"Hey, Fred!" 01/26/15-02/01/15 A Biased and Idiosyncratic Top Five

This is the most popular feature (within the very relative confines of that word as it relates to this). A look at things I want to shine some light on - not everything I'm going to do, and not quite (as the old version was) everything I'd do if money and time were no object.

These are my top 5 suggestions for the week in question - named for my great pal Fred Pfening and named long before it was born, by A., who suggested "Rick's going to have a blog called 'Hey, Fred! Here's what's coming to town...' - whatever media strike my fancy. It could be all theater one week, it could be all films or all readings or all gallery shows, but most weeks will include some if not mostly music - I hope to spark some conversations and get people excited about what I'm excited for. If you read this, let me know what would make this more useful to you. As well, if you get any value out of this, please send me links/invite me on Facebook/send up a carrier pigeon to let me know about your events.

Visual Art

Various Artists, Sitter. Canzani Center at CCAD, 60 Cleveland Ave. I missed this opening last week but with so much going on it would've been hard to shoehorn this into last week anyway. Over the last 7-8 years, the Columbus College of Art and Design has stepped up their gallery game immeasurably to the point where they're one of our preeminent modern art institutions. The new group show, Sitter, is a look at how portraiture changes and is used to what ends in contemporary photography and the list of artists is mind-boggling. Including Dawoud Bey, Leigh Ledare, Nan Goldin, and my favorite Catherine Opie, this is a great opportunity to take the temperature of modern photography. Runs through March 25, 2015.



Literary

January 26: Siaara Freeman. The Poetry Forum, Bossy Grrl, 2598 N High St. The longest running poetry series in Columbus has one of its best, most diverse seasons in quite some time. I've already missed (by all accounts) fantastic sets by Scott Woods and Charlene Fix this year but this week is one of the most promising younger voices on the scene, Siaara Freeman. I saw Freeman read at the MeatGrinder Poetry Slam a few months ago and her work blew my hair back. Do not miss this. Starts at 7:00pm. No cover.



Music

January 29: Pete Mills' Side One Series - Eddie Harris, The In Sound. Natalie's Coal-Fired Pizza, 5601 N High St. Pete Mills is one of the finest tenor sax players and educators in town and his periodic repertory shows delving into a particular record are always enlightening. Eddie Harris was one of the great Chicago tenors and one of jazz's finest composers in the soul-jazz era and while I have a personal bias toward the rawer Vee-Jay albums, The In Sound, being paid tribute to, is one of those perfect records, nailed down by the unstoppable rhythm section of Cedar Walton on piano, Ron Carter on bass, and Billy Higgins on drums, and kicked off a marvelous run for Harris on Atlantic Records. Mills' 5tet usually consists of Erik Augis on piano, Andy Woodson on bass, Cedric Easton on drums often with special guest Rob Parton on trumpet in from Chicago. I haven't seen word on who's in the quintet for this performance but expect it to be players who know this sound-world inside and out. Starts at 9:00pm. $7 Tickets available at Vendini.


January 29: The Sidekicks. Ace of Cups, 2619 N High. The Sidekicks have been bubbling under for a while, honing their craft, and it's finally paying off with a rock-solid pop-punk record Runners in the Nerved World on the biggest label for that kind of music, Epitaph Records. Razor sharp playing, good time bouncing grooves, and undeniable hooks. This serves as the local record release show. Check out this interview of theirs on The Runout: http://therunout.com/post/88962672326/the-sidekicks-throw-out-the-rulebook-for-new-album Locals All Dogs, also getting a lot of righteous buzz and praise, open along with Connections and LVL. Starts at 9:00pm. $6 cover.



January 31: Herzog. Spacebar, 2590 N High St. Herzog from Cleveland are a blast of catchy, jittery rock and roll energy who were the brightest spot at the Diarrhea Planet show at Skully's last year and I can't wait to see them again, especially at Columbus's finest new rock venue. Check out this feature on Agit Reader: http://www.agitreader.com/features/herzog-01.31.html Washington Beach Bums, Columbus's principal dissectors and inciters of the party, host them and headline. Locals The Sweet S open. Starts at 10:00pm. $5 cover.