THURSDAY 12/20
A WEATHER, SUPER XX MAN, LOVE MENU
(Holocene, 1001 SE Morrison) See My, What a Busy Week!.
THE BLACK LODGE: THE BARON & BARONESS MONTAIGNE, THE SHIMMY SHAKE SNAKETTES
(Branx, 320 SE 2nd) Step right up to Branx on the third Thursday of each month for a new burlesque theme event called the Black Lodge. Inspired by Twin Peaks, death rock, and vintage everything, one can expect the usual smorgasbord of morbidity. Jimmy "The Face" Chen debuts as the snake charmer for the Shimmy Shake Snakettes troupe. Lovely ladies from Magick Daggers, Garland Ray Project, and Bedtime will do a collaborative dance (rowr!), while ringleaders "The Baron and Baroness" (AKA Aaron and Jessy Montaigne) will host, DJ, and ensure that their dark cabaret is a delicious and sexy nightmare for all. NATHAN CARSON
NICK JAINA, THE BUILDERS AND THE BUTCHERS, THE GOLDEN BEARS
(Doug Fir, 830 E Burnside) Remember that time you blew off going to see Elliott Smith in front of 15 people? Remember how you kicked yourself for this two years later, when you stood on your tiptoes for an hour and a half, clutching your $40 ticket at the Crystal? Thursday at the Doug Fir is your chance to right all past wrongs by seeing the Builders and the Butchers, the Portland—via Juno, Alaska—answer to the call for help in the absence of Neutral Milk Hotel. Is it swamp rock, two-step, vaudeville, blues, or simply just the most exciting thing going right now that the majority of the city has yet to hear? Come find out for yourself, up close and personal, or the next time you see them you just might have creases in the front of your shoes by the end of the night. ANDY YOUNG Also, see My, What a Busy Week!.
FRIDAY 12/21
STEPHEN MALKMUS AND THE JICKS, BLITZEN TRAPPER
(Doug Fir, 830 E Burnside) See My, What a Busy Week!, and Music Feature.
THORN CITY IMPROV, L PRO, SYNDEL, LIBRETTO, DJ SNEAKERS
(Berbati's Pan, 10 SW 3rd) I'm having a hard time figuring out why Libretto isn't a whole lot more popular. The beats are solid, his rhymes are right, and the message is there. So what gives? Is it because he hasn't been producing gritty, soulful tracks quickly enough? Or that he doesn't play a ton of shows? I don't know, and I hate to ask all these questions, but that's the way it is. Maybe Libretto is more like the Rakim or KRS-One type—a rock-solid rapper, dedicated to the craft, but one who either can't or won't play the self-promotion game of following trends. And if indeed that is that case, as it is with so many artists who never get their just dues, I'd like to set the record straight: If you like hiphop, either the conscious kind or the straight banging kind, you need to check out Libretto. ANDREW R. TONRY
3 INCHES OF BLOOD, TOXIC HOLOCAUST, BISON, CEREMONIAL CASTINGS, ARKHUM
(Rock n Roll Pizza, 11140 SE Powell) Vancouver, BC's 3 Inches of Blood revel in heavy metal's more ominous tropes, with an unrelenting beat and a pair of vocalists whose combined range encompasses an epic cry and a more guttural shout. Cam Pipes and Jamie Hooper recall both metal's sprawling roots and its dovetailing with hardcore in the late 1990s, while lines like, "I am the reaper of souls!" (from "Goatrider's Horde") are carried out with gusto. Make no mistake, when they sing of "Mighty warriors/with metal on their side!" it's definitely over the top (and clearly self-referential), but it's in the best possible way. TOBIAS CARROLL
SATURDAY 12/22
SO THIS IS CHRISTMAS: SHOESHINE BLUE, ALI WESLEY, JOHN ELDER
(Alberta Street Public House, 1036 NE Alberta) The rootsy tunes of Shoeshine Blue sound as timeless as the best and most authentic Americana, featuring grave-digging acoustic guitar, rail-yard harmonica, loping upright bass, Whiskeytown harmonies, and some mournful violin playing from drummer Shawn McLain. However, the lyrics of native Missourian Michael Apinyakul are fully immersed in the here and now. In a cautious Willy Vlautin-like murmur, he mentions crummy jobs, digital zeroes and ones, meth labs, and Portland bus routes, in songs that deal with the fragility and frustration of connecting with other human beings. The band's newer material shows a cheerier side that's not evident on their last release, the bluesy Talk Real Slow. At the end of tonight's show, they'll join forces with Ali Wesley and John Elder for a rendition of John Lennon's "Happy Xmas (War Is Over)." NED LANNAMANN
EVERYBODY SAY HO!!! HO HO HO: REV. SHINES, IDULL, BRAILLE, THEORY HAZIT, DAREL JUNIOR, GARDEN ENTERTAINMENT, BARRY HAMPTON & THE TRIPLE GRIP
(Doug Fir, 830 E Burnside) See My, What a Busy Week!.
SUNDAY 12/23
MARIA MULDAUR & HER HOT BLUESIANA BAND
(Mississippi Studios, 3939 N Mississippi) Maria Muldaur has wrestled more out of her limited instrument than most clear-voiced singers manage in their abundance. In those ugly places just outside her range, she has found opportunities. From her '70s folk-soaked debut to her blues-prone modern sound, Muldaur has used the drops and squeaks in her voice to amplify a song lyric with a "Midnight at the Oasis" wonder, or a bit of bluegrass rapture. Not too long ago, she retread Bob Dylan's love songs, but in the last few years, bent on preserving the legacies of blues women, she has plowed through the catalogues of Victoria Spivey, Ma Rainey, and other greats in a trilogy of releases. The most recent, Naughty, Bawdy and Blue shows Muldaur as an impeccable student and stylist. JALYLAH BURRELL
EVOLUTIONARY JASS BAND, VENABLE
(Valentine's, 232 SW Ankeny) I encountered the Evolutionary Jass Band at a Grails show a couple years back, and at the time I didn't know who they were or what they were doing. Eschewing a typical stage presentation, they sauntered around the floor of the inner room at Holocene, unamplified, filling the cavern with runs, trills, and empyrean bursts of noise. They were funkier than Sun Ra and jazzier than late-period Miles. Tonight, they're playing at Valentine's, and I could say, "Go, see what I saw." But with improvisation being the name of the game, predicting what will happen at an EJB show is a pointless endeavor. Still, if you're as burned out on crappy Christmas music as I am, this show is probably just what you need. NL
(Berbati's Pan, 10 SW 3rd) Does anyone know how I could get a hold of the Grinch? A phone number? Email address? Anything? I need to ask the old fella for a favor—I need him to steal the mics, sequencers, turntables, and any other musical equipment Wombstretcha may posses. Seriously. This joke rapping about fucking ho's and killing babies has run its course. Since when does a joke band—with a poor joke from the start—go on for years? Say what you will about Brotha Lynch, at least he's serious in his sociopathy. So I'm asking the Grinch to lend a hand. But if he doesn't come through, maybe we can enlist good ol' St. Nick to shove a stick in the spokes of the Wombstretcha Christmas. All I'm asking for is that he swoop in and clang their heads together with a big dirty dildo. ART
MONDAY 12/24
Ain't a damn thing happening tonight.
TUESDAY 12/25
Happy Birthday Jesus!
WEDNESDAY 12/26
CLASSICAL REVOLUTION
(Someday Lounge, 125 NW 5th) See My, What a Busy Week!.
