A PD article broke the news yesterday that Commissioner Jimmy Dimora is pushing for this site, the current location of Port docks. That site will be totally vacated by 2014 if everything with the port’s East 55th project goes as planned.

Let’s just hope the idea doesn’t get further than a guttural belch from Dimora’s furry mouth. ...

Zero Defex bassist and Suicide Girls columnist Brad Warner will read from his latest lively Zen Buddism book, Sit Down and Shut Up, at Visible Voice Books (1023 Kenilworth Ave., Tremont) tomorrow at 7 p.m. After the talk, he’ll screen his Cle-punk documentary, Cleveland’s Screaming. The event is free.

Warner's tenure as a writer for alt-porno/social networking website Suicide Girls has earned him the misleading nickname "The Porno Buddhist," which he has since embraced. Warner recently launched The Porno Buddhist website, in which he applies Zen as therapy for survivors of sexual abuse. -- D.X. Ferris

This just in: Coldplay will be playing Quicken Loans Arena on July 6. And even though we're not too crazy about their new song, they're a pretty solid live band. Tickets go on sale May 17 through Ticketmaster. --Michael Gallucci

Signed to LA's Rotten Records -- home to underground sensations including Acid Bath, which featured Elphantboy & Deadman mainman Dax Riggs -- Salt the Wound is Cleveland's latest breakout metal talent. Read a review of their indie-label debut, Carnal Repercussions, in this week's Scene.

It's not just a noteworthy release because they're local boys. The death/grind metal crew also received a write-up in this month's issue of Decibel (June 2008, no. 44, p. 106), by far the most literate metal magazine. Decibel didn't think they're as novel as we did; the review is a long-form comparison to deadly Michigan metalers the Black Dahlia Murder, who play a similarly technical, grinding kind of music -- but better. In fact, what we liked most about the disc -- it's novelly un-misogynist lyrics -- Decible hated, noting, "Carnal Repercussions is perhaps most annoying in the discnonnect between the brootal artwork (yay, death metal!), the soul-searching lyrics (yay, emo!), and the snaky song titles ("Peas and Carrots"? WTF?!)." But, hey, to each his own. At least the guys got some ink that's not on their arms. -- D.X. Ferris

Unless you recognize a comedian’s name as That Girl From that Movie or the Dude from That One HBO Special, it can be hard to tell whether a stand-up is worth seeing. Lucky you: Scene did the legwork, and the skinny on this week’s big comedy shows, video included, is just a click away. This week, Russell Peters leads the week’s biggest comedy shows. Read on for a full rundown. – D.X. Ferris

Like his dad Larry, singer-songwriter James McMurtry knows characters. But unlike his novelist father – who penned The Last Picture Show and Lonesome Dove, and wrote Brokeback Mountain’s screenplay – the guys and gals who populate James’ work don’t even bother looking for a way out. They’re already down for the count, thanks to an America that’s passed them by.

On McMurtry’s latest CD, Just Us Kids, he tells the tales of folks who’ve been hit hard by Bush’s non-recession. They smoke too much, they drink too much, and they pretty much just get on with their lives the best they know how. And often, there’s little hope outside the bars, trailers, and factories in which they spend the majority of their time ...

Glen and Merketa, as seen in the much-beloved movie Once, lead this weekend’s list of really big shows. Read on for a full rundown, with notes and – for a limited time only – scratch-and-sniff entries. Try it! – D.X. Ferris

Kid Rock tickets are now priced to move: Visit megaticket.com, where a four-pack of tickets to Rock's Saurday, May 17 show is a mere $92 (tickets are $35 through $69.50 via Ticketmaster). Also on the bill are Peter Wolf (of the J. Geils Band) and Rev Run (of Run-DMC). Seriously. -- D.X. Ferris

Friday: A fusion of denim and dinner jackets rules the dress code at tonight’s Black & Blue Ball in the Flats. The benefit for the Northern Ohio Hemophilia Foundation www.nohf.org sports a “comfy-chic” fashion statement as revelers chow down on a buffet of apps, from chicken teriyaki to bacon-wrapped water chestnuts. And the open bar will burst with an overflow of beer, wine, and mixed drinks. An $80 ticket gets you in the door between 7 p.m. and midnight at Windows on the River, 2000 Sycamore Street on the West Bank of the Flats. Call 216-834-0051.

Saturday: Classic-pop powerhouses Kim Carnes and Scandal’s Patty Smyth help headline tonight’s It’s Only Rock and Roll concert at Public Hall. The fund-raiser for the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame and Museum www.rockhall.com also spotlights an auction of high-end bidding for trips to Europe, dinner with LeBron James, and a college internship at Rolling Stone magazine. The concert starts at 7 p.m. at Public Hall, 500 Lakeside Avenue. Call 216-515-1930 for your $15 ticket.

Sunday: The beer is flowing again in Akron today for the grand re-opening of the Ohio Brewing Company. After a brief shutdown, director Chris Verich and brewmaster Dennis Holland are showing off their plant’s new 15,000-square-foot pub with its 90-foot bar. More impressive is the retooled line of microbrews from the ruby-colored Cardinal Ale to their Buckeye State tribute, the Ohioppy Ale. Take a tour between 11 a.m. and 2 a.m. at the Ohio Brewing Company, 222 South Main Street in Akron. Call 330-376-3008 for the 411.

Just bring in a gas station receipt to prove your damages, and staffers promise to not only feel your pain but, more importantly, give you a $5 break on any food purchase of $10 or more.

Of course, there are rules: The offer expires on Friday, May 16. Only one $5 discount is allowed per table. And alcohol isn’t included. Still, when even that 20-cent coupon on a gallon of milk looks good, every little bit helps.

Local Heroes is open for lunch and dinner daily. --- Elaine T. Cicora

Read Elaine Cicora's restaurant reviews, food news, and comprehensive dining guide on the restaurant page at clevescene.com.

Hardly anyone could argue with the wisdom of turning a bunch of dilapidated strip joints into thriving offices, shops and condos. In fact, Port Authority leaders thought this project was so important that they sued, threatening to take the existing Flats properties by eminent domain – which is French for “We’re here to take your stuff...”

We weren’t the only ones lucky enough to score a wristband to the Black Keys’ “secret” show at the Beachland Tavern last night. Fortunately for you, Scene photographer Walter Novak was also there. Check out his slide show. – Michael Gallucci

When’s a secret show not a secret show? When everyone and his grandma know about the damn thing. The Black Keys’ free “secret” show at the Beachland Tavern last night was ostensibly a thank-you gig from MySpace (which sponsored) to local fans who signed up as a Secret Shows friend. But on Monday, the Beachland announced that it would be handing out wristbands on a first-come-first-served basis six hours before the doors opened to the small-scale show in the Tavern, which holds 150 people. More than 500 fans showed up for the wristbands ...

What began as a low-key neighborhood soda shop quickly grew into the unofficial HQ for the region’s tie-dyed freaks and hippies, drawing in artists, writers, and students from Case to Kent State and beyond. Odds are, if Mom is a NEO Boomer, she herself harbors a store of fond, if foggy, memories of Tommy’s, and of nights spent assuaging the munchies inside this bastion of counter-cultural cuisine. ...