Witches Exist, Water Damage, dorothy's

Under new management – the teams behind Resound Presents, Tweedy’s, Hotel Vegas, the Little Darlin’, and more – the venue at 2906 Fruth rebrands again to 29th Street Ballroom. They kick off Free Week early with a killer no-cost showcase of local alt-rock. Melodic post-punks Witches Exist headline on the heels of October single “Drown,” which explodes from quietly chugging verses into a fuzzed-out chorus. That same month, opening experimentalists Water Damage notched another edition in their ongoing “really” series – that is, 20-plus-minute ruminations entitled “Reel E,” “Reel Ee,” “Reel Eee,” and now “Reel LE” – while Dorothy’s debuted the ethereal EP Suite in May. – Carys Anderson