THURSDAY 6/12
Just When You Thought It Was Safe…MOVIES @ MAIN: JAWS Is there a better time to dust off Steven Spielberg’s 1975 movie version of the Peter Benchley novel—the film that permanently tilted the scale of summer moviegoing toward teen-friendly thrill fare? Before anyone starts tsk-tsking, let it be noted that Spielberg’s titanic thriller—where life is a chum cabaret—remains one of the brightest spots in a landmark year that reached from Nashville, Barry Lyndon and Jeanne Dielman to Death Race 2000 and Switchblade Sisters. If you’ve never seen it on the big screen, the downtown public library’s nice digital projection system and large auditorium are as close as you’re likely to get. Free and open to the public. 5:30 p.m. at the Nashville Public Library —JIM RIDLEY
Read LocalDANIEL KILLMAN What do an Episcopal priest, a country music star, a prostitute and a lawyer have in common? They’re all characters in The Row and the Boulevard, Daniel Killman’s novel of the good, the bad and the ugly of Nashville. Killman, a local songwriter and composer, has borrowed storylines from his own life and local headlines to knit a tale about the collision of the music business and high society—Music Row and Belle Meade Boulevard. The cast is large, the dreams are many and anyone who’s lived in Music City for more than two months will know several of the players in this debut drama. The struggles with booze, sex and money—with a touch of mystery tossed in for good measure—are the stuff of many a water-cooler gab fest, and even more country songs. 7 p.m. at Davis-Kidd Booksellers —CHRIS SCOTT
Once More With FeelingI AM MY OWN WIFE Originally scheduled for presentation in March and then cancelled, this Naked Stages production has endured a few snags getting launched. Following on the heels of Actors Bridge’s A Bright Room Called Day in Belmont’s Black Box Theater, I Am My Own Wife will again visit Germany in upheaval. Doug Wright’s Tony and Pulitzer Prize-winning play captures the life and times of one Charlotte von Mahlsdorf, a transvestite with a violent childhood past and an incredible run of survival through Nazi and communist regimes in East Berlin. It’s a one-man show, and company founder Mark Cabus takes on the challenge of 40 different characters—outstripping the 30 or so he renders in his acclaimed solo version of Dickens’ A Christmas Carol. Wright’s well-researched script explores how von Mahlsdorf (born Lothar Berfelde) became a noted collector and curator, as well as a key player in artistic and gay circles, eventually claiming the German Medal of Honor. Cabus’ tour de force effort is under the direction of Belmont University theater professor Kate Al-Shamma. Mature content. June 12-15 in Belmont’s Black Box Theater —MARTIN BRADYFRIDAY 6/13
MusicRR 10TH ANNIVERSARY Ten years ago, D. Striker left his parent’s house, headed to Kinko’s and stapled together the inaugural edition of RR Magazine. It happened to be Friday the 13th, and ever since that legendary day, every numerically cursed Friday has been blessed by the release of this modest little publication and celebrated with a big ole party and plenty of live music. In celebration of a decade of mayhem, Striker will be joined on the bill by The Virginia Reel and fellow Lust List honoree Caitlin Rose. Expect country-tinged tunes and lots of drunk people feeling lucky. Price of admission gets you your very own copy of the rag and an album recorded in honor of the occasion. 7 p.m. at The 5 Spot —LEE STABERT
MusicKELLEIGH BANNEN CD RELEASE SHOW Radio Sky is the first album from Kelleigh Bannen, a Nashville native who moved away before her musical aspirations drew her back to town in recent years. (She’s also the designer of her own Diva Today jewelry line.) Bannen’s debut contains 11 tracks of roots-inflected country that have a good chance of appealing to mainstream country audiences with a taste for the more traditional and organic leanings of Chely Wright or Deana Carter (though her voice isn’t quite as effortless as either of theirs). Bannen does well at covering her nostalgic bases. Radio Sky opens with a fiddle-sweetened “they don’t make country songs like they used to” ballad, followed by a “heading back home to a simpler life” country-rock number, then a raucous bluesy romp about her no-good man and a particularly fetching brokenhearted ballad. In the hands of formidable players like Bryan Owings, Frank Swart and Casey Driessen, the songs are treated well. 7 p.m. at The Basement —JEWLY HIGHTMusicPAT COIL SEXTET Pianist Pat Coil has the kind of résumé (Woody Herman and Vince Gill, Carmen McCrae and Trisha Yearwood, Natalie Cole and Travis Tritt) that can only belong to a member of that rare subspecies—the top-notch jazzer living in the country music capital. (Actually, there are more of them than you realize, though, like the Dalai Lama at an NRA convention, they don’t get the respect the deserve.) Coil’s latest, Bird House, holds its own with anything on the national jazz scene, largely because of his emphasis on composition and arrangement. Highlights include the Crescent City grease-fest “Way Down,” the Latin-tinged “Think Again” and the hard-boppin’ title track. This show also features a harbinger of summer, a Jim White sighting—now a jazz prof at University of Northern Colorado, the überdrummer still spends the off-season in Music City. 7 p.m. at F. Scott’s —JACK SILVERMAN
ArtUNTITLED ARTIST GROUP’S MULTIPLE ORIGAMI Looking for a free cultural experience this Friday night? Then head to Untitled’s 2008 summer show Multiple Origami. This one-night-only non-juried art event showcases established and emerging artists working video, painting, sculpture and photography. The artists’ styles range from contemporary to traditional and employ a variety of conceptual techniques—Joy Deeann Carson’s mixed-media piece “Holding It Together” uses fabric and embroidery to evoke concerns of femininity. Untitled’s quarterly shows are great energizers for the Nashville community and always serve as a reminder of all the local talent present in our city. 6-10 p.m. at University of Phoenix —AMANDA DILLINGHAMSATURDAY 6/14
ArtKAAREN HIRSCHOWITZ ENGEL If prolificness is one hallmark of a true artist, then Engel has certainly been making her point of late. Most recently, her work has been featured in a popular show at Twist Gallery and at the much-talked-about Works With Words show at Nashville Public Library. Engel has been favoring her nest-like paper sculptures, but for this new show, the artist reaches back to her roots as a painter—and to her Jewish upbringing—to craft creative renderings of various traditional prayers she learned as a child. The show will be on display all summer. Through summer at Studio B Gallery; opening reception, 7-9 p.m. —JOE NOLAN
Songwriter Smackdown!MALCOLM HOLCOMBE/DAVID OLNEY Gadzooks! This is the renegade songwriter equivalent of Ali vs. Frasier! Clinton vs. Obama! Hall vs. Oates! In one corner we have a sharp-witted, hard-living, grizzled veteran of the trenches, who writes of life on the margins as much from experience as from observation, and, in the other corner, we have a sharp-witted, hard-living, grizzled veteran of the trenches, who.... OK, let’s put it this way: Holcombe will lead with his disarmingly gravelly voice, throw in some poetic abstractions that nonetheless resonate subconsciously, then dish out some offbeat characters, working Olney into a corner. Olney responds with some wry insight, rebounds with a few offbeat characters of his own, then pummels Holcombe with winsome humor that slowly gives way to a profound wisdom he didn’t see coming. Holcombe, reeling, digs deep into his reserves, letting loose with a barrage of songs whose spine-tingling immediacy is nothing short of revelatory, and from here on, it’s anyone’s fight. The smart money is on the audience, who can’t lose with this lineup. 8 p.m. at The Basement —JACK SILVERMAN
Brews ’n’ ChewsYAZOO TASTING DINNER The king of Nashville beers meets the queen of East Nashville catering, and for a less than princely sum you can dine like royalty in the burgeoning fiefdom of Riverside Village…. OK, let’s just euthanize the extended metaphor and enjoy five courses of Chef Julia Helton’s summer best alongside Yazoo brewmaster Linus Hall’s award-winning ales. A holdover from Helton’s days at the Family Wash, the tasting dinner features such pairings as minted English pea soup and Hefeweisen, braised beef in a morel demiglace and stout and fromage savoie and pale ale. And for a new twist on an old-country staple, Helton will offer a bite-size corned-beef-and-cabbage course featuring bundled Brussels sprouts. The dinner is limited to 40 slots at $65 apiece: reserve a spot by emailing catering@juliahelton.com. Arrive early and take in the herb-scented evening air on Mitchell Deli’s tranquil garden patio. 7:30 p.m. at Mitchell Deli (1402 McGavock Pike) —JIM RIDLEY
Dragons and DogsSUMMER REP AT NASHVILLE CHILDREN’S THEATRE NCT’s summer drama camps are in full swing, and that’s usually enough to keep the place sufficiently busy until the regular fall-to-spring theater season. But NCT is keeping its mainstage alive for the next six weeks, presenting remounts, in repertory, of two of their recent successes, The Reluctant Dragon and Go, Dog. Go! The former is geared especially toward the youngest audiences, but there’s something here for all ages, with Go, Dog. Go! projecting the kind of whimsy, wit and über-energy that’s readily appreciated even by older theatergoers. Fridays and Saturdays through July 18 at Nashville Children’s Theatre —MARTIN BRADY
ArtENGAGE One of the newer galleries on Nashville’s art scene, Rymer Gallery has featured a number of artists in group shows and made good use of curator Herb Williams’ limitless energy and local reputation. But the art world is a fickle mistress and while anyone can open a gallery, the trick is keeping it open. With the grand unveiling of their expanded digs at last Saturday’s Art Crawl, Rymer now occupies one of the biggest spaces in town, and seems to be in it for the long haul. Their latest show features work by Dominic Besner, Aniocles Gregoire, Leszek Wyczolkowski and Antoine Claes. The exhibit also includes Nashville artist Kristina Colucci’s encaustic block paintings inspired by subjects from Southern pop culture, from cicadas to Flying V guitars. Through June 28 at Rymer Gallery —JOE NOLAN
You Drive Me Ape, You Big Gorilla!SECOND SATURDAY SUMMER SERIES STRIKES BACK: KING KONG There’s not an 80,000-pound gorilla in the room; he’s on the wall outside, looming above Manhattan in the heart of Hillsboro Village. The Belcourt unleashes its annual summer series of free outdoor movie screenings every second Saturday of the month through October, leading with the original 1933 King Kong. The pre-show starts at dusk in the side parking lot, featuring vintage cartoons, ads and shorts. Concessions will be available outside. Bring picnic blankets and chairs, or watch from the comfort of your own car drive-in style. Coming soon: the Ray Harryhausen classic The Seventh Voyage of Sinbad, Frank Tashlin’s The Girl Can’t Help It and Tod Browning’s Freaks. Approximately 8:05 p.m. at The Belcourt —JIM RIDLEY
SUNDAY 6/15
Even the Lord’s Gotta EatCITY HOUSE Whether it’s for business reasons or out of respect for the Christian Sabbath here in the Bible Belt, one thing’s clear: Nashville suffers from a dearth of Sunday-night dining options. So when I had to entertain an out-of-town guest on a recent Sunday, I was delighted to discover that City House, a treat on any evening, was in fact open on the Lord’s Day. And Lord, was it good. A Manila clam pizza, half-chicken and plate of bucatini later, we were digging into a delectable orange cake that put the exclamation point on one of the most simple yet satisfying meals I’d had in a year or two. The restaurant is open every night but Tuesday (perhaps in observance of Kyrgyzstan’s Day of the Yak?), from 5 to 9 p.m. Sunday and until 10 the other days. If you thought you were doomed to your umpteenth Sunday-night Domino’s, Whopper or kung pao chicken, think again. 5-9 p.m. at City House (1222 Fourth Ave. N.) —JACK SILVERMAN
Relax and RecoverTAKING A SHOWER AND SLEEPING IN OUR OWN BED AT OUR OWN HOUSE While we are very excited to head to Bonnaroo and frolic in the mud with our Birkenstocked brethren, in reality we’re just city slickers with a hardcore jones for indoor plumbing, deodorant and closed-toe shoes. The idea of four walls and running water after a weekend in the wild has us giddy with anticipation. Hell, the last we spent this much time outside, gas was a buck-ten a gallon, Jerry Garcia was old rather than dead and Zubaz pants were still cool. Well, sorta cool, but that’s beside the point, because our air conditioner is totally cool and we can’t wait to return to it. Sunday night in Nashville, Tenn. —SEAN L. MALONEY
MONDAY 6/16
ComedyMIKE BIRBIGLIA might just be the anti-Dane Cook: deliberate, thoughtful, slightly geeky and with a bewildered, aw-shucks delivery. He even knows how to be animated without going completely over-the-top. But like Cook, Birbiglia was a promising talent right out of the gate, is a huge hit with the college crowd, has released a handful of well-received albums, and has headlined high-profile national tours. Intensely relatable as he tackles regular-person problems—growing up, relationships, family, bears—and full of golden punchlines, Birbiglia and his wide-eyed demeanor are easy to root for. The Comedy Powers That Be feel the same way—Comedy Central recently ordered a fourth special (and third CD on the Comedy Central Records label) based on his in-progress Sleepwalk With Me one-man show. 7:30 p.m. at Zanies; also playing Bonnaroo —JULIE SEABAUGH
MusicEEF BARZELAY CD RELEASE SHOW Former Clem Snide frontman Eef Barzelay is a master of spare, loungy folk with an acerbic bite. The songs on his second solo release Lose Big (out this month) are no exception, continuing to probe deeper into the complexities of life and love. With his cracked warble and dark, sardonic musings, he teases out matters great and small, and offers little in the way of tidy resolutions for your angst-filled dread (the mature kind, not the kind teenagers co-opted). This is smart, dark existentialist pop: Take shuffling brooder “Could Be Worse,” a satisfying slap in the face of optimism. “Show me the bright side / and I look till my eyes catch fire,” he challenges, then adds the refrain, “I can’t find comfort in the fact that it could be worse.” Lucky for us, there is a bright side: Barzelay is currently a Nashville resident, and this CD release is a rare local performance. 9 p.m. at The Basement —TRACY MOORE
MusicBEN SOLLEE It’s obvious when Ben Sollee shows up for a gig that his won’t be a typical singer-songwriter set: He carries an instrument case too big for a guitar and too round for a keyboard. Surprise: It’s a cello. Unlike stand-up bass-playing singer-songwriter Amy LeVere, he uses his unorthodox instrument as a singular dueting voice. Sollee’s had other unique projects (the Sparrow Quartet) and sideman gigs (with Otis Taylor), and when he does his own thing, it’s no less fresh and interesting. On his brand new full-length, Learning to Bend, his easy crooning lands on the smooth side of Ray LaMontagne or Ron Sexsmith, and his cello provides elastic, textured accompaniment (unlike the darkly cloaked sounds of similarly cello-centered Rasputina). Sollee’s songwriting is equally strong: it spans delicate folk-pop and R&B, with occasional classical flourishes. But the natural way he takes to “A Change Is Gonna Come” and “How to See the Sun” suggests his heart is in soul. Opening for Eef Barzelay. 6 p.m. at Grimey’s; 9 p.m. at The Basement —JEWLY HIGHT
MusicJOHN ENGLAND & THE WESTERN SWINGERS are living proof of two things: Well-rendered Western swing is as irresistible and timeless as a pint of Ben & Jerry’s and Mondays don’t have to suck. At this installment of their weekly Robert’s Western World spot, the WSers will celebrate the release of Open That Gate, their first record featuring mostly original songs—10 out of 13, to be exact. (The title “Neely’s Bend Quick Step”—a fiddle tune written, naturally, by the band’s guitarist—should have been a hint.) The new material puts a fresh spin on Western swing while keeping the tradition in tact, with five out of the six band members contributing lead vocals. Even fiddler Gene “Pappy” Merritts, who turns 80 in January, takes the mic for a couple of numbers, including “Waltz for Sue Ann,” written for his wife of 54 years. 6-10 p.m. at Robert’s Western World; also playing 5:30 June 14 at Opry Plaza and 7 p.m. June 15 at Crockett Park in Brentwood —JACK SILVERMAN
Herzog-Kinski: Round ThreeFITZCARRALDO As impossible as it is to separate the chaos before the camera in Werner Herzog’s 1982 epic from the chaos behind it—yes, this is the film for which Herzog contracted Peruvian natives to haul a 340-ton steamship up a mountain using only a precarious block-and-tackle system—the result vindicates the director’s belief that locations and unfaked strife work some strange alchemy on film. As if the jungle locations weren’t hardship enough, actors Jason Robards and Mick Jagger dropped out early in production, saddling Herzog once again with his “best fiend,” the mercurial Klaus Kinski—cast here as a 19th century Irishman fevered with the dream of building an opera house in the South American rain forest. Even if you haven’t seen Les Blank and Maureen Gosling’s staggering making-of doc Burden of Dreams—as much a part of Fitzcarraldo’s legend as Hearts of Darkness is of Apocalypse Now’s—this has images of folly and futility that will scar your memory, none more piercing than the sight of the massive steamship swirling down pulverizing rapids while Caruso’s voice crackles from an unsteady phonograph. Noon June 14-15; 7 p.m. June 16 at The Belcourt —JIM RIDLEY
MusicHEADLIGHTS Taking the scenic route, Illinois outfit Headlights have squeezed in a detour to Nashville from their busy schedule opening for kindred indie pop duo Mates of State. Garnering modest but due attention for Some Racing, Some Stopping, a sophomore LP that puts to shame their tour mate’s latest batch of sub-par girl pop, this fresh threesome should be a welcome presence onstage. Imbued with the stellar charm of Stars, the honeyed vocals of Rilo Kiley and a slight tinge of Arcade Fire’s orchestral rallies, Headlights are the kind of heart-tuggers that can actually stand up to a dozen indie rock references and not feel derivative. 9 p.m. at The End —DUSTIN ALLEN
TUESDAY 6/17
MusicTHE QUEERS The Buzzcocks and The Ramones may have laid the groundwork for pop-punk, but The Queers helped make sure the genre would never grow up. After 25 years, Joe Queer still pines for that girl in third period, still appreciates a good party and still sings about his subjects in a teenager’s matter-of-fact way. The New Hampshire band’s brand of punk has always emphasized melody over aggression, but the quartet’s latest, Munki Brain, contains more nods to the sunny ’60s than the gritty late ’70s, with an overt Beach Boys influence that shows in songs such as the aptly titled “Brian Wilson.” 7 p.m. at The Muse —MATT SULLIVAN
WEDNESDAY 6/18
MusicTHE LUKE BULLA & CASEY DRIESSEN SHOW Despite the slightly grand title, long-time friends Bulla and Driessen are paring it down to the essentials for this show: two voices, two fiddles and a bit of guitar. Still, expect plenty of fireworks, because the operative principle here might best be summed up as “disciplined fingers, undisciplined minds.” Separately and together—the two have combined forces intermittently since they were in their early teens—they’ve been schooled in the ways of traditional music, and regularly work with older artists who’ve led the way in expanding outward from those roots. But as those who recall their partnership a few years ago in the regrettably defunct Wisechild know, Bulla and Driessen are musical explorers who consistently leaven their creative intensity with considerable wit and, at times, broad humor. 9 p.m. at Station Inn —JON WEISBERGER
Pet ProjectWEDNESDAY NIGHT WAGS And now, a little something for the kitties. Every Wednesday in June, Happy Tales Humane hosts a sprawling celebration of food, art, music and pets, with proceeds benefiting the nonprofit’s no-kill animal shelter. Commandeering the The Factory at Franklin with the support of a bevy of local vendors and artists, WAGS has a treat to dangle for virtually every demographic—balloon animals and puppies for the kids, a chef’s showcase featuring samples from some of Nashville’s finest restaurants for gourmands, Blackstone and Yazoo hops for bons vivants and live adult contemporary music for the contemporary adult. (The festival offers little for the PBR-and-vegan-food crowd, but rumor has it that rescued puppies are this year’s white belt.) This week’s music showcase is entitled “Wine, Women and Song” and features Gretchen Peters, Suzy Bogguss and Matraca Berg—combined, they’re enough to make even the most hardened outlaw long for a candlelit rose petal bubble bath. For information, visit wednesdaynightwags.com. 6 p.m. Wednesdays through June 25 at The Factory at Franklin —CODY DE VOS
MusicORCHESTRA NASHVILLE PRESENTS “MUSIC OF THE SPIRIT” We know Music City has a fondness for “spiritual music” that is anything but: cheesy, overproduced CCM drivel geared more toward lining pockets than saving souls. Let’s make this clear: This program is not that music. First, it represents several religious traditions (news alert! There’s more than one!), and second, it’s music that’s more divinely than commercially inspired. Among the highlights: guitarist John Jorgenson; Turtle Island String Quartet; dynamic soul singer Mike Farris, who could bring Richard Dawkins to Jesus; Odessa Settles and the Princely Players, presenting African American spirituals; classical Indian vocalist Sankaran Mahadevan; the Orchestra Nashville Chorus, under the direction of Amy Tate Williams; vocalists Karyn Friedman, Wade Henderson, Amy Jarman, Leda Scearce and John Bindel; and representing the Old Testament (hey, homeys!), Cantor Lisa Silver and Rabbi Saul Strosberg, who rocks the shofar like there’s Noah tomorrow. 7 p.m. at Belmont Heights Baptist Church —JACK SILVERMAN
MusicTHE NEW FRONTIERS Dallas natives New Frontiers may have a firm grasp on their own brand of endearing folk rock—often filtered through their alt-country lap steel or fiddle flourishes—but they have yet to make their own distinct deviation from the typecast trappings of sad bastard farm rockers such as Band of Horses. 8 p.m. at Exit/In —DUSTIN ALLEN
ComedyTOM RHODES We can’t vouch for the Larry “Uncle Lar” Reeb portion of this dual-headlining “Friends of The Bob & Tom Show” weekend, but if the catchphrase “Here’s a Tip From Your Uncle Lar!” treads a bit too close to “Here’s Your Sign!” territory for comfort, Tom Rhodes will even the keel. The real deal in terms of Comedy Lifers, Rhodes has been a stand-up since his senior year of high school, circled the globe several times over and self-educated himself via the teachings of Lenny Bruce, Bill Hicks, Richard Pryor, The Beatles and Jack Kerouac. From Comedy Central to his late-’90s NBC sitcom Mr. Rhodes and the runaway success of his Netherlands-based The Kevin Masters Show (which earned him the nickname “The David Letterman of Amsterdam”), his material has only grown more intelligent, socially relevant and expansive. So…exactly what is he doing on this bill again? June 20-22 at Zanies —JULIE SEABAUGH
