Fugazi
The post-hardcore band that set the bar nobody else could reach. MacKaye and Picciotto trading vocals, Lally's bass doing most of the melodic heavy lifting, Canty hitting the drums like an architect. $5 shows, all-ages, no VIP areas, no merch table price gouging, no record label bullshit. Every record from Repeater through The Argument is essential. Been on indefinite hiatus since 2003 and the absence has not dulled the legend one bit.
People
The DC DIY lifer. Minor Threat, Embrace, Fugazi, The Evens. Co-founded Dischord in 1980 and has run it on the same handshake principles ever since — no contracts, 50/50 splits, $5 shows. Invented straight edge by accident, turned post-hardcore into an art form on purpose. The most principled person in underground rock and a surprisingly great guitarist to boot.
Fugazi's other voice and other guitarist. Rites of Spring before that. Picciotto on stage is pure physics — dangling from pipes, climbing speaker stacks, crawling across the crowd. Writes some of Fugazi's sharpest lyrics and all of its weirdest guitar parts.