THUR 2/19: Arty Stuff, Reading, Jazz, Rock

I don't know why, but there is so much cheap fun going on tonight. There was more I wanted to include, but simply couldn't do any more. By the way, thanks for everyone showing up at Redbones last night! It was so crowded that I left without any beer in my belly...

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THUR 2/19

6pm
Josh Wisdumb, "Inkcronization": Opening Reception
at Grand, 374 Somerville Ave, Somerville (Union Sq)
FREE

Besides cool ink drawings there'll be mixed media, sculpture, and "refreshments". Maybe you've seen his New Balance sneaker in a hip store somewhere? I'd like to ask him if his last name is pronounced "wisdom" or "W is dumb".

THUR 2/19

6pm
"Squealing Pegs": Animation Showcase
at Remis Auditorium, Museum of Fine Arts, 465 Huntington Ave, Boston (The Fens)
$10 / $8 students, seniors

This is a 2-hour retrospective is some of the best MassArt animated shorts from the program's six years. The Dig had a good write-up. Here is a little taste of what you'll see:



Note: There is adult content (i.e. funny stuff that annoys the easily offended).

THUR 2/19

7pm
Matthew Grzecki & Nathaniel Stein, "Alice's Adventures in Cambridge": Reading
at Harvard Book Store, 1256 Mass Ave, Cambridge (Harvard Sq)
FREE

About 95 years ago, a couple Harvard Lampooners wrote a practically-lost-but-now-rediscovered parody of the Lewis Carroll classic and set it in Cambridge including that famous university. Two current Harvard Lampooners will give a "dramatic reading" of excerpts from the text as well as some current Lampoon offerings. Without having read it, you may hear that 1) little has changed around Harvard Sq and 2) what has changed is still quite recognizable to those in he know and 3) the Harvard Lampoon used to be quite funny...

THUR 2/19

7:30pm
LE:60 1-Minute Film Festival
at AXIOM gallery, Green Street T, ground floor level, about 150 Green St, Jamaica Plain
$5 Suggested Donation

Back in October, the Lumen Eclipse folks presented their 1-Minute Film Festival outside Harvard Sq after accepting submissions for anyone who could create a short, short film (60 seconds or less). It was perfect for the modern attention span... There's another chance to see all of the videos tonight; maybe you'll have another chance next month, but it doesn't look totally set.

(I love this gallery's proximity to public transportation! You can't get much closer than in the same building as the T.)

THUR 2/19

8:15pm
Caribbean Jazz w/ Berklee's Bob Marley, Afro-Cuban, & Steel Pan Ensembles
at Berklee Performance Center, 136 Mass Ave, Boston (Back Bay)
$5 / $2 seniors

You can read about their "Jazz as Culture, Language, Being, and Music" series, but it boils down to bunch a great music for a decent price. The Bob Marley Ensemble has performed rather regularly over the years, and they do a cool take on some of the greatest music ever created. You know the Afro-Cuban and steel pan bands will have you dancing in your seats.

THUR 2/19

10pm
The Diamond Mines, Emeen Z, The Diamond Platinum Rings
at Plough & Stars, 912 Mass. Ave, Cambridge (Central Sq)
FREE

Okay, folks... Get your free awesomeness for two more weeks. Somehow The Diamond Mines found the lightning in the bottle where punk meets soul with kickass songs full of piss and vinegar, and they don't have turn the distortion to 10 to make you dance around the room. It's all-killer, no-filler on their new CD with a grand total of 5 tracks that's probably going to five of your favorite songs. Trust me, "Space Age" is a lost classic that should've been written by Joe Jackson or Elvis Costello. Emeen Z used to be in The Sterns, which I liked, but his new solo band cooks up pure-pop bliss. Wasn't so bowled over by The Diamond Platinum Rings, but maybe the duo's magic happens when they play together live.

THUR 2/19

9:30pm
The Toothaches, Pretty & Nice, Math The Band, The Bynars
at Great Scott, 1222 Comm Ave, Allston
$8 / 18+

This is going to be a pretty fantastically rockin' show with the powerpopping goodness of ex-Bostonian Toothaches; the taut, punky powerpop of Pretty & Nice; and the synthy rock quirks of Math The Band and The Bynars. But I'm pretty sure I'll be at the Plough tonight...

(I liked this little gif though.)