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: We Make Noise Fest at Downtown Crossing
The end of August is usually the quietest time of the year, but Boston’s Downtown Crossing is about to get loud this Saturday (August 24) with the arrival of We Make Noise Fest. The free, all-inclusive music, art, and vendor showcase on Washington and Summer streets, in collaboration with Mass NOW, aims to empower, connect, and educate women and gender-expansive artists across multiple stages. And the lineup is all-star caliber, with Oompa, Cakeswagg, Amanda Shea, Naomi Westwater, Lisa Bello, 1-800-SHORT-KING, Kühlname, Daniela Gómez, Analise, Kim Moberg, Gabriella Simpkins, and dogtailcorners taking part. “This will be a celebration of the great diverse local talent that makes Boston such a unique place to live,” says Westwater, who co-organized the event. “From the artists to the vendors, makers, artisans, and more the We Make Noise Festival will uplift voices and showcase talents of often overlooked and marginalized communities.”
WE MAKE NOISE FEST :: Saturday, August 24 at Downtown Crossing in Boston, MA :: 11 a.m. to 8 p.m., all ages, free admission :: Event info
Music: Passenger at House of Blues
More than a decade on, Passenger’s lights still shine bright. The project from English indie folk singer-songwriter Michael Rosenberg broke out in 2012 with All The Little Lights, elevating him from street performer to acclaimed platinum-selling artist. Last fall, Passenger re-recorded and completely re-imagined the album for the All The Little Lights (Anniversary Edition) treatment, enlisting the likes of Foy Vance, Gabrielle Aplin, and Nina Nesbitt for special collaborations, as well as his longtime friend and tourmate, Ed Sheeran, teaming up on a rebooted “Let Her Go.” Now he brings the lights back to North America, playing Citizens House of Blues this Sunday (August 25). “I’m absolutely delighted to announce that I’ll be heading over this summer to play a bunch of shows,” Passenger writes on Insta. “Looking at this list of venues I’m absolutely buzzing — genuinely some of my absolute favourites. I’m a very lucky boy to get to go back to these amazing rooms.”
PASSENGER + SYML :: Sunday, August 25 at the House of Blues, 15 Lansdowne St. in Boston, MA :: 7 p.m., all ages, $33 to $55 :: Event info :: Advance tickets
Film/TV: ‘The Texas Chain Saw Massacre’ at The Brattle
We hope everyone enjoyed this week’s “false fall” weather, which weirdly coincided with the retail stories stocking their shelves for Halloween (for real, we spent all week in a cozy sweater watching YouTube videos on the new line of spooky shit at Lowe’s, Michaels, and Party City). But nothing gets us into an October mood like horror movies, and this weekend The Brattle celebrates the 50th anniversary of The Texas Chain Saw Massacre with a new 4K restoration as part of its Cruel Summer series. It’s remarkable that this film can still be so terrifying, but that’s why it’s an absolute classic. Here’s the word from the Cambridge theater as the chainsaws fire up in the smoky distance: “Who will survive and what will be left of them? When a van load of road tripping hippies stop at the wrong house to ask for help, they stir up a hornets’ nest of demented, inbred hicks who have developed a taste for human flesh.”
‘THE TEXAS CHAIN SAW MASSACRE’ :: Friday, August 23 to Sunday, August 25 at The Brattle, 40 Brattle St. in Cambridge, MA :: Friday at 9 p.m., Saturday at noon and 9 p.m., and Sunday at 9 p.m :: Event page and ticket info