A link to the Democracy for America meetup is at http://dfa.meetup.com, where people can sign in to vote on the next location for a voter-outreach planning session to be held at 7 p.m. Wednesday. -- Michael Vennard
On Location
WED 9/1
If the planet Nalon in the new film Ekho: Fall of an Empire looks suspiciously like Kansas City at times, that's because local filmmaking team Jim McCullough and Amanda Morten shot a lot of it in places such as Harling's Upstairs, the Stray Cat and Crown Center's the Link. Morten, who cowrote and costars with McCullough, describes the film as a humanistic love story with obvious science-fiction sensibilities. The conflicted romance at the movie's otherwise spooky core arises when Morten, who plays a soldier avenging her father's murder by terrorists, meets McCullough, an anti-war activist. Given its astonishingly small $800 budget, the movie is remarkably sophisticated, recalling at times David Cronenberg's eXistenZ and various Nine Inch Nails videos. It screens at Tivoli Cinemas (4050 Pennsylvania) at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday. Tickets are $3; for more information, call 816-217-9593. -- Steve Walker
Consider it the Cru's debutante ball.
SAT 8/28
Fresh from the Vans Warped Tour, Kansas City's C.E.S. Cru, an underground hip-hop trio characterized by soul-searching, almost academic lyricism, rocks a smaller venue this week to celebrate the release of its debut album, Capture Enemy Soldiers. The band's name is an acronym for Conglomerate Elements of Self-consciousness. The three MCs (Godemis, Sorceress and Ubiquitous) perform tracks from the new joint in a free, all-ages show at 4 p.m. Saturday at Recycled Sounds (3941 Main Street). The party promises a good time, with vinyl giveaways, plenty of merchandise and -- of course -- a chance to buy the new album. Call 816-531-4890 for details. -- Vennard
