THURSDAY, July 31

MUSIC--N-Grava vs. Dampkrane, Glomm vs. Bitmarch--it's not a fight to the death between warring factions of mutants, but it may end up being a fight to the death between circuits in laptops, and perhaps other electronic apparatuses. See what happens when dudes hook up their computers and make sweet music. JS
ISDIFF Showcase; Blackbird, 3724 NE Sandy, 282-9949, 9:30 pm, $5

DUNE BUGGIES--Dunefest is so much more than ATVs bounding and bumping across the sandy seaside, and beer-guzzling rowdiness. There is also live music, sandrail exhibitions, and cleverly designed games like "the poker run" that sends drivers storming across the beach to pick up playing cards. Whoever ends up with the best poker hand wins! Most excellent! PB
Dunefest 2003, Thursday-Sunday, Umpqua State Park (off Hwy 101), 800-247-2155 for more details

FRIDAY, August 1

MUSIC--The band whose music provided the soundtrack to my parents' pillaging of my college fund to support their coke habit, is finally coming back to Portland. This time around, Steely Dan is playing in support of another new record that is nowhere near as good as Aja. But that hardly matters when your fanbase is a bunch of numb-faced baby boomers with bloody noses. Say "Hi" to my folks for me. CM
Memorial Coliseum, 300 Winning Way, 224-4400, 8 pm, $65-$75

MUSIC--My friend Brad says that his boyfriend might want to see this show, so let's assume there are others like him. Queensryche--the pre-grunge yarl band whose equipment was purchased entirely by the singer's mother--penned hits such hits as "Silent Lucidity" and "Jet City Woman" and keeps on singin' 'em. This might just be wack(y) enough to check out. KS
w/Dream Theater, Fates Warning; Schnitzer, SW Broadway & Main, 224-4400, 7:30 pm, $37.50

SEX AND OUR CITY--Candace Bushnell, the writer of the book on which the guiltiest, most addictive TV pleasure ever, Sex and the City, is based, is coming to read her latest novel, Trading Up. Eeeee! Don't forget to call up your closest girlfriends! MS
Powell's, 1005 W Burnside, 7:30 pm, free

SATURDAY, August 2

MUSIC--The band Soviet wants you to spend your electro-cash on their beep, boop, bop electro-pop magic. In fact, they've traveled all the way from Brooklyn to croon for crowds; offering a sound that is somber, synthy, and inspired by the keyboard-driven music of the 1980s. S "T" L
w/Vanishing Kids, Jackie; Blackbird, 3728 NE Sandy, 282-9949, 9:30 pm, $6

SUNDAY, August 3

BMX STUNTS--Ending its 10-city tour with a blowout tonight, the BMX Movie Tour is crammed with high-flying somersaults, rail riding insanity, other purely gratuitous bike stunts, and the rambunctiously loud LA-punk band Crash Radio. PB
Paris Theater, 6 SW 3rd, 224-8313

FILM & MUSIC--If being simply a "musician" isn't enough to quench your thirst for artistic revelry, check out San Fran renaissance man Corey McAbee (aka The Billy Nayer Show). This musician/filmmaker/performance artist will be screening his hee-lariously weird and touching film The American Astronaut, followed by a live musical performance where he sings songs about love, bunnies, and desperation while strumming an autoharp. Bizarrely original. WSH
Dante's, 1 SW 3rd Ave, 226-6630, 7 pm, $8

MONDAY, August 4

POLITICS & FILM--Is a volatile combination, and no one knows that better than the folks at PSU's Progressive Student Union. Tonight they present the Tim Robbins classic Bob Roberts as part of their ongoing "Bush-Blair Boycott Dog Days of Summer Film Fest," an eight-week series that will attack every messed-up political issue from corporate media sponsorship to "sexist Republican sludgehurling." Fight the power! JWS
PSU's Smith Center, Rm. 225, 1620 SW Park, 725-7798, 6 pm, free

TUESDAY, August 5

SKATEBOARD ART--From explosive graffiti to kinetic graphic designs, this well-rounded show (all by real skaters) has put skateboard-influenced art right back where it belongs: On the skateboard! One-third of the show's proceeds are going to help set up more skate parks around the city. PB
Dept. of Skateboarding, 15 NE Hancock, 493-9480, 1 pm-9 pm, through August, free

DUMPSTERS--Have you been dissatisfied with the results of your dumpster dives? It's harder and more complicated than you thought, isn't it? Thankfully, there's a series of free classes taught by Yoda, the Zen Dumpster Master, with today being the last day of Summer term! MS
BEGINS THURSDAY, UFO Museum, 1637 SW Alder, call 227-2975 for more information, free!

WEDNESDAY, August 6

FILMS--Super 8 films, music, bingo, and beer. What more can you hope for on a boring old Wednesday. The Polyester Prince Film and Music Rambling Road Show gives us the best of their past five years of Super 8 films and plenty of activities to break up the quiet time. KS
Moon and Sixpence, 2014 NE 42nd, 288-7802