Good morning! Check back later in the roundup for the heavy stuff. Here's some local music endorsements:

• Carolyn Malachi, subject of this week's One Track Mind, isn't the only artist I can think of who combines forward-thinking soul with an apparent love for cyberpunk (or at least sci-fi). I don't know if she's the next Janelle Monae, to use the blog-crit parlance, but I do know that her new EP, Lions, Fires & Squares, is really, really worth your time. Especially if you're into songs about mermaids and spacemen attending couple's therapy.
• Cool video of Bluebrain's recent iPod dance project.
• New EP from Lightfoot—it's lovely, rainy-day Americana.

On to the news! Classic D.C. punks Dag Nasty are releasing a new LP of old recordings. Arena Stage is looking for proposals for staged readings of Edward Albee plays for its upcoming festival celebrating the playwright's oeuvre. There will soon be more good movies to watch instantly on Netflix, which means you are less likely to settle on an awesomely bad one! reports WaPo's Monica Hesse. Decoy will paint two murals—the design involes John Phillip Sousa and a lot of pink—around Capitol Hill. And TBD's Sarah Godfrey reports that local go-go shop P.A. Palace has launched a 24-hour Internet station.

The Washington Post Magazine follows up with Jeff Nelson, who in addition to being a former member of Minor Threat and a co-owner of Dischord Records, is also obsessed with D.C.'s Buffalo Bridge—that's why he was the subject of a WaPo Mag story 10 years ago. The last time he was in Washington City Paper's pages, it was on the occasion of his selling of a Minor Threat test pressing on eBay for $6,000. According to this weekend's WaPo piece, he's also employing eBay as a research tool—it's brought him rare documents, and new friends, which also has something to do with his gum collection. I think.

Lastly, the Examiner's Harry Jaffe has discovered street art. Have a great day!

Not many novelists reviewed in the New York Times are writing about Bad Brains shows in Washington, D.C., circa 1979. But Jennifer Gilmore, with her new novel Something Red, has somehow written a popular work of fiction in which H.R. is a minor player. We asked Gilmore, who's in town this week for several readings, about basement shows, radicalism, and Washington's memorable foliage.

Are you from D.C.?

Yes. I grew up in Chevy Chase, Md., and went to BCC most of my life.

So, you've got a lot in common with Vanessa. [Vanessa, Something Red's adolescent protagonist, behaves badly in and around D.C.'s nascent hardcore scene.]

Not really. This book takes place in 1979. That's before my time. I was super young then. The music is different, and the time is different.

Why did you decide to ficitionalize this era?

I started the book because I wanted to write about how radicalism has declined over the generations, and wanted to look at that phenomenon through Jewish history. I'm very interested in the way history plays out in families.

During that time, there was so much going on with music. There was disco, there was the Dead, and there was punk...Music is the way people express dissent. I wanted [Vanessa] for the first time to experience what it's like to to go a Bad Brains show. I never saw them—they had left for New York by the time I would have been old enough—but they were literally from D.C., and I liked writing about someone who was at the edges of punk rock...and [Vanessa's brother] Benjamin is a jock in high school, but heir to his grandfather, who is a Lower East Side socialist...[Benjamin] finds that radicalism in the Grateful Dead at Brandeis.

Do you think it's strange to be a Jew in D.C.? [The author, whose grandfather is Jewish, isn't Jewish himself, but is still one of the most Jewish people he knows in this WASP-y town.]

When I was growing up, I remember going to a lot of Bar Mitzvahs—high-end Bar Mitzvahs with senators' kids. But I didn't grow up particularly religious. We went to the high holidays. We went to Temple Sinai. I didn't have a Bat Mitzvah...It wasn't until I went to Brandeis, where there were all these people from New York City and Long Island, that I was surrounded by Jews. These Jews were different.

In what way?

They grew up in really Jewish community. People I knew from Teaneck, N.J., did not not have friends that weren't Jewish. I came to realize a lot later that experience—having a diverse group of friends—is unique to Washington.

You're writing about a music scene that's not well-documented, at least in the mainstream media. How did you research that world?

I don't write a lot about the facts of it. I've been to punk shows and my experience seeing Dag Nasty or Minor Threat is similar to what Vanessa experiences. The experience of being in a basement—that experience I understood. There's a book called Punk Love with pictures by Susie Horgan, who I met later in Miami. You can get oral histories in some ways. I'm in no way trying to write about that scene or claim to know anything about that scene. It was about a character getting her feet wet in something, and for her, that feels natural.

Do you have anything to say about the scene now?

I don't really know it. I don't want to claim to be someone I'm not. I went to shows sometimes and was overwhelmed by them—the energy of it, what it was like. You always have that sense in any scene, whether you're following the Grateful Dead or Dag Nasty. I was always on the outside, always kind of watching.

What was the identity that stuck for you?

I don't feel like I had a particular identity. It's hard growing up, but now it's incredibly useful, to be a person who's not only one kind of person...I feel the other you get, the more specialized you become. On the inside, we're all teenagers. I'm a writer. A lot of my friends are writers, so I'm not conversant in that. I teach, so I have this unique experience of having college students in my life. My sister is a visual artist. I'm married to a painter. My life is the cultural life of New York.

Do you miss Washington?

I grew up there, so all of my complicated memories of childhood are associated with that town. I grew up in the Reagan/Bush years. It's the kind of town that's informed by who's in office. I mean, there were jelly bean stores when Reagan was in office. I'm not not interested in politics, but I'm not a political person. Honestly, it's such a beautiful town—my memories are of driving by the Watergate, of all the trees...I don't have that experience being connected to the visuals of a place now. I miss that—feeling so close to the mechanisms of government...Of course, we were as far away from that as anyone else. But that proximity was interesting. That's what I've chosen to write about.

Do you feel like stakes are lower than they were in the 1980s?

At college at Brandeis, I had a feeling that I had missed the '60s. That I'd missed this amazing time...but looking at Obama and the way people rallied, knocking on doors in ghettos of Philadelphia...I've been really revitalized by that. But that was fleeting. I'm not sure if that's related to our time or technology... everything feels purposeful and completely purposeless. You get attached to something online, and it's gone in 10 minutes.

You need people for a revolution. So many people are online, I don't know how they get together. I really wanted to deal with the decline of radicalism. I wanted to say that what radicalism means for each generation is really different. I think that there are people who, very much, think they are radicals in some ways. 1960s radicals might not agree, but it is what it is.

Gilmore reads tonight at 7 p.m. Politics & Prose. She also reads Thursday at 11 a.m. at Chevy Chase library and Sunday 2 p.m. at Borders in Bailey's Crossroads.

Dave Smalley is the most Advanced man to come out of the '80s hardcore scene.

A beacon of Boston straight edge with DYS, he was later singer for D.C.'s Dag Nasty, then All, then...I kinda drifted away from his career after that(God, I'm a moron; how could I forget Down by Law?). Until 2004, when Smalley emerged as a leading voice (OK, one of the only voices) of "conservative punk," which was really just libertarianism I'm fairly certain. ANYWAY, Smalley is now a newspaper editor in Fredericksburg, Va., and occasionally still does music, such as the single by Pocket that hit YouTube this week.

In it, you can see Smalley wearing sunglasses indoors as well as a cowboy hat. There is an American flag on the wall. Plus flames. All these things point to Advancement, but none so much as the fact that this is electronic music. For Smalley to go the Propellerheads route in 2009 is not only Advanced, it's museum-worthy. For the song to be good—well, that's just lagniappe!

I got in touch with Smalley about this; he can't do an interview till next week. But I am not gonna let this story die!

photo: LegendsMagazine.net

9. Bill Harris artwork in Fredericksburg

Harris is a painter who does stunning, often subtly dark works in lovely little Fredericksburg. He’s a talented artist who creates beautiful still lifes, yet does some understated, twisted works as well. He’s a master of color and line, and the subject matter often makes you think. He paints a lot of portraits and nudes, sometimes with something melancholy or even brooding about it–like “Invisible Sum,” where a nude woman halfway out of a bear costume stares forlornly into her purse. One wonders what the backstory was for that one. Or “Alone Together,” where a tattooed girl stands singing into a microphone in the middle of a restaurant, with no one paying attention. Some of his stuff can be seen on his Web site: wcharris.com. He’s often in his studio at LibertyTown Arts Workshop. Two big thumbs up. For those not in the know, Fredericksburg boasts an amazing art scene, with a host of artists and galleries doing really cool stuff.

8. Comic book movies

I’m a serious comic book geek, most especially into Marvel titles, but also some DC, from the early days of the Fantastic Four battling the Mole Man to about the ‘90s, when the costs of comics started to skyrocket and the artwork/stories started to suck. (Killing Captain America?! Heinous.) In the New World Order, Marvel and DC have shifted their genius quota to the movie side, and this year’s releases of The Dark Knight and Iron Man were easily deserving of all-time-top-movies status. Everyone’s written about Heath Ledger as the Joker in The Dark Knight, and he is brilliant in the role, but the whole film is perfectly paced, thoughtful, and disturbing–a tribute to the dark side of the Dark Knight. Christian Bale is equally brilliant as Bruce Wayne. As for Iron Man, Robert Downey Jr. simply IS Tony Stark–he nails every nuance of the character perfectly, and the armor is ubercool. They even brought in the Dude as Obadiah Stane–a master stroke.

7. Iron Maiden at Merriweather Post Pavilion

Run to the hills…run for your life. The band that put the heavy into heavy metal destroyed the stage on June 18. If you had a preexisting heart condition, it likely was aggravated at this show–pulsing, pumping, head-banging, fist-clenching metal fury from beginning (complete with Winston Churchill’s famous speech over the loudspeakers: “We will fight them on the beaches…”) to end. One of the toughest bands musically, Maiden played all the thundering hits from each album, complete with full set changes and of course, the band’s mascot, a gigantic Eddie, lurching about onstage. Best song: “The Trooper.” Bruce Dickinson looked and sounded in his prime. I’ve seen Maiden a number of times, including on the famous “Aces High” tour, and this may well have been the best so far. Kick-ass T-shirt selections as well.

6. Van Halen at John Paul Jones Arena, Charlottesville

This band is just a brilliant pure rock band–still. David Lee Roth is back, thank God. (Though honestly, Sammy Hagar is a great singer too–but it just wasn’t Van Halen without David Lee.) Roth is the ultimate showman, funny and charismatic, and sounded and looked very, very good. Eddie Van Halen’s chiseled abs were enough to make every over-40-something male in the audience suck in their beer gut and wonder how the hell he does it. (Of course, having a private trainer and doing this for a living doesn’t hurt.) As for the playing: Is there anyone who doubts that Eddie Van Halen is one of the best rock guitarists ever? Just stunning how fast he still plays, and how unique his style still is—and how Dave and Eddie bring out the best in each other. They did all the hits, and if you didn’t have a smile on your face the whole time, you didn’t have a heart. I’d see this band every time they play (and hope they do again soon). Everybody wants some.

5. Motorhead, Ram’s Head Live, Baltimore

Motorhead at its best is an unstoppable force of potent destruction. And this show was the band at its best. Lemmy Kilmister has no need for on-stage theatrics—just giant backdrops with the band’s logo and then blam, straight into brutal volume and smash-worthy songs. God gave rock and roll to you, to quote Paul Stanley, and it’s Motorhead that is the proof. “Ace of Spades” and “Iron Fist” remain anthems for all head bangers everywhere. Sheer, honest power.

4. Metal Masters Tour, Nissan Pavilion

Judas Priest, Heaven and Hell, Motorhead, and Testament–a fist to the face the whole night long. Missed Testament, and Motorhead was not well served by having to play while it was still light out. This legendary, dirty, heavy group is a band made for the darkness. Still, they were Motorhead, and the material pounded the audience into adoring oblivion. Next, Heaven and Hell–that’s Black Sabbath with Ronnie James Dio singing–was a dynamic band, one that played selections from Heaven and Hell and Mob Rules, and just solid, cohesive metal songs that augur well for their upcoming album. Dio is a phenomenal singer, and Tony Iommi, Geezer Butler, and Vinny Appice make a potent, heavy lineup that is impossible to top. Heaven and Hell may be one of the best bands in the world. Headlining the night was Judas Priest, and they did not disappoint. Singer Rob Halford still has the trademark screams and growls that helped propel this band to stardom, still proudly rode the motorcycle, and still decked himself out in leather (though honestly, I’d have preferred more motorcycle jacket and less trench coat—you’re never out of style with a classic leather jacket). Songs like “Breakin’ the Law” and “Electric Eye” were standouts. A shining night of sweaty crowds in black t-shirts and bleeding eardrums when it was all over.

3. The Who at the Verizon Center

This band should be THE role model for all artists who still want to rock and keep the flame alive–who age gracefully but without abandoning what made you love them all along. (Elvis Costello and Paul Weller, are you listening?) Pete Townshend was as sincere and talented as ever (yes, he still does the windmill strumming, but tastefully), and Roger Daltrey is still one of the best frontmen of all time (yes, he still swings the mic around like nobody before or since). It was powerful, it was subtle, it was raging, it was quiet–overall a remarkable, dominating group, with songs like “Behind Blue Eyes,” “Pinball Wizard,” “Baba O’Riley,” “Won’t Get Fooled Again,” and a host of other hits proving why this band matters no less today than it did in 1965. So moving I had tears during some of it—that’s how tender/powerful Townshend’s songwriting can be. Special notice should be made of Zack Starkey’s insane drumming (complete with mod haircut)–he’s Keith Moon’s worthy successor.

2.  My pickup truck

It’s rusty, it’s old, and it may not last another year. But there’s a bit of heaven on Earth driving down the road taking stuff to the dump with the dog next to you, the windows rolled down, and Hank Williams III, the Clash and Government Issue blasting into the country air.

1. AC/DC, Verizon Center

The ears are still ringing from this one, and the heartbeat is still racing. A perfect concert–a combo of a legendary band with almost all original (or at least, all longtime) members, songs that define rebellion and good times all at once, and hard rock meets blues meets shredding licks and screams that will curl your toes. Throw in gigantic cannons blasting, a huge blow-up doll onstage, a monstrous bell descending from the ceiling, a lifesize train, a guitarist who at age 53 rocks harder than most musicians half his age, and it all equals a musical fist to the face. For those about to rock, we salute you.

Dave Smalley sang for the bands DYS, Dag Nasty, All, Down by Law and the Sharpshooters.  He is currently editor of the Weekender section of the Fredericksburg Free-Lance Star.

All contributors to this series were guests on DISSONANCE, a DC punk oral histories show on Radio CPR. Dave Smalley's interview can be heard here.