All Over Albany

The week ahead

Here are a few things to keep in mind, look forward to, or keep busy with this week, from the weather (exactly August), to the Track, to the Beekman Boys, to slime mold, to theater, to all sorts of music...

Weather

Here's the paraphrased forecast for this week:

Monday: Some sun, almost 80.

Tuesday: Sunny, 80.

Wednesday: Again, but a little warmer.

Thursday: Cloudy, maybe rain, 81.

Friday: Sunny, mid 80s.

Weekend: And so on, maybe some run.

Exactly August.

The Track

We're heading into the second full week of the season at Saratoga Race Course, with racing every day except Tuesday. This Saturday is the track's official anniversary party for its 150th season. It's also the day of this year's Whitney.

Sunshine Fair

The the Schoharie County Sunshine Fair continues through August 3 at the fairgrounds in Cobleskill. This year's fair parade is Wednesday at 6:30 pm -- "Fire up the tractor, gussy-up the goat, dress the baby as a carrot and come celebrate farm, family and community" -- the grand marshals are the Fabulous Beekman Boys.

Arts and sciences

Poetry slam
Tuesday: The Nitty Gritty Poetry Slam will be at Valentine's celebrating its 50th Tuesday edition. The night will feature a performance by the team that's soon headed to the National Poetry Slam in Boston. Tuesday 7 pm - $5 / $3 students

Community mapping with... slime mold
Tuesday-Friday: The Sanctuary for Independent Media is a hosting a "public lab" to "explore what adaptive biological networks in P. polycephalum plasmodia can teach us about the way that we inhabit, design, and shape urban communities." Blurbage:

By focusing on the social analogy of individual cells coming together to form a complex, intelligent multicellular organism--the network--we can investigate how cities grow and connect, how the people and life that inhabit them move through these networks, and how the configuration of these networks may affect public health, prosperity, demographics, and mobility. ...

This interdisciplinary "public lab" will catalyze members of the community to recognize perspectives gained using the scientific method to think critically about our social and environmental surroundings.

It's a multi-day event, and pre-registration is requested. The fee is a sliding scale $1-$350.

Growing wheat in the city
Thursday: Urban grain grower Howard Stoner will be at the Honest Weight Food Co-op to talk about his experiences growing wheat and rye in Troy. (Earlier on AOA: Sowing oats (and wheat and rye) in urban Troy.) Thursday 6 pm - free (register)

Roy Blount, Jr.
Sunday: Author/humorist/Wait, Wait panelist Roy Blount, Jr. will be at Helsinki Hudson for a brunch to benefit Habitat for Humanity. Sunday 11:30 am - $40

Momix

Thursday: the "dancer illusionists" troupe MOMIX will be at SPAC for a performance of "Botanica." Tickets for that show are already "limited." So if you'd like to go, you might want to get tickets sooner rather than later. Thursday 8 pm - $25 (number of tickets availability is "limited"

Theater

+ This is the last week for The Sparkely Clean Funeral Singers at Cap Rep.

+ The Bridges of Madison County opens at WTF this week.

African American Family Day

Saturday is African-American Family Day at the Empire State Plaza from noon-7 pm -- arts, crafts, kids stuff. The musical lineup is headed by Heatwave ("'Cause boogie nights are always the the best in town..."). Saturday noon-7 pm - free admission

Music

Monday: Mad Conductor at Valentine's
Experimental hip hop. With: 1 Thru 10, Point Blank.

Tuesday: Alex Bleeker and the Freaks at Valentine's
Includes members of Real Estate, Woods, and Mountain Man. 8:30 pm - $7 ahead / $10 at door

Tuesday: Todd Rundgren at The Egg
Veteran rock instrumentalist/songwriter/producer. (Also, Liv Tyler originally thought he was her dad.) 8 pm - $34.50

Wednesday: Robert Eric at Rockin' on the River
Billy Joel tribute. 5 pm - free

Wednesday: The Gaslight Anthem at Upstate Concert Hall
Jersey, in the church of latter day Bruce good way. With: Matt Mays. 8 pm - $22.50 ahead / $25 day of

Thursday: The Original Wailers at Alive at Five
Reggae band, traces its roots to Bob Marley. (They're also playing at Helsinki Hudson on Friday, tickets are $35.) With: MIRK. 5 pm - free

Thursday: NKOTB, Boyz II Men, 98º at the TU Center
No longer boys, but still in boy bands. 7:30 pm - $20 and up

Thursday: Flow Tribe at Red Square
Funk rock from New Orleans. 8 pm

Thursday: Simi Stone at Helsinki Hudson
"Mountain Motown" singer/songwriter. With: Ife and Danny. 8 pm - $12

Friday: Lucius at MASS MoCA
Indie pop group playing "movable, pop-up concerts" through the galleries at the museum. 3 pm and 6 pm - free with museum admission

Friday: Markellis, Haskell, Maul at Upbeat on the Roof
American roots/blues/swamp rock/country swing. 7 pm - free

Friday: Jes Hudak at Caffe Lena
Singer/songwriter, toured with big acts, been on TV, has a hit in Australia -- and now back where she started, at Caffe Lena. 8 pm - $16

Saturday: Bang on a Can Marathon at MASS MoCA
Six hours of non-stop music to close the annual festival. 4-10 pm - $24 concert only / $35 day pass (concert + admission) / $15 students

Saturday: Bend the Bars with Beats at Freedom Square in Troy
All ages hip hop show outside featuring Rebel Diaz, Baam Bada, S.K.A.T.E., and DJ Trumastr with DJ Cold Cut. 5 pm - free

Saturday: Lil Wayne at SPAC
With T.I. and Future. 7 pm - $29.75 and up

Saturday: The London Souls at Putnam Den
Rock band, from NYC. With: Murali Coryell. 9:30 pm - $8 ahead / $10

Saturday: Mary Fahl at Caffe Lena
Folk singer/songwriter. With: P.J. Pacifico. 8 pm - $22

Saturday: Blues Band Showdown at The Linda
Four-six local blues bands competing for a chance play in Memphis. 7 pm - $12

Sunday: Doña Oxford at Music Haven
"Goddess of soul." 7 pm - free

To do list

1. Sweet corn.

2. Heirloom tomatoes.

3. Blueberries.
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These are a just a few things for this week. Know of something people should be looking forward to this week? Please share!

The Saratoga Race Course, Capital Rep, Live Nation, and Alive at Five advertise on AOA.

photo: Danny Clinch