Peter Bjorn and John w/ Bachelorette

Saturday, April 30, 9:30 Club ($25), doors 7:00 p.m.

At mention of Peter Bjorn and John, you probably started whistling. But in the five years since they released “Young Folks,”  PB&J have had a hard time matching its infectious success. They’re currently on tour promoting their latest album, Gimme Some, which the Voice‘s Mary Borowiec called “energetic but disjointed.” Their touring partner, Bachelorette, is a synth-wielding “psychadelic computer folk” singer from New Zealand, who just dropped her latest release, My Electric Family.

The Sweetlife Festival ft. The Strokes, Girl Talk, Lupe Fiasco, Crystal Castles, and many more

Sunday, May 1, Merriweather Post Pavillion ($55), first band starts at 12:50 p.m. (Full lineup and set times here)

You’ve been hearing about this new festival courtesy of our friends at Sweetgreen for months, and the lineup is chock full of performers that need no introduction. The Strokes, who close the festival and are planned to take the stage at 8:45 p.m., are likely promoting their new album, Angles, but  hopefully they’ll throw in some This is It for good measure. If you saw Lupe when he came to Georgetown in the fall, you know he puts on a pretty damn good live show, at least when he can remember all the words to his songs. Less well-known acts include local rock band Modern Man and New York electro rapper Theophilus London.

Talib Kweli w/ Jean Grae

Tuesday, May 3, Black Cat ($20 in advance, $25 doors), doors 8:00 p.m.

Brooklyn Rapper Talib Kweli released his fifth solo album, Gutter Rainbows, in January to rave reviews. You may have also seen him on MTV’s Made, where he helped coach nerdy highschooler Colin into a rap star. Opening for him is South African hip-hop artist Jean Grae.

Titus Andronicus w/Double Dagger, Dinowalrus
Wednesday, April 27, Black Cat ($15), doors at 8 p.m.

Titus Andronicus’ debut album The Monitor is a concept album based on the Civil War. Before their performance at Bulldog Alley last spring, I saw them sleeping in Sellinger Lounge. Double Dagger like to make noises with guitars. Dinowalrus sounds like a robot orchestra.

… And You Will Know Us by the Trail Of Dead, Surfer Blood, True Widow

Tuesday, May 10, Rock N Roll Hotel ($18), doors at 7 p.m.

Trail of Dead have been a stand by alternative rock band for over a decade. Their music is pretty straight forward. Surfer Blood are a poppy rock group whose debut album, Astro Coast, made a lot of buzz earlier this year.

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J.Cole
Sunday, April 17, U Street Music Hall ($25), doors at 8:00 p.m.

J.Cole will be on tour this summer with Rihanna, but you can him at U Hall this Sunday. This is a good opportunity to see J.Cole at a smaller venue. Friday Nights Lights, his most recent mixtape released in November, received acclaim from fans. He hasn’t released an album, though. Greg Monroe tweeted on March 7th that “J. Cole need to drop somethin.”

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Lil Wayne w/ Nicki Minaj, Rick Ross, Travis Barker
Sunday, April 3, Verizon Center ($49.75), doors at 7 p.m.

C’mon, don’t you miss the Verizon Center already? Lil Wayne’s coming to town with a slew of popular rap artists. Nicki Minaj wears her hair like Bride of Frankenstein, Rick Ross just signed Wale to Maybach Music, and Travis Barker put out a new album. It will surely be a loud and spectacular show.

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Mountain Goats w/Megafaun
Friday, March 25, 9:30 Club ($22.50), 8 p.m. doors

The Mountain Goats have been around for a really long time. Singer songwriter John Darnielle has worked with a slew of different musicians. They are currently touring on their new album All Eternals Deck, their first on Merge. The group has kept a large group of fans for having been active for so many years.

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U Hall 1 Year Anniversary
Thursday, March 17, U Street Music Hall ($10), 9 p.m. doors

U Hall has quickly filled a niche in Washington as the go-to nightclub for dance music. This Thursday, U Hall will be hosting djs Jesse Rose, Justin Martin, and Nadastrom to celebrate their birthday. The venue has gained a reputation for bringing talented djs into DC and its no-tolerance policy for difficult people. U Hall’s success was the subject the Voice‘s feature section this past December.

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Loretta Lynn
Thursday, March 17, 9:30 Club ($55), 7 p.m. doors

The 78 year-old “First Lady of Country Music” has been performing for almost 50 years. Known for hits like “Coal Miner’s Daughter,” Lynn had a resurgence of popularity in 2004 when she released Van Lear Rose, produced by Jack White. Flirting was evident.

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Pogues w/Titus Andronicus
Wednesday, March 9, 9:30 Club ($55), 7:00 p.m. doors

It is NOT too early to talk about St. Patrick’s Day! The Pogues are the quintessential Irish pub rock band. If Shane MacGowan can make it onstage you might be able to understand what he’s saying. You may have heard of “Fairy Tale of New York”. Want to spend a night with this guy? Titus Andronicus is opening

Streetlight Manifesto
Sunday, March 13, 9:30 Club ($20), 4:30 p.m. doors

Streetlight Manifesto is the ska-punk that was formerly Catch 22. Like most of their genre, they are still touring on the same songs you fell in love with five years ago. The lineup has changed considerably, but the horn section is still going.

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Bon Jovi
Sunday, February 27, Verizon Center ($19.50-$149.50), 6:30 p.m. doors

JBJ and company welcome you to “An evening with Bon Jovi.” For about twenty bucks, you can bring the kids too. Look forward to pending a couple hours looking down from the Verizon Center Penthaus waiting for the band to play “Livin’ on a Prayer.” Last year, Bon Jovi’s “Circle Tour” was the highest grossing tour of 2010.

Tennis w/La Sera, Holiday Shores
Saturday, March 5, Rock N Roll Hotel ($12), 8 p.m. doors

No, it’s not a sports-themed dance night. Tennis is an indie rock duo from Denver who’ve been scoring points with reviewers acorss the interwebs. The Voice‘s own Luke Howley reviewed their debut album Cape Dory this January. Something about a sailboat?

Rooney w/Eisley, The Old Ceremony
TONIGHT, February 18, Rock N Roll Hotel ($16), 7 p.m. doors

Rooney was a band that toured with Weezer, The Strokes, some other folks. They’re still around. They had some good songs. Come relive the early 2000s garage-rock revival years. It’s the least you can do.

Wanda Jackson w/The Lustre Kings
Friday, February 25, 9:30 Club ($20), 10 p.m. doors

Wanda Jackson, “The Queen of Rockabilly,” has receieved praise for her new album The Party Ain’t Over which was produced by Jack White. At a ripe 73 years old, Jackson clearly still has an extraordinary amount of energy in her. Put on your cowboy boots and check it out.

Jonathon Richman
Saturday, February 26, 9:30 Club ($15), 7 p.m. doors

Jonathon Richman was the lead singer of The Modern Lovers, a band that had a major influence on the development of punk rock in the 70s. Since their break-up, Richman has been perfecting his own brand of acoustic. This one is sure to

Slightly Stoopid w/ Fishbone, Dumpstaphunk
Wednesday, February 16, 9:30 Club ($29.50), doors at 6:30 p.m.

Slightly Stoopid are a dub-punk bad akin to Sublime. Originally founded in San Diego, Slightly Stoopid has played shows around the world for fifteen years. This second was added because their first show sold out. Fishbone are a funk rock band that takes influences from all over. They’ve been active since 1979. Dumpstaphunk is the band of Ivan Neville, son of Aaron Neville, who plays New Orleans style R&B.

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