Monday 7.28
Colm McCarthy
Mercury Café and Lounge, through September
McCarthy shows a group of mixed-media works called "Sin" as part of an exhibition of Firecracker Studios artists. They depict the seven deadly sins, adapting deliriously innocent images from Catholic grade school primers of the 1940s. Creepy and effective.
Tuesday 7.29
20 Years With Tandem Press
Promega, 5445 E. Cheryl Parkway, through Aug. 29.
The UW's Tandem Press marks its anniversary with an exhibition showcasing the impressive range of artists who've experimented there. It features prints by such big names as David Lynch, Art Spiegelman, Jim Dine and GRONK.
Hydrogyn
Annex, 9:30 pm
Sure, Hydrogyn front woman Julie Westlake belts out the Kentuckians' old-school metal with conviction, but their potent cover of Alanis Morissette's "You Oughta Know" is the most original thing about their recent CD Deadly Passions. Your Last Failure open.
Wednesday 7.30
Concerts on the Square
Capitol Square, 7 pm
Sad but true: It's already the last concert for this season's pops series. Is summer going fast, or what? The Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra celebrates the 25th anniversary of Concerts on the Square with music by Bizet, Copland and Handel, featuring vocalists Kitt and Alli Foss, electric violinist Tracy Silverman and the Isthmus Vocal Ensemble.
Melissa Etheridge
Overture Hall, Overture Center, 8 pm
Etheridge's big, sandpapered voice could always make an anthem out of the simplest materials. The growth of her family, a bout with cancer and her strong commitment to environmentalism have only given her passionate folk and rock more guts.
Hellblinki
Annex, 9 pm
Musical ringmaster Adam Benjamin's Hellblinki Sextet is a loveably louche cabaret act for punks, Euro folk fans and all those sad sacks who couldn't score a ticket to Tom Waits' last tour. Sanjula Vamana and Mute Grey open.
Cadence Weapon
UW Memorial Union Terrace, 9:30 pm
An underground hero in his native Canada, Cadence Weapon shows off his Techno roots in smart, imaginative hip-hop that's perfect for dancing.
Thursday 7.31
Homefront 1967
Wisconsin Veterans Museum, noon
The Veterans Museum shows a documentary produced during the height of the Vietnam War. It shows how the city of Charlottesville, Va., was affected by the war, with interviews of students, defense-industry workers, parents and community leaders. Keep an eye out for parallels with the Iraq War.
Marshall Cook
Booked for Murder, 6 pm
The local novelist discusses his new mystery, Obsessions, starring Wisconsin newspaper editor Monona Quinn. She's attending a writers' workshop in northern Wisconsin when the pompous writer-in-residence is murdered.
New Wolverine Jazz Orchestra
Coliseum Bar, 7 pm
A top traditional-jazz band from Australia puts a down-under spin on classic material by Bix Beiderbecke, Jelly Roll Morton, Duke Ellington and Louis Armstrong. Play that thing, mate!
Toadies
Annex, 9 pm
Onetime alt-rock hitmakers Toadies could easily have been consigned to the history books. Instead, after an extended down period, they're working a dirty-assed roadhouse sound that updates the boogie with a vengeance. Tuneful power rockers the Whigs and the Box Social open.
Great American Taxi
UW Memorial Union Terrace, 9:30 pm
Leftover Salmon's Vince Herman leads this easy jamming outfit through tunes that incorporate bluegrass, rock and other rootsy styles. Expect the Deadheads to be out in force for this one.
