Former Black Eyes dude/current Mi Ami wailer Daniel Martin-McCormick rolled through D.C. Saturday for a set at Shaw DIY spot The Cherch. He was performing as Sex Worker, and he was hawking that project’s latest LP. It’s worth your money. That’s one good reason for this post; the other is he’s doing an area encore tonight, at Golden West in Baltimore.

The music: Harsh, mangled glam pop mostly made via keys, beats, samples, pedals, and vox, but which was ultimately all about Martin-McCormick’s tortured gasp-and-wail. A guitar snuck in once or twice. During the show, I was pretty sure he was contorting “Music of the Night” from Lloyd Webber’s Phantom of the Opera, but it turns out it’s an original cut called “Rhythm of the Night.” Hear it over at Bmore Musically Informed. (Speaking of covers: On an earlier split with Psychic Reality—-who also performed, and really, you should hear her, too—-Sex Worker covered/tore to shreds The Nerves‘/Blondie‘s power-pop/new wave classic “Hanging on the Telephone.”)

I’d offer a YouTube clip here, but I’m not sure they exist, plus typing “Sex Worker” into the search field yields all sorts of unpleasant results. Expect to see more Sex Worker soon—-the tour doubled as Martin-McCormick’s move from San Francisco to New York City.