MUSIC SCENE: Punk rock, blues jams, Halloween frights abound

LITTLE ROCK — Central Arkansas punk rock group Smoke Up Johnny will host a CD release party tonight at the White Water Tavern, West Seventh and Thayer streets in Little Rock.

Kyoto Boom, Drexel and Burt Taggart of The Big Cats will open the show at 9 p.m.

Admission is $5. Call (501) 375-8400.

Smoke Up Johnny consists of Alan Disaster on guitar and lead vocals, Corey Bacon on guitar, Jon Rice on drums and Matt Floyd on bass. The members - who variously were in other bands, such as Queen Cobra, The Looks, Go Fast, Real Fighting, Amores Revenge and Stranger Steals - came together two years ago in Levy, but, according to press materials, the group "was immediately outlawed from dogtown."

The biography continues: "They pledge allegiance towaywardness with a gutwrenching angst, an artful intellect and a devotion to originality."

Zydeco Wild at Halloween, a dance party and costume contest fundraiser, will be held at 7 p.m. today at The Art Scene Gallery and Art Market, 201 Maple St., North Little Rock.

Mojo and the Bayou Gypsies will perform and Cajun food and beverages are included in the admission price.

Tickets are $40 in advance, $50 at the door. Call (501) 374-0622.

The Arkansas River Blues Society will host a fundraiser at 8 p.m. Saturday at the Cornerstone Pub & Grill, 314 Main St., North Little Rock.

Performers will include Dan & Al, Brethren and Cosmic Biscuit, with a show-ending jam by all the performers.

Cover charge is $5. Call (501) 920-7783.

The final Rock N Roar of the year will be held Saturday in the Civitan Amphitheater of the Little Rock Zoo, 1 Jonesboro Drive.

The Boondogs will headline, and the show will open at 9 p.m. with The Running Back, a band from Arkadelphia.

Cover charge is $5, with all ages admitted. Beer and wine will be available to those age 21 and over. Call (501) 666-2406.

The Rhythm and Brews Music/Coffeehouse will be held from 6 to 9 p.m. Sunday at St. Thomas' Reformed Episcopal Church, 4411 Woodlawn Drive, Little Rock.

The show will feature Brian Neal of Lancaster, Pa., as the headliner, plus opening acts Public Eye from Beebe and Dolores Alfieri of Little Rock.

Admission is $5. Call (501) 663-7708.

The Arkansas Community Arts Cooperative will present "The Great Halloween Cover-Up" at 8:30 p.m. Saturday at Vino's, West Seventh and Chester streets. Doors will open at 8 p.m.

Admission to the all-ages show is $7; $6 for those wearing a Halloween costume.

Performers, masquerading as famous acts, are:

Nathan Browningham as Prince; Juggernaut Glitch, featuring Ill Chemist and Sir Real as Public Enemy; The Bloodless Cooties as T Rex; and Sludgefest, featuring members of Woolly Mammoth, as Dinosaur Jr.

Dead to Fall and Born of Osiris will perform at 7 p.m. Sunday at Vino's.

Admission is $5. Call (501) 375-8466.

The Loft, a Nashville, Tenn., band that combines rock, funk and blues into its shows, will perform tonight at Juanita's, 13th and Main streets, Little Rock. Bryan Frazier will open the show at 10 p.m.

Admission is $7. Those age 18 and over will be admitted.

Michael Graves, formerly of The Misfits, will play at 9:30 p.m. Saturday at Juanita's, in a show open to those age 18 and over. Cover charge is $10.

An Angle, a new alternative country band, will headline a 6 p.m. Sunday show at Juanita's, along with four other acts: Plu, Grand Serenade, Verona Grove and Father Maple. Cover charge is $5. Call (501) 374-3271.

Big Smith, a five-cousin band from Springfield, Mo .,returns to central Arkansas for a show at 10 p.m. today at the Revolution Room, 300 President Clinton Ave., Little Rock.

Admission is $8. Call (501) 823-0090.

Blues Traveler, a veteran jam band that was the official grand opening act for the Revolution Room, will return for another show there Saturday night. Lisa Bouchelle will open the show at 8 p.m.

Tickets are $18 in advance, $20 the day of the show, which is open to those age 18 and over.

The Ozark Foothills Chili Cook-Off will be held Saturday at the Speedway RV Park in Desha, four miles southwest of Batesville on Arkansas 25.

Gates will open at 9 a.m. and music starts at 10 a.m.

All area musicians are invited to bring their instruments and join their peers on the Pickin' Porch. All kinds of music are welcome.

Admission is $2; free for children age 18 and under.

Musicians who plan to perform will be admitted free.

Proceeds will benefit the Desha Volunteer Fire Department. Admission includes a chili-tasting cup and spoon.

Call (870) 251-1008. There will also be arts and crafts, a horseshoe competition and a classic car show presented by the River City Cruisers.

Runaway Planet, Willie "Big Eyes" Smith, The Apple Brothers, Grenwillis, Thomas Nelson and Caleb Cobb will perform on a taping of the Woodsongs syndicated radio program at 7:30 p.m. today in Riceland Hall at Fowler Center at Arkansas State University in Jonesboro.

The Woodsongs Old-Time Radio Hour is hosted by folk singer Michael Johnathon, who is based in Mousie, Ky., and normally broadcasts his show from a theater in Lexington, Ky., except when he takes his show on the road.

Tickets are $30 and $20; $15 for ASU faculty and staff, senior citizens and students in grades kindergarten through 12th grade; and $10 and $6 for ASU students. Call (888) 278-3267 or (870) 972-2781 or see the Web site tickets.astate.edu.

Runaway Planet is from Little Rock, Smith is from Helena, The Apple Brothers are from Batesville, Greenwillis is from Mountain View, Nelson is from Hope, and Cobb is from McCrory.