TUES 8/4: Free Zoo, Music, Shakespeare

I'm feeling a bit more confident in listing outdoor events. Let's enjoy the sun while we can see it...

(There's one item at the bottom that I just wanted to pass it on, just in case someone might be interested and hadn't heard about it).

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TUES 8/4

5pm to 7pm
The Sweet and Low Down
at Bremen Street Park, about 250 Bremen St, East Boston (behind Airport T)
FREE

Does anybody remember that Woody Allen movie with Sean Penn about a jazz-age guitarist? That's what first comes to mind when I hear "Sweet and Low Down", but I'm guessing this band will supplant it.

The Sweet and Low Down features Rachael Price of Lake Street Dive and Miss Tess who are quite swinging gals in their main projects. They keep on mining the jazz/blues sounds of yesteryear with marvelous results. The band includes James Rohr on keys and the rhythm section from Lake Street Dive.

I can imagine sitting in a park and listening to these two harmonize like a small horn section could be a delightful evening. There's more music at the park every Tuesday for the rest of August. I'm always rushing to catch the shuttle, but there appears to be a walkway to the park from the T.

TUES 8/4

5pm to 8pm
National Night Out Celebration
at Franklin Park Zoo, 1 Franklin Park Rd, Dorchester
FREE

This annual event seems aimed at the "family-friendly" crowd to promote community safety, but everyone can go to Franklin Park Zoo for free tonight. Am pretty sure there will be some free food and soft drinks as well as live music including Camelia Latin Jazz Sextet (7pm) and gospel group Ashmont Hill (6pm). Oh, yeah -- live animals too.

If there are any initiatives to reduce crime, I guess it's better to have animals in cages than people in prisons...

Note: "The Tropical Forest, Butterfly Landing and the Petting Yard will not be open."

TUES 8/4

8pm
Forest Fires
at Toad, 1912 Mass Ave, Cambridge (Porter Sq)
FREE

If you've ever listened to The Everyday Visuals, you probably agree that you'd love to hear Chris Pappas sing anything as long as he keeps singing. Thankfully, songs that don't end up with TEV see the light of... clubs... in his side project, Forest Fires. Chris and some conspirators will offer some awesomeness that's a bit quieter than his main gig.

TUES 8/4 (thru 8/16)

8pm
"The Comedy Of Errors"
at Parkman Bandstand, about 165 Tremont St, Boston (Boston Common)
FREE

The Commonwealth Shakespeare Company returns for its 14th annual summer production in Boston Common. They've taken one of the Bard's early farces about identical twins separated at birth and set it in Miami South Beach of the '30s. It's still the original text, but they inject Latin flavor all over the place.

Shows run through SUN 8/16 from Tuesdays to Sundays -- 8pm on most nights, 7pm on Sundays. Additional performances on SUN 8/9 (1pm) and WED 8/12 (12:30pm).

TUES 8/4

6pm to 8pm
EOT & Developers Meeting
at Livable Streets Alliance, about 100 Sidney St, Cambridge (near MIT/Central Sq)
FREE (Your Time & Effort)

If you (or someone you know) likes to create applications, I was made aware of this info session (via "Put the MBTA on Google Transit") about the Office of Transportation techies meeting with other techies about the data that's available and what could or should be available. At least, that's the briefest description that comes to mind.

[Facebook]

MON 8/3: Art & Film

Tonight's subtitle could be "places where you can see interesting things and not have to pay for air-conditioning."

Btw: I apologize to those who went to the Phoenix/FNX concert on Saturday. I read that Metric did an acoustic set, which sounds a bit disappointing.

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MON 8/3

6pm to 8pm
"Sound Off": Reception
at Cambridge Arts Council Gallery, City Hall Annex, 344 Broadway, Cambridge (between Central Sq & Inman Sq)
FREE

Artist Halsey Burgund always creates something interesting that has a participatory aspect that draws in people who might not usually care about art. They're often the building blocks of his projects.

You may have seen the pleasant fellow at street festivals like Harvard's Mayfair with his "Bring Your Own Voice" booth. Anyone willing to sit down and share some thoughts could end up in Burgund's output as he creates soundscapes from the recordings. What the listener hears is much more than exposition over music.

"Sound Off" is a multi-media exhibition where Halsey guided a group of young people through the process of recording interviews with Cantabrigians and creating their own work. The exhibit runs through TUES 9/15 (with a closing reception on 9/14).

MON 8/3

7pm
"Kill Bill, Vol. 1 & Vol. 2": Double Feature
at Coolidge Corner Theatre, 290 Harvard Street, Brookline
$9.75

If you missed last week's run at the Brattle, there's another chance to watch Uma Thurman kick ass and take name on the big screen in its full 4-hour-plus glory (with an intermission).

Both halves work as Tarantino films with the humorous dialogue and the usually heavy borrowing on cinematic influences -- but it's really best to watch them together. The injection of Uma Thurman as the bad-ass killing machine seeking revenge is what elevates the action scenes and the movie as a whole.

I guess we may never know if David Carradine died from auto-erotic self-asphyxiation, but that'll probably be a part of Hollywood trivia forever.

MON 8/3

7pm
"OUTside the Box": Opening Reception
at Huret & Spector Gallery, Tufte Center, 6th Floor, 10 Boylston Place, Boston (entrance down "the Alley")
FREE

Boston's Queer Women of Color and Friends are presenting their second annual multi-culti pride festival. People of all ages and backgrounds are welcome to check out the week-long exhibit, "OUTside the Box: a Queer People of Color Visual Artist Exhibit," that features local LGBT artists in a wide array of media.

There are events through SUN 8/9, many are "cheap" or free.

MON 8/3

10pm
Ian Root: Art Opening
at ZuZu!, 474 Mass Ave, Cambridge (Central Sq)
FREE

These are just drawings; they're more like drawings that have been scanned, photoshopped, and drawn again. I don't know if this exhibit is going to be a combination of robots, samurais, and historic jazz musicians. (I'd like to see the jazzbos.) Ian's prints are for sale on his site for very reasonable prices. You can probably chat with him tonight.

8/2: Sunday Night Off-Topic Video

Whoa, Stephon Marbury is crazy.

Whatever you thought about his stint with the Celtics last year, let’s be glad this guy is gone -- but we can marvel at his online video antics...




(Or would you rather see Doug Flutie’s daughter riding the mechanical bull at The Liquor Store?)

On a personal note...

My grandfather passed away this week, and I'm only sad because I won't see him again.

He lived to a ripe-old 94, and he really lived them except for the last few weeks.

It was a classic American story of an immigrant coming from Italy and working hard as a carpenter to earn enough and bring his family over. Working hard, so his kids could have a better life. They worked hard, so their kids could have a better life. Now those kids are starting to have children, and so the seeds he planted are still thriving.

I don't remember a time when he didn't seem really old already, but I've got so many great memories and learned a lot about life from the little guy. (Lots of shrinking over the years...)

Salute, Nonno Pasquale! I raise my glass to you!

Like when I asked him how many glasses of wine he had, and he replied:

"Just one, but I keep filling it up."

SUN 8/2: Cars & Music (& Shakespeare)

Dude, it's a "dude and ellipsis" Sunday... Dude, Shakespeare in the Common at 7pm tonight...

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SUN 8/2
10am to 4pm
"Tutto Italiano"
at Larz Anderson Museum, 15 Newton St, Brookline
$10 / $5 seniors, students, ages 6 – 12 (includes Museum admission)

Dude, Ferraris and Lamborghinis... It’s more than Ferraris and Lamborghinis, but that would be the main reason I’d go. There’s usually more than 200 Italian cars and motorcycles on the lawn for gawking and salivating.

Last year’s Ducati motorcycle raffle must have gone well, so there doing it again. For a $25 ticket, you might go home on a fine piece of Italian engineering. Or a scooter (2nd prize)...

Free street parking (not quite a T-friendly location)...

Sun 8/2

7:30pm
Spitzz, Something Fierce, Hospital Rats, The Greatest Hits, Planned Communities
at O'Brien's, 3 Harvard St, Allston
$8 / 21+

Dude, this is a really impressive punk show! All of the bands kick ass... Check out Something Fierce; they're from Houston, so we can't see them every couple weeks...

They don't need to offer free BBQ, but they are. Rock will probably start around 7:30pm.

SUN 8/2

10pm
The John Powhida Show w/ Nash Kato
at Toad, 1912 Mass Ave, Cambridge (Porter Sq)
FREE

Dude, Nash Kato from Urge Overkill is going perform at some point. John Powhida is a damn talented singer by himself or with a band, and both may be the case.