If you make it to the end of this week, you will be rewarded with the best and brightest of the country's comedy community descending en masse upon us. But first, you have to start the week on May Day, and that means people are gonna be taking it to the streets like Michael McDonaldâbut way more righteously, of course. In between those two massive days, the meat of the entertainment week will nourish you with flavors from Kehlani, Patton Oswalt, John Carpenter, E-40, Liz Vice, the Magnetic Fields, andâof all the goddamn thingsâa Ned Flanders-themed metal band! And speaking of awesome ways to celebrate (ostensibly) "nerdy" shit: Yes, there's a fan-fueled Star Wars holiday coming up. If you're going to celebrate it, celebrate it inside a bottle shop while sipping local brew & watching the classic trilogy. It's a busy week aheadâhit the links below and load your plate accordingly.
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May Day 2017
In a year when even Presidentsâ Day has led to clashes between police and demonstrators, May Dayâalso known as International Workersâ Dayâcould get hectic. Each year, labor groups, immigrantsâ rights organizations, and others gather in Shemanski Park to promote progressive ideals. Sometimes they march. Sometimes they donât. Make no mistake: In the first year of Trump, this thing is headed to the streets. DIRK VANDERHART
noon, Shemanski Park, free
Aye Nako, Longclaw, Brave Hands, Shame
With films like Moonlight and bands like Brooklynâs Aye Nako, the LGBTQ Black experience may at last be finding a voice in mainstream popular culture. Speaking of representative voices, Silver Haze welcomes Jade Payneâs voice to Aye Nako as full-fledged co-songwriter alongside Mars Dixon. (Payne only contributed guitar and background vocal work to 2015âs Blackest Eye.) The result is bracing and vital â90s-era guitar rock with elements of pop punk and enough messy, open-chord Sonic Youth-style tunings to goose Thurston Moore from his middle-aged stupor. At worst, identity politics and its corresponding avenues of expression can force people into limiting boxes, its own kind of defining binary system. But with bands like Aye Nako and PWR BTTM exploring personal experience with fresh voices, opportunities arise for next-generation songwriters and artists to redefine not only identity politics but also identity truth. WILLIAM KENNEDY
8 pm, Black Water Bar
Ural Thomas & the Pain
To live in Portland and never have seen Ural Thomas and the Painâa resurrected local treasure of soul if there ever was oneâwould be a shame. MARJORIE SKINNER
9 pm, Goodfoot, $5
Riot Grrrl Revival
Riot Grrrl Revival celebrates female and non binary budtenders and members of the Cannabis community. The event will feature speakers from the business and science spheres, local business owners discussing their projects, as well as massages, zines, juices, a photo booth, DJs, and more.
noon, Doug Fir, $15-20
RoboCop
Yes, there was a fairly bland remake of this film that came and went a couple years ago. Before that there were some questionable appearances on the pro wrestling circuit by Officer Murphy. Before that there was a seriously ill-advised Saturday morning cartoon series, a run of TV movies, and two shitty sequels. But standing tall above that river of trash, proud and shiny, is the 1987 original, a pitch-black comedy that blends satire and violence to mock American excess and naked capitalism while also telling the story of a man fighting to regain a shred of the humanity taken from him by a corrupt corporate oligarchy. Always watchable, enjoyable, quotable, and sadly, even 30 years later, socially relevant. Maybe even moreso, now. BOBBY ROBERTS
9:40 pm, Academy Theater, $3-4
Peace Tour: Survivors of State Violence Speak Out
While the U.S. mostly opts to create wars outside of its own borders, many countries still experience ongoing political unrest in the form of civil warfare. Filipino human rights leaders are stopping in Portland to discuss the root causes of the war and garner attention, support, and care from Americans. This event is part of a nationwide peace talk tour. EMILLY PRADO
6:30 pm, SEIU 503, free
Kehlani, Ella Mai, Jahkoy, Noodles
Kehlaniâs SweetSexySavage tour is hitting Portland. She recently made a surprise appearance in town for friend (and Portland native) Amineâs show, so maybe heâll return the favor and come drop a few bars. Theyâre a winning combination. Either way, this is a show you donât want to miss. CLAIRE HOLLEY Read our story on Kehlani.
8 pm, Crystal Ballroom, $25-30, all ages
Patton Oswalt
Americaâs most lovable comic, and perhaps the only worthwhile person to follow on twitter (@pattonoswalt), heads to Portland for a canât-miss show. For those who like good things in their lives, this thoughtful lefty nerd is the best, and you will miss out on a ton of laughs if you arenât at the Schnitz on Tuesday night. Oswaltâs 2016 Emmy- and Grammy Award-winning special Talking For Clapping is on Netflix if, for some reason, you havenât seen his standup before.
7:30pm, Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall, $35-45
Pile, Gnarwhal, Hang the Old Year
The pure joy I feel every single goddamn time I listen to the track âBaby Boyâ by Boston-based rock band Pile is comparable only to the pure joy I felt leaving my high school after graduationâitâs a rush of independence and elation. The way Pile embeds tension into their songs is so affecting, their live performances so electric, and lead singer Rick Maguireâs vocals so guttural, itâs hard not to be overcome by surges of adrenaline while listening to the bandâs melancholy shredding. In March they released A Hairshirt of Purpose, which slows down the cacophonous guitars and growls. Even with a change of pace, Pileâs energy is unparalleled. EMMA BURKE
9 pm, Mississippi Studios, $10-12
B-Movie Bingo: Escape from L.A.
Your monthly opportunity to literally check off a bingo card full of B-movie clichĂ©s! This month, a challenge to acolytes of both Kurt Russell and John Carpenter, two men whose prior collaborations have inspired undying gratitude in the hearts of film fans for genre treasures like Escape from New York, The Thing, and Big Trouble in Little China. And then... then thereâs the campy, misguided, scattershot trashterpiece that is 1996âs Escape from L.A.. Is the tsunami of shitty cliches Carpenter keeps crashing against your eyeballs satire or ineptitude? Thatâs for you and your sure-to-be-filled bingo card to figure out. BOBBY ROBERTS
7:30 pm, Hollywood Theatre, $9
Me First and the Gimme Gimmes, Together Pangea
Itâs been 20 years since Me First and the Gimme Gimmesâ one-album experiment somehow turned into a punk rock institution. The super-group has rattled off seven studio albums, a live record, and a score of singles, applying a skate-punk sheen to covers of show tunes, Japanese pop, Motown, and everything in between. The bandâs popularity shouldnât be that hard to fathom, thoughâcomposed of members of California punkâs Fat Wreck Chords family (NOFX, Lagwagon, Swinginâ Utters, and Foo Fighters... yes, them), Me First and the Gimme Gimmes allows at least two generations to access music they might not have heard. Often sporting Hawaiian shirts or schlocky suits, they look like like rock ânâ roll uncles playing a cruise ship nightclub. RYAN J. PRADO
8:30 pm, Wonder Ballroom, $18-20, all ages
David Crosby & Friends
David Crosby may have lacked the instrumental proficiency of Stephen Stills and Neil Young or the quaint Englishness of Graham Nash, but his high, honeyed tenor is one of Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young's most distinctive and defining elements. Amid an array of efforts recorded both solo and with CSNY, Crosby's best and most enduring contributions to the rock canon are still the gorgeous and bizarre songs he penned while in the Byrdsâin particular, the Younger Than Yesterday cuts "Renaissance Fair" and "Mind Gardens," and the 1967 non-album single "Lady Friend"âone of the best '60s pop songs that was never a massive hit. MORGAN TROPER
8 pm, Aladdin Theater, $58
Patricia Lockwood
Poet and author Patricia Lockwood reads from Priestdaddy, her memoir about growing up with a married Catholic priest for a father.
7:30 pm, Powell's City of Books, free
E-40, Kool John, Clyde Carson, Skinny Pete, Tha Native
E-40 is damn near 50 these days, but heâs still putting out notable, bangable West Coast rap so thick with slang you could spread it on toast. Forty Fonzarelli makes it up to Portland once a year or so, but tonightâs your night. So get a little bootsee (whatever that means), roll up the broccoli (weed, I think?), and head to Roseland. DIRK VANDERHART
8 pm, Roseland, $25-250, all ages
The Rent Control Debate
Under pressure from constituents being rapidly priced out of their homes, Oregonâs legislature might finally lift the state pre-emption on rent control this year. Thatâs a huge deal, of course, but also enormously complex. âRent control,â as a term has become freighted with different meanings for different people. Is it a savior that will ensure you can stay in your apartment, or a housing killer that will only make things worse? Both? Neither? The answer, obviously, depends on what kind of policies Portland puts in place. And to prepare yourself for the conversation this city might be having about those policies in coming months, you should head out to tonightâs debate pitting rent control warrior and Portland Tenants United founder Margot Black against Gerard Mildner, an economist with PSUâs business school. Sure, things might get tense, but thatâs part of the fun. DIRK VANDERHART.
7 pm, Alberta Rose Theatre, $7
Liz Vice, Moorea Masa
Liz Vice is labeled a gospel singer, but thatâs not a completely accurate descriptor. Yes, her songs are almost solely dedicated to all things Jesus, but Viceâs music owes more to soul-influenced gospel than to tambourine-shaking revivalismâsheâs more Mavis Staples than Mahalia Jackson. Her debut, Thereâs a Light, was quietly released in 2015, and since then sheâs garnered much-deserved praise (no pun intended), climbing both gospel and R&B Billboard charts. SANTI ELIJAH HOLLEY
9 pm, Doug Fir, $17-20
Hope Nicholson, Sam Maggs
Hope Nicholson is a comics historian and the owner of Winnipeg-based publisher Bedside Press. Tonight she reads from The Spectacular Sisterhood of Superwomen, her new book highlighting female characters from throughout comic book history. Nicholson will be joined by author and video game writer Sam Maggs, who will read from her book, Wonder Women, offering readers a fun and feminist look at 25 forgotten women in science, technology, and beyond.
7 pm, Powell's Books at Cedar Hills Crossing, free
The Magnetic Fields
Curmudgeonly genius Stephin Merritt is releasing another massive Magnetic Fields album, and he's going to play the entire thing front-to-back over the course of this two-night stand at Revolution Hall. 50 Song Memoir promises to be Merritt's most personal album yet, with each song representing a year in the songwriter's life. The first 25 songs will be played on night one, with the second half coming on night two.
8 pm, Revolution Hall, $35-80
Lydia Ainsworth, Dolphin Midwives, Johanna Warren
Lydia Ainsworth sings like Kate Bush from the bottom of an echoing drainpipe while she overlays her own whispered samples about gemstones and past life regression. For fans of Julia Holter and ASMR, Ainsworth's half mystical/half glitch compositions work for anytime you want to put on a shawl and feel spooky. It's also pretty danceable. I have been blowing up her Right to Real for most of the past year. Scope her 2014 cover of Chris Isaak's "Wicked Game" if you wanna fall in love. SUZETTE SMITH
8:30 pm, Holocene, $10-12
Okilly Dokilly, Beatallica, Latter Day Skanks
Ned Flanders-themed heavy metal from this Phoenix-based band who invented the "Nedal" sub-genre. According to the band's frontman Head Ned, Nedal music is "Not as fast as Bartcore, and a little cleaner than Krusty Punk.â The Beatles and Metallica mash-up tribute Beatallica provide support.
9 pm, Dante's, $15
Shaun King
From founding a church in 2008 to his long resume of civil rights activism, and raising $60,000 for slain teen Tamir Riceâs family to becoming the senior justice writer for the New York Daily News, Shaun King is now a go-to for informed, woke analysis of current affairs and race relations on the internet. (You probably follow him on Twitter, yes?) As part of the International Speaker Series, King presents âThe New Civil Rights and Global Justice,â which hopefully will activate the already-inspired to become leaders in their own community. JENNI MOORE
7 pm, Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall, $20
Bridgetown Comedy Fest
Every year, I anticipate the Bridgetown Comedy Festival with the hopped-up excitement of a sugar-deprived five-year-old allowed a bowl of Froot Loops at a friendâs house. For a few glorious days, Portland stand-ups hobnob with out-of-town comedy heroes in a mildly drunk joke paradise, and this yearâs lineupâJaneane Garofalo, Karen Kilgariff, Baron Vaughn, Guy Branum and tons moreâis essential. MEGAN BURBANK
Various Locations, see our Bridgetown calendar for more information
MURS
The SoCal-hailing underground rapper returns to Portland in support of Captain California, the 10th studio album in his two decade plus career.
8 pm, Hawthorne Theatre, $16-18, all ages
Vieux Farka Touré, Clinton Fearon
Slinging guitar licks somewhere between reggae, rock, and blues with a frenetic, twangy afrobeat ferocity, Vieux Farka Touré offers highly danceable tunes that'll make you sweat like you're in the West Sahara.
9 pm, Star Theater, $17
Holcombe Waller
Waller's latest ambitous, sprawling musical project, "Notes from the Riverkeepers," gets a three-day test-run at the Headwaters, created in response to Waller's three-month residency with the Columbia Riverkeeper organization.
8 pm, The Headwaters Theatre, $10-26
Eyelids, Jackson Boone, Point Juncture, WA
Eyelids are no longer the parts of their sum, they're just the kind of killer all-star group that sometimes serendipitously springs up here in Portland. BEN SALMON
9 pm, Mississippi Studios, $8-10
Goodfellas
So many questions with Goodfellas. Is it Scorseseâs best movie? Is it better than The Godfather? Is it the best mafia movie ever? Itâs definitely Ray Liottaâs best movie, right? Can you even cut garlic so thin with a razor blade that it just liquefies in the pan? How is that possible? How many times do you think youâll shout âOh shit itâs that one dude from The Sopranos!â before whoever youâre watching with punches your shoulder and tells you to shut the fuck up already? Is there anything funnier than Morrieâs wig falling off his melon-head while Robert De Niro chokes him with a phone cord? That last one has an answer. That answer is no. BOBBY ROBERTS
9:10 pm, Laurelhurst Theater
Star Wars Beer Fest, Episode IV: A New Hop
The Imperial Bottle Shop and Taproom presents the 4th Annual Star Wars Beer Fest, a full-day event featuring screenings of Episodes IV - VI, a costume contest, appearances by the Mandalorian Mercs and Outer Rim Collective costumes clubs, and a Star Wars themed tap list including more than 13 beers and ciders from the likes of Fort George, Ecliptic, Coalition, Lompoc, Ninkasi, Reverend Nat's, and more.
noon, Imperial Bottle Shop & Taproom
Colleen Coover
Eisner award-winning cartoonist Colleen Coover swings by Floating World for a signing and party celebrating the release of Small Favors: The Definitive Girly Porno Collection, a deluxe hardcover edition of her acclaimed LGBTQ friendly and sex-positive erotica series.
6 pm, Floating World Comics, free
Don't forget to check out our Things To Do calendar for even more things to do!
