WEDNESDAY 9/25

SAVAGES, DUKE GARWOOD
(Wonder Ballroom, 128 NE Russell) See My, What a Busy Week!, and read our article on Savages.

AND AND AND, SAMA DAMS, NIGHT MECHANIC
(Holocene, 1001 SE Morrison) Night Mechanic's second album, Working Late, was released back in April on AIO Records, and it's easily one of the better releases I've heard all year. How a band can overflow with this much energy and continue to fly under the radar is beyond me. The eight tracks contained on the album bounce and spring as they traverse power-pop and '90s guitar rock territory. The opening track, "Send in the Clowns" sets the stage for the rest of the album, as guitars tangle together; the band's penchant for crafting catchy, melodic, straight-up rocking tunes becomes quite clear just a few moments after hitting the play button. "Face Off" has singer/drummer Andre Coberly delivering vocals with an enthusiastic half-yelp that fans of And And And should be more than familiar with, so if you're already planning on catching tonight's headliners, arriving early will be in your best interest. CHIPP TERWILLIGER

BIG BLACK DELTA, ADVENTURE GALLEY
(Bunk Bar, 1028 SE Water) A side project from Mellowdrone's vocalist/bassist Jonathan Bates, Big Black Delta pursues the popular synth-indie sound everyone's jiving on these days, but with a little more flair and charisma. Though Bates is on a solo mission, he still manages to collaborate with other LA electro-suppliers like M83 and Alessandro Cortini of Nine Inch Nails. Through a haunting electronic veil, Bates' voice day-drinks with David Byrne and tangos with Ian Curtis by night. His songs range from melancholy with Molly Ringwald (who's singing at the Newmark this week) to partying with HBO's Girls. It seems as though Big Black Delta is music made by and for the synth-minded Generation Y: danceable, dark, and containing more sedimentary layers than what meets the ear. ROSE FINN

BUCK 65, OPEN MIKE EAGLE
(Doug Fir, 830 E Burnside) Two decades into a career that's seen him morph from DJ/turntablist to literate indie-rap powerhouse to searching post-hiphop performance artist, Buck 65—the stickiest nom de musique of Nova Scotia's Rich Terfry, who's also recorded as Dirk Thornton and Stinkin' Rich—remains a great force for musical good. 1999's "The Centaur" will forever be hiphop's deepest big-dick brag, 2003's Talkin' Honky Blues is a start-to-finish killer, and everything the man's released since the turn of the century is worth your time. With no new Buck 65 product to be pushed, here's hoping tonight's show is the career retrospective Terfry deserves, in front of an adoring packed house. DAVID SCHMADER

THURSDAY 9/26

LIGHT ASYLUM, DANGEROUS BOYS CLUB, DJ GOSSIP CAT, DJ ROY G BIV
(Holocene, 1001 SE Morrison) See My, What a Busy Week!

PETER HOOK AND THE LIGHT, SLAVES OF VENUS
(Wonder Ballroom, 128 NE Russell) Read our article on Peter Hook.

ROSE WINDOWS, MIDDAY VEIL, GREAT WILDERNESS
(Mississippi Studios, 3939 N Mississippi) Read our article on Rose Windows.

AUBREY DEBAUCHERY AND THE BROKEN BONES, JEFF CAMPBELL, CHAINSAW DARWIN, RYAN TRASTER, VULTAN AND THE HAWKMEN
(Ash Street Saloon, 225 SW Ash) Aubrey Debauchery has spent the past decade writing songs for the heartbroken—whether it's herself, or the ex-lovers and one-night stands who've crossed her path. These tales have been told over five releases, which range from stripped-down folk to more raucous cow-punk. It's been five years since her last recording, and now she's fronting a new band called the Broken Bones on her new LP, Death of a Dream. The stories remain a haze of sex, drugs, rock 'n' roll, and small-town drama, but this time Ms. Debauchery delivers them over sticky-sweet barroom blues. Guaranteed to leave you crying in your beer—by the end of the night you won't know whether to fall in love with her or to run for cover. MARK LORE

VICE DEVICE, ARCTIC FLOWERS, INDUSTRIAL PARK, LUKE BUSER
(Rotture, 315 SE 3rd) Portland's Vice Device have made a habit of laying bare their inhibitions, routinely wowing crowds with a downright bleak-sounding new-wave shuffle that's more danceable than you'd think. Tonight they release a split 12-inch with Philadelphia's Void Vision (the work of one Shari Vari), whose half is equally dark, an obviously snuggly battery mate for VD's harrowing dance-noise. The split opens with VD's "Fractured Desire," a track seething with snotty synth venom, punctuated by the snarls of vocalist Andrea K. (As a bookend, Void Vision's haunted "Take My Breath Away" plays a little like the dungeon level of an 8-bit NES game, but otherwise cements the gloomy patina.) Tonight's release show is brought to you by the letters "G," "O," "T," and "H." RYAN J. PRADO

PHOSPHORESCENT, INDIANS
(Hawthorne Theatre, 1507 SE César E. Chávez) The sounds of Phosophorescent unravel and range from joyful to gentle and from regretful to romantic, all strung together by eloquent storyteller/songwriter Matthew Houck. Tinges of gospel choir and country drawl line the tracks of Phosphorescent's expansive sixth album, Muchacho. Houck howls and croons along with southern guitar and folky fiddle, creating a world that is dusty with nostalgia and steeped in emotion. This album has a timeless feel, and his performances are just as impressive—they're as expressive and dynamic as each song on this record. RACHEL MILBAUER

GOLD PANDA, SLOW MAGIC, LUKE ABBOTT
(Branx, 320 SE 2nd) Gold Panda is a Dr. Livingstone-esque ambassador of deep vibes for this modern age of the global-village micro-club. Originally from the UK and relocated to the electronic mecca of Berlin, this producer has globetrotted as much as any bass-abusing EDMer, albeit with a strain of glistening lite-house music as trade. Nestled within Gold Panda's handclaps and floating synth chords are what sound like percussive field recordings, perhaps culled during downtime between live shows or on travels further from the beaten path. His melding of organic and synthetic is a dialogue between found sound and a lush minimalist beat structure. Each of his EPs functions as a concept album informed by experiences that befall the postmodern nomad, lending the music a microcosmic feel for its worldly sensibilities. WYATT SCHAFFNER

BILLY COBHAM'S SPECTRUM 40
(Aladdin Theater, 3017 SE Milwaukie) Billy Cobham is among the most powerful and nuanced drummers ever to sit behind a kit. His stints with Miles Davis circa A Tribute to Jack Johnson and fusion gods Mahavishnu Orchestra during their zenith assure Cobham entry into the pantheon. But his own solo career has some monumental peaks, too, including the 1973 LP Spectrum. This tour celebrates the 40th anniversary of that jazz-fusion monsterpiece. Check out "Quadrant 4," which is the fieriest, most adrenalized jazz-rock track that's never scored a chase scene. Unfortunately, no other original members who played on Spectrum will accompany Cobham, but the material's so fantastic it almost doesn't matter. DAVE SEGAL

GUTTERMOUTH, AGENT ORANGE, PINATA PROTEST
(Dante's, 350 W Burnside) SoCal punk makes its way up to the dingy Pacific Northwest with the O.C.'s finest OGs, Agent Orange. The band released their debut album Living in Darkness back in 1981, which channeled Dick Dale surf guitar and cranked it through punk aggression. Coming up through the Southern California punk scene in the late '70s and early '80s along with the Circle Jerks, Black Flag, and Fear, Agent Orange were very much a product of their time—essentially they were Reagan youth without being Reagan Youth. Joining them on this tour are their disciples Guttermouth, who released their debut Full Length LP a decade after Agent Orange's. It's a different world from the one we know up here, but no less important. ML

FRIDAY 9/27

PETER BRODERICK, HAUSCHKA
(Mississippi Studios, 3939 N Mississippi) Welcome home, Peter Broderick! The globetrotting composer and multi-instrumentalist is an Oregonian through and through. Raised in Carlton, Broderick's played with Horse Feathers, Laura Gibson, M. Ward, Norfolk and Western, and countless other Portland acts. Broderick moved to Europe to join the band Efterklang a few years back. Since then, he's continued his staggeringly prolific solo career, releasing stunning album after album and cutting a broad stylistic swath through folk, classical, pop, avant-garde, instrumental and ambient musics, and beyond. In short, he's one of the most musical people on the planet, and Portland was lucky to have him when we did—and now, that bit of luck has flown back to the nest. Broderick quietly returned to his old stomping grounds over the summer, and tonight he performs a homecoming gig with German pianist/composer Hauschka. For those willing to spring for the slightly pricey ticket, it will be a night of adventurous, unconventional, flat-out gorgeous music that defies easy categorization. NED LANNAMANN

JOAN OF ARC, ARRINGTON DE DIONYSO'S SONGS OF PSYCHIC FIRE
(Bunk Bar, 1028 SE Water) Cap'n Jazz were sort of like an emo Yardbirds. The seminal if not quintessential old-school emo outfit has been retroactively dubbed a supergroup of sorts due to all the amazing musicians for which it was a springboard. Once the Cap'n dissolved, guitarist Davey von Bohlen formed the Promise Ring, while drummer Mike Kinsella moved on to establish American Football and eventually record solo material under the moniker Owen. Elder brother and lead singer Tim Kinsella, however, never really strayed from the youthful strangeness that characterized his contributions to Cap'n Jazz. That strangeness is distilled in Joan of Arc, maybe the least accessible band in the family tree (perhaps rivaled by Owls, Kinsella's other project). While Joan of Arc's sprawling discography is Guided by Voices-caliber daunting (not to mention that Kinsella's nonsensical, impressionist, undeniably emotive lyrical landscapes evoke Robert Pollard more than any other rock wordsmith I can think of), their most consistently enjoyable effort is still their first, A Portable Model of..., which crosses the playfulness and unpretentiousness of Cap'n Jazz with a Beck-ish electro-exoticism. MORGAN TROPER

JARBOE, HELEN MONEY, LOST LOCKETS
(Analog Café, 720 SE Hawthorne) To understand the enigma of awesomeness that is Jarboe, you have to immerse yourself in the duality of her work. After years of formal classical vocal training, she joined now-classic noise rockers Swans in 1985, adding another layer of hauntingly beautiful bliss to the chaos that Michael Gira had created. From there, she's been all over the place, branching off to do solo work and collaborating with everyone from Neurosis to members of black-metal overlords Mayhem. In seconds, her voice goes from delicate to destructive, and her immense discography displays many emotions in between. KEVIN DIERS

BIG EYES, THE EVAPORATORS, THEE GOBLINS, RED SHADOWS
(The Know, 2026 NE Alberta) If you've ever seen any of the hundreds of interviews—skillfully and hilariously conducted by the Evaporators' founding member and lead singer, Nardwuar the Human Serviette—then you know the potential for wild surprises exists in everything he touches. A band since the late '80s, the Evaporators' first garage-rock LP was called Oh, God, My Mom's on Channel 10 (Channel 10 being what I can only imagine is an old public access channel). The last time I saw the Evaporators, Nardwuar asked everyone to lie down on the filthy floor for the last song. Eventually people did it. Nardwuar is a very powerful man. KELLY O

NO PASSENGERS, EDNA VAZQUEZ, SANTOS ALMADA, ILL LUCID ONSET
(Alhambra Theatre, 4811 SE Hawthorne) Edna Vazquez's well-deserved recognition for her intimate solo performances, which parlay stunningly authentic Mexican folk music to eager and sometimes weeping audiences, has been documented plenty the last couple of years. Her voice is powerful, and her timing and attention to the intricacies of melody is empowering. Vazquez's new rock band, No Passengers, isn't like any of that. It's not that Vasquez's voice is any less gorgeous. But this is a project built more on the calisthenics of guitar atmosphere and melodic dynamics than anything we've heard from Vazquez yet. The band's self-titled debut album takes a bit to get going, but when it does, on second track "The Place," it's a pleasant enough listen. Just don't expect the same warm fuzzies as during her better-known incarnation, which also appears tonight. RJP

SATURDAY 9/28

OLAFUR ARNALDS, NILS FRAHM
(Mississippi Studios, 3939 N Mississippi) When the air starts to chill and the skies fade to forever gray, that's the time to reach for Olafur Arnalds. The 26-year-old Icelandic composer makes music that's beyond his years, building beautiful pieces of contemporary classical music out of minimalist piano, lush string sections, inorganic beats, and an impressive sense of dynamics. When the songs on his 2012 album For Now I Am Winter are left to themselves, they're like the soundtrack to somber, slo-mo footage of a cold front moving in. When vocals are added, Arnalds recalls his likeminded countrymen in Sigur Rós. Either way, the guy is talented and tasteful; whether or not he can make a living as a solo artist, he'll be able to score films for the rest of his life. He'll be joined by German keyboard adventurer Nils Frahm, whose captivating new album, Spaces, will be released in November by the influential avant-garde label Erased Tapes. BEN SALMON

JEFFREY KAHANE, OREGON SYMPHONY
(Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall, 1037 SW Broadway) On a Tuesday night 210 years ago, Beethoven took the stage, cracked some knuckles, and introduced an unsuspecting world to his freshly composed Piano Concerto No. 3—becoming, in that singular moment, the world's first indie musician to gain rock-star status. Free from the conservative shackles of popes, princes, and record label execs, young Ludwig wrote and played whatever the fuck he wanted, and his third mash-up for piano and orchestra instantly destroyed all future expectations for what artists "ought" to be doing. As luck would have it, the Oregon Symphony brings this brilliant work to life, and the indefatigable Jeffrey Kahane is on deck to blow up the Schnitz's nine-foot Steinway. You got something better to do than hear Beethoven's keyboard mastery brought to life right there in front of your ridiculously pierced and intentionally deformed ears? Yeah. Thirty-two smackers is all it takes to get a seat in the upper balcony, which, in my opinion, is the acoustic g-spot of the entire concert hall. I implore you, on my knees, beneath shards of freshly broken glass: Stop Instagramming your cat's ass for one goddamned night and get to this show. The program repeats Sunday and Monday, so you really have no excuses for missing greatness. ANGRY SYMPHONY GUY

CHELSEA WOLFE, TRUE WIDOW
(Doug Fir, 830 E Burnside) At some weird imaginary aural crossroads, past Comus and Swans but somewhere before Strawberry Switchblade and Julee Cruise, you'll find the otherworldly darkness of Chelsea Wolfe. For her last several records, Wolfe experimented with ethereal doom-folk (she's also covered Burzum's "Black Spell of Destruction"). Her newest album, Pain Is Beauty, is less sparse then the haunting acoustic work of Unknown Rooms, but still hints at a panicked numbness akin to a sensory depravation tank or a near-death experience... perhaps even more so, as the electronic undercurrents exploit that tension. Heavy and gauzy Texas outfit True Widow reference rhythmic post-rock repetition and swirling shoegaze haziness without submitting to either. They balance a chaotic underbelly with catchy, simple melodies and compelling harmonies. Dark, deep, and unique, they make music to get lost in. BREE MCKENNA

SUNDAY 9/29

STAR ANNA, CHRIS MARSHALL
(Al's Den, 303 SW 12th) Read our article on Star Anna.

JEFFREY KAHANE, OREGON SYMPHONY
(Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall, 1037 SW Broadway) See Saturday's listing.

THE EVENS
(Mission Theater, 1624 NW Glisan) Operating more or less under the radar, in the shadows of the behemoth Fugazi, under the steadied gaze of punk elder statesman Ian MacKaye, the Evens have quietly forged their own following. With MacKaye singing and strumming baritone guitar and vocalist/drummer Amy Farina of the Warmers, the Evens tackle minimalist sonic terrain that approaches the malaise of slacker rock. But nothing MacKaye does could be construed as lethargic, and the Evens have developed a reputation (not unlike Fugazi) of performing at nontraditional venues, for all ages and charging next to nothing to watch them perform. The duo's most recent album, 2012's The Odds, is as good an introduction to the band's barebones aesthetic as any. RJP

ANATHEMA, ALCEST, MAMIFFER
(Hawthorne Theatre, 1507 SE César E. Chávez) The subgenre of heavy music known as metalgaze is primarily about blending beauty with brutality; think My Black Metal Valentine and you're floating in the right atmosphere. For the past decade, French band Alcest have arguably been the masters of metalgaze, using shimmering sheets of guitars, dreamily melodic vocals, and occasional harsh screams to illuminate a fantasy world from the childhood of principal member Neige. Alcest's sound culminated (so far) on 2012's Les Voyages de l'Âme, a blissful masterpiece of melancholic mood music that found Neige shifting closer to pure shoegaze than ever before, with stunning results. And it sounds like the band's next record—the highly anticipated Shelter, due out in 2014—will travel further into the fuzz. "For the coming album... I have been really inspired by Slowdive," Neige told the music blog Steel for Brains in July. "They are my favorite band ever." BS

MONDAY 9/30

STAR ANNA, RICHARD OMIER
(Al's Den, 303 SW 12th) Read our article on Star Anna.

JEFFREY KAHANE, OREGON SYMPHONY
(Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall, 1037 SW Broadway) See Saturday's listing.

YOUTH CODE, NIGHT SINS, LIGHT HOUSE
(East End, 203 SE Grand) Youth Code want to convince you that industrial music is hip again. Channeling a ravaging Wax Trax!-style angst to which you can shake your dreads, the young LA duo set their synths—and voices—to harsh mode, but they can also finesse some subtly chilling horror-film maneuvers when they so desire. Oldsters with stacks of Ministry and Nitzer Ebb discs in their libraries may scoff at Youth Code, but their devotion to the genre is undeniable. Enough time has passed for a new generation to slap its own fingerprints on industrial dance music, as the Young Gods did for a while in the late '80s and early '90s. Maybe Youth Code will do so as they continue to progress. DAVE SEGAL

TUESDAY 10/1

RED FANG, AAN, WL
(Doug Fir, 830 E Burnside) See My, What a Busy Week!

STAR ANNA, ROB WYNIA
(Al's Den, 303 SW 12th) Read our article on Star Anna.

GLENN TILBROOK, JOE MICHELINI
(Mississippi Studios, 3939 N Mississippi) Read our interview with Glenn Tilbrook.