Wednesday Happenings

Image of Holly Golitghtly from Myspace.

It's been 14 years and 17 albums, but we still can't think of Holly Golightly without hearing her rambling monologue "Park it up Your Arse" from her days as a Thee Headcoatee. Her solo music is somewhere between rockabilly and blue eyed soul, but she can still tear it up in the garage, and she always puts on a hell of a show in the club. Tonight, she's backed by the Brokeoffs and will perform with the Wrong Reasons and the Hollow Sound. Middle East Upstairs, 8 p.m. $12.

Movies

The Brattle hedged its bets when it programmed tonight's beer-themed double feature. We won't front: Strange Brew (1983) has always been too Canadian for our tastes. But we still respect you if you happen to like it. Smokey & the Bandit (1977) is more our speed, even if we've never felt the same fealty to Coors as Big and Little Enos did. Brattle Theatre, 40 Brattle St., Cambridge. More information.

Drums

The Boston Conservatory Percussion Ensemble will tackle some of the engaging work from the contemporary percussion repertoire, including work by Steve Reich (his hypnotic Music for Mallet Instruments, Voices, and Organ), Joseph Celli, Lane Harder, Eckhard Kopetzki, and Nicholas Papador. Boston Conservatory, 1260 Boylston St., 8 p.m. Free.

Free Symphonies

The NEC Symphony Orchestra bridges two centuries and includes Haydn's "Oxford Symphony" (Symphony No. 92, 1789), Carl Nielsen's Symphony No. 3 (Sinfonia Espansiva) (1911) and Michael Torke's relatively more recent Overture for Orchestra Javelin (1994), a "sonic olympiad," which was commissioned by Atlanta's Committee for the Olympics. Jordan Hall, New England Conservatory, 30 Gainsborough St., 8 p.m. Free.