THURSDAY 11/19

MARCHFOURTH MARCHING BAND

(Wonder Ballroom, 128 NE Russell) See My, What a Busy Week!.

ST. FRANCIS DINING HALL BENEFIT: EVERCLEAR, CLAYTON SENNE, THROWBACK SUBURBIA

(Crystal Ballroom, 1332 W Burnside) See Music.

WOLFMOTHER, HEARTLESS BASTARDS, THENEWNO2

(Roseland, 8 NW 6th) Wolfmother sound so much like Led Zeppelin that they should be forced to break out the checkbook (memo: "Cover Band Dues") and mail off monthly payments to Headley Grange. Thankfully Heartless Bastards can save their pennies for cigarettes and booze, as their ragged Midwest rock 'n' roll follows suit with modern revisionists like the Gaslight Anthem and the Black Keys, while respectfully paying dues to fellow Ohioan Chrissie Hynde. Head Bastardess Erika Wennerstrom might share the forehead-draping bangs and interchangeable band members of Hynde, but don't let that fool you. Her mumbled howl balances both pure gnashed-teeth rage and a vulnerable level of deep sorrow. The only way she'd go back to Ohio is to burn that fucking state to the ground. EZRA ACE CARAEFF

BOMBS INTO YOU , CIRCUIT CIRCUITS, DOUBLE PLUS GOOD

(Mississippi Studios, 3939 N Mississippi) Aiming squarely for the mainstream, Portland ensemble Bombs into You's second EP, Metaphorically Yours [Volume Two], could fit neatly on most commercial rock radio playlists. Buzzing synths, dance-punk disco drums, choppy guitar riffs, and vaguely forlorn vocals all come together for a sound that you've heard a billion times before, somewhere in that predictable stretch of land between the Killers and Franz Ferdinand. But when Bombs into You forgo the rock backdrop for the synth-and-drum-machine "Fighting over Elevators," the result is an enveloping sound that's both dulcet and angsty, as if Jimmy Tamborello teamed up with Trent Reznor for a record called Give Up—No, Seriously, Give Up. NED LANNAMANN

DANGEROUS BOYS CLUB: HOWIE AND THE HOTKNIVES, DJ VIBE COP, THE BARON, DJ WHITE STAG

(Branx, 320 SE 2nd) As the Oblivians say, "You've got to live the life you sing about in your song." This seems to be no problem for Howie Hotknife, one-third of the much lauded Mean Jeans, and leader of the Hotknives (along with a pair of ladies, Melisa and Brandi, that kick in drums, bass, and vocals). Howie is a natural frontman with a flop of red hair and deadpan delivery on lyrics such as "Do you wanna fuck or fight?" Most songs are characterized by dirty rock 'n' roll with high-pitched female backup vocals, and then there's party anthems like "Drinking for Free," an ode to when you have a friend who's pouring at the bar that night. In Howie's case, his rock 'n' roll alter ego is just his daily life. MARANDA BISH

FRIDAY 11/20

P:EAR BENEFIT: DERBY , DREW GROW AND THE PASTORS' WIVES, WESTER DAYWICK

(Jupiter Hotel, 800 E Burnside) See My, What a Busy Week!.

GLASS CANDY, DESIRE, BOY JOY, MIKE SIMONETTI

(Rotture, 315 SE 3rd) See My, What a Busy Week!

SOFT TAGS, MR. GNOME, THE SUBTERRANEAN HOWL

(The Knife Shop at Kelly's Olympian, 426 SW Washington) It was just a matter of time before the insanely prolific Soft Tags dropped a double album on us, and here it is: The 18-track Mathematical Monsters is apparently about a computer "that is running amok in Long Island and doing its best to slow, stop, and then reverse time." (Let me say that I have been to Long Island, and it seems that time is already moving in the wrong direction there.) Anyway, part of the record was recorded in Reykjavik, and it has violins and cellos and a Scott Walker cover, and it's more coherent and listener friendly than anything Soft Tags have done before. But Mathematical Monsters still has the muted, weird, excavated lo-fi sound that has made the Tags' previous work so intriguing. Also on the bill, Mr. Gnome is a very good, strange band from Cleveland that play '60s freakout psych with a goth facelift. NL

NITZER EBB, UNTER NULL, THE GENTRY

(Berbati's Pan, 10 SW 3rd) Nitzer Ebb is one of the longest running and most important electronic bands. Together for almost 30 years, they've come to define EBM (electronic body music) and influence several generations of musicians in the goth, industrial, new wave, and techno realms. With the support of Mute Records, their 1987 hit "Join in the Chant" became an anthem for the dark wave scene and got them a spot on tour with Depeche Mode. Although they started out as extremely cold and militant sounding, Nitzer Ebb experimented with different vibes over the years—never softening too much, but expanding to include more live instrumentation. While members of the group have taken extended breaks to work on solo projects over the years, they don't appear to be slowing down anytime soon. They've just signed with Major Records (Ladytron) to distribute their new record, started a US tour, and come full circle with plans to tour Europe in support of Depeche Mode early next year. AVA HEGEDUS

THE KING KHAN AND BBQ SHOW, THOSE DARLINS

(Dante's, 1 SW 3rd) At last month's Scion Garage Fest, the King Khan and BBQ Show closed out Dante's, packing the place with ecstatic fans of their raucous punk-rock doo-wop. Since joining forces in 2002, the two talented and charismatic performers have become a beloved duo, embodying a bygone era of rock 'n' roll with flamboyant costumes and diverse musical influences. It was quite a blow, then, when last week, touring in support of new album Invisible Girl, the guys were arrested and spent a night in jail, missing two Midwest shows for undisclosed charges (rumored to involve controlled substances of the mushroom variety). Out on bail and reputation bolstered, only the long arm of the law can stand in the way of KKBBQ making it to Portland tonight. MB

PRIZE COUNTRY, RAT EYES, LOOM

(Satyricon, 125 NW 6th) Judging by the crowd at the Crystal for a reunited Jesus Lizard, there clearly is a market for smart '90s nostalgia (a glorious time when words like "Killdozer" and "Unsane" made sense), which is good news for the boys of Prize Country. ...With Love might be an album with a cuddly title, but as singer Aaron Blanchard ferociously screeches "You're my girl, my girl tonight" (from "Regular Nights"), you get the feeling that's more a threat than an invitation to future romance. Schooled on the Albini sound and attitude, ...With Love stomps along mercilessly, a volume-swelling mass of pounding drums, rolling bass, and hissing guitars for days. If this is the sound of love, I'd be curious to hear what Prize Country's idea of hate sounds like. EAC

FLASH FLOOD AND THE DIKES

(Slabtown, 1033 NW 16th) Flash Flood and the Dikes have finally crawled out from their dank Northeast basement to submit happy-hour crowds to their off-kilter take on traditional country music. But don't go expecting sappy renditions of Hank Williams and Willie Nelson songs. These are the types of weirdoes who scour dusty bins for Texas Jim Lewis and Joaquin Murphey records—not particularly surprising considering a couple members have sordid pasts making primitive and disjointed sounds in bands like Monoshock and Albuquerque, New Mexico's the Drags. I have it on good authority that the lawlessness and debauchery described in some of the songs could even pass as autobiographical. Simply witness for yourself who empties more pitchers of beer that night—the audience or the Dikes. MARK LORE

BARK HIDE AND HORN, SHOESHINE BLUE, WINTERHAVEN

(The Woods, 6637 SE Milwaukie) There is beauty and terror in cacophony. If I didn't realize this before, I do after hearing Bark Hide and Horn's "Melville, My Boy." By the time the gang vocals come in, just above the whir of a theremin, I find myself completely haunted by and simultaneously rejoicing in the fact that such chaos exists. And once the song is over, a faint two-and-a-half minutes after it started, I have to stand over the heating vent and warm the chill out of my bones. BHH's National Road is part morose art-rock, part roots music—a schizophrenic concoction fancifully garnished with glockenspiel and washboard percussion. This can prove to be overwhelming and/or completely therapeutic for an idle mind in the throes of thrown-off circadian rhythms, thus making theirs a perfect show to catch on a chilly November night in an old funeral home. RAQUEL NASSER

AMADAN, THE BEAUTIFUL TRAIN WRECKS, SASSPARILLA

(Doug Fir, 830 E Burnside) In honor of a decade of falling from grace with God—and having superior dental work to Shane MacGowan—Amadan are throwing a bit of a party. Ten years is a long time to stay in a band and avoid the inevitable pull of adulthood, so like all shows from these Irish punks, expect copious amounts of whiskey and sin, like a gloriously drunken Peter Pan syndrome. Leaning heavy on the tempo and vocal delivery of westernized pop-punk, Amadan's sound is hardly authentic—unless Fat Wreck Chords has a Dublin branch we don't know about—but still utterly sincere. Never has the sound of cirrhosis sounded so good. EAC

SATURDAY 11/21

HOMELESS BENEFIT: RAMONA FALLS, JASON WEBLEY, CALVIN JOHNSON

(Backspace, 115 NW 5th) See My, What a Busy Week!

CHALI 2NA, GIFT OF GAB, LYRICS BORN, MR. LIF

(Roseland, 8 NW 6th) See My, What a Busy Week!.

RAINBOW ARABIA, SHE'S ON DRUGS, HOUSEFIRE, DJ RAD

(Rotture, 315 SE 3rd) See Music.

THE HIDDEN CAMERAS, GENTLEMAN REG

(Doug Fir, 830 E Burnside) The Hidden Cameras' new album Origin:Orphan is a happy conglomeration of a wide berth of musical genres: strummy sing-along folk-pop, churchy choir music, brooding '80s Britrock, pummeling Who power-riffs, and hammy Broadway glitz. It almost works—almost, like a fancy dish drizzled with some weird cranberry-chutney reduction or something. Main Cameraman Joel Gibb has remarkable ambition, but the record feels fussed over. It's intermittently great, like the gorgeous, gently sloping melody of "Colour of a Man," which is then stretched to near-breaking point over nearly five minutes and a set of ponderous lyrics that reach for profundity rather than sincerity (and fail to achieve either). Still, Gibb's sonic palette doesn't sound like anyone else's, and when the album reaches its dramatic heights—as in the fanfare of "Walk On"—it reaches a Fellini Satyricon-esque splendor. NL

DON OF DIVISION STREET, CELILO,THE VERY FOUNDATION, THE MALDIVES

(Mississippi Studios, 3939 N Mississippi) There will be two sides to the Portland music scene on display this evening. The first, and easily the most important, will be a gathering to remember Celilo drummer Kipp Crawford—hit by drunk drivers in the early morning hours of November 4—that will take place at Mississippi Station (3943 N Mississippi) at 6 pm. Following that, next door at Mississippi Studios there will be music. Lots of Portland music. In addition to a set from Crawford's bandmates in Celilo, the Very Foundation will perform material from their Portland-centric This Restless Enterprise recording. Chances are if you're a local musician, your mark is felt on the collaborative flair of This Restless Enterprise, which ranges from shuffling, contempletive indie numbers to the strut of "Runaway to Tokyo," which shares both sound and inspiration with Curtis Mayfield's "Move on Up." EAC

SUNDAY 11/22

THEM CROOKED VULTURES, MINI MANSIONS

(Roseland, 8 NW 6th) See My, What a Busy Week!

THE DUTCHESS AND THE DUKE, GREG ASHLEY, METH TEETH

(Doug Fir, 830 E Burnside) See Music, and Our Town Could be Your Life.

RABBITS, THE AX, FIST FITE

(Rontoms, 600 E Burnside) I remember reading an interview with Andrew WK, in which he said he deliberately produced his music to always sound loud, even at a very soft volume. And it's true: No matter how quiet it is, Andrew WK's music will never be turned down low enough for me. The opposite is true for Rabbits: I don't think you can ever turn up their music too loud. The Portland metal band toss around elements of thrash, doom, and sludge, all with a jokey sense of fun, and a righteous heaviosity that'll keep you rolling the volume knob all the way to the right. Go seem 'em live in the cozy living room of Rontoms and end your weekend with a proper dose of oblivion. NL

SLEEP, HIVES INQUIRY, GEPETTO, DAPS, ABADAWN, FLYVEK

(Satyricon, 125 NW 6th) The effect that Sleep has had on the landscape of Portland hiphop cannot be overstated. Not only is the emcee an incredible lyrical technician and freestyle wizard, but the man is also known for just being really, really nice and kick-ass at magic tricks. Seriously. His latest album, Hesitation Wounds, was released on Sage Francis' label and holds up well beside his previous solo and collaborative work. Fresh off a whirlwind tour, Sleep returns to town rocking with a live band and ready to shred some faces. It's a good bet that he will have the energy left to destroy the stage, but maybe don't ask him to do that one David Blaine levitation illusion. He's a man, not a machine. GRAHAM BAREY

MONDAY 11/23

WARREN G, U-N-I, ILLAJ , PORTLAND GEORGE

(Roseland, 8 NW 6th) Fifteen years later, "Regulate" still sounds as fresh as it did when it dominated West Coast house parties, and MTV alike, in the summer of '94. I just wish Warren G could produce more jams that are remotely as timeless. Even "Ringtone" from this year's The G Files is already dated—as is his phone number (310-755-6059) he pimps out, Mike Jones style, midway through the song. (It's no longer in service; I called it myself.) It's a shame because Mr. Griffin clearly has the talent, connections, and ambition—homeboy's collaborated with European opera singers, for Christ's sake—but he's just not regulating like he used to. I hate to say it, but if you're thinking about reliving some G-Funk-era nostalgia without risking the co$tly disappointment of witnessing a tired, bloated rapper going through the motions, I say just go out to a karaoke bar with your homies instead. KURT PRUTSMAN Also see My, What a Busy Week!

TUESDAY 11/24

CARCRASHLANDER, REY VILLALOBOS, GRANDCHILDREN

(Valentine's, 232 SW Ankeny) In addition to being Portland's most in-demand journeyman keyboardist, Cory Gray is an artist to be reckoned with in his own right, and the release of his new Carcrashlander album, Where to Swim, is right around the corner (it'll be out in December). The handful of tracks we've heard are further proof of Gray's off-kilter but well-grounded songwriting chops: "Landmines" is as close to upbeat as Gray gets, with his gruff voice leading a panoply of shrieking guitars. Like its title, "Overgrown" creeps like vines winding their way up the walls of an old, crumbling building, and the understated "House Arrest" has a leftfield lounge vibe that's spiked by a bleeding electric piano riff midway through. Don't miss openers Grandchildren, a Philly synth-folk band whose music is both cuddly and anthemic. NL

WEDNESDAY 11/25

FRIENDLY FIRES, THE XX, HOLLY MIRANDA

(Doug Fir, 830 E Burnside) See My, What a Busy Week! and Music.

THE STRANGE BOYS, SEXY WATER SPIDERS, THE MYSTERY LIGHTS

(East End, 203 SE Grand) See Music.