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Who knew hipsters could have so much fun?

At the 9:30 Club in Washington on Friday night, indie musicians John Vanderslice and Stephen Malkmus and The Jicks brought out the rock in full force, pleasing audience members young and old alike. Though neither Vanderslice nor Malkmus may be a household name (unless you grew up in a strangely awesome family), each delivered solid sets that should make them such.

During the wait for the show to begin, the sold-out crowd - a mix of older Pavement fans ready to see Malkmus, the band's ex-frontman, and college-aged kids - eagerly took guesses at what Malkmus would perform. Pavement classics? Longer jams he's created with The Jicks? Both?

But the crowd quieted when Vanderslice and his three-piece band took the stage at 10 p.m. They kicked things off with "Kookaburra," from Vanderslice's latest album, Emerald City. Though the song may be named after an Australian bird, the lyrics evoked imagery more fitting for Sept. 11: "White on white, the Capitol dome was invisible/ White on white, the hoisted flag had disappeared."

Vanderslice then switched to electronic guitar for "Tablespoon of Codeine," which sounded enjoyably like the late, great Elliott Smith and displayed Vanderslice's level of comfort with his bandmates; plenty of eye contact and grins passed among Vanderslice and Dave Douglas (drums and keyboards), Daniel Hart (bass and violin) and Ian Bjornstad (Moog synthesizer) throughout the song and later on the funky "Up Above the Sea," the catchy "The Tower" and the melody-driven "White Dove."

A variety of songs from Vanderslice's catalog followed, such as "Angela," greatly aided by the otherworldly, surreal sound of the Moog; "Exodus Damage," which balanced a layered, plush sound with Vanderslice's sincere vocal delivery; and "Pale Horse," with its rebellion-urging lyrics ("Rise like lions after a slumber/ In greatly unknowable numbers/ Free the blood that must ensue/ We are many, and they are few").

But Vanderslice and the gang weren't all business; they also praised the deliciousness of the Vegetable Garden restaurant in Rockville, shouted out to Vanderslice's mom, impersonated Phil Collins (Hart sang a few lines of "Don't Lose My Number" to great effect) and even moved off the stage and into the audience for their last song. Overall, Vanderslice and his band proved in just 50 minutes that they are some of the most imaginative musicians in indie rock today, constantly pushing the envelope with a variety of sonic experimentations.

And Malkmus's energy level picked up right where Vanderslice left off, coming onstage at 11:20 p.m. with drummer Janet Weiss (formerly of Sleater-Kinney), bassist Joanna Bolme (who dated Smith and helped produce and finish his posthumous album, From a Basement on the Hill) and Mike Clark on guitar and keyboards.

The group jumped right into "Dragonfly Pie," a song heavy on the squalling electric guitar sound Malkmus has perfected since parting ways with Pavement. Out of the band's 12-song set, highlights included "R.E.T.," which showed off Malkmus' guitar prowess and the hilariousness of Clarke playing a guitar and kicking a tambourine at the same time, and "Cold Son," which featured Malkmus' stuttering vocals and a chaotic freak-out by Weiss (so impressive it garnered her a "Good job" from a pleased Malkmus).

A few more songs (such as "Elmo Delmo," "Post-Paint Boy" and "(Do Not Feed the) Oyster") and sarcastic asides later (Malkmus mocked Virginia's gun laws, joked he lost his virginity to a male teacher and called out someone in the audience for looking like former president Bill Clinton), and the band launched into a four-song encore. By that point, it may have been 1 a.m., but the crowd ate it up. Sure, Pavement may no longer be, but there's no need to cry over spilt milk - Malkmus is doing just fine on his own.

roxanadbk@gmail.com

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