THURSDAY 7/26

Music

ERIC VOLZ BENEFIT Though the story has received national coverage on shows such as Dateline, Anderson Cooper 360 and the Today show, local acknowledgment of Eric Volz’s plight has been scant. A graduate of Hillwood High School, Volz sits in a Nicaraguan prison for a murder that evidence shows he could not possibly have committed, victimized by systematic corruption and rampant anti-American sentiment. Support for Volz’s upcoming appeal is imperative—the more people that know of his dire situation, the better his chances to win back his life. The show features The Bees (U.S.), Tyler James, Griffin House and Brooke Waggoner, as well as Volz’s longtime friend and event co-organizer (along with Rann Russell) Sam Ashworth, who recently hooked up a publishing deal with Sony. For more information, visit friendsofericvolz.com. 7 p.m. at City Hall —ANDREW J. SMITHSON

Music

THE EVERYBODYFIELDS Sam Quinn and Jill Andrews met at summer camp and have been writing songs together ever since. Their first two albums showcased an Americana act blending folk, country and bluegrass. Andrews’ raw, wanton alto and Quinn’s wobbly twang harmonized nicely over songs ranging from the soulful old-timey ode “By Your Side” to the sweet, rootsy pop tune “So Good.” But with the departure of Dobro player David Richey, the band have moved away from that traditional sound. Their latest combo, featuring pedal steel, electric guitar and keyboards, contributes to a more rocking third album. Due in mid-August, Nothing Is Okay ranges from the shambling “Aeroplane,” whose homey melody recalls The Band, to the swelling, reverb-drenched guitar of “Don’t Turn Around,” reminiscent of a backwoods My Morning Jacket. 9 p.m. at 3rd & Lindsley —CHRIS PARKER

Public Art

“GHOST BALLET FOR THE EAST BANK MACHINEWORKS” If Nashville’s latest outdoor sculpture proves anything, it’s that one man’s public art may be another man’s industrial carnage. “Ghost Ballet for the East Bank Machineworks” is a 100-foot-tall mass of twisted crane and rail remnants located on the East Bank Greenway. At first blush, the sculpture looks like the aftermath of an aerial bombardment on a train station. But on closer inspection, we see that artist Alice Aycock’s work is an imaginative tribute to a working river. The sculpture is the first work under the city’s Percent for Public Art ordinance, which dedicates 1 percent of the net proceeds of general obligation bonds to help pay for public art. Aycock will be on hand along with Mayor Bill Purcell for the dedication ceremony. 10 a.m. at Shelby Street Pedestrian Bridge —JOHN PITCHER

Music

THE DETROIT COBRAS Making their mark ultimately as a cover band, The Detroit Cobras scavenge and pillage the vaults of ’50s and ’60s rock and soul. But the Cobras are also a garage band—distilling each song down to its grittiest essence and infusing it with their own unmistakable swagger. That process has been their trademark since 1994, yet the sheer volume of personnel changes boggles the mind—no fewer than six guitarists and five drummers have been Cobras. (The last time the band made it to Music City, the rhythm section had just jumped ship to tour with Kid Rock—a move that drew ridicule from the remaining members.) Despite the turnover, the Cobras remain anchored by their two original components —the stripped-down, classic R&B guitar work of Mary Ramirez and Rachel Nagy’s sultry yet snarling vocals. 9 p.m. at The End —MATT SULLIVAN

FRIDAY 7/27

Music

JULIE LEE CD RELEASE PARTY Julie Lee’s gotten some well-deserved attention lately: Alison Krauss recorded her “Away Down The River” and, more importantly, “Jacob’s Dream,” the haunting Appalachian ballad she wrote with John Pennell. But the young singer-songwriter’s got plenty of arrows in her own stylistic quiver, and her new disc, Take Me Out to Hear the Band, is heavy on lazily swinging originals that grow from the same turf that nourished songs like “Undecided,” the pop staple she covers. Lee’s sultry drawl is perfectly suited to those kinds of songs, and yet, in the final quarter of the album, she bears down and inhabits less idiomatic and more dramatic arrangements equally well, serving notice that focusing on her writing at the expense of her vocal artistry is a mistake. The album’s band, which includes Old Black Kettle bandmate and quondam touring buddy Sarah Siskind, provides backing that suits Lee perfectly, and they’ll be on hand for the release. 9 p.m. at Station Inn —JON WEISBERGER

Comedy LOUIS C.K. Louis C.K., vulgar as the day is long, is a good old-fashioned shock comic in an age where nerd comics like Patton Oswald and Zach Galifianakis rule. It’s no surprise that one of his best friends in the business is Chris Rock—the two share a go-for-the-throat approach. In Shameless, an HBO stand-up special recently released on DVD, Louis C.K. saves his sharpest barbs for family life, specifically the rude behavior of his 4-year-old (who he calls an “asshole”) and the particular sadness surrounding marital sex. What makes his routines palatable—aside from the razor-sharp observations and the fact that they are hysterically funny—is that the man says he loves his family, and you believe him. And what he says about babies—that they aren’t very interesting yet everybody seems to want to know what they’re doing—is dead on. Anybody who has had an offspring or two understands all too well. Friday-Sunday at Zanies —WERNER TRIESCHMANN

Art

GLOW: AN ILLUMINATED ART EVENT Looking for some (ahem) enlightening entertainment? A flickering fete? (D’oh!) A radiant retreat? (Yikes!) A glimmering gala? (Someone stop me!) A shimmering shindig? (Criminy!!) Guaranteed to be far less groan-inducing than that intro is Untitled Artist Group’s annual summer show featuring self-illuminated and black-light art. Untitled is an inclusive collective—their motto is “Uncensored art for unlimited audiences”—and as such, the participants range from the cream of Nashville’s art community to the most unskilled of weekend warriors. Not surprisingly, the quality of the artwork is quite varied, but frankly, that’s what makes these events so much fun. (Some of the more amateur pieces make up in inspiration what they lack in technique—kind of like the garage rock of the visual art world.) There will be prize drawings, interactive displays and music by DJ Synapse Trap—judging by the DJ’s name and the show’s theme, drink the Kool-Aid at your own risk. 7-11 p.m. at the BarCar in Cummins Station —JACK SILVERMAN

Music

THE UNIT BREED Conceived in San Jose as the brainchild of John Demaree, The Unit Breed have been keeping things DIY since 1998, releasing three albums and touring incessantly. The band has since relocated to Portland, Ore., and managed a long revolving cast of members, leaving Demaree as the only constant. This month marks the release of their fourth album, Lost Eyes, which is accompanied by a full-length animated DVD. Musically, The Unit Breed take their cues from the more sophisticated side of hard-edged DIY bands, interweaving that sound with influences from ’90s indie-rock eccentrics. What results is a mixture of Fugazi’s aesthetic and Modest Mouse’s idiosyncrasies. Demaree is also an accomplished painter, and his artwork will likely be on display. 10 p.m. at Springwater —MATT SULLIVAN

Book Signing

JOHNY BARBATA If you find the title of legendary rock-star drummer Johny Barbata’s new book, Johny Barbata: The Legendary Life of a Rock Star Drummer, to be pompous or self-aggrandizing, well maybe you just have self-esteem issues of your own. Hell, the guy’s played on some of the biggest tracks in the annals of rock—The Turtles’ “So Happy Together,” Neil Young’s “Ohio,” Jefferson Starship’s “Miracles” and 17 other hit singles, not to mention over 100 albums. He’s practically annal-retentive. We haven’t read the book, but his credentials groove for themselves. And all you indie-rock scenesters who change your look with every minor shift in shirt-tucking, collar-lifting or hair-swooping trends might learn a thing or two—Barbata hasn’t changed his look since 1972, and it’s back in style (sort of). Plus his drumming will still be heard 20 years from now on classic rock and oldies radio stations (if we still have radio stations), long after y’all have thrown in the towel and gotten your real estate licenses. Barbata appears noon to 5 p.m. Friday at Bart’s Guitars (Hendersonville) and Saturday at Fork’s Drum Closet. —JACK SILVERMAN

SATURDAY 7/28

Music

THE 5 SPOT LIQUOR LICENSE PARTY “If you haven’t been to The 5 Spot in the last couple of months, you haven’t been to The 5 Spot,” says co-owner Travis Collinsworth of the East Nashville venue nestled over by the Red Door East. He’s talking about the recent sprucing up they’ve done—new seating, a pool table, video games and an upgraded sound system. But the decorative arts can’t quite compete with the club’s latest hot commodity—the addition of aqua vitae to the menu. This Saturday night’s bill celebrates not just swankier digs and stiffer social lubricants, but also co-owner Todd Sherwood’s birthday and the duo’s crossing of the bureaucratic finish line with regard to the official transfer of club ownership. TNFNR, The Mattoid, Totally Snake, The Alcohol Stuntband and Tommy and the Whale will play the soundtrack, and rumor has it there will be a few secret late-night performances—the kind that bang up a riotous clatter. 8 p.m. at The 5 Spot —TRACY MOORE

Auto Exotica

“MOTORING MADNESS” Wanna watch a 5-ton amphibious military vehicle smush a car like a Sprite can? You’ll get your wish at the Lane Motor Museum’s summer spectacular, which pits an ordinary junker against the LARC (Lighter Amphibious Resupply Cargo)—a behemoth used by the Army to ferry supplies during the Vietnam era. Since it’s as big as three semis and rides on 9-foot tires, our money’s on the LARC—but that doesn’t mean we won’t show up at the Murfreesboro Road museum at 2:30 p.m. to see the flattening commence. There’ll also be tours of the LARC and of the museum’s voluminous basement; rides (for adults only, alas) in a 1954 Citroen 2CV “tin snail” and a two-headed ’52 Citroen Cogolin; propeller-car demonstrations (we’re looking at you, 1932 Helicron); and a chance for kids to sit behind the wheel of an Indy Racing League racer. Admission is $5 for adults and free for kids 17 and under. If you detect a Decepticon, quietly alert security. 11 a.m.-4 p.m. at Lane Motor Museum —JIM RIDLEY

Beer Fest

SIXTH ANNUAL MUSIC CITY BREWER’S FESTIVAL Nothing beats a cold mug o’ beer on a steamy summer day—unless, of course, said mug is interminably flooded with the best brews around. The thirsty masses will hit the Sixth Annual Music City Brewer’s Festival at Hilton Park (the lawn of the Hilton downtown) this Saturday from 2 to 8 p.m. Tickets are $30 in advance and $40 at the door. Once you’ve got the golden ticket, it’s all you can drink—for six hours—thanks to more than 30 local, regional and national breweries. If you are indeed planning to chug your money’s worth, the festival folks will oblige. There’s a cool-off station, and a few Nashville eateries will be selling nosh to help soak up the alcohol. Local bands Honeybaked, Frogs Gone Fishing and the San Rafael Band will play throughout the day. It’s a 21-and-up event, but if you do forsake the kids for a beer binge, it’ll be for a good cause: 15 percent of ticket sales benefits the Second Harvest Food Bank of Middle Tennessee. 2-8 p.m. at Hilton Park —ELIZABETH ULRICH

Music

THE SUBJECTS The story of The Subjects is one of classic forbidden love: shared interests, clandestine meetings and stolen glances across crowded hallways. Age was just a number—they knew it was wrong, but oh so right. This rangy, charmingly ragged indie rock band, composed of two teachers and two students from the same high school, hit the road after graduation, chasing the impossible dream. It’s a great story, and fortunately the band is good enough to make it more than just a compelling angle. The Subjects’ debut full-length With the Ease Grace Precision and Cleverness of Human Beings is a varied, idiosyncratic basement-recorded gem. The foursome are at their best when they turn up the volume on such punchy power pop songs as “Seems to Me,” which balances a jaunty, dare-I-say-youthful enthusiasm with clever little vintage hooks. 9 p.m. at The Basement —LEE STABERT

SUNDAY 7/29

Live in Sin at the Holiday Inn

2007 NASHVILLE KISS EXPO You wanted the merchandise and collectibles of the best—you got the merchandise and collectibles of the best! Join other Knights in Satan’s Service at Music City’s premier confab of all things KISS-related, and peruse rocktastic items such as a KISS Army beer mug ($13.99) or an Ace Frehley 15-Inch Plush Doll (a steal at $23.99). Name me another band putting out action figures at this advanced age. The big attraction is an autograph session with KISS drummer Eric Singer, who’s also served duty with Alice Cooper, Black Sabbath and The Cult. There’ll also be a sneak peek at Paul Stanley’s new concert DVD Live to Win with director Louis Antonelli introducing. Tickets are $25 at the door, free to kids 12 and under. Start warming up the greasepaint and blood capsules. Noon-8 p.m. at The Holiday Inn Select Opryland/Airport —JIM RIDLEY

Film

REAR WINDOW Boy, that Alfred Hitchcock had some nerve, thinking he could rip off Disturbia. In the Shia LaBeouf role is James Stewart, playing the shutterbug laid up with a broken leg. Who needs TV when he’s got the windows of his neighbors across the apartment courtyard, basically a bank of monitors? It’s all good fun until he spies hulking Raymond Burr doing away with his wife. Can Stewart convince the police a crime was committed before the bad guy shows up at his door? Featuring Grace Kelly (who makes one of the most erotic entrances in all of movies) and Thelma Ritter, this remains one of Hitchcock’s most potent exercises in voyeurism and audience thumb-screwing—it ends the Belcourt’s summer Hitchcock series on a high note. July 28-29 at the Belcourt —JIM RIDLEY

Music

RWAKE Gurgling up from the sludgiest depths of the Relapse roster, Rwake go above and beyond what’s expected of their ilk by incorporating far more into their vocabulary than just tar pit riffs. Frontman C.T. pierces through the muck with a truly horrifying shriek that positions Rwake in more extreme territory than their usual-suspect peers. His delivery also issues a much-needed achtung to genre fanatics: you don’t have to settle for the same ol’ same ol’. More so than any of their labelmates, Rwake bring a sense of geography to their music, conveying palpable dread soaked up from the landscape of their native Little Rock without veering into tired Southern-metal clichés. Not unlike Eyehategod, a high level of thought goes into Rwake’s depressive, angst-ridden snarl, further anchored by themes of real-life adult responsibility—C.T. even uses the word “positive.” The band features a moog player, and the latest album Voices of Omens was written primarily by drummer Jeff Morgan—two more aspects that distinguish Rwake’s long, drawn-out brand of doom. Lastly, they’re heavier ’n shit live. 9 p.m. at The End w/Loss & Sea Witch —SABY REYES-KULKARNI

Art

THE STYLE MAKERS: MASTERS OF TIFFANY DESIGN This traveling collection is a rare opportunity to view and purchase one-of-a-kind pieces and extensions to the signature collections of Tiffany’s top designers. Best known for her modern sculptural take on such natural forms as beans, teardrops and starfish, Elsa Peretti’s work is minimalist in its design, while Jean Schulmberger’s exotic birds and flowers feature stunning stones and fantastic jewels. Paloma Picasso, daughter of Pablo, combines precious metals and gemstones to create imaginative pieces that are both dramatic and opulent. Frank Gehry is the first new designer the company has added in 25 years, and his jewelry brings a unique architectural perspective to Tiffany & Co.’s design. All of the jewelry exhibited in the collection is for sale. July 29-Aug. 13 at Tiffany’s & Co. at the Mall of Green Hills –BRITTANY CONNER

Music

TIGER CITY W/BRYAN SCARY Bryan Scary’s impressive debut The Shredding Tears is filled with playful piano pop—energetic romps animated by a colorful pastiche of infectious British Invasion harmonies, radiant chamber pop and an odd, glam-ish prog predilection. The album—recorded almost entirely by Scary, except for some drum parts—is a surprisingly alluring combination of styles with an eclectic shimmy. His dramatic little melodic nuggets suggest Mott the Hoople dropping a roofie in Fiery Furnaces’ drink at a late night shindig hosted by Ray Davies. Live, Scary’s talented backing quartet adds a chunky psych-pop swirl, giving the album’s rich, cantering shuffles an impressive punch. Brooklyn, N.Y., opener Tiger City showed up late for the punk-funk revival, so they decided to go back to the club. Their debut full-length Pretend Not to Love mixes the sleek dance-pop hooks of Roxy Music, big ’70s, Hall & Oates-style choruses and slinky disco rhythms. It’s unironic, R&B-based pop, destined to get the ladies on the dance floor, boyfriends in tow. 9:30 p.m. at 3rd & Lindsley —CHRIS PARKER

TUESDAY 7/31

Cool Country Radio

“HIPBILLY JAMBOREE” It’s drive-time Tuesday, you’re coming home from a punishing day at work, and you can’t find Ernest Tubb on the radio to save your life. That’s only because you haven’t found Randy Fox’s weekly show on Vanderbilt’s college station, WRVU 91.1 FM, where there’s always a way for Bob Wills and the Light Crust Doughboys are always rising. Fox and his foils, record collector Kels Koch and guest troublemaker Pete Wilson, fill their two-hour slot each week with hardcore honky-tonk, bad puns, free-association humor and the occasional guest interview (such as Charlie Louvin). But it’s the stone-country, deep-catalog treasures that keep people tuning in—where else are you gonna hear Homer & Jethro exhort listeners to “chew chocolate-covered mothballs” in the immortal “The Billboard Song”? 6-8 p.m. Tuesdays on 91.1 FM —JIM RIDLEY

WEDNESDAY 8/1

Music

ZZ TOP W/THE PRETENDERS & STRAY CATS The Pretenders and Stray Cats, as different as they are, both emerged as part of a new-wave movement that streamlined punk’s rebelliousness into catchy, crisp entertainment. ZZ Top were among the only veteran stadium-rock acts to respond by mastering the same game—and with better videos. More than 25 years later, they’re all considered classic rock by the corporate radio network Jack, which doesn’t differentiate between genres—or between diamonds and coal. The little ol’ band from Texas wisely mixes great ’70s album cuts with ’80s hits. The Pretenders’ Chrissie Hynde may have mellowed with motherhood, but her snarl still hisses with more venom than nearly any other rock singer, and her band owns one of the best song catalogs of her era. The Stray Cats’ strut always carries more snap live. If Jack showed as much taste with its playlist as it does with its concert sponsorships, the station might live up to its own hype. 7 p.m. at Sommet Center —MICHAEL McCALL

Photography

JIM McGUIRE: THE NASHVILLE PORTRAITS Influenced by 1950s Hollywood cinema and Irving Penn’s classic “Small Trades” series, Nashville photographer Jim “Señor” McGuire started his black-and-white studies of country music greats back in 1972 by capturing John Hartford and Vassar Clements after a late-night New York gig. After moving to Nashville in the early ’70s, at the height of Music City’s bohemian boom years, he set up shop in a dilapidated storefront on Wyoming Avenue and invited everyone from Bill Monroe to Barbara Mandrell to sit before his hand-painted canvas backdrop. The result has none of the stodginess of official portraiture but instead sly wit, playfulness and a spirit of outlaw chic. When the young Guy and Susannah Clark stand slouched in surly cool, or Townes Van Zandt fixes his camera with a telescopic stare, they seem to be inhabiting the same high-contrast noirs and major-studio mythmaking of McGuire’s youth. If you haven’t seen this Frist Center exhibit, which gathers 60 of McGuire’s Nashville Portraits, you’re missing a vital blast of visual radio. Through Sept. 9 at the Frist Center for the Visual Arts —JIM RIDLEY

Music

AN EVENING OF ALOHA WITH THE MAKAHA SONS Think of Hawaiian musical entertainers, and the late Don Ho (“Tiny Bubbles”) is about the only one who comes to mind. Yet the Makaha Sons have been around for 30 years, performing concerts (including Carnegie Hall), singing and playing for presidents, doing feature spots on TV, recording CDs (they’ve released 21, including their latest, Heke Wale No: Only the Very Best of the Makaha Sons) and generally spreading their devotion to their native Hawaiian culture around the world. With their proud, strong family ties, the Makahas have been through various brotherly incarnations over the years (originally they were known as the Makaha Sons of Ni’ihau) but work solidly now as a trio comprising Louis “Moon” Kauakahi on six-string acoustic guitar, John Koko on upright bass and Jerome Koko on 12-string guitar. Except for holiday songs and the rare contemporary pop tune or Tin Pan Alley evergreen, the Makaha Sons deal in traditional island folk music, which means warm, lilting ballads and other strains of feel-good, easy-listening fare. 6:30 p.m. at TPAC’s Johnson Theater —MARTIN BRADY

Table Music

SERENATTA ROMANTIC LATIN ENSEMBLE Need a little tango, a little bossa nova to get the old digestive fluids working? Well, you’re in luck, since this terrific Latin band will be offering a free lunchtime concert at downtown’s Main Library. Serenatta bill themselves as Nashville’s preeminent Latin ensemble, and its wide-ranging programs feature everything from Argentine tangos and Venezuelan joropos to Peruvian waltzes and Mexican boleros. Led by its founder, violinist Pablo Garzón, Serenatta include a mix of Spanish guitars, upright bass, percussion and vocals. You can count on these forces to play sensuously, with some of the most incisive (and even erotic) rhythms around. So grab your lunch, your partner, and foxtrot your way downtown. (Note: the library will offer free concerts by various artists every Wednesday from Aug. 1 through Oct. 3.) 11:30 a.m. the Main Library Courtyard —JOHN PITCHER