This Week's Day by Day Picks

 Thursday July 3

Fast, short, and piercing are a few ways to describe the songs of Japanese noise rock trio Melt Banana. The famed eleven-year-old band can often sound just like a hyperactive child of the same age throwing a mini tantrum. Luckily Banana fans won't be having any such hissy fits. They'll be glad to know the band will be in South Florida tonight for a concert plugging its very recent release Cell-Scape on A-zap Records. Local favorites the Heatseekers and Secret Service open the show at the Factory, 2674 E. Oakland Park Blvd., Fort Lauderdale. Doors open at 8:00 p.m. Tickets cost $12. Call 800-594-8499. (NK)

Friday July 4

After closing their weekly electro-fix party at Soho Lounge, hosts of Miami's roving electronic machine music party are trying it again. This time they are working under the name EQ with a premier buzz beat event featuring South Florida's electro demi-guru Exzakt and his sidekick, the lightning rod Uprock. Don't count on prefab DJ sounds during this concert. The dynamic duo will be playing real instruments, live, for that freshly assembled hardware mono-drone that gets all the hipsters riled up. If you are into discovering new and underground night adventures, this may be the spot for you. The party starts at 11:00 p.m. at Slak Lounge, 2826 N. Miami Ave. Admission costs $7 and $10. Call 305-926-7221. (JCR)

Saturday July 5

With all the languages and multiethnic accents one encounters in Miami on a given day, sometimes it's important to be reminded of which country we live in. As any local will tell you, a cafecito is a far cry from "American coffee." Perhaps that is one reason the Miami Art Museum (101 W. Flagler St.) mounted its current exhibition "American Tableaux: Many Voices, Many Stories" in its main exhibit rooms. With more than 80 paintings, sculptures, installations, and prints by well-known American artists ranging from Edward Hopper to Andy Warhol to Georgia O'Keeffe, the event attempts to reflect a definitive American aesthetic. Of course we Miamians have our own tales to tell, and MAM is concurrently organizing "Miami Stories: A Portrait of Our Community." The local show invites the public to contribute a personal historical artifact, either a photograph or document, that tells a Miami story. The items will be exhibited along with an explanation of who the contributor is and how he or she came to be in Miami. The museum opens at 12:00 p.m. on weekends and 10:00 a.m. during the week. "American Tableaux" can be seen through September 7. Admission costs $5. Call 305-375-3000. (JCR)

Sunday July 6

After justly winning his multimillion-dollar police brutality settlement against New York City's finest, Abner Louima is not quietly resting on his victory. He is organizing events to benefit the Abner Louima Foundation, which aids Haitians in the U.S. as well as in Haiti. Louima's Babou's Productions is presenting the Haitian American Day Festival today in downtown's Bayfront Park (301 Biscayne Blvd.). The event promises a healthy dose of booty-shaking with hip-hop headliner Mystikal and Haitian bigwigs Magnum Band, Sweet Micky, T-Vice, Azor, and Kriz. If you haven't joined one of the many recent Haitian street parties, don't miss your chance at finding out what they are all about. Gates open at 2:00 p.m. Tickets cost $30. Call 305-944-3369. (JCR)

Monday July 7

So many restaurants in Miami. So little time before they go under. Okay, maybe not all of them. But when local eateries are forced to throw in the dish towel, it's not such a big deal. This town is loaded with chefs and there's always another one next in line ready to open a new place. If you're unable to enjoy the cuisine of such culinary superstars as Jonathan Eismann, Cindy Hutson, Robbin Haas, or Norman Van Aken, you need not despair. Visit the exhibition "Bon Appetit! South Florida Cooks" on the Miami-Dade Public Library's (101 W. Flagler St.) second floor. It features the favorite cookbooks of those chefs and more. Maybe you can check one out? A visit downstairs to the auditorium will further whet your appetite. Artists who contributed their work to the display "Bubble, Bubble, Boil ... A Miami Visual Stew" took their inspiration from food and dining and have included a recipe to complement each piece. Admission is free. Call 305-375-2665. (NK)