THURSDAY 9/6

ROKY ERICKSON, THE NICE BOYS, PURE COUNTRY GOLD, LEGEND OF DUTCH SAVAGE

(Berbati's Pan, 10 SW 3rd) With Roky Erickson, chances are you've either never heard of him or you're crazy about the guy—especially his work with legendary psychedelic band the 13th Floor Elevators. Erickson is perhaps even more famous for his declining mental state, having been psychologically destroyed by a barbaric Texas mental health system in the late '60s after being hung out to dry for possessing a joint. Able to do what none of his contemporaries (Syd Barrett, Daniel Johnston, etc.) could accomplish, for the past 20 years Erickson has slowly been pulling himself out of a dark, schizophrenic hole. With assistance from the Butthole Surfers and from his little brother, Sumner, Erickson has returned, having recently played gigs in New York and at SXSW. Like a once-in-a-lifetime comet hurtling through space, Erickson has seen fit to cast his prismatic pyramid eye on humble Portland. We acolytes owe it to ourselves and to the shimmering universe of magic mushrooms and Masonic mutations to catch the Roky comet before it again flies into infinity. LANCE CHESS

CAT POWER, BOBBY BARE JR.

(AudioCinema, 226 SE Madison) Thanks to the deep pockets of Nike, Cat Power will take the stage at AudioCinema for this early (5 pm) show. But the real shocker here is not Chan Marshall's inability to perform well in a live setting; it's the top-secret backing band that will be performing alongside the always-fantastic Bobby Bare Jr. (playing at 3:30 pm). I can't say who they are, but here's a hint: They are a very popular local band, they have a band name with a month in it, their singer is Colin Meloy, and their website is decemberists.com. But that's all I can tell you. Junior detectives, crack this code! EZRA ACE CARAEFF Passes for this concert are available the day of the show at 10 am at both Jackpot Records locations.

SPOON, VIVA VOCE, BLACK JOE LEWIS

(Crystal Ballroom, 1332 W Burnside) Considering all that's going on this week, it would be easy to skip a show like this—especially given that Spoon frontman Britt Daniel, as well as Viva Voce, live right here in Portland. Britt is the new darling of indierock, breezing into Portland and turning the city into his personal playground. Thing is, Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga is among the best records Spoon has ever made, and arguably one of the best records of the year. It's classic rock in the best possible way—there is totality in the believability of its urgency—complete with a sound that is both new and timeless. Bottom line? Spoon and Viva Voce play great rock shows, period. HANNAH CARLEN

AESOP ROCK, BLUE SCHOLARS, SANDPEOPLE, MR. MATT NELKIN

(Roseland, 8 NW 6th) My brain hurts from just looking at the staggering level of talent sharing the stage tonight. All roads here lead to the future of hiphop, yet none of them cross paths. Sandpeople are the next great hope for Portland hiphop, a massive ensemble who are seemingly on the cusp of greatness. Seattle's Blue Scholars are a shining example of how positive rhymes can get you everywhere, and Aesop Rock is the backpacker hiphop king. None Shall Pass is his latest—and while it lacks the punch of his early Def Jux days, it's far more cohesive and put together than 2003's baffling Bazooka Tooth. EAC

FRIDAY 9/7

TBA:07'S THE WORKS: LIFESAVAS

(Wonder Ballroom, 128 NE Russell) See Feature

JUSTIN TIMBERLAKE, TIMBALAND, GOOD CHARLOTTE

(Rose Garden, 1 Center Ct) See My, What a Busy Week!

DAN DEACON, COPY, DAT'R, VELELLA VELELLA, RIDDENPAA, LOGAN LYNN

(Holocene, 1001 SE Morrison) See My, What a Busy Week!

RILO KILEY, JONATHAN RICE, GRAND OLE PARTY

(Crystal Ballroom, 1332 W Burnside) See Music Feature

LIFETIME, SHOOK ONES, SINKING SHIPS, BROADWAY CALLS

(Hawthorne Theatre, 1507 SE 39th) See Once More with Feeling

BLÖÖDHAG, DAGGER OF THE MIND

(Tube, 18 NW 3rd) The Funhouse, still Seattle's coolest dive venue, is where I broke my left ring finger two autumns ago. It was during a BlöödHag show, and it happened when a bunch of us assholes stormed over a checkered floor sloshed with chucked High Life. The finger has healed, yet remains bulbous compared to the other nine. In relation to their Jet City contemporaries, BlöödHag's magna-aggressive machete-core approach toward metal remains unchecked, as does their propensity toward donning matching outfits. And, of course, they still have the audacity to repeatedly launch dog-eared copies of old sci-fi novels at the crowd's grill. JUSTIN PETERSON

GRIZZLY BEAR, ERIC BACHMANN, TINY VIPERS, AU

(Doug Fir, 830 E Burnside) Over the course of two albums, Grizzly Bear has moved from ornamented, impressionistic folk-pop to the blissfully disorienting sound heard on last year's Yellow House. On it, the group applies complex vocal arrangements and a musical approach that's not timeless so much as altogether outside of time. This mannered technique in the studio gives way to a dense, sustained mode of musical surrealism in the live setting; rather than trying to replicate the sound of their albums, they evoke it through something approaching its opposite. Jesy Fortino, who makes music under the name Tiny Vipers, similarly understands the power of quiet yet dense sheets of notes. On her full-length debut, Hands Across the Void, she summons up complex music, sometimes with abundant distortion, sometimes not. Fortino's voice, as it moves from tranquil to stinging, matches this musical range effortlessly. TOBIAS CARROLL

BRIAN JONESTOWN MASSACRE, DIMMER, THE HUGS, HIGHWAY

(Berbati's Pan, 10 SW 3rd) Last year I stood in line outside the Crystal Ballroom, stuck outside the (ugh) Dandy Warhols show trying to see Brian Jonestown Massacre for the long-awaited first time. Instead, the early-to-bed masses had filled the venue to catch the (ugh, again) Dandies, leaving me SOL and missing the show. Not this year, people. Not this year. BJM's deceptively tough-to-describe sound is spacey, darker than most garage rock, psyched-out, and just plain better than most any band that's followed in their tracks. For most people, their reputation—or at least the poor behavior of frontman Anton Newcomb—precedes them, but you really only get away with being this crazy when your music is this fucking good. HC

OLD TIME RELIJUN, ADRIAN ORANGE & HER BAND, TYPHOON, NARWHAL VS. NARWHAL

(Satyricon, 125 NW 6th) For more than a decade, Arrington de Dionyso has led Old Time Relijun through a series of changing lineups and critically acclaimed albums. Their latest, Catharsis in Crisis, completes the "Lost Light Trilogy" that began with 2003's Lost Light. The cover artwork for Catharsis in Crisis—think angels and severed heads—may be sinister, but the music inside is even more disorienting, de Dionyso coming off like the most unsettling preacher since Robert Mitchum sported knuckle tattoos, as upright bass, expansive drums, and blistering saxophone roar away behind (and sometimes atop) him. This is primal, low-frequency rock music—an impression that's already pretty secure before the group makes a brief foray into throat singing. TC

SATURDAY 9/8

TBA:07'S THE WORKS: "AWESOME"

(Wonder Ballroom, 128 NE Russell) See Feature

DEERHUNTER, BOBBY CONN, SWAN ISLAND, PSEUDOSIX, FIST FITE

(Doug Fir, 830 E Burnside) See My, What a Busy Week!

THE THERMALS, THE HELIO SEQUENCE, EUGENE MIRMAN, THE BRUNETTES, FERRABY LIONHEART

(Crystal Ballroom, 1332 W Burnside) See Music Feature

OKKERVIL RIVER, JASON LYTLE, DAMIEN JURADO, HERMAN JOLLY

(Berbati's Pan, 10 SW 3rd) See Music Feature

CLIPSE, GIRL TALK, LIFESAVAS, THE COOL KIDS, SIREN'S ECHO, DJ BEYONDA

(Roseland, 8 NW 6th) See Music Feature

BEYONCÉ

(Rose Garden, 1 Center Ct) See Music Feature

GHOSTFACE KILLAH, THE BRONX

(AudioCinema, 226 SE Madison) Once again, the mighty bank account of Phil Knight is responsible for bringing the almighty Tony Starks in for what surely will be a memorable afternoon. While Ghostface on CD is untouchable, the man on stage is a hit-or-miss experience, as anyone at last year's Berbati's show can attest. Hopefully he'll keep the clusterfuck of homies onstage with mics to a minimum (under two dozen, please?). Just as baffling as the man's live show schizophrenia is opening band the Bronx. The raw punk quartet from Los Angeles channels the precision of Drive Like Jehu with the stomp and strut of Iggy Pop, who—little known fact—was the long-lost 10th member of the Wu. EAC Passes for this concert are available the day of the show at 10 am at both Jackpot Records locations.

THE OBITUARIES, PIERCED ARROWS, LKN, THE DT'S, DRUNKEN PRAYER

(Ash Street Saloon, 225 SW Ash) The Obituaries gig at Dante's last month was like a high-school reunion for old school Portland rockers. Folks I used to see lounging at Fellini leaped out of the woodwork in varying stages of preservation and decay. (Brief history lesson for those of you who haven't gotten Oregon license plates yet: Fellini was the former bar and restaurant annexed to the old club Satyricon.) What brought these good people out was a classic Portland punk act, playing their first gig in 13 years. The Obituaries began their career with an aggressive vibe informed by the music of their day. Fronted by the extraordinary Monica Nelson, the group eventually settled into a more crafted bar rock that sounds like a local twist on LA punk darlings X. Go see this vibrant bit of local history. That's why you bought that silly Musicfest wristband in the first place. NATHAN CARSON 

DIRTY PROJECTORS, YACHT, WHITE RAINBOW, DIRTY MITTENS

(Satyricon, 125 NW 6th) In early 2004, I watched as Dirty Projectors' David Longstreth, guitar at the ready, played a benefit show at an underground radio station's performance space. His set and style at the time could best be described as "confrontational." Sometime since then, Longstreth turned that aesthetic around: Dirty Projectors' new album Rise Above re-imagines Black Flag's Damaged based on Longstreth's years-old memories of the album. Blasphemy in some circles? Maybe, but it's the kind of risk that pays off. Rise Above is a woozy, hallucinatory take on punk rock, screams and riffs transfigured into strings and swollen choirs, as challenging as it is catchy. If a recent live session recorded for daytrotter.com is any indication, the group can also pull off the impressive feat of translating this mood into a live setting. TC

LINGER & QUIET, ATOLE, JACKIE-O MOTHERFUCKER, ETHAN ROSE

(Towne Lounge, 714 SW 20th Pl) Let's be real here:This weekend is going to be ridiculous. Everyone who cares about anything having anything to do with music (which is pretty much everyone) will be out and/or about, jumping from concert to concert, sending text messages, and sucking down PBRs like they're going out of style. Last year, the lineups at Towne Lounge were like a shot in the arm—killer bands, kind people, an escape from the hyper-schmooze of the rest of the festival. This year's roster promises a blissfully similar hideaway. Tonight's acts look like they walked straight out of Halleluwah Fest, throwing together spare acoustic aching, glitched-out dance music, and the near-indescribably beautiful arrangements of one Ethan Rose. The likelihood is high that you'll be near tears early on at this show, and shaking your ass later on. HC

SUNDAY 9/9

TBA:07'S THE WORKS: MIRAH, SPECTRATONE INTERNATIONAL

(Wonder Ballroom, 128 NE Russell) See Feature

WOLF PARADE, HOLY FUCK, SWIM SWAM SWUM

(Crystal Ballroom, 1332 W Burnside) See My, What a Busy Week!

MEGADETH, IN THIS MOMENT, THE CONFESSION

(Roseland, 8 NW 6th) With a few exceptions, heavy metal icons have done a piss-poor job of aging. From Ozzy shilling for Pepsi and having his wife dress him, to Metallica hiring a "performance-enhancing coach" to help the band get along with each other, it's nothing but sad times for metal's once proud leaders. But few artists' decline into old age can match the downright embarrassing free fall of Dave Mustaine. The man with the greatest snarl in metal history has been phoning in Megadeth albums since the mid '90s, cried like a little girl with a skinned knee in the Metallica documentary (Some Kind of Monster), and committed the single worst act a hesher possibly could—he found Christ. EAC

MONDAY 9/10

TBA:07'S THE WORKS: CLOUD EYE CONTROL, ANNA OXYGEN

(Wonder Ballroom, 128 NE Russell) See Feature

GRAYSKUL, MR. LIF, ELIGH, DEBASER, CLOCKWERK, COOL NUTZ

(Berbati's Pan, 10 SW 3rd) See My, What a Busy Week!

MUSE, JULIETTE & THE LICKS, IMMIGRANT

(Rose Garden, 1 Center Ct) See My, What a Busy Week!

RICHARD THOMPSON BAND

(Aladdin Theater, 3017 SE Milwaukie) If half the fans of artists like Will Oldham, Jason Molina, and Will Johnson would just take 10 minutes to listen to Richard Thompson, the musical world would be a much, much better place. Decades ahead of any of these modern darlings of indie-folk, Thompson was making some of the most astounding (and abundant) recordings of the '60s and '70s. Thompson's somber vocals and sparse guitar work paved the way for every Bonnie Prince Billy and Hope Sandoval that followed. True, some songs tread dangerously close to old-man-rock territory, and there will almost certainly be a fair shake of "traditionals" in tonight's set, but the sheer volume of great songs he's written make the missteps forgivable, even forgettable. Simply put, this show will be stunning. HC

TUESDAY 9/11

SPECTRUM, BENJAMIN STARSHINE, PARENTHETICAL GIRLS, DJ MATT HOLLYWOOD

(Rotture, 315 SE 3rd) See My, What a Busy Week!

WEDNESDAY 9/12

TBA:07'S THE WORKS: BARR

(Wonder Ballroom, 128 NE Russell) See Feature

DINOSAUR JR., BAND OF HORSES

(Crystal Ballroom, 1332 W Burnside) See My, What a Busy Week

DEF LEPPARD, STYX

(Clark County Amphitheater, 17200 NE Delfel, Ridgefield, WA) In 1983, well-groomed British hard rockers Def Leppard released the mega hit Pyromania. The same year, Chicago prog/pop arena stars Styx put out the concept album Kilroy Was Here. Both bands were past their creative apexes, but still yielded some massively tuneful singles; their resulting successes were huge. Nearly 25 years later, Def Leppard has lost a limb, and Styx has lost lead singer Denis DeYoung. Neither act has been able to hold onto much self-respect in the process, as both are limping along through the fairground circuit, peddling their hits like elephant ears and beer in paper cups. NC

RIBBONS, AU, PARENTHETICAL GIRLS

(Towne Lounge, 714 SW 20th Pl) A few years ago, maybe five, someone coined the term "Americanica" to describe the emerging trend of experimental folk, hellbent on blurring the lines between electronic and organic. Laptops and loops mix with saws and violas, while vocals are layered over and over until they sound more like machines than anything else. Ribbons and (in particular) Au both strike exactly the right mark, combing thick arrangements with enough strings and negative space to keep the songs moving forward. Sound heady? It totally is, but it's also pretty amazing to watch. Oh, and can we all get together and make the Parenthetical Girls really, really famous? Please? HC