Wed. April 18

The Red Sox are up and running. They blew out the competition opening day. This is their year. A return to 2004. What reason might you have to go see sports at the TD Banknorth Garden? Well, they're becoming slimmer and slimmer as the two teams that labor there, the Celtics and Bruins, are in freefall. The Celtics have been adding bells and whistles to their program, and on Wednesday April 18, they present, as post-game entertainment, the alt-rock band Augustana. This means you can pay as low a price as $10 (to sit in the Brooks Family Pharmacy section) to watch the Celtics and Pistons do what they do - play for individual stats, we'd guess - and then hear Augustana play a set that will include their song, "Boston." Starts at 7:30 p.m.

226 Causeway St., 617-854-8000 celtics.com

Wed. April 18

You'll hear just about everything during a Particle concert. Funk, hip-hop, space-rock, jazz. Heck, they consider U2, Talking Heads and Spiritualized influences. All good in my book. Their new live CD/DVD, "Transformations Live For the People," has contributions from Blackalicious and Robby Krieger, the Doors guitarist who contributes on, yes, "L.A. Woman." (DJ Logic and Joe Satriani contributed, too.) Now, we doubt those folks will be at the Paradise Wednesday April 18 and we can also tell you neither will Scott Metzger or Charlie Hitchcock. Particle, once a triple-guitar band, is down to one: Ben Combe. But we're guessing that however it's conceived Particle will take you on a head trip that move your hips as well. Jerry Joseph opens the show at 9 p.m. Tickets: $17.

967 Commonwealth Ave., 617-562-8001 thedise.com

Mon. April 16

We saw Stanley Kubrick's "A Clockwork Orange" when we were in our teens and we were genuinely shocked. (We'd yet to read Anthony Burgess's novel on which it's based.) There was the futuristic mix of sex and sadism, characters who reveled in pure evil - "ultra-violence" - and reprehensible thought control processes by the government. As the leader of the Droogs, the London street gang, Malcolm McDowell's Alex was cunning, chilling and, yet, sometimes likeable. There was a strain of sarcastic humor that ran through the film. "Singin' In the Rain" played as Alex and his mates pummeled an innocent victim. Beethoven's Ninth accompanied Alex's "rehabilitation." Coming out in 1971, not long after Charles Manson and his gang made their mark, it carried an especially potent punch. This "future" was not far from what we were experiencing. Our guess is that all these years later, "A Clockwork Orange," will still stir you, make you uncomfortable, and mesmerize you. It's a film you'll want to discuss, and the Coolidge Corner Theatre is giving you that opportunity to do just that Monday April 16, as part of its "Science on Screen" series. Marc Hasuer, Harvard College Professor, will be there following the 7 p.m. screening to talk about the film. Hasuer's work deals with language evolution, conceptual representation, social cooperation, communication and morality. He's the author five books. Tickets are $9.50.

290 Harvard St., Brookline, 617-734-2500 coolidge.org

 Sun. April 15

We've heard this sentiment many times from artists: The most difficult times breed the best art. Think of the punk rock explosion in the late '70s and post-punk movement of the '80s. A post-Watergate hangover, a country-wide malaise, Reaganism's trickle down theory, Iran-Contra, union-busting, the gap between the ultra rich and the poor widening. Oh and the formulaic nature of mainstream arena rock. Donald Shambroom's exhibit has nothing to do with punk rock per se, but everything to do with our current circumstances overseas. His "Recruits: Emergency" Exhibition" of clay, wood and sign-paint sculptures address the horrors of war. For past several years, his public art project "Fatalities" has appeared in storefronts throughout Boston. He calls them "modest ciphers of the sudden termination of life in war." The exhibit closes today, Sunday April 15,at the Pierre Menard Gallery. There's a discussion of "Art and War" today from 3-5 p.m. Partaking in this is Shambroom, actor Kermit Dunkelberg, poet Kevin Bowen and photographer Chip Troiano. The exhibit is open from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Free.

10 Arrow St., Cambridge, 617-868-2033 pierremenardgallery.com

Sun. April 15

Not to get all heavy, but have you been considering the meaning of the word "patriot" these days? The right-wing co-opted it years ago - Vietnam War era, I believe - and have clung to it ever since as in: If you're not with us and our programs, you're not patriotic. Others have different ideas of patriotism: Like supporting the ideals of the country, not the policies of the particular people in power. Maybe some of this is up for debate at the Fireplace Sunday April 15 at 3 p.m. The Brookline restaurant has "A Patriot's Day Salute" with The Siege of Boston (1774-1776) discussed by Abigail and John Adams. (Well, they're dead. We mean actors playing them.) A young Abigail also debunks "The Midnight Ride of Paul Revere." (We understand our childhood history books were a bit off on this, too.) These discussions  paired with Ipswich Ale and dishes from Thomas Jefferson's White House. What's that? We rang up head chef Toby Hill. He told us: "Petite Wellfleet oyster pie, the White House's fried chicken recipe with baby chicken, sweet potato pudding and cream spinach. Blancmange with almonds and rosemary licorace honey for dessert. It'll cost you $30.

1634 Beacon St., Brookline, 617-975-1900 fireplacerest.com