THURSDAY, AUGUST 20

It's been a summer crammed with big tickets, but this may be the biggest ticket of all: The epic, legendary, downright batty the Flaming Lips turn the Edgefield lawn into a space carnival, previewing material from the upcoming Embryonic double album. They're bringing some seriously impressive opening acts with them, too: fellow Oklahomans Stardeath and White Dwarf, plus a little band from Idaho called Built to Spill. Built to friggin' Spill! NL

Edgefield, 2126 SW Halsey, Troutdale, 6 pm, $42-47, all ages

Pietopia is not where pies go when they die, it's where they go when they transcend. Free pie and art connects you to the lives of pie bakers in this unique Portland baking contest. Agent Dale Cooper would be proud. PAC

Eastbank Farmers Market, SE 20th & Salmon, 3:30 pm, FREE, all ages

FRIDAY, AUGUST 21

It's time for the SMMR BMMR, a chaotic punk rock meltdown spanning the entire weekend, allowing you to finally get back at all of those stupid vowels that did you wrong. Dozens of crazy underground bands—with evening shows at Rotture and afternoon matinees at BC's—will leave you beer soaked and disemvoweled. Hll yh! PG

Rotture, 315 SE 3rd, Fri-Sun 5 pm, $12 ($28/weekend pass); BC's American Saloon, 2433 SE Powell, Sat-Sun 1 pm, FREE

Ghostbusters is officially Portland's favorite movie from 1984, which is officially the best year of movies in American cinema history. In a citywide vote, Slimer & Co. beat out 1984 hits The Karate Kid, Gremlins, and even Sixteen Candles (R.I.P. John Hughes) to snag the last slot of the free Flicks on the Bricks summer movie series. Bring on the ectoplasm! SM

Pioneer Courthouse Square, SW 6th & Morrison, dusk, FREE

SATURDAY, AUGUST 22

Milepost 5's epic 10-day arts blowout The Manor of Art continues this weekend. Tonight features some of the best music of the festival, with performances from Dirty Mittens, Blue Skies for Black Hearts, Jared Mees and the Grown Children, and more. AH

Milepost 5, 900 NE 81st, 3-9 pm, see milepostfive.com for complete schedule, FREE

Every year the gravity-driven creations at the Portland Adult Soapbox Derby get stranger and faster, and every year the winding Mt. Tabor track puts them in their place. Speeds in excess of 45 mph, beer, metal, and rubber? My idea of a good afternoon. PAC

Mt. Tabor Park, SE 60th & Salmon, 10 am-4 pm, FREE, all ages

SUNDAY, AUGUST 23

The combination of color-coordinated guitarsturbator Jack White and surly howl of Alison Mosshart (of the Kills) seems like a match made in rock heaven, but new rock supergroup the Dead Weather is just okay. But who cares? It's Jack White! Mere feet away from the legendary White Stripes performance at Satyricon in 2000 that you probably did not attend because you are so not cool. EAC

w/Tyvek; Roseland, 8 NW 6th, 8 pm, $30-35, all ages

With his appearances on Comedy Central's The Daily Show and Important Things, as well the lead role in the new Ang Lee movie Taking Woodstock, Demetri Martin is getting recognition as one of the funniest comedians around. But more importantly, he has amazing hair, and that is really all that matters. NL

Newmark Theatre, 1111 SW Broadway, 7 & 9:30 pm, $41.75

MONDAY, AUGUST 24

While Quentin Tarantino's newly released Inglourious Basterds continues his disappointing streak of self-absorbed failures, don't miss this chance to check out the film he stole his title from—1978's The Inglorious Bastards! Enzo G. Castellari's WWII classic follows a motley crew of American soldiers on a life-or-death mission, and it's at least 10 times more entertaining than whatever that hack Tarantino's trying to sell you this time. EH

Clinton Street Theater, 2522 SE Clinton, see Movie Times for showtimes, $6

Borrowing a title—and little else—from an utterly forgotten, totally insignificant Italian flick from the '70s, Quentin Tarantino's Inglourious Basterds is the pulp auteur's latest chunk of witty, inventive, ultra-violent brilliance. At once familiar and shocking—and always madly, daringly entertaining—Basterds follows several plotlines, all set in France in WWII. EH

Various Theaters, see Movie Times for showtimes

TUESDAY, AUGUST 25

Get ready for a night of seriously fun "gal power" with this outdoor concert at Edgefield that features the awesome punk power pop of Pretenders, the unpredictably entertaining Cat Power, and actor/musician Juliette Lewis. WSH

Edgefield, 2126 SW Halsey, Troutdale, 6 pm, $39-79, all ages

Following the tragic death of Kris Jensen, mother of Rachael Jensen from the Parenthetical Girls, the generous Portland music community set up an all-star benefit for her memorial fund. Included are sets from YACHT, Au, Copy, and May Ling, and there will be an art auction as well. Please dig deep for this noble cause. EAC

Holocene, 1001 SE Morrison, 8:30 pm, $5-15 sliding scale

WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 26

Have you ever seen that movie Hoop Dreams, where inner-city kids have big dreams of playing in the NBA? Well, Kings of the Road is just like that, only instead of inner-city kids, it's Canadian professional athletes, and instead of basketball, they play hockey! Before we had the Trail Blazers, Portland's sports heroes were the Buckaroos, and they were winners. JC

Northwest Film Center's Whitsell Auditorium, 1219 SW Park, 7 pm, $8

The New Oregon Interview Series explores Portland's creative culture by interrogating those responsible. Tonight, local author Jon Raymond gets the probe—Raymond penned the short stories behind the films Wendy and Lucy and Old Joy. Also on deck: Clown Girl author Monica Drake, and Write Around Portland co-founder Ben Moorad. AH

Urban Grind, 2214 NE Oregon, 7 pm, $5