BRAINIACS

Be prepare to take a ride on the Brain train.

Soul Brains, a reincarnation of cult heroes Bad Brains, is ready to turn Portland on its ear with a gig at The Skinny.

The band is nearly impossible to sum up in a neat-and-tidy package. Then again, neat-and-tidy never has been part of the Brains’ business.

The band split up in 1995 after 16 years blazing new trails in music. The All Music Guide (www.allmusic.com) couldn’t pin down a sound for the band, so the site emptied its vocabulary.

AMG lists Soul Brains’ tones as: “intense, fiery, freewheeling, passionate, reckless, aggressive, visceral, literate, cynical/sarcastic, volatile, hostile.”

If that doesn’t say it all …

The reunited lineup features ground-floor members HR, Dr. Know and Darryl.

The band will take the stage at 9 p.m. Monday, June 4, at 625 Congress St. in Portland.

Tickets for the show are $15 apiece, and, unfair as it is to the Brains-lovin’ youngsters, this is a 21-plus show.

Tickets are available at The Skinny and Bull Moose Music Stores, or by calling 871-8983.

So put on your dancing shoes, or leave your shoes at home. You won’t feel left out with Soul Brains.

MOVERS AND SHAKERS

The Shaker Museum will open for its 70th season at 10 a.m. Monday, May 28. Open until 4:30 p.m. every day except Sundays, until Columbus Day, the museum shows the Shaker view of life from the 1700s to the present day. The museum is located in the Sabbathday Lake Shaker Village, an active Shaker community. located near New Gloucester. Craft workshops and demonstrations are held throughout the

season. The museum has an interactive exhibit for children, a bookshop and a gift shop where Shaker-made goods and foods are available. For directions or information on the museum and its activity schedule, call 926-4597 or the Web site www.shaker.lib.me.us.

KAYAKS CELEBRATED

The annual Festival of the Kayak will be held Saturday, June 9, and Sunday, June 10, on land and waters around Southwest Harbor and Manset. Saturday begins with the “Greening Island Challenge” championship course for all age, and a paddle through Somes Sound, dinner by the sea and an evening presentation. An early morning kayaker’s breakfast overlooking the Great Harbor Marina will lead Sunday morning, followed by workshops about mapping, compass reading, navigation and safety, boat displays and then a good paddle from Manset to Bear Island. Need more convincing? Call 1-800-423-9264 or 244-9264 or check the Web site www.acadia.net/swhtrcoc

DIDO

Dido will perform with special guest Travis at 7:30 p.m. Sunday, July 1, at the CTNOW.com Meadows Music Centre in Hartford, Conn. Doors open at 5:30 p.m. Parking gates open at 4:30 p.m. Tickets are $15.50 to $43 and go on sale at 10 a.m. Saturday, April 14, and are available at www.sfx.com. Prices do not include a $4 additional parking fee, and there will be a $2 day-of-show ticket increase.