The Enquirer

Going Out

Cincinnati Opera Summer Festival

The final summer production of Carmen opens 8 p.m. today. Continues through July 25, Music Hall, 1241 Elm St., downtown. $25-$130. 241-2742.

Book signing

Charles E. Brooks discusses and signs A Guide to Cincinnati's Historic Firehouses at 7 p.m. today, Joseph-Beth Booksellers, 2692 Madison Road, Norwood. Free. 396-8960.

New Releases

Simpson sibling: Jessica's younger sister Ashlee Simpson releases her debut album Autobiography (Geffen Records; $13.98).

Maria Mena: Norwegian native releases her full-length domestic debut White Turns Blue (Sony; $12.98).

Jump 55: This re-mastered collection from Van Halen's 25 years run, Best of Both Worlds, also includes three new tracks with frontman Sammy Hagar (Rhino Records; $24.98)

Prehistoric itch: The Hives return with their third studio effort, Tyrannosaurus Hives (Interscope Records; $13.98).

Boxed history: The Faces' six-year existence is captured in Faces Box: Five Guys Walk Into a Bar (Rhino Records; $59.98).

DVD picks: Ben Stiller and Owen Wilson send up the '70s TV show in the style-crazy Starksy & Hutch, says Enquirer film critic Margaret A. McGurk. Also new on DVD is Pharaoh's Army. This neglected 1995 gem, filmed in central Kentucky, features Oscar-winner Chris Cooper as a war-weary Union officer and Patricia Clarkson as a bitter Confederate widow in the waning days of the Civil War.

Looking Ahead

24 hours out

Lamb of God with Unearth, Atreyu and Every Time I Die perform 8 p.m. Wednesday, Bogart's, 2621 Vine St., Corryville. $15, $12.50 advance. 562-4949.

48 hours out

Dave Alvin and the Guilty Men with Los Straitjackets perform 8:30 p.m. Thursday, Southgate House, 24 E. Third St., Newport. $18, $15 advance. 779-9462.

--Rob Bucher