Text of Light

Text of Light

Even though Sonic Youth continues to crank out new material, guitarist Lee Ranaldo still has time to explore new avenues in experimental music with his side project, Text of Light. The four-piece ensemble – also consisting of Roger Miller (Mission of Burma and the Alloy Orchestra), guitarist Alan Licht and drummer William Hooker – will score three films of the late Stan Brakhage. The works include “Window Water Baby Moving” (1962, childbirth film), “The Jesus Trilogy” and “Coda” (2000, hand-painted cameraless films), and “The Act of Seeing With One’s Own Eyes” (1971, graphic autopsy film). The show starts at 9 p.m. Saturday at Fahrenheit Gallery, 1717 W. Ninth St., Kansas City, Mo.

Beans

“Johnny Butts” Fundraiser

The cast and band of the original rock musical “Johnny Butts” will perform selections in preparation of its Aug. 4 debut at the Lawrence Arts Center. The show by Andy Stowers and Nick Wells tells the story of a young, mentally ill street artist who experiences a meteoric rise to and fall from fame. The musical showcase will be followed by sets from local bands Left E. Grove, Piston and Lo Fi & Lot Lizard. The fundraiser kicks off at 9 p.m. Sunday at The Jackpot Saloon, 943 Mass.

Beans

'Headwaters'

Since stepping away from the groundbreaking underground act Antipop Consortium, avant-rapper Beans has continued creating forward-thinking beats and rhymes for music fans who crave more from their hip-hop. Shouting out artists as diverse as Suicide, Sun Ra and Afrika Bambaataa, Beans is a diversely schooled musician whose audience extends to the Radiohead contingent and beyond. Equally high-minded local rapper ID (of Archetype) sets the stage along with DJ Candlewax (Brett Lippincott of Datura Records). The artists perform at 10 p.m. today at The Jackpot Saloon, 943 Mass.

‘Headwaters’

The sculptures in Margaret Haydon’s latest exhibition are characterized by an obsession with images of boats and figures as metaphors for psychological landscape, journey and transformation through time. Haydon, who teaches ceramics at the University of Wyoming, has been working with boat imagery for more than 10 years. In her work, the boat is a visual reminder that life is a journey, ever changing, never fixed. “Headwaters” opened Tuesday at the Lawrence Arts Center, 940 N.H., and remains on view through Aug. 25. An opening reception coincides with the Downtown Friday Gallery Walk from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. today.

'Light up Lawrence'

‘Light up Lawrence’

There will be lamps made of saucepans and lamps made of concrete. There will be lamps that look like they came off an assembly line, and even one made of a stack of CDs with a fluorescent bulb in the center. They’re the entries in “Light Up Lawrence,” KOJO’s first lamp-design contest. First-, second- and third-place winners will be announced today during the Downtown Friday Gallery Walk, from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. The funky creations will be in a silent auction through July 31 at the gallery, 745 N.H. A portion of the proceeds will be donated to the Lawrence Arts Center and Van Go Mobile Arts.