THURSDAY 9/14
MINK, SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY, TRY AND STEP ON HER
(Medicine Hat) Try and Step on Her are not all that original, but you know
when a band is so energetic and tight and passionate about what they’re doing
that it doesn’t really matter all that much? Well, that’s the case with these
guys. Singer/guitarist Chuck gets all red-faced in his syncopated punk rock
jabber, and I’m goddamn glad someone out there still hasn’t shelved their No
Pocky for Kitty cassette. They’re spastic, they’ve got changes in totally
unexpected places, and you should really go, if not for your love of this sort
of power, then to see three grown men rocking like they never left their teens.
JULIANNE SHEPHERD
LYRICIST LOUNGE TOUR STARRING MOS DEF, BAHAMADIA, SLUM VILLAGE
(Pine St.) Mos Def is OK, I guess. He’s definitely an icon of hip-hop due to his amazing vocal abilities, both spoken and written. But…he’s kind of getting boring. His latest album, Black on Both Sides, did not fulfill the promises that his earlier Black Star did–he’s a little too lazy these days. Mos Def, you’re slippin. Slum Village, on the other hand, is always a good time. They’re mellow, stoned hip-hop, blurring the lines a bit between R&B and rap and working with old-school artists like D’Angelo, Jazzy Jeff, and Busta Rhymes. Go early, smoke a lot of dope, and then go home and pass out. KATIA DUNN
MOBY, HYBRID
(Roseland) Moby is King Shit right now. I can’t turn on the TV without seeing
some commercial using one of the 18 singles off of his last album, Play.
Hell, even KNRK plays him, even though I don’t think he’s ever worn a backwards
baseball cap. So, inevitably, now is the time where all the hardcore technoheads
jump off the Moby ship once and for all; thing is, Moby dropped those people
a long time ago. He knew any obsessive scene would just try to contain him,
and he’s far too clever to stay in one place very long. Lil’ Dickie Melville,
the vegan Christian porn-addict, is a true rebel. He doesn’t give a fuck what
the glowstick brigade thinks of him, and unlike poseur rebels like Eminem, he
doesn’t have to tell you so in every song he writes. So, I gotta love Moby,
little electro scrivener that he is. And those of you who think Fatboy Slim’s
yawner “Praise You” is an innovative use of an old blues record, you have to
check Moby’s awesome, thumping “Honey.” That white whale of a tune gobbles up
the old pegleg Slim faster than bulimics on shrimp at a buffet. JAMIE S. RICH
MIRAH, REBECCA PEARCY, BATTLECAT, KATY DAVIDSON
(In Other Words Bookstore, 7:30 pm) The lovely Mirah plays here so much, she
might as well relocate, but this time she’s gracing us with an all-ages appearance.
I beseech you to attend; see what kinds of soft and eloquent sounds can move
you to start a little racket. Rebecca Pearcy is a folky diamond, while Battlecat
has been known to turn a song about Jesus into a lo-fi pop gem. You know Katy
Davidson–Dear Nora extraordinairess–but do you know her solo work? I do, and
it is truly sublime; quiet acoustic stuff, with occasional voice-cracking that
will break your heart. JS
FRIDAY 9/15
NWEAMO SECOND
PORTLAND ELECTRO-ACOUSTIC MUSIC FESTIVAL
(Lewis & Clark
College, Evans Auditorium, 8 pm) The Northwest Electronic-Acoustic
Music Organization (NWEAMO) is a local group whose goal is to promote and
encourage the use of computers and electronics in music. How fucking cool
is that? This day’s line-up includes both local and international artists:
Pirates of the Caribbean, Jonathon Hallstrom, Matthew Adkins, Craig Burk,
Doug Theriault, Robert Engelbrecht, Ryan Wise, Allen Strange, and Joseph Waters.
Rumor has it the Wolf Colonel three will be performing their side project
(“white boy, tongue-in-cheek hip-hop”); MOTHER OF GOD! As if those boys couldn’t
get any more genius in their post-irony/anti-irony theatrics; I’m afraid I
might keel over and die from laughing. JS
ROLLERBALL, BEDS, ROB KOHLER, FIL2K ENSEMBLE
(Medicine Hat) Ahhh, Rollerball. Portland’s curtain-of-noise heroes just keep
getting better, and more definite in what they’re trying to do. Their sound
is somewhat dark and cobwebby, like ghostly chains rattled in the basement,
except very abstract; it’s the sound an abandoned building would make if it
could speak. JS
SILVER HAWKS, STEREO CRUSH, BLUEBOTTLE KISS
(Meow Meow) Tired of nights in front of the TV eating frozen Turkey Pot Pies and watching reruns of Who Wants to be a Millionaire? No? I never get tired of those nights, either. But anyway, this show just might restore that skip to your step; that vitality that gives you the energy to change channels, go to the grocery store, and create new paraphernalia out of old household products. That lust for life, that need for variety–all satisfied at the hands of Stereocrush, Silverhawks, and Bluebottle Kiss. Stereocrush, you may have heard before: toned-down, diggable, alternative music (sort of guy-missing-his-girl sounding), with a singer who could benefit from a few voice lessons or a turn-down on the vocals. Silverhawks are country-rock (remember the theme–variety) spawned from the ex-Olympia band Frequency DB. I imagine Australia’s Bluebottle Kiss will be a) awesome and b) Belle and Sebastian-esque, with more rock. KATIE SHIMER
SATURDAY 9/16
NWEAMO SECOND PORTLAND ELECTRO-ACOUSTIC MUSIC FESTIVAL
(Lewis & Clark College, Evans Auditorium, 8 pm) Day two, featuring eclectic
artists from France (Elsa Justel, Battery Operated), Hong Kong (Christopher
Keyes), Massachusetts (Dennis Miller), and California (Michael McNabb). Definitely
something to support. JS
SISTER 7, JOHN OSZAJCA
(Tonic Lounge) Sister 7 is for the sistas. Sistas meaning chicks. Chicks meaning
girls who listen to Sarah McLachlan and Alanis Morisette while remembering relationships
gone bad. Lead singer gal has a voice good enough to be her own Alanis, but
I guess she wants to give the band some credit–unlike the selfish Sheryls and
Natalies of the world. KS
PICK-A-THON
(Horning’s Hideout) At the end of the summer, for one long day, the rustling
of the wind blowing through the tall grass of Oregon’s coastal hills is replaced
by virtually every sound that steel strings can produce, from mournful blues
to giddy-up, honky-tonk banjo pickin’. From dusk until midnight, a dozen artists
will take the makeshift stage in the backcountry of Horning’s Hideout, out towards
the coast. Yes, it is the annual fundraiser for local community radio station
KBOO. (All of the artists are volunteering their time.) This year has an impressive
line-up, from the sterling banjo playing of Seamus Eagan to the languid voice
and slide guitar of long-time blues musician Kelly Joe Phelps. In addition,
this festival adds several new faces and sounds. In the late afternoon, the
Countrypolitans will show off the full-bodied voice of their singer, Elisabeth
Ames, and the band’s stripped-down version of country and western swing. PHIL
BUSSE
RICKIE LEE JONES
(Aladdin) An old girlfriend introduced me to Rickie Lee Jones. She also introduced
me to Ani DiFranco, Victoria Williams, and Melanie. She was a wannabe hippie
chick who read lots of Kerouac but had no idea how to treat a nice guy right,
and her musical tastes alone should have been enough to send me packing (I mean,
she loved Pearl Jam, for chrissake!). But Ms. Jones doesn’t belong in
the overly earnest, drippy folk category those other girls live in. The appeal
of her records has always been her oddball style–a sort of marriage of bebop
beatifics with the soul searching of late ’70s singer-songwriters. Not to mention
her amazing voice. To call it honeyed would be a disservice, unless you acknowledge
how deep in her gut the hive is hidden. I was lucky enough to catch Rickie Lee
on her Pop Pop tour in the early ’90s, and it was intimate and soulful,
like attending a musical party at her house. I might have still been with that
dumb girl, but eventually I got the clue and moved on. About the only things
I kept from the relationship were my Rickie Lee records, proving good music
can always transcend the assholes that may listen to it. JSR
SUNDAY 9/17
THE REDS, THE REAL PILLS, THE FLIPTOPS
(EJ’s) The Real Pills are an energetic band, one that plays with both serious
punk and a lightweight, enthusiastic energy. They’re fun, basically, and don’t
take themselves too seriously. Perhaps that accounts for the fact that they’re
practically the house band at EJ’s now–they keep rockin’, and the people keep
coming. KD
EYEHATEGOD, SUPLECS, WITCH MOUNTAIN
(Pine Street Theater) If music needs a dark yang to the effervescent sunshine
of Calobo, then Eyehategod and Suplecs are it. Inhabiting the same murky and
oppressive world, these two heavy metal bands live at the bottom end of musical
scales, where weighty bass lines and bellowing vocals mix up a syrupy atmosphere.
Eyehategod is still doing what they’ve done for over a decade: Bring your shoulder
pads and prepare to slam. A more recent addition to music, Suplecs, offer a
slight gasp of fresh air from this underworld. Their vocals approach something
closer to an intelligible language and are vaguely silly–but still spitting
angry, mind you. PB
MONDAY 9/18
WESTBURY SQUARES, SLOW
(Satyricon) Recently, Portland trio Slow somehow landed themselves on a much-coveted
opening gig for The Gossip and Sleater-Kinney–kind of a surprising occurrence
for a madcap trio of acoustic punk kids with vocal influences that seem to come
straight from Meet Me in St. Louis. Their male vocalist, whose show-tune
voice is really impeccable (he handles meandering notes without cracking, and
it’s easy to picture him projecting into the most tucked-away annals of a proscenium
theater), should be the perfect offset to the Westbury Squares’ shoe-dragging
pop punk. Slow should really stay away from the Eminem covers, though; Slim
Shady just ain’t funny anymore. JS
TUESDAY 9/19
DEAR NORA, URBAN LEGENDS, KISSING BOOK
(Reed College Pool Room, 7 pm) There was never a more fitting place to see
these three bands; they’re all-American and slightly nostalgic for the times
when Jack Purcells were less of a fashion statement and more of a necessity,
and the Ice Cream Truck Driver never got beat up for cutting off a yuppie with
a cell phone. Besides that, it’s a Dear Nora seven-inch record release party;
it’s about time somebody realized that releasing a small plate of vinyl is truly
cause for celebration. (I really, really hope the seven- inch is colored, by
the way.) Plus, this is your chance to see both Urban Legends and Kissing Book,
two excellent local soft pop ensembles who don’t play out enough. JS
WEDNESDAY 9/20
BOBSLED RECORDS TOUR STARRING ADVENTURES IN STEREO, THE WAXWINGS, THE CHAMBER
STRINGS
(Tonic Lounge) The Adventures in Stereo (including ex-Primal Screamer Jim
Beattie) have been releasing beautifully simple albums since 1997, and this
is their much-anticipated tour of the US. Judith Boyle’s voice is like 10 yards
of airy white, plush fur, and their latest album, Monomania, is an enchanting
foray into light austerity, with guitars and harmonies cut from the same cloth
as fellow Glasgowians, the Pastels. Prepare yourself for their show of all things
innocent, yet sophisticated enough not to be sticky-sweet. The Waxwings have
Beach Boys harmonies in the most annoyingly derivative way imaginable, but do
sometimes throw in a fun ditty that is too charmingly “surf” to keep from dancing
(plus, the songs where they’re not trying to sound like someone else are actually
kind of good). The Chamber Strings are coming from the Kinks, dangle-a-smoke-from-yr-mouth-Johnny
neck of the woods. This show is highly recommended, but I am only 100 percent
recommending the Adventures in Stereo’s performance. If it’s anything like their
albums, you’ll think they’re sending you rosy-cheeked feathers from heaven.
JS
JURASSIC 5, BEAT JUNKIES, DILATED PEOPLES, SUPERNATURAL
(Roseland) You know how so many tours headline with someone super-good, throw
a few more popular names in there, and then find a way to have Joe Schmoe open,
just to kill time? Well, whoever organized this tour is definitely not of that school of thought. All four of these groups are doing amazing stuff
right now, pushing the limits of hip-hop and DJs. Take Beat Junkies, for example.
They’re a 13-person DJ team that’s held the title at the International Turntablist
Federation Spin-offs for two years straight. They’re unique because they sample
a ton of new-school underground; like the very people they’re touring with,
as well as more fringe stuff like Defari and The Alkaholiks. Unlike so many
stale DJs out there, they’re never too scratchy, because they deal in words,
not cuts. J-5 and DP are certainly worth seeing as well, though I’m out of space
so you’ll just have to take my word for it: if you like hip-hop at all, you’ll
like them. KD
TRANS AM, THE FUCKING CHAMPS, NEIL HAMBURGER, LADDIO BALACKO
(Pine Street Theater) All right, no flowery language and shit in this blurb.
This show is going to kick ass. The Champs: Metal for the most part, sometimes
almost hardcore, two guitars (one nine-string), one drummer, some electronic
music, amplifier feedback, and almost no vocals. For the technical music lover
who also loves to rock out. Trans Am: Guitarist, bass player, drummer, analog
machines, a bunch of other crazy noisemakers. Electro-rock that is all its own.
People call it experimental rock, indie rock, post-rock experimental rock, but
I don’t really think that says anything about the music. It’s sort of futuristic
and crazy but you can still dance to it, or feverishly play your invisible drums.
For people who “get it.”
GOING TO SEATTLE?
THURS 9/14: Mike Watt & a Pair of Pliers, Band That Made Milwaukee Famous (Crocodile); Carrie Akre (Gordon Biersch)
FRI 9/15: Voyager One, Kinski, The Delusions (Crocodile); The Wiretaps, The Cripples, The Stereotypists (I-Spy);
SAT 9/16: Hell’s Belles, Hafacat, Bad Apples (Graceland); Bill Horist, Paul Hoskin (Second Ave Pizza)
TUES 9/19: Adventures in Stereo, Waxwings, The Chamber Strings (I-Spy); Tristeza, Go Go Go Airheart, Transmarine (Paradox); Iron Maiden, Queensryche, Halford (Tacoma Dome)
For more info, visit www.thestranger.com