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Six Points Festival Returns for the Second Year

© Eugenia E. Gratto

The second annual Six Points Music Festival, which will take place this year from April 7 to 11, will feature more than 40 acts at 13 different venues in Virginia, D.C., and Maryland.

The local music festival was first held last year in honor of the third anniversary of ArlingtonMusicScene.com, which was founded by area musician Mike Holden. The web site has become a prominent part of the local music scene, and serves as a way for musicians and music fans to network, promote their shows, and discuss local music issues through the organization's active listserv.

The festival's name refers to Arlington County, Virginia, which sits just across the Potomac River from Washington D.C. The county has six major focal points: Clarendon, Shirlington, Ballston, Columbia Pike, Rosslyn, and Crystal City; and the Six Points name comes from that. Last year, the festival's venues were primarily located along Metro's Orange Line in the Clarendon and Courthouse areas, but this year the venue line-up has expanded to include sites in D.C. and Maryland.

The festival kicks off on April 7 with shows at Staccato, in the Adams Morgan neighborhood of Washington D.C., and Whitlow's on Wilson, located in Clarendon, Virginia. At 7 p.m. that night, the head brewer at Rock Bottom Brewery in the Ballston neighborhood will tap Six Points Rye, a special beer being offered in honor of the festival. Rock Bottom will serve as a venue on the third night of the festival. The festival closes on April 11 with shows at Iota Club and Cafe in Arlington, murky coffee: Arlington, and D.C.'s Velvet Lounge.

The bands performing in this year's festival were selected by a seven-person committee that sifted through more than 160 submissions. The groups selected include an eclectic mix of singer-songwriters and full bands, many with strong rock sensibilities. However, everything from alt-country to blues sounds is represented in the mix. For a full festival lineup, visit http://www.arlingtonmusicscene.com.

Holden has introduced a new feature this year to help build excitement about the artists playing the festival. This year, you can visit the Arlington Music Scene web site and download Podcasts, radio-like shows in MP3 file format that can be played on most computers, downloaded and put into an iPod or MP3 player, or burned to CD. So far, Holden has recorded and published two of these Podcasts, with more on the way between now and the festival.

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