DC's iconic 9:30 Club starts TV show

The 9:30 Club, the beloved hub of underground music in the US capital Washington, announced Tuesday that it would start its own television show featuring bands, interviews and comedy.

"Live at 9:30" will launch on US public television in April with a first season featuring both recent and veteran alternative acts including Garbage, Cold War Kids and The Arcs, as well as artists from other genres including Franco-Cuban soul duo Ibeyi.

The club announced the series with an online video montage of scenes from the 1,200-capacity venue set to "Head On" by Scottish noise rockers The Jesus and Mary Chain, another band that will be part of the inaugural season.

But the show will extend beyond performances, with each show also featuring interviews and comedy pieces.

"We've been approached countless times to do a TV show here, and we've always passed," co-owner Seth Hurwitz said in a statement.

"But 'Live At 9:30' is a great opportunity to work with people we trust to bring music variety to life in a way no one has even attempted," he said.

Hosts for the season will include Henry Rollins, the former frontman of DC-based hardcore band Black Flag who has become a prominent spoken word artist and cultural critic.

US public broadcaster PBS already airs "Austin City Limits," a performance series that is more traditional in format but enjoys wide recognition.

The 9:30 Club opened at a smaller, dingier venue in downtown Washington in 1980. The inaugural night's headliner was supposed to be Joy Division, the gloomy English rock legends who canceled an inaugural US tour after singer Ian Curtis committed suicide.

The 9:30 Club became a focal point of the hardcore punk scene that blossomed in the US capital in the 1980s and transformed into a more prominent venue as alternative music gained a wider following in the 1990s.

Operating away from bigger music markets such as New York, the 9:30 Club has earned a reputation as well-managed and artist-friendly with even major acts such as Bob Dylan, Radiohead and Adele over the years choosing it for rare small gigs.