Sean Kingston
Amidst the costume preparations and pumpkin carving, warm up for Halloween with some time out on the town. The calendar includes: talks by Heraldo Munoz and David Morgan; screenings of the Glenn Silber documentaries The War at Home and Labor Day; FODfest; and, more live music from Emmylou Harris & Her Red Dirt Boys, Pete Yorn, ABBA Mania, Sean Kingston, The Disco Biscuits, FireHouse, Railroad Earth, Screaming Mechanical Brain, and Wayne Hancock.
Monday 10.26
NOTEWORTHY: Garry Trudeau's Doonesbury strip debuts in 28 U.S. newspapers, 1970.
BIRTHDAYS: U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, 1947; P-Funk icon Bootsy Collins, 1951.
University Club, 7:30 pm
The Chilean ambassador to the United Nations, and author, talks about From Dictatorship to the Security Council: A Political Memoir.
High Noon Saloon, 8 pm
This touring show honors the memory of Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl, who was slain by terrorists in Pakistan, with music of locals SONIA, Erik Brandt, Jeff Laramie and more.
Tuesday 10.27
BIRTHDAYS: Oscar-winning Italian actor Roberto Benigni, 1952.
Emmylou Harris & Her Red Dirt Boys
Overture Hall, 7:30 pm
Thanks partly to her collaboration with Gram Parsons, legendary, sweet-voiced Harris successfully straddles the line between the mainstream Nashville sound and alt/outlaw/insurgent/whatever country. They don't get any finer. With Buddy Miller.
Barrymore Theatre, 7:30 pm. Also Wednesday, Oct. 28, 7:30 pm
Former Madisonian Silber notched an Oscar nomination for The War at Home, about Madison's antiwar movement. That film screens tonight, and tomorrow is the world premiere of his latest, Labor Day, about the Service Employees International Union (see preview).
Majestic Theatre, 8 pm
The artist who made his way into people's CD players via the Me, Myself & Irene soundtrack swings through to showcase a new album, Break Up, a collaborative effort with Scarlett Johansson (who, to the dismay of local gawkers, hasn't dropped any hints that she'll be in town). Alberta Cross opens.
Wednesday 10.28
BIRTHDAYS: Oscar-winning actress Julia Roberts, 1967; actor Joaquin Phoenix, 1974.
Chazen Museum of Art, 5:30 pm
The UW history and religious studies prof talks about "Iran's Mongol Experience" in this Focus on the Humanities event.
Overture Hall, 7:30 pm
Anni-Frid, Björn, Benny and Agnetha have parted ways, but the music of the Swedish sensations lives on thanks to this tribute act. Take a chance on them.
Thursday 10.29
BIRTHDAYS: Actress/shoplifter Winona Ryder, 1971.
Sean Kingston Coliseum at Alliant Energy Center, 6 pm
The teen reggae star behind "Beautiful Girls" and "Fire Burning" was kind enough to knock Fergie's "Big Girls Don't Cry" off the charts in many parts of the world. Give thanks for this, hear his tales of touring with Beyonce and Gwen Stefani, and experience summer all over again with tunes from his get-up-and-dance album Tomorrow. With New Boyz, Twista and Gorilla Zoe.
Wisconsin Union Theater, 7 pm
The self-proclaimed trance-fusion jam band don't just play epic and intricate songs. They often play them backwards or break them into pieces and play a musical version of 52 pickup. This time around the game revolves around their new album Planet Anthem and several EPs that preview an album slated to drop in January. With Ott and Orchard Lounge.
Scatz, 8 pm
The pop-metal balladeers hit chart paydirt in the early 1990s with tunes like "When I Look Into Your Eyes" and "Love of a Lifetime." With Cherry Pie.
Barrymore Theatre, 8 pm
The six guys in the jam band Railroad Earth can put on a darn good show with a plethora of instruments, from guitars and basses to dobros, bouzoukis, mandolins and pennywhistles. With Great American Taxi.
Annex, 8 pm
The metal-meets-electro quartet from Minneapolis teams up with two local groups with equally provocative names and tunes: Perverse Engineer and Killer Dolphin with Rabies.
Crystal Corner Bar, 9 pm
Hancock's nickname is "The Train," but it may as well be Hank, at least if you consider whom he resembles (Hank Williams and Hank Thompson) and his most famous collaborator (Hank Williams III). Madison native Joel Paterson will even out the Hankitude by adding an extra dose of western swing to the mix. Kristy Larson opens.
