Writer, director, composer, and all-around badass John Carpenter is responsible for some of the greatest movies of the '70s and '80s: Halloween remains a slasher masterpiece. Four decades after it premiered, Assault on Precinct 13 is still intense. And with his buddy Kurt Russell, Carpenter made three perfect classics—Escape from New York, The Thing, and Big Trouble in Little China. Oh, and there's more: They Live, Starman, Christine, The Fog... well into the '90s, Carpenter was making work that was funny, smart, and scary. These days, the horror master's focus is on his haunting, synth-driven music—while Carpenter's compositions once provided thrilling scores for his films, they now stand on their own with the original albums Lost Themes and Lost Themes II. Tonight, the 68-year-old Carpenter takes the stage at the Schnitz for a performance of classic scores and new compositions. Backed up by a band and a "spectacular stage production," it promises to be a deep dive into Carpenter's one-of-a-kind contributions to movies and music. I wouldn't miss it for the world. ERIK HENRIKSEN