Pick of the Week: 30 June - 6 July

Vanishing Point - Watergate Cinematek

Be Inspired
Once you leave school, it can be hard working out what the heck you’re meant to do next, especially if you’ve got a great idea bubbling in your head but don’t know what to do with it. Well, if you’re between the ages of 16-24, this session is an incredible opportunity - fifteen working professionals from the likes of Rolls Royce and the BBC will be talking about their lessons learned and ways of getting into their chosen industries. You better bring a notepad, cos there’s bound to be plenty of top tips to jot down. Pair that with a live showcase of some of Nottingham’s finest musicians, and a performance by Shezar, Labrinth’s sister, and you’ve got a lot of bang for your (free) buck.
Wednesday 2 July, 2pm, free, Nottingham Contemporary

It’s Not Very Nice That
For all you graphic design heads, it’s not just your everyday posters, adverts and publications where graphic design plays a part in our day to day visuals, it’s everywhere, including politics. The latest Near Now talk will be taking you around the contemporary politically engaged graphic design exhibition, looking in to the different way the practice engages with political upheavals such as Occupy Wall Street and Tahrir Square. Focussing on the social, economic, cultural and technological contexts which the designers look at when they produced these works. In an ever changing world, design is an fluid medium that can shape the way we perceive things. Take another look…
Wednesday 2 July, 6.15pm, £5/£4, Broadway

Lyric Lounge 
A bit like a gypsy version of a festival, the Lyric Lounge travels all around the East Midlands, bringing with it a line-up full of artists, live literature, music, film and workshops. You can set your poetry to some music, have a cuppa over some lyrical chat in the Old Library cafe, and even witness just how powerful poetry can be when paired with film. On top of all that, there’ll be performances from The Mouthy Poets, Andrew “Mulletproof” Graves, and Derbyshire Poet Laureate (2011-2013) Matt Black and The Brothers of Beeley Moor. Considering tickets are on a first come, first serve basis, we suggest getting yersen down there early.
Thursday 3 July, 5.30pm. £5, The Old Library Mansfield

Xylophone Tribute
Can you believe it’s been ten years since you last heard the tinkling sounds of Xylophone Man as you made your way through the city centre? He may not have had the largest body of work, but his tunes resonated in the hearts of many a resident. To celebrate the legend that he was, Edd Fisher has organised two performances with The Frank Robinson Tribute Band; the first is on Listergate where the commemorative plaque was laid, and the second is an evening performance at Hopkinson on Station Street. The band is made up of today’s buskers, including the saxophone-wielding Mogs Morgan. Don’t be sad about what we’ve lost - celebrate a man who helped make Nottingham special.
Friday 4 July, 2pm, free, Listergate. 7pm, £2.50/£3, Hopkinson

Vanishing Point and The Last Detail
It’s Independence Day in the US of A - means nowt to us except it’s a great excuse to watch movies that don’t star Tom Cruise. The brand new film club on the scene, Watergate Cinematek, promise screenings of cult classics and obscure gems of the Hollywood New Wave - a movement that spanned the late sixties to the early eighties. Their ‘Inauguration Night’ is a double-bill of cult car-chase movie Vanishing Point, starring Barry Newman and a 1971 white Dodge Challenger squealing around hairpin turns in the American West, and Jack Nicholson as one half of a sailor duo who while taking a navy criminal to military prison are intent on having a good time.
Friday 4 July, 9pm, £7.70, Broadway Cinema

Sura Susso
Farmyard and New Art Exchange have a knack for bringing incredible musical talent to Notts; talent that you probably wouldn’t hear about otherwise. The latest musical genius to grace Notts courtesy of them is Sura Susso, a Gambian kora player and percussionist who makes some truly beautiful compositions. Having been born into a Griot family in Gambia, Sura is respected as a lyricist as well as a source of advice and spiritual guidance. Something that is clear in his music, with its soothing and gentle meanderings. Expect to come away from this intimate gig with your soul lifted. Not bad for a Friday night out.
Friday 4 July, 7.30pm, £9/£7, New Art Exchange

The Most Ugly Child EP Launch 
One of the few bands this side of the Atlantic that make authentic Americana, their sound will transport you to a rural dusty town somewhere in the southern heat of the US, and has you dancing like nobody’s watching. They’ve been working on their new EP A Wicked Wind Blows for donkey’s, and now that it’s finally ready, they’re throwing a proper old fashioned barn style party to celebrate. Keeping the country-esque theme, there’s support from The Hog Renderers, Ryan Thomas, and The Rip Roaring Success. They’re even providing a bit of grub, and a top secret after party too. If that ain’t hospitality, what is?
Friday 4 July, 7.30pm, free, Vintage Warehouse

The MonsterPussy Sessions
Dick Venom & The Terrortones are one of the most exciting, and most terrifying live acts you will ever see. Falling somewhere between sleazy eighties glam rock and punk, their performances really are something to behold, and often end up with Dick thrusting his tight leather briefs in your direction. Every productive, to celebrate the launch of their new EP - The MonsterPussy Sessions - they’re putting on quite the show; with a performance, burlesque dancers, fire breathing flesh eaters, and a few support acts too. Oh, and it’s Dick’s birthday too… yes, you should be worried.
Friday 4 July, 8pm, £3, The Running Horse

Derby Road and Canning Circus Summer Fayre
It used to be that the only fairs you got to go to were at your school – on a weekend, yuck. This one’s a far cry from that nonsense. Giant puppets will be walking around throughout the day, there’s a watercolour demonstration from local artist Oliver Lovley, bead and felt workshops, two photo competitions and everyone’s welcome at Windblowers to have a bash, blow and tinkle on their instruments. More hoppy competitions are a blindfolded beer tasting at Hand and Heart and a soft peg (it’s a firkin thing…) guessing competition at the John Borlaise Warren. And that’s just scratching the surface, there’s loads more things to win, fiddle with, sample, sup, chow down on and stare at. It’s Britain though, don’t forget your umbrella.
Saturday 5 – Sunday 6 July, free, Derby Road and Canning Circus

Jam on the Tram
Have you ever sat on a tram and thought, “well, this is a bit boring?” Don’t worry, your journey is about to get a lot more exciting this weekend. The professional mover folks of Dance4 have got together with Notts’ eNGine Collective to give you the best tram ride of your life. Thanks to some choreography from New Zealand dance artist Sacha Copeland, you can expect to see people flinging themselves all over the shop, physical comedy, and interaction with plenty of the unexpecting members of the ‘audience’. Travel will never have been more exciting.
Saturday 5 July, 11am - 4pm, various tram routes

The Making of Dawn of the Unread
Not content with shouting about how great Nottingham’s literature scene is in the pages of LeftLion, our Literature Editor James Walker set himself the weighty challenge of producing an interactive graphic novel all about Notts’ literary history. The eight-part project has already released four of the instalments –get on your tablet, phone or computer and download ‘em – and this event will feature some of the artists and writers involved. Niki Valentine, John ‘Brick’ Clarke, Alison Moore and James Walker himself will be giving you the low down of what Dawn of the Unread is all about and why we need to use libraries to save our minds and souls from the plague that is literary mediocrity. Boooooks!
Saturday 5 July, free, Worksop Library

For the full motherload of everything else going on this week check out our comprehensive Nottingham events listings.

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