Escape the Heritage: What to do beyond the tournament

Among the other things it's known for -- golf, of course, the beach, those molecule-size gnats that cannot be killed -- Hilton Head Island is an area of great change, particularly in its art/music scene, which may look a little different since the last time folks came down for the Heritage. A quick, and highly incomplete, look at some of the events happening around the island over the next few days, for your post-tournament needs.

The North Carolina-based funk/hip-hop outfit the

Urban Sophisticates appears at 10 p.m. Wednesday at Stages; they specialize in horn-kissed organic hip-hop in the vein of the Roots or Soulive. Music starts at 10 p.m. Park Plaza, Hilton Head Island. 843-686-3545. www.myspace.com/stageshiltonhead

If you're a jazz fan and haven't yet checked out the Jazz Corner, budget yourself a trip over; the club has a steady stream of quality local and national acts, and has recently played host to Mose Allison, Noel Freidline and Freddy Cole, among many others. This week features smooth jazz with the Earl Williams Quartet (7 p.m. Wednesday),

Broadway and blues with Lavon and Louise (7 p.m. Thursday) and the fizzy, frenetic sounds of the Big Band Brass Bash Septet (7 p.m. Friday and Saturday). Reservations may be made by calling 843-842-8620 or going to www.thejazzcorner.com. Village At Wexford C2, Hilton Head Island.

Like onetime labelmates Hootie and the Blowfish, Edwin McCain has been knocking around these parts for quite a while, having cut his teeth in Southeastern clubs from Hilton Head to Columbia; you may know him from such hits as 1998's "I'll Be."

He performs at the Shoreline Ballroom at 9 p.m. Friday with Joal Rush. Tickets are $16. 843-842-0358.

• The Southern Fried Chicks are not only the female version of the Blue Collar Comedy Tour, but according to lead Etta May, they also have better hair ("Or at least bigger," she clarifies). Observe the comedy stylings of these particular Dixie Chicks at

9 p.m. Thursday at the north end's new Shoreline Ballroom, located in Ocean Center at 40 Folly Field Road. Tickets are $20. 843-842-0358.

• If your tastes are a little more retro in nature, you may want to check out "A Cappella Harmony Night -- Sing Well For Deep Well," an evening of a cappella music featuring performances by local barbershop, gospel and choir groups. That's at

7:30 p.m. Friday at the First Presbyterian Church, 540 William Hilton Parkway, Hilton Head Island; tickets are $10 at the door. 843-681-9480.

• More readers of this piece were into 1980s-style hair metal than they'll likely admit to, so if you're one of these people who's hidden their love of Bon Jovi for too long, trick your party into visiting the Wild Wing Cafe (72 Pope Ave., Hilton Head) on Saturday for Silicone Sister, a local group out to revive the Earth's cheesiest era, as well as ruin some more of its ozone. 843-785-9464. www.wildwingcafe.com

• If you're here with the kids, or find yourself living some degree of the hard-knock life, you may be comforted by a performance of "Annie," being put on by the island's Main Street Youth Theatre at 7 p.m. Friday and Saturday and 2 p.m. Sunday at the Main Street Theater. Tickets are $20 for adults, $10 for students and $15 for groups of 10 or more. 843-689-6246. www.msyt.org

• It's not hard to find live music happening throughout the weekend; for a taste of the local scene, your best bets might be the Wild Wing Cafe (72 Pope Ave., Hilton Head, 843-785-9464), Riders Lounge (6 Target Road, Hilton Head, 843-842-7433), The Big Bamboo (1 North Forest Beach Dr. in Coligny Plaza, Hilton Head, 843-686-3443), the new XO Lounge (23 Ocean Lane, Palmetto Dunes, 843-341-8080) or Tavern on the Park in Park Plaza (843-785-3000). And in addition to its other shows, Stages (Park Plaza, 843-686-3545) hosts a series of loud, island-style outfits throughout the weekend, including the Permanent Tourists at 8 p.m. Friday and the B-Town Playaz at 8 p.m. Saturday.

• This one doesn't quite fall under Arts, but if you, hypothetically, are looking for the mathematical opposite of watching a golf tournament, might we suggest women's roller derby: The Savannah Derby Devils face off against the visiting Charlotte Roller Girls on Saturday at the Savannah National Guard Armory, 1248 Eisenhower Drive, Savannah. Doors open at 6 p.m.; bout starts at 7 p.m. The contest's theme is "The Big LeBOUTski," a nod to the classic Coen brothers movie, and will feature live entertainment, Lebowski-themed contests and a body bowling game. Tickets are $12 at the door; children 8 and under get in free. ("Suicide seating" is available near the track.) www.savannahderbydevils.com