The weighty gray of autumn has descended and the state of the world seems more dismal by the day. Time to round up friends and seek refuge in history by jumping around to the best pop music from an exuberantly delusional decade. The crowd at this weekly party is a mishmash of earnest geeks, friendly freaks, and hot young things—and no one can dance, but everyone does anyway. Plus: The club serves fantastic tater tots all night. (Noc Noc, 1516 Second Ave, 223-1333. 9 pm, free, 21+.)

Cat Clifford's new show at Howard House is the product of a mind on fire. She's back from a summer road trip to rural haunts with a barrage of cut drawings, videos shot with devices ranging from digital to Super 8, animated drawings, and pinhole photographs. Often, she acts out imitations of what she finds—a piece of driftwood, an oil derrick, an overturned easy chair in an abandoned house. She mimics these things like she's practicing to become them. (Howard House, 604 Second Ave, 256-6399. 10:30 am–5 pm, free.)