MUSIC: If your idea of a perfect night involves tropical beats and a balance between synth and guitar-driven rock, then Young Empires will make you head straight for the dance floor tonight at 7:30 p.m. at Water Street Music Hall (204 N. Water St., waterstreetmusic.com, $10-$12). The Toronto quartet blends the grandiosity of bands like The Killers with feel-good pop a la Black Kids. The result is a modern disco-like soundtrack that could be this year’s fling.
THEATER: Check out Wilson Magnet Drama/Video Club’s production of "Kill Shakespeare," adapted from the comic book, tonight at 7:30 p.m. at MuCCC (142 Atlantic Ave.). The show will also be staged Saturday at 2 & 7:30 p.m. Tickets are $3-$5. For more information, call 244-0960, or visit muccc.org.
MUSIC: Before Rayburn Wright (1922-1990) founded the jazz program at the Eastman School of Music in 1970, he was trombonist/arranger for the Glenn Miller-Tex Beneke Orchestra, he wrote scores for the Joffrey Ballet, he was a record producer and an arranger/composer for Radio City Music Hall, movies and television. The school honors Wright Friday with a concert of music at 8 p.m. at Kodak Theatre (60 Gibbs St., Free) written or arranged by Wright and his former students. The tunes will also be performed by Wright’s former students, with the Eastman Jazz Ensemble and Eastman New Jazz Ensemble. Guests include Bill Cunliffe, Jeff Beal, Dave Glasser, Bill Reichenbach, Gene Bertoncini and many more. Check esm.rochester.edu for details.
SPORTS: The Rochester Americans take on Syracuse Crunch tonight, 7:05 p.m., at their season home opener at Blue Cross Arena (1 War Memorial Square). Tickets are $15-$20. Call 800-745-3000 or visit tickmaster.com to reserve. For more information, visit bluecrossarena.com.
MUSIC: You get what you deserve when you combine jazz and metal. It seems more akin to picking a fight than choosing a genre, yet Pillow Fight Accident picks and explores and abuses the cracks between the keys in sharp twists that go from horribly dissonant to mildly serene. It’s as if the band is laying track just inches in front of the train. Nod and Cottage Jefferson also play tonight at Monty’s Krown (875 Monroe Ave., $4), music kicks off at 9 p.m.
FILMS: Films opening in wide release today include “Argo,” “Here Comes the Boom,” “Seven Psychopaths,” and “Sinister.” Limited-release films include “The Perks of Being a Wallflower” (Little, Henrietta, Pittsford), “Project 5: Horror” (Little), and “Searching for Sugar Man” (Little, Pittsford). This week, the Dryden Theatre will feature “The Big Parade,” “China Heavyweight,” “The Senator was Indiscreet,” “Theatre of Blood,” and “Them!”
MUSIC: A brand spanking new quarterly concert is kicking off tonight at the Bug Jar (219 Monroe Ave., bugjar.com), featuring headliners all the way from the land down under: Australia’s very own Slug Guts (how can you go wrong with a name like that?), Pink Elephant, Limeworks, Clockmen, and Anchorage Nebraska will be representing the local Rochester pride, so don’t miss out on the first Trash-Wave Revue. Music starts at 9 p.m., cover is only $7-$9.
SPECIAL EVENT: The Assisi Institute (1400 N. Winton Road) will host the Maitreya Heart Shrine Relic Tour, featuring relics of the Buddha, today through October 14. An opening ceremony takes place at 6 p.m. tonight, followed by visiting hours Saturday 10 a.m.-7 p.m. and Sunday 10 a.m.-5 p.m. There is no charge for admission. For more information, call 442-5010.
MUSIC: Liquid Wrench will be stirring things up tonight at Temple Bar and Grill (109 East Ave., templebarandgrille.com) with its self-described Grateful Dead-meets-Allman-Brothers-meets-Jerry-Garcia-Band-inspired tunes. The drink special of the night includes $3 bottles, so don’t let this be a Friday you wish you didn’t remember (or maybe one so good that you don’t). Check out Temple’s website or give the bar a call with any questions (232-6000).
ART: Jose Olivieri Rivera will debut new, experimental artworks in "Radical Departure" tonight, 7-9 p.m., at Mercer Gallery at Monroe Community College (1000 E. Henrietta Road). The show continues through November 9, and admission is free. For more information, visit monroecc.edu/go/mercer.
MUSIC: Want some great country jams but don’t want to travel all the way to Tennessee? Why not just head on down to Nashville’s (4853 W. Henrietta Road, nashvillesny.com) to check out JD & Rolling South, a Syracuse-based band bent on giving you all the yee-haws and boot-stomping country you could ask for in one night. Music starts at 9 p.m., so hop on your horse and head down.
COMEDY: Part of Meliora Weekend programming, the hilarious host of CBS’s “The Late Late Show,” Craig Ferguson, will perform two stand-up shows at Goergen Athletic Center Palestra (University of Rochester’s River Campus) at 7:30 and 10 p.m. tonight. Tickets are $25-$40; for more info, call 275-5911, or visit rochester.edu.
MUSIC: Looking for some free classical music with a twist? Why not try checking out Ad Hoc at Christ Church(141 East Ave., christchurchrochester.org) tonight at 8 p.m. for a free “chalkboard” concert, where the group will present its first in the new series of concerts that has no tickets and no programs, just snacks and random songs presented via a chalkboard menu. If this sounds like your music flavor, head on down and give it a taste.
