thursday, July 6
You'll always hear good music the first Thursday of the month at Wonderland, as that's when members of local collective the Federal Reserve take the stage to do their folk-pop-Americana thing. Tonight's performance is of special note, though, as like-minded Philadelphian Adam Arcuragi will be sharing the bill with Federal Reservers These United States and Vandaveer. Arcuragi's self-titled debut album does the singer-songwriter thing the right way: His evocative lyrics are what you'd expect from an award-winning poet, and he's not someone who's simply in love with the his voice and words. More than just strummy acoustic guitar, his long songs have chamber-pop elements that bring to mind the work of Sufjan Stevens, and his confident but slightly fragile delivery is in the vein of the Red House Painters or Neutral Milk Hotel.

So who's going out to Love tonight to see Fat Joe? "Lean Back" has been in the rear view mirror for a couple of years, and the heads that still bump cuts from the Terror Squad head honcho's less flossy days probably won't be at New York Avenue's temple of rap video opulence. Still, Joey Crack should fit in just fine, as evidenced by his evolution from a grimy Bronx battle rapper and graffiti tagger to a champagne-popping Don with a penchant for pink furs.

Friday, July 7
Sword swallowers! Burlesque dancers! The human pincushion! Those are the kind of attractions Joe Englert promised would be coming to his latest nightspot, the Palace of Wonders, and for the bar's grand opening this weekend, he's delivering in spades. Headlining the two-night party is Todd Robbins, the creator of the 21st-century sideshow Carnival Knowledge, and a man who hammers nails up his nose, walks on broken glass and sticks his hand into animal traps in the name of entertainment. (Yes, it's as scary as it sounds.) Burlesque bombshell Trixie Little is coming down from Baltimore with her companion the Evil Hate Monkey for a little not-quite-naked bumping and grinding. Also performing are Chris McDaniel, who specializes in Wild West rope tricks, and female sword swallower Charon Henning. These are the type of performers we've been waiting for, and the bar itself is a stunning tribute to traveling sideshows. (You can read Fritz's first impressions of the place here.) Tickets are $12 in advance or $15 at the door, and we'd recommend arriving early for the best seats -- admission begins at 7, with the action starting at 8.

The first Friday of the month means another installment of We Fought the Big One, the DJ night that specializes in playing obscure '80s and '90s indie rock, shoegazer jams and forgotten post-punk classics. And speaking of shoegazers, tonight's event at the Marx Cafe is the official release party for the new album by local band Alcian Blue, whose influences range from the noise-guitar onslaught of My Bloody Valentine to the lush atmospheric pop of the Cocteau Twins. Alcian Blue singer Jake Reid is taking a turn or two in the DJ booth, and we'd put a wager on a few tunes from the Creation and 4AD labels making his playlist. The first record drops at 10, and there's no cover charge.

We're still buzzing from our discussion in the podcast that P.M. Dawn will be at Iota. Not only did the group get masticated by the fickle pop music marketplace that continually mulches one-hit wonders, but lead vocalist Prince Be has the added ignominy of forever being known as the big dude that KRS-One tossed off the stage for perceived disrespect. Most of their peers would have slipped into obscurity, but P.M. Dawn kept recording and maintained a core of serious fans, even if there aren't as many as there were in those heady days of the early '90s. Some of this recent material is pretty good, so let's hope that this gig isn't an attempt to cash in on a nostalgia fest.

Saturday, July 8
In the last week, Matthew Perpetua has posted MP3s by Gang Starr, Unrest, the Fiery Furnaces, and German art-rockers Can on Fluxblog, his incredibly popular MP3 blog. He's also written about the female Brazilian electro band Cansei Ser Sexy and Swedish indie rockers Envelope for his Hit Refresh column on the Associated Press's ASAP site. That's why we're curious to see what, exactly, Perpetua will play as the special guest DJ at Bluestate tonight. Perpetua has been at the forefront of the MP3 blog scene since launching Fluxblog in 2002, posting a cross section of everything but focusing on up-and-coming indie bands. Bluestate started as a collaboration of four local bloggers who, not surprisingly, frequently write about music and post audio samples, so this is a natural fit. Bluestate is free and it gets underway at 10 on the Black Cat's backstage.

Expect this week's swing dance at Glen Echo's Spanish Ballroom to be a little more rocking than usual. In lieu of the usual hot jazz and lindy-hop acts that have people dancing the night away, roots rock royalty the Blasters provide the tunes. There will still be ample opportunities to dance, because the quartet's rollicking rockabilly has plenty of grooves, if not quite in the same vein as regulars the J Street Jumpers or Radio King Orchestra. Even without founding member Dave Alvin (who will coincidentally be at the Birchmere the previous night), the Blasters, led by Dave's brother Phil, deliver the best of Americana. As usual, a dance lesson precedes the concert for those who need a little brushing up on their steps.

Retro '70s chic isn't hot anymore and the term "acid jazz" is quickly becoming a smirked-upon footnote of the '90s. Although the Brand New Heavies, helped fuel those trends, their charms keep them from being one-scene wonders. N'Dea Davenport last appeared with the band on 1995's "Brother Sister," and it's taken a decade for the iconic voice of the Brand New Heavies' biggest hits to fall back into their orbit. The group's work with Siedah Garrett and other frontwomen was solid, but the faithful fans really only care about this new N'Dea-fortified tour and album. This will be one of those occasional shows that packs the 9:30 Club with folks who usually won't go to anything that isn't at the Warner or Constitution Hall.

Listen up, Cancers and Leos. If your birthday is in July, McFadden's is buying your drinks tonight from 8 to 11. All you have to do is call the bar to get your name on the list (202-223-2338) and show a valid ID when you arrive. In a sparkling show of generosity, those of us born from August to June can join in the drunken mayhem-- er, fun -- for $20.

Grand Opening Weekend at the Palace of Wonders continues. (See Friday listing.)

Monday, July 10
Through his poetry and vinyl curation skills, Rich Medina helped anchor Philadelphia's urban art scene, a rich network that eventually touched the world through artists like Kindred, Jaguar Wright and Jill Scott. Doggedly making a name for himself as a shrewd party rocker, Medina established his Latin house-flavored Afrorikan Vibe and Afrobeat Jump-N-Funk events as hot destinations before moving further north and becoming a resident at the New York tastemaker mecca APT. He'll be rocking at Sesto Senso tonight for the opening of the Hip-Hop Theater Festival, and get this -- admission is free.

Tuesday, July 11
After the release of "Up Against the Legends" in 2004, it seemed like the Swedish nine-piece the Legends was well on its way to establishing itself as a good old indie-pop band. Jangly guitars and a Phil Spector-inspired production made almost every song on the record a toe-tapping delight. You can barely tell it's the same band on the group's new album, "Public Radio." There's a much more minimalist approach this time around, as the tambourines, handclaps and wall-of-sound elements are gone in favor of slinky, echoing guitar lines that sound right off of the Cure's "Disintegreation." But you will recognize head Legend Johan Angergard's voice and his knack for succinct pop songwriting. The Legends open for Angergard's other, more popular band, Acid House Kings, at DC9. It's always hard to predict crowd size, but the club seems to expect a big one. Advance tickets will be available at DC9 starting at 5 p.m., an extremely rare practice.