Night and Day

Thursday • 26
Negative Approach Appreciation Night
MUSIC/FILM

A few years ago local skate-punk band Violent Ramp claimed there could be no real hardcore without Ronald Reagan. But as the curtain rises on yet another era of blue-collar woe, we find hardcore punk making a resurgence. Appropriately, Corktown Tavern now hosts a Thursday Punk Night accompanied, on occasion, by video of some of the rawest hardcore around. This time out it'll be world premiere footage of local legends Negative Approach shot at their controversial reunion gig for the Touch & Go label's recent 25th anniversary in Chicago. Coupled with their appearance in this year's hot doc American Hardcore, 2006 has shaped up to be NA's biggest year since their '81-'83 heyday. The night will also see a performance from Death in Custody, clips from the upcoming DVD Fair Warning Vol. 2 and DJing by Mugshot. 1716 Michigan Ave., Detroit; 313-964-5103.

Thursday • 26
Distinguished Lecturer: George F. Will
ISSUES & LEARNING

If bowties and right-of-center conjecturing are your bag, George F. Will is a Ken Doll-haired ideal. This week, the Pulitzer Prize-winning pundit speaks at Oakland University and will offer his views on the current political climate in Washington and what the future may hold. The syndicated columnist and contributing editor for Newsweek is also a regular Sunday morning panelist for This Week on ABC. 6:30 p.m. at OU's Oakland Center, 2200 N. Squirrel Rd., Rochester Hills. Tickets are $25, and available at discounted prices for students and OU staff; call 248-370-2400.

Thursday • 26
Riffat Sultana
MUSIC

Riffat Sultana is a musician breaking boundaries. She's heir to five centuries of master musicians steeped in the music of what are now India and Pakistan. But it took her years, until well into her adulthood, for her father, Ustad Salamat Ali Khan, to acknowledge what she had learned from other teachers, accept her as his student and condone her, as a woman, performing in public. She's crossing other boundaries as well, sharing stages with the likes of Ben Harper, and playing both traditional music and fusion styles in an ensemble that includes guitar, tabla and other world percussion instruments. The pop-crossover audience hasn't paid much attention to vocals from the subcontinent since the passing of Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan. Could Riffat be the next to get a listen? 7:30 p.m. as part of the Global Thursdays series at the Arab American National Museum, 13624 Michigan Ave. (at Schaefer Road), Dearborn; 313-624-0207; theaanm.org.

Friday • 27
Lionel Richie
MUSIC

The burbling phaser production on "I Call it Love," the single from Sweet Vacation, Lionel Richie's new solo album, sounds like it could just as easily have been "sung" by his gallivanting daughter Nicole. But in the end Lionel makes "Love" work; despite the dry stretch he's endured since, say, 1986 and "Dancing on the Ceiling," he can still find that sweet spot in his voice where confidence melts into tenderness. Richie's latest tour delivers his new stuff, of course — the rest of Sweet Vacation alternates easily between classy contemporary R&B and polite stabs at slicked-up relevancy — but also classics from both Commodore and solo eras. Which means you should pull out your copy of 1983's Can't Slow Down to prepare. Music Hall, 350 Madison Ave., Detroit; 313-963-7622.

Friday • 27
Nosferatu
FILM/MUSIC

Remember this at Halloween: Only scare the kids a little. Do nothing that will put the 5-year-old neighbor kid in therapy down the road. But that doesn't mean you can't partake of a serious freak-out yourself. Why not check out one of the classic films of the German Expressionist era, F.W. Murnau's 1922 silent flick, Nosferatu? This show comes with hair-raising accompaniment by silent film composer-arranger Gillian Anderson and members of the Ann Arbor Symphony Orchestra. 8 p.m. at the Michigan Theater, 603 E. Liberty, Ann Arbor; 734-668-8480. Tickets are $8.50 adults; $6.75 students, seniors and veterans; and $6 for Michigan Theater members, available at the door only.

Friday • 27
Buckcherry
MUSIC

If you had a nail for each time you've heard (insert band name) "is gonna save rock 'n' roll" you could've hammered rock's coffin shut years ago and saved enough of the leftover spikes to construct a sky-high (wooden) tombstone in the shape of Keith Richards. Well, doe-eyed fans of riff 'n' tats chirped loudly back in '99 that Buckcherry was gonna save all miscreants when its hummable "Lit Up" stained the pop charts and entertained strippers and patrons alike at every topless joint between both Portlands. But the music waned and Buck sputtered to a stop after a second-album flop. Mortgage payments called and the quartet re-formed and burped up this year its third four-on-the-floor album, 15, a surprise hit. It proved that Buckcherry will never save much, but in lissome shouter Joshua Todd (who is Sunset Strip rock 101) and guitar hero Keith Nelson (who owes as much to Steve Jones as he does Angus Young) the band saves itself. And that's more than can said for GN'R or the Crüe or any of 'em who're nailed shut, 6 feet under. State Theatre, 2115 Woodward Ave., Detroit; 313-961-5450.

Saturday • 28
Zombie Dance Party
MUSIC/HOLIDAY

"Old" film footage of a 1966 press conference found they survived a random chimpanzee attack while aboard a blimp near Flint, but legend has it the Zambees soon found immortality at the bottom of the Detroit River after going down with a Boblo boat in 1966. And unless it's just another elaborate ambush set up by a bunch of warm-blooded breathers, the Zambees (who happen to bear eerie resemblances to members of Troy Gregory and the Stepsisters, Johnny Headband and Cuckold) will surface to headline the third annual Zombie Dance Party. "Creepy Carey" Gustafson and karaoke fave Matt "the Millionaire" Welz are hosting the undead event which includes a "zombie dance-off" and a game show. While there won't be any braaains to devour, Bellyache Candy Shoppe will present other limited-edition confections. Playing for the thriller set alongside the Zambees will be Imposters of the Deep Society and Great Lakes Myth Society. Special Guest DJs slated are the Witches, W-Vibe's Dan Augustine and a dirt-nap-fresh "Vincent Price." First 25 Zombies in the door receive a special Halloween compilation CD. Magic Stick, 4120 Woodward Ave., Detroit; 313-833-9700.

Saturday • 28
Haunted Tube
ART/HOLIDAY

Part haunted house, part performance art, the Haunted Tube is this close to becoming a Motor City tradition. Each Halloween, for a decade now, the dark and ominous tube maze is erected so that participants must crawl through it. And though recurring characters like the Unqualified Zombie Nurse and the Werewolf Who Thought He Was G.G. Allin are always fun, it's the Big Black Bug Engine — located at the heart of the maze and known to steal the shoes of passers-by — that keeps things on edge. This bizarre Detroit tradition from the creative dudes over at Time Stereo Records has been shown around the world, including at the Hieronymus Bosch exhibition in Rotterdam, Holland. At the Bohemian National Home, 3009 Tillman St., Detroit; 313-737-6606. Featuring a special performance from His Name is Alive.

Saturday • 28
Salt Miners CD Release
MUSIC

They call their sound "barn rock," but the Salt Miners' appeal is much broader than the Old McDonald bag. Maybe it's because the band is made up of a handful of old-school punk rockers and metal dudes who unabashedly gussy themselves up in derby hats and bolero ties for the evening — or maybe it's because they write and perform Americana and roots music that'll tug at the coldest person's heart strings — but their boisterous musicianship and ego-free stage show are always a treat. Celebrate the release of their new CD The Fifth of July at the Lager House, 1254 Michigan Ave., Detroit; 313-961-4668. The Syreens to open.

Tuesday • 31
Northville Cemetery Massacre DVD Premiere
FILM/HOLIDAY

Cult film enthusiasts have no doubt heard of the locally made 1974 B-flick, Northville Cemetery Massacre, but what they may not know is that grainy copy in their DVD stash — well, it's a bootleg. The movie, which features the voice of a young Nick Nolte and an original score by Mike Nesmith has been referred to as Easy Rider meets The Wild Bunch, and, this week, its producers (who have since moved on to Hollywood) return to Northville to premiere the official DVD. This release includes a director's cut, audio from director Bill Dear and interviews with members of the Scorpions motorcycle club who starred. At Genitti's Hole in the Wall, 108 E. Main St., Northville; 248-349-0522.