WEDNESDAY 7/23

THE POLYPHONIC SPREE, SARAH JAFFE, FRIENDS AND FAMILY
(Mississippi Studios, 3939 N Mississippi) Sarah Jaffe is a musical wonder evolving at warp speed; you can either keep up or get out of the way. Her early indie-folk records—2008's self-released Even Born Again EP and 2010's Suburban Nature—are only a few years old, but they seem like antiques when compared to 2012's sleek, modern The Body Wins, which raised Jaffe's profile considerably, and especially her third full-length, Don't Disconnect, which comes out August 19. Don't Disconnect is an album of unabashed pop songs powered by drum machines and streaked with electronic melodies, though Jaffe's compelling voice and personal lyrics remain the core of the sound. Considering Jaffe's side project with hiphop producer S1 under the name the Dividends—the two wrote a song that ended up on Eminem's last album—it's no surprise that the music on Don't Disconnect is largely built around beats and synths. And it'll be exciting to see where she goes from here, but that's always been the case. BEN SALMON Also see My, What a Busy Week!

FIN DE CINEMA: THE COLOR OF POMEGRANATES: VALET, DREAMBOAT, SPECTRUM CONTROL
(Holocene, 1001 SE Morrison) Released in 1968, The Color of Pomegranates is a startling cinematic work that attempts to tell the story of Sayat-Nova, an artist from Armenia whose work influenced the worlds of romantic poetry and classical music. But it is hardly your traditional biopic, as it uses no dialogue, puts Sayat-Nova's words onscreen to be read rather than heard, and punctuates each scene with splashes of bright primary colors. It's the perfect candidate, then, for a live soundtrack as part of Holocene's ongoing Fin de Cinema series. Tonight the music will be provided by Honey Owens' multi-faceted project Valet; Dreamboat, the haunting collaboration between Golden Retriever and guitarist Ilyas Ahmed; and the psych guitar instrumentals of Dewey Mahood's new undertaking, Spectrum Control. ROBERT HAM

MISS MASSIVE SNOWFLAKE, LOVEYDOVE, NATE ASHLEY
(White Eagle, 836 N Russell) Azalia Snail was one of the most beguiling bedroom-fi psych auteurs of the '90s. She had an off-kilter, faux-naif thing going with her high-pitched voice blowing cool breezes over spindly, spangly songs that gently squeezed you into daydream reveries. If you're curious about her music, start with 1990's Snailbait and move onward chronologically. Azalia's new project is LoveyDove, a Burbank, California, duo with Dan West. They sound a bit more "pro" than Snail's output, but their 2013 self-titled CD retains the singer's charming, stoned lilt and if the psychedelia captures a more pop feel, Snail's underground-loner vibe refreshingly hangs in there. The slowly submerging "Deep Down Inc." is the jam. Twenty-five years into her career, Snail—with help from her paramour—is still making vital work. DAVE SEGAL

THURSDAY 7/24

TOP DOWN ROOFTOP CINEMA: NOTORIOUS: ST. EVEN
(Hotel deLuxe parking garage, SW 15th & Yamhill) See My, What a Busy Week!

HEMINGWAY, CARS & TRAINS, TRASH ISLAND
(Slabtown, 1033 NW 16th) See All-Ages Action!

YOUNG HUNTER, U SCO, WHALES WAILING
(Kenton Club, 2025 N Kilpatrick) Relaying post-civilization visions from a high desert vista, Young Hunter creates stoner rock epics that travel through psychedelic haze and brooding doom with orchestrated restraint. On their 2012 debut, Stone Tools, their undeniably solid riffing merges with occasional blast-beat bursts and plenty of lonesome, Ennio Morricone-esque moments of haunting beauty. 2013 brought a great split cassette with Ohioan, but the band has been on a bit of a hiatus since bandleader Benjamin Blake left Tucson and made a home here in Portland. The band has been rebuilt, and tonight's show debuts Young Hunter's new lineup, giving us a taste of what's to come. JOSHUA JAMES AMBERSON

BATH PARTY, QUASAR WUT-WUT, ZOUAVES
(The Foggy Notion, 3416 N Lombard) Zouaves share two members with the terrific Portland band Night Mechanic, but the art-scorched inferno of Zouaves' new album, Hydracast, offers something proggier, grimmer, darker than their brother band's pleasantly interlocking pop parts. Hydracast kicks off with "Soi Cowboi," a demonic invitational that sets the stage for tracks like the ferocious "Wear It Thin" and the shadowy, lurking blues-fungus of "Welder." Elsewhere, the triumphantly catchy "Trubaird" (sung by drummer Andre Coberly) lets some sunlight in through the cobwebs, and "Stand Up" and "Don't Let It" (both sung by bassist Sara Johanne) are high-powered steamrollers that build momentum with surprising nimbleness. Zouaves' Hydracast comes out July 29 on AIO Soundings, and it's one of the most individual, interesting, and downright enjoyable records to come out of Portland in a while. NED LANNAMANN

THE DONKEYS, THE MOONDOGGIES, OLD AGE
(Mississippi Studios, 3939 N Mississippi) San Diego-based pop-rock quartet the Donkeys must have an affinity for Portland. Not only are they stopping off at Mississippi Studios tonight for a show with the Moondoggies, they'll also be making a quick double-back from Canada in order to take their spot in the completely stacked Pickathon lineup for the festivities at Pendarvis Farm next weekend. Over the past decade, the Donkeys' sound has nestled into an easy-going, psychedelic country-rock vibe that's as picturesque and meandering as the Pacific Coast Highway. The group's recently released fourth album, Ride the Black Wave, lulls the listener into a sunny daydream, with kaleidoscopic arrangements that pave the way for twangy front-porch strumming and heartfelt lyrics. One would be hard-pressed to find a Pickathon ambassador that more fully embodies the festival's ambience than the Donkeys, and tonight's preview show should more than whet your appetite for the upcoming weekend. CHIPP TERWILLIGER

TEMPLE MAPS, GULLS, DJ TANUKI
(Ground Kontrol, 511 NW Couch) Temple Maps (Elias Foley) celebrates his CD release for Moon Mountain, an experimental electronica concept album that's based in part on the exotic lands one might encounter in videogames. And what better place to have this release than at an actual videogame arcade? The uniquely gorgeous album will be presented as part of a DJ set by Foley so it can be heard in all its mystical, otherworldly glory. For added electronic excitement and live improvisation, he'll incorporate random samplers and loop boxes into his performance. The event is being put on by the avant-garde music collective and curators of Lifelike Family, who have been responsible for many experimental ambient events around Portland, fanning the flames of the city's burgeoning appreciation for electronic music. CHRISTINA BROUSSARD

THE SHIVAS, RUBY PINS, SILVER SHADOWS
(Turn! Turn! Turn!, 8 NE Killingsworth) Oakland's Silver Shadows are a witchy, post-punk dream. While the band itself is new, the band's frontwomen have both spent the past decade playing in endless strings of amazing, tragically underappreciated bands (Upside Drown, Twig Palace, and the Waltz Invention, just to name a few). And there is no better tour pairing for this new project than Ruby Pins, the solo work of Grass Widow drummer Lily Maring. Ruby Pins' debut album, which came out last year on Portland's own M'lady's Records, is in a world all its own. At times sounding like Gang of Four interpreting the music of David Bowie, the album is a disorienting but infectious work of genius. Onstage, both these bands are hypnotic forces of ethereal punk. JJA

FRIDAY 7/25

RIGSKETBALL: BEARCUBBIN', SONS OF HUNS, THE GHOST EASE, AND AND AND, TALKATIVE, OLD AGE
(Eagles Lodge, 4904 SE Hawthorne) See My, What a Busy Week!

CHARLES BRADLEY AND HIS EXTRAORDINAIRES, PICKWICK
(Oregon Zoo, 4001 SW Canyon) See My, What a Busy Week!

HUNDRED WATERS, PURE BATHING CULTURE, WISHYUNU
(Mississippi Studios, 3939 N Mississippi) Read our article on Hundred Waters.

DRAMADY, DRUNK ON PINES, DARK OZ
(Cartlandia, 8145 SE 82nd) In a time when food cart pods are facing the cruel scythe of urban expansion, Cartlandia—way out on 82nd Avenue—remains far away enough that, hopefully, the condo-building money grubbers will never reach them. This is good news for its Friday and Saturday night free live music series, held inside the Blue Room Bar, located on the premises. This Friday's is a doozy, with Portland two-piece pop juggernaut Dramady holding court over your gluten-free crêpes and Smokin' Romes BBQ. The band's 2013 LP, Answer Only to the Sea, is a pop-centric exposition, highlighted by Zacery Stanley's drums-plus-keyboards-plus-vocals, along with Amanda Mason Wiles' bass looping, vocals, and saxophone. Get there early to catch the raw garage-pop of Dark Oz. RYAN J. PRADO

THE BUDOS BAND, SWAHILI, DJ SESQUI
(Wonder Ballroom, 128 NE Russell) The Budos Band have mastered the art of being all-encompassing. The Staten Island group self-describes their sound as Afro-soul, but a listener can also easily pick up on their psychedelic resonance, Western flair, funk movement, a tinge of the blues, jazzy horns, and flute trills that nearly radiate heat. With the Daptone Records-signature vibrancy to the music, Budos can be seductive and nearly kitschy, offering a perfect blend of new and smooth that's also a throwback to funkier eras. The Budos Band is on the festival circuit for the summer, and while the energy is practically palpable on the recordings, they're really known for their live sets. Do your spirit a favor and go to this show. ROBIN BACIOR

SATURDAY 7/26

CLINTON STREET FAIR: THE BUILDERS AND THE BUTCHERS, PARADISE, EYELIDS, BLESST CHEST, DJ MAXX BASS
(SE Clinton & 26th) See My, What a Busy Week!

THE SUICIDE NOTES, SUGAR STEMS, YOUTHBITCH, LUNCH
(Slabtown, 1033 NW 16th) Read our article on Sugar Stems.

ANDREW JACKSON JIHAD, HARD GIRLS, DOGBRETH
(Alhambra Theatre, 4811 SE Hawthorne) See All-Ages Action!

ARCO-PDX, KIRAN MOORTY
(Mississippi Studios, 3939 N Mississippi) Read our article on ARCO-PDX.

MÖTLEY CRÜE, ALICE COOPER
(Sleep Country Amphitheater, 17200 NE Delfel, Ridgefield, WA) There is absolutely no denying the fact that Alice Cooper's heyday is long-since past. And now that Mr. Vincent Damon Furnier is a graying, golfing, sports-bar-and-grill-owning, born-again Christian residing in the retirement community of Phoenix, Arizona, his godfather-of-shock-rock title and twisted, vaudevillian live act may be tough to get behind. Yet despite all the missteps of his career, and the lifestyle he has adopted in his twilight years, there is one blaring fact: Alice Cooper is 66 years old, and has been producing music for nearly half a century. And he's still at it. Show me one act that's been able to keep its musical output from becoming a watered-down shadow of their former genius, and I will show you a map to the fountain of youth. ARIS WALES Also, read our article on Mötley Crüe.

CLASS M PLANETS
(LaurelThirst Public House, 2958 NE Glisan) Deerpath, the new vinyl album from Class M Planets, comes in a formidable package: a full-color gatefold with sumptuous storybook artwork by Cary Porter, evoking the work of British artist Peter Cross (who illustrated Trouble for Trumpets and did the wonderful cover art for all those Anthony Phillips solo albums). The actual music contained within is substantially more modest. Class M Planets—the "tweak folk" project of songwriter Adam Goldman, who's also launching his (hopefully ironically named) Totallypunk label with the release—sounds like murmuring, introspective, acoustic sketches whose charms are located in their low-key, homespun qualities. It's a welcome counterpart to Goldman's other band, Thebrotheregg, whose prog/psych/pop hybrid has long been a Portland mainstay. NL

ALVARIUS B, THE WHITE SHARK
(Turn! Turn! Turn!, 8 NE Killingsworth) Like his younger brother Richard, Alan Bishop's musical career has taken a thrilling number of twist and turns. The brothers Bishop first came to the world's attention via their work in Sun City Girls, a group that spent more than 25 years daring listeners to keep up with their attempts to rewrite the code of jazz, rock, and world music. After the trio came to a quiet end with the passing of drummer Charles Gocher in 2007, Alan Bishop put his attention toward capturing the sounds of Asian, African, and South American artists via his label Sublime Frequencies, and recording acid-tongued blues and folk under the name Alvarius B. His most recent effort, If You Don't Like It... Don't!—a Record Store Day release in collaboration with Richard—crystallizes his approach, with steely, slashing acoustic guitar work that feels almost threatening in its power and fury. RH

MAN OR ASTRO-MAN?, WE MISS THE EARTH, WRAY
(Doug Fir, 830 E Burnside) When Man or Astro-man? sparked back to life in 2010, it was unclear where the sci-fi/surf-rock band's latest mission would take them. Hailing from Auburn, Alabama, the group was as prolific as anyone throughout the '90s, a period which saw them release 10 albums and use their Devo-meets-the Trashmen blend of weirdo rock to transform stages into launch pads on a near nightly basis. Aside from an appearance at the Touch and Go Records 25th-anniversary show in 2006, contact with the band went dark at the beginning of the 21st century. Just getting to see the crew break out their trademark space suits, flaming theremins, and giant Tesla coil one last time would have been fantastic enough, but the band's second journey shows no sign of stopping. Tonight, Man or Astroman?'s rock-solid 2013 return transmission, Defcon 5...4...3...2...1, paves the way for the group's latest touchdown in Portland. CT

SPELLCASTER, NIGHT DEMON, IRON KINGDOM
(The Lovecraft, 421 SE Grand) It's a marvelous thing to watch the talent and fire of youth evolve into legit professionalism. For a band that started out in their teens, Portland's Spellcaster now storm stages and write tunes like seasoned veterans. Their recent self-released, self-titled full-length is brimming with well-crafted slabs of heavy-metal magic. Each track is chock full of chill-inducing guitar harmonies, soaring vibrato-laden vocals, and tight, fist-pumping rhythms that define powerful. Spellcaster have proven they are no longer a green heavy-metal act with grand musical aspirations. They are now a steely force that will no doubt reach international heights within the next three years. Mark my words. AW

SUNDAY 7/27

THE BIG FLOAT: URAL THOMAS AND THE PAIN, SCOTT PEMBERTON TRIO
(Tom McCall Waterfront Park, SW Naito & Columbia) See My, What a Busy Week!

PAT BENATAR, NEIL GIRALDO, RICK SPRINGFIELD, WILLIAM BECKETT
(Oregon Zoo, 4001 SW Canyon) See My, What a Busy Week!

DUB THOMPSON, PAPER UPPER CUTS, ADVENTUROUS SLEEPING
(Bunk Bar, 1028 SE Water) The two young men in Dub Thompson seem proud of the fact that there are only eight songs on their debut album, 9 Songs, but that's far from the strangest thing about this slab of murky, quirky indie rock. Lead track "Hayward!" lurches to life like a swamp thing before careening through stretches of noise-punk and lo-fi funk. "Dograces" rides a greasy groove and occasionally opens up into a sudden, incongruous pop chorus. It sounds like an early-'90s Beck tune. "No Time" is most reflective of the band's name, a gauzy little psych-pop jam gently powered by a reggae rhythm, and "Pterodactyls" closes things with a bracing blast of post-punk. 9 Songs isn't bad by any means, but it definitely feels like an early evolutionary step for Dub Thompson, one that's fascinating, if not always successful. BS

MONDAY 7/28

DIG A PONY'S THREE-YEAR ANNIVERSARY: BLOUSE, GUANTANAMO BAYWATCH
(Dig a Pony, 736 SE Grand) See My, What a Busy Week!

TUESDAY 7/29

THE WOOLEN MEN, COOL GHOULS, DOGHEART
(Mississippi Studios, 3939 N Mississippi) See My, What a Busy Week!