SWORDS PROJECT, !!!, MOMERATHS, NUDGE
(Meow Meow) The Swords are like a musty Valentine made with old wax paper and foil. Their primarily instrumental, swelling dynamics created with guitars, vibes, violins, and drums have a ghostly secret to them--a wink in the dark preceding a spectral conflict. When you consider that eight of Portland's greatest musicians create this mysterious entity, it's not surprising that they've already become one of the greatest bands in the history of this city (and perhaps one of my favorites of all time). They are fucking brilliant. And it's like any supportive relationship--you want to give them your love now, so when they get big and famous, they won't dump you like you're a bad boyfriend. They're playing with the impeccably sampled beatboxing MomeRaths, !!! (that's "chick-chick-chick" to humanoids--a.k.a. a side project of super-fast funk-electronicats Outhud), and Nudge (another electronically-based side project, this one of the Knockout Drops). Go now, and see for yourself why Portland currently has the best music scene in the country. JULIANNE SHEPHERD
MOONSHINE OVER AMERICA 2000 STARING CARL COX, JOHN KELLEY, CHRISTOPHER LAURENCE, CIRRUS
(Roseland) British superstar Carl Cox is known for the compulsive thump of his mainroom techno/hard house workouts. He earns all the more respect for the adventurousness of his '97 release F.A.C.T., on which he sneaks in a churning, almost industrial mix of Josh Wink's "Are You There," and a spare, funky take on Fatboy Slim's "Everybody Needs a 303." On the more recent Phuture 2000, he throws down the taut, flawless three-turntable action he's known for, and that's probably closer to what tonight's crowd will expect.
LEAH GREENBLATT BLURTIS, CLAY ASHES, GRINGO STARS, BAWB & PRINCESS
(Mount Tabor) All right, Bawb & Princess might nearly default the whole relay for having a terrible band name, but when it comes to their music, this duo wins the prize. Perhaps their trophy is engraved with the words, "Most Creative Use of Bass, Drums, and Sampler;" or for "Best Transition from Super Nintendo-Sounding Theme Song to Complex Pounding of Scales." Most likely, though, it says, "We Rock the House and You've Never Seen Us Play Live." So, are you going to give them a run for their money, or what? JS
LLOYD MALL HOT TOPIC
(Lloyd Mall Hot Topic) Hey, Mookie. Whazzup? Me and Ash are meeting in Hot Topic after school so she can get a new Zippo. Then we're going across the street to smoke cigarettes. I stole some Merits from my mom... she's being such a bitch! I'm supposedly grounded until next week! Yeah right! Did you see Kellie and her little pink pom-poms earlier? I want to barf on her! See you after gym class. ROCK ON, GIMLET (the girl with the growling eyes)
THE REAL KIDS, THE PINKZ, THE WEAKLINGS
(Satyricon) The Real Kids are one of those bands that obsessive East Coast music fan friends of mine always whispered about in hushed and reverent tones: "Back in the day, the Real Kids changed my life." Thanks to a resurgence in interest, partially due to members of the Offspring, now's your chance to actually see this legendary Boston band for yourself. The great news is that the band's turbo-charged punk-pop has more than stood the test of time, and songs like "All Kindsa Girls" sound just as fresh and dangerous today as they must have back in the day. BARBARA MITCHELL
FRIDAY 10/27
TOO $HORT
(Roseland) OK, so he's recorded 12 albums that more or less rely on the same formula, and he's totally misogynistic... but who cares, when his new album is called You Nasty. Try it a few times with your best friend. Best Friend: "Too $hort?" You: "You Nasty!" Fun, isn't it? Repeating these two phrases over and over, combined with a blunt and a 40, are the only guaranteed recipe for true Too $hort show enjoyment. KD
7 SECONDS, GROOVY GHOULIES, UNION 13, DEATH BY STEREO
(Pine St. Theater) You gotta love Kevin Seconds. No, seriously, you GOTTA love him because if he doesn't steal your soul with rabid singing and stage diving in his pop-punk band 7 Seconds, then he'll coax a tear or two out of even a dried-up turd with his other outfit, Go National, in which he harmonizes with his lovely wife. Tonight it's strictly a pummeling the Sacramento native is dishing out, so all you timid Elliott Smith-types--stay home. It's not your Kevin. KATHLEEN WILSON
THE MAKERS, THE VUE, THE BANGS
(Satyricon) Here I want to devote a few more words to that glam man we all know and love, the Prince Rogers Nelson of the Pacific Northwest, Mike Maker. Now, let me tell you why Mike Maker and his red feather boas do not annoy me. First, he pulls it all off with a panache that most people wish they had--he wears his package-molding trousers and smears of eyeliner as if they were a part of his genetic makeup. Second, if you don't blink, there's an extra in Almost Famous who looks exactly like him, although our pals at Sub Pop couldn't confirm either way whether it actually is him. And third, his breathy singing is just damn sexy. Mike Maker is an image guy, but he does it better than anybody around. Well... except maybe Vue (who not only rule now, but also put out really beautiful, rockingly ethereal seven-inches back when they were the Audience). JS
SATURDAY 10/28
GODSPEED YOU BLACK EMPEROR!, JEAN SMITH & MECCA NORMAL
(Aladdin Theatre) My friend Rebecca dragged me to the Godspeed You Black Emperor! show the last time they played in Portland. I'd heard some of their records, but had kind of written them off. Something terribly hip like Elliott Smith or something was also going on that night, and so very few actually went to see this Canadian collective's set, leaving many comfortably wide-open spaces to be had. Godspeed came out and just began to play. They were unassuming: most of them had their backs to the audience, and if they weren't playing, many of the musicians (there were a ton) wandered around the stage, smoking. But what unfurled from the speakers was some kind of bliss--a gorgeous new take on the idea of classical symphony as rock band. You see, Godspeed are a bunch of folks playing cellos and organs and stuff like that. They literally pick up sound and hurl it at you. It was amazing. I lay down on my back, closed my eyes and just listened. Think Gary Oldman in Immortal Beloved, immersed in water, looking at the stars. Somewhere Mr. Smith cleared his throat and the throngs cheered, but they missed out on a real happening. Don't do the same. JAMIE S. RICH
NIGHT OF THE MURDER BALLAD IV STARRING SATTIE CLARK, NICOLE CAMPBELL, JAMES LOW, AMY ANNELLE, BRIAN JONES, ASHLEIGH FLYNN, BRIAN CUTLER, LARA MICHELL, COLIN MELOY, DAVE RUMMANS, JASON ROARK, MICHAEL LANGENES
(Laurelthirst) Ring around the rosy, a pocket full of posies--Death knells, funeral marches, macabre stalkings. Will they include the wails of fishermen's widows, or the creepy lullabies of medieval children stricken by the black death? If you're not afraid of the dark and twisted, find out what scary Halloween songs these sweetly skulking balladeers will offer tonight, in the fourth year in a row of the Night of the Murder Ballad. It's an evening for the true intellectual goth, the mystery-loving literary type, the wilting, silently evil Victorian. Make sure you sniff your beer before drinking... if it smells faintly of almonds, send it back. JS
REBECCA GATES, BRAILLE STARS, THE PLACES
(Medicine Hat) If you yearn for true, strong, talented female musicians whose draw does not ride on how cute they look in their hot vinyl pants or their choreographed histrionics or even how much estrogen they can muster in their diary-excerpted songs, then check out this show. First, there's Chicago's famed Rebecca Gates, ex of the Spinanes and current of Merge Records, working her amazing alto voice all solo-like. Then, there's Braille Stars, with toughie Gilly Ann Hanner at the helm. Finally, there's the Places, led by the vocal tour de force that is Amy Annelle. In actuality, this is the realm where gender doesn't matter: it's the one of honest, amazing musicianship, thankyouverymuch. JS
SUNDAY 10/29
CUBANISMO!, ELIADES OCHOA
(Crystal Ballroom) I have to admit something. My career as a Latin dance instructor was terminated way prematurely because my boss and I had differences about my appearance. (He actually said to me, "Julianne, punk rock is not professional," to which I replied, "Normand, I'm not punk; I'm new wave.") But if it wasn't for my penchant for chartreuse tights and Chuck Taylors, I guarantee I'd still be out there, cha-cha-ing, mambo-ing and salsa-ing my way to 33rd (or 133rd) place in the Massachusetts State Latin Dance Championships. With Cubanismo, anybody can get an authentic, explosive taste of Latin America, and you don't even have to take out your piercings (or wash the dye from your hair). Think of it as Cuban rhythms for populists. JS
MONDAY 10/30
THE BRAILLE STARS, COSMOS GROUP, THE PLANET THE
(Lola's at the Crystal) Even more interesting than the indie rock trio is the rarely seen indie rock duo. Local band Braille Stars have just wrapped up their first CD Golden Dreams, making exclusive partnership seem possible and even productive (go figure?!?). Their stripped-down drum/guitar/vocals tunage is on the hot topics list, and their music is definitely worth all the talk. KATIE SHIMER
RED ELVISES, STARBUGS
(Berbati's) There's nothing particularly exciting about a four-piece psychobilly band, unless they happen to be from Russia and play their communist history like a royal flush. This is the case with Red Elvises. Not only do they play really good-time rock and roll, but Oleg's bass is this ridiculously large triangular thing that looks more like a giant homicidal boomerang than a musical instrument. The novelty must be seen to be believed. JS
SHEENA'S PARTY
(Sheena's Parents are Out of Town) Crystal: I am totally going to Sheena's party, and she said that Chad is going too! Omigod, he is such a super fox! Yeah I heard he broke up with that little snothead Kellie, because she was mad cheating on his fine ass, and wait til I show up in my totally hot outfit like Jennifer Lopez and he will forget about that ho-bag! LATERZ, AMY
TUESDAY 10/31
THE SEA AND CAKE, TOWN AND COUNTRY
(Pine Street Theater) The Tortoise Mafia returns, this time in the shape of Sam Prekop's gentle, restrained Chicago combo (back after a hiatus of three years). Stereolab producer McEntire contributes jazz-textured beats and vibes, and genius Sof' Boy cartoonist Archer Prewitt adds just the barest smattering of guitar. Don't know why I'm bothering to tell you all this, though. If you like this sort of post-rock noodling, you'll be reserving your stage center space now, and if you don't then... well, you won't. EVERETT TRUE
DJ SPOOKY
(Cobalt Lounge) If you're like me, you like the idea of DJs, but are sick to death of watching skinny white boys either scratch your ear off, or put the latest Common album on, push repeat, and drink a PBR. Take comfort, DJ Spooky is here. After many untamed years of playing eerie, scary sounds and calling them music, Spook has finally focused all that potential into something that is both ethereal and pleasurable, a combo that makes for a DJ who becomes the star of the show, rather than background noise. KD
SHEENA'S PARTY, NIGHT TWO
(Sheena's Parents Are Still Out of Town) Kellie? Kellie, I love you baby. I swear! Come out of the bathroom so we can talk about this. Come on, Kellie! You're so beautiful and fiiiine and you know you mean so much to me. Come on, come talk to me! Kellie? KELLIE!
WEDNESDAY 11/1
THE ROOTS, TALIB KWELI, DEAD PREZ, SLUM VILLAGE, BAHAMADIA, JAZZYFATNASTEES
(Roseland) Holy Shit. If you're a hip hop fan in the slightest, you know that the Roots' latest album, Things Fall Apart, broke new ground in hip hop land, introducing a territory and caliber of music that is still unmatched a year after this CD is out. Plus, the Roots can put on a show like no other; I've seen them play for over two hours--gathering momentum the whole time and bringing the crowd with. That said, I still have a bad feeling about all these opening acts. It smacks of super pre-packaging, grumpy bands without enough energy, and too many free t-shirts. Never have I seen a tour like this put on a solid show--I recommend going late, catching Talib Kweli right before the Roots, and preserving your faith in some of the best musicians alive right now. KD
C AVERAGE, THE RUBY DOE, BIBLE OF THE DEVIL
(EJ's) You can leave your ironic sense of humor at the trendy clothing store on Hawthorne. C Average doesn't need it. More rock than metal, more genuine feeling than pose, these boys from Olympia aren't going to save music, but their glorious stupidity is most welcome in these musically humorless times. While Radiohead fans moan about pathos, C Average concerns themselves with Hobbit-lore and Who covers. While a young man earnestly toys with an e-bow, C Average pounds a jackhammer into your skull with every note of every song. This is thug rock, but not rock for thugs. You can have your DIY noodlings, you can even have your heavy metal, I'll take my C Average and eat it with Brussels sprouts if need be. MURRAY CIZON
GOING TO SEATTLE?
THURS 10/26:
FRI 10/27: Joules Graves, Rafe Pearlman (Century Ballroom)
SAT 10/28: Freak Night Staring The Pharcyde, Africa Bambaata, Q-Bert, Josh Wink, Evil Eddie Richards, Bassbin Twins, Ed Rush & Optical (Southwest Washington Fairgrounds)
SUN 10/29: Sam Mangwana, Jane Bunnett & The Spirits of Havana (On The Boards)
MON 10/30: DJ Spooky with Wayne Horvitz, Ellergy Eskelin with Andrea Parkins & Jim Black (On The Boards)
TUES 10/31: Eric Bibb Trio (Tractor Tavern); The Roots, Talib Kweli, Guru, Jaguar, Bahamadia, Dead Prez, Rah Digga, Jazzyfatbastees (Showbox)
WED 11/1: Ninja Tune 10 Year Anniversary with Cold Cut and DJ DK (Showbox)
* For more info, visit www.thestranger.com
