THURSDAY, OCTOBER 7

POST-SK—Corin Tucker has mellowed some since her days in Sleater-Kinney—her new album 1,000 Years shows off the husky croon that is the flipside of her distinct, love-it-or-hate-it howl. Backed by members of the Golden Bears and Unwound, tonight's release show marks the official return of one of Portland's most important musicians. AH
Aladdin Theater, 3017 SE Milwaukie, 8:30 pm, $16-18, all ages

SO MUCH SHAME—Want to finally feel sorry for somebody other than yourself? Mortified is a stage, book, blog, and film project that asks everyday folks to dig up and read their most angst-ridden, emotionally immature childhood artwork in the "noble pursuit of personal redemption through public humiliation." Mayor Sam Adams will also be joining the show to talk about some of his own adolescent horrors. KO
Bagdad Theater, 3702 SE Hawthorne, 8 pm, $18-35, 21+

FRIDAY, OCTOBER 8

SIT DOWN—Best known for their '90s Stateside hit "Laid," Mancunian band James is no one-hit wonder, boasting a long string of impressive albums and smart UK hits to their credit. On the back of the new The Night Before/The Morning After pair of mini-albums, James plays their first Portland show since 1997. NL
w/Ed Harcourt; Wonder Ballroom, 128 NE Russell, 9 pm, $23-25

DRAMA—Armed with a slew of new company members, Third Rail kicks off their 2010/2011 season with the American premiere of Kiss Me Like You Mean It, a comedy about two British couples behaving badly at a garden party. Come see for yourself what kind of trouble the raunchy Brits get up to—and why Third Rail is one of the best tickets in town. AH
World Trade Center Theater, 121 SW Salmon, opens Fri, runs Thurs-Sat 7:30 pm, Sun 2 pm, through Oct 31, $28-32 ($20 rush tickets available), thirdrailrep.org

SATURDAY, OCTOBER 9

THE (COVER) SONG REMAINS THE SAME—When local label Jealous Butcher started working years ago on From the Land of Ice and Snow: The Songs of Led Zeppelin, Robert Plant was just a kid living in West Bromwich (that's a lie). Now years later the absolutely mammoth (that's not a lie) Portland Zep tribute record is finally finished. Pretty much every musician in Portland takes the stage tonight for this one-off performance, so unless you choke on your own vomit, you have no excuse to miss it. EAC
w/Threads, Portland Cello Project, & too many others to list; Doug Fir, 830 E Burnside, 9 pm, $10

NO HEROICS—The Alter Egos Society's annual Hero/Villain Ceasefire Party is meant to be a chance for heroes and foes to get together and heft a cool one in peace, but everyone knows it's really for bragging about how fucking badass it is to be a supervillain. Suck it, do-gooder! PAC
w/Myrrh Larsen; Paradise Dance Studio, 826 SE Belmont, 8 pm, $7 for costumed guests, $10 un-costumed

SUNDAY, OCTOBER 10

STORYTIME!—The lovely ladies behind local storytelling night Back Fence PDX pull out all the stops for tonight's special event, Entertainment for People. Expect hilarious stories from big (well, big to writers, anyway) names like Steve Almond and Beth Lisick; expect a bawdy tale from performer B. Frayn Masters; expect free cupcakes! SM
The Woods, 6637 SE Milwaukie, 7:30 pm, $14-15, 21+

ALL HANDS ON BIKES—For those obsessed with all things both artisan and cycle related, here's a handmade craft show that derails everything you know about how bikes are built. The Oregon Handmade Bicycle Show is upon us! Grab your Allen wrench and get educated. ND
Sandbox Studio, 420 NE 9th, Sat 10 am-6 pm, Sun 10 am-5 pm, $8-10

MONDAY, OCTOBER 11

ME TOO—Though he's been recording since 2002, it wasn't until "I Wish I Knew Natalie Portman" off last year's Yes! that I realized how killer Canadian rapper and producer k-os is. "Natalie Portman" spun aural gold by dropping a catchy beat and strong rhymes over—of all things—the theme song of The O.C. His latest, The Anchorman Mixtape, is similarly clever and addictive; seeing him live should be fantastic. EH
w/Shad, Astronautalis, Animal Farm, DJ Spark; Berbati's Pan, 10 SW 3rd, 7:30 pm, $13-15, all ages

POST SCRIPT—The rollicking rock of Kingston, Ontario, two-piece PS I Love You has resulted in one of this year's finest debuts: Meet Me at the Muster Station is packed with mammoth guitar noise, barely contained vocal shouts, and heart-on-the-sleeve melodies as big as the Great White North. NL
Rotture, 315 SE 3rd, 9 pm, $6

TUESDAY, OCTOBER 12

SMACKDOWN!—In this post-Obama age, are smackdowns still relevant? You bet your smackable ass they are! Join the ALWAYS relevant WWE as they bring another edition of the homoerotic, violent soap opera SmackDown to Portland, featuring such athletic hunks of manmeat as Rey Mysterio, Big Show, Jack Swagger, and other smacktastic stars! SMACK!! WSH
Rose Garden, 1 Center Court, 6:45 pm, $20-75

PICKLED—The Dill Pickle Club continues its quest to further Portlanders' understanding of Portland—in a fun way. Tonight the Mercury's own Sarah Mirk presents Oregon History, a collection of forgotten stories in Portland history, captured in zine form. MS
Multnomah County Central Library, 801 SW 10th, 6:30 pm, FREE

WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 13

FUNTOGRAM—Tired of dance music with no heart? Tired of heartfelt music that makes you want to nap? Phantogram knows your pain. The Saratoga Springs, New York, duo takes the dance party into the bedroom, creating lush electronic beats capped by the deep intimacy of vocalist Sarah Barthel. You'll dance and you'll cry, just hopefully not at the same time. EAC
w/Josiah Wolf; Mississippi Studios, 3939 N Mississippi, 9 pm, $13

PSYCHE OUT—The annual, surreal Floating World Animation Fest has rebranded itself with a new name—DMTV—and a "trippier mission." Tonight promises to bombard your eyeballs with an epileptic amount of crazy-ass psychedelic animation—plus, there'll be performances by Atole and Nice Nice that'll go right alongside crazy visuals mixed live by E*Rock. EH
Holocene, 1001 SE Morrison, 8 pm, $5-7