This weekend is about discovery and rediscovery; finally dipping your toes into waters you should have been swimming long before now, or diving back into your favorite watering holes. From the large-scale delights of Tron, Ghostbusters, and Interstellar in 70mm; to one of the greatest rock bands of all time taking over the Moda; to watching local actors revive the awkward glory of School Dances gone by; to getting your own dance on in a Video Dance Attack; to celebrating the best of the west as you throw that dub up high; to acknowledging the genius of Shirley Jackson and all the artists she’s inspired; to watching a pair of the best filmmakers in the medium’s history come fully into their own like gangsters of cinema. There’s a lot of catching up to do. Hit the links below and load your plate accordingly.

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Friday, Apr 7

Dirty Revival, Midtown Social
Apparently I’m late to discover Portland’s stellar seven-piece, Dirty Revival. Led by powerhouse vocalist Sarah Clarke, the fleshed out band plays “vibrant neo soul,” but their classical and original renditions are infused with funk and hip-hop as well—guitarist Evan Simko occasionally hops on the mic to deliver verses as the group’s sole MC, Evv N Flo. The band sounds like the ultra-mixed lovechild of Sharon Jones and the Dap Kings, Farnell Newton, Jill Scott, and The Roots. Just take a quick gander at their sax- and trumpet-studded performances on YouTube and you’ll be pissed you didn’t hear/see them sooner. JENNI MOORE
9 pm, Mississippi Studios, $12

70mm Sci-Fi Weekend
The Hollywood Theatre is the only theater in the state—and one of the few theaters in the country!—that can still show movies on 70mm, the much-loved format that offers a sharper picture, richer sound, and… well, just makes other formats look like crap. And this weekend, the Hollywood’s going all-out, with not one but three science-fiction classics on 70mm: There’s 1982’s retro-futuristic, neon-soaked Tron, in which Baby-Faced Jeff Bridges revs up a LIGHT-CYCLE to do a CYBER-BATTLE inside A COMPUTER! The big crowd-pleaser is gonna be 1984’s Ghostbusters—one of the greatest comedies ever, it also boasts a perfect cast and old-school special effects that are going to look fantastic on the big screen. And last but not least is Christopher Nolan’s gob-smacking Interstellar. Whether you saw it in 2014 or not, you owe it to yourself to revisit this ambitious, gorgeous space saga on 70mm. I’ll be there in my NASA t-shirt, gawping at the screen like a goddamn idiot. ERIK HENRIKSEN
Apr 7-9, Hollywood Theater, see hollywoodtheatre.org for titles & showtimes

Nike Hoop Summit
Pay no attention to the fact our public schools aren’t much more than unpaid labor farms for the sports industrial complex! The Nike Hoops Summit showcases some of the most exploited talented teens from around the country, performing for the immediate financial reward of coaches and college athletic directors in the (faint) hopes some of those rewards will eventually find them in an undetermined future (maybe)! Fingers crossed the quality of the play will help us forget our complicity in the debasement of our educational system! BOBBY ROBERTS
7 pm, Moda Center, $10, all ages

Andrew McCarthy
Memoirist, actor, and director Andrew McCarthy (St. Elmo’s Fire, Mannequin, Weekend at Bernie’s), reads form his new novel, Just Fly Away, about a fifteen-year-old girl who begins to unravel a series of shocking secrets about her family’s past.
7 pm, Powell’s Books at Cedar Hills Crossing, free

Bombay Beach, Deathlist, Point Juncture WA
Summer Cannibals bassist Jenny Logan plays a release show for her electro punk and dream pop solo project’s self-titled debut album.
8 pm, The Know

Cosmonauts, The Molochs
Hailing from Burgerlandia, California (AKA Fullerton), Cosmonauts are among the most sonically diverse bands under the vague umbrella of psych, ranging from jingly power-pop, to aggressively twangy surf-punk, to crunchy garage rock. CAMERON CROWELL
9 pm, Bunk Bar, $10-12

Wham City Comedy, Christine Ferrera
You might be familiar with the comedy branch of Baltimore’s renowned arts collective Wham City from their Adult Swim infomercial series, which includes viral segments like “Unedited Footage of a Bear,” “Live Forever As You Are Now,” “Commencement Speech,” and “This House Has People In It.” Tonight the crew bring their twisted and unique sense of humor to the Siren stage for a live showcase featuring support from fellow Baltimore-based performance artist, Christine Ferrera.
8 pm, Siren Theater, $10-20

Hang the Old Year, Spirit of the Beehive, Floating Room, Entresol
Any work by Portland musician Maya Stoner is worth diving into, from the cultishly beloved indie rock of the now-defunct Forest Park to the shoegaze-pop of the short-lived Sabonis. Stoner’s new project Floating Room—which also includes Drowse’s Kyle Bates (guitar, synth, sampler) and Alec van Staveren (bass)—is perhaps her most experimental. Last year the band released its debut LP, Sunless, on Portland’s Good Cheer Records. (Stoner is the label’s president.) The songs sound like they were born in an attic filled with dust and cobwebs, where you could find a magical old board game or treasure map among strange relics of the past. On Sunless, Floating Room creates a half-empty, dreamy, but ultimately real world—one where the validation of sadness is a step toward understanding. CAMERON CROWELL
8 pm, Black Water Bar, $8, all ages

School Dance
Action/Adventure Theatre’s youthful, charming productions are a true delight for a jaded theater critic, but their serialized format can be a nonstarter for the lazy. Well, I have good news! The company’s latest show, School Dance, is 70 minutes of one-off glee, and the constraints of that brief runtime seem to compress everything good about a typical Action/Adventure show into a neat arc of adolescent joy and despair. As the company’s “first foray into creating work for both adults and teenagers,” it more than holds together. And as a play about (SURPRISE!) a school dance, and uncool kids who feel invisible, it’s sensitive and relatable. It’s also full of jaunty performances: Noelle Eaton shows some real comedic chops; and Pat Moran, Samson Syharath, and Jon Gennari make for a scrappy, likeable trio of nerds. I can tell you that as a grown-ass lady who subscribes to Teen Vogue, I didn’t get bored once. And the tech-savvy young people next to me seemed entertained too. What a time to be alive. MEGAN BURBANK
8 pm, Action/Adventure Theater, $10-18

IPRC’s Hello! Goodbye! Fundraiser
An opportunity to help the IPRC secure a new location and continue contributing to Portland’s thriving arts community by donating $15 to the cause and receiving four original letterpress and screen prints commemorating the event.
6 pm, IPRC, $15

Portland Grand Tasting
An opportunity to taste (or just flat out drank) offerings from over 20 Columbia Gorge wineries, made from over 40 grape varieties from the region, with small bites, and opportunities to learn from the vintners.
6 pm, Leftbank Annex, $25-50

’80s Video Dance Attack: 12th Anniversary Party
Celebrate the 12th anniversary of VJ Kittyrox’s recurring dance night which keeps MTV’s golden era burning bright by projecting classic music videos on giant screens and rattling the dance floor with a thumping sound system
8 pm, Crystal Ballroom, $10

Morpheus Youth Project Fundraiser
Since 2011, MYP has supported underserved and incarcerated youth through creative programming in Portland metro schools and juvenile correctional facilities. Workshops include radio journalism, breakdancing, and feminist allyship. Get down for a good cause and an evening of games, raffles, and music. Beers are only two bucks before 7 pm! EMILLY PRADO
6 pm, Lagunitas Brewing Community Room, $5

West Coast Tribute Night
A night dedicated to decades-worth of throwin’ up the W, with Ante Up PDX spinning hip-hop classics from the glory days of South Central, Compton, the Bay, the Valley-jo (that’s Vallejo, CA for those that don’t know), to the present day where King Kendrick reigns supreme.
9 pm, Holocene, $10

Saturday, Apr 8

Reggie Watts
Trying to describe Reggie Watts’ particular kind of brilliance is just about impossible: He’s a comedian. He’s a beatboxer. He’s a tech wizard. And he mashes up comedy and hip-hop, commentary and smarts, and charm and venom into performances that you have to see to believe. You might’ve seen Watts on one of his other stops in Portland, or on Comedy Bang! Bang! or The Late Late Show with James Corden, but tonight he’s at Revolution Hall—likely doing something unlike anything he’s done before. ERIK HENRIKSEN
8 pm, Revolution Hall, $35, all ages

Out From the Shadows III
For the past five years, one of the most popular shows on local independent radio has been XRAY.FM’s Songs from Under the Floorboard, a weekly glance into the varied post-punk and darkwave scenes that are still going strong around the world after the first blushes emerged in the late ’70s. In recent years, host Dave Cantrell has applied his curatorial instincts to a festival celebrating his musical drug of choice called Out from the Shadows. This weekend will see the return of this event, held at the freshly rescued Tonic Lounge and featuring a rich array of sounds from Portland and beyond. Highlights include the sexy grind of the appropriately named Puerto Rico-based band Lust Era, the small storms of doom-pop generated by Brooklyn duo Winkie, and local acts including Vice Device, Shadowlands, and LUNCH. ROBERT HAM
9 pm, Tonic Lounge, $10-26

Dude York, Paws, TalkLow
Plugged-in guitars, potent melodies, and punky energy. What’s better than that, rock ’n’ rollers? Not much, and tonight Portland welcomes two of the best young bands doing it these days. Dude York is from Seattle, and their new album Sincerely finds the trio stepping up its game significantly. After unsuccessfully trying the home-recorded route, they worked in a real studio with a real producer and injected their Weezer-flavored bash ’n’ pop with some serious hi-fi muscle. And last year, PAWS (from Glasgow, Scotland) released No Grace, their third straight LP of fuzzy, thoughtful pop-punk, this time produced by Mark Hoppus of Blink-182. Two of the most reliable DIY faves have jumped in with both feet and made a big splash without sacrificing what made them so lovable in the first place. Tonight, they play arena-ready anthems in the cozy confines of the Analog Cafe. BEN SALMON
6 pm, The Analog Cafe & Little Theater, $10, all ages

Vanessa Carlton, Tristen
Were you alive in 2002? If the answer is yes, I must warn you—it’s very likely that your ears have a secret chamber full of inflatable armchairs where the bright, twinkling, and insidiously catchy piano melody that threads through Vanessa Carlton’s mega-hit “A Thousand Miles” plays endlessly on a Sony CD Walkman. Her alt-pop anthem comes complete with feverish strings, an edgy guitar riff, and the unforgettable but unremarkable line “I would walk a thousand miles if I could just see you tonight,” (not quite as far as the Pacific Crest Trail or Route 66, but still pretty far). Though it’s her breakthrough single, “A Thousand Miles” was just one of the tracks on Carlton’s debut, Be Not Nobody, which was followed by four more full-length studio albums, most recently 2015’s Liberman. And you know what, it’s actually really good. Her folksy songs still center on flushed piano melodies, but with earthier elements and cold, glass-like production, like they’re trapped under an iced-over lake. For example, the beautiful “Willows” swirls around in mystical fogs, but it’s grounded by a foot-stomping beat. There are approximately 2,349 miles between Portland and Carlton’s current home base of Nashville, Tennessee—let’s thank the gods of 2002 (lookin’ at you, pre-breakup Britney and Justin) that she’s doubling her usual mileage to see us at the Doug Fir tonight. CIARA DOLAN
9 pm, Doug Fir, $25-27

The Shirley Jackson Project
“Something I find particularly wonderful is the fact that Shirley Jackson drew cartoons,” Rob Kirby writes in the introduction to the Shirley Jackson Project, a collection of comics responding to the writer’s work published by Ninth Art Press late last year. Kirby edited the collection, which incorporates work from comics and artists across the country—four of them from Portland—into a dense and beautiful book which oscillates between spooky personal narratives and dense critical theory. SUZETTE SMITH
6 pm, Floating World Comics, free

Peaches Christ’s Legally Black
San Francisco-based drag performer, emcee, and actor Peaches Christ presents a new parody of the 2001 Reese Witherspoon movie, Legally Blonde, starring RuPaul’s Drag Race season eight winner Bob the Drag Queen and a cast of Seattle’s most talented queens.
7 pm, Aladdin Theater, $27-80

Lorain, Denim Wedding, Ana Lete, Finger Painting
In Lorain’s previous incarnation, Grand Lake Islands, Portland songwriter Erik Emanuelson plotted hazy Americana rhythms, conjuring the narcotic folk paces of Magnolia Electric Co. Those muses still cast a shadow, though Lorain (named after Jason Molina’s hometown in Ohio) has found solid ground with an established cast of musicians instead of the turnstile band lineups of the past. The band—also comprised of drummer Bob Reynolds, and bass/keyboardist Joseph Anderson—has been in the studio tracking their debut, dubbed Through Frames. Early indications from songs like “All That Much” point to Emanuelson’s strong grasps of woozy catharsis, à la Jay Farrar. Per Emanuelson, the new record is inspired by urban, modern isolation, and how the various trappings of technology can allow us to feel simultaneously close to and disconnected from others. RYAN J. PRADO
8 pm, Turn! Turn! Turn!

Rapid Response: A Pride Foundation Benefit
Feminist comedy collective, That’s What She Said, are giving back with the gift of solid joke-making at a night that embodies the mantra of live, laugh, love. All ticket proceeds will help back Pride Foundation, a Seattle-based group advocating for LGBTQ financial support through policy making, educational scholarships, and grant funding in the Northwest states. EMILLY PRADO
7:30 pm, Siren Theater, $12

Last Giant, The Hague, Blind Swords
There’s a bone-rattling quality to Last Giant’s sophomore album, Memory of the World. Songwriter Ryan Heise’s (ex-System and Station) heavy-handed riffs offer modern rock decadence, gladly wading in the pools of ’70s prog on songs like “The Comedian” and contemporary blues on “Toys for the Devil.” The secret ingredient for the Portland trio is its obvious attention to the details, and Memory of the World boils over with interesting guitar moments, melodic interludes, and catchy harmonies. It’s the type of rock ’n’ roll album that in less finicky times would’ve marked the first rung in a ladder of stratospheric success for a band as talented as Last Giant. With songs as nuanced (if a bit milquetoast) as “Inventory,” the band’s malleability is perhaps its strongest asset. RYAN J. PRADO
9 pm, (The World Famous) Kenton Club

Marco Benevento
Using loops and circuit-bent toys, Benevento makes smart, catchy electronic music just right for dancing. RACHEL MILBAUER
9 pm, Wonder Ballroom, $18-20, all ages

Hypernormalisation
You can bet that Adam Curtis was one of the few people unsurprised by Donald Trump’s victory in the 2016 presidential election. The British documentarian’s latest, Hypernormalisation, posits Trump as the culmination of a process 40 years in the making—one that has gradually eroded the sense of a shared public reality and shattered the notion that politics can be a force for change in the world. MARC MOHAN
7 pm, NW Film Center’s Whitsell Auditorium

The Prids, Books on Fate, High Diving Horses
Hot off the heels of the release of their new album, Do I Look Like I’m in Love, local indie rock institution the Prids offer up a night of shoegaze, noise pop, and post punk.
9 pm, The Fixin’ To, $5

The Mystery Box Show
Portland’s long-running storytelling series dedicated to the sexier side of things returns with true tales from Paul Thomas, Janet W. Hardy, Ryan Stroud, Emily Harris, and Cole Miner.
7 pm, Alberta Rose Theatre, $20-55

Quarterworld Birthday Bash
The Portland arcade celebrates its first anniversary with a night of raffles and prizes, music by DJ Maxx Bass, a cash-prize Pac-Man contest, and a special performance by Tessie, the musical tesla coil!
8 pm, Quarterworld, $3

Sunday, Apr 9

Radiohead, Dudu Tassa & the Kuwaitis
The last time Radiohead played Portland was in 1996, when they were a recovering one-hit wonder supporting an overlooked second album. The English five-piece would go on to massive artistic breakthroughs with their next two albums before settling into the role of avant-rock elder statesmen, but Portland hasn’t seen them since before “Paranoid Android” was a glint in Thom Yorke’s googly eye. Recent media coverage of the so-called 20th anniversary of OK Computer—which didn’t actually come out in the States until July 1997—has drastically overshadowed Radiohead’s most recent work, A Moon Shaped Pool, so it’s not hard to guess which songs the stans will be most excited to hear.
7:30 pm, Moda Center, $69.50-99.50

Mozart’s Requiem
Sitting back and allowing the Catholic Mass for the Dead to wash over you might not be a typical evening out, but in the hands of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and our hometown orchestra, prepare yourself for greatness. At the end of 1791, as he lay bedridden with horrific symptoms that would soon overtake him, the 35-year-old composer went balls out to commit as much of the ancient liturgical text as he could to his own sublime, eternal music. Tonight through Monday, four world-class vocal soloists join members of the Portland Symphonic Choir to bring this wondrous work to life, so whether you are a devout Catholic pondering the mysteries of Lent or an atheist just looking to escape Netflix for one night, this opportunity for profound self-reflection should not be dismissed lightly. Bonus: The program opens with Igor Stravinsky’s brilliantly intriguing Symphony in Three Movements. BRIAN HORAY
7:30 pm, Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall, $23-105

Mitski, Kadhja Bonet, Mal Devisa
Since the release of 2016’s Puberty 2, Mitski has ascended to the level of full-blown indie rock titan. If you need proof, just watch the video for her anthem “Your Best American Girl.” But this bill’s a triple threat, with the powerful rawness of Mal Devisa and Kadhja Bonet’s psychedelic soul, which sounds inspired by the fluttering gold-tone vocals of Minnie Riperton. CIARA DOLAN
8:30 pm, Wonder Ballroom, $15, all ages

Kelly Williams Brown
The Portland-based author follows up her break-out self-help book, Adulting, with Gracious, a humorous guide to remaining courteous and polite in the face of rather uncivil times.
7:30 pm, Powell’s City of Books, free

Black Joe Lewis & the Honeybears, Dams of the West
Black Joe Lewis and the Honeybears hit the ground running in 2009 with their excellent major-label debut, Tell ’Em What Your Name Is! Lewis’s manic guitar playing, James Brown-like shrieks, and the unhinged energy of his live performances showed promise in the new artist. Since then, however, we haven’t heard a whole lot from the Austin, Texas native. He and his band released Scandalous in 2011, more or less repeating the same garage-soul and blues-rock formula of their debut. In 2013 they dropped “the Honeybears” from the band name and released Electric Slave, transitioning away from their earlier sound in favor of heavier, sludgier rock. Seeing as how three years have passed since Electric Slave, who knows what to expect next from Black Joe Lewis, or even what brings the band on the road now. But if their live show has remained any bit as maniacal as before, that’s ultimately all that matters. SANTI ELIJAH HOLLEY
9 pm, Mississippi Studios, $16-18

Flesh World, Lavender Flu, Arctic Flowers, The Cairo Gang
Fill a pot to the brim with buzz and echo. Bring to a reverberant boil. Add a pinch of queercore swagger, a smidgen of indie-pop jangle, and a dash of Bay Area DIY. Blend in a healthy dose of dead-eyed sadness. This is Flesh World, a gang of San Francisco scene vets (from beloved underground bands like Limp Wrist, Needles, and Brilliant Colors) who’ve come together to create a blissfully addictive brand of noisy, punky pop music. Of course, there are lots of bands trying to do that, but few strike as strong a balance of charm and chaos as Flesh World. The band’s debut full-length, The Wild Animals in My Life (released on one of the world’s great record labels, Iron Lung), was one of 2015’s hidden gems. Flesh World will be joined by two local acts who excel in the shadows: psych oddballs the Lavender Flu and post-punk chuggers Arctic Flowers. BEN SALMON
8 pm, The Know, $8

The Wild Body, Fauna Shade, Fire Nuns
Up-and-coming Portland quartet The Wild Body headline Rontoms Sunday Sessions with their experimental blend of post-punk and fuzzed-out psych rock.
8:30 pm, Rontoms, free

Miller’s Crossing
Blood Simple was the intro, bold as hell and charmingly alarming. Raising Arizona was a statement: We know what we’re doing and nobody else can do it like this. But in 1990, the Coen brothers delivered the thesis: Miller’s Crossing is everything the Coens ever were to that point and everything they’d ever be in the decades that followed. The dialogue, the delivery, the complicated plotting, the whiplashing tones, all sewn together in a way that makes everything feel effortless without making any of it seem easy. It’s not their best film (that’s No Country for Old Men), but it’s probably the best summation of the brothers as a creative force. And even if you don’t go in for any of that retrospective bullshit and don’t give a fuck about the Coen brothers, it’s still a damn good gangster flick. BOBBY ROBERTS
9:15 pm, Laurelhurst Theater

Sweet Bites for Civil Rights III
There is likely no sweeter deal in the world than eating treats made with love by community members and backing the ACLU of Oregon in the process. In the third installation of this budding event, desserts from over fifty bakers will be available for purchase in cold hard cash. EMILLY PRADO
10 am, Woonwinkel

Spec Script: Gilmore Girls
A live episode of the Rivercity Podcast Federation program, where a staged reading of local cartoonist Carolyn Main’s script for a Gilmore Girls is performed by comic talent including Karen Nguyen, Jen Tam, Ron Lynch, Amanda Martin-Tully, and more.
7:30 pm, Kelly’s Olympian, $5

Don’t forget to check out our Things To Do calendar for even more things to do!