MUSIC
Thursday, 2/18: Mission of Burma with Sleeper Agent, First Unitarian Church, $16, All Ages
Mission of Burma is one of the most important bands of the past 20 years, and once you hear them play, you’ll immediately know why. Their classic punk sound is so true to form thanks to the fact that they peaked in the early 80s and took a break until 2002. Make sure they don’t go on another hiatus any time soon by traveling back in time to a show that you and your cool uncle can BOTH enjoy.
Thursday, 2/18: Mos Def with De La Soul and others, The Trocadero, $40, All Ages
Mos Def leads a ferocious hip hop line up that is sure to knock your socks off. If his truly incredible 2009 album The Ecstatic isn’t enough to draw you to this event to end all events, let De La Soul, Slick Rick, Jay Electronica, Pete Rock, and Hezekiah do the trick. We’re hoping this epic group lives up to the boiling over anticipation they created when they postponed their original New Year's Eve date.
Friday, 2/19: Pissed Jeans with Battle for Los Angeles and M Ax Noi Mach, The Khyber, $8, 21+
Gross name aside, Sub-Pop Philly-locals Pissed Jeans are a powerful force to be reckoned with. Tonight, they team up with Battle for Los Angeles who bring you an entire set of Rage Against the Machine tributes. They’re also pretty notable for the fact that, unlike most punk groups with an anti-authoritarian message, they just want to express their frustration with their downwardly mobile middle class lives. A change of pace indeed!
Monday, 2/22: Daedelus with Nosaj Thing, Kung Fu Necktie, $10, 21+
Take a trip to Los Angeles without leaving the fair city of brotherly love by going to see this hella solid pairing. These powerhouses are headlining a solid and diverse group of electronic artists whose beats would feel easily at home behind the words of Mos Def or Talib Kweli. If you’re a fan of Flying Lotus or Prefuse 73, expand your horizons and let these LA teams take over your Monday night.
ART
Now — May 3: Convergence: Pottery from Studio and Factory, Philly Art Alliance, Free Admission
Philly was bitten by the pottery bug last spring when the ICA debuted its superb Dirt on Delight exhibit, and it seems the obsession hasn’t subsisded. Convergence: Pottery from Studio and Factory, examines technology and theory’s profound effect on the landscape of contemporary ceramics of the past century.
Now — April 3: SHOW, Gallery 339, Free Admission
Henry Horenstein offers a privileged, all access view into the world of modern burlesque where drag queens, leathers and feathers abound. However, fixed to the whitewashed walls of Gallery 339, Horenstein's beautiful black and white photos read less like voyeurism and instead, are evocative of snapshots by famed American photographer Diane Arbus.
THEATER
Now — March 7: The Eclectic Society, Walnut Street Theater, $10 — 60, All Ages
Penn students love nothing more than the shameless self-promotion of their own frats, sororities and secret societies. Set in 1963, The Eclectic Society takes place at an unnamed New England university where the arrival of an African American student threatens to unhinge the frat scene’s social hierarchy. Many will be able to identify with the pledging, pranks and drama characteristic of college, but the retro Mad Men feel and absence of beer pong breathes life into this play.
Now — March 28: Frank McCourt's The Irish...and How They Got That Way, Innovation Studio at the Kimmel Center, All Ages, $35
If you attended an American high school or have an oversentimental mother that loves inspirational chain e-mails, than you are probably familiar with Frank McCourt, the Pulitzer Prize-winning author known for his memoirs, Angela's Ashes and Teacher Man. If you enjoyed his portrait of life as an Irish immigrant, head to the Kimmel Center to see a play filled with traditional music and hilarious and moving portrayals of life in the green country.
