THURS/3.25
[GIRL GERMS] GIRLS ROCK!
On its surface, this documentary about an Oregon girls' rock camp is merely a weeklong peek into the Northwestern version of our own Southern Girls Rock and Roll Camp in Murfreesboro. But the takeaway is really more feminist fist-pump than rock 'n' roll love letter: It shows what happens when you encourage confidence over come-hither in young women during their formative years. Of course, anyone who's grown up around girls won't be surprised to find these likable misfits embracing shtick-y posturing, noise rock and guttural growls as effortlessly as their boy counterparts, but anyone who's spent five minutes on earth will still find it heartbreaking to watch them struggle to unpack already deeply entrenched body image issues at the tender age of 9 — all just to pick up a guitar. Stick around after the screening for a discussion with SGRRC members about the local camp and a Q&A. Free. 7 p.m. at Sarratt Cinema TRACY MOORE
[CHECKING IN] CHELSEA HOTEL
Along with the Dead Boys and Pere Ubu, the Pagans helped put Cleveland on the punk rock map. The band existed just a few short years in the late '70s, releasing a handful of singles, some of which are worth a pretty penny today. As was par for the course at the time, the band flamed out early on, meaning that their impact and stature — aside from a few attempts later to reunite — would come largely after the fact. Former Pagans guitarist Robert Conn lives in Texas these days, and Chelsea Hotel is his new band, which just so happens to kick ass, too. As is to be expected, they sound like a punk band straddling that era's first and second waves, retaining the grittiness of the Cleveland scene but sticking to an older-school rock 'n' roll sound that isn't quite as snotty. 9 p.m. at Springwater MATT SULLIVAN
[THE KIDS ARE ALL RIGHT] NASHVILLE SCHOOL OF THE ARTS' MARCH MIXED MEDIA
An art scene doesn't just appear out of thin air. It requires a sustained effort on many fronts to create an audience for galleries and museums, to train and educate arts professionals and — most importantly — to encourage and support the development of a creative class to fill those walls, project those videos and make those happenings actually happen. We have seen the growing impact of the Watkins College faculty and alumni in the past few years, but it's important to remember that those undergrads came from somewhere. The new mixed-media show at the Green Hills Public Library offers a glimpse into the future of Nashville's art scene through the lens of new work by students from Nashville School of the Arts. Through Mar. 31 at Green Hills Library, 3701 Benham Ave. JOE NOLAN
[NASHVILLE CREAM] LENTEN FILM SERIES: BUGSY MALONE
Listen up, you mugs — it's a gangster movie, see? Nyah! Except all the gangsters are little kids, see? Nyah! And they shoot each other with machine guns, see — but the guns fire only whipped cream! Nyah! And it's a musical, see, with songs by the guy who played Little Enos in Smokey and the Bandit! Nya — what?!? Seriously — in the annals of deranged cinematic ideas, Alan Parker's 1976 film remains in a class all by itself ... a class reserved for musical versions of the Coen brothers' Miller's Crossing as performed by the Little Rascals. Scott Baio plays the title character, the hood with the goods other mobsters want in a make-believe backlot gangland. But the show is stolen by 13-year-old Jodie Foster, vamping it up as a nightclub-singer gun moll who's basically the Disney Channel version of the pre-teen hooker she played in Taxi Driver the same year. The movie screens free and open to the public as part of the Lenten Film Series, organized around the theme of "Anti-Depressants" — something you imagine many of these cast members are well acquainted with today. 6 p.m. free light meal, 7 p.m. movie at Downtown Presbyterian Church, 154 5th Ave. N. JIM RIDLEY
[ODISSI ODYSSEY] NRITYAGRAM DANCE ENSEMBLE
Great Performances at Vanderbilt once more fulfills its mission as the foremost local purveyor of world-class performing arts. Odissi is the oldest of India's classical dance forms, and, since 1990, the elegant Nrityagram Dance Ensemble of Bangalore has been melding that tradition-rich style with contemporary concepts. The company's touring programs — which have been increasingly, enthusiastically praised by the international press in recent years — are at once lyrical and sensual, while also successfully conjuring India's colorful past. Themes of magic and spirituality drive the dance, performed to original Indian classical music. In cooperation with the Vanderbilt Dance Program, the Nrityagram troupe offers a master dance class on March 24 at Memorial Gymnasium. Already enrolled students may attend free of charge; others are admitted for $10. Phone 322-2471 for more information. 7:30 p.m. at Ingram Hall MARTIN BRADY
[IN GARDENS WHERE WE FEEL SECURE] AMERICAN IMPRESSIONISM LECTURE BY DR. WILLIAM H. GERDTS
As a listless college grad, the eminent American art scholar William H. Gerdts once pried open an 18th century shaving cabinet and found a James Peale miniature tucked away in the drawer. Perhaps similarly illuminating discoveries await those who attend this talk, part of the Entrekin Lectureship Series, in which Gerdts will focus on the prevalence of gardens and flora in paintings by American Impressionists. The lush, rolling landscape of Cheekwood — even if it isn't quite in full bloom yet — should make for a fitting backdrop. Hands off the furniture, though. 6 p.m. at Cheekwood's Botanic Hall STEVE HARUCH
[TRIPLE THREAT] THE QUEBE SISTERS
There's never been a group quite like Fort Worth's Quebe Sisters. Grace, Sophia and Hulda Quebe — the latter of whom isn't even out of her teens yet — all play fiddle Johnny Gimble-style on Western and big band swing, hot jazz, rollicking rags and classic country, and they sing close, effervescent three-part like the Andrews Sisters, though they happen to favor modern ranch wear over the Andrews' cutesy "Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy" military uniforms. Currently backed by guitarist Joey McKenzie — who, along with his wife Sherry, was one of their first fiddle teachers — and standup bassist Drew Phelps, the Quebes gave their first public performance barely five years ago. In the meantime, they've won over a few folks who can tell top-notch Western swing from the mediocre stuff — fans include Asleep At the Wheel frontman Ray Benson and Marty Stuart, who's had them on his TV show. 9 p.m. at The Station Inn JEWLY HIGHT
FRI/3.26
[POST-EVERYTHING] JAPANDROIDS & A SUNNY DAY IN GLASGOW
Garage-rock stripped down to nonessentials, Japandroids' full-length debut Post-Nothing was one of last year's most exhilarating collections. The Vancouver, B.C., duo make dense, allusive music with electric guitar and drums, and the result is definitively post-rock — never mind the slightly self-conscious title. Post-Nothing crams what sounds like a thousand subtle variations on basic rock-guitar patterns into every song, but it's the record's yelping lyricism that makes it something more than the usual formalist game. Rockers in love with speed and uncertainty, Brian King and David Prowse dream about "sunshine girls" and gassing up their old car for a trip out of town. Sharing the bill is the Philadelphia sextet A Sunny Day in Glasgow, who construct unhurried pop with plenty of keyboards and murmuring vocals. Their new EP Nitetime Rainbows is a skillful dreamscape with its share of underlying tension. 9 p.m. at The End EDD HURT
[WAYNE'S WORLD] WAYNE WHITE LECTURE
You know about the former Middle Tennessean's influential work as a set designer and puppeteer on Pee Wee's Playhouse, and on the videos for the Smashing Pumpkins' "Tonight, Tonight" and Peter Gabriel's "Big Time" (not to mention that awesome Old Spice ad with Bruce Campbell). You know about the cover of Lambchop's album Nixon. You know about Maybe Now I'll Get The Respect I So Richly Deserve, the stunning 382-page monograph that designer Todd Oldham devoted last year to his visual art. But has anyone noted that White's paintings appear to be ground zero for the favored graphic trope of the moment: monolithic words situated in a landscape or urban setting — starting with the credits for David Fincher's Panic Room and spreading to countless TV and print ads and movie trailers (not to mention the movie Zombieland itself)? Ask White about this phenomenon yourself when the acclaimed artist delivers a talk at Watkins, free and open to the public. 5:30 p.m. at Watkins College of Art & Design, 2298 MetroCenter Blvd. JIM RIDLEY
[CLEARING HURDLES] TOO BLACK TOO FAST
This is your last weekend to see the first step in what may become one of the most ambitious and diversified projects on history, culture and athletics in the nation. Visual artist and Tennessee State University professor Michael McBride has joined forces with sculptor George Nock (a former NFL player now living in Atlanta), Grammy-winning producer Shannon Sanders and filmmaker Donnie L. Betts to celebrate the contributions of black jockeys to the development and growth of horse racing in America from 1607 to 1910. The project combines visual art with film, literature and music in a diversified salute to an overlooked era and uncredited athletic heroes. The current exhibit, which features 32 of the eventual 65 paintings and 15 of 25 sculptures (five in bronze), runs for just a few more days at TSU. Besides the exhibition, there are plans for a gallery, centers for environmental and equine studies, and many other items dedicated to chronicling the black experience and achievements in horse racing. But for now, sports and history buffs can acquaint themselves with a little-known chapter that fills in the missing gaps between race and racing. 10 a.m.-4 p.m. through March 27 at Floyd-Payne Campus Center, 3500 John A. Merritt Blvd. RON WYNN
[SCHOOLHOUSE PRE-ROCK] NORAH JANE STRUTHERS
Struthers is of a fairly rare breed: school teachers who switch to careers as singer-songwriters, rather than the other way around. She grew up in New Jersey singing bluegrass with her dad, taught English lit in Brooklyn, then picked up and moved to Nashville. She's the sort of roots performer who emphasizes staying true to traditions, rather than blending new in with the old. Her website calls what she does "classic Americana." In Struthers' repertoire, that translates into a mixture of mostly pre-electric American music, from points East and West: Appalachian murder and marriage ballads, bluegrass and cowboy — or in her case, cowgirl — songs, the lion's share of them original. Her upcoming self-titled debut features a swinging little number called "Cowgirl Yodel #3" that has her yodeling like Patsy Montana. Now that's a niche that's hurting for some solid young female singers. 8:30 p.m. at Norm's River Road House JEWLY HIGHT
[PRINE TIME] JOHN PRINE
If John Prine had written nothing else in his career but the couplet, "She thinks all my jokes are corny / Convict movies make her horny," we would still ransack every Grammy and gold record on Don Henley's mantel and leave them all for Prine in a heap at Brown's Diner. But the man's got a catalogue wider and deeper than Lake Louise — a treasure trove of protest songs that retain their corrosive bite ("Sam Stone," "Paradise"), mordant slices of life ("Donald and Lydia," "Hello in There"), and character sketches of utterly mysterious beauty and empathy ("Angel from Montgomery"). Elvis Costello recently celebrated him as an American legend on the Spectacle TV show, no doubt kicking himself for not writing the line, "I knew that topless lady had something up her sleeve." But even after a brush with cancer that left his voice lower and scratchier, Prine wears his mantle lightly — it's hard to think of many other legends who'd drawl out every lusty goofball syllable of "Let's Talk Dirty in Hawaiian." No funny songwriter was ever sadder, and no sad songwriter was ever funnier. And if it means getting to hear this genius in the flesh, the deaf can take both my ears, if they don't mind the size. 7:30 p.m. at The Ryman JIM RIDLEY
[THREAT LEVEL: ORANGE] THIS BIKE IS A PIPE BOMB
For a brief moment last year, This Bike Is a Pipe Bomb was the most notorious band in America — but not for anything that they actually did. A bicycle bearing one of their stickers shut down a terminal at Memphis International Airport, resulting in the arrest (and eventual release) of the bike's owner. Although the folk-punk band didn't personally affix the sticker to the bike frame, it's exactly the kind of mischief they might appreciate. Their fascination with combining pre-war country and aggressive acousti-punk seems designed to upset the modern concept of the American dream. Punk isn't usually associated with effective songwriting, but TBIAPB's odes to social justice and the '60s civil rights movement are powerful to say the least. Scrappy punkers Shellshag (labelmates with Screaming Females), The Looking Glass and Cy open. 8 p.m. at Little Hamilton LANCE CONZETT
[FOR OLD TIME'S SAKE] TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD
Circle Players made news recently with its announcement that, due to disagreements with Metro on rental costs, it will be moving its 2010-11 season out of Looby Theatre near MetroCenter and into the Senior Center for the Arts. That should make the Donelson venue a busy place indeed, since its FiftyForward-sponsored theater lineup already features a full schedule of shows. Yet those two companies had also already announced a collaborative project, Titanic, The Musical, for April 15-May 2, and somehow Circle will mount its five additional productions from August 2010 to April 2011. Meanwhile, for its Looby swan song, Circle returns to a company favorite, the stage version of Harper Lee's classic novel of the South. Veteran director Melissa Williams helms the production, featuring a cast of 29, led by Clay Hillwig as the heroic Atticus Finch. March 26-April 10 at Looby Theatre. MARTIN BRADY
[BACH TO THE FUTURE] BACHANALIA FESTIVAL
If admiration for J.S. Bach seems near-universal among musicians, it must be partly because his music translates so effectively across styles and instrumental combinations. The fourth annual BACHanalia Festival at Christ Church Cathedral will run the gamut of approaches to Bach's music in a six-hour marathon celebration of the composer's 325th birthday this month. We'll hear bassoon and saxophone quartets, a jazz combo led by saxophonist Sam Levine, art whistler Jed Cecil, a solo sonata played by violinist Christian Teal, and the historically informed approach of the Music City Baroque Ensemble. And of course, some of Nashville's best organists will put Christ Church's wonderful instrument through its paces. We've only scratched the surface of the festival's offerings here — a detailed program listing for the six free one-hour concerts is at www.christchurchcathedral.org/sacredspace. 5 p.m. at Christ Church Cathedral RUSSELL JOHNSTON
[LOVE CONQUERS ALL] THE FANTASTICKS
Once upon a time, The Fantasticks was merely the longest-running musical in the world. Now it's the longest-running uninterrupted production of all time, having debuted off-Broadway in 1960 and still playing there today. Creators Tom Jones and Harvey Schmidt based this small jewel on an 1894 play called Les Romanesques, which was in fact the first successful work by Edmond Rostand, author of Cyrano de Bergerac. Rostand's original was loosely based on Romeo and Juliet, so idealistic young love is the enduring theme here, yet we also get a scenario tempered by disillusion. (No spoilers on the outcome!) A charming and memorable score has sustained this piece for decades, and there's no reason why the new Boiler Room Theatre production shouldn't successfully follow in the footsteps of the show's countless other mountings. Familiar tunes include "I Can See It," "Much More," "Never Say No," "Soon It's Gonna Rain," "They Were You" plus the standard "Try to Remember." Sondra Morton directs, and the young lovers are Laura Thomas Sonn and Ciaran McCarthy, supported by six others. Through April 17 at The Factory at Franklin MARTIN BRADY
[HUGGY BEAR] STEPHEN KELLOGG AND THE SIXERS
Stephen Kellogg and the Sixers may not be the only band out there whose bread and butter is roots power-pop. And they may not even be the only band who's made a goofy music video featuring a marching band. (They enlisted UMass' Marching Minutemen to dance in rows and spell out the band name with a marching formation in the video for the ultra-hooky "Shady Esperanto and the Young Hearts.") But what they are is highly likable. Kellogg and the Sixers — made up of Kit Karlson and Boots Factor, who switch between instruments, and the most recent addition, guitarist Sam Getz — put no small amount of scrappy, amiable energy into doing what they do; See the "Shady Esperanto" video for instant proof. And they're a hardworking band. Their self-released efforts led to a major label release, and when that didn't work out, they trucked on with indies, releasing The Bear on Vanguard last year. And, perhaps most importantly, they're approaching the 1,000-show mark and still seem to be enjoying themselves. 8:30 p.m. at The Cannery Ballroom JEWLY HIGHT
SAT/3.27
[MYSTERY TRAIN] JOEL LAMAR BATEY
A recent gallery visit to preview Joel Batey's new show at Ovvio Arte was one of the highlights of what has turned out to be an engaging cold-weather art season. Amidst the exhibits at the Frist, the new videos at Cheekwood and the solo series at Zeitgeist, Batey's Soul Train crashes onto the scene with such sincerity, brutality, physicality and energy that one feels the artist has created something definitive. An exhibit of narrative oil paintings on reclaimed metal shelves, the show elicits single-word-descriptions like "relentless" and "undeniable" and the tasteful, thoughtful environs of the Ovvio space — which is customized for every exhibit — provide a better setting for Batey's first solo show than any local venue one could imagine. Opening reception 6 p.m.-10 p.m. Through April 10 JOE NOLAN
[REDLINE LOVE] D.R.I.
Sure, in these complex post-whatever times we sometimes take all the mashing-up and genre-bending of music for granted. But back in 1987, punks were punks and metalheads were metalheads, often with a kind of ferocity that might seem odd now, given our catholic modern tastes and — let's face it — how hard it can be to tell post-thrash from metalcore these days. So when Dirty Rotten Imbeciles released their influential Crossover album way back when, combining hardcore punk and heavy metal (symbolized on the cover by a newly chromed-over version of their moshing stick-man logo) it was a pretty bold move. Maybe not as bold as going back on tour after having a foot of your colon removed, as guitarist Spike Cassidy has, but bold nonetheless. 7 p.m. at The Muse STEVE HARUCH
[FINALLY, A BANK THAT'S GOOD FOR SOMETHING] REGIONS FREE DAYS AT CHEEKWOOD
If you're still feeling sore about that whole recession thing, here's one way to take advantage of a bank while protecting your own pockets and supporting the city's arts organizations. Through December, Regions Bank is offering monthly free outings to some of the city's most cherished institutions — entities such as the Nashville Children's Theatre, the Nashville Symphony Orchestra and the Adventure Science Center. The recipient of its attention this month is Cheekwood, where for two days the cash-strapped public has the run of its indoor exhibitions, its sculpture trail and its botanical gardens. The only caveat: More than 4,000 people attended the last event at the Frist — but in these difficult economic times, it's nice to see something besides misery loves company. 9:30 a.m.-4 p.m. March 27, 11 a.m.-4:30 p.m. March 28 at Cheekwood JIM RIDLEY
[Paying lip service] MAYHEM PERFORM ELVIS COSTELLO'S THIS YEAR'S MODEL
As file sharing and diminished attention spans have seen the Internet push record sales off a cliff, artists of the old guard have recently found that playing albums in their entirety live is a lucrative way to rest on their laurels. Meanwhile, local musicians here in Nashville have found that covering these albums is a surefire way to attract warm bodies to their shows. Whether it's local tributary masters The Long Players packing out every show they play or local indie faves How I Became the Bomb and KinderCastle combining forces to take on E.L.O's masterstroke Out of the Blue, Nashville's penchant for classic rock appreciation is clear. While no band could ever interpret Elvis Costello's music better than his unmatched confederates The Attractions, and no singer-songwriter could ever deliver spiteful love songs disguised as hate songs better than the bespectacled one himself, local musicians such as Joel J. Dahl (De Novo Dahl), Matt Hungate, Jerry Pentecost and American Bang's Kelby Ray will combine their efforts to tackle his indelible 1978 classic This Year's Model. In his first record to feature The Attractions, Costello's acerbic anger was never more palpable. The album includes such new wave staples as "Radio, Radio," "The Beat" and "Pump It Up." 9 p.m. at The 5 Spot ADAM GOLD
[road to nowhere] TWO-LANE BLACKTOP
In the pantheon of classic car movies, you'll find Monte Hellman's 1971 magnum opus (shot partially in Tennessee) somewhere between the purpose-driven fatalism of James William Guercio's Electra Glide in Blue and the serrated abstractions of Cronenberg's Crash. Although the nominal plot involves a race between a '55 Chevy and a '70 GTO down Route 66, that holy ribbon from the days before interstates spanned the nation, the movie's not about the destination: Its characters live just to keep on moving — something that gives Hellman's enigmatic but majestic film the existential undertow of a shark documentary. Stars James Taylor and Dennis Wilson, as musicians, understand the importance of image and letting sound speak for itself; this allows Warren Oates, in one of the best roles in a blazing career, to steal the show as an aging dragster with a yen for cross-country adventure. Hellman has a gift for Cinemascope: the anamorphic frame suits the roads, the nation, the cars, and that inchoate masculine wanderlust that sends men out and through whatever comes forward to meet them. That makes the film simply unmissable on the big screen, especially for an ending that so freaked out distributors that they simply chopped it away. But art, like a finely calibrated manual transmission, endures. March 27-29 at The Belcourt JASON SHAWHAN
[CLOCKERS] LARRY CORDLE & LONESOME STANDARD TIME
The Mighty Cord's got an enduring reputation as one of the finest country songwriters of the past quarter century. But he's one of the most spellbinding performers, too — a master of the kinds of singing and stagecraft that keep even the rowdiest audience hanging on every word, sung or spoken. So the only thing surpising about the fact that he's recording these shows for a live album is that it hasn't already been done. This edition of Lonesome Standard Time's especially nifty, bringing together two vets (Kim Gardner on dobro, Booie Beach on guitar) with two relative newcomers (Jody King and James Donczescz on banjo and bass) who all used to play together in North Carolina, along with outstanding fill-in buddy Chris Harris (mandolin). Cord promises a set list filled with favorites from "Highway 40 Blues" to "Bandit" to "Murder On Music Row," and honestly, you'd be crazy not to be there to take part in the fun. 9 p.m. March 27-28 at Station Inn JON WEISBERGER
[BLOOD, GUTS AND TIPPER GORE] IMPALER
If you'll remember, Impaler are the gore-obsessed Twin Cities-based thrash band whose offensiveness found brief notoriety in the form of Tipper Gore and the Washington Wives' indignation. In recent months you've probably asked yourself, "What've Impaler been up to since they were last in town?" Well, they wrote a concept album about monsters. It's called Cryptozoology (Children of God?), with each song "representing a different monster within the realm of Cryptozoology," including a Bigfoot trilogy. They're also featured alongside Thin Lizzy, Judas Priest and Accept in Hellbent on Cooking: The Heavy Metal Cookbook. And in the coming months they've got a three-disc compilation of '80s demos, rarities and live tracks set for release. So, to answer your question: They've been busy. 9 p.m. at The Basement MATT SULLIVAN
[THE REFORMATION] REFORM
Like most industries, even the art and fashion worlds could stand to tame their production of More Stuff. Crass consumerism has left us with a steaming heap of discarded source material, and fast fashion cranking out cheap trends at an alarming pace means wardrobe staples must be replenished as often as a Swiffer mop. Thankfully, this fashion, art and design hybrid show examines the endless opportunities for artists to revisit the forgotten or abandoned and repurpose it for today. Local artists will display their revamped works, followed by a vintage fashion show from Parlour Vintage Clothing and Kim Vintage, with musical performances from Fo Sho and Tell and Kill Paris. 6 p.m. at Open Lot TRACY MOORE
[OLD YELLER] ANTIQUE SCREAM
Even 40 some-odd years after the fact, Cream are still the standard by which pretty much all power trios are held, and Antique Scream seem as aware of that as anybody. They offer plenty of blues-inspired classic rock riffs, but their hardest-rocking numbers basically operate as a support system for guitar and drum solos. Their occasional flirtations with active rock radio fodder tread paths that we're not always willing to follow, but for now we'll overlook those moments in favor of the more retro stuff. Opening the show are locals Firebirds of the Arctic Ice, who take their cues from the kings of mandibular indie rock (Jawbreaker/Jawbox) and feature former members of defunct power metal unit Keymaster and former Murfreesboro stalwarts Kill Devil Hills. 9 p.m. at Springwater MATT SULLIVAN
SUN/3.28
[STRUM KIND OF WONDERFUL] JOSÉ ANTONIO ESCOBAR
Chilean classical guitarist José Antonio Escobar has played concert halls in London, Vienna, Madrid and Cairo, winning more than 15 international guitar competitions along the way. The Nashville Public Library's Virtuoso Showcase Series presents a concert by Escobar in the downtown library's wonderful auditorium — an ideal space for classical guitar. This series of free concerts by guitarists from across the globe, now in its eighth year, reflects the main library's broad mission as a downtown cultural center. 2:30 p.m. at the Downtown Public Library RUSSELL JOHNSTON
MON/3.29
[WOOLGATHERING] SWEETGRASS
Who wants to see a 100-minute documentary about sheep? Five years ago, we'd have said the same thing about penguins — and now look: The flightless little tuxedo-clad shufflers practically have a red phone to CAA. Meanwhile, the reviews are nothing short of rapturous for this real-life Western by Ilisa Barbash and Lucien Castaing-Taylor, who ride along with modern-day cowboys as they head their flocks into Montana's treacherous Absaroka-Beartooth mountains for summer grazing. Maybe it's hard to fathom if you haven't seen the hypnotic trailer, but the movie looks absolutely riveting — partly because the imagery is so vast and resplendent, partly because the blankly staring sheep in their enormous mass formations seem both cosmic and comic. If nothing else, it'll make a nice chill-out after you get your nerves shredded by A Prophet in the theater next door (see the review on p. 49). March 27-April 1 at The Belcourt JIM RIDLEY
TUE/3/30
[rows for emily] FIREFIGHTERS FOR EMILY BENEFIT FEAT. THE TIME JUMPERS, NASHVILLE BLUEGRASS BAND & MORE
Emily Garrison, daughter of a Nashville firefighter, has been battling neuroblastoma, an exceedingly rare kind of cancer. Her father's co-workers have taken the lead in organizing a fine-looking night of entertainment to raise money for her treatment, and one of them, Mike Armistead, will be doing double duty as guitarist/front man for one of the city's best and liveliest string bands, the Tennessee Mafia Jug Band. The talent roster leans toward the country side of things, with Western swing and bluegrass represented respectively by the Time Jumpers and the Nashville Bluegrass Band — two of the classiest acts in town — and honky-tonk by the firefighter-laden Smokehouse Road, but up-and-coming blues boy Bart Walker and his band will be there, too, along with some surprise guests. Not to be missed: the New York Fire Department's Emerald Society Pipes and Drums, providentially in town for a Grand Ole Opry appearance. 6:30 p.m. at TPAC's Andrew Jackson Hall JON WEISBERGER
[PUSSY AND JELLY AND STICK! OH MY!] PARENTAL ADVISORY TOUR FEAT. PSYCHOSTICK, NASHVILLE PUSSY & GREEN JELLY
Is it a coincidence that the PMRC's favorite Midwestern shock metalers Impaler stroll through town the same week that Nashville Pussy, Green Jelly and Psychostick come through on their "Parental Advisory" tour? Yes, it probably is, but we're not counting. Our bigger question is: Why do parents need advising when this show is at an 18-plus club? Wouldn't everybody in attendance be of legal age and able to make their own decisions, or is it a, "Hey hipster parents, don't bring your hipster kids because we're gonna be making dick jokes" sort of thing? Either way, we're pretty sure that Tipper Gore has never really had a thing for, say, Psychostick and their brand of slap-bass joke-metal, or Green Jelly's claymation shenanigans, and no doubt the Mothers of Prevention have their labia in a knot over a name like Nashville Pussy. So you can pretty much count on an awesome time. 9 p.m. at Limelight SEAN L. MALONEY
WED/3.31
[THE FORMALIST FROM FORT WAYNE] MICHAEL MARTONE AT APSU
An Indiana native with a deep, imaginative attachment to his birthplace, Michael Martone writes playful prose that resists category. He's an experimental writer, a formalist who traces his literary lineage to John Barth. His agreeable Midwestern voice lures readers to a realm where he slyly juggles fiction, memoir and philosophical speculation. In his 2005 book, Michael Martone, he toyed with identity, presenting a slew of fictional selves through the mundane medium of contributor's notes. He indulged a fascination with the concept of place in The Flatness and Other Landscapes (2003), and in his fantasy travel book, The Blue Guide to Indiana (2001). On this night, he'll read from his most recent book, Racing in Place: Collages, Fragments, Postcards, Ruins, which consists of short gems on everything from academic infighting to his eyeglasses. 8 p.m. at Morgan University Center, Room 303, Austin Peay State University MARIA BROWNING
[LOW-KEY LIKE SEA SHELLS] GZA/THE GENIUS
Holy shit, can you believe that Liquid Swords, possibly the finest moment in the entire, expansive Wu Tang Clan catalog, is 15 years old this year? That means there will surely be a whole bunch of college freshmen at this show who were still shittin' their own drawers when the Clan's classic Enter the Wu Tang (36 Chambers) dropped — and they're probably gonna shit their drawers again when The Genius takes the mic. Not to sound like a cranky old rap-fogey, but there was a time when cultural importance and chart success were achieved through ill skills on the microphone, rather than a cunning business sense and a cadre of corporations willing to "cross-brand" your album, and GZA represents the zenith of that heady, sorely missed moment in popular culture. Scene favorites DJ Kidsmeal and The Biscuits N Gravy Band open. 7 p.m. in the James Union Building, MTSU SEAN L. MALONEY
