*A benefit concert by COSMIC JIBAROS and THE BREAKFAST will benefit radio station WPKN. Tickets for the Friday, November 18 concert at Edmond Town Hall are $20. All proceeds from the concert will benefit the Bridgeport-based non-profit listener supported radio station (89.5 FM). Showtime is 8 pm.

The evening kicks off with Cosmic Jibaros, who promise social awareness taking on a certain power when mixed with pulsating rhythm. The Bridgeport-based band embodies this creed; the seven-piece Latin rock unit will often cause emphatic dance and curious ponder at the same time.

The evening will continue with the Jammy Award-winning band The Breakfast. The Breakfast is currently touring in support of their latest studio release, Real Radio (Horizon Music Group, 2005), and is poised to break into a much larger market.

Tickets can be purchased online at wpkn.org or at any of the following locations: Newtown General Store, Disc-n-Dat in Bethel (797-0067), Gerosa Records in Brookfield (775-7074), and New Morning Natural Foods in Woodbury (203-263-4868).

  *New York City-based singer-songwriter ALLISON SCOLA has embarked on a regional tour that will take her not only to Brewster, Peekskill and her home city, but also to Sandy Hook next week. Ms Scola has been booked for an 8 pm show at Mocha Coffee House on Glen Road on Friday night (Nov 11).

  There is no charge to attend.

*Mocha’s Thursday night open mic series has been temporarily put on hold, but Newtown resident and musician JIM ALLEN is offering a solution this weekend: Jim will host an open mic on Sunday, November 13, from 5 to 8 pm.

  Poets are welcome along with the usual suspects – musicians, singers, instrumentalists, et al. Sign up for a performance when you get to Mocha. And don’t forget to buy a drink and/or snack or two to thank Mike Palumbo for opening a long-needed gathering spot in Sandy Hook Center.

  *Edmond Town Hall will also host a benefit concert next weekend: WAH!, who combines reggae, Hindu and pop to create her own blend of spiritual world music, will be at Edmond Town Hall on Sunday, November 20. Tickets for the 4 pm concert are $20 per person, and just $5 for each additional family member.

  The concert will include songs from her latest release, Unplugged, as well as Sanskrit chants from previous albums.

  *HAT CITY BLUES BAND is still out and about, including a show this weekend in New Milford. The band will be at 59 Bank in New Milford on Saturday, November 12. Upcoming shows include November 19 at Red’s Place, on Railroad Street in New Milford; another show at 59 Bank on December 10, and then a return to The Spot in Bethel on December 17.

  *The acoustic guitar and vocal harmony duo ANOTHER FINE MESS — Bryan Hermansdorfer on lead acoustic guitar, harmonica and vocals, and Sal Salgado on rhythm acoustic guitar, keyboards and vocals — have a number of shows in Newtown scheduled.

  The duo will be at Starbucks on Saturdays, November 19 and 26. The guys will also by at Molten Java, 102 Greenwood Avenue in Bethel, on Friday, November 18.

  (If their name sounds familiar, they’ve already played a show at Mocha in Sandy Hook and one show at Starbucks this month.)

   The duo takes its name from a classic Laurel & Hardy film, and is an indication, says Bryan, of the band not taking itself too seriously.

  Their repertoire includes artists such as The Beatles, Neil Young, The Grateful Dead, James Taylor and The Band.

  “Sing-alongs are encouraged and there’s always a ‘name this TV theme song’ contest with prizes,” said Bryan.

  *New York ambient-rock band BENZOS is on the road for the second time this season, now touring outside The Big Apple in support of its recently released debut full-length album, Morning Stanzas. The band has a pair of shows in Connecticut this weekend – first at Premier Music Hall in Danbury on Friday, November 11; and then on Saturday at The Webster in Hartford.

  Until next week I’ll be seeing you... on the road.

 Questions and comments should be sent to Shannon Hicks c/o The Newtown Bee, 5 Church Hill Road, Newtown CT 06470, or shannon@thebee.com, or call the office at 426-3141. Shows listed at club locations are for ages 21 and over unless specified.

UPCOMING SHOWS

NOVEMBER 11 — Alan Jackson at Mohegan Sun Arena, Uncasville, with Sara Evans and The Wrights opening; VH-1’s Stripped Across America Tour at The Webster Theater, Hartford  (acoustic sets by Dokken, Firehouse, Jani Lane, Stephen Pearcy and Kip Winger); Ashlee Simpson at The Bushnell, Hartford, Off The Hook at Vazzy’s Osteria, Monroe; Lake Trout at Premier Music Hall, Danbury, Benzos opening; Allison Scola at Mocha Coffee House, Sandy Hook;

November 12 — Hat City Blues Band at 59 Bank, New Milford; Scooter Jennings at Premier Music Hall; Hat City Blues Band at 59 Bank Street, New Milford; “Earth, Wind & Fire Tribute on Ice” at The Arena at Harbor Yard, Bridgeport (performance by EW&F and figure skating by Olympic medallists and competitors); Off The Hook at Bravo Restaurant & Bar, Fairfield; Jeff Pitchell & Peter Tork at Mohegan Sun’s Wolf Den; Johnny Gill & Bell Biv Devoe at Foxwoods Casino’s Fox Theatre, Ledyard; Hot Hot Heat, The Red Walls and We Are Scientists at The Webster Theater;

November 13 — Willie Nelson at The Palace Theater, Waterbury; Chicago at Mohegan Sun Arena; Journey at The Chevrolet Theatre (former Oakdale), Wallingford ;

November 15 — Lyle Lovett, John Hiatt, Joe Ely & Guy Clark at The Warner Theatre, Torrington; The Black Keys at Toad’s Place (all ages);

November 16 — Kottonmouth Kings at The Webster Theater (all ages);

November 17 — Zox and Paranoid Social Club at The Webster Underground, Hartford (all ages);

November 18 — Cosmic Jibaros and The Breakfast at Edmond Town Hall, Newtown; Charlie Daniels Band at Premier Music Hall; Edwin McCain (acoustic show) at The Webster Theater (all ages); Gretchen Wilson and Big & Rich at The Dodge Music Center (formerly The Meadows), Hartford, Cowboy Troy opening; The Derek Trucks Band at Mohegan Sun’s Wolf Den; Another Fine Mess at Molten Java, Bethel;

November 19 — Trey Anastasio at The Chevrolet Theatre; Molten Java at Starbucks, Newtown; Dead Kennedys, Lost City Angels and The Code at The Webster Theater; Off The Hook at Redding Roadhouse; Hat City Blues Band at Red’s Place, New Milford.

November 20 — Wah! at Edmond Town Hall; Carly Simon at The Chevrolet Theatre; Jason Aldean at Premier Music Hall.