Necktie Optional episode 18 (8/13/2026)

Twenty-eight tracks tonight, opening with The Weakerthans, Built to Spill, and Girl Scout setting a literate, guitar-driven tone. Dinosaur Jr. roughed up the edges before Embrace slotted in with "Road to Nowhere" — the band's first new material in four years, released ahead of their 30th-anniversary UK headline tour — and Ratboys brought things back to scrappier footing. Michigander, Twin Fin, Circle Change, and Great Grandpa kept the momentum going. Twin Fin's "South of San Francisco" came out via Ineffable Records, Billboard's top independent reggae label, giving the track a looser, island-tinged pull against the rest of the set. Mei Semones' "Dangomushi" is named for a small pill bug she made friends with in the park, alongside a bird and a mouse — a tiny, specific little world set to pizzicato guitar and strings. FIGHTMASTER's "Cowboy Tumbleweed" carried the run forward alongside The Brook & The Bluff, Annie DiRusso, and Carver Commodore. FIGHTMASTER is the music project of actor E.R. Fightmaster, known for playing Dr. Kai Bartley on Grey's Anatomy.Minus the Bear, Twen, Eastern Souvenirs, and Sjowgren pushed into heavier, more atmospheric territory before Lights, DMA'S, The Tubs, and Slow Coast lightened things back up with synth-pop and jangle. Closed out with The Beths, The Velvet Teen, KennyHoopla, Citizen, and Dismemberment Plan, whose scrappy, angular sound helped define the late-'90s DC post-punk scene long before "Pay for the Piano."Handpicked, as always. Neckties remain optional.Setlist:The Weakerthans | Plea from a Cat Named VirtueBuilt to Spill | Carry the ZeroGirl Scout | Simple LifeDinosaur Jr. | Several Got AwayEmbrace | Road to NowhereRatboys | AnywhereMichigander | Starting a BandTwin Fin | South of San FranciscoCircle Change | CaliforniaGreat Grandpa | TaskMei Semones | DangomushiFIGHTMASTER | Cowboy TumbleweedThe Brook & The Bluff | I'll Have It DownAnnie DiRusso | OvidCarver Commodore | Black PlasticMinus the Bear | The FixTwen | SeaStarEastern Souvenirs | ColorsSjowgren | High BeamLights | COME GET YOUR GIRLDMA'S | Killing TimeThe Tubs | Who's Gonna Love You Now?Slow Coast | Where I'm Supposed to BeThe Beths | Knees DeepThe Velvet Teen | Pavlovian BellKennyHoopla | OBSTACLE 1//Citizen | Is It In My Brain?Dismemberment Plan | Pay for the Piano