THURSDAY, OCTOBER 25

BUCK UP—Seeing English eccentric Robyn Hitchcock would be reason enough to leave the house, but throw in Young Fresh Fellows and an opening set from REM's Peter Buck, who just released his Portland-recorded first solo album, and you've got the most illustrious bill in town. NL
Doug Fir, 830 E Burnside, 9 pm, $18-20

THE AMAZING RACIST—The adage goes, "It's funny because it's true." When it comes to Ari Shaffir, it's indeed funny because it's true, and it's so true it hurts, and you really don't have any choice but to laugh, because it's either that or start beating people. BR
Helium Comedy Club, 1510 SE 9th, Thurs 8 pm, Fri-Sat 7:30 & 10 pm, $15-25

FRIDAY, OCTOBER 26

PARTY ON—Where better to celebrate Halloween than in a creepy old warehouse under the Hawthorne Bridge with a huge cumbia band? Nowhere, that's where. Get your sexy bumblebee/trashcan/Romney/whatever costume on and head to the Oregon Cement Building for a party-down time with Sun Angle and the Orquestra Pacifico Tropical. SM
w/1939 Ensemble, Gulls, Electric Ill; Oregon Cement Building, 111 SE Madison, 8 pm, $5-10, 21+, BYOB

WHORES OF YORE—The history fanatics behind the podcast Kick Ass Oregon History are determined to prove the past isn't boring. They make a good case with the sorta-Halloween-themed show about the history of Portland's brothels, and the long-dead sex workers who haunt them. Plus! A 35mm screening of arguably the best prostitute movie of all time: Midnight Cowboy. AH
Mission Theater, 1624 NW Glisan, 9 pm, $6-8, 21+

SATURDAY, OCTOBER 27

LET'S GO—Exuberance! Jumping! Dancing! Matt and Kim's live shows have plenty of bounce for the ounce. The boppin' duo are touring on their recently released album, Lightning, which is full of melodic beats, catchy bleeps and bloops, and Matt Johnson's enthusiastic, nasally singing. Wear your party pants! CF
w/Oberhofer; Roseland, 8 NW 6th, 8 pm, $20-23, all ages

HOMOWEEN—The gayest holiday just got gayer. Wicked Awesome, a big queer Halloween dance party, is back for the third year in a row—now with numerous cover bands, DJs, and a costume contest. Put on your Dorothy slippers (or chaps) and boogie down to tracks from B-52s cover band Planet Claire. It doesn't get any more fabulous than that! RF
w/Judas H. Priest, Thee Zombettes, Bomb Ass Pussy, & more; Plan B, 1305 SE 8th, 8 pm $8

SUNDAY, OCTOBER 28

ECTOPLASMIC ENTITIES—Halloween is the holiday with the best movies, and here's indisputable proof: This week, 5th Avenue Cinema has The Cabin in the Woods, the Laurelhurst has Ghostbusters, the Academy has The Blair Witch Project, and the Hollywood has Evil Dead 2. SEE THEM ALL. EH
Various theaters, see Movie Times for showtimes

HALLOWEEN GIRLS—The Suicide Notes combine all the harmonizing girl-group fun of the Shangri-Las with the rock 'n' roll garage goodness of the Ramones. With this free Halloween show, expect some great coordinating costumes and more Sunday evening drinks than bad-boy Jimmy drank before speeding through Dead Man's Curve (a lot!). CF
w/Modern Lives; Rontoms, 600 E Burnside, 9 pm, FREE

MONDAY, OCTOBER 29

POST-FOLK—With their winding brambles of guitars and banjos, Buxton might have sounded like one of a zillion other Americana folk acts. But the Houston five-piece's oddball songs and eerily compelling arrangements make for a sound far more airy than earthy. Buxton doesn't so much uphold musical traditions as upend them. NL
w/Chamberlin; Bunk Bar, 1028 SE Water, 9 pm, $10

BAD MOTHER EARTH—What's scarier than fictionalized zombies and spooks? Reality! And the reality is you're far more likely to meet your end at the hand of a horrific ecological consequence like the irradiated flesh-eating monster types featured in Christian Divine's Eco-Horror Spooktacular, a survey of clips from Soylent Green to Willard. MS
Hollywood Theatre, 4122 NE Sandy, 7 pm, $7

TUESDAY, OCTOBER 30

NAKED GIRLS! READING!—Probably the best thing that has ever been invented, Naked Girls Reading has... uh... naked girls. Reading aloud. Like a regular, boring book reading... but sexy. And not only does this installment have a horror theme, but it'll be followed by a show from local favorites Critical Hit Burlesque. EH
Star Theater, 13 NW 6th, reading at 8 pm, burlesque at 10 pm, $10-18, 21+

MURDER KITTIES!—Theoatmeal.com's Matthew Inman pretty much owns the internet, because the internet is utterly at the mercy of adorable cat comics, which just so happen to be Inman's specialty. His newest collection, How to Tell if Your Cat Is Plotting to Kill You, explores the uneasy peace between humans and felines, AKA "man's adorable little serial killers." AH
Powell's City of Books, 1005 W Burnside, 7:30 pm, FREE

WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 31

TWO FEARS—What kind of fear do you want on this Halloween hump day? The glamorous, dark art-house of the Miracles Club? Or the intimidating, night-worshipping punk of Pierced Arrows, which shows its face rarely outside of this annual night? Pick your poison, my pretty. MS
the Miracles Club, Mississippi Studios, 3939 N Mississippi, 9 pm, $10-12; Pierced Arrows, Ash Street Saloon, 225 SW Ash, 9:30 pm, $8

AND HERE...WE...GO!—Our long autumn of useless basketball scrimmaging is over, and the Portland Trail Blazers can get on with their Sisyphean climb toward respectability. Putting the stacked and sneering LA Lakers back on their heels would be a hell of a start. BR
Rose Garden, 1 Center Court, 7:30 pm, $59-349

ZOMBIE BOAT—How do we contain Portland's zombies? By putting them on a motherfuckin' BOAT, y'all! Join the rest of the zombies for Zombie Prom on the Portland Spirit—a three-hour cruise for the undead that features DJs, booze, food, and no surprise beheadings at the end. WSH
Portland Spirit, 1000 SW Naito, 8 pm, $20, 21+, portlandspirit.com/zombiecruise