The Ramshead Rathskeller, a Chapel Hill landmark in the hearts and fatty tissues of many to drink from The Well, will open by the end of the year. Apparently the restaurant will be under new ownership, which is, reportedly, a good thing. The restaurant closed for a while about a decade ago, then closed again in 2008. Perhaps the restaurant should be called the “Cats”keller because it seems to have nine lives.

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In the midst of its 50th anniversary year, The Angus Barn has been named an All-American Icon by Nation’s Restaurant News and won its 21st consecutive Wine Spectator Grand Award. Recently The Barn racked up another accolade. Its Wild Turkey Bar & Lounge has been named one of the Best Business Bars in America by Entrepreneur magazine.

The July 2010 issue includes The Wild Turkey Bar & Lounge among 15 American watering holes. It is one of only two bars in the Southeast named as a best bar for doing business.

Stating that the Wild Turkey Bar & Lounge has been “a cross-sectional hotbed of local politicos, big pharma executives and tech tycoons since it opened in 1984,” author Monica Corcoran Harel goes on to write that this is “the best place to strike a deal in the entire Research Triangle.” On any given night, one might run into local and state elected officials, as well as top executives from SAS, GlaxoSmithKline and more.

The review states that the essential attributes of a great business bar include discreet seating, friendly and attentive staff, a compelling crowd, manageable din, a full range of liquor, good lighting, good food, and decent décor.

Superchunk will release its first new album in nine years with a concert on Thursday, Sept. 16, 2010 at the Nasher Museum of Art at Duke University. It will be the only North Carolina venue for the Chapel Hill-based band’s national fall tour in support of their new album, “Majesty Shredding” (available 9/14). The concert is open to the public and begins at 8:30 p.m.

Under the Radar Magazine says “Majesty Shredding” displays "a cohesive band scaling the heights of their formidable powers.” Time Out Chicago says the album "puts the pedal to the metal with youthful abandon.”

The Superchunk performance, a complement to the Nasher Museum’s exhibition “The Record: Contemporary Art and Vinyl,” will take place after a 6 p.m. talk by New York-based visual artist Xaviera Simmons, whose work is part of the exhibition. “The Record” explores the culture of vinyl records through 50 years of contemporary art and features work by 41 artists from around the world who use vinyl records as subject or medium.

Tickets are $12 for adults and $6 for Nasher Museum members and $5 for Duke students with I.D.

Superchunk will have a busy week that week, as they will appear on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon late on the evening of September 20.

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One of the big indie bands right now, Matt and Kim, will be at the Cat’s Cradle in Carrboro on Wednesday, October 20.

According to Pollstar.com, Bon Iver will make his way back to the Triangle for three nights at the Hayti Heritage Center in Durham. The dates are 9/17-9/19, but the nature of the event(s) is not clear at this point.

On September 9 the Cat’s Cradle will host Corinne Bailey Rae. Tickets are $25 and go on sale tomorrow at 9am.

Wynton Marsalis returns to UNC for a two-night stint, January 28 and 29, at Memorial Hall. This time he is bringing the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra with him, a 15-piece big band! Tickets are $110/$85/$75/$55, but $10 for students.

Flyleaf Books in Chapel Hill will be hosting author/activist Cory Doctorow on Sunday (5/23) at 1pm. Doctorow will be reading from his new novel, For The Win. Doctorow is the noted Science Fiction author as well as open standards activist who recently created much controversy with his BoingBoing piece, “Why I Won’t Buy an iPad (and Think You Shouldn’t Either)”.

With a key personality of the E.F.F. right here in the shadows of the House’s 6th District, one could only dream of a head to head debate between Doctorow and Paul Howard Coble (the guy who authored legislation, the DMCA, that makes it illegal for you to rip a DVD for personal use)…but I digress.

On Thursday, July 29 Mat Kearney will be returning to the Cat’s Cradle in Carrboro. Tickets are $20 for this seated show, and go on sale on Friday morning (May 14). This one will sell out, BTW.