Last night, seven local bands gathered at La Casa to play a benefit show for victims of the Mt. Pleasant Fire. Proceeds (I’m still waiting on a figure) will go to Neighbor’s Consejo. A round-up of the line-up:

1. The Coats. I love the Coats. This three-piece does the ol’ switcharoo, taking turns on guitar, bass, drums, and keys. They rock hardest on the keys. They sound kind of like the Doors, except good! Boy, do I hate the Doors.

2. Wild Fictions. I missed most of this band’s set while buying a chocolate donut from the 7-Eleven down the street. I’m sure Wild Fictions was just as delicious.

3. Fever. The high-concept catch behind this benefit was that every band had to pen an original song entitled “Queen of the Water Dolphins.” Fever—first a two-piece, now a new and improved three—was the only band to pull off an ode to Her Majesty that deserves to stick around for future shows.

4. Kitty Hawk. I had never heard this band before. They whisked me away to a tropical paradise of calypso beats and casually tied forehead bandanas. And rock.

5. US Royalty. I’m not sure what it is about this band, but when lead singer John Thornley stripped down from a sweater to a button-down to, finally, a light-pink, deep v-neck tee, the crowd went fucking wild. The key to the band’s je ne sais quoi may be their haircuts: all immaculate. There’s something almost too polished about them … they may be androids.

6. Ra Ra Rasputin. Sexy.

7. Sugarcane Crawl. I first saw this band around six months ago. I was immediately drawn to the matching red, wavy mullets sported by two of the band’s members (seriously, check out the pictures). I later learned that they worked for Vidal Sassoon, so I was a little surprised that their haircuts were roughly the same about half a year later. They broke a lamp.

Update, 1:52 p.m.: The benefit raised $1,354.

The Dischord store is now selling Fairfax cellist Gordon Withers‘ Jawbox on Cello: A Benefit for Cal Robbins. Cal Robbins, son of Jawbox’s J. Robbins, is being treated for spinal muscular atrophy; more information about him, his treatment, and how you can help is  here. You can check out streams of some of Withers’ covers on his MySpace page.