MUTEK is a festival of electronic music in Montreal celebrating its tenth anniversary this June. MUTEK’s sharing the love (and getting the word out on a grand scale) by sending a sample of the festival to cities across America.

Here in Seattle we’re getting un petit morceau de festival with a Thursday night show at Nectar Lounge featuring Akufen, a Montreal native whose “utterly distinct, a cut-up, micro-sampled approach to house music” gained him a respectable following of fans. After releasing an experimental album in 2005, Akufen scaled back his involvement in the electronic scene but now he’s back and ready to rip it up.

Also on the bill: Stephen Beaupré who blends complex rhythms into abstract and organic textures to produce a mélange of house, techno, and funk.

Seattle’s own Nordic Soul kicks the whole night off.

21+, doors at 9

Of all the things I love about this city, one of the things I love the most are our Seattle Parks. Big or small or in-between, concrete jungle or wild wonderland, we’ve got an excellent variety of public park space available to us and I think that by and large the Parks Department does an excellent job of maintaining all of it.

Back in 2009, the Seattle Board of Park Commissioners approved the Wildlife Sanctuary Policy, a plan focused on the Parks Department’s commitment to sustaining habitats for wildlife including local populations of endangered and threatened species and locally important species with declining populations.

Seattle Parks and Recreation is working with the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife to identify and protect critical urban habitats for these vulnerable creatures.

Help them help these species by nominating a park site that you think should become a sanctuary. Nominations are open between April 15 and June 15. Assessments of all nominations will be completed by June 30, with the Parks Superintendent having the final say on all nominated sanctuaries.

Nomination forms, instructions and references are available online at the Wildlife Sanctuary website.

RJD2 surprised me in many ways. Let me count them for you:

1. He started on time. At Neumos, this is almost unheard of (at least when I go). But I was thrilled that Neumos said 10:45 and when I walked in expecting to still hear Busdriver, I got RJ up there on stage already starting song number 1.
2. He doesn’t need to have the kind of fun that Flaming Lips or Girl Talk explodes with. Case in point is when he wore a miner’s costume on and off, and when he played with a Super Mario puppet throughout a song. Simple, yet it made people interested.
3. I totally forgot that he did the Mad Men intro song. Surprises like that one made me smile as much as all the songs he played from The Third Hand. Plus, he didn’t disappoint in mixing it up with his old, not so old and new tunes.
4. I loved that there was an actual band. I actually danced way more to the band then to when he was playing by himself. The drums in particular were right on, especially when an audience member gave the drummer a big mouse (?) head to wear. When a band is willing to participate with the crowd, it’s bound to be a fun show.
5. Busdriver showed up at the end of the show. And boy, can he rap. I have no idea what he said but he sang it with conviction and heart and then he left the stage as soon as he came on.

So there you have it. For those who got to see this final leg of RJD2’s tour, I hope you were as happy with it as I was. For everyone else, you lose ☺

*Picture courtesy of Pitch Perfect PR

Princeton play the High Dive April 14

Los Angeles-based indie pop band Princeton count among their influences New Order (and also Something Else-era Kinks, Serge Gainsbourg, Arthur Russell, Scott Walker, Yo La Tengo and Gilberto Gil) which no doubt accounts for my being reminded of a certain type of New Wave band upon hearing them for the first time. I’d be more likely to class them with a pre-Top 40 success Spandau Ballet, but you’re free to judge for yourself when the band comes to Seattle for a show at the High Dive on Wednesday, April 14 with Swedish indie punk band Love Is All.

Touring to support their debut album Cocoon of Love, Princeton consists of twin brothers Jesse & Matt Kivel, Ben Usen and David Kitz. The band is named after Princeton Street in Santa Monica, where they grew up. Check them out ahead of time by viewing the video for “Calypso Gold”

Love Is All is ex-Girlfriendo members Josephine Olausson, Nicholaus Sparding, and Markus Görsch plus Johan Lindwall and Fredrik Eriksson. To get a taste of their work see the video for their charming song “Kungen”.

Show time is 8pm, 21+, $10 at the door or in advance through Brown Paper Tickets.

Kiehl’s has been making skin, body, and hair care products for people AND animals since 1851. Their products are available locally at Nordstrom and Barney’s and they’ve got their own store at University Village.

Motley Zoo is a Washington-state 501(c) (3) non-profit dedicated to rescuing and rehoming dogs and cats in need through their network of private foster homes.

On Saturday, April 10, the two come together for a Pet Adoption and Fund-raiser kick off at the U Village Kiehl’s from 11 am through 3 pm. Motley Zoo will bring some animals in need of a home to the store for people who are looking for a new friend to love: any customer who adopts gets a special bonus Kiehl’s gift box to take home with them.

Not ready to commit? That’s cool – it’s important to be prepared for a new pet. You can still make a difference by making a donation. Anyone who donates $10 or more on Saturday, or any day through April 17, gets to choose between a complimentary Creme de Corps body moisturizer or a Spray-N-Play Cleaning Spritz. Additionally, Kiehl’s is making their own cash donation to the cause.

Can’t make it down to U Village but still want to help? You can donate to Motley Zoo online.

Pacific Science Center breaks out the purple and gold this weekend with “Paws-On Science”, an event that brings together local families and their kids with scientists from the world class public research university in our back yard, the University of Washington.

All weekend long, Pacific Science Center is turning its galleries and exhibit halls into activity spaces showcasing the work being done at UW. Learn how local scientists are improving light bulbs and windows, determine if comic books can make you healthier, and have a chance to create a mini tsunami. Plus, on Saturday you get a chance to witness scat detection dog Mason as he demonstrates his effectiveness at his work. Also on Saturday, look for the UW Marching Band and Harry the Husky.

When a movie has Werner Herzog as a director and David Lynch as an executive producer, you know it’s going to be more than a little odd. In My Son, My Son, What Have You Done, the weirdness is only just getting started as a San Diego police officer (William DaFoe) is called to the scene after an actor (Michael Shannon) takes his role in Sophocles’ Oresteia a bit too seriously and murders his mother with a sword. Chloë Sevigny and Udo Kier have supporting roles. At NW Film Forum .

Friday only at NWFF: A retrospective of works by German painter and filmmaker Oskar Fischinger whose abstract animations made from the 1920s through the 1940s has had a lingering effect on the motion graphics of film. Optical Poetry features a series of Fischinger’s works and a 5mm cinemscope composite film recreating Fischinger’s multiple-projection performances, R-1, A Form-Play.

Saturday at NWFF: Seeing Sound: The Films of Mary Ellen Blute. Blute made a series of films that translated music into choreographed shapes, lights, shadows and forms.

Sunday at NWFF: The Magnificent Tati, a documentary about Jacques Tati, French comic film master.

SIFF Cinema spends the weekend celebrating Matthew Barney’s Cremaster Cycle. Filmed out of order (chronologically it’s 4, 1, 5, 2, and 3) over the period of nine years, the films are a five part art system too complicated to truly capture in capsule form. I recommend reading the Wikipedia article for an overview as this sort of advanced experimental filmmaking really isn’t for everyone.

The Grand Illusion goes back to the Sixties with 1965′s Bunny Lake Is Missing. In Otto Preminger’s psychological thriller, Ann Lake (Carol Lynley) is an unmarried American woman living in London whose four year old daughter goes missing from nursery school. When Police Inspector Newhouse (Laurence Olivier) arrives to investigate, the mystery becomes not just where is Bunny, but does Bunny even exist?

Late night at the Grand Illusion: Riot on the Sunset Strip, a 1967 teen exploitation flick in which the LAPD chief goes to war with those dirty hippies.

Midnight at the Egyptian: Everyone talks about David Bowie, but I’ve always thought Jennifer Connelly deserved more credit for her performance in Labyrinth. Sarah’s a mopey, self-absorbed teenager with a chip on her shoulder, but Connelly makes you like her even when she’s whining, “it’s not faaaiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiir”.

Living in one of Seattle’s oldest neighborhoods makes me particularly appreciative of historical preservation efforts, but the work that local groups do to maintain our city’s historic sites benefits all of us. To that end,Historic Seattle, the local non-profit dedicated to architectural preservation in the city, has named seven winners for their second annual Preservations Awards.

Awards celebrate excellence in preserving and protecting built heritage.

This year’s winners are:

Furuya and Corgiat Buildings and Joshua Green Building for Best Rehabilitation

William Tell Building for Preserving Neighborhood Character.

Women’s University Club for Exemplary Stewardship

Downtown Historic Resources Survey and Inventory for Excellence in Preservation Planning

Paramount Theatre Sign and 5th Avenue Theatre Sign for Illuminating History

All of the winners will be honored at a ceremony on May 11 (May is National Historic Preservation Month) at Women’s University Club, 1105 Sixth Avenue (at Spring Street). The event includes appetizers, desserts, wine and beer; doors open at 5:30 pm and the program begins at 6:30. Tickets are $50 for Historic Seattle members, $60 for the general public and a mere $25 for students. Register in advance at Historic Seattle or by phone at 206.622.6952.

Another first Wednesday of the month means another Laff Hole via the fine folks at the People’s Republic of Komedy.

This month’s Laff Hole features as special guest The Famous Mysterious Actor Show, all the way from Portland, OR. FMA is the creation of Portland sketch comedian Joe Frice who was performing a routine spoofing a late night talk show when a loud drunk in the audience started throwing beer at the stage. Instead of freaking out, the cast saw this as their golden chance to return the favor and FMA was born. (Want to know more before you get involved? Check out Portland Mercury.)

Also on the bill: the spontaneous and absurd Rory Scovel and DJ Barbarella spinning the tunes.

Laff Hole starts at 9pm at Chop Suey. Cover is $10, 21+.

Moya Angela as Effie in a photo by Joan Marcus

The challenge all established plays face is keeping the story fresh when it’s too well known for surprise. Simply sticking to the script isn’t enough but make too many alterations and you lose your audience. Broadway Across America‘s current production of Dreamgirls, now on stage at the Paramount incorporates two new songs, including one created specifically for the movie version but otherwise stays true to the original play, relying on its cast to keep the show current.

It’s a wise choice. Moya Angela is stunning as Effie White. It must be intimidating stepping into a role that made the careers of Jennifer Holliday and Jennifer Hudson, but Angela manages to find a way to make it her own. Naturally, she has the superb voice this part requires – indeed, her rendition of “And I Am Telling You I’m Not Going” is every bit the show-stopper it’s meant to be – but she deserves praise for her acting skill, too. Brash, headstrong and temperamental Effie is strong-voiced in more than one way but underneath the would-be diva’s ego is a vulnerable woman whose talent seems to be her only chance to be “somebody”. When she’s pushed away from her slot in the spotlight by the man she thought loved her and the friends she thought would always be behind her, her wounded pride turns her venomous. And yet, even when Effie’s at her worst, Angela never lets you forget that there’s a complicated person behind that brilliant voice.

The absolute standout member of the cast, however, is Chester Gregory whose James “Thunder” Early gives the Dreamettes (the “dreamgirls” of the title, whose name will later become “The Dreams”) their first shot at musical success, only to become overshadowed by them no matter how many style changes he acquiesces to at the behest of Curtis Taylor (Chaz Lamar Shepherd), car salesman-turned-promoter extraordinaire who wastes no time in working to push “Jimmy”‘s existing manager, Marty (Milton Craig Nealy) into the same corner he shoves anyone who interferes with his dream. Jimmy Early is every bit as crass as Taylor, hardly a model of exemplary behavior himself, calls him, but despite his moral failings, you can’t help but like him. Credit Gregory’s charisma for that; credit his great musical talent for the way he effortlessly slips between the spirited soul he loves and the blander pop Taylor insists he perform. His fall from fame is mostly his own fault, but it’s touching nonetheless.

Syesha Mercado is an appropriately lovely Deena Jones, the back-up singer pushed into the role of frontwoman not being because she’s the best singer, but because she’s the best looking. Trevon Davis and Margaret Hoffman are good as CC White and Michelle Morris, respectively. Rounding out the cast is Adrienne Warren as Lorrell Robinson, the third of the original Dreamettes. She spends much of the show being the go along to get along girl who stands in the shadows of the primary players but when the time comes for Lorrell to finally stand up for herself, Warren makes you see that she’s had her own reserve of strength all along and it’s glorious to see her fully put it to use.

Dreamgirls continues through April 11; buy tickets online or call the box office at 1.877.784.4849.