Get ready to get your art on as the “artumnal” season begins  Sept. 24- Oct. 2 with ArtsDays takes over Casa and much of downtown.

There will be  numerous artistic endeavours happening during that time beginning with Word On the Street outside the Lethbridge Public Library, Saturday, Sept. 24.
 The next 10 days will be filled with music, art, drama and a whole lot of fun.

“ArtsDays usually starts with  Word on the Street, but they moved it to Saturday, so the event is longer,” said Allied Arts Council project co-ordinator Muffy McKay.
“We‘re doing activities beginning  on Tuesday. But a lot of groups  have booked activities during ArtsDays, so we’re happy to promote them,” added Allied Arts Council communications coordinator Kelaine Devine.
“We need to support each other,” she continued.

“An idea that came from the SOAR festival is we’re having an arts workers meet up at the Owl Acoustic Lounge, Sept. 27, which gives a chance for people who work in the arts to come and meet and have a drink together. It’s right after work. And the Owl’s Drink and Draw is right after that which is great because I always want to go, but  when I get home, it‘s difficult to leave my house again,” Devine said, noting a lot of other community groups and arts  organizations have planned events  to happen alongside ArtsDays.

 The Lethbridge Symphony Orchestra opens their season on Monday, Sept. 26 with Finlandia at the Southminster United Church.

 The big event of the week is the annual Art Walk, happening Sept. 30 and Oct. 1 around the downtown. But before that, the Geomatic Attic brings Big Dave McLean and Tim Williams to sing the Blues at the Geomatic attic, Sept. 25.
Two dramatic productions continue throughout the week— New West Theatre’s presentation of Cowboy: A Cowboy Story at the Sterndale Bennett Theatre, Sept. 27-Oct. 1 and University of Lethbridge’s Theatre Xtra has their first presentation of the season at the Dr. Penny Foster building downtown— Alexa Elser’s “Let Me Eat Cake” runs Sept. 29-Oct. 1.

 Newmarket, Ontario born pop rock/ indie rock band Tokyo Police Club sure know how to write an ear-worm.

 You can hear a couple of songs from their new EPs “Melon Collie and the Infinite Radness on the Radio like “Not My Girl” “PCH” and their latest from part 2 of Melon Collie and the Infinite Radness “ My House,” and older hits “Hot Tonight,” “ Breakneck Speed and “Argentina.”

 They will be playing those and a lot more at Studio, Sept. 30 with The Elwins and the Born Ruffians, both who the band has known when they started out.

“I don’t think there will be anything people don’t want to hear. You won’t go away wishing you heard something you didn’t. We’ll cover all of the albums,” said drummer Greg Alsop from the depth of a “bunker-like” storage unit in Chicago where he and bandmates, frontman/bassist Dave Monks, keyboardist/ guitarist Graham Wright and guitarist Josh Hook are sorting out the last minute details for  a long tour including both American and Canadian dates.

 They are excited to return to Lethbridge.
“I remember the last time it was really cold and we really didn’t want to leave the bus or the hotel room. So we’re just excited to tour in the fall, so we can actually get out and see some of the places we’re going,” he said.

 The band members are living all over the continent pursuing creative projects outside the band.
Monks moved to New York City and put out a solo record, while Alsop moved to Los Angeles to produce records with other artists, Wright stayed in Toronto to work on a film and Hook settled in rural Ontario on a patch of land.

 That meant they had to be more focused when it came time to record the two new Eps “Melon Collie and the Infinite Radness Part 1, which was released in the spring and part 2 which will be released in a week.

“We literally put the final nail in the Eps a month ago,” he said, adding it is way too early to start thinking about their next project.

Other than festivals, the Owl Acoustic Lounge is the place to go for original live music this week.

  The Owl Acoustic Lounge features a variety of touring acts this week beginning with  Calgary based folk/ punk trio Ghost Factory who play the Owl Acoustic Lounge, Wednesday, Sept. 21 with local old school rock band JJ Thomas.
The Owl has a busy week as the next night they feature Vancouver indie rock band Goodwood Atoms.
 And they go country with Calgary honky tonk country quartet the Mike Fury 4.

And last but not least, they have an excellent blues show on Saturday, Sept. 24 with Edmonton’s Kimberley MacGregor, who will be joined by Sean Hamilton and Megan Brown.
There is a lot of local country music happening this week.

Earlier in the week, Floyd Sillito will be playing some old school, traditional country at the Galt Museum at 2 p.m. on Wednesday, Sept. 21.
Local country star Trevor Panczak will be playing a fundraiser for the Lethbridge Interfaith Food Bank at the Italian Canadian Club , Sept, 23. Tickets are $65 including dinner or $650 for a table of 10, . It begins at  6 p.m.
 Also in the country vein, Breanne Urban and Southern Flyer will be playing Casino Lethbridge, Sept. 23 and 24.
And the Mark Hall Band plays the 1010 Pub, Sept. 24.

A special event happens at the Galt Museum, Sept. 24 when recent U of L graduate  Ellen Ortega will be playing Piano and Pie at 6:30 p.m. Tickets are  $35 for adults, $20 for students and youth.
Jazz aficionados won’t want to miss Herb Hicks at the Mocha Cabana, Sept. 23.