Atmosphere

Atmosphere

Atmosphere fans take it personally when you don’t give their favorite hip-hop group due props. Loudmouth rapper Slug is the prolific face of the Minneapolis collective, which has released five albums and amassed a dedicated Scribble Jam-happy family under the umbrella of Rhymesayers Entertainment. Dubbed the king of “emo rap” by Spin magazine, Slug is in fact a well-schooled MC with freestyle skills to boot. He and his crew are backed by the production wizardry of Anthony Davis (aka Ant), who seamlessly fuses elements of rock music and classic hip-hop. Atmosphere joins Blueprint, P.O.S. and DJ Rare Groove at 9 p.m. today at The Granada, 1020 Mass.

Sackbut Solos

KU’s music and dance department presents the concert Sackbut Solos: The Ancient Trombone Speaks, which features music by 17th-century trombonists and contemporary artists. Mike Hall, KU assistant professor of trombone, will perform on a modern replica of an 18th-century trombone called a sackbut, an instrument that features a softer, more vocal sound than a modern trombone. Hall is joined by a harpsichordist and double bassist. The show begins at 7:30 p.m. Saturday at Signs of Life, 722 Mass.

The Detroit Cobras

The Detroit Cobras

Crawling out from the weed-choked lots of the once-proud Motor City, The Detroit Cobras whip out rump-shaking anthems to good times, wild times and the high and lows of L-O-V-E. Singer Rachel Nagy and guitarist Mary Ramirez are the bad girls by the exit doors at the school dance, all leather and heels, sneaking smokes and passing the flask. They have no time for dewy-eyed love songs or girl group decorum; they’ll take care of business themselves with a bat of the eye or an elbow to the kidney. The Detroit Cobras join Reigning Sound at 9 p.m. Saturday at The Bottleneck, 737 N.H.

Choreographer’s Showcase

Susan Warden, artistic director of the 940 Dance Company, rehearses with the dancers.

Creators of dance from Lawrence and surrounding communities will share their latest works during the 15th annual Choreographers’ Showcase. Among the highlights: Susan Warden’s “Coffee Clutch,” in which four dancers portray the daily fixation on coffee; Candi Baker’s “Sister to a Butterfly,” a solo set to Kelley Hunt’s song of the same name and created for a breast cancer awareness project; Ric Averill’s “Fiddler’s Dream,” a physical duet danced by dueling fiddlers; and two works by Deborah Bettinger, one of which gives a glimpse into “The Snow Queen,” next year’s Lawrence Arts Center holiday show. Performances are at 7:30 p.m. today and Saturday at the arts center, 940 N.H.

Janeal Krehbiel, director of the Lawrence Children's Choir

Lawrence Children’s Choir

Coming off a tour of Germany this summer, the 73-member Lawrence Children’s Choir celebrates its 15th anniversary year with its fall concert. The group, which has traveled to England, sung at Carnegie Hall and taken 12 major tours, will sing works from Handel, Telemann, Purcell, Delibes and Elgar. Folk songs, contemporary works and an American Indian Micma’q Honour Song, complete with animal and woodland sounds, also are on the program, under the direction of Janeal Krehbiel. The group was recently accepted as one of four American choirs to perform at the International Choir Festival next July in Missoula, Montana. Audiences can catch the in-demand singers at 4 p.m. Sunday at Grace Cathedral, 701 S.W. Eighth Ave., in Topeka.