THURSDAY 9/4

FIRST THURSDAY DANCE PARTY STARRING ELLIOTT, FLUTTERBY, BONEHEAD
(Holocene, 1001 SE Morrison) There's been such a recent upswing in positive music, or at least music that buries its fear and cynicism in the gentle folds of positive sound, that it feels time to just say "fuck it" and go full-force dance party 24-7. So, after you're done checking out the rad art show at Design Within Reach (1200 NW Everett, in which artists like Carson Ellis, Patrick Fong, Martin Ontiveros, and Mooney Suzuki drummer/ex-Portlander Adam Bayer have painted Russian nesting dolls), head straight to Holocene and consider the fact that even though you're broke and depressed and confused as hell, you still want to shake it like a Polaroid picture. (Possible answer being the NEW OUTKAST SINGLE, WHICH RULES.) JULIANNE SHEPHERD

THE GOSSIP, ANNA OXYGEN, SOPHE LUX, WALLPAPER
(Berbati's, 231 SW Ankeny) Fresh off a European tour and a live record on Dim Mak, The Gossip's party-blues shakedown should be tighter and crazier than ever, and they get a long set in which to express themselves (i.e., get really drunk and naked). Like Beth Ditto, Anna Oxygen strips down sometimes, but underneath her power suits she's wearing leotards that would make Jane Fonda piss her pants, with a vibrato to match. JS

THOR, THE MENTORS, LOST EMPIRE, YOB, STOVOKOR
(Dante's, 1 SW 3rd) Your plans for tonight: Get all gussied up in your Klingon garb. Stick on your plastic nose, paint your face, put on some football pads and head over to Bodacious Classics (2433 SE Powell) for Klingon karaoke. Okay, then go see the Klingon metal band (they sing in Klingon) called Stovokor. (Other righteous non-Klingon metal bands will also be playing, namely loud enthusiasts Y.O.B). KATIE SHIMER

SKELETON COAST CD RELEASE, SNUGGLE-UPS, ROBOTS IN DISGUISE
(Michigan & Shaver House, 7:30 pm) Thankfully, Skeleton Coast has spun the cutesy male/female interactive vocals shtick in a new direction, as I'm sick of bands like Mates of State and Rainer Maria. They do sing in a round, but the dude actually does some screaming and their arty instrumentation is both compelling and pleasantly punk. Tonight they release their first CD, Write it Down, Burn it Up, which they silk-screened themselves. KS

THE QUAILS, KING COBRA, BLACK PEPPERCORNS
(Nocturnal, 1800 W Burnside) These three bands played lunchtimes at the Rock and Roll Camp for Girls this year, each purveying a different version of lady-powered punk rock. SF's The Quails make perky melodies, the King Cobra--about to release their debut on Troubleman Unlimited--plays myriad metallic complexities. Imagine if bands played elementary school lunchrooms all the time--there'd be a lot more groups like Black Peppercorns, the nine- and 10-year-old sister duo who's one of the most energetic bands in Portland. No, they probably cannot play Hendrix-worthy solos yet, but good art doesn't always come from impeccable skill, and when you're playing with your whole heart and soul, your music will speak to people. That is why bands like Black Peppercorns excite my heart, and the music of hyper-technical dudes like Tony Levin can make me feel bored and half-dead. Period. JS

GLANCE FAILED, FIERY CUBIST, COUGAR
(Tonic, 3100 NE Sandy) Whoa, is Glance Failed weird. Their song constructions are completely schizo, with elements of hardcore and emo and metal, which can at any moment skip off into a silent pittering. It's eclectic I guess, but the singer is great and the guitars are at times powerfully anthemic. KS

CRY IN YR BEER: JR PELLA, MATTHEW MILLER, ALLEN HUNTER
(XV,15 SW 2nd) You're going to end up doing it anyhow: swaying into a pint glass, lamenting your downtrodden love life. So make a game of it; it's healthier to anguish in good company. Tonight, local musicians will be on hand with their geetars and sad songs about heartache--but, graciously, they will also be handing the mic over to pathetic fools who want to share their sad stories of pain, resentment, selfish feelings of abandonment, and betrayal. Speak your peace now, and get it out of your system in a context that's fun, because most of the time nobody really wants to hear it, you sad, sad, hysterical bastard. MARJORIE SKINNER

FRIDAY 9/5

CNS ENGINEERING, STRATEGY, SOLENOID, CATCH 22, NUDGE
(Holocene) Didn't you hear? Portland is totally the mini-epicenter of West Coast experimental electronica. This show right here is partially why: five Outward Music Company-affiliated artists, whose laptop-savvy and live techno, electro, glitchy-whatever music does the double-dutch over preconception and adds a little humor to boot. Thank god this city is filled with so many computer nerds. JS

ILLAJ, THE TACTICS, LES CRIMINELS, THIRD MAN OUT
(Meow Meow, 520 SE Pine) When Illaj shows his face, you better show up. It's not often that he performs, but the local hiphop emcee (formerly of Blak Scienz Tribe) has the English language in a deathgrip, and his lyricism is complimented by easy cadences, a warm voice, and often, a lady singer whose melismatic croonings melt hearts. JS

DJ DAY, DJ WICKED, DJ MAGNETO
(Goodfoot, 2845 SE Stark) Got a craving for soulful turntablist treats? LA-based superstar DJ Day joins local ubiquitous talents DJ Wicked and DJ Magneto for a Friday night breakdown. He's co-founder of the Innernational Crew (of which Magneto is also a part), with a great mix in tow--on Credit is Due, artists like Ramsey Lewis with Roots Manuva are together at last! Tonight, Day will spin disco, breaks, hiphop, funk, and soul. (EEG results say the b-boys and b-girls are right here.) Tomorrow at Momo, he'll pair up with Wicked for turntablism madness of the hiphop persuasion. Get with this equation. JS

SD6, GLIS, DELERIUM, CONJURE ONE
(Crystal Ballroom) This is Delerium's first tour, but don't expect Sarah McLachlan to step out on stage with Bill Leeb and Rhys Fulber, the techno project's creative core. The diva behind Delerium's most recognizable dance single, "Silence" (from their 1997 gold album Karma), will most likely appear only as a disembodied voice on DAT, but who cares? Kristy Thirsk of the Rose Chronicles will be on hand to sing "Returning" from the group's new album Chimera. Leeb and Fulber (formerly of Front Line Assembly, the Vancouver, BC, industrial outfit) started excavating the pretty ethnobeat artifacts left over by Enigma during the early '90s, and they've done so quite successfully with the benefit of accomplished singers like Thirsk, Julee Cruise, and the Mediæval Bæbes. Fulber even created his own femvox-techno side project, Conjure One, which opens this show. Sidestepper's Latin-infused DJ sets serve as interludes. DAVID SLATTON

BREAKBEAT/HARDHOUSE NIGHT
(Cool School Café, 13 NW 13th) One of the best spaces in Portland transforms yet again: formerly known as Zoot Suite, Club Hiphop, etc., the Cool School Café is in the process of making all ages dance parties in three rooms. Check out Breakbeat/hardhouse night and wish them luck! JS

SATURDAY 9/6

THE STORES, MA FORD
(Bush Gardens, 900 SW Morrison) For some reason, the Stores hardly ever play. It's a shame, really, considering how many bands do a shoddy version of the same thing. They have the meandering qualities of Sonic Youth, and the mounting sentimentality of Dinosaur Jr. It's like being lost on a rock and roll space ship, where everything's a little wistful and psychedelic. Ma Ford is a husband and wife combination that trembles with emotional depth. I mean really, these people must be saving buckets of therapy money. So this show is a little mushy, sentimental, and fragile, and kind of for pussies. But a lot of people seem to be in pussy mode lately, which is great! In fact, there's a whiffa pussy right now. MS

WHERE ARE YOU? A/V
(Pacific Switchboard, 4637 N Albina) Nothing fancy here; just an evening of movies, animation and performance--from local artists like Alicia Love McDaid, Charles Salas Humara, and Zak Margolis--all framed by musical performance from Mathematics. JUSTIN WESCOAT SANDERS

DJ WICKED, DJ DAY
(Momo, 725 SW 10th) See Friday Listing

DEFIANCE CD RELEASE, DEATHCHARGE, MINDLESS REBELLION, A GLOBAL THREAT
(Solid State, 624 E Burnside) With all the shiny studs and spikes you ever dreamed of, Defiance's music is straight punk, political, and Portland. What better theme song for the sit-downs in Little Beirut than "Portland's Burning?" Or how about "I'd Rather Be Fucking?" Tonight is their CD release, as an extra special reason to be there. But frankly, the energy of this kind of music is best enjoyed at a live show in a dark room, with lots of people jumping up and down saying "police oppression!" over and over again. Portland punks are the flyest shit west of London. MS

25 SUAVES, MORE
(Stumptown Downtown, 128 SW 3rd) What takes most bands four to five members to accomplish, 25 Suaves rock as a duo. The Michigan act, headed by Bulb Records kingpin Mr. Velocity Hopkins (AKA Pete Larson), is loud, sweaty, smash-the-beer-can-against-your-skull rock, performed by a husband-and-wife duo who freak out like AC/DC as interpreted by Karp. Their electrified brain bomb is an experiment in repetitive, insistent math rock divided by the lowest common denominator of getting your ass in motion--an equation compounded by Hopkins' penchant for charging into the audience to further relay the intensity. If you can stand still through a 25 Suaves set, it's really time to kick the meds and just say no to emotional equilibrium. They rule. JENNIFER MAERZ

SUNDAY 9/7

SUPERJOINT RITUAL, FULL BLOWN CHAOS, 36 CRAZY FISTS
(Aladdin, 3017 SE Milwaukie) Superjoint Ritual crawl forth from the same infamous bayou-metal breeding ground that formerly spawned the likes of Soilent Green, Eyehategod, and Acid Bath, and they dish out a brand of swampy Southern boogie-metal that fans of those bands will feel at home with. At the same time, their all-star lineup--which includes bassist Hank Williams III and Pantera vocalist Phil Anselmo, along with Eyehategod guitarist Jimmy Bower and former Dead Horse drummer Joe Fazzio--means they're also on the radar of plenty of folks who've never even heard of those other bands. Whatever the case, they've shown over the course of their two recent albums, Use Once and Destroy and the unfortunately titled A Lethal Dose of American Hatred (both on Sanctuary), that they're more than a mere side project or a vain ego trip. And they're worth listening to whether you despise Anselmo's other band or you're one of those scary people with a tattoo of him on one of your buttcheeks. WILLIAM YORK

KAITLYN NI DONOVAN, SONS AND LOVERS, RICHARD MELTZER
(Bush Gardens) Aside from his cameo in Andrew Dickson's film Good Grief, I've never heard Richard Meltzer talk. But judging from his writing, he speaks a lot like Kaitlyn ni Donovan, the sweet Lady Cottington's Faerie whose gauzy soprano is the focus of local shoegazer band High Violets. However, he's her inverse; while Kaitlyn's all ethereal sunshine, Meltzer's the dirt and the gutter (if you can actually understand what he's talking about). That's why their pairing in this evening of spoken word and music could be pure weird perfection in their polarityÉ or you could spend the whole night thinking even Klingon karaoke is more intelligible. Bring a translator, maybe? JS

PHASER, MELLOWDRONE, VOYAGER ONE
(Dante's) Phaser singer, guitarist, and keyboard player Siayko Skalsky (he and his bass-playing brother, Boris, hail from D.C., but are of Ukrainian heritage) says that it used to annoy him that his band was labeled "shoegazer." "At this point," he says, "I've heard it so much that I just ignore it, and that's the only thing we can do. I personally like the term 'atmospheric rock.' I really don't see us being 'shoegaze.'" The band does consider itself to be influenced by Spiritualized, however, and recently shared some tour dates with its heroes. KW

THE CHASE CD RELEASE, POM POM MELTDOWN, IN THAR
(Meow Meow) The lovely ensemble known as The Chase, which pairs punk rock with chamber cello kinda stuff, releases their CD and goes on tour. Joining them are local prog-metallists Pom Pom Meltdown, and Chingy's more overtly sexual sister band. JS

ELEVATOR DIVISION
(Solid State) Bands that crave upward mobility might as well emulate true penthouse players such as The Cure, Radiohead, U2, and Smashing Pumpkins. Elevator Division, a Kansas City quartet whose songs deluge listeners with gothic grandeur, inspires frequent comparisons to these top-floor talents. Eschewing the happy-fun-slide hooks of KC scenesters The Anniversary and The Get Up Kids, Elevator Division explores murkier melodies without sinking too deep into tar-pit territory. In past years, this Elevator has gotten the shaft due to poor distribution and sub-par tour transportation, but with a new van and a reliable label (Second Nature), the group seems to be pushing all the right buttons. ANDREW MILLER

MONDAY 9/8

SOCIAL DISTORTION, THE HANGMEN
(Roseland, 7:30 pm) In the mid-'80's Social Distortion were part of the revolution MAN... well, for everyone one shack wacklin' off a skateboard they were fuckin' "Black Flag relevant." Dig, they were SoCal working class punkers, very American and thoughtfully melodic, which was so VERY unlike the other skater favorite working class punk band, Wattie and his jack ass "Exploited" pals. And, instead of the cliché "Mohawk," Mr. Ness had "funny" make-up... he ran his eyeliner so it looked like he'd been crying! Fuck man! PUNK! Anyways, I'm not too sure of their last couple records but, as I've seen 'em a TON live, Mike Ness and the Social Distortions ALWAYS gots IT like a MOFO, the atom bomb y'all, the TNT. Mommy's little monster indeed. MIKE NIPPER

RECLINERLAND, SUPER XX MAN, QUINTIN NADIG
(Red & Black, 2138 SE Division) Enjoy the patient musings of solo artist Mike Johnson (aka Reclinerland), his guitar, and his long-nursed love of showtunes. I have recently discovered that, like Sleater-Kinney, Johnson's act is probably named after a spot between Portland and Seattle, namely, a huge recliner warehouse called Reclinerland. KS

TUESDAY 9/9

QUASI'S CD RELEASE
(Jackpot Downtown, 6 pm, free) See Music pg 18

DEATH BY DISCO W/DJ TEENAGE
(Holocene) Yeah, you can only go so far with the whole hating on disco thing. I mean, what it really comes down to is: Do you like to dance? Are you a vital human being? Are you? Besides, Teenage has got taste, and he's gonna take care of you. And then there's the whole hiphop thing, which is everyone's favorite music. Bringing people together, familial like. Beats going on to the break of dawn over here, and you can either be a part of that, or you can go somewhere stupid and pout. MS

WEDNESDAY 9/10

UGLY DUCKLING, LIBRETTO
(Holocene) These days, very few black rappers are into comedy. They're either dead serious (50 Cent) or childish (Nelly). White rappers, from superstars such as Eminem to rising stars like Princess Superstar, MC Paul Barman, and Ugly Duckling, are now the main producers of comic hiphop. LA's Ugly Duckling learned the art of hiphop comedy from the masters of the form, the Pharcyde, an early-'90s black rap group who in turn learned the art from De La Soul, Beastie Boys, and, I would argue, DJ Jazzy Jeff & the Fresh Prince. Why are so many black rappers so into themselves that they can no longer laugh at their own folly, weaknesses, and limitations in the manner of the old-school black rappers and current white rappers? What caused the death of comedy in the black community? Where has all the laughter gone? These questions need to be solved sometime soon, but in the meantime, go out and laugh at and with Ugly Duckling. CHARLES MUDEDE

CHER, TOMMY DRAKE
(Rose Garden) Say whatever you will about this woman, but she has been entertaining strong since the mid-'60s. Everyone says, "Ooh, Madonna, 20 years and still so popular; we're so impressed!" But old gap-teeth doesn't have a thing on Cher's 40 YEARS in the biz and still a household name. If somebody gave me free tickets to this thing, I'd be all over it. JWS

COURT & SPARK, WILLIE VLAUTIN
(Tonic) Slow. sad, and gorgeous, Court and Spark straight up plays some of the best alt-country you will find. You won't do anything at this show but sit there and listen to it, which means you might want to save your money for the incredible album, Bless You (2001), but whatever you do, make sure you listen to these guys as soon as possible. JWS

THE SHINS, SARAH DOUGHER, THE FAMOUS MYSTERIOUS ACTOR PLAYERS
(Modern Zoo, 6635 N. Baltimore) The Modern Zoo isn't dying without a fight. You said goodbye nearly two weeks ago at its BIG, FINAL barbecued-out closing art party, and now you can say goodbye again tonight at its BIG, FINAL indie-rockered-out closing music party. The Shins and Sarah Dougher are some real shit, though, particularly Dougher with her sweet, political music and her PhD in comparative literature. The Famous Mysterious Actor Players just want to make you laugh. JWS