5 things to do in Louisville this weekend

FRIDAY

Diarrhea Planet, The Tommys, Brenda  Zanzabar, 2100 S. Preston St. $10; 9 p.m. Four-guitar harmonies that have the hook-heavy characteristics of contemporary fuzz-punk, but also a clear fascination with metal, Diarrhea Planet may have the most marketable name in the Internet age. Where it once would have been tricky to get radio play or blindly sell physical copies of a record, now, in a one-click society, it’s hard to not listen to a band called Diarrhea Planet. The Tommys and Brenda open.—Scott Recker

Outskirts Festival Oct. 9-10 @ New Vintage Oct. 11 @ Art Sanctuary $35/Weekend, $20/Day Outskirts Festival seeks to establish a safe and inclusive environment for women — trans, cis-gendered or non-gender-conforming individuals included. Grab a pass, check out some great local bands and all proceeds will go towards establishing “Girls Rock Louisville,” a summer camp expansion of the Rockshops for Girls programs at this year’s festival.—Ethan Smith

Garvin Gate Blues Festival Oak Street and Garvin Place Free; Oct. 9-10 Originally a blues jam in the parking lot of the Rudyard Kipling, this festival has grown quite a bit over the years. This two-day arts and music festival will host 22 local and national blues acts on two stages in the historic Old Louisville neighborhood. There will also be plenty of whiskey, food and over 50 crafts booths selling art and a whole host of artisan oddities.—Ethan Smith

SATURDAY

reGeneration fair Corner of Frankfort Avenue & River Road Free; 2 p.m. Finally, Louisville is going to have its very own botanical garden. And to celebrate Botanica (the nonprofit behind the project) is hosting reGeneration Fair. Walk the grounds of the future garden, enjoy some live music by Blue Zen Garden, grab grub from the food trucks or check out some of the many demonstrations involving things like bees, butterflies, a rainwater garden, a bird walk, spinning hemp and much more. And don’t forget to bring the dog to this pet-friendly event.—Ethan Smith

SUNDAY

Jack-O’-Lantern Spectacular Iroquois Park, 2120 Rundill Road $15; Till Oct. 31, dusk – 11 p.m. (12 p.m. on Friday–Saturday) It’s that time of year again, time to break out the orange and black decorations and start working on this year's jack-o’-lantern masterpiece/disaster. But before you senselessly mutilate another pumpkin, head to Iroquois Park where you can walk a quarter-mile trail — complete with spooky music — and check out the nearly 5,000 carved jack-o’-lanterns. (Many of which were carved by LEO Readers’ Choice winner for visual artist, Damon Thompson.) It’s jaw-droppingly cool, and it might even give you a little artistic inspiration.—Ethan Smith