Editor’s Note: Welcome to V3 Weekend, Vanyaland‘s guide to help you sort out your weekend entertainment with curated selections and recommendations across our three pillars of Music, Comedy, and Film/TV. It’s what you should know about, where you need to be, and where you’ll be going, with us riding shotgun along the way.
Music: Emei at Brighton Music Hall
Brighton Music Hall has been a true launchpad for future superstars lately, and next to roll through the Allston rock club en route to bigger stages is Emei, who brings the bass to Brighton Avenue this evening (March 21). The Los Angeles alt-pop singer is riding high on the momentum of two banger 2024 singles, August’s throbbing and un-eff-withable “RABBITHOLE” and September’s pulsating “ALL THESE KIDS” — and in both cases, the all-caps distinction is well-aligned with their massive sound. A new track called “Crazy Stupid Love” dropped last month, but we’re still hung up on the other ones. “ALL THESE KIDS,” in particular, was produced by Timfromthehouse (Tove Lo, MARINA) and Yung Bae, and here’s what Emei has to say about it: “This song is the confident front I put up while my whole world feels like it falls apart. I imagine there being two of me in this song, one scared while watching and listening to this confident version of me, and the other on a throne screaming at the other. It feels like the pep talk that plays in my head before I play a show.” We’re about to experience the other side of that very soon. Buckle up; don’t sleep.
EMEI + ASHLEY MEHTA :: Friday, March 14 at Brighton Music Hall, 158 Brighton Ave. in Allston, MA :: 7 p.m., all ages, $25 :: Event info :: Advance tickets
Comedy: Fugitive Comedy at Sanctuary
They say Maynard is the new Allston, and here’s further proof: Fugitive Comedy has been slinging laughs at Sanctuary each month, and it continues to shape the emerging cultural center as an intriguing option for live entertainment outside the Boston area (check Abbie Barrett’s monthly Saturday Spins in the lounge, and upcoming shows by Andrea Gillis, Sarah Levecque, and Danielle Miraglia). Fugitive’s comedy lineup tonight is top-notch, and something close to what we’d probably find at Great Scott a few years back, as Sanctuary welcomes a pair of Vanyaland faves in Will Noonan and Tooky Kavanagh alongside Anthony Eugenio and host Kathy Gilmour. Laugh it up, but the ‘burbs northwest of Boston is where it’s at right now.
FUGITIVE COMEDY :: Friday, March 21 at Sanctuary, 82 Main St. in Maynard, MA :: 7 p.m., $20 :: Event info :: Advance tickets
Film/TV: Boston Underground Film Festival at The Brattle
Earlier this week Vanyaland film editor Nick Johnston previewed this year’s Boston Underground Film Festival, or BUFF as the locals call it, by previewing five films not to miss at The Brattle in Cambridge. The curtain-raiser included screenings this weekend of The Ugly Stepsister, Re-Animator, and Escape from the 21st Century, but we’re also super intrigued by Saturday’s Sound + Vision: Music Videos program, which delivers clips from our beloved Fontaines D.C. alongside Cults, Justice, Clairo, and tons more. BUFF’s Shannen Ortale breaks it down: “This year we’re serving up a fancy feast of 25 mind-bending gems that push the boundaries of imagination. Brace yourself for a radical audiovisual adventure. BUFF has once again scoured the dark corners of YouTube, Vimeo and beyond to craft a monstrous mixtape of crazy good vids from across the globe. This year’s ensemble features all manner of brilliant, wild and heart-stopping stories.” Word up.
BOSTON UNDERGROUND FILM FESTIVAL :: Now through Sunday, March 23 at The Brattle, 40 Brattle St. in Cambridge, MA :: Screenings and info