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TL;DR, Pentagram Still Rules: “Pentagram are local heavy metal heroes who have graced our pitiful existence on this planet with some immortal riffs for 40 years,” begins a review of the band’s mid-August show at Jaxx on Day After Day DC. And what of frontman Bobby Liebling? “His presence is unreal and unforgettable; his bulging eyes instill a morbid fear in your soul; his, um, eccentric wardrobe choices tell you that he may not have gotten the memo that the ’70s are over, but that you’d be a fucking poser for even suggesting such a thing.”
Official Business: The Smithsonian Regents—the important people who govern the Institution, made up of 19 museums, the National Zoo, and nine research facilities—have elected France A. Cordova to the position of chairman. Cordova, an astrophysicist and president of Purdue University, succeeds Patricia Stonesifer.
Despicable: David Malitz says Chris Brown‘s music is weaksauce: ‘But while his dancing ability and stage presence haven’t abandoned him, his development of a unique musical persona is nowhere to be found.” Apparently, there’s no need to dislike the guy on moral grounds; his songs are bad enough.
Yesterday on Arts Desk: RIP Joe Barber. Prince George’s County’s Surf Club, back with booze and Americana! All about the Raincoats playing at Comet Ping Pong!