The Mourning Suns at The Dark Horse
Birmingham based rockers The Mourning Suns are an eclectic gaggle of musicians that manage to mix disparate genres with a casual virtuosity. Sophisticated folk guitar plucking, blues virtuosity and a hint of classical, all tightly held in place by Rosemary Wilkes’ powerful voice. Excellent live performers they are joined tonight by Lichfield funkster Venkman and DJ Irmao.
Fri 6 Oct 9pm at The Dark Horse, Alcester Road, Moseley, Birmingham B13 8JP www.darkhorsemoseley.co.uk

Birmingham Mid-Autumn Chinese Festival at The Arcadian
The arcadian is a great space for arts events and festivals with several bars overlooking its open centre, a bit like a pub amphitheatre, a stroke of architectural genius. Saturday it will be filled with performances from the Chinese Festival including traditional music, martial arts, dance, lantern making and a fireworks display. Birmingham’s finest street food purveyors Digbeth Dining Club are in attendance in what is a charity event to raise money for Macmillan Cancer Support.
Sat 7 Oct 12pm at The Arcadian, Hurst Street, Birmingham B5 4TD www.facebook.com

Geek Retreat Saturday Play
Get your geek on at the Geek Retreat this afternoon and join in some exciting board game revelry with friends and strangers (who will probably become friends). Wide selection of games to choose from or bring your own, our favourite Ticket To Ride is available, who’d have thought building train lines could be so much fun. If anyone has a 1970s Kojak game then please bring it along as we miss it.
Sat 7 Oct at The Geek Retreat, 38 The Priory Queensway, Birmingham B4 7LA www.facebook.com

Off The Scale Kilo Sale at Circo Bar
If your wardrobe has some sartorial gaps then what better way to fill them than by filling your boots, bags and everything else at Off The Scale’s Vintage Market. An upmarket jumble sale without the tat. A kilo of clobber will only set you back £16 but we’d advise getting there early or for the 3pm restock. DJs will be pumping out lovely tunes throughout the afternoon to make your rummaging more funky. Now you don’t get that in your local church hall.
Sat 7 Oct at Circo Bar, 580 Bristol Road, Birmingham B29 6BE www.facebook.com

Women and Protest: How To Be A Craftivist at the mac
Founder of the Craftivist Collective Sarah Corbett has just released a new book How To Be A Craftivist: The Art Of Gentle Protest which advocates a softer approach to activism away from the angry hyperbole that infects much of political discourse. It’s a refreshing approach and Sarah will be discussing these ideas with environmental journalist and broadcaster Lucy Siegle. Be warned tickets are very limited. Part of the Women and Protest season.
Sat 7 Oct 7pm at the mac, Cannon Hill Park, Queen’s Ride, Birmingham B12 9QH macbirmingham.co.uk

Czech Film Club singalong at The Gunmakers Arms 
What your Saturday night needs is a room full of happy Czechs singing along to a Grease style musical set in 1950s Prague. Big Beat (1993) is great fun as a ‘young hooligan from nowhere’ called Baby rocks the stuffy communist world of the Czech capital. There are subtitles if you’re not fluent in Czech. Whilst you’re there Czech (sorry) out the lushly refurbished Gunmakers Arms and sample an exquisite range of proper ales.
Sat 7 Oct 8pm at The Gunmakers Arms, 93 Bath St, Birmingham B4 6HG www.facebook.com

KOYO at The Flapper
KOYO are an incredible band, drawing on a raft of influences such as Ozric Tentacles, Velvet Underground and My Bloody Valentine they engineer beautiful sonic soundscapes laced with inventive electronics and a gentle touch of out there hippyness, like Hawkwind with knobs on. Best experienced live when trippy visuals add a whole other dreamy layer to their spaced out musical barrage. New album KOYO is highly recommended. Support comes from Japanese indie popsters The Fin. Get down The Flapper whilst you still can.
Sun 8 Oct 7pm at The Flapper, Kingston Row, Cambrian Wharf, Birmingham B1 2NU www.facebook.com