Here’s a guide to some of this weekend’s entertainment and culture highlights. For a full list of events, visit the Mercury’s online calendar.
FRIDAY, MAY 20
Knox Heritage Lost and Found Luncheon
Knox Heritage • 11:30 a.m.-1 p.m. • Free
Jack Neely (of the Mercury and the Knoxville History Project, duh) and Kim Trent (of Knox Heritage) will talk about the history of preservation in Knoxville while you eat. It seems reasonable to expect that Knox Heritage’s recently announced Fragile 15 list of local endangered historic properties—featuring the Knoxville College campus, the Cal Johnson Building, the Pryor Brown Garage, and the Greyhound bus station—will be one subject of discussion.
Sturgill Simpson
Tennessee Theatre • 8 p.m. • $35.50-$45.50
Sturgill Simpson’s new album, A Sailor’s Guide to Earth, is almost certainly the strangest number-one country album of the year—it’s a nautically themed cosmic country-funk song cycle about being born, growing up, and big transitions.
The Damned Angels
The Open Chord • 8 p.m. • $5
The Knoxville/Asheville/Atlanta-based Damned Angels are committed to old-fashioned (as in circa 1982) sleazy Sunset Strip-style glam rock ’n’ roll. Read Mike Gibson’s profile here. With Tractorhead.
The CrumbSnatchers
Scruffy City Hall • 10 p.m. • $5
Rising local favorites the CrumbSnatchers have found a sweet spot where indie rock, art pop, and punk come together—often with combustible results. The band is finally releasing its first album, Big House, after more than a year of delays. Read more about the band here. With Baby Baby and the Tom Pappas Collection.
SATURDAY, MAY 21
Smoky Mountain Scottish Festival and Games
Maryville College • Free
You don’t have to be Scottish to enjoy this festival, one of the oldest Scottish fests in the country. There will be dozens of pipe and drum bands, traditional dancers, sheepdog demonstrations, and a plethora of traditional Celtic food vendors—plus, of course, the caber toss, stone put, hammer throw, a kilt run, and other impressive feats of Highland prowess. (The festival continues on Sunday.)
Kim Trevathan: “I’m Not Fishing, I’m Working!”
Central United Methodist Church • 10 a.m.-noon • $45
Kim Trevathan—a Maryville College instructor, author of the books Paddling the Tennessee River: A Voyage on East Water, Coldhearted River: A Canoe Odyssey Down the Cumberland, and Liminal Zones: Where Lakes End and Rivers Begin, and, oh yeah, the Mercury’s popular outdoor columnist—leads this class on outdoor writing for the Knoxville Writers’ Guild. Discounts are available for students and KWG members.
Children’s Festival of Reading
World’s Fair Park • 10 a.m.-3 p.m. • Free
Whether you’re an actual kid, have a kid, know a kid, or sometimes wish you were still a kid, you’ll find plenty of fun at the Knox County Public Library’s annual celebration of the imagination. This year’s guest stars include David Soman (the Ladybug Girl series), Ursula Vernon (Dragonbreath), Joseph Bruchac (The Hunter’s Promise: An Abenaki Tale), and many more.
SUNDAY, MAY 15
Society of Appalachian Historians Conference
East Tennessee History Center • $40
Three days of cutting-edge world-class scholarship on topics like “backcountry veterans and the legacy of the American Revolution, sexuality and gender in Appalachia, pre- and post-Civil War’ agricultural transition in the region, and discipline and punishment in coal mining and religious circles.” (The conference continues on Monday and Tuesday.)
Knoshville Jewish Food Festival
Arnstein Jewish Community Center • 11 a.m.-3 p.m. • Free
“Knosh” on a full menu of traditional Jewish food—from bagels and lox to Bundt cake—at the inaugural Knoshville fest. Kosher, of course, but also vegetarian-friendly (and some gluten-free items will also be available).
Senior Editor Matthew Everett manages the Knoxville Mercury's arts & entertainment section, including the comprehensive calendar section—Knoxville’s go-to guide for everything worth doing in the area. You can reach Matthew at matthew@knoxmercury.com.
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