Halloween Calendar

Feel like doing something Halloween-related tonight? (Old-time-pop duo Victor and Penny are not even really named Victor and Penny...)

You may want to consider that The Pill's annual Halloween show is popular and could sell out.

I did include one event over $10, because it's difficult to ignore a party called "SquidHouse of Horror" with music from Darling Pet Munkee, Walter Sickert & the Army of Broken Toys, Moe Pope, and more.

Have a good time and try to stay alive...

CTB Fun with Sandy 10/29: Candle, Cards, & Box o' Wine

Since most of the stuff that I was going to list for tonight has been cancelled and the T shutting down at 2pm, have a good time at home.

Maybe you'll have power tonight. Just be ready to sit in the dark...

Hopefully you have some company and social lubrication to maximize the fun.

Be safe, everyone!

SUN 10/28: Sunday Night On/Off-Topic Video

Creatures of the night prance around on a windy night...

More Halloween videos can be seen on Flavorpill.

Friday & Saturday Calendar

Hey, folks. I'm still alive and still care about getting it right here...

Lots of movies and music and Halloweeny stuff... It should be a good weekend before Hurricane Sandy hits next week...

Monday & Tuesday Calendar

Okay, we're going to try to get as much cheap stuff in advance on the calendar then update the main page...

SUN 10/21: Sunday Night On/Off-Topic Video

It turned out to be a beautiful weekend and a great chance to watch the Head of the Charles. This is a perfect example why you shouldn't text and row...




As a bonus: I thought it was cool when President Obama signed back to a guy in the crowd.

Thursday & Friday Calendar

These are my highlights for Thursday...

If you want to laugh: Chris Elliott is pimping his new book at the Coolidge Corner Theatre ($5 tix available through Brookline Booksmith), and local funny guy Rob Crean will interview him.

If you love history: The folks at the Longfellow House are talking about stuff they found that might have belonged to George Washington (FREE w/ RSVP, call 617-876-4491).

If you like when art gets science-geeky: Check out the "In the Holocene" opening reception at MIT's List Visual Arts Center (FREE).

If you like fairy tales: They are the theme for a story slam at The Puppet Showplace Theatre ($9 advance / $10).

If there's still space to RSVP: I would like to see Bill Janovitz (Buffalo Tom), Tanya Donnelly (Throwing Muses/Belly) sing jazz standards in Kendall Square.

If you want to rock out: Somerville is my place with Shepherdess & Bunny's a Swine in Davis Square ($5) - or - Will Dailey & Audrey Ryan in Union Square ($8).

Wednesday in Brief

For some reason, BU is overflowing with free/cheap options tonight!

From the "Super PACS & Social Media" panel discussion to a one-woman show based on Charles Dickens characters to a play set in Somerville (thru SUN 10/21) and a 'modern translation' of an Alexandre Dumas story ($7, thru SAT 10/20)...

A BU professor is even giving a lecture at Harvard on Mayan science and art...

In non-BU cheapness:

I perpetually hope to better understand the Arab Spring, so I'm glad that there are free panel discussions like the one at Old South Meeting House...

And you can listen to Harvard undergrads talk about the 'microbiology of food and drink' at the Longwood campus...

There are free comedy shows at Middlesex Lounge and Milky Way Lounge/Bella Luna...

It's also that time of the month where Brendan Boogie provides 'Rock Therapy' with local musicians at the Armory...

The Members of Morphine & Jeremy Lyons can be found at Atwoods Tavern on most Wednesdays, and tonight they're celebrating Dana Colley's Birthday. (That's another guy who is cool to me even when I've had quite a few beverages...)

All of this and stuff for tomorrow are on the calendar below.

Tuesday & Wednesday Calendar

Egads, it's been a bad week at CTB. I am pushing for an early weekend post(s) and returning some emails that have been stacking up.

More to come...

SUN 10/14: Sunday Night Off-Topic Video

Saw this on Letterman and wanted to see it again. Mitt + Gangnam = pop gold...

Saturday & Sunday Calendar

I will be typing more today, but there is a lot of fun out there...

Friday Calendar

Well, progress was made last night -- not as much as I had hoped. Here is something before it gets later.

If you haven't been to the MIT Museum, it's a cool place (Arthur Ganson exhibit!) -- and it's free once a month...

There's free indie-film at BU... A lecture at MassArt...

Almost every weekend can start with a laugh at Great Scott...

There's a benefit show at Radio, and you get way more than $10 worth of music so buy tickets if they're having a raffle...

There's also blues in the back of the Rosebud... Power-pop at Tommy Doyle's... Noisey/catchy stuff at Midway Cafe...

If you're near Lowell, they've got a bunch of Kerouac-related events this weekend...

There is an Armenian food fest in Watertown today and tomorrow; and real Armenian people are way better than the TV versions...

Wednesday Calendar

Obviously I haven't been where I want to be with our little endeavor here. Thanks for your patience!

Tonight's a pretty good mix of what I usually call "Talk & Rock".

You can still RSVP for tonight's free WFNX Disorientation Show with The Static Jacks and Camden (and the 10/23 gig with Gentleman Hall) -- because RSVP doesn't guarantee entry. Fans should get there earlier than later...

Of course, there are a couple quality options for cheap music on the Cambridge side of the river.

Let's hope I update the calendar and blog tonight.

FYI: If you don't get regular emails from Goldstar, they occasionally have one-day only specials like $6 tickets to "Bye Bye Liver: The Boston Drinking Play" for FRI 10/12 and other upcoming performances. They call it 'free', but it's still better than paying $20...

MON 10/8: Art, Talk, Film, Music

I don't know if any indigenous activists got to the Christopher Columbus statue this morning. I hope people who have the day off are enjoying it. Maybe you'd like to read an article in The Atlantic that gives an interesting take on Columbus Day and its haters.

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MON 10/8

9:30am to 6pm
Opening Our Doors 2012
All around the Fenway, Boston
FREE

Almost every every cultural institution in the Fenway area offers free admission and special programs. (I don't know how they do it, but their flying kites inside Northeastern's Fenway Center, and you can make a kite for $5.)

If you're going to one cultural location today, the biggies are the MFA, the Gardner Museum, and the Mapparium at the Mary Baker Eddy Library.

Other than that, take a look at the PDF program and see what tickles your fancy.

MON 10/8

7pm
Science & Cooking Lecture Series: Raül Balam Ruscalleda (Moments)
at Science Center, Hall C, 1 Oxford St, Cambridge (Harvard campus)
FREE

Listen to one of Spain's most distinguished chefs talk food at Harvard's series where great culinary minds from around the world have shown up to speak to the students (and the general public) for the Science & Cooking course.

MON 10/8

7pm
Gore Vidal's "The Best Man": Screening
at Coolidge Corner Theatre, 290 Harvard St, Brookline
$9.25 / $6.25 seniors, children

It must be a startling contrast to watch "The Best Man" during the current political season, because the current race isn't written by Gore Vidal.

His fictional 1964 campaign is surely far more interesting and biting compared to 2 relative centrists trying to avoid gotcha moments.

MON 10/8

9:30pm
Man Alive!, Dog Patch Ramblers, Old Hat
at Charlie's Kitchen, 10 Eliot St, Cambridge (Harvard Sq)
$5 / 21+

It's billed as 'Bluegrass Night' where you'll hear a bunch of old-timey (post-Columbus) American music. The tunes should swing from alt-country to folk-punk and maybe some actual swing...

MON 10/8

10pm
Hands and Knees, Leamers, White Pages
at ZuZu!, 474 Mass Ave, Cambridge (Central Sq)
FREE / 21+

Whereas Charlies Kitchen is usually louder than Zuzu on Monday nights, I suspect it's going to loud and buzzing in the tinier room with some awesome local loud and/or twangy outfits Hands & Knees and White Pages playing host to the garagey noise of Montreal Leamers.

SUN 10/7: Sunday Night Off-Topic Video

Hey, folks, there 30 days until the election.

This message starring Samuel L. Jackson is especially dedicated to a guy named Barack who used to live in Somerville...

SUN 10/7: Day Cheapness

Hey, it's autumn! We're supposed to go outside when it's a little gray...

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SUN 10/7

10am to 4pm
Kite Fly
at Pope John Paul II Park, 899 Gallivan Blvd, Dorchester (Neponset Greenway)
FREE

I wish the weather was a little nicer today, yet it’s still a good day to fly a kite – the best diversions for all ages with a cord and no electricity.

It’s a BYOK affair obviously, although I laid down on the grass at this park when a kite festival was on a sunnier day.

SUN 10/7

Noon to 4pm
Man Swap 2: A Clothing Swap for Men
at SoWa Open Market, 460 Harrison Ave, Boston (South End)
FREE

Fashion-forward dudes can update their wardrobe with a simple exchange. Bring "gently used clothing, accessories and shoes" and you get a ticket pick up something else.

This is the South End, maybe you can swap your man as well...

SUN 10/7

11am to 5pm
2nd Boston Local Food Festival
at Kennedy Greenway, 200 Milk St, Boston (near Aquarium)
FREE

This old list of 10 ways to become a locavore is still relevant, and walking around the BLFF should provide loads of other ideas.
There will be demonstrations, food vendors, and music.

SUN 10/7

11am to 6pm
Roxbury Open Studios
around Roxbury [PDF Program]
FREE

11am to 5pm
Lowell Open Studios
around historic Downtown Lowell
FREE

So we're in the middle of Open Studio season. Again, I like these things to talk to the artists and see their studios. Maybe you can do your holiday shopping early over the next couple months.

SUN 10/7

Noon to 6pm
Honk! Parade & Harvard Square Oktoberfest
from Davis Sq, Somerville to Harvard Sq, Cambridge
FREE

If you didn’t honk your brains out yesterday, it’s not too late. The bands are leaving Davis Square down Elm Street around noon and should be all the way to Harvard Square by 2pm. Everyone is free join along for the parade.

If you don't mind crowds, there are 6 stages of live music, 3 beer gardens, hundreds of crafts & food vendors. Most of the performers are the Honk bands, so it’s a cool reprise of yesterday’s fun.

SUN 10/7

Noon to 6pm
Davis Square Oktoberfest
outside Redbones, 55 Chester St, Somerville (Davis Sq)
FREE Admission

For something on a smaller scale: there's going to be a beer garden and food from nearby restaurants including Redbones. I bet there's going to be some bratwurst and other German-style treats.

SUN 10/7

Noon to 4pm
JP Rocks and Rolls Festival
at Spontaneous Celebrations, 45 Danforth St, Jamaica Plain (near Stony Brook T)
FREE

It’s basically an arts/craft mart with records and other funky stuff for sale that you might expect for Jamaica Plain.

SUN 10/7

1pm
Columbus Day Parade
from Suffolk Downs to Maverick Square, Boston (Eastie)
FREE

If can ignore the abuse that European explorers inflicted on the native peoples of North America, have some old-fashioned fun at the parade.

Friday & Saturday Calendar

Well, before it gets any later, note the calendar has cheap options for tonight and tomorrow.

As for highlights tonight:

The Gas is going for the political laughs... If you stay at Great Scott, The Pill is celebrating their 15th anniversary (and Morrissey, of course)...

Photographer Nicole Tammaro is having a book release party for "Boston - Rock N Roll" with some of her mainly loud 'n hard friends/subjects at Radio...

Erin Harpe & the Delta Swingers are anchoring "Daisy Duke's Hillbilly Hoedown" at the Midway Cafe that will no doubt be a wacky night of music, burlesque, comedy, and -- yes -- a Daisy Dukes competition for those brave enough to wear their shortest short-shorts...

Thursday Calendar

From the Good-Times, Bad-Judgement Department: I accepted an invitation to sample the new Jameson's Black Barrel. Holy moley, this is good stuff! If you thought the regular Jameson's was smooth, wait until you try Black Barrel. (More on that in another post.)

I do believe I'll get my act together tonight and post the weekend cheapness, especially HonkFest -- the best cheap thrill of the year in my book.

There is plenty of good times to be had tonight like watching dodgeball on trampolines in Hyde Park...

If I were going out tonight, I'd probably head to Will Dailey's October Residency kickoff at Precinct (print out the coupon for discounted cover charge). Will is awesome, and there's going to be a load of opening acts who'll hit the stage on a "first-come first-serve open mic style". I also heard a rumor that people going tonight will get a discount coupon for next week's gig...

WED 10/3: Film, Talk, Comedy, Music, Trivia

As it often happens, I begin to wax about one event and give short shrift to others. For the record, blurb length does not necessarily indicate differences in my excitement level.

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WED 10/3 (and THUR 10/4)

Various Times
Manhattan Short Film Festival
at Coolidge Corner Theatre, 290 Harvard St, Brookline
$9.25 / $6.25 child, senior

Wednesday -- 11:40am, 2:10pm, 9:30pm
Thursday -- 11:40am, 2:10pm, 6:45pm, 9:30pm

The cool thing about the MSFF is that audiences in Brookline and elsewhere vote for their favorite of the 10 shorts. Based on the numbers, your influence is much greater than the upcoming presidential election.

WED 10/3

5pm
Rock Shop #20: "Show Booking & Promotion"
at O'Brien's, 3 Harvard St, Allston
FREE / 21+

Feat: Jackie Indrisano (Cafe 939), Jim Healey (O'Brien's), Ned Wellbery (Middle East Upstairs)

I wish Rock Shop when I was playing in bands. There is a lot of information on the web, but it's not the same as getting tips from Boston music pros that are especially pertinent to what's happening around here.

You might hear things you already know, but you'll definitely hear something you don't. You may think you know how to get a gig, but you don't know more than a panel of seasoned bookers.

Like the monthly Rock 'n' Roll Social, it's a good place to network with other performers.

WED 10/3

6pm
"Ai Weiwei: Never Sorry": Screening & Discussion
at Tsai Auditorium, CGIS South, 1730 Cambridge St, Cambridge (Harvard campus)
FREE

On face value, the story of Chinese artist Ai Weiwei is a great example of China's growing pains when they realize that economic freedom may instigate citizens to think as well as buy & spend freely.

He was one of the co-designers of the 2008 Olympics' Bird's Nest stadium, yet he's also criticized the whole spectacle. He has refuse to stop speaking his mind and tweaking the establishment, so he gets punished which increases his acclaim.

A panel discussion follows the film with director Alison Klayman, Rebecca Cohen (Harvard Law), and Benny Shaffer (Anthropology grad student with a Chinese emphasis).

WED 10/3

6:30pm to 8:30pm
"Syria: The Struggle for Justice and Freedom": Lectures
at American Islamic Congress, 38 Newbury St #702, Boston (Back Bay)
FREE

Feat: Ousama Nassar, Yaman Al Qadri

The conflict in Syria (revolution? civil war?) is a major news story that han't gripped the average US citizen in relation to its global importance. Maybe hearing two personal stories -- one from Syria via Skype -- can bring some perspective.

WED 10/3

7pm to 9pm
Science in the News: "How Evolution Generates 'Endless Forms, Most Beautiful'”
at Armenise Ampitheatre, 200 Longwood Ave, Boston (Harvard Medical School / Longwood)
FREE

Three Harvard grad students will attempt to illuminate the theory of evolution. As usual with the Science in the News series, they break down the subject with some background, the general state of the topic, then an update so the audience doesn't have to be a biologist to understand the material.

WED 10/3

7pm
"Wiretap Wednesday": Open Stage
at Arts at the Armory Cafe, 191 Highland Ave, Somerville (Spring Hill)
FREE

7pm -- Sign up / social time.
7:30pm -- Open stage begins
8:30pm -- Feature performer: Captain Easychord
9pm to 9:30pm -- Open stage resumes

Performers (up to 20 per night) are invited to sign up and share their best short work (5 minutes or shorter including setup) and be a live-streamed (and archived) Internet star.

Goota love the reasonable limitations:

Nothing illegal, no nudity, no fluids. It's an all-ages venue, so please keep that in mind.

Everything else that's potentially entertaining is in play, folks.

Each month will also include a featured artist playing a 25-minute set. Gotta love a featured performer named Captain Easychord -- no fancy jazz voicings, just stories in song.

WED 10/3

7:30pm
The Horse's Mouth: "Everything is Weird"
at Middlesex Lounge, 315 Mass Ave, Cambridge (Central Sq)
Donations Welcome

Feat: Lillian DeVane, Ryan Douglass, Ethan Marsh, Chris Braiotta, Raj Sivaraman, more

10pm
Quilt, Zoo
at Middlesex Lounge, 315 Mass Ave, Cambridge (Central Sq)
$3 / 21+

Go early for some laughs or later for the trippy tunes presented by pRIMORDIAL sOUNDS whether it's Quilt's hometown folky psych rock or Zoo from SF that look weird with banjo and a cello worn like a guitar that don't seem to conform to conventions of any type.

WED 10/3

8pm
"Undressed: Fashion Burlesque"
at The Beehive, 541 Tremont St, Boston (South End)
FREE

Feat: Calamity Chang, Medianoche, Bettina May, music by Aabaraki

Yes, it's true. People have been strutting around town more than usual, because it's Boston Fashion Week. There are a lot of fashion shows, etc. Most of them cost more than $10 and/or they bore me.

At least this event has burlesque women from NYC and Canada as well as live Brooklyn funk-soul.

WED 10/3

9pm
"Champion Of Champions": Pub Trivia
at Middle East - Corner, 480 Mass Ave, Cambridge (Central Sq)
FREE

This is another recurring night of fun that I haven't personally enjoyed yet seems like a good bet. Experienced the 'interactive trivia' fun (Combining elements that are reminiscent of Dicecapades and Cranium?) and see how you may have been playing at the wrong trivia nights.

WED 10/3

10pm
Members of Morphine & Jeremy Lyons
at Atwoods Tavern, 877 Cambridge St, Cambridge (near Inman & Kendall Sq)
FREE

Sax-man Dana Colley and drummer Jerome Deupree revive the "low-rock" sound they pioneered in Morphine with New Orleans blues-guitar ex-pat Jeremy Lyons. It's not like seeing Mark Sandman, but it's still pretty damn good especially whenever Dana Colley is doing his thing.

TUES 10/2: Film, Games, Art, Talk, Music

Yes, I give everyone permission to have a good time on a Tuesday night.

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TUES 10/2 (thru THUR 10/4)

Various Times
Manhattan Short Film Festival
at Coolidge Corner Theatre, 290 Harvard St, Brookline
$9.25 / $6.25 child, senior

Tuesday -- 2:10pm, 6:45pm, 9:30pm
Wednesday -- 11:40am, 2:10pm, 9:30pm
Thursday -- 11:40am, 2:10pm, 6:45pm, 9:30pm

The cool thing about the MSFF is that audiences in Brookline and elsewhere vote for their favorite of the 10 shorts. Based on the numbers, your influence is much greater than the upcoming presidential election.

TUES 10/2

5pm
"Game Over": A Night by Gamers for Gamers
at Good Life, 28 Kingston St, Boston (Downtown Crossing)
FREE / 18+

Whatever your game may be (board, cards, electronic), you'll probably find it and some people to play with you. You'd probably find some takers for something you bring from home...

Tonight won't be my night, but soon! The photos must be a good indicator that plenty of people are showing up. And the Metro gave them a good write-up when they went to a weekly schedule recently.

TUES 10/2

6pm to 8pm
"Sting! XIII: Indoor, Outdoor...": Evening of Art, Music and Performance
at The Beehive, 541 Tremont St, Boston (South End)
FREE

Feat: Candice Smith Corby, Lori Nix, Rene Holm, Shay Kun, Jeff Perrott, Brad Phillips, Ryan Schneider, Craig Taylor, Joe Wardwell, Doug Weathersby, Nabila Santa-Cristo

The "Sting!" events have occurred on different dates over the years, but today is actually Sting's birthday.

Celebrate with art and jazzy funk from the Bruce Bartlett Trio. It's probably too much to ask for a Police cover...

TUES 10/2

6pm to 7:30pm
Soap Box Series: "Risky Politics (Climate and Conflict, Part 1)"
at MIT Museum, 265 Mass Ave, Cambridge (near Central Sq)
FREE

MIT Professor John Sterman gets on the soapbox to discuss climate change even though we won't hear it at all during tomorrow's debate.

TUES 10/2

6pm
Dennis Lehane, "Live By Night": Reading
at Coolidge Corner Theatre, 290 Harvard St, Brookline
$5

Tickets available through Brookline Booksmith.

I'm not sure I'd pay $5 to hear Dennis Lehane read from his new novel, but I'm not a super-fan.

TUES 10/2

6pm to 8pm
"City of Mirages: Baghdad, 1952–1982": Reception
at BSA Space, Suite 200, 290 Congress St, Boston (near South Station/Fort Point)
FREE

Yes, there was a time in the recent past when Iraq was prospering Western-friendly (enough) society with big-time architects designing buildings.

TUES 10/2 (and TUES 10/9)

7:30pm
Jocie Adams
at Toad, 1912 Mass Ave, Cambridge (Porter Sq)
FREE

Fans of the Low Anthem will probably pack the sardine-can-sized room to hear multi-instrumentalist Jocie Adams do her own thing, but you can try to get there early...

TUES 10/2

9pm
Scott Damgaard & The E.A.R., Stained Glass Eye, William Topley
at Lizard Lounge/Cambridge Common, 1667 Mass Ave, Cambridge (between Harvard Sq & Porter Sq)
$5

I've usually seen Scott Damgaard entertaining folks with cover songs in the downtown area. He does a good job, so his original stuff hopefully doesn't suck with his 2 groups -- The Electrified Acoustic Rockers and Stained Glass Eye -- although the names don't give me a good feeling...

When I saw Feasting With Panthers listed as a 'William Topley Tribute Band', I had to investigate and it's the actual folk-rocking Brit himself.

TUES 10/2

9:30pm
White Arrows, Family of the Year, New Cassettes
at Great Scott, 1222 Comm Ave, Allston
$10 / 18+

The most interesting thing I read about White Arrows is that the singer was blind as a kid (take that with a grain of salt), but their dancey/punky indie-pop is still pretty good.

I personally enjoy the lush indie/folk-rock from Family of the Year with no bias from reading that a couple guys in the band are originally from around here.

The 2 LA bands are joined by British rockers New Cassettes who sonically must feel quite at home in Brooklyn. And anyone of these guys could end up playing on Conan's show in the next 6 months.

MON 10/1: Talk & Rock

Ah, well, it's one of those days that leans heavily on Cambridge. I promise the rest of town -- including Boston proper -- is represented as the week goes on. The calendar will be updated tonight.

Oh, I meant to include the Manhattan Short Film Festival that's playing at the Coolidge Corner Theatre today through THUR 10/4...

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MON 10/1

7pm
Jill Lepore, "The Story of America: Essays on Origins": Discussion
at Harvard Book Store, 1256 Mass Ave, Cambridge (Harvard Sq)
FREE

Of course you would expect to a Harvard history professor to know her stuff. I find the articles and book excerpts to be so well-written, and she has an eye for interesting topics for the lay person (like American origin stories).

MON 10/1

7pm
Science & Cooking Lecture Series
at Science Center, Hall C, 1 Oxford St, Cambridge (Harvard campus)
FREE

Feat: Fina Puigdevall & Pere Planagumà (Les Cols), Paco Perez (Miramar)

For the past few years, the great culinary minds of the world have shown up to speak to the students of the Science & Cooking course. It's difficult to say how much room is available for the general public, but we're invited to listen as well.

From what I can tell, tonight's Spanish chefs are on the forefront of locavorism and modern gastronomy at their respective restaurants.

MON 10/1

8:30pm
Skimask, Casanovas in Heat, No Sir I Won't, Beach Cops
at TT the Bear's Place, 10 Brookline St, Cambridge (Central Sq)
$5 to $10 Sliding Scale / 18+

9pm
Weak Teeth, Natural Disasters, Luther, Choke Up, Luau
at Charlie's Kitchen, 10 Eliot St, Cambridge (Harvard Sq)
$5 / 21+

Well, it's tough to pick between these two shows that are both jam-packed with young, noisy punk.

The TT's gig is also a release party for the October issue of Boston Counter Cultural Compass, if you want to handle the paper. Admission is on a sliding scale of what you can afford from $5 to $10, which is cool.

If you're into hearing bands from out of town, there'll be groups visiting from Kalamazoo, Philadelphia, and Providence at Charlie's.

For what it's worth, I probably spent more time listening to Casanovas in Heat than any of the others...