The Helio Sequence, Kelli Schaefer, Natasha Kmeto
Happy 10th anniversary to OPB Music, which is the tuneful arm of our local public broadcasting station that regularly features indie/alternative acts… especially those of the local variety. And to celebrate this grand occasion they’re inviting YOU (and the rest of Portland, I guess) to a very special night of music headlined by beloved local indie rock outfit the Helio Sequence, who will be joined by the dark, powerful voice of Kelli Schaefer, and the sensuous dance floor bangers of Natasha Kmeto. It’s a great way to celebrate OPB Music and our fantastic local music scene. WM. STEVEN HUMPHREY
8 pm, Crystal Ballroom, $15, all ages
Demetri Martin
Demetri Martin’s Let’s Get Awkward tour returns to Portland, giving the comedian and former Daily Show correspondent the chance to showcase his eccentric brand of stand-up and his fabulous mop-top haircut all weekend long at Helium Comedy Club.
Mar 23-24, 7:30 pm, & 10 pm, Helium Comedy Club, $35
Shopping, Lithics, Conditioner
UK post-punk revivalists Shopping have this weird way of accommodating any vibe that comes their way. The trio’s songs are multi-use marvels that will dance with you if you feel like dancing, pace with you if you feel like panicking, or console you if you feel like crying. Crucial progenitors like the Slits and the Au Pairs provide the DNA, so nostalgia is welcome here as well, but when I hear Shopping do their thing, I can’t help but feel planted in a present that is giving me permission to simply be. Like buildings designed to shift, roll, and sway to withstand the violence of an earthquake, Shopping’s songs are reactive compounds that use vulnerability to absorb and understand and respond to a world that is confusing and scary. To listen is to be invited into that realm of rawness and strength. What you do there is up to you. CHRIS STAMM
9:30 pm, Bunk Bar, $12-14
Vundabar, Ratboys, Lee Corey Oswald
The past five or so years have produced a huge wave of young bands who play emotionally candid, guitar-driven music that recalls various popular sounds of the 1990s and early 2000s, such as emo, pop-punk, and classic indie. Two of the better bands in this wave descend upon Mississippi Studios tonight: Vundabar, from Boston, skillfully walks the line between catchy and chaotic, sugarcoating its jagged art-rock with irrepressible melodies. The group’s new album, Smell Smoke, explores the lessons learned by frontman Brandon Hagen while he spent years caring for a loved one in mental and physical decline. And Chicago’s Ratboys released an album last year called GN that’s full of warm, charming pop-rock songs laced with more than a hint of twang and headlined by songwriter Julia Steiner’s breezy voice and melodies. BEN SALMON
9 pm, Mississippi Studios, $10-12
Candi Pop: Girl Pop Edition
If you believe in the power of girl power, and pray to the gods of bubblegum pop, then apply a thick coat of Dr. Pepper lip balm, and head out to Candi Pop: Girl Pop Edition. This dance night is well known for heating up the floor with pop bangers from your fave women artists, but this special edition will include radio heroes of your youth including Mariah Carey, Britney Spears, Spice Girls, *NSYNC, Madonna, Destiny’s Child, and (SQUEEEEEEE!) S Club 7! Bring your insulin, because this is one sweet dance night.
9:30 pm, Holocene, $10-12
Flash Gordon
December 5, 1980 is a very notable date in film history—it was the day that camp ascended to unassailable art. Before that Friday, the term was a synonym for clumsy, failed ambition, earnestness gone sour and turned to kitsch. And then, Dino DeLaurentiis, inspired by Star Wars and holding the rights to the property George Lucas wanted to make in the first place, plugged “camp” into Queen guitarist Brian May’s amplifier stack, fed “camp” through designer Danilo Donati’s sewing machines, and firehosed “camp” through cinematographer Gil Taylor’s camera lens, the resultant mess expansively splattering the meaning of the word all over the delirious circus of ridiculousness barely holding orbit around the lunkheaded, beefy majesty of Sam J. Jones as Flash (ah-aaaaahhhhh!) Gordon, and praise Ming, cinema itself was forever altered. BOBBY ROBERTS
9:45 pm, Academy Theater, $3-4
Bizarre Love Triangle
A dance night dedicated to the glorious synth-pop sounds of the best in ’80s-era new wave, with DJ duties gladly undertaken by local all-stars DJ Gregarious, Art of Hot, and the ornately named Narcissus My Reflection.
10 pm, The Liquor Store, $5
Jim Jefferies
An evening of stand-up with the Australian comedian whose carefully concocted blend of acidity and compassion has landed him a late-night talk show on Comedy Central and a headlining show at the historic Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall.
7 pm, Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall, $39.50-182.50
The Minders, Blurred Out, The Zags
Singer/songwriter Martyn Leaper and his renowned Portland-via-Denver pop-rock outfit the Minders play an intimate hometown show at Turn! Turn! Turn! with assistance from Blurred Out and the Zags.
8 pm, Turn! Turn! Turn!, $5
This Will Destroy You, Amulets
If you’re looking for high-octane rock ’n’ roll, this is most certainly not the gig for you. This Will Destroy You makes music from drums, bass, and heavily distorted guitars, but that’s where any semblance to the standard definition of rock ends. The Texas band specializes in dramatic, atmospheric songs that often extend beyond the six-minute mark. They’ve recorded music for numerous films and TV shows, including Moneyball, World War Z, Prom Night, and Criminal Minds. Though this show probably isn’t for anyone seeking wild catharsis, those who enjoy immersive shoegaze soundscapes will be pleased.
9 pm, Wonder Ballroom, $18-20, all ages
Limp Wrist, Lebenden Toten, Xylitol, Petite, DJ Wienerslav
Influential Chicago hardcore band Los Crudos, fronted by Uruguayan-American vocalist Martin Sorrondeguy, came together in 1991 specifically to give voice to the Latinx community in the US. When Crudos broke up in 1998, Sorrondeguy and former members of other seminal hardcore bands formed the vegan/straightedge/queercore group Limp Wrist. Loud, fast, and unapologetic, Limp Wrist embraced queerness within what was largely a heteronormative subculture, but their message of empowerment and social engagement is every bit as important today as it was 20 years ago. As Sorrondeguy explained in an interview, “You cannot identify as queercore and not have a greater scope of the world around you, in fact, being queercore or a gay/lesbian/queer/trans punk has opened up expanded dialogue and actions to make real equitable change in the scene and in the world.” None of the band members have ever lived in the same city, and touring is rare, so tonight might be your only chance to catch Limp Wrist in person. SANTI ELIJAH HOLLEY
9 pm, Bossanova Ballroom, $10-12, all ages
The Best of Second City
The Second City Touring Company brings some of the best sketches, songs, and improvisations from the historic company’s fifty-two year history out to the Newmark Theatre, offering you the chance to see where the likes of Tina Fey, Stephen Colbert, and Steve Carell got their stats, and get a glimpse of the up-and-coming talent that’s currently inhabiting the Second City ranks.
7 pm, Newmark Theatre, $20.50-25.50
Don’t forget to check out our Things To Do calendar for even more things to do!