WEDNESDAY NIGHT LIVE: KWANZAA
ALTHEA RENE
Patterned on African harvest festivals, Kwanzaa takes its name from the Swahili phrase “matunda ya kwanza,” which means “first fruits.” The holiday, which runs from Dec. 26–Jan. 1, was launched by American Black activist and teacher Maulana Karenga in 1966. Karenga centered the holiday on seven principles. The Gantt’s celebration focuses on the fourth, Ujamaa (cooperative economics), with a candle-making workshop hosted by Happy Kat Candles, an African-inspired dance class with Jermaine Nakia Lee, and a session about Kwanzaa’s history with Kwanzaa Charlotte. A local artisan fair features hand-crafted items for sale. More: Free; Dec. 29, 6 p.m.; Gantt Center, 551 S. Tryon St.; ganttcenter.org
CHARLOTTE SYMPHONY: CIRQUE DE NOEL
The circus meets the symphony to celebrate the holidays. The death- and gravity-defying feats of derring-do performed by Cirque De Noel’s aerialists, gymnasts, jugglers and strongmen will be matched by the musical acrobatics performed by the Charlotte Symphony. Past Cirque and symphony match-ups have featured mimes, contortionists, dancers and a hand-balancing act, complemented by Alan Silvestri’s Suite from “The Polar Express,” the Troika from Sergei Prokofiev’s “Lt. Kije Suite,” and Duke Ellington’s take on “The Nutcracker Suite.” The show retrofits holiday favorites while staying true to the spirit of the season. More: $19 and up; Dec. 29 & 30, 7:30 p.m.; Belk Theater, 130 N. Tryon St.; blumenthalarts.org
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ANDY THE DOORBUM, PATOIS COUNSELORS, LOFIDELS, BOG LOAF
Singing in a gruff baritone pitched midway between hardscrabble folk and Gregorian chant, Andy Fenstermaker, better known as singer/songwriter and performance artist Andy the Doorbum, spins modern-day myths into tunes that sound as ancient and mysterious as Merlin’s incantations. His performance art incorporates costumes and personae both strange and surreal — a hooded magician on a darkened stage singing a nicotineravaged folk song or a towering creature of the forest, bedecked in a horned headdress, casting a shadow like an ancient glowering god. Think of it as an anti-NYE celebration. More: $5; Dec. 31, 9 p.m.; The Milestone, 3400 Tuckaseegee Road; themilestone.club
A jazz-influenced flutist and band leader with an affinity for funk, R&B and soul, Detroit native Althea Rene has crafted a bold, improvisational style. The daughter of original funk brother Dezie McCullers, Rene also worked for 11 years as a Wayne County deputy sheriff. During that time, she honed her musical chops at local clubs. Riding the crest of two irresistible singles, “Sunday Cruise” and “Free,” her 2013 album In the Flow topped Billboard’s smooth jazz chart. In 2018 she penned Becoming Chocolate Barbie: A Guide for Professional Women in the Music Business. More: $28-$40; Jan. 8, 7 p.m. & 9 p.m.; Middle C Jazz, 300 S Brevard St.; middlecjazz.com PAINT FUMES
PHAZE GAWD, YES CHEF!, JOE SIG
Anthony Potts, who performs as inventive, versatile rapper Phaze Gawd, keeps going from strength to strength. His astounding debut EP GAWD featured the infectious yet eerie anthem “Billy Grams,” which spawned an equally ebullient and schizophrenic video that won Best Male Hip-Hop Music Video at the 2017 Carolina Music Video Awards. His 2020 album AyoPhazoGo! upped the ante with bursts of high energy counterbalanced with melodic bliss. His recent single “Energy” boasts a slippery shapeshifting chorus where “You lack energy, you lack energy,” morphs almost imperceptibly into “That black energy.” More: $5; Jan. 5, 10 p.m.; Snug Harbor, 1228 Gordon St.; snugrock.com
PAINT FUMES, DROPSONIC, TONGUES OF FIRE
No one would have predicted that Charlotte’s fastest, most furious band would still be alive and kicking, yet here we are. Despite years of accrued sophistication and instrumental chops, Paint Fumes still revel in their sub-humble beginnings as musicians-in-residence at the QC’s aptly christened Sewercide Mansion. With sonic forebears including the bluesy swamp punk of Gun Club mixed with the snotty garage riffs of The Seeds, Paint Fumes maintain the brain-rewired-after-serious-headtrauma esthetic of ’60s idiot savants The Fugs. Not “ragged but right” so much as “wrong on so many levels,” this noise-rock trio continues to kick out the jams, far from running on fumes. More: $10; Jan. 7, 10 p.m.; Snug Harbor, 1228 Gordon St.; snugrock.com
COURTESY OF SLOVENLY RECORDS
JAZZ AT THE BECHTLER: POST HOLIDAY BLUES
Missing friends and family after the festivities or feeling left out in the cold? To counter the seasonalaffective gloom, the Ziad Jazz Quartet performs their annual post-holiday blues concert, highlighting tunes that reflect the many shades of blues. The high-caliber combo revolves around drummer Kobie Watkins, who has played with Sonny Rollins, Arturo Sandoval and more; and guitarist Andre Ferreri, who combines the energy of rock with improvisational jazz. Saxophonist Ziad Rabie, bassist Anna Stadlman and pianists Mark Stallings, Phillip Howe and Sean Higgins round out the crew. More: $16-$20; Jan. 7, 6 p.m. & 8:15 p.m.; Bechtler Museum, 420 S. Tryon St.; bechtler.org
FAMILY FIRST: R&B TECH
Soulful R&B artist, songwriter, studio owner and educator Jason Jet conducts a workshop open to all backgrounds and experience levels, blending songwriting, sound, and composition. Under the GrindHaus Studios founder’s tutelage, budding songwriters and producers will gain first-hand experience in song structure and composition. By the end of the workshop attendees will have crafted a verse and chorus to their own R&B ballad, which will then be recorded by Jet using software he uses on his own tracks. The collaborative experience encourages community, drawing on GrindHaus’ motto: “Grind together. Grind better.” More: $10; Jan. 8, noon; Gantt Center, 551 S. Tryon St.; ganttcenter.org
ALAN STONE
A self-described “hippie with soul,” Alan Stone has only made minor tweaks in his sound since his self-titled debut album cracked the Top 40 of Billboard’s R&B/Hip-Hop albums chart in 2011. That accomplishment was all the more remarkable because Stone crafted ridiculously engaging tunes by remaining resolutely rooted in the past. His grainy, unvarnished vocals and uplifting gospelrooted melodies draw on the vintage soul and R&B of Al Green, Bill Withers and George Clinton, with a soupcon of Prince thrown into the mix. His latest album, 2021’s APART, features acoustic versions of his past triumphs. More: $25; Jan. 11, 7:30 p.m.; The Underground, 820 Hamilton St.; fillmorenc.com
TUNES AND TOMES
This virtual book club for musicians and music lovers meets via Zoom. January’s title is Jennifer Egan’s 2011 Pulitzer Prize-winning novel A Visit From The Goon Squad. The book is comprised of 13 interrelated stories told in an array of styles ranging from tragedy to satire to PowerPoint, in which a large set of characters interact with aging punk rocker and record company executive Bennie Salazar and his assistant, Sasha. The reader uncovers the characters’ pasts in vignettes that touch on Sasha’s experience as a teenage runaway and Bennie’s encounters with an unreliable mentor. More: Free; Jan. 11, 6:30 p.m.; online; cmlibrary.bibliocommons.com/events
