This happened a couple of weeks ago and I haven't yet commented on it, but it really sucks that Black Eyes broke up. If you don't know, Black Eyes was a chaotic DC dancepunk band that put out an album on Dischord last year, and they're breaking up because one of their two bass players (I think) is moving to the west coast. DC bands do stuff like this all the time; it's like they're looking for an excuse to break up. I saw them like four or five times last year, and they were always incredible, a scorching blast of youth and noise and energy. At their best, they were just ridiculously propulsive and powerful, something like Fugazi + the Rapture with none of the sense of order that would imply. At their worst, they were screechy and self-indulgent, but they were a DC band, so it comes with the territory. Also, being a DC band, they'll probably reunite with a different name and like one new member in a few months, and they won't be as good. Dischord is putting out their second album sometime soon, but I don't know if I'll still care when I don't have the prospect of seeing them live. They were supposed to open for Lungfish in a couple of weeks, but now we get Entrance. Woo.

Speaking of DC, fuck DC. Bridget and I went to see Blonde Redhead and the Secret Machines there last Friday; we were missing that tour's Baltimore stop because it was the same night as Bridget's birthday party. The Black Cat is a great club in many ways, but DC audiences just suck the life out of a show. Both bands have plenty of quiet parts, and all those parts were ruined because the incessant hipster conversation babble would actually drown out the music. I'm not saying people shouldn't have conversations at shows, but they shouldn't actually overwhelm the show itself. DC is lame.