Thin Lizzy and Iron Maiden to Help Go! Room 4. Well, kind of.

Booking up-and-coming, cutting-edge alternative music is not a way to get rich quick. And while Go! Room 4 has been packing them in recently with sold-out shows by Engine Down, Milemarker and Ben Kweller/My Morning Jacket, there’ve been nights where folks just opted to stay home. So the club is holding a “benefit” for itself to pay back taxes and catch up, so to speak. On board for the cause are two special guests: The Warriors, a Thin Lizzy cover band (yes, they’re in character) featuring ex-White Octave members Linc and Finn, Zeke from Cold Sides and Matt from Gold Chainz; and Eddie’s Army, which is the guys from Razzle doing their tribute to Iron Maiden. With back taxes looming, as well as owing a hefty ASCAP payment (the American Association of Composers, Authors and Publishers, who collect money from any venue that features performances of copyrighted material), Go! needs to raise some cash. “Right now, I just got this [ASCAP] bill–they’re charging me ’cause we have live music and people that play here are ASCAP members,” says Mike Triplett, who books the club along with the Cat’s Cradle’s Frank Heath). “I don’t really understand the whole legal thing about it. It’s not like us [indie musicians] getting money,” he says. “Some huge pop star is getting the money. We’re trying to keep our doors open.” Support Go! this Friday, July 19, by checking out the show. There’ll also be T-shirts available featuring recently deceased Who bassist John Entwistle (by Neil Prewitt), with proceeds also going to the club. Call 969-1400 for details. Open for Business, Sort Of

“I’m back … sort of,” says Radio Free Records owner Ethan Samsky. If you’ve been following the story, Samsky, an uninsured, independent merchant who’d built a rep for carrying alternative and hard-to-find titles, lost over 80 percent of his merchandise as a result of a break-in at his Durham store this past June. What happened next was what persuaded the former San Jose resident to stay and give it another shot. The local music community put aside their petty rivalries and differences and held benefits, raffles and auctions, with local musicians, other storeowners and local clubs all contributing. “It was overwhelming—in a good way,” Samsky says, smiling shyly. With over $7,000 raised and people pushing him to reopen, Samsky opened RFR’s doors last Friday, July 12, and made his first order for new merchandise this week. He’s going to give his business “at least a few months” to see if it can pull through, and he’s even thinking of hosting in-store appearances by bands. For now, he’s concentrating on special orders–if you want to help, bring in your “must have” CD list and let Samsky hook you up. Or, to place an order by phone, call 416-8866.Still Anti-nuke

For her upcoming show at Raleigh’s Alltel Pavilion (with wry Texan Lyle Lovitt), singer-songwriter/slide-guitar queen Bonnie Raitt, who’s been an activist since her involvement with the No Nukes movement back in its nascent ’70s days, is donating proceeds from sales of “gold circle” seats (preferred concert seating) to local environmental watchdogs N.C. WARN. Purchasers of these tickets are also invited to an after-show reception hosted by Raitt. N.C. WARN, as of late, has been focusing on the risks associated with nuclear waste storage (and transportation) at the local Shearon Harris plant, as well as other nuclear power facilities. For tickets call (919) 490-0747.Mr. Lady Decamps

“We’re sort of in denial but it’s true,” says The Butchies’ Kaia Wilson, when asked if she and her artist/partner Tammy Rae Carland are–as rumor has it–picking up stakes and moving to California. As founders and co-owners of Mr. Lady Records and Video, the company responsible for cutting edge releases by feminist/lesbian artists and groups like The Butchies, Le Tigre, Tami Hart and Sarah Dougher, (not to mention releasing and/or distributing hard-to-find video titles), Wilson and Carland helped put the Triangle on the feminist map. The Butchies were selected as Indigo Girl Amy Ray’s backing band for her solo album, Stag, as well as Ray’s subsequent tour. Mr. Lady occasionally sponsored showcases at local clubs (like the Cat’s Cradle) and the two were plugged into the local music and arts community. While Carland is moving next month to the Bay Area, Wilson and Mr. Lady enterprises won’t be leaving until December. (She and the Butchies are heading into Modern Recording this October with longtime producer Chris Stamey to record their fourth album.) “I’m working on my Jedi skills to convince The Butchies to move too, but we’ll see … long distance for now,” Wilson says. The Cypher Debuts its New Music Series

Spoken word event The Cypher, held at Raleigh’s Humble Pie, is branching out to bring live underground neo-soul and funk acts to the area. Neo-soul music lovers, check out The Cypher’s online site, www.officialcypher.com, where you’ll find CD reviews and get a heads up on live neo-soul, funk and hip-hop shows coming to the area (along with other cool event postings and links). CypherSoul, the Cypher’s new music series, will debut with a show by Atlanta group, Seek, this Saturday, July 27 (see www.seekronized.com for details).