Since releasing a debut cassette last winter, Phonic Riot has expanded from two members to an ever-changing lineup of four. But the D.C. band isn’t exactly going for more intricacy. The bass adds thrust; a second guitar offers sheet-metal histrionics and little else. And that’s OK: Noisy, shriek-filled, and art-abused, the band seems to inhabit the musical space occupied in the mid-1980s by Sonic Youth. Guitarist and singer Angela Morrish has a Corin Tucker yell that’s strained and spectral but also big, which gives force to words that sometimes evoke feminist poetry and gender theory. She’s a thoughtful lyricist, though she doesn’t write nearly as menacingly as she plays her guitar. With Trophy Wives and Dark Sea Dream at 9 p.m. at the Velvet Lounge. $8.

MUSIC
Locals Alma Tropicalia are a tribute band, sure, but their area of interest is the Brazilian psychedelic pop of the late 1960s. Their shows feel authentic and look trippy, plus they’re a lot cheaper than the reformed Os Mutantes, the biggest band to emerge from the Tropicalia movement, whose shows in recent years have had a distinctly Putomayo vibe. Dissssss! But yes: Alma Tropicalia. Free. Good deal! Kennedy Center Millenium Stage at 6 p.m.

Trumpet Grrrl leads tonight’s “The Garden” open mic at Bloombars. 8:30 p.m.

FILM
Coen Brothers retrospective continues! Intolerable Cruelty is at AFI Silver tonight at 9:10 p.m. $11.

DAMN
There’s just not a lot of stuff going on today. That doesn’t mean you should settle for Kid Rock.