Event Previews

Eric Burdon has probably seen a lot of crazy shit. Known for his strong stage persona and having been in rock & roll for more than 50 years, he’s fronted two seminal ’60s and ’70s bands: bluesy Rock and Roll Hall of Famers the Animals, and the funk-rock band War, though he left both long ago. Moreover, in between being ranked No. 57 in Rolling Stone’s list of the 100 Greatest Singers of All Time, and snagging the occasional film role, he’s been churning out solo albums and rocking well into his golden years. Great job, Eric—and, as Nardwuar says, “keep on rocking in the free world.”

Eric Burdon will perform Sunday (May 19) at 8 PM at the Egg (Empire State Plaza, Albany). Tickets are $34.50-54.50. For more info, call 473-1845.

Everybody loves Penn and Teller, don’t they? This duo have been charming and amazing audiences for three decades. Penn talks; Teller doesn’t.  And they pull off the greatest trick of all: Their act demystifies magic’s trickery while at the same time instilling a sense of wonder at the art.

A Texas-based reviewer described an April performance by the duo in glowing terms: “Daring feats of illusion were executed with rapid grace and elegant dexterity, all while Penn elucidated with sardonic humor and Teller remained silent. They specialize in the illusionary pas de deux, a dance between death and laughter.”

That last line refers to a bit they do with a nail gun.

Penn and Teller will perform tomorrow (Friday, May 17) at 8 PM on the Mainstage at Proctors (432 State St., Schenectady). Tickets are $20 to $70. For more info, call the box office at 346-6204.

Fresh off a triumphant performance at New York’s Carnegie Hall—we know it was a smash because we listened, live, to the radio broadcast—the Albany Symphony Orchestra resumes its regular scheduled programming with two concerts this weekend at the Troy Savings Bank Music Hall.

The typically incisive (and entertainingly balanced) program for these two shows includes a pair of modern-ish crowd pleasers, Stravinsky’s Dumbarton Oaks and John Adams’ impishly titled Son of Chamber Symphony. The heart of the program goes back a few hundred years, as raven-haired violin virtuoso Aisslinn Nosky (pictured) will join the ASO in a performance of Vivaldi’s The Four Seasons.

The Albany Symphony Orchestra will perform Saturday (May 18) at 7:30 PM and Sunday (May 19) at 3 PM at the Troy Savings Bank Music Hall (2nd and State streets, Troy). For ticket prices and info, call the ASO at 465-4755.

Brookfield Renewable Energy Company’s recent return of 100 acres of sacred land at Cohoes Falls to the Haudenosaunee, League of Iroquois, is celebrated in the new exhibit at the Foundry, Re-place Kahon:ios.

A solo exhibit of work by native artist Merritt Johnson, Re-place Kahon:ios is, according to the exhibit notes, “a narrative of land, diaspora and nativism—an epic of place and culture coming apart under the pressure of appropriation and dislocation from ancestral soil.”

Pictured is Johnson’s Waterfall Face.

Re-place Kahon:ios opens Saturday (May 18) with an artist’s reception from 6 to 9 PM at the Foundry for Art Design + Culture (119 Remsen St., Cohoes). The show will remain on view through June 23, and there will be an artist lecture on June 9 at 1:30 PM. For more info, call the gallery at 229-2173 or visit thefoundrysite.com.

Albany has become a major tour stop in the past couple years for some of the biggest hip-hop acts around. A$AP Rocky was just here, Danny Brown flew within our Massachussets orbit and Kendrick Lamar, Joey Bada$$, the Underacheivers and Chance the Rapper are all due in town in the next couple months.

It’s only fitting, then, that a trio of classic MCs should swoop in this weekend to remind us where it all came from. Billed as Albany Spring Fest, “golden age” rappers Big Daddy Kane, MC Lyte (pictured) and Doug E. Fresh are gonna do it old-school Friday night (since none have released any new material in the last decade or so—not that they need to with the discographies they’ve left in their wake). Big Daddy Kane got his start as a notorious battle rapper in the Juice Crew with Biz Markie and Marley Marl. MC Lyte made history in 1988 as the first female rapper to release a solo record. And Doug E. Fresh is one of the most legendary beatboxers to ever do his thing.

Albany Spring Fest will come to the Palace Theatre (19 Clinton Ave., Albany) tomorrow (Friday, May 17) at 8 PM. Tickets are $32-$48. Call 465-3334 for more info.

Thurston Moore must’ve gotten bored really fast after Sonic Youth officially broke up in 2011. Why? Because he’s already skipped past his solo work and moved right on to another band, Chelsea Light Moving. The band describe themselves as “Burroughs rock,” in reference to the famous Beat Generation writer, William S. Burroughs. And, well, maybe it’s just a coincidence, but we think “Burroughs rock” kind of sounds an awful lot like Sonic Youth. Then again, Sonic Youth never wrote a song directly about Burroughs, and Chelsea Light Moving won’t have Kim Gordon’s throaty whine. Why don’t you be the judge?

Chelsea Light Moving will perform Wednesday (May 15) at 8 PM at Club Helsinki (405 Columbia St., Hudson). Tickets are $20. For more info, call 828-4800.

If you’re confused why hip, young-ish comic and Parks and Recreation star Aziz Ansari is calling this comedy tour Buried Alice, he explained it to Esquire.

“It came from an idea to make the poster look like these old-timey magician posters. Then I just thought about calling it Buried Alive because that sounds like a magician show title,” Ansari said. “And it also fits the themes of the show—fear of adulthood and how your life changes after you have kids and get married.”

It’s not like the comedian is suddenly old at 30, however. As a critic for the San Francisco Chronicle wrote a couple of years ago, “With his boyish features, natural connection with the audience and tendency to celebrate immaturity, one gets the impression that Ansari will still seem like a kid when he’s 60.”

Aziz Anseri’s Buried Alive! tour comes to the Palace Theatre (19 Clinton Ave., Albany) 8 PM on Tuesday (May 14). Tickets are $27 and $32. For more info, call 465-3334.

Albany Center Gallery’s new show, The Study, is designed to engage the mind “to explore the natural world from the comfort of the home environment.” The artists have “scoured for materials from books to the Earth itself for the inspiration and creation of the pieces.”

The featured artists are MammalSoap, Emily Dorr, Neener and Patrick Picou Harrington (whose work is pictured here.).

The Study will open Tuesday (May 14) and remain on view through June 29 at Albany Center Gallery (39 Columbia St., Albany). There will be a 1st Friday reception on June 7 from 5 to 9 PM. For more info, call the gallery at 462-4775.

So, we think we finally understand this whole street-scrubbing ceremony that always heralds the beginning of Albany’s annual Tulip Fest—and wonder if there’s a similar procedure for the human sinus cavity. See, flowers, lovely as they are, produce pollen—lots of it. So it’s only fitting that those little Dutch children should clean up that flower residue, like a shot of Claritin to the pavement, before we can properly enjoy ourselves.

This year’s celebration features all the standard stuff: the crowning of the Tulip Queen, the Mother of the Year award, Zumba!, KidsZone stuff, a green market, dogs swimming in the Moses fountain, and, of course, a ton of great music. National headliners this year include the Silversun Pickups (pictured), the Features, Royal Teeth and buh-buh-buh Bennie and the Jets, an Elton John tribute band. Local performers include Eastbound Jesus, MaryLeigh, Olivia Quillio, the Dylan Perrillo Orchestra, Annie and the Hedonists, Bryan Thomas, Rick Rourke and Lost Wages, the Mendelssohn Club and Tor and the Fjords.

Tulip Fest comes to Albany’s Washington Park on Saturday and Sunday (May 11-12) at noon, with opening events starting at 11:30 AM on Friday (May 10). Admission is free. Check pages 22 and 23 of this issue for more info.

Shen Yun is what could safely be described as a “really big show.”

There are platoons of dancers, video projection, and a live orchestra, all dedicated to bringing to life 5,000 years of Chinese cultural traditions. The critic for the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review wrote of a recent performance, “The costumes were stunning, and most, particularly with the women dancers, were integral in the eye-popping movements. Sleeves contracted and unfurled, while dresses helped the dancers look like colorful pinwheels. The men displayed impressive acrobatic stunts.”

There’s also a political, pro-Falun Gong and anti-Chinese government point of view in a few of the set pieces.

So, now that you know what you’re getting into, why not join more than 100 artists wearing 400 costumes and a full orchestra tonight and experience the sights and sounds of a long-lost age—and a continuing cultural tradition.

Shen Yun will be presented tonight (Thursday, May 9) at 7:30 PM on the Mainstage at Proctors (432 State St., Schenectady). Tickets are $50-$120. For more info, call the box office at 346-6204.