In this week’s paper (in boxes now!), we got an advance peek at Supernatural Strategies For Making a Rock ‘n’ Roll Group, the freaky, brainy, and frequently absurd new book from longtime D.C. musician (and cruise host) Ian Svenonius. Wanna form a band? He’s got some tips. An excerpt from our excerpts: “… if your group is fervently ideological, aware of the implications of its aesthetic presentation, and committed to its cause, it will be almost unbeatable,” writes Svenonius. “This kind of faith is hard to muster in our blasé, cynical, intellectually paralyzed, narcissistic, pornoholic, and postideological world, but can still be achieved through self-hypnosis or a sort of method acting.” Read on.

On the eve of Transformer’s 10th anniversary party and 9th annual auction on Friday, Kriston Capps leads the arts section with a look back at the tiny gallery’s first 10 years. In One Track Mind, Joe Warminsky talks to D.C.-via-Silver Spring electronic-music producer Andrew Field-Pickering, aka Maxmillion Dunbar, about the make-out music on his new 12-inch release, Woo. In theater, we revisit Trey Graham‘s reviews of the National Theatre of Scotland’s The Strange Undoing of Prudencia Hart (which he enjoyed)  and Arena’s My Fair Lady (which he did not).

Tricia Olszewski closes the section with her reviews of subpar organized-crime flick Killing Them Softly and the depressing but valuable documentary The Waiting Room, which—-chill out, geeks—-is about the sad state of emergency-room health care, not Fugazi.