Cobra Starship at the Rock & Roll Hotel Wednesday, August 26

A year ago the only white musician getting play on hip-hop stations was Eminem. Now there are several bands in the mix—all in the vein of electronica-cum-pop-punk—that have white kids at the helm. One of those is Cobra Starship. “Good Girls Go Bad,” the band’s synth- and vocoder-heavy single, features an attention-boosting cameo by Gossip Girl’s Leighton Meester and almost no redeeming musical qualities. Like a lot of Cobra Starship music, the track is embarassingly infectious, chock full of overdriven guitars, dance beats, layered vocals, and really dumb lyrics. It’s not something you’d be caught dead blaring while pulling up to a traffic light, but slip on a pair of earbuds, and you’re likely to play it on repeat for half an hour. And just how does lead singer Gabe Saporta claim to make “good girls go bad”? By inviting them to his deli, dancing with them, and bouncing his white frames up and down on his nose—if only it were that easy.

COBRA STARSHIP PERFORMS AT 7 P.M. WITH THE AUDITION, FRIDAY NIGHT BOYS, AND SKEET SKEET AT THE ROCK & ROLL HOTEL, 1353 H ST. NE. SOLD OUT. (202) 388-7625.