SAT APRIL 9
Steel Chains w/Sweats, Heavy Hands, Macho Boys; Black Water Bar, 835 NE Broadway
Steel Chains is one of Portland’s best new punk bands, although its members are local DIY vets. Last year, the group debuted a six-song demo of melodic and unrelenting minor-key punk that bears the unmistakable mark of Red Lantern Studios’ Evan “Maus” Mersky, the city’s preeminent punk producer. Tonight’s show is a benefit for the Network for Reproductive Options—a Eugene-based nonprofit that provides women’s health resources.
SUN APRIL 10
Twiztid w/Blaze Ya Dead Homie, Boondox, Lex the Hex Master, Davey Suicide, Trilogy, DS8; Hawthorne Theatre, 1507 SE César E. Chávez
When I was working full time at a record store, some of the most positive interactions I had were with customers who bought CDs by bands like Insane Clown Posse and Twiztid. We shamelessly included ICP’s The Marvelous Missing Link: Found on the new hip-hop releases endcap for probably two months—partially because it sold and also because it was better than whatever album E-40 had released that week. Juggalos and Juggalettes in leisure dress would often tell me that they were stoked we even carried it. Making fun of Juggalos isn’t only unoriginal, it’s hipster classism: Behind the Faygo fountains and psychologically volatile posturing is a community that fosters inclusivity and the empowerment of an oppressed social stratum. And—wait for it—that sounds a lot like punk!
TUES APRIL 12
The Residents present Shadowland; Aladdin Theater, 3017 SE Milwaukie
It’s difficult to summarize a band whose career spans 60 albums over four decades, but here’s a Residents crash course: Diehards would have you know that they’re less of a band and more of an “overarching experimental multimedia project.” You might know a weirdo who has a T-shirt with a faded graphic of an anthropomorphic eyeball—that’s their mascot. Like their idol Captain Beefheart, the group’s records range from challenging to unlistenable. Breakthrough Meet the Residents—which is perhaps most famous for its cover, a ballsy degradation of Meet the Beatles!—is a timeless and horrifying post-pop masterpiece. It’s the album that was playing the moment I swore off weed forever, and that’s not a coincidence. [Note: The Aladdin Theater’s website states that those under 21 can attend this show with a parent or legal guardian.]