by RAF KATIGBAK

As New York City gets ready to raise its terror alert a notch in preparation for the Republican National Convention (I believe they're up to "Periwinkle Alert" now), Montreal will also be getting ready for a street occupation of a very different kind. If you're not planning to head down to NYC but still feel like you need to spend the weekend wandering the streets with a bunch of strangers, then head over to St-Laurent's annual Main Madness sidewalk sale. It may just be the ideal place to contemplate the shortcomings of Bush's interventionalist foreign policy, while at the same time picking up a great deal on striped tube socks - three pairs for $5! With entertainment that promises to out-funk the RNC musical bookings of Dexter Freebish and Lee Ann Womack, Inbeat Records will of course have their usual roster of top-notch local talent from Thursday to Sunday, including Jojoflores, Dr. Love, Christian Pronovost, Fred Everything, Mighty Kat, Simon B and much more.

If the thought of being herded up and down the Main, dodging kamikaze strollers and unicycling, fire-breathing ukulele buskers frightens you and you'd rather kick back at an outdoor, 34,000-watt costumed psychedelic trance rave, then you're in luck. On Friday, Spiral Rekordz is hosting Psychedelik Theater (which, I've been assured, was not inspired by my Grade 11 prog-rock cover band of the same name). The event features special sets from Moscow's Kindzadza and Gothenburg, Sweden's Mashed Potatoes as well as a team of other Goa and psy-trance DJs. Tickets are $40 at the door, $35 with costume. Check www.spiralrekordz.com for details.

For the industrially inclined, Saturday's ever popular Replikant V2.0 night at Saphir will be hosting Terrorfakt's Cold Steel World CD release party with DJ Engelke and DJ Brainstormer. Over at Missy Bar, PVC Productions' DJs Radiowhore and Amyl Nitrate welcome hometown electro-psych rockers the Unireverse to their Razzmatazz night this Saturday. If y'all haven't caught these guys yet, prepare to be entranced by their beat-driven analog drone and synth-pop shenanigans. Three measly bucks!

Tonight, Aug. 26, check out Epsilon Lab's Eloi Brunelle and Trigger Recordings' François LeBaron as they rock the new night Eden at Unity II. With special guest Miguel Graça in the Main Room and Kink!'s electro-punk in the Bamboo Bar, Unity II boasts one-stop shopping for Montreal's rainbow-friendly crowd.

Fluid Thursday keeps things mixed up with a special guest, DJ/artist/producer Machine (aka Stinky Marinky the Croatian Sensation) of St. Catharines, Ontario. If he's not producing tracks for a number of Helsinki imprints or his own Porno House and Ghetto$y$tem labels, Machine can be found working with several local theatre troupes, creating experimental installation works with vinyl interventions or teaching troubled youth the art of DJing at the local YMCA. Join him alongside residents Sarcastic, Axionfigga and Galaksy at Juice.

This Friday, the ROBO/TEK nights return to the scene, this time at the Green Room. DJs Jan Pienkowski, DJ Cyan, Guapo and Sarcastic will provide the tech-house, electro and techno while VJ Fluid and les Technocrates kick out the eye candy. Five dollar cover.

Mmmm… tube socks… Diskoakimbo@sympatico.ca

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