> The 11th annual Southern California Cajun & Zydeco Festival will be held on May 31 and June 1 at the Rainbow Lagoon Park in Long Beach, CA. The event is driven by producer Franklin Zawacki, who who has pioneered Cajun/Zydeco music for 18 years. For further information on ticket prices or the festival, call 714-638-1466 or visit the Web site at http://www.ZydecoCajun.com.
> Ani DiFranco will be the keynote speaker at the NAIRD 25th anniversary convention, scheduled from May 21-25 at the Fairmont Hotel in New Orleans. NAIRD is the trade organization specifically geared to servicing the global independent music industry.
> Jason Falkner and his band will be performing a free concert at New York City's Westbeth Theatre on May 27 at 9:00 pm. This show will be filmed by HBO2 for "Reverb".
> Keyboard pioneers Kraftwerk are scheduled to release a new album in September of 1997.
> Music In The Anchorange '97 will be taking place June 6-28 on Thursdays through Saturdays at the Brooklyn Bridge. Artists who will be participating in this event include Sonic Youth, Ben Neill, DJ Spooky, Vernon Reid, Lady Miss Kier, Mogwai and many others. Ticket prices range from $12-20, depending on the show. This is sponsored by Creative Time, which was founded twenty-four years ago and has since become an international leader in presenting new works by artists of all disciplines in unlikely public spaces. For further information, check out the site at http://www.creativetime.org
> The first annual Toys for Tots Jam will take place at the Harley Davidson Cafe in New York City on Thursday, May 22. Two of the scheduled bands for the evening's charity event include Q South and Danielle's Mouth.
