Mike G.'s Picks of the Week: Corn, country, and one damn-fine chorus

This week’s top arts and entertainment picks around town, from the guy who’s paid to pick them: Monday: Lake Metroparks Farmpark’s Corn Maze recently opened for the season. The three-acre behemoth -- built entirely out of corn -- takes you on a labyrinthine journey that leads to one dead end after another. Trivia questions posted at various spots provide clues to the way out. It’s frustrating as hell, but it’s a good way to keep your mind off other things -- like the fact that winter is only a few months away. Tuesday: Irish singer-songwriter Damien Rice straddles the line between introspective and pretentious. On his second album, 9, he combines artsy stretches of noise with pretty tunes about love gone bad. The CD’s best song, “Rootless Tree,” includes the year’s best fuck-you chorus -- which goes like this: “Fuck you, fuck you, fuck you.” Cool stuff. Rice plays the Allen Theatre. Wednesday: Carina Round was all set to release her second album, Slow Motion Addict, last year when it was shelved at the last second. Twelve months later, the record has finally seen the light of day. The British singer-songwriter’s buzz-filled combo of hissing guitars and sleek pop go down easy. She’s at CSU’s the Spot. Thursday: Chappelle’s Show vet Paul Mooney returns to the Improv this weekend, and things have changed since the last time he was in town. For one thing, Michael Richards’ infamous onstage n-word rant a few months ago prompted Mooney -- who created and portrayed Chappelle’s popular Negrodamus character -- to omit the epithet from his repertoire. He still doesn’t like white people very much, though. Friday: If we were in charge of the CMAs, Brad Paisley would snag the Favorite Male Singer trophy every year he releases a record. His terrific new CD, 5th Gear, includes songs about MySpace nerds, driving real fast, and getting’ busy alfresco. He’s also a hell of a guitar player. He performs at Blossom. -- Michael Gallucci