THURSDAY, DECEMBER 11
GET YER FIX—For two hot and heavy years, the Fix has been the place for Stumptown's soul and hiphop lovers to meet up and get down. Helping them celebrate the weekly night's two-year anniversary is street culture icon, performer, and allegedly awesome basketball player Bobbito Garcia. SM
w/Rev Shines, Ohmega Watts, DJ Kez, Dundiggy; Someday Lounge, 125 NW 5th, 9 pm, $7
LOCAL LOVE—Portland-based Bladen County Records is hosting the first in a series of seasonal showcases, and tonight's has Oh Captain, My Captain, Autopilot Is for Lovers, the Love Language, and more. You'll be able to pick up copies of Bladen County's new quarterly zine and their Christmas calendar, and they're even giving away a free compilation CD of demo tracks by Bladen County artists! NL
w/Ritchie Young, Kurt Hagardorn, the Skinnyz; Holocene, 1001 SE Morrison, 8:30 pm, $5
FRIDAY, DECEMBER 12
FIXIE FLICKS—The last and best stop on the traveling Bicycle Film Festival (right after Melbourne and Milano) is, of course, right here. Get your rear in gear to check out two days of full-length flicks, plus "bike shorts" featuring bikes ridden backwards, bikes on one wheel, and bikes ridden in pursuit of cop cars. SM
Cinema 21, 616 NW 21st, Fri Dec 12 & Sat Dec 13, $8 per screening, see Film Times. TK for screenings and showtimes
CHRISTMAS CIRCUS—If Christmas doesn't already strike you as something of a circus, check out the multi-generational appeal of the White Album Christmas (also emblazoned on this week's cover), with music from the Beatles album, plus aerialists, jugglers, and magicians! MS
w/the Nowhere Band; Bossanova, 722 E Burnside, 7 pm, $22-27, all ages (also showing Fri Dec 19)
SATURDAY, DECEMBER 13
BUY MUSIC—Got an audiophile on your Christmas list? Head on over to the massive Rock 'n' Shop at Slabtown, where all day long you can peruse releases from over 20 local record labels—all available for recession-friendly prices, plus a showcase of excellent bands including the feel-good punk of the Mean Jeans and the teenage freakouts of White Fang. How much will this set you back? Not a penny. It's free to get in, which means more money in your wallet to spend on records. EAC
w/Hey Lover, New York Rifles, Southerly, & more; Slabtown, 1033 NW 16th, 3 pm, FREE
CHEAP ART—Today the Portland art world is practically doing your Christmas shopping for you: Prints for PICA invites more than 50 local artists to spend all day painting and printing new works, then sell 'em off on the cheap, with prices ranging from $100-250. While you're waiting for that unbeatable sale to start, swing by Quality Pictures to find slashed prices on original photographs by Cindy Sherman, Holly Andres, Tim Davis, and more, as well as prints, posters, and hard-to-find first-edition and signed art books. AH
Prints for PICA, TodayArt Studios, 439 SE Grand, 6-9 pm; Quality Pictures, 916 NW Hoyt, 11 am-6 pm
SUNDAY, DECEMBER 14
RECORD RELEASE—Portland post-rock instrumental crew We're from Japan rock the kind of spatial, brooding sonic-core that makes you go, "Huh?" They're celebrating new album Now Breathe, a collection of sprawling ambience sure to put you in a welcome weekend trance. RJP
Doug Fir, 830 E Burnside, 9 pm, $8
CAT VS. CAT—Who would win in a fight: the mighty Panther or the toothsome Sabertooth? While Panther's hard-edged junky soul will certainly inspire you to bare your teeth and shimmy, the lonesome folk of Sabertooth lulls its victims into a dreamlike state before puncturing them with gigantic sharp teeth. Sooo... your choice. WSH
Panther w/Hawnay Troof, Explode into Colors; Rotture, 315 SE 3rd, 9 pm, $7; Sabertooth w/Shicky Gnarowitz; Valentine's, 232 SW Ankeny, 9:30 pm, FREE
MONDAY, DECEMBER 15
INTO THE WILD—The flaring, majestic music of Wilderness cuts post-punk anxiety out of a soaring post-rock landscape, tying it together with postmodern chanted vocals. The Baltimore band's new (k)no(w)here album is expansive and unyielding, but you won't need a compass to explore this strange, beautiful music. NL
w/San Serac, theecaterpillar; Rotture, 315 SE 3rd, 9 pm, $8
BRITISH AD AWARDS—Tonight is your last chance to catch this annual collection of the best TV and cinema commercials from the greatest national producer of such work in the world. Strange, really, when you remember that the BBC doesn't even feature ads, but less is more, I guess. MD
Northwest Film Center's Whitsell Auditorium, 1219 SW Park, 7 pm, $8
TUESDAY, DECEMBER 16
BLAZERS—The Blazers are the hottest ticket in town right now, and tonight's match-up against Kevin Martin and the Sacramento Kings (featuring nefarious Oden rival Spencer Hawes) should be a doozy. AH
Rose Garden, 1 Center Court, 7 pm, $10 & up
WEIRD—All those bands dabbling in psychedelic music better pay their dues, because Yahowha 13—the supreme gods of all things weird, bearded, and psychedelic—are breaking a nearly 30-year silence. The absolutely legendary (and absolutely bizarre) band sprung from the roots of the Source Family cult and is now down to three surviving members, so grow out your beard and put on your best robe. EAC
Fabulous Jackpot Records, 3574 SE Hawthorne, 3 pm, FREE, all ages; Doug Fir, 830 E Burnside, 9 pm, $12
WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 17
LAST DEATH—Shed a tear, oh ye lovers of the orchestral strings 'n' indie rock milieu forged by Portland anomalies Strangers Die Every Day, for this Wednesday marketh their final performance. Sad, but true. If you never got a chance to submerge yourself in their soothing pool of gloom and glee, you'd better do it now. RJP
w/Blue Cranes, Autopilot Is for Lovers; Holocene, 1001 SE Morrison, 9 pm, $6
