Good afternoon, my lieges. Your suggested itinerary for this week is as follows: Emo bike ride—I have your least waterproof mascara at the ready—or an Oasis book without Oasis at the forefront of its story. Perhaps I can interest you in a comp drop or a sketch fest? A World Naked Bike Ride or a Project Pabst? Finally, we have a selection of hot dance parties, as we are in Portland, and it is summer. You may peruse at your leisure.

Monday, July 21

Emo Ride

Maybe it's just how the world is right now, but we seem to be recommending a lot of emo events. It's okay to feel sad and angry, and it's even more okay to get on a bike about it. This low-key third annual Bike Summer emo ride encourages riders to cycle their feelings and dress the part—whatever that looks like to you. The ride's organizer has a big speaker, a trailer to pull it, and a near-15 mile ride planned out, so also keep that in mind. Tonight's weather will actually be very bike ride friendly, as the day cools off from 77 degrees you might have an opportunity to don a hoodie. (Meet up at Oregon Park, NE Oregon and 30th, roll out 7:15 pm, FREE, shift2bikes.org, all ages) SUZETTE SMITH

Melissa Locker

"This is the story of Oasis, but probably not the one you've heard before," writes Melissa Locker in the intro to her new rock history book And After All. It's a bold claim, but one she delivers on—as expected from a regular Mercury contributor. And After All explores what may be the most likeable thing about Oasis: their fans. Arranged around specific shows the Manchester band played (from the early '90s to the 2009 breakup), Locker captures a cascade of simple miracles that boosted to the band's early successes and first-hand remembrances of the ways that, even when the Gallagher brothers were at odds with the media and the music industry, they showed love for the fans that put them on top. Locker discusses the book in conversation with DJ Gregg Glover, host of Alternative Mornings on KNRK-FM, Afternoon Dive on KGON-FM. (Literary Arts. 716 SE Grand, 7 pm, FREE, literaryarts.org, all ages) SS

Tuesday, July 22

Obedient / Gaytheist / Conspire

Thank god for Obedient because we need more supergroups in Portland. The band consists of members of Black Shelton and Help, and a sick tattoo artist—they all rule. The snarling callouts of frontwoman Lacey Karbomb are easily interchangeable with a tone of feigned innocence before the whole band dunks our asses in a bucket of sloppy noise-punk. This is the tuffest all gender pit in Portland, NO CREEPS! The mustached menaces in Gaytheist pummel us mere mortals in the middle spot, with Conspire’s Euro-inspired post-punk opening the whole night up. This show is the album release party for Obedient’s new one, Rastafarsi, as well as being the tour sendoff for them and Conspire. (Mississippi Studios, 3939 N Mississippi, 8 pm, $19.12, info and tickets, 21+) NP

Wednesday, July 23

of Montreal / Bijoux Cone

Hissing Fauna, Are You the Destroyer is one of the first vinyl records I bought as a teen (the other being Panda Bear’s Person Pitch)—so it's fair to say of Montreal has meant a lot to me for a very long time. They gave me (and I’m sure a lot of other queer youth living in rural AmeriKKKa) license to be flamboyant, wear skin tight “girl jeans,” and express gender outside what is ascribed to “boys” and “men.” of Montreal's over the top stage presence and costumes are the stuff of glamour legend—I reckon they’ve been single handedly keeping the feathered boa industry going for well over a decade. Not one to be outdone, opener Bijoux Cone brings her own high femme benzo-pop energy to the extremely danceable evening. (Wonder Ballroom, 128 NE Russell, 7:30 pm, $35.28, more info and tickets, 21+) NP

Thursday, July 24

Portland Sketch Comedy Festival

For my money, the top comedy event of the summer is the Siren Theater’s annual Portland Sketch Comedy Festival, which is a virtual tsunami of laughs stretched out over three days and featuring some of the best sketch comedy groups in the nation. While you’ll catch all kinds of creative, one-of-a-kind sketch geniuses at this fest, in particular snap up those tix for Chicago's highly recommended (and highly hilarious) Sage and Riley Try to Catch a Break, the returning  “dadaist subversions” of SMAT (LA comedians Sarah McKinley and Matt Olson), and of course, Portland’s own Lone Wolves, which features the ceaselessly amusing Shelley McLendon and a roster of your fave local actors doing one-person flights of funny. Do not miss! (The Siren Theater, 3913 N Mississippi, July 24-26, $18-$90, more info and tickets, all ages) WM. STEVEN HUMPHREY

Book Swap

My toxic trait is that I'm always acquiring new books even though my To Be Read list is a mile long. My non-toxic trait is that I love to drink tea, which is packed with antioxidants and known to have anti-inflammatory properties. Smith Teamaker's Northwest location is combining the best of both of these with a fiction book swap (they ask that you bring books you'd actually recommend) where you can also score a special discount on your favorite Smith blends. Portland's preeminent tea purveyors have a thirst-quenching lineup of iced teas that I could drink by the gallon, namely the jasmine peach and golden pineapple lemonade, so pick your poison and find a new-to-you read. Best of all, the hosts are donating “any books left behind to Street Books, a Portland-based nonprofit delivering books to folks living outside.” (Smith Teamaker, 500 NW 23rd, FREE, more info, all ages) JANEY WONG

Friday, July 25

Chris Fleming

My TikTok algorithm keeps feeding me the comedy of Chris Fleming–and while the algo doesn't know all...in this case, it’s absolutely correct! Fleming hits the sweet spot of standup brilliance that combines common sense, absurdity, top-notch physicality, and a brain that rivals Robin Williams in speed and sharpness. Plus their character work is alway on point, and they love lampooning toxic masculinity—e.g. their masterpiece of social commentary “The snacks at Trader Joe’s that only women can see.” If you’re unfamiliar, and want to find out who the internet has been swooning over, snap up those tix pronto. (Newmark Theatre, 1111 SW Broadway, 7:30 & 10 pm, $52.25-$75.61, more info and tickets, all ages) WSH 

Dance the Dream: Into the Visual Realm of Kate Bush

Thanks to the immaculate curatorial prowess of Holocene talent buyer Gina Altamura (AKA DJ Serious Moonlight), Tomorrow Theater and XRAY.fm have teamed up to screen The Line, The Cross, The Curve. Singer-songwriter marvel Kate Bush wrote, directed, and starred in this 43-minute visual accompaniment to her 1993 studio album The Red Shoes, and it includes six tracks from that fairy tale-laden work. BUT WHAT ABOUT HOUNDS OF LOVE? you cry. Have no fear because proceeding the main event, we're promised a specially-selected reel of other music videos from Bush’s oeuvre. Run up that hill to bust some clouds with your babushka! (Tomorrow Theater, 3530 SE Division, 7 pm, $15, more info and tickets, all ages) NP

Saturday, July 26

Project Pabst

PP is back with a vengeance this year, hungry to prove that it’s Portland’s favorite music festival. The lineup is unbelievably stacked with a conscious energy switch between the two days, allowing you to choose your own adventure with the more punk sets of day one and the indie/emo joy of day two. First day fest faves include Iggy Pop, Devo, the Damned, the Exploding Hearts, and Mannequin Pussy—these headliners are bonkers in-and-of-themselves, but the fact we’re being treated to an Exploding Hearts reunion show is not only exploding my heart but my mind as well! Day two’s lineup is the perfect comedown from the high octane of day one, featuring sets by Death Cab for Cutie, Cap’n Jazz, Dustbunny, and more. I don’t care what you too-cool-for-school jabronis say about Death Cab, they rip; I never thought I would get to see Cap’n Jazz live; and Dustbunny are one of Portland’s best bands right now. (Tom McCall Waterfront Park, 1400 SW Naito, Sat July 26 & Sun July 27, 1 pm-10 pm, $85-150 more info here, 21+) NP

Related: Check out our more expansive breakdown of Project Pabst 2025 and have a listen to the playlist we pulled together for the occasion below!

World Naked Bike Ride

After taking a year off, WNBR is back for one of the most beloved rides of Bike Summer! (Un)dress to your preferred comfort level, grab your favorite human-powered transport, and meet for a night-time ride at Grant Park. The ride champions body positivity and cycling in resistance of fossil fuel dependency, and this year's theme "Baring All & Building Bridges" focuses on strengthening local connections and community. Nothing bonds people quite like painting each other's naked bodies under a new moon, right? (Meet up at Grant Park, NE 37th & Knott, 6:30 pm, more info,18+) SHANNON LUBETICH

Sunday, July 27

East Portland Sunday Parkways

On a few Sunday afternoons during the summer, Portlanders can experience the joy of biking and walking around on open streets, filled with people instead of cars, through the city’s Sunday Parkways program. So far this summer, the city has held Sunday Parkways events in Southwest Portland and Cully, and now it’s time for the East Portland event, which will take place on a 4.5 mile route east of I-205. If you live in East Portland, the event is a great time to get to know your neighborhood greenways and parks, and maybe find some biking buddies who live nearby. But I will issue an even stronger recommendation to those who live west of I-205— the East Portland Sunday Parkways is a perfect opportunity to discover how amazing that part of the city is. With the district’s gorgeous parks and food scene on full display, the event will showcase the best of East Portland, and demonstrate how great cities are when they prioritize people over cars. (Between Gateway Discovery and Parklane Parks in East Portland, 11 am-4 pm, FREE, more info, all ages) TAYLOR GRIGGS

Súper Ultra Tropi-Tóxic Summer

Latine DJ collective Noche Libre and BIPOC makers market Let's Be Friends have declared 2025 the year of Súper Ultra Tropi-Tóxic Summer, so throw on your hottest 'fit 'cause they're throwing a party to celebrate. Those who want to keep it lowkey can come through from 2–6 pm for a free indoor market with 20+ vendors, tooth gems, and food. But party people who wanna take it to the SÚPER ULTRA next level should grab a ticket for the patio day party (4–10 pm), which will bump DJ sets packed with "global sounds and booty bangers" and feature a "trashion" show, "punch-a-Trump" piñata, tropical drinks, and more. A portion of ticket and drink sales will be donated to resource-sharing community org UndocuPDX. (Jupiter NEXT, 900 E Burnside, FREE–$25, more info, all ages) JW