Drab Majesty, Vice Device, Some Ember, DJ Patricia Wolf
If you like â80s new wave, youâll love the self-described âtragic waveâ of Drab Majesty. On The Demonstration (released in January on Dais Records), Los Angeles musician Deb Demure weaves together androgynous vocals, complex drum machine beats, and echoing synth-bass lines. Itâs dramatic, brooding, and 100 percent danceable. CIARA DOLAN
8:30 pm, Holocene, $10-12
Alt-J
The Leeds-hailing electro-indie-rock trio return to Portland for a pair of headlining shows at the Schnitz supporting their 2017 full-length, Relaxer.
8 pm, Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall, $39.50-79.50, all ages
Kung Fu Theater: Lady Kung Fu
This monthâs installment in Dan Halstedâs ongoing celebration of all things whoop-ass is a very rare 35mm print of this little-seen landmark of the genre, starring Angela Mao as the star student of the Korean martial art Hapkido. Sheâs sorta like the Hermione Granger of kung fu, except instead of constantly taking the back seat to Harry and Ron (Sammo Hung, Carter Wong), Mao stands firmly at center stage as she proceeds to beat the living shit out of every evil dickhead that dares to come at her. BOBBY ROBERTS
7:30 pm, Hollywood Theatre, $7-9
Hope Sandoval & the Warm Inventions, Daydream Machine
Itâs interesting that Hope Sandoval is rolling through Portland tonight, just a couple weeks after revived SoCal psych-rock band the Dream Syndicate played the Star Theater. The two have been loosely connected for decades, and now are like specters passing each other in parallel hallways. The story is a tangled web of band comings and goings, but to be totally clear: Hope Sandoval has carved out her own incredible career in the years since. Mazzy Star released four albums of downcast, windswept psych-folk, even scoring a significant hit on MTV and the Billboard charts with 1994âs âFade into You.â She records solo work under the name Hope Sandoval and the Warm Inventions, her band with My Bloody Valentine drummer Colm Ă CĂosĂłig. Tonight they play Portland, fresh off the release of a new EP, Son of a Lady, and their 2016 album Until the Hunter, the bandâs first full-length in seven years. Both find Sandoval doing what she has always done best: Gently draping her perfectly wistful voice across an endless supply of hazy slowcore and narcotic drones. Few humans can conjure a certain vibe quite like Hope Sandoval. BEN SALMON
8:30 pm, Hawthorne Theatre, $30-33
Randy Newman
I love Randy Newman, and I never, ever want to hear him sing. Over the years, Newmanâs proved himself to be probably greatest American musical satirist of all time (sorry, Tom Lehrer), but more importantly heâs evolved the template of the singer/songwriter to encompass musical comedy, film scores, ragtime, Dixieland jazz, avant-garde classical music, and more. Heâs a genius, no question. And his voice is terribleâsomehow abrasive as a pumice stone and soft as a bowl of jelly. Newmanâs latest, Dark Matter, is an insanely ambitious work that includes tracks like âThe Great Debate,â a gospel opera that dramatizes the conflict between scientists and religious wingnuts, and âPutin,â which skewers the Russian leader via boot-stomped Soviet martial fanfare. These are brilliant songs, and I find them entirely unlistenable. Even as they tickle my brain with fascinating ideas, Newmanâs woozy, lurching shifts in musical tone and gargly mush of a voice make me feel seasick. So Iâm glad Newmanâs in town, and astonished such a remarkable personage is playing a venue like Revolution Hall. It should be an incredible evening for his biggest fans. I wish I could get over my physical revulsion toward his sound and join them in appreciating his brilliance. But I canât. I just canât. NED LANNAMANN
8 pm, Revolution Hall, $59.25, all ages
Don't forget to check out our Things To Do calendar for even more things to do!
