D.C. Reggae Band Soja to Jam at Mr. Smalls; Row House Screening ‘The Maltese Falcon’ with Bogart and Astor (Wed., 3/30/16)

1) How many adults keep in touch with their middle school friends let alone record and perform music with them? The answer may be limited to the members of SOJA, but for reggae fans, it’s enough. For nearly 20 years, the D.C.-area eight-piece has been playing shows and releasing albums and concert DVDs. Along the way, they have augmented their reggae with hardcore, hip hop, and other genres. They have also opened for artists like Dave Matthews Band and Incubus and garnered huge crowds at Bonnaroo Music Festival in Manchester, Tennessee. Their hard work has not gone unrecognized, whether through their 200,000-plus albums sold or their 2014 “Best Reggae Album” Grammy nomination for Amid the Noise and Haste. That album, their fifth studio LP, features numerous collaborations, including an appearance by reggae royalty Damian Marley. No new releases currently, but the band is touring, including a stop at Mr. Smalls. New Kingston opens. 8 p.m. 400 Lincoln Ave., Millvale. (CM)

2) The Maltese Falcon – When they talk about classic Hollywood films, the chances are good they’re talking about The Maltese Falcon. Based on a novel of the same name by Dashiell Hammett, this was the directorial debut of John Huston and is now considered one of the first film noirs ever made. In an iconic performance, Humphrey Bogart plays Sam Spade, the archetypal “hard-boiled dick” hired by the classic “hard-boiled dame” (played by Mary Astor) to find her sister. Or is she? Nothing’s what it seems and nobody’s got more morals than you can shake a stick at and along the way Bogey meets up with three of filmdoms shadiest lowlifes, played by Sydney Greenstein, Peter Lorre, and Elisha Cook, Jr. Supposedly they’re all after an infamous statue, the eponymous bird encrusted with gold and jewels. But even the film’s fans readily admit that the script doesn’t really make much sense. Not that it matters, this is the Golden Age of Hollywood at it’s best. 9:30 p.m. Through tomorrow. Row House Cinema, 4115 Butler St., Lawrenceville. (TH)

3) Cappy’s Cafe in Shadyside is holding a Team Trivia contest tonight with Trivia Master John. 9 – 11 p.m. Yuengling draft special is $3 for a 20 oz. brew. 5431 Walnut St.

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