Destination Fun

Tops of the TBA Fest There’s no shortage of mind-altering performances this week as the TBA Festival continues to unfold. Tear out this pocket sized guide so you’ll know who to see, where to go, when to be there, and how much it costs. How convenient! States Rights Records Night: Laptop soothsayers Bobby Birdman, Lucky […]

Labor Day weekend may officially end summer–for SUCKERS, that is! Not here at the Mercury. No sir. Our Summer Action Team is just getting its second wind. Don’t baton down the hatches for the winter rains just yet, ’cuz there’s still plenty of sun and fun to squeeze out of the next few weeks. LAST […]

Anime Convention Anime is some crazy shit, packed with giant robots, organic spaceships, hyper-sexualized teenage girls, talking animals, gun-toting cyborgs, monster-related card games, wise-cracking bounty hunters, and mutated kids. (And trust me–that’s not even the really weird stuff.) For all things involving Japanese animation–which, here in the states, is only just starting to get the […]

Zoobombers Go Hardcore The youngest and most rowdy of Portland bicycle gangs, the Zoobombers (sorry, CHUNK 666, but your teeth are looking a little long) are celebrating the anniversary of their founding. And it’s gonna be hardcore. After all, almost immediately after they began “bombing” the zoo by riding down a hill really fast, they […]

PIZZAZZ! Talent Show Answer this simple question: DO YOU LIKE ENTERTAINMENT? If you said “Yes,” then get ready for the biggest, funnest night of entertainment you’ll see all year. It’s called “PIZZAZZ!” the hee-lariously fun talent show starring the brightest stars of the Portland metropolitan area in a head-to-head, winner-take-all competition! Singing, dancing, saw-playing, rapping, […]

Reading, Writing, Rock & Roll The Real School of Rock If only I’d attended The Paul Green School of Rock Music instead of wasting my adolescence rocking, alone, in my room. Maybe then I’d be preparing to take over the world like these single-minded scamps. The Paul Green School of Rock Music is an original, […]

PDX Adult Soapbox Derby In a world of stupid safety rules, THANK GOD for the annual Portland Adult Soapbox Derby. The Derby takes place at Mt. Tabor Park, where roughly 30 contestants design and race their gravity-powered cars down a twisty, mile-long track. While some compete for the danger, blasting through hairpin turns at speeds […]

Hair Metal Mayhem I definitely reached my musical peak some time in the early ’90s. The reason: I loved listening to hair metal, buying hair metal albums, and watching hair metal on MTV. In fact, I don’t think I will ever enjoy music again the way I once did–rocking out, jumping on the couch, and […]

WARPED TOUR 2004 You can talk a lotta smack about the Vans Warped Tour, but things are looking up this year. Mainly, it ain’t quite the bro-dominant sausage fest of years past. (Though, for all the Lillixes and Eyelineres, it’s still pretty cock-centric.) BONUS: Alkaline Trio! Atmosphere! EXTRA BONUS: Realizing Coheed and Cambria will ANNOY […]

Independence Day falls on Sunday this year. So when you’re sitting in your personal house of worship thanking God for George W. Bush and his holy crusade to blow those Middle-Eastern heathen back to the Stone Age, remember that God doesn’t think President Bush should have all the fun. Yes, God has a special plan […]

Rodeo Weekend No big plans for Fourth of July this year? No BBQ invites, family gatherings, no big rock shows to go to, no friends coming to town? Well, don’t spend the Fourth moping around your apartment wishing you were dead… get your ass to the rodeo. You’ve got two rodeos to choose from this […]

Female filmmakers, this is your chance to get a foot in the door (and keep it there.) EVAN JAMES Itisness, 3016 NE Killingsworth, (971) 570-6930, Friday June 25 films screen 4-10 pm, $5 per screening, Saturday June 26 workshops, panels and screenings from 10 am to 9:30 pm, $10 to get in, see zonkerfilms.com for […]