THUR 11/5: Santa, Irish, Latin, Rock, TV

I apologize for the recent late delivery. If it means anything, there's a bunch of events for Friday on the calendar already.

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THUR 11/5

7pm to 8pm
Gregory Mone, "The Truth About Santa: Wormholes, Robots, and What Really Happens on Christmas Eve": Lecture
at Room 133, Bldg 3, 33 Mass Ave (Rear), Cambridge (MIT Campus)
FREE

You could watch Cornel West, Slavoj Zizek, and others wax philosophically in the film "Examined Life" at another spot on campus; but I like the idea of someone scientifically proving that Santa could exist. I mean that he exists.

It's a fun, geeky guide of modern Santa technology from a writer for "Popular Science" that would especially come in handy when some Scrooge tries to ruin Xmas for some little kid.

"This one-hour lecture will be followed by a book signing."

THUR 11/5

7pm
"The Pure Drop: Traditional Irish"
at Cafe 939, 939 Boylston St, Boston (Back Bay)
FREE

Feat: Oisin McAuley, Kate Chadbourne, others

The music of fiddler Oisin McAuley and Friends is obviously Celtic, but there's a sophistication that you don't normally hear at your average pub seisun. It makes sense since he studied classically at university after growing up in rural Western Ireland.

On the other hand, Kate Chadbourne sings songs that probably smell of clover while accompanied on harp and other instruments.

Tonight's performance is presented by Fusion, Berklee's "literary and multimedia" magazine.

THUR 11/5

8pm
Montserrat
at Villa Victoria Center for the Arts, 85 W Newton St, Boston (South End)
$10

Whether you like boleros or bossa nova, you'll dig Montserrat's charming mix. It throws me a bit when a person uses a single name that already has a strong identity. A Spaniard from the Canary Islands, Montserrat lives in Brazil. Even more so on her new CD, she blends the Spanish boleros with Brazilian Bossa Nova that provides a soft, jazzy cloud on which her voice can fly around.

THUR 11/5

The White Buffalo (11:50pm), Tony The Bookie (10:50pm), Andrew Vladeck (9:55pm), Adrien & The Fine Print (9pm)
at TT the Bear's Place, 10 Brookline St, Cambridge (Central Sq)
$10

Sometimes you hear something and immediately recognize it as the real deal. That's what happens when you hear The White Buffalo. I know nothing about Buffalo-man Jake Smith; I don't care if he's ever seen a real horse, but the songs are emotionally rich and performed with deep roots in the ground.

Everyone else will also kick up the musical dirt including the most excellent Tony the Bookie Orchestra and tasty, trippy, country-tinged rock.

THUR 11/5

9:30pm
Jenny Dee & The Deelinquents, The Rudds, Brett Rosenberg, Shellye Vlauskas Experience
at Lizard Lounge/Cambridge Common, 1667 Mass Ave, Cambridge (between Harvard Sq & Porter Sq)
$8 / 21+

I might just forget about trying to do a full night of writing and go to this incredible show. Jenny Dee & The Deelinquents are starting a November residency, so every Thursday will be an awesome blast of modern soul music.

Besides that, Brett Rosenberg has toured back to Boston from his current HQ in Nashville. The former Rudds guitarist is going to do a solo set along with some local friends, and we'll be treated with a reunion of The Rudds who should've been a great Boston powerpop export to the world.

This could be an amazing night.

THUR 11/5 (thru SUN 11/8)

9:30pm
"The Twilight Zone": TV on Big Screen
at Brattle Theatre, 40 Brattle St, Cambridge (Harvard Sq)
$7 minimum donation
Night #2 of 4 nights into another dimension...

It's four episodes of old-time television, but these shows were better than most movies. Rod Serling was freaking people out on a weekly basis with wild twists in stories that often had a philosophical/intellectual angle.

And that was 50 years ago -- take that "Lost" and so on!

Tonight's episodes: "Time Enough At Last, Mr. Dingle", "The Strong", "Once Upon A Time", "The Sixteen-Millimeter Shrine"