This week, the city’s toggling between the biggest bounties of summer (Pickathon, the return of the Northwest Hardcore Fest, and a Spice Girls-themed bike ride) and events on the more under-the-radar, contemplative end of the spectrum. If you’re burned out/sunburned, we recommend chasing some quiet at a gallery—Nationale honors the late artist Brianna Spencer with a deeply felt exhibition—or ducking into Clinton Street Theater for Bi Gan’s Resurrection. Plus, synth-psych spectacle Black Moth Super Rainbow and moody experimenter Cate Kennan pay us a visit, and the new issue of the Grandma Reporter explores an erotic theme.
MONDAY, JULY 27
Brianna Spencer: I’m Resting Now Before It’s Too Late
Bringing together a selection of works by the Portland artist Brianna Spencer, who passed in 2024, Nationale’s latest exhibition deepens the gallery’s current curatorial interest in “reflecting on death, mourning, and the ways love persists through absence.” Chosen in collaboration with Spencer’s husband George and daughter Ene, the exhibited paintings feel deeply personal and down to earth, yet uplift the ordinary into something swirly and sacred. Artists Carson Ellis, Anis Mojgani, and Nia Musiba, among others, round out the show with pieces that reflect on Spencer’s thematic interests—street art, California culture, and the “intimacy of everyday family life.” (Nationale, 15 SE 22nd, Thurs-Mon through Aug 23, FREE, more info, all ages) LINDSAY COSTELLO
TUESDAY, JULY 28
Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives
Winner of the 2010 Cannes Film Festival Palme d’Or, Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives is a slow, magical film ready to win over anyone who can sit still for a couple hours and drift within the memories and lore of a family sharing a meal on a warm, endless evening. Expect ghosts, beasts, half-remembered rumors, and yes, visitations from Uncle Boonmee’s past lives. Director Apichatpong Weerasethakul arguably gained mainstream (at least indie-stream) attention for his 2021 film Memoria. If you saw that movie and thought it could have had more mysterious wom sound, then the building wonder-dread of Uncle Boonmee is well worth sinking into. (Clinton Street Theater, 2522 SE Clinton, 7 pm, $10, more info, 114 minutes, unrated but someone fucks a fish) SUZETTE SMITH
Black Moth Super Rainbow, Giant Day
If you’ve ever listened to Animal Collective’s Sung Tongs and thought it could be just a skootch more dirty acid, vocoders, and vintage synths, Black Moth Super Rainbow are the band for you. Featuring members with names like Tobacco, Iffernaut, and the Seven Fields of Aphelion, BMSR is one of Pittsburgh’s finest bands of freaks, even if last year’s Soft New Magic Dream was a down note for the group. Friendly advice: see this show and stand halfway back. The band’s visuals are lost on the punctual, rewarding those who show up just in time to catch Derek Almstead of Olivia Tremor Control’s new band, Giant Day. It’s a school night, sure, but if you were going to drink some shroom tea before any show this week, this would be our rec. (Wonder Ballroom, 128 NE Russell, 8 pm, SOLD OUT, more info, all ages) HOLLY HAZELWOOD
WEDNESDAY, JULY 29
The Grandma Reporter Release Party
Edited by Salty Xi Jie Ng, a transdisciplinary artist-mystic from Singapore, the Grandma Reporter’s fourth issue compiles the perspectives of six local elder women on eroticism, sex, and “what feels alive and sensual as they age.” Founded in 2016, the publication’s focus on amplifying elder voices–particularly on lesser-spoken subjects—still feels fresh and pretty radical, too. Head to the Community for Positive Aging, formerly known as the Hollywood Senior Center, for the issue’s launch party, which includes a “women-only discussion” (all woman-identified folks welcome) from 1:15-1:45 pm. Attendees can browse copies of the issue, which includes poetry and stories, sex-positive slogans, images of an erotic altar, and more. (Community for Positive Aging, 1820 NE 40th, 12:30 pm, FREE, more info, all ages comfortable with sexual topics) LC
THURSDAY, JULY 30
Pickathon
If you don’t recognize many of the names on the 26th annual Pickathon lineup, never fear—this fest has always been about musical discovery. Every artist plays two sets over the four-day schedule, giving you ample opportunity to find your new favorite band (fun fact: Geese played Pickathon back in 2024). Bigger names like influential ’90s rock band Built to Spill and bluesy Americana artist Shakey Graves might draw you in, but don’t sleep on Portland Afrofuturists the Cosmic Tones Research Trio or Seattle’s psychedelic electro-cumbia project Terror/Cactus, among many others. Pickathon is more than just a music festival; it’s an experience with different “neighborhoods,” family-oriented activities, and unique highlights like a whimsical wooded path connecting parts of the grounds. (Pendarvis Farm, 16581 SE Hagen, Happy Valley, $215+, more info, all ages) SHANNON LUBETICH
Resurrection
Bi Gan’s epic homage to both five eras of movie making and the five senses is set in a near future where humans no longer dream, having discovered that the dreamless can become immortal. Those who still do are labeled rebel “deliriants” and hunted through their own visions. Resurrection follows a powerful deliriant—played by Jackson Yee—across several dreams within dreams, as he assumes different identities and personas. More neorealist fantasy than sci-fi, Resurrection will hit with earnest film lovers and audiences open to having their senses activated from a theater screen. This one is so much better in the theater. (Clinton Street Theater, 2522 SE Clinton, 7 pm, $10, more info, 159 minutes, rated R) SS
FRIDAY, JULY 31
The Malarkey Opening
The hotly anticipated steakhouse from Top Chef alum and prolific restaurateur Brian Malarkey also promises to be one of Portland’s most outlandish restaurants, with a motorcycle on the wall and stripper poles in the bathroom. But the food also has the potential to be very good, with Jose Lalo Camarena, the former República chef and chef behind Mexican seafood pop-up Metlapíl, at the helm. Malarkey, a former cattle rancher himself, is known for his shenanigans—he originally made it onto Top Chef back in 2007 after a notorious incident involving a flaming Baked Alaska complete with fire breathing dancers—so prepare for good steak and a good time. Snag reservations for opening night on July 31, if you can. (The Malarkey, 1210 NW Hoyt, more info, all ages) KATHERINE CHEW HAMILTON
Spice Girls Bike Ride
If you wanna be my lover, you gotta get with my friends…at the Spice Girls ride. Spice up your life like it’s 1997 at the seventh annual Spice Girls bike ride. Bring your best costume (which Spice Girl are you, anyway?) and your biggest bike speakers, come prepared to bust out some decades-old moves, and join in on the ride’s communal playlist. The ride ends at the Back Door Theater for a free screening of Spice World. (Colonel Summers Park splash pad, 1925 SE Taylor, 6 pm, FREE, more info, all ages) KCH
SATURDAY, AUGUST 1
The Emergent Field of Becoming: Jessie Rose Vala
Ceramics artist Jessie Rose Vala creates mind-melting sculptures incorporating unconventional materials like stoneware, glass, brass, neon lighting, and digital elements. You won’t find hand-crafted mugs at this new show—it feels more like opening a portal to another dimension. “Vala’s work transforms clay into mission statements about the state of the world,” wrote Melissa Locker for the Mercury back in March; this new installment of Vala’s work continues to do just that, exploring the artist’s climate anxiety and eco grief. (Well Well Projects, 8371 N Interstate, Sat-Sun 12-5 pm through Aug 30, FREE, more info, all ages) BRI BREY
Northwest Hardcore Fest
After a successful inaugural year, the Northwest Hardcore Fest is back to deliver a two-day affair of the stuff Portland hardcore punks used to only dream of. The lineup of over 30 bands features headlining sets from ’90s metalcore band All Out War, hardcore SoCal punks Soul Search, and self-described Thailand-based “Bangkok Evilcore” group Whispers. Other bands on the lineup have macabre names like As The Life Leaves Your Eyes and Sewn Shut, so you know it’s gonna get dark and go hard in all the best ways. (The Off Beat, 8440 N Interstate, 12-10 pm, $90, more info, all ages) SL
SUNDAY, AUGUST 2
Cate Kennan
Legendary Chicago label Kranky recently released the Los Angeles based composer-producer Cate Kennan’s woozy new album, Shadows. Part reverb-heavy poetry, part hazy experimental pop, Kennan’s work has the allure of a landscape observed through the passenger window of a train: blurred, desolate, yet strangely familiar. She’ll be joined by local performance artist soth seier and multi-instrumentalist Alexandra Burress for this sliding scale show. (Wyrd Hut, 4704 SE 65th, 8 pm, $10-$20 sliding scale, more info) LC
Looking for even more events happening this week? Head on over to EverOut!
