WEDNESDAY 9/17
INTERPOL, REY PILA
(Crystal Ballroom, 1332 W Burnside) Who out there was clamoring for a new Interpol album in 2014? I know I wasnât, and yet, here we are. Itâs called El Pintor and it sounds a lot like the Interpol that broke out in 2002 with Turn on the Bright Lights, a collection of gloomy, glassy eyed tunes that sounded like Joy Division hanging out with Joy Division and listening to Joy Division records. Since, Interpol has lost a bassist and released its second, third, and fourth (who knew?!) records. The fifth, El Pintor, rumbles with all of the bandâs sonic trademarks: Paul Banksâ dark and deadpan sing-sneer, headstrong post-punk bass lines, and Daniel Kesslerâs laser-guided guitar slicing through the tension. El Pintor isnât perfect by any means, but it moves with the momentum of a band with lessons in the bank and some life left to give. Good for them. BEN SALMON Also see All-Ages Action!
ZAMMUTO, LUKE WYLAND
(Doug Fir, 830 E Burnside) The cover art for Zammuto's recently released album, Anchor, features the image of a shed nestled in a fresh snowfall and a spectacular view of a distant mountain range. The outbuilding is the Vermont home recording studio of Nick Zammuto, former member of experimental sound collage duo the Books and frontman of his eponymous new band. Zammuto's live show has the feel of a wintry, whiskey-soaked movie night that has suddenly fallen down a YouTube rabbit hole. Last time through town, the band jammed along to found footage of an old man playing "Battle Hymn of the Republic" on autoharp, and scored home movies of Nick and his younger brother, bassist Mikey Zammuto, as kids. These humorous and endearing moments combine seamlessly with live renditions of playful art-pop, providing a cozy escape from cool temperatures outside. CHIPP TERWILLIGER
SEANCE CRASHER, SWAHILI, TENDER AGE, SEX LIFE DJS
(Holocene, 1001 SE Morrison) Seance Crasher takes an almost defiant tone about their music on the duo's Bandcamp page, saying that they are "into songs... harmonies, guitars, tape... and as-of-yet-un-phoned in lyrics." I'm not sure how that sets them apart from the pack—instead, I would have emphasized Kevin and Daniel Rafn's flair for New Romantic-style melodies, a fine use of synth patches, and the underpinning of humor that helps leaven the tunes on their new cassette release, Piano Pills, being released tonight. Get to Holocene early to also revel in the fluttery electro-psych of Swahili and the shoegaze-inspired dreams of Tender Age. ROBERT HAM
THURSDAY 9/18
DOUBLEPLUSGOOD, SECRET DRUM BAND, FRINGE CLASS
(Mississippi Studios, 3939 N Mississippi) Anything Lisa Schonberg touches is gold. More than just a great drummer, she uses drums as compositional tools that have made bands like Explode into Colors and Kickball great. Always in demand, she's drummed for Mirah, Tune-yards, Tara Jane O'Neil, the Need, and Thao and the Get Down Stay Down, just to name a few. But it's the rare Secret Drum Band performance that brings her into the spotlight. Composing with the space in mind, Schonberg brings together a surprise star-studded cast of five drummers and two noise/tone/sound makers to create an experience unlike any other. Plus: Futuristic costumes by Heather Treadway and live drawing by local artist Leif J. Lee. Tonight's also the record-release show for local synth-wavers DoublePlusGood's winning new full-length, You Can Master Life!, a collection of wistfully romantic pop perfectly suited for dancing—either on the dance floor, or alone in front of the mirror. JOSHUA JAMES AMBERSON Also see My, What a Busy Week!
SISTER PALACE, BURNT PALMS,
GOLDEN HOUR, A CERTAIN SMILE
(Laughing Horse Books, 12 NE 10th) Mixing ecstatic garage-rock energy with brooding melancholy, Seaside, California's Burnt Palms have a talent for making joyously danceable moments out of lonely and angry refrains. Their latest effort, The Girl You Knew, is full of heartbreak you want to have a party to. With a sunny beach-pop backdrop, the album celebrates the worst moments of being in a relationship. It's a celebration that culminates in the infectiously catchy "fuck you, I don't want to see you" ending of the song "Isolation"—a moment that feels so good, it's impossible to sing along without a smile on your face. Local newcomers A Certain Smile open up the night, while Portland's Golden Hour and Sister Palace—just back from a joint Northwest tour—bring exceptionally smart, minimalist noise-pop bliss. JJA Also see All-Ages Action!
RICHMOND FONTAINE, DRUNKEN PRAYER
(Kenton Club, 2025 N Kilpatrick) While Richmond Fontaine's sister band, the Delines, continue to gather steam following the release of their excellent debut album, Colfax, don't think RF have been resting on their considerable laurels. Though the band's 2014 was slowed due to the Delines—primary songwriter Willy Vlautin and drummer Sean Oldham are members—the by-now legendary Americana crew fulfilled a lifelong dream by playing at the Pendleton Roundup this year, and will play its only other full-band show of the year tonight at the (World Famous) Kenton Club. As ever, Vlautin's confessional prose is front and center, and the band's spookily tight rhythm section is appreciated by underground country aficionados city-, country- and world-wide. RYAN J. PRADO
IL SOGNO DEL MARINAIO, LITE
(Doug Fir, 830 E Burnside) Il Sogno del Marinaio—Italian for "the sailor's dream"—is the music project comprising bass-wielding legend Mike Watt, guitarist Stefano Pilia, and drummer Andrea Belfi. The trio came together on a whim in 2009 when Pilia and Belfi recruited Watt to join them for an impromptu festival set in Cesena, Italy. The mini-tour that followed led to the quick recording of the band's debut, La Busta Gialla, an album that didn't see release until last year due to busy schedules. For the band's follow-up, Canto Secondo, the trio has found time to make their debut here in the States by jamming econo in typical Watt fashion. With 51 shows in as many days, the tour has potential to shape the still-young band. Given the improvisational nature of the music and the talent at hand, it should prove to be a voyage well worth checking out. CT
FRIDAY 9/19
LYKKE LI, MAPEI
(Crystal Ballroom, 1332 W Burnside) See My, What a Busy Week!, and read our article on Lykke Li.
HUNGERS, HAZZARD'S CURE, DEATH KINGS, TOWERS
(Slabtown, 1033 NW 16th) Read our article on Hungers.
NIGHTMARE FORTRESS, VICE DEVICE, DJ STRAYLIGHT
(The Lovecraft, 421 SE Grand) Few artists capture the somber aesthetic that emanates from the dark and rainy streets of the Pacific Northwest as well as Seattleâs Nightmare Fortress. Dark/grave wave, a genre that lies somewhere between new wave and industrial, fits their driving sound, which provides a perfectly haunting backdrop for Alicia Amiriâs rich, velvety voice. Portland post-punk contortionists Vice Device round out the bill for one hell of a night filled with grinding guitars and metallic distortion that give a nod to the sweeter days of Sonic Youth. Tonight promises to commemorate the last days of sun before we fall into darkness. CHRISTINA BROUSSARD
TBA: ONEOHTRIX POINT NEVER
(The Works at Fashion Tech, 2010 SE 8th) Daniel Lopatinâs music seems calculated to lull listeners to that lovely, disoriented moment just before slumber on placid synthesized tides, then snap them promptly to alertness with thunderstorms of harmonious blips. Thatâs an actual torture method in the hands of government thugs, but Oneohtrix Point Neverâs productions are seldom more than pleasant and interesting. The Brooklyn-based experimental musician has garnered high praise from the nationâs music press for years, and his latest effort, R Plus Seven, rocks the cradleâand wields that inevitable alarm clockâwith aplomb. DIRK VANDERHART
JUSTIN READY AND DESOLATE FIELDS, THE FOURTH WALL, MIKE COYKENDALL
(Kelly's Olympian, 426 SW Washington) If you haven't heard the Fourth Wall's stunningly great second album, Lovely Violence, what on earth are you waiting for? The Hawaii transplants—official Portlanders for two years now—have it available for free download on their Bandcamp page, so you have absolutely no excuse. It's an impassioned collection of watercolor pop-rock, with aural vistas, skyward choruses, and magnificent valleys of sound. Its dense but nuanced sonic palette is all the more impressive when you learn the band self-recorded it at home and their practice space. Every one of the nine songs on Lovely Violence is a potential mixtape staple, and the Fourth Wall is a band you'll be telling your friends about in months to come. They're joined by local music sage Mike Coykendall and the new band from Pigeons' Justin Ready, visiting from Nebraska—making tonight a stacked triple bill of terrific Portland music from the past, present, and future. NED LANNAMANN
SATURDAY 9/20
THE MEAN JEANS, LONG KNIFE
(Star Bar, 639 SE Morrison) See My, What a Busy Week!
BEN FOLDS, OREGON SYMPHONY
(Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall, 1037 SW Broadway) See All-Ages Action!
TBA: CHANTICLEER TRĂ
(The Works at Fashion Tech, 2010 SE 8th) When heâs not fronting the wondrous local band Magic Mouth, Chanticleer TrĂź is dreaming up new and wondrous theatrical events designed to freak⌠you⌠out (in an entertaining manner, of course). His latest performance piece is Evelyn, a super fun and energetic ânightclub and art installationâ inspired by disco diva Evelyn âChampagneâ King (who famously performed âShame,â which I firmly believe is the best disco song ever recorded, and I will punch any person who dares disagree). Youâre encouraged to dress appropriately (you know exactly what they mean) and join the installation for an evening celebrating the world famous dance clubs of yesteryearâwhen they really knew how to party! WM. STEVEN HUMPHREY
LP, ODESSA, A YEAR AFAR
(Alhambra Theatre, 4811 SE Hawthorne) Laura Pergolizzi is one of those figures that bubbles under the hot pot of the modern music industry. She's been around the New York and LA scenes for the past decade or so, gaining the respect of producers and soundtrack supervisors but never breaking through on her own in any big way. Instead, LP has been relatively content to make ends meet penning songs for Rihanna and Heidi Montag. The last few years have seen a huge push to send LP into the stratosphere fueled by her sky-blazing vocal ability and predilection for Arcade Fire-like drama pop. Her latest album, Forever for Now, spares no expense, roping in folks like Billy Steinberg (the man who co-wrote "Like a Virgin") and Green Day producer Rob Cavallo to help push it over the commercial top. RH
NEKRO DRUNKZ, TORTURE RACK, WITCH VOMIT, MANIAK
(Sandy Hut, 1430 NE Sandy) Local diarrhea peddlers Nekro Drunkz's name is all you need to prepare you for what's in store. Their sound, song titles, and image are basically the result of a feces-throwing fight in the bathroom of a strip club between the Mentors, Anal Cunt, and G.G. Allin. The band's recent release, Tyrants of Toilet Music, is a heaping bowl of vile puns and churning, splattering metal. Crystal Seth (guitar) and Disgustor (drums) trade thrashing, death-laden riffs and bludgeoning blasts for 30 tracks with names ranging from "Full Fledged Fucking Filth" to "Get in the Pit and Take a Shit" to "Boobs." Thankfully, the duo's vocals sound like they're regurgitating bile, making it difficult to understand the no-doubt terrible things they're spewing. The band's self-proclaimed "sleaze metal" will certainly be offensive to most, but for those who have no hang-ups and just want grinding metal, Nekro Drunkz can provide. ARIS WALES
LA ROUX
(Wonder Ballroom, 128 NE Russell) La Roux's electronic sounds and catchy beats will stick in your memory like pink bubble gum on a shoe. The name refers to singer and sole member Elly Jackson's small stature and mop of red hair that usually swoops upwards in kewpie-doll fashion. Though Jackson hasn't been La Roux for that long, she's quickly developed a well-defined image as a bold, androgynous, brightly colored pop princess. Her newest album, Trouble in Paradise, hops and skips through songs that sound as if they could be from advanced levels of Super Mario Brothers, toying with themes of flirting, romance, and other relationship shit. If you enjoy '80s dance parties and the occasional coke binge, you might "roux" the day you missed this show. ROSE FINN
SUNDAY 9/21
EAR CANDY: LUBEC, NIGHT MECHANIC, OLD WAVE
(Mississippi Studios, 3939 N Mississippi) I think I say this aloud to someone every single day of my life, but goddamn, we are spoiled with good music in this city. Tonight's Ear Candy show—a free, local music series that Mississippi Studios and us ding-a-lings here at the Mercury co-host every month—has not one but TWO great record releases from really fantastic bands. Night Mechanic's new full-length, Day Surgery, continues the streak of loveable, shreddy, poppy guitar jangle initiated on last year's excellent Working Late and 2011's self-titled Night Mechanic. The Portland quartet's music seems beamed in from some blissfully wonderful FM album-rock station that doesn't put Foreigner or Steve Miller on the playlist, and puts on deep cuts from Elvis Costello and Mott the Hoople rather than getting the fucking Led out again. Also up: Lubec, who release their new record tonight as well, and Old Wave, the new band featuring fine young songwriter Adam Brock. NL Also see My, What a Busy Week!, and read our article on Lubec.
TEMPLES, WAMPIRE, COMA SERFS
(Hawthorne Theatre, 1507 SE César E. Chávez) Some bands create psychedelic music as if they'd just read about it in a book and decided, "Hey, let's take a stab at making some o' that. Somefing to do, innit?" These groups' psych rock has a studied, detached, generic tinge to it. That's not to say all such bands in this vein aren't worthwhile; it's just that seasoned ears can tell when such music-making is a hobbyist activity and when it's a pure artistic expression that has to be manifested. England's Temples released an album in 2013 titled Sun Structures that triggers doubts that these Brits are part of the latter camp of musicians who exude psychedelia from every pore (think 13th Floor Elevators, Simply Saucer, Hovercraft, Black Dice, etc.). Rather, Temples are crafty replicators of tropes that have been time-tested to signify "psychedelia" without really convincing us that they've ever tripped or glimpsed the shining void of which Lennon sang in "Tomorrow Never Knows." (Portland's Wampire, whose new album Bazaar is on the horizon—due out October 7 on Polyvinyl—join them.)
DAVE SEGAL
A MINOR FOREST, PRIZEHOG, JONNYX AND THE GROADIES
(Doug Fir, 830 E Burnside) Math rock... you love it; you hate it. It forces you to consider things like "paradiddles," "three-over-four hemiolas," and "five-string basses." But there's a sizable segment of music geeks that don't mind a little brainwork with their music, and Bay Area three-piece A Minor Forest challenged ears through the '90s. While the band has always given listeners plenty to think about, there are also enough guitar fireworks and noisy bits to keep things fun and loose. The band has just returned from a 15-year hiatus, which—carry the one—calculates to a long time. By all accounts they're still killing it live, and the recent reissue of their 1996 debut Flemish Altruism is a good reminder that through all the nimble playing there's always been lots for listeners to sink their teeth into. MARK LORE
GOATWHORE, SPAZZTIC BLURR, CEREMONIAL CASTINGS, WERESQUATCH
(Rotture, 315 SE 3rd) Goatwhore have been blasphemin' since the late '90s, and the NOLA-based blackened death metal crew hasn't needed to mess much with the formula along the way. But their sixth long-player, the recently released Constricting Rage of the Merciless, is right up there with the best stuff they've ever recorded. Goatwhore have always been something of a metal melting pot—black and death metal intermingling with groovy riffs and plenty of Motörhead-isms—but Constricting Rage is a leaner and meaner mixture, a straight-for-the-throat blast that never stops to take a breath. MATTHEW W. SULLIVAN
HERBIE HANCOCK
(Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall, 1037 SW Broadway) Like many jazz greats his age (74 as of April), Herbie Hancock need not record another tune—his legacy is firmly intact. Hancock came up through the ranks quickly, playing piano and keyboards for some of Miles Davis' best work, and on his own, adding an even icier sensibility to the '60s post-bop world. The '70s and '80s found him embracing the tonal expanse of synthesizers, letting funk and hiphop rhythms drive his spacey sounds. Since then, Hancock has followed his muse all over the map, with stops at pop-jazz duets with Sting and Christina Aguilera, and tributes to George Gershwin and Joni Mitchell. His current live sets do their best to wrap his varied discography into one carefully composed package, aided by a crackerjack trio that includes African guitarist Lionel Loueke and the versatile drums of former Zappa sideman Vinnie Colaiuta. RH
MONDAY 9/22
THE SHIVAS, ADRIAN ORANGE, R.ARIEL
(Holocene, 1001 SE Morrison) See My, What a Busy Week!
JEFF THE BROTHERHOOD, MUSIC BAND, AND AND AND
(Hawthorne Theatre, 1507 SE César E. Chávez) You won't find many bands that do as much with as little as Nashville's Jeff the Brotherhood: two dudes, a drum set, a three-stringed guitar, and a handful of chords. But actual bros Jake and Jamin Orrall are experts at taking those basic tools and building a vibe that's one part denim-clad '70s stoney cool, one part early Weezer fuzz-riffs, and one part 21st-century garage rock. The band's ultra-hooky jams came into focus on 2011's We Are the Champions, where song titles like "Shredder," "Bummer," "Mellow Out," and "Wastoid Girl" helped established the Orralls' aesthetic before you even heard a note. They bumped up to a major label for 2012's fine Hypnotic Nights, and now are readying an EP called Dig the Classics, featuring covers of the Pixies, Teenage Fanclub, Beck, the Wipers, and more. Yup... that sounds about right. BS
CONTEMPT, DEEP SEA THUNDER BEAST, SERPENS
(The Know, 2026 NE Alberta) Portland's darker recesses spawned Contempt only a couple of years ago, and in that time they've bridged plenty of genre gaps. Fusing the ambient, breakdown-heavy pummeling of tough-guy hardcore, thrash, and black metal, the quartet has not so quietly amassed a sizable brood of heshing heathens. Their upcoming headlining spot at the Know will likely be the band's last live show until winter, with a possible lineup change being announced soon. So come say hello and goodbye to this current incarnation of Contempt, and don't forget to flip your goddamn lid for San Diego stoner-metal overlords Deep Sea Thunder Beast, whose lava-low riffage is captured flawlessly on their upcoming seven-song EP, So Goes the Madness. RJP
TUESDAY 9/23
THE AISLERS SET, THE MINDERS, DJ PATTERN AND SHAPE
(Holocene, 1001 SE Morrison) See My, What a Busy Week!, and read our article on the Aislers Set.
EZRA BELL, BEVELERS
(Kelly's Olympian, 426 SW Washington) Adria Ivanitsky and Lee Aulson have been quietly serenading Portland as the duo Bevelers since 2011. Together, they create gentle but striking melodies that push the boundaries of acoustic guitar beyond the campfire. Tonight is their first show back in town after a month-long cross-country tour with Ezra Bell, in support of their new record, Shout Out to the Universe. This four-song EP is a quiet, poetic, and beautiful collection, both lyrically and instrumentally, and a perfect introduction to the group's ability to turn simple chords and melodies into songs that will captivate you long after your first listen. RACHEL MILBAUER
