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I Am Not Your Negro
This new Academy Award-nominated documentary from director Raoul Peck is playing at Cinema 21 as well as the Hollywood Theatre as a part of the Portland Black Film Festival, and you should get a ticket as soon as possible for showings that arenât yet sold out. Itâs about racism in Americaâprominently featuring the assassinations of Medgar Evers, Malcolm X, and Martin Luther King, Jr.âfrom the perspective of legendary writer and activist James Baldwin. Itâs been getting great reviews (the New York Times calls it âlife-alteringâ) and Iâm glad I already have my ticket. DOUG BROWN
Various Theaters, see Movie Times for showtimes and locations
PDX Jazz Fest
Despite the recent closing of Portlandâs most iconic jazz venue, Jimmy Makâs, the city remains buzzing with Americaâs truest art form, and for 11 days the PDX Jazz Festival hosts the best jazz from around the globe alongside our own worthy homegrown scene. This yearâs big tickets include influential names like funk-soul pioneer Roy Ayers (Thurs Feb 23, Revolution Hall), guitarist John Scofield (Fri Feb 24, Revolution Hall), and big-band composer Maria Schneider in her Portland debut (Fri Feb 17, Newmark Theatre). The fest has tributes to Dizzy Gillespie, Thelonious Monk, and Buddy Rich occurring throughout week, each featuring collaborators and relatives of the legends themselves. NED LANNAMANN
Feb 16-26, Various Locations, see our PDX Jazz Fest calendar for showtimes and locations
David Duchovny
REJOICE: The one and only David Duchovnyâactor, writer, director, and the FBI special agent of our heartsâis coming to Portland... because he's also a musician, and he wants to play us some of his alt-country rock 'n' roll! Alas, IT'S SOLD OUT, because DAVID DUCHOVNY. But if you can't beg, borrow, or steal a ticket, join the screaming hordes outside the Aladdin, where we shall chant His name into the starry heavens for hours on end: DU-CHOV-NY. DU-CHOV-NY. DU! CHOV! NEEEEEEEEEEEE!!! ERIK HENRIKSEN Read our story on David Duchovny
7:30 pm, Aladdin Theater, $30-125
Priests, Stef Chura, Mr. Wrong
Last month Washington, DC, post-punk band Priests released its full-length debut, Nothing Feels Natural. Itâs made great by driving melodies that genre-hop like fleas and singer Katie Alice Greer, whose incredible voice sounds like itâs leading an anarchist marching band on âAppropriateâ but squeaks and revs like an engine on âJJâ CIARA DOLAN
8 pm, Disjecta, $17.50, all ages
The Flipside
Youâd be hard pressed to find two funnier people in Portlandâs sketch comedy and improv scenes than Shelley McLendon and Jed Arkley, as seen in troupes like the Liberators and J Names, and tonight you can see them both, plus sketch duo D&D, in the latest installment of the Siren Theaterâs versatile sketch comedy AND improv series. MEGAN BURBANK
8 pm, Siren Theater, $10
Beyoncé vs. Drake
Tribute Night pits two of the 21st century's biggest hitmakers against each other, and no matter who wins, you win. With a photo booth, videos on the walls, and more.
9 pm, Holocene, $10
Blesst Chest, Sad Horse, Lithics
Blesst Chest makes bizarro, acid-washed, fuzzed-out, groovy tunes that sound like Ratatat's cool prog-rock parent, lacking the sophisticated production of today's young 'uns but wailing hard like it's 1977. CIARA DOLAN
8 pm, Turn! Turn! Turn!
Greg Fitzsimmons
In a way, Greg Fitzsimmons is comedy the way it used to be, devoid of any elaborate conceit or overtly political shtick. Fitzsimmons is merely an average-looking, normal-talking funny dude whoâs probably been a regular on your television (for the 12 of you that still have television). And now heâs in town! DIRK VANDERHART
7:30 pm, 10 pm, Helium Comedy Club, $16-24
Full Stop Friday: National General Strike
Portland's chapter of the nationwide protest action is expected to spread all over the city as citizens resist the White House and its constant stream of unconstitutional decrees by grinding the economy to a halt for a day: Don't go to work. Don't buy anything at the store. Don't buy anything online.
Wherever you are, whenever you are, all day long
Drab Majesty, Soft Metals, Tender Age
Like messages transmitted from a distant galaxy, the music of Drab Majesty descends in a cloud of digital haze, leaving the spirit in a state of frigid weightlessness. Each isolationist musing from LA personality Deb DeMureâs nom de sound is seemingly birthed in a bucket of dry ice and frosted with a melancholy sheen of guitars, synths, and depressed drum patterns. Though the word âgothâ instantly comes to mind, this highly inspired project serves as a conceptually charged evolution of the genre. By combining Robert Smithâs mopey operatics, David Bowieâs dystopian androgyny, and â80s cold wave minimalism, Drab Majesty creates an excitingly macabre futurism. CHRIS SUTTON
8 pm, The Lovecraft, $7
Vetiver, Kacy & Clayton
Ahhhh, Vetiver. The medicinally named indie folk project from San Francisco singer/songwriter Andy Cabic is the aural equivalent of sitting inside under a pile of blankets on a cold, misty day. MEGAN BURBANK
9 pm, Mississippi Studios
Stephen Lynch
The Tony Award-nominated actor, comedian, and singer/songwriter brings his playful day-to-day life and pop culture riffing tunes to the Aladdin for the Portland stop on the "My Old Heart Tour."
8 pm, Aladdin Theater, $30, all ages
Elliot, a Soldier's Fugue
If you're scared of your Twitter feed right now, go see Pulitzer winner/Lin-Manuel Miranda collaborator Quiara AlegrĂa Hudesâ play Elliot, a Soldierâs Fugue at Profile Theatre. Itâs not often you have the chance to see a play thatâs politically relevant, mercifully brief, and delicately balanced between drama and restraint, with lyrical dialogue and a lot of hip-hop and reggaeton used to clever effect. Profileâs staff couldnât have anticipated that Hudesâ playâabout three generations of a Puerto Rican military family during a dark time in American historyâwould resonate so deeply with the current political climate, but it does. MEGAN BURBANK
7:30 pm, Artists Repertory Theater, $27-38
Show/Show
A one-of-a-kind stand-up showcase featuring comedians not just telling jokes, but interacting with them after they're brought to animated life. Featuring sets from Amy Miller, Curtis Cook, Wendy Weiss, Chris Ettrick, Adam Pasi, and Bri Pruett, with live music from Lucia Fasano.
8 pm, Alberta Rose Theatre, $15
Angel Olsen, Chis Cohen
On the track âHigh & Wildâ from her 2014 album Burn Your Fire for No Witness, Angel Olsen sings, âIâm neither innocent or wise when you look me in the eyes/You might as well be blind/You might as well be blind/âCause you donât see me anymore.â Throughout her catalog, Olsen embodies this lyric; sheâs intentionally difficult to nail down, and defies easy categorization. Listening to the echoing folk of her 2011 LP debut, Strange Cacti, feels voyeuristic, like hearing your neighbor sing an entire opera in their shower. 2012âs Half Way Home sounds like the neighbor realized youâd been eavesdropping, with these wild but secret aquatic arias reforming as sparse acoustic numbers. 2014âs Burn Your Fire for No Witness plugs in for blowout guitar-rock thatâs bruised but biting with lyrics like âWill you ever forgive me/A thousand times through/For loving you?â 2016âs My Woman is full of anti-love songs, and finds Olsen soaking in the spotlight of pristine production without ever letting you close enough to truly know her: âInternâ opens the record with spacy synth-pop, but the twangy âShut Up Kiss Meâ centers on Olsenâs guttural Roy Orbison-inspired crooning, with guitar riffs that rush into the chorus like a nosebleed. The albumâs second half is entirely different, and sprawls into the white-light horizon of seven-minute ballads. On My Woman, Olsen doesnât linger on any one genre or subject long enough for you to make any assumptions about her. Anything that seems certainâother than her stunning capacity as an artistâis just a trick of light. CIARA DOLAN
9 pm, Crystal Ballroom, $19.99-25, all ages
Your Fault for Listening LIVE
First youâre gonna want to catch all the laughs provided by the first annual NW Black Comedy Festival, which is a gut-busting celebration of the cityâs best black comedians (see our profile). But of particular interest is a live taping of the Your Fault For Listening podcast hosted by the very funny Daniel Martin Austin (also a Mercury columnist) which this time around will feature a fun, interesting chat with local comedians Curtis Cook, Summer Azim, Alyssa Yeoman, and Monisa Brown. Watch the magic happen live! WM. STEVEN HUMPHREY
7:30 pm, Ford Food & Drink, $10
Planet Earth II
2016 wasnât all one unending parade of disappointments and losses suffered in a relentless, soul-crushing chain. There were good things scattered amongst the detritus of our shattered hopes. For instance: Remember that one viral video of a little lizard dude who outran, like, forty bazillion snakes all trying to eat him the fuck up? Remember that? It was basically the best action thriller since Aliens. Well, that video came from Planet Earth II, the sequel to the most amazing nature documentary ever made. The victory of that little lizard dude (one of the only victories 2016 recorded at all) is but one of the compelling tales Sir David Attenborough has in store for the next few Saturdays. BOBBY ROBERTS
9pm, BBC America
Wizard World Comic Con
The earlier of Portland's two giant-sized pop-culture celebrations lands at the Convention Center with special guests Tatiana Maslany of Orphan Black, Dean Cain of God's Not Dead and various Lifetime movies, Nichelle Nichols (Uhura!), Erik Estrada (Ponch!), and of course, the various people who actually write and draw comic books, most of whom will be shunted off into a small corner of the convention center to be ignored for most of the weekend.
10 am, Oregon Convention Center, $39.95, all ages
Leonard Cohen: A Tribute
A special candlelit tribute to the late, great singer/songwriter and poet featuring performances by Portland musicians Amanda Richards, Eric Stern, Will West, Anna Hoone, Santi Elijah Holley, Anna Fritz, Casey Neill, and more.
8 pm, The Old Church, $10, all ages
Sallie Ford, Jenn Champion, Weezy Ford
Sallie Fordâs second solo record, Soul Sick, arrives at a crossroads of her rockabilly yesteryear and a newly refined focus on rollicking rock ânâ roll. Youâll still find the playful, secretly sneering Ford that was present on 2014âs Slap Back, her first record without backing band the Sound Outside. Yet Soul Sick, as the name implies, is a decidedly different beast. Born from a therapeutic period in the songwriterâs life, the recordâs â60s-rock edges lay bare Fordâs insecurities, wrapped up with tales of waking up sour on sweet summer days, being misunderstood, and screwing up. Speaking of, âScrew Upâ opens with a Ronettes drum intro, blooming into Fordâs fluttery lamentations. Tonightâs release show includes guest musicians from the Soul Sick sessions, including producer Mike Coykendall and saxophonist Ralph Carney. RYAN J. PRADO
9 pm, Mississippi Studios, $14-16
Von Wildenhaus, Ilyas Ahmed
Von Wildenhaus brings his unique brand of "deep noir" music to the Fremont stage.
9 pm, Fremont Theater, $8
Zwickelmania!
Prime your liver for Zwickelmania, the annual event where more than 120 breweries open their doors for your drinking pleasure, with free samples, cornhole, tours, and beer releases. And for the first time this year, the mania spreads over two weekends, one for the Portland Metro, another for the rest of the state. SHELBY R. KING
11 am, Various Locations
The Shivas, Giantology, Melt
Sometimes there's no sweeter sound than that of true rock 'n' roll vibration, and nobody knows this better than the Shivas. Hard touring and dedication to their craft have earned them a well-deserved following, but it's singer/guitarist Jared Molyneux's meticulous absorption of the ghosts on his favorite oldies radio station that separates the Shivas' sonic brand from other revivalists. Bassist Eric Shanafelt and drummer Kristin Leonard have also mastered the sacred art of jingle-jangle, and this shambolic expertise culminates in quite an irresistible stomp. To compound matters further, Leonard and Molyneaux weave stunning crystals of vocal harmony into the mix, adding yet another dimension to their psychedelic-pop stew. CHRIS SUTTON
9:30 pm, Bunk Bar, $10
TOAST
Sure, you like booze, but how sophisticated is your knowledge of it? At the Oregon Distillers Guildâs TOAST, youâll get to taste over 120 spirits from around the world, getting tipsy and learning about new innovations in hooch, for a not-bad-at-all price. MARJORIE SKINNER
4 pm, Leftbank Annex, $15-65
Dance 4 Planned Parenthood
The Liquor Store presents a Saturday night dance party to benefit Planned Parenthood Columbia Willamette, featuring boogie, disco, and house jams from DJs Nathan Detroit, Carly Barton, Graintable, Lindsay Bailey, and Ben Tactic. Entry is a sliding scale, but a $10 donation is suggested.
9 pm, The Liquor Store, $10
The Art of the Brick
One of the most well-known touring art exhibitions of recent memory, Nathan Sawaya's LEGOÂź works feature original visions alongside recreations of classic masterpieces, as well as a specially designed play area for activities, demonstration, and builder challenges.
9 am, Oregon Museum of Science and Industry, $5.50-19.75, all ages
Community Feed-In
Roll up your sleeves and lend a hand at cooking community meals for folks in need. Happening every third Saturday, the feed-in is led by a coalition of eight local grassroots groups fighting for Black Lives. The morning will be spent receiving donations and prepping meals for delivery to the houseless community. Dry and canned goods, clothing, personal hygiene bags, blankets, and warm jackets are always needed. EMILLY PRADO
10 am, Hughes Memorial United Methodist Church, free
Festival of the Dark Arts 2017
Astoria's day long party in honor of the best of all beers: The stouts. Includes not just a wide array of some of the most flavorful and adventurous dark beers on tap, but glass blowers, fire dancers, tattoo artistry, belly dancing, tintype photography, and more.
2 pm, Fort George Brewery + Public House, $40-55
The Bingo Long Traveling All-Stars & Motor Kings
Even if the film doesnât hit all the notes it wants to hit, even if it overstays its welcome while constantly wearing a faint sheen of sweat from trying just a little too hard to be everything to everyone, itâs worth sitting down and taking in all of 1976âs Bingo Long because its collection of talent is still something to behold: Billy Dee Williams, James Earl Jones, Richard Pryor, and Ken Foree? Come on. Thatâs one stacked cast, and all in their prime, to boot. There are much, much worse ways to spend a weekend afternoon. BOBBY ROBERTS
4:30 pm, Hollywood Theatre, $3-6
Post Moves, Philip Grass, Emilie Weibel
Portland multi-instrumentalist Sam Wenc has quietly amassed a prolific back catalog under the Post Moves moniker, putting out an album a year (2014âs Little Jews, 2015âs Reset Father Time) in addition to multiple EPs. However, 2016âs Mystery World Science Show found Wenc fleshing out his pedal steel-heavy indie rock, with drummer Julian Morris (Lay Person, Little Star), bass player Nathan Kornet, and Nathan Tucker (Cool American, Snow Roller) adding lounge lizard saxophone on a of couple tracks. The album plays out like Wencâs funhouse dreamâthe walls could close in or elongate, giving an air thatâs gentle but surreal. His lyrics are consistently imaginative and playful, with song topics covering rhinestone-adorned country stars, graveyard undertakers, and âToothpaste.â CAMERON CROWELL
8:30 pm, Rontoms, free
PHAME & Friends Winter Concert
PHAME Academy throws one of the best winter soirees in town, directed by Matthew Gailey, featuring performances from guests the Bylines and of course, the PHAME Choir and Rock Ensemble.
2 pm, First Presbyterian Church, free
Self Group 7th Birthday Party
Local DIY collective Self Group celebrates its 7th birthday with a party featuring live music by King Who, Mothertapes, Yardsss, wrtch, Swansea, C^ves, Dead Death, and Dolphin Midwives. The Event will also feature visual art by Heidi Elise Wirz, Michelle Ramin, Joel Barber, Krist Krueger and Ambrosia Bartosekulva, and all proceeds will be donated to Planned Parenthood and Outside In.
7 pm, Holocene, $7
Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind
Of the multiple miracles of modern filmmaking that occur throughout the runtime of Eternal Sunshineâincluding such feats as âJim Carrey underplays things,â âKirsten Dunst isnât annoying,â and âMichel Gondry doesnât twee his movie to deathââthe most notable is this sci-fi tragedy about a broken relationship is maybe the most poignantly romantic film of the last 25 years. BOBBY ROBERTS
4:10 pm, 9:25 pm, Academy Theater, $3-4
Uniform, King Woman, Vice Device
Bay Area doom metal outfit King Woman began as Kristina Esfandiariâs solo project, with 2014âs Doubt EP, a four-song statement of intent that earned instant fans, propelling her alto forward on a tidal wave of down-tuned guitar sludge. Doom fans will feel at home in King Womanâs familiar cocoon of dense distortion, yet the bandâs sound supports Esfandiariâs anthems of feminine empowerment, a subversive move in a genre not exactly known for progressive gender politics. Having briefly been part of the thankfully now-defunct transphobic shitstain that was Bay Area shoegaze band Whirr, Esfandiari clearly no longer has patience for oppressive men: King Woman left a tour with doom legends Pentagram last summer, citing âdisrespectful and grossâ treatment. They donât have time for that bullshit anywayâtheir Relapse debut, Created in the Image of Suffering, comes out later this month. NATHAN TUCKER
9 pm, The Analog Cafe & Little Theater, $10-12
#QueerDanceParty
Radicalism, like resistance, takes many shapes and this time itâs happening in the form of a queer dance party. In a nod to the inspirational group of protestors who danced a January night away outside of Mike Penceâs house, the party will double as a rally and host a roster of speakers. Grassroots security efforts are in place, ASL interpreters are in the works, and the only thing thatâs missing is your existence and bitchinâ dance moves. BYOGlitter. EMILLY PRADO
3 pm, Peninsula Park
Mackenzie Phillips
Actress and author Mackenzie Phillips follows up her New York Times bestselling memoir High on Arrival with Hopeful Healing, a collection of essays about her struggles with substance abuse and her battle to overcome addiction.
7:30 pm, Powell's City of Books, free
KidFest!
Billed as the "Northwest's largest family expo," KidFest features live entertainment, interactive sports demonstrations, laser tag, a rock wall, a cooking competition for little chefs, appearances from costumed superhero, Star Wars, and Disney characters, live music from Daniel Seavey, and more. Visit kidfestnw.com for more information.
10 am, Portland Expo Center, $6, all ages
Don't forget to check out our Things To Do calendar for even more things to do!
