WEDNESDAY • 13
ADAM'S CASTLE
THE BOYS ARE BACK IN TOWN
You may remember this psychedelic, moody, piano-driven instrumental trio from the early aughts, when pianist Sami Jano, drummer Zach Eichenhorn and bassist Eric Adams and their jestingly described "heavy metal piano" band were fixtures of the local scene. In 2004, the trio disbanded when Jano relocated to New York City, but — after a four-year hiatus — the band is back together (yeah!), and the now-Brooklyn-based trio is returning for a homecoming show in support of the so-called lost LP, 2003's Deathless. It's true, the early '00s are now officially nostalgia, but hear the new melodies at PJ's Lager House, 1254 Michigan Ave., Detroit; 313-961-4668. Javelins headline, with Lightning Love.
WEDNESDAY, FRIDAY-SUNDAY • 13, 15-17
CARMEN
BE STILL MY HEART, LITERALLY
The Michigan Opera Theater wraps up its "Casualties of Love" season with one of the best-known fatal love affairs ever sung — Carmen. The eponymous protagonist is a fiercely independent woman whose beauty beguiles and who discards lovers as easily as yesterday's trash. But when the naive young soldier Don José falls in love with Carmen, his life enters a downward spiral — committing mutiny, being rejected by a former lover, and absconding with smugglers — that comes to a tragic climax when, overcome with jealousy and passion, he murders the willful temptress. Ain't love a bitch? Performances at 7:30 p.m. on May 13, 15 and 16, and at 2:30 p.m. on May 17, at the Detroit Opera House, 1526 Broadway, Detroit; 313-237-SING, $29-$121.
THURSDAY • 14
OFFONOFF
HOW MANY FRIENDS DOES THURSTON MOORE HAVE?
Bill Frisell and Vernon Reid once recorded an album titled Smash & Scatteration, but that was 25 years ago — so we'll recycle the phrase as a descriptor for the ultra-noisy Offonoff, which is Terry Ex (of the Dutch bleeding-edge group the Ex, on guitar), Massimo Pupillo (of the Italian screamers Zu, on bass) and Paal Nilssen-Love (collaborator with Peter Brötzmann and Ken Vandermark, among myriad others, on drums). The three met in Original Silence and have continued to push boundaries on their own since 2006. They reference Last Exit, James Blood Ulmer, Sonic Youth and Locust on their MySpace page, and audio samples back up said footnotes with the appropriate dissonance. ... A Bohemian in Exile show at Old Miami, 3930 Cass Ave., Detroit; 313-831-3830. Doors at 8 p.m.; $5-10.
THURSDAY •14
JUCIFER
EARACHE POPPY
Jucifer is Amber Valentine and Edgar Livengood, a nomadic sludge-metal duo (they live on the road in an RV) famed for brutally loud live shows that feature upward of 20 amps and 120 db. But the wall o' sound is tempered by singer-guitarist Valentine's lilting voice, which subtly caresses as often — and as well — as it screams. Dynamic, then. Oh, and their last album, L'autrichienne, is a 21-song concept disc about Marie Antoinette (that's right — both "concept album" and "Marie Antoinette" featured in the same sentence). Give it up for erudite stoner rock! With K.E.G. at Small's, 10339 Conant St., Hamtramck; 313-873-1117.
THURSDAY • 14
DEQUINDRE CUT GRAND OPENING
CITY RIDE, TAKE ONE
Hardcore adventure riders braved this trail when it offered thick brush, wild graffiti and "residents" living under the road bridges. While the urban romantic in all of us misses those days, the urban revitalizationist welcomes the Dequindre Cut Greenway, the paved trail along the former railway set 25 feet below ground level. This is its official grand opening. Walking tours of the cut will begin at its three entrances: Woodbridge Street, E. Lafayette Street and Gratiot Avenue. Cooking demonstrations also are planned. From 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
FRIDAY • 15
BIKE TO WORK DAY
GET ON YOUR BIKES AND RIDE!
You know you want to. You know you should. Maybe you just don't want to do it alone? Well, Detroit commuter, today's the day you'll find safety in numbers: annual Bike-to-Work Day. Main routes begin in Grosse Pointe and Royal Oak and proceed to Campus Martius along Woodward and Jefferson Avenues. To find a meeting point along the way, see tinyurl.com/qnrgw4.
FRIDAY • 15
CCS STUDENT EXHIBITION AND SALE
CREATIVE BEGINNINGS
More than 3,500 pieces of student artwork — from furniture and jewelry to paintings and photographs — are showcased in this annual exhibition, which takes over the College for Creative Studies campus until May 29. Friday's ticketed preview gives art collectors an early chance to snag works by budding young creators, who receive all proceeds from the sales of their work. A collector's ticket — $350 — gets you in at 5:30; the general opening — a mere $50 — begins at 7 p.m. at the College for Creative Studies, 201 E. Kirby St., Detroit; 313-664-7464; collegeforcreativestudies.edu.
FRIDAYSUNDAY • 15-17
MARIA MEIRELLES
ARTFUL MOVEMENTS
For classical music lovers, it hardly gets any better than a Beethoven piano sonata. They're both technical and melodic, subdued in places but with an elegant passion always just a few measures away. So if one Beethoven sonata is great, what's a weekend marathon of all of them? Find out when Maria Meirelles plays Beethoven's complete piano sonatas starting at 7 and 8:30 p.m. Friday, continuing at 11 a.m. on Saturday and Sunday at the Detroit Institute of Arts, 5200 Woodward Ave., 313-833-7900. Friday and Saturday are free. Sunday's charge is $35 as part of the museum's Brunch with Bach series.
FRIDAY-SUNDAY • 15-17
DOWNTOWN HOEDOWN
YEEHAW
Chaps and cowboy hats may be optional, but the loose dress code (and trust us, it gets loose) doesn't detract from the hoedown's status as the largest free country music festival in the whole frickin' world. This year's grand coup is the appearance of godhead-graybeard Willie Nelson, who'll headline Sunday night. The other most familiar face will be that of one Kevin Costner (oh, Christ), performing with his country band Modern West. They'll be joined by more than 20 other national acts, including Rodney Atkins, Phil Vassar, Jessica Andrews and Lee Ann Womack, as well as local country crooners the Orbitsuns, Jocaine, Redhill, Will Nash, Justine Blazer, Molly Hunt and more. It'll be a knee-slappin', beerguzzlin', bronco-buckin' swell time at Hart Plaza in downtown Detroit; visit wycd.com.
SATURDAY • 16
JUGGLING ARTS FESTIVAL
OBJECT MANIPULATION
Ever wanted to learn how to juggle? Ever wanted to improve your jugglin' skills? Would you dig manipulating a diabolo? Are you wondering what the hell a diabolo is? If you answered yes to any of these questions, then visit the Ann Arbor juggling fair; there, you can learn a new skill or just sit back and be entertained by the fine art of throwing objects up in the air and catching them, but in a totally cool and complicated way. From 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. at WideWorld Sports Center, 2140 Oak Valley Dr., Ann Arbor; 734-913-4625; $1.
SATURDAY • 16
MUSIC4MUTTS
PARTY FOR PAWS
A fundraiser for the Michigan Humane Society, Music4Mutts features performances by a bevy of local bands, door prizes from the likes of Showtime Clothing and Om Spa, a raffle and a silent auction. Bands include the Nice Device, Friendly Foes, Ingray, Pillar of Autumn, Lies Unknown, Dismantle, Ballz Deluxe, Stellar Drive, Whiplash and Black Hat Trio. Goodies up for grabs in the silent auction include a custom Minority drum set, a Jetstream guitar, a stay at the Townsend Hotel, a guided fishing trip and more. Doors at 6 p.m. at the Royal Oak Music Theatre, 318 W. Fourth St., Royal Oak; 248-399-2980; $10, $20 VIP; all ages. Info at music4mutts.org.
ONGOING
WORKERS LEAVING THE FACTORY
BLUE COLLAR CELLULOID
In 1895, the Lumiere brothers of Lyon, France, filmed the outside of their manufacturing plant at the end of the workday. The 45-second result, known as Workers Leaving the Factory, is considered the first film to be screened in public and one of the first movies ever made. The artists in this exhibit use the original as a jumping off point to explore the lives and the fate of today's industrial workers (a topic of especial interest as our rust belt continues to decay). Harun Faroucki analyzes more than a century of labor struggles in cinema through a multi-channel installation, Sharon Lockhart's film Exits shows workers leaving the Bath Iron Works over the course of a work week, and Nancy Davenport uses a multi-screen installation to speculate on the intersection of labor and globalization. On display through July 5 at the Art Gallery of Windsor, 401 Riverside Dr., Windsor; 519-977-0013. Workers Leaving the Factory is presented in conjunction with the annual Media City Film Festival, info at houseoftoast.ca.
