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S U N D A Y

What hath Iris Dement wrought? Well, for one thing, Gillian Welch, an L.A. singer/songwriter whose plain-spoken country-rock has little to do with contemporary rock and less to do with contemporary country. Welch’s songs, mostly written with accompanist David Rawlings, contain lines like “Don’t turn no heads/Don’t catch no eye/Just a wind on the road/Gonna pass you by,” while Welch’s voice contains a melancholy purity that almost makes you believe them. With Kevin Welch and Dave Rawlings at 8 p.m. at the Birchmere, 3901 Mount Vernon Ave., Alexandria. $13.50. (703) 549-5919. (MJ)