The What Have You (TWHY) is an open mic every 1st & 3rd Weds at Evening Star Cafe and a concert series at various venues around Northern Virginia.
We encourage bands, jams, one-offs, and generally screwing around. It’s like a house party or a Jon Brion show.
Next Show
APR 15: Open Mic “National Librarians Day Night”
about the open mic
The What-Have-You (TWHY) music open mic at Evening Star Cafe mixes solo performers, bands, and pickup jams together in a loose, industry-night-style environment.
This is a musicians’ hang, hosted by musicians for musicians who want to maybe perform or maybe just hang out on a weeknight. The vibes are casual and comfortable, with a touch of music snobbiness, but not hipster snootiness. And there are, of course, plenty of Lebowski references. And good beer.
Please abide.
there are rules, smokey
Every 1st & 3rd Weds
Signups at 8, start at 8:30
No email/advanced signups
Solos, combos, & bands
Lots of available free agents
Drums stop at 10:30 (noise)
Full backline, don’t bring amps
Each act gets 2 songs
We shuffle the signup order
is this a…what day is this?
THE OPEN MIC HAS THEME NIGHTS. The first Weds is an “any songs” night, while the third Weds is typically a “theme” night. The idea is, each act has to play one song that somehow satisfies the theme.
Also, in 2026, we’re doing NON-OPEN MIC SPECIAL ENGAGEMENTS.
Here’s the upcoming schedule:
| DATE | DETAILS |
|---|---|
| WEDS FEB 18 | Twin Cities Night: Songs by artists from Minneapolis/St. Paul The Replacements, Husker Du, Soul Asylum, Low, The Jayhawks (also Golden Smog), Babes in Toyland, Lizzo, Semisonic, The Time, Atmosphere, and of course Prince and Bob Dylan. |
| WEDS MAR 4 | No Theme |
| WEDS MAR 18 | Ladies Night: Songs by Female Artists Dudes welcome, but please play a song by a non-dude. |
| WEDS APR 1 | No Theme / Songs About Fools (optional) |
| SUN APR 12 | The What Have You Presents: Music of 1986 at Galactic Panther Our first special engagement of the year. Lineup TBD. Not an open mic. $18 (POSTPONED, watch for new date) |
| WEDS APR 15 | National Librarians Day Night: Songs about Books & Nerds Based solely on the music video, “Africa” by Toto qualifies. |
| WEDS MAY 6 | No Theme |
| WEDS MAY 20 | Debut Albums Night: Songs from First Records (inspiration) Don’t overthink whether is has to be self-released, an indie label, or a major label debut. |
| WEDS JUN 3 | No Theme |
| WEDS JUN 17 | The Soundtracks of Our Lives Night: Songs from Movies and TV Or the band The Soundtracks of Our Lives if you really wanna be literal. |
| WEDS JUL 1 | No Theme |
| WEDS JUL 15 | Punk vs Funk Night: Never Mind the Bollocks/Bellbottoms Rock your ass off or groove your ass off. Do both and win a prize*. * – not actually |
| More shows in the works… |
NEW! Songwriters Sessions
THIS SUMMER, TWHY is hosting a 2x monthly songwriters series at Hi/Fi Tex-Mex BBQ, the beer garden outside and behind Evening Star Cafe. Sessions are 2nd & 4th Sundays, 1-3 pm, and feature a different local songwriter each session. Shows are FREE (and subject to decent weather).
Here’s the upcoming schedule:
| DATE | DETAILS |
|---|---|
| SUN APR 12 | Greg Roth (Czars of Leisure), 2 sets |
| SUN APR 26 | Ryan Walker (The Beanstalk Library) w/ Greg Roth (Czars of Leisure) |
| SUN MAY 10 | Gabi Kaye w/ Greg Roth (Czars of Leisure) |
| SUN MAY 24 | Betty Rose (Betty Rose Band) w/ Greg Roth (Czars of Leisure) |
| SUN JUN 14 | Dan Haas (Dan Haas Trio, Ben’s Bones) w/ Greg Roth (Czars of Leisure) |
| SUN JUN 28 | Shun McGee (The Band Black History) w/ Greg Roth (Czars of Leisure) |
| SUN JUL 12 | David Kitchen (The Thrills) w/ Greg Roth (Czars of Leisure) |
| SUN JUL 26 | Audrey White (The Feed) w/ Greg Roth (Czars of Leisure) |
| SUN AUG 9 | TBA |
| SUN AUG 23 | TBA |
lotta ins, lotta outs
your hosts
TWHY is organized and hosted by Del Ray locals Greg Roth and Gabe Fry.
Both have played in numerous bands at numerous venues (sometimes together).
They’ve collectively played the 930 Club, State Theatre, Black Cat, Iota (rip), Rock and Roll Hotel (rip), Galaxy Hut, Jaxx (good riddance just kidding), a parking lot at SXSW, and various empty office buildings for Artomatic.
They’re good men. But not thorough.
open mic
Yes, that is what the signup sheet looks like.
We ask that you signup with
– your name
– solo, duo, band, etc
– your instrument(s)
– if you have a song for the theme on theme nights
We don’t necessarily follow the order of signups, opting instead to establish a nice flow and make switches as the night dictates.
Calling for volunteers to join your jam is encouraged.
Drums stop at 10:30 due to the neighbors. We keep going tho.
backline
We provide a full backline and your basic rock instrument lineup:
Acoustic guitar (s) w/ DI boxes
2-3 electric guitars with pedal boards and 2 tube guitar amps
1 bass + amp
1 88-key keyboard + amp
Full drum set (cymbals/snare/sticks/brushes/mallets/rods and all)
Drum rug which really ties the room together
Full PA system with 3-4 vocal mics
Horn section (sometimes)
you can imagine where it goes from here
You can direct questions to the hosts at thewhathaveyoumusic@gmail.com. Please email ahead if you have any “special requests” or “can I do this” inquiries.