Strong Language

9/25-11/6
Spread the words: The Valley’s top slam poets have a shot at the big time — the World Championship Poetry Crown. Slammers judged to be the best of the verse will represent Phoenix at the 2004 World Poetry Slam Championship, set for February in the world poetry capital — Greenville, South Carolina. Through November 6, performance poets can qualify for one of two semifinal rounds by finishing in first or second place at either of two weekly slams: 8 p.m. Wednesdays at the Anthology Café (51 East Main in Mesa, 480-827-0999) and 8 p.m. Thursdays at Essenza Coffee House (1350 South Longmore in Mesa, 480-461-0445). Both events are free for spectators, $1 for participants. See www.anthology.org for more information. – Jill Koch

Code Read

Science and art work together in new exhibit

9/25-10/30
“Don’t worry; you’re supposed to touch it,” says artist W. Bradford Paley. His “CodeProfiles” exhibition, commissioned by the Whitney Museum, explains the science of art — and the art of science — through visual text and computer code, creating a new medium of visual information. “I started tinkering with the ways of arranging text in space to see if I could come up with a useful and meaningful way to arrange it,” Paley explains. “CodeProfiles” is on display at ASU’s Computing Commons Gallery, on Palm Walk and Orange in Tempe, through October 30. Admission is free. See www.asu.edu/it/spotlight for details. – Quetta Carpenter

Have It Norway

Nordic band looks to shock the Valley

Wed 10/1
Nowadays nothing shocks, so Scandinavian rockers Turbonegro settled for unsettling. And nothing unsettles like beefy homoerotic anthems ramrodded up your ass by a bunch of punk Norsemen with mustaches, makeup, denim, sailor hats and an attack guard dog. Past triumphs of bad taste include “Young Boys Feet,” “The Midnight NAMBLA” and “Rendezvous With Anus,” but the group adopts a more mainstream approach on its latest beautiful noise, Scandinavian Leather, with fist-pumping stadium rockers like “Sell Your Body (To the Night),” which could restore Def Leppard to previous levels of Hysteria if heard on a massive scale.

“Even though we come from a scene where we play small clubs,” says singer Hank von Helvete, “we’re very comfortable taming huge crowds when we play stadiums. We’re a proud rocking band. And we would never get sued like Marilyn Manson because America would see we’re never dangerous to anyone else but ourselves.”

So expect to see Turbonegro rock the Mason Jar like it’s a coliseum and have your butanes ready for “I Got Erection” and “Turbonegro Hates the Kids.” Call 602-954-0455 for details. – Serene Dominic