THURSDAY 9/27

Audio AphrodisiacAQUA VELVET CD RELEASE PARTY For anyone who was conceived sometime between tracks 1 and 10 on Jackie Gleason’s Music to Change Her Mind, the second CD from Jim Hoke and Randy Leago’s lounge-pop project should stir some pretty blissful prenatal memories. Exotica meets erotica in these luscious reworkings of ’60s and ’70s nuggets from Bacharach to Zappa, given a foot-deep sheen of studio polish by multi-instrumentalists Hoke and Leago, vocalist Kristi Rose, monster session cohorts Richard Bennett, Neil Rosengarden and Steve Herrman, and helpers ranging from Sari and Austin Hoke to Brad Jones, Daniel Tashian, Bill Lloyd and Swan Dive (delivering a genius mash-up of Todd Rundgren’s “Hello It’s Me” and the Beach Boys’ “Caroline, No”). The opening salvo of Johnny Mathis’ “Chances Are” sets the mood for A Splash of Aqua Velvet: matadorial horns segue into lush hula makeout music, as if stoking the fires for a get-busy session between Clint Eastwood and Lee Van Cleef. What keeps the Austin Powers luau sound from getting too precious (or old) are the depth and swoop of the arrangements, the obvious delight of the superb musicians and the sheer gorgeousness of songs such as The Left Banke’s bewitching “Pretty Ballerina” and Petula Clark’s “You’d Better Come Home” (which features some of Rose’s most subtle yet dramatic vocals on record). The ensemble plays two sets. 8 p.m. at The Basement —JIM RIDLEY

MusicDRIVE-BY TRUCKER’S DIRT UNDERNEATH TOUR The Drive-By Truckers usually manage to make it through town about twice a year, but this time will be a bit different. Only a few months after shedding guitar player/songwriter Jason Isbell from their lineup, the band has launched an acoustic tour—a chance to step out from behind that wondrous wall of guitars and remind everyone just how good those gosh-darn songs are. For longtime fans—those who remember the spare twang of some of their early tracks—this date offers serious fantasy-fulfillment potential: “Bulldozers and Dirt” done the way it was always meant to be, all weepy pedal steel and eerie harmonies, “Panties in Your Purse” given room for its wry humor and wistful narrative to breathe or “Tales Facing Up” as the back-porch rave-up it always had the potential to be. 9 p.m. at Cannery Ballroom —LEE STABERT

MusicKEN ANDREWS While Page Hamilton and Kurt Cobain continue to get much of the credit for the alt-metal riff bonanza that filtered into the mainstream during the ’90s, other inventive players from that era, such as former Failure frontman Ken Andrews, may have made just as big a mark. A wizard when it comes to tone, Andrews perfected his distinct, highly textural sonic sensibility in the producer’s chair as well as onstage. He shifted gears dramatically—and with splendid results—into electronic territory after Failure’s breakup but, these days, seems more and more focused on bringing together his seemingly disparate inclinations. On Secrets of the Lost Satellite, his latest long player, Andrews blends chunky riffs with programmed beats and finds a middle ground between heavy atmospherics and pop. The result is a new level of listenability that still retains the dark, absorbing quality of his earlier work—which he revisits liberally in his current live show. 8 p.m. at Exit/In —SABY REYES-KULKARNI

MusicANDY FRIEDMAN & THE OTHER FAILURES Singer-songwriter Andy Friedman has a mastery of wordy self-loathing that many white dudes with guitars would kill for. An erstwhile cartoonist for the New Yorker, Friedman also has an irreverent wit that rescues his twangy tunes from the masses—“I can’t understand what it’s like to be booed by millions of adoring fans, but one thing I know is what it’s like to be booed by 16 or 17 undergrads.” The casual country bent feels refreshingly ironic up against the casual, dare-I-say Brooklyn-style nonchalance of his delivery. 10 p.m. at Springwater —LEE STABERT

FRIDAY 9/28

ArtPETTEST OF PETS: PAINTINGS BY ERIN HARMON There’s a lot going on beneath the surface in this artist’s work. A painter and assistant professor of art at Rhodes College in Memphis, Harmon creates works that may feature 30 or more layers of paint. As a result, images often seem suspended in color, like insects trapped in amber. In “Art-a-miss,” a female archer seems to float in a sea of bull’s-eyes as a buck scampers for cover. In “Three Ring,” a pair of women and a rabbit pirouette through an ocean of floating beach balls. Sept.28-Jan. 5 at the Parthenon’s West Gallery; opening reception 6-8 p.m. —JOHN PITCHER

Southern-Fried FestMUCKLEWAIN SOUTHERN FESTIVAL Last year’s Mucklewain may not have smashed attendance records, but after a summer of overblown, hyper-paced, sponsorship-saturated festivals, its casual charm and easiness on the wallet were as refreshing as all those $2 cans of High Life. This year, organizer Joie Todd Kerns has moved the fest from East Tennessee to Pinewood, Tenn., just 45 miles west of the city, and extended it to two days. The lineup will continue to showcase some of the best offbeat Southern rock around, including locals Todd Snider, Bobby Bare Jr., Dixie Dirt and Glossary, and acts such as Lucero, former Drive-By Trucker Jason Isbell and a reunited Drivin’ ’n’ Cryin’. Standouts from the Songwriter Stage include veteran eccentric Malcolm Holcombe, former Nashvillian Cory Branan and local retro-country gals Those Darlins. For more information, visit mucklewain.com. Sept. 28-29 in Pinewood, Tenn. —LEE STABERT

MusicDEERHUNTER Perhaps the most surprisingly well-received record of 2007, Deerhunter’s Cryptograms transformed this obscure Atlanta band into darlings of the blogosphere. Rave reviews and praise have followed ever since their breakout earlier this year, and the band’s most recent EP, Fluorescent Grey, hints toward even better things to come. Initially a harsh, noisy post-punk band, the newly downsized four-piece has since drifted into softer, more ambient territory, all while maintaining a distinct danceability. Deerhunter’s recent success has landed them on the road for much of the year, with their manic performances becoming more and more the subject of infamy. Compelling and towering frontman Brandon Cox manipulates his voice into a whirling mass—often while donning a sundress—and the quartet’s sound is often less lulling and more confrontational live than it is on record. 9 p.m. at Mercy Lounge —MATT SULLIVAN

FilmRANDY AND THE MOB / RAY MCKINNON See enough movies, and you start to look forward to the players somebody described as who’s-that-guy actors—you know, the ones who inevitably make you perk up whatever the part and say, “Hey, who’s that guy?” Whether he’s playing Holly Hunter’s bumptious swain in O Brother, Where Art Thou?, the half-mad Rev. Smith on HBO’s Deadwood, or a somewhat sinister appraiser of Southern culture in his Oscar-winning 2001 short “The Accountant,” actor Ray McKinnon uses his beanpole frame and searching eyes to make you sit up and pay attention. He gets his biggest showcase yet in Randy and The Mob, a loopy comedy he wrote and directed, in which he handles two lead roles: as a fast-talking, small-town entrepreneur up to his Ford Lightning axles in trouble with loan sharks and as the hustler’s identical twin brother, a gay antiques dealer. Co-starring Lisa Blount (McKinnon’s wife, a standout herself in such films as An Officer and a Gentleman and John Carpenter’s Prince of Darkness) and The Shield’s Walton Goggins, the movie won this year’s Audience Award at the Nashville Film Festival, where you could hear the laughter at one screening all the way in the lobby. McKinnon will appear at both the 7:15 and 10:05 p.m. shows Friday and the 7:15 show Saturday; see randyandthemob.net for more information. Opens Friday at Green Hills —JIM RIDLEY

MusicBETWEEN THE BURIED AND ME W/ HORSE THE BAND, ANIMOSITY & THE END As audiences gear up for the upcoming Dillinger Escape Plan album, it might be easy to overlook the unprecedented innovation currently taking place throughout the extreme metal community. Thankfully, this bill offers a captivating, one-stop-shopping glimpse into the genre’s future. No one can blame you if Between the Buried and Me and The End weren’t at the top of your list of bands destined to chart bold new horizons for metal. But both acts appear in support of new albums where they do just that—and manage to pull it off with the convincing sense of balance that, incidentally, Dillinger strove so hard to achieve (and missed) on their last album. Both BTBAM and The End are following up on sophomore releases on which they simply piled on the extremity with exhausting results. This time around, each band applies measures of restraint, atmosphere and genre-bending that just weren’t supposed to work within their given parameters yet sound shockingly natural. Meanwhile, though HORSE the band skirt novelty with their keyboard-heavy, video game-influenced sound, their brand of “Nintendocore” certainly does freshen things up and provides some much-needed levity. Likewise, Animosity don’t need to make a concerted attempt to push envelopes, as they offer some of the most consistently tasty death metal to come down the pike in a long time. 6 p.m. at Rcktwn —SABY REYES-KULKARNI

Flesh for FantasyFIDDLIN’ BREWIN’ BAR-B-Q’N COOK-OFF Could Opryland’s annual meeting-of-the-meats become Music City’s own Memphis in May? Considering that Nashville has shockingly little awesome non-chain BBQ, we’re happy for anything that spreads the seed of round-the-clock smoking hereabouts. The big draw this year—not counting the Anything Butt competition, the face-offs in fowl, pig, brisket, ribs and desserts and the $13,000 grand prize—is a cooking seminar 3 p.m. Saturday with Iron Chef Bobby Flay, Food Network pin-up and barbecue maven. But the chance to down beer and ’cue while taking in Friday’s nighttime sets by Cross Canadian Ragweed and Micky & the Motorcars shouldn’t be discounted. And it’s not: reserved seats for the concerts are $15 at the gate, and Flay’s appearance is $60. Call 458-2878 for more information. Gates open 7 p.m. Sept. 28 and noon Sept. 29 at the Opryland Pavilion Parking Lot —JIM RIDLEY

Hustle and FlowSOPHIE’S EDGE The final stage event of the Shades of Black Theatre Festival 2007 is an original work by Eugenia J. Sweeney III, founder of the producing group Collards & Caviar. John Wiggins directs Sweeney’s hopeful tale of a reformed hustler who aids a mother and her troubled son. The strong cast features Mary McCallum, Kenny Dozier and Shawn Whitsell. Sept. 27-29 at Darkhorse Theater —MARTIN BRADY

MusicFRENCH KICKS On The French Kicks’ latest, swaggering backbeats sidle alongside trilling new-wave synths, while singer Nick Stumpf’s crooning ache lilts and wavers like The Walkmen’s Hamilton Leithauser. The band began with a spikier sound than they demonstrate on Two Thousand, but then they have a different lineup. The original core of the Kicks grew up in Washington, D.C., and met while attending Oberlin College. They formed the band in ’98, after moving to Brooklyn. At first, their anxious rumble was lumped in with the New York neo-garage sound, but they’ve grown steadily more melodic and poppier with each passing release, going through several bassists and drummers, and losing original guitarist Matt Stinchcomb. This third LP is exceptionally catchy thanks to Stumpf’s dulcet vocals, the rushing jangle of guitars and the bright, watercolor washes of synth seeping into every corner. 9 p.m. at the Basement —CHRIS PARKER

SATURDAY 9/29

Music

ATREYU After a decade in the game, O.C. metalcore quintet Atreyu have made it to the majors, and they’re swinging from the ankles. They aren’t the first to leave Victory Records (Thursday, Taking Back Sunday) for greener pastures, but theirs is definitely the boldest bid for a bigger audience. On their Hollywood Records debut, Lead Sails Paper Anchor, the hardcore elements of their sound are all but excised and the screamo bellowing is kept to a minimum. That leaves metal and melodicism, which they weld together in operatic tracks full of power riffing, solo arpeggios and soaring choruses. Lead Sails retains some of their dark, gothic overtones, but it’s so polished and buffed, you might not notice. There’s a number of curveballs in the mix, like the twangy title-track ballad and the punky rave-up “Falling Down” (copping a “Lust for Life” beat)—it’s easy to imagine this turning off as many longtime fans as Metallica’s Black Album. 7 p.m. at Rcktwn —CHRIS PARKER

Human Rights Events

END SLAVERY WEEKEND PRESENTS TEARS OF GOD To raise awareness about the crime of human sex trafficking, World Relief and Artists for Community Transformation International are sponsoring a stage play called Tears of God. Belmont University student David Perry wrote the piece, which relates the story of an East European girl’s arrival in New York City, where a supposed modeling opportunity turns into a nightmare experience as a sex worker. There will be a related event on Sept. 30 at The Factory at Franklin, where local visual artists, musicians, filmmakers and activists tell the story of modern-day slavery. The day will include a screening of the independent film Fields of Mudan, a preview of the forthcoming Lion’s Gate film Trade and a David Batstone lecture about a faithful response to human trafficking. For more information, visit tearsofgodplay.com. 7:30 p.m. at the Belcourt Theatre —MARTIN BRADY

Wine on the East SideEDGEFIELD UNCORKED! Historic Edgefield raises its glasses to the fifth annual wine tasting benefiting local nonprofit organizations. Part of the monthlong “Eat Local” celebration, the event pairs local foods from the The Turnip Truck, Journey to Bliss Raw Foods, Provence Breads and Toney’s Naturals, among others, with wines from around the world. The $50 admission ticket covers food, drinks and live music by The Love Drums, Ariana Terrell and Brooke Waggoner. Proceeds from the evening benefit CASA, East Nashville Hope Exchange literacy program and Warner School. 7-10 p.m. at St. Anne’s Episcopal Church, 419 Woodland St. —CARRINGTON FOX

Gray MatterSHADOWLAND If this exhibit proves anything, it’s that great art doesn’t need a lot of color. In Shadowland, 18 Nashville-area artists explore the concept of shadows, creating works that mostly use shades of gray. Dirk Mooth’s “Infrared Fence” appears to show an old, white-picket fence near a field of weeds. The lack of color heightens our sense of desolation. Mel Davenport’s “New Year’s Eve” looks like a Picasso sketch about Mardi Gras, with a celebratory cubist figure outlined in black and white. Sept. 29-Oct. 21 at Plowhaus Artists’ Cooperative; opening reception 7-11 p.m. —JOHN PITCHER

Benefit ConcertCONCERT FOR JOSIE Vocalist Josie Kuhn, a familiar face around town (especially in East Nashville), has never received the acclaim in her hometown that she gets overseas. But her luck went from bad to worse last June: after returning from Mexico, her accelerator pedal got stuck and caused her to smash head-on into a tree. The smoky-voiced singer-songwriter was left with a broken hip, neck and ribs and a severely damaged foot, and while friends say she’s lucky to be alive—she has undergone extensive therapy at East Nashville’s Carrolton House—she now faces catastrophic medical expenses. To help, a stellar lineup of Samaritans has pitched in for a benefit show. If you know someone by the company she keeps, Kuhn has an impressive list of associates: Steve Forbert, David Olney, Jonell Mosser, the Jay Patton Band, Lee Clayton, Le Ann Etheridge, Chet O’Keefe, Roberto Bianco, Miranda Louise, Brent Moyer, Joe Sun, Rick Rowell and Bebo Whitehead. And if you can’t make it out, just visit josiekuhn.com to find out where you can send the door’s $10 donation. 7 p.m. at Douglas Corner —JIM RIDLEY

Good CauseFAITH COUNTY: A BENEFIT FOR THE LOST BOYS FOUNDATION OF NASHVILLE The Lost Boys of Sudan, thousands of young boys forced from their villages during the vicious Sudanese civil war, have made nationwide news over the past few years as over 3,600 immigrated to the United States and began to make lives here. 120 settled in the our area, and the Lost Boys Foundation of Nashville recently opened the Lost Boys Center and Gallery (535 Fourth Ave. N.), which features painting, sculptures and pottery made by the boys as well as photographs taken of them by local photographer Jack Spencer. For this fundraiser, a group of local actors donating their services will perform Faith County, a raucous comedy that takes places in a small town “in the middle of nowhere in the South.” Donations will be accepted in lieu of ticket sales. 7 p.m. at Dalewood United Methodist Church in Inglewood —LEE STABERT

University TheaterKEELY AND DU Originally presented at Actors Theatre of Louisville in the early 1990s, this Pulitzer-nominated script by Jane Martin opens Vanderbilt University Theatre’s 2007-8 season. Jon Hallquist directs a cast of four—Angie Fontaine, Claire Fernandez, Brett Bolton and Alex Kane—in this provocative tale of a pregnant, working-class woman who is kidnapped outside an abortion clinic by members of a “rescue” organization called Operation Retrieval. Her fetus is the result of a rape, which complicates the pro-choice vs. pro-life debate. The play also explores the complex personal dynamics that exist between captor and prisoner. Sept. 28-29, Oct. 6 & 13 in Neely Auditorium —MARTIN BRADY

Well-Crafted DanceBALLETLAB PRESENT ORIGAMI Great Performances at Vanderbilt kicks off its 2007-8 season with an appearance by BalletLab, Australia’s leading dance troupe. Now on tour in the U.S., BalletLab will present its latest work, Origami, which refers to the well-known Japanese paper-folding craft. Under the direction of Philip Adams, the dancers will turn, roll and bend with remarkable athleticism. In addition, the performance will feature composer David Chisholm’s baroque/electronic score. Ancillary events tied to the company’s Sept. 29 engagement at Ingram Hall include a Sept. 28 Performance-on-the-Move (POM) preview at Molyneux Entertainment (312 9th Ave. S.) and a master class with BalletLab members on Sept. 29 in Vandy’s Memorial Gymnasium. For more information on tickets and scheduling, visit vanderbilt.edu/greatperformances. —MARTIN BRADY

Sweet Soul RockTIM KREKEL ORCHESTRA Unpredictably eclectic, Krekel is a hero in his hometown of Louisville partly because his musical achievements take off in so many different directions, and partly because there’s always a high level of songcraft and audience connection to whatever he does. He’s an in-demand guitarist who spent several years with Jimmy Buffett’s band, and a songwriter who’s been recorded by Jason & the Scorchers, Patty Loveless, Martina McBride and Kim Richey. He was part of Nashville’s ’80s major-label rock push as leader of the crisp roots-rock trio The Sluggers, and, in the last decade, he’s created a series of independent records that shine with melodic and lyrical smarts. In recent years, he’s been leading a horn-driven rock band that drips with sweet, R&B flavor. The TKO are celebrating the release of Soul Season—a new album resembling something Eric Clapton might have created with the Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section in 1969. 9 p.m. at 3rd & Lindsley —MICHAEL MCCALL

Comedy

D. L. HUGHLEY Less blustery than Bernie Mac, less old-school than either Steve Harvey or Cedric the Entertainer, D.L. Hughley came off as an urbane, polished upstart in the hilarious Original Kings of Comedy concert film. On his late-’90s sitcom The Hughleys, he offered a kind of hip-hop era update of Bill Cosby’s warm, fondly exasperated takes on family and marriage, only with a sharper edge on race and suburban assimilation. (Alas, ABC considered it too “racial”—this was before Ugly Betty—and bounced it to UPN, where it flourished for two more seasons.) Most recently he honed his acting chops on Aaron Sorkin’s acclaimed NBC misclick Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip, but stand-up is where he splits the difference between the traditions of Cosby and Richard Pryor. Hughley comes to Zanies to sling good-natured yet pointed barbs at politicos, celebs, sports figures and such—and lots of people will be holding their breath to see if he mentions the Rutgers women’s basketball team. Sept. 28-30 at Zanies —MARTIN BRADY AND JIM RIDLEY

SUNDAY 9/30

Loesser Is More

GUYS AND DOLLS Lamplighters’ Theatre in Smyrna concludes its run of this Frank Loesser classic about Times Square gamblers and the ladies who attempt to steer ’em to the straight and narrow. The show is presented in the company’s new, multi-million-dollar, state-of-the-art facility. Gregg Wilson directs, with choreography by actress Ruth Cordell, who turned in a terrific performance earlier this year in Tennessee Rep’s I Hate Hamlet. Sept. 28-30 at Lamplighters’ Theatre —MARTIN BRADY

MusicNASHVILLE JAZZ WORKSHOP 7TH ANNUAL FALL FUNDRAISER Do you lament the scarcity of jazz in Nashville? Find yourself longing for the days when people actually learned to play instruments? Nostalgic for a time when melody and harmony weren’t just names for hippies’ babies? Well quit yer whinin’, get off yer butt and do something about it! Music City’s jazz torchbearer needs you! Besides providing classes on a wide range of styles and instruments, Nashville Jazz Workshop presents shows by great local and national jazz acts, many of them in the workshop’s Jazz Cave, one of the hippest venues in town. (And BYOB to boot!) This week NJW holds its annual fall fundraiser—the perfect opportunity to put your money where your mouth is, and to eat, drink and hear some great music in the process. Performers include nine-piece Brazilian jazz ensemble Samba Nove, Beegie Adair, Don Aliquo, Bruce and Sandra Dudley, Jim Ferguson, Marcus Finnie, Connye Florance, Rod McGaha, Andy Reiss and NJW founders Lori Mechem and Roger Spencer. There will also be silent and live auctions featuring artworks by Myles Maillie, Alan LeQuire, James Threalkill, Elaine Wood and more, not to mention a six-course dinner and wine-tasting for 12 (!) at F. Scott’s. Tickets are $50; call 242-5299. 4 to 8 p.m. at University Club of Nashville —JACK SILVERMAN

CIRQUE DREAMS JUNGLE FANTASY No, it’s not Cirque du Soleil, but it may be the next best thing. Scenic designer/producer Neil Goldberg runs a 15,000-square-foot production facility in Pompano Beach, Fla., from where he masterminds corporate entertainment extravaganzas, commercial holiday shows and, since 1993, a series of variously themed, Cirque-type touring spectacles. But while Cirque du Soleil usually performs in large arenas, Cirque Dreams is generally booked into proscenium theaters. It also promotes a certain family-friendliness, along with more affordable ticket prices. Here you’ll get two hours of acrobats, contortionists, aerialists and puppets in a jungle setting, with glittery costumes and special lighting effects. There’s also dramatic music (both prerecorded and live), featuring lyrics sung in English. On occasion, Cirque Dreams is also interactive, with audience members involved in the onstage action. If you like one Cirque, you’ll probably groove on the other. Sept. 28-30 at TPAC’s Jackson Hall —MARTIN BRADY

MONDAY 10/1

Music

ANA POPOVIC Recorded in Los Angeles and Memphis, Ana Popovic’s new Still Making History proves conclusively that Serbians can play the blues. The 31-year-old guitarist and singer grew up in Belgrade and moved to the Netherlands in 1999. Still Making is likely the only blues record to contain the lines, “I saw mosques and monasteries / Burning down in flames,” and Popovic adds hints of jazz-fusion to her blues classicism. She covers Snooky Pryor’s “How’d You Learn to Shake It Like That?” and Big Mama Thornton’s “You Don’t Move Me No More.” Sometimes the production is too slick, but it’s hard to resist a singer who can declare, “The preachers of the Western god said / It’s me who takes the blame.” Often compared to Hendrix, Popovic sounds more like Robben Ford or Larry Carlton. She might not be at their exalted level, but she gets points for trying, and she’s got better hair than either. Monday & Tuesday at Bourbon Street Blues & Boogie Bar —EDD HURTTake a Byte Out of CrimeCYBER CRIME TASK FORCE This meeting of the Nashville Area PC Users Group is for you if a) you are awaiting an urgent message from Joseph Mwumba, underassistant to the finance minister of Nambia, about the $10,000 you sent to help settle those unclaimed shares of that diamond mine; b) that .exe file marked “Lindsay Lohan Firecrotch Peekaboo” erased your hard drive; c) you are a 10-year-old girl getting friendly IM invites to sunny Djakarta from a 50-year-old Hannah Montana fan; d) you actually purchased a penis extender, asswipe. An FBI representative (ask for ID) will discuss what cyber crime is, why it affects you and how to protect yourself. It’s a safe bet the talk will touch on the bureau’s four-pronged assault on Internet fraud, cyber predators, viral terrorists and threats to security and intellectual property. The meeting is free and open to the public; call 662-7639 for more information. 7 p.m. at Bellevue Family YMCA —JIM RIDLEY

RainmakerROBIN BECKER With a creative writing department blessed with three of the country’s finest poets—Kate Daniels, Mark Jarman and Rick Hilles—it’s no wonder Vanderbilt attracts first-rate visiting writers. This week is no exception, as acclaimed poet Robin Becker reads from her work. Long noted for an unaffected lyricism, Becker’s poems perfectly illustrate Coleridge’s famous definition of poetry: the right words in the right order. Consider “Rain,” from her newest collection, Domain of Perfect Affection, which ends: “When my lover came home from work, we built / a houseboat with an awning and filled our sails / with a waterproof optimism, hoping to run into a few friends / who’d taken the rain into their own hands and gone pelagic.” It’s impossible to overstate the perfection of that final word. The event is free. Becker will read at 8 p.m. in Buttrick Hall, Room 102. —PABLO TANGUAYTUESDAY 10/2

We All Scream for Ice CreamBEN AND JERRY: AN EVENING OF SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY, RADICAL BUSINESS PHILOSOPHY AND FREE DESSERT FOR ALL While big business and progressive politics typically go together like reality TV and dignity, Ben Cohen and Jerry Greenfield have built a $300 million ice cream empire while maintaining a social conscience so far left that it probably has Rush Limbaugh choking on his OxyContin. Everyone’s favorite capitalist hippies (Capippies? Hippitalists?) open Vandy’s lecture season with a talk on the benefits and pitfalls of running a socially responsible corporation. And we’ve got three words for you: free ice cream. 7 p.m. at Vanderbilt’s Student Life Center —JACK SILVERMAN

FilmTAXI TO THE DARK SIDE While Brian De Palma’s Iraq War inquest Redacted gets a predictable smear job from Neil Cavuto and other loons at FOX News, muckraking documentarian Alex Gibney (Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room) launches his own counteroffensive. The 2002 death of an Afghan taxi driver named Dilawar is the starting point for an exploration of sanctioned torture in the war on terror, as Gibney examines the methods, the policy directives that shield the top brass and the cover-ups that leave enlisted men and women holding the bag. The movie is one of several docs making a qualifying run in theaters in coming weeks for next year’s Oscar nominations. Sept. 30-Oct. 2 at the Belcourt Theatre —JIM RIDLEY

WEDNESDAY 10/3

MusicDO MAKE SAY THINK While ostensibly post-rock, DMST generate more melodic heat and sustain their narratives better than their windy mathematically inclined-peers. Started a dozen years ago in Toronto, they released their fifth album, You, You’re a History in Rust, in February. While generally an instrumental work, You features some guest vocals alongside the band’s typical concise, dynamic warmth. In a genre where soft/loud and slow-fused builds are over-used, DMST explore a variety of sonic plots and manage to tie them up in less than five minutes for most of the 8-song You. From the punctuated pulse of “The Universe!,” which swirls and careens like a headlong tumble in zero gravity, to the acoustic finger-picked, shimmer textures swathing “Herstory of Glory,” there’s a joy to their music utterly absent from their heady, navel-gazing instrumental peers. 8 p.m. at Exit/In —CHRIS PARKERMusic

REBECCA SAYRE Long one of Nashville’s premier jazz vocalists, Sayre recently returned to Music City after an extended residency in Washington, D.C. An elegant stylist with a clear tone and an easy sense of swing, she’s slowly re-establishing herself while revealing just how much her songwriting developed while she was away from the scene. With this show, Sayre begins a series of once-a-month performances, where she’ll perform with just a microphone and her beautiful Gretsch guitar. 8 p.m. at Edgehill Studios Café —MICHAEL MCCALL

MusicTEA LEAF GREEN The jam-band experience channels the ease and affluence of college towns such as Boulder, Colo., so it’s appropriate that Tea Leaf Green’s latest, Rock ’n’ Roll Band, was recorded in front of a rapturous crowd of jamming Boulderites. Justin Kreutzmann’s concert film of the same name documents a quartet whose extended guitar solos evoke the memory of Jerry Garcia and Duane Allman, if The Allman Brothers’ “Mountain Jam” had been performed in the shadow of Boulder’s famed Flatirons formations. These San Franciscans continue in the tradition of songful bands sporting psychedelic leanings, with Trevor Garrod’s compositions combining optimism and post-countercultural skepticism in equal measures. At their best, as on the superb “If It Wasn’t for the Money,” Tea Leaf Green say something interesting about the aspirations and discontents of their audience, which means that they might be a rock ’n’ roll band after all. 9 p.m. at Mercy Lounge —EDD HURT

MusicCROSBY & NASH Much has been made of the on-again-off-again relationship between Neil Young and his occasional partners in Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young—but the irascible Young isn’t the only combustible element in this oft-dysfunctional family. Stills, too, must sometimes go his own way, which is why the apparently inseparable Crosby & Nash have recorded and performed sporadically as a duo over the last 35 years. With no hardheaded, electric-guitar-wielding troublemakers to harsh the buzz, the two tenors are free to get as mellow as they desire—do not expect a mosh pit to form at this show. Do expect to hear plenty of glimmering harmonies throughout a set list focusing on the four studio albums C&N have made together without the aid of S&Y. 7:30 p.m. at War Memorial Auditorium —CHRIS NEAL