THURSDAY • 15
THE MARS VOLTA
SO 2002? BAH!
With a sound hinging on the clusterfuck bizarre (just check out "Aberinkula," the first track on 2008's The Bedlam in Goliath), the Mars Volta would be well-placed in some crud-filled art faggy venue — as opposed to the colossal-by-comparison Fillmore. But that's where they're playing, so good for them, and good for you, if you're one of the slavering Voltoid masses. With members Cedric Bixler-Zavala and Omar Rodriguez screeching and singing in equal parts, this show will surely be a hazy, crazy, tinnitus-inducing experience. Tickets $36.75 for the 7:30 p.m. show at the Fillmore, 2115 Woodward Ave., Detroit; 313-961-5451 for info. All ages.
THURSDAY • 15
X
THE WORLD'S A MESS IT'S IN MY KISS
Punks and hippies have rarely meshed, but since '77, L.A.-based X has mixed hard rock with foot-stomping country and folk and wordplay that matched the band's total beat Hollywood experience; X defined Los Angeles like Bukowski did before them. Unbeknownst to some, X became the croaking voice of a generation. Back on tour with their original lineup, X is ready to rock again in their "13-31 Tour." The show starts at 8 p.m. at the Majestic Theater, 4140 Woodward Ave., Detroit; 313-833-9700; with special guest, the Detroit Cobras.
THURSDAY • 15
REGINA CARTER SEXTET AND FRIENDS
BLACK BOTTOM IN SONG AND MUSIC
Detroit's old Black Bottom neighborhood, says violinist Regina Carter, "was a physical ghetto, not a psychological one." And to remember the African-American community destroyed to make way for the Chrysler freeway and urban renewal, MacArthur genius award-winner Carter has teamed with two other Detroiters: vocalist Carla Cook and poet Leslie Reese (who interviewed Black Bottom residents in developing her text). Commissioned by Jazz at Lincoln Center, their collaboration, simply titled Black Bottom, was hailed by Time magazine as "breathtakingly daring." It now makes its Detroit premiere at Orchestra Hall (which, during the Black Bottom era, was known as the Paradise Theater and connected Detroiters to the national jazz scene). 8 p.m. at Max M. Fisher Music Center, 3711 Woodward Ave., Detroit; 313-576-5111. Tickets $19-$99 (box seats).
THURSDAY-SATURDAY • 15-17
ALEX BUGNON
ONE JAZZY CANDLE
Arthur Blackwell and his associates tried something ambitious with Arturo's Jazz Theatre and Restaurant: a space that could regularly present concert-size jazz acts in a relaxed nightclub setting with upscale dining. They carved out a niche big enough for offerings from smooth and fusion to the outer envelope of the acoustic mainstream, which is to say, David Benoit and the Yellow Jackets to James Carter. Arturo's celebrates the anniversary with the smooth Swiss expat Alex Bugnon. Thursday's shows (7 and 9 p.m.) include a gourmet buffet for $75. Friday and Saturday shows (8 and 10 p.m.) are $37.50 and $42.50. At 25333 W. 12 Mile Rd., just west of Telegraph Rd. (in the Star Theatre Complex); 248-357-6009.
FRIDAY • 16
JERRY SEINFELD
WHAT'S THE DEAL WITH ...?
May 14, 1998: A day of mass mourning or, for some, a welcomed kibosh on shark jumping. Either way, the day was momentous — Seinfeld's final episode was aired. Needless to say, the show was a fantastic exercise in situational comedy (laugh tracks aside, ick) and continues in its popularity by the grace of licensing and nostalgia and — of course! — time-resilient hilarity. So. May 16, 2008: A decade later, Jerome plays two shows in Detroit. The 10 p.m. show isn't sold out yet (though the 7 p.m. is), so ignore the comedian's recent, disastrous CG bee movie, and go. At the Fox Theatre, 2211 Woodward Ave., Detroit; 313-471-6611 for info. Tickets $48-$78.
SATURDAY • 17
XCCV CHAOS: XTREME CAGE FIGHTING CHAMPIONSHIP
RIP, ROAR, PUMMEL
Want to see a humerus separated from its scapula? How about a criss-crossed collision mark emblazoned on a fighter's flesh? Watch contenders beat the hell out of each other any way they know how — kicking, scratching, hurling against metal caging — in this mixed martial arts competition. Rules are easy: the competitor with the greatest skill, be it judo, kickboxing, Krav Maga or adrenaline-fueled beastliness, will win. Doors at 6 p.m., and fights begin at 7:30 p.m. at the Crofoot, 1 S. Saginaw, Pontiac; visit LiveMMAFights.com for info or call 248-858-9333 for info. Tickets $25-$100.
TUESDAY • 20
DEATH NOTE
ANIME GEEKS, REJOICE
Death Note, or Desu nôto, is a live-action film based on the popular manga series by Tsugumi Ohba and Takeshi Obata. The plot centers on Light Yagami, a university student whose, uh, mildly ambitious mission is to rid the world of evil. By carefully wielding a notebook that kills anyone whose name's written in it, Yagami deals with the psychological consequences of killing a person — even if it's a criminal. The film topped charts in Japan for weeks in 2006, and will be released simultaneously in 300 theaters across America for one night only. Tickets are $10, and the film will be showing at 7:30 p.m. in four theaters in the metro Detroit area: At the Livonia 20, 19500 Haggerty Rd., Livonia; the Quality 16, 3686 Jackson Rd., Ann Arbor; Canton Cinema, 43555 Ford Rd., Canton; and Ann Arbor Showcase Cinemas, 4100 Carpenter Rd., Ypsilanti. Visit FathomEvents.com for more information.
ONGOING
9 PARTS OF DESIRE
WOMEN & WAR
In 90 minutes, Detroit actress Sarab Kamoo portrays nine women immersed in heartache, love, laughter and redemption against the backdrop of the war in Iraq. The goal in presenting the play by Michigan native Heather Raffo, says Y-Arts' Gillian Eaton, is to create a dialogue about the female experience of the war. Concurrently, the downtown Detroit Y, where the Boll Theatre is housed, presents an oral history exhibition, "In Times of War: Her Untold Story," featuring the perspective of Arab-American women (from a survivor of genocide to an Army veteran) who have experienced war — either directly or indirectly. The play is presented at 8 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays, and 3 p.m. Sundays through May 24 at the Boll Theatre, 1401 Broadway, Detroit; 313-223-2751 for info or Y-ArtsDetroit.org.
