Mark your calendars for Feb. 13, as Medulla Oblongata has set that date to record its long-awaited live record.

The Ames-based jazz-fusion jammers will record the all-ages gig at 6 p.m. at People’s Bar and Grill.

Medulla who? The American Heritage College Dictionary defines medulla oblongata as “The lowermost portion of the vertebrate brain, continuous with the spinal cord and controlling respiration, circulation and certain other bodily functions.”

Whether the Ames band got its name from the definition of a brain is irrelevant; the group has a good time on stage and gives the crowd groovin’ tunes.

For those with the magical 21-or-over I.D., feel free to stick around for the 10 p.m. show.

Ames’ own funkadelic rappers Mr. Plow will open the early show. Rumor has it Plow will be heading into the studio in March.

Bring on the ice, ice, baby!

35″ Mudder will open for white-boy rapper Vanilla Ice Thursday night at the Safari club in Des Moines. Tickets for the 7 p.m. show are available at Ticketmaster outlets for $12 ($15 at the door).

Also, don’t forget the first Grandma Mojo’s Moonshine Revival of the semester will be held at the Maintenance Shop tonight. Be there, or be square.

Upcoming Releases

The infamous Carlos Santana is returning to rock ‘n’ roll. Santana collaborated with musicians of a vast age range to create an album that is due this spring. Dave Matthews, Everlast, Lauryn Hill, Mick Jagger and many others will appear on the Arista Records release, according to Rocktropolis.

Pavement plans to greet the beginning of summer with its fifth studio album, yet to be titled (although bets are being taken as to whether or not it will rhyme). The group’s last release, “Brighten the Corners,” was one of the few Pavement works that didn’t sound like the title to a Dr. Seuss book.

According to Pavement’s label’s Web site, the band doesn’t have any tour dates set in stone but might be out on the road during the sunny summer days.

Through the Grapevine

The masculine counterparts to dolls are about to get a bat-biting wake-up call. Ozzy Osbourne and “Spawn” creator Todd McFarlane have decided to take the action figure to a downright spooky level with the planned release of an Ozzy figure this summer.

Joining in the mayhem, Sony Signatures will release a line of Black Sabbath action figures in conjunction with the reunion tour, according to MTV News.

If dolls aren’t your cup of tea, you’ll still be able to participate in the trendy commercialism by purchasing skateboards, animation cells, hand-signed lithographs or drum heads that boast the band’s label.

If dolls are your cup of tea, there’s more fun coming.

McFarlane Toys plans to release figures for the upcoming “Austin Powers” sequel, the “Yellow Submarine,” which will return bearing gifts of Beatles figures.

Also, certain scary movie icon miniatures will be on store shelves before the end of the year.

In other Ozzy news, the Black Sabbath show with Pantera and Incubus originally scheduled to hit Hilton Coliseum on Feb. 18 has been changed to Feb. 26. Tickets are on sale now for $39.50.