Almost 20 years ago the Cuban musicians of the Buena Vista Social Club came to the world's attention, playing music that seemed as ancient, cool and elegant as the musicians themselves. One of the young boys of the group (he was in his 50's at the time) was Eliades Ochoa, whose guitar playing and singing added a touch of heartfelt, homegrown folkiness to the band's more Cuban nightclub sound. Since then, and with the passing of many of the original members, he's continued to record, and tour, with his own band, becoming one of Cuba's most important and respected musicians, and bringing the sound of a long-forgotten Cuba to modern ears. He'll be playing at Kaufleuten tonight (Thursday), and i have 2 x 2 tickets to give away.

Everyone knows that if you want to look cool in the summertime then you need to wear a pair of shades, and if you want to look extra cool then those shades definitely need to be vintage. Just in case you need your own cool to be fluffed-up a little, it’s Vintage Sunglasses Day on Thursday evening at Timetunnel Living, where they’ll have over 800 pairs of sunglasses, from the 1940’s to 1990’s, for you to try and buy. They'll also have dj Last James playing tunes from across the years, and a pop-up bar for you to linger at while feeling all vintage and cool, and possibly slightly blind, in your new, but oh-so-vintage, sunglasses.

Before the internet, before movies, television and radio, even before the written word, there was The Story. In the time of humanity's infancy, myths of the world's creation, legends of great heroes and tales of love were spoken, probably sitting around a great fire, and told us what it meant to be human. This tradition is being kept alive at the Palm House in the Old Botanical Garden, as the Urban Storytelling Oasis brings performers and storytellers together to cast their hypnotic spells on us. The event runs until Sunday, with a mixture of German and English language performances, but i have tickets to give away for a couple of the English readings on Saturday. The first is the classic epic poem, Beowulf, told and performed by Jesper La Cour Andersen and Troels Kirk Ejsing, and the other is The Kingdom of Fire and Clay, where Iranian and Jewish tales will be told by Sahand Sahebdivani and Raphael Rodan, with music performed by Anastasis Sarakatsanos and Pierre Balda. I have 2 tickets for each performance. E-mail me, letting me know which one you'd like to attend.

There's a saying that goes, ‘you get nothing for free in this world’, but there is another saying that we shouldn't forget - ‘shut up, you don't know what you're talking about’. The Lauter Festival is bringing together a great line-up of over 25 bands from all over Europe, putting them in three neighbouring venues on Gessnerallee - Stall 6, Nordflügel and El Lokal - and is expecting you to pay nothing to see them. That's right, you're getting a huge amount of sumptuous something for a huge amount of absolute nothingness. The bands all sound great and run the musical gamut from electro-folk to glam-disco to dream-jazz. See the full line-up here.

It's time to get your boogie boots out of the basement and put them on those fidgety feet, because Zurich Tanzt is happening this weekend and turning the entire city into a gigantic dance floor. If you've ever felt the urge to learn a type of dance, or to see performers doing those dances, then, dear Ronster, you've run out of excuses this weekend. There's frankly too much going on to list here, but they have 160 crash courses, 22 performances, 7 shows, 19 dance tours, as well as various urban interventions, films and parties happening in over 30 venues, but what do numbers mean when you just want to dance yourself dizzy? So here's a full listing of all events and courses happening over the weekend. I also have 2 x 2 festival weekend passes to give away.

There are many odd things about L.A. Salami; one of which is that he isn't named after a sweaty West Coast sausage; it's actually his real name. Lookman Adekunle Salami is a London-based musician who is more a poet with a guitar than a standard indie-rocker. Although his music has much in common with the rough guitar thrashings of The Libertines, or even The Clash, his lyrics are aiming at something more Dylanesque. He'll be bringing his postmodern blues to Papiersaal on Wednesday night.

They seem to grow up so fast these days. The Rio Bar is already celebrating its 9th birthday on Wednesday night. With its riverside location and beer garden, this mini bar has become an oasis in the city centre. And just because Rio is small, that doesn't mean it's not marking the occasion with a big party. Dj's Max Bunt, ScheSche, The Clementimes, Junaplanet and Alan Ford will be playing through the night, and they'll be keeping you energised with a grill in the garden.

Time to take out your diary to mark the best concerts of the month in bright red. Here you'll find my highlights including Youtube- and Spotify-Playlist. Enjoy!

Next Thursday is Ascension Day. As you won't receive a newsletter next week, i've compiled a short diary, so you don't miss out.

Thursday, 10th May: Day off & opening Urban Surf at Geroldstrasse
Friday to Sunday, 11th – 13th May: Burgerfestival at Werfthalle
Saturday, 12th May: Openair Bülachstrasse/Bülachhof
Sunday, 13th May: Don’t’ forget to bring your Mom flowers for Mother’s Day