Cinco de Mayo en el Pony
Dig a Pony is doing Cinco de Mayo right, with a rockin’ party featuring great music en español, empanadas, and slushy margaritas. The Chihuahua Petals play a blend of corridos, norteños, mariachi, and psychedelic music, while reggaetón/hip-hop group Bad Hombres and punk rockers No Gracias round out the night. Plus, DJs A Train and Tio Wilmer, lots of cheap beer, and plenty of tequila to go round. (Sun 5 pm, Dig a Pony, free) NED LANNAMANN
Wunderkonntent
Portland comedy oddballs Phil Schallberger, Steven Wilber, Jason Traeger, and Jordan Casner join forces to bring their "Sketch-Standup-Hybrid-Colossus" show to Kickstand Comedy's new location to help you get the weekend started with some big laughs. (Fri 9 pm, Kickstand Comedy Space, $10)
Wet Fruit, Blesst Chest, Palm Crest
Blesst Chest makes bizarro, acid-washed, fuzzed-out, groovy tunes that sound like Ratatat's cool prog-rock parent, lacking the sophisticated production of today's young 'uns but wailing hard like it's 1977. (Fri 9 pm, The Fixin' To, $7) CIARA DOLAN
Sicko Mode: Drake vs. Travis Scott
Tribute Night returns to Holocene to kick off the month of May with a Friday night dance party featuring an array of remixes, collaborations, hits, and deep cuts pulled straight from the minds of Drake and Travis Scott. (Fri 9 pm, Holocene, $10)
Woolen Men, Hornet Leg, Sad Horse, Dress Forms, L.O.X.
See My Friends Records and Hell Yeah! Booking Agency brings an array of Portland's finest post-punk and garage rock bands out to the Local 134 to kick-start the weekend with an all-ages bill. (Fri 8 pm, American Legion Local 134, $6)
The Kickback
Rare Vibe and Drae Slapz team up with JM Joints to bring you the latest installment of the Kickback, a new type of party for anyone looking to dance, drink, or just sit back and enjoy the vibe. (Fri 9 pm, Kelly's Olympian, $7-10)
Kentucky Derby Party at Portland Meadows
Portland Meadows is throwing one final Kentucky Derby Party in conjunction with the 145th running of the race, with live entertainment, food trucks, live wagering, best-dressed and best hat contests, and more. Come out and take in the most exciting 2 minutes in sports while saying farewell to an underappreciated Portland landmark (Sat noon, Portland Meadows, free)
Free Comic Book Day Is Here!
Free Comic Book Day is always a good excuse to visit your Local Comics Store (or LCS for short. Now you can sound cool in the comments section at Newsarama! Hah, just kidding, nobody sounds cool in a comments section anywhere!) not just because, you know—free comics!—but because the kindly proprietors at stores like Bridge City Comics, Cosmic Monkey Comics, and Things From Another World all have great stuff on sale for the occasion, and they've invited some of the city's best creators to come hang out and sign books all day. (Sat noon, various locations, free, all ages)
Club Nitty Gritty
If you're looking for a dance night that sets the evening on fire, check out Club Nitty Gritty, hosted by the always down for a good time DJ Action Slacks (Shannon Wiberg). She's been pounding the turntables for years with righteous choices in down-home dirty soul—the kind with raw sax and voices that wail and scratch. (Sat 9 pm, The World Famous Kenton Club, $7) WM. STEVEN HUMPHREY
Leggy, Mini Blinds, Whisper Hiss
Fresh off the release of their acclaimed new album Let Me Know Your Moon, Cincinnati-based dream punk and garage pop trio Leggy bring their infectious sounds to Turn! Turn! Turn!, with like-minded locals Mini Blinds and Whisper Hiss on hand round out the bill. (Sat 8 pm, Turn! Turn! Turn!, $7)
Bridge Club
One of Portland's best all-day parties has woken from its wintry slumber and is setting up shop once again at the White Owl with special guest Cameron Traxxx, and support from local DJs Orographic, Troubled Youth, Pocket Rock-it, Casual Aztec and Hold My Hand. Hosted by Debris. (Sun 3 pm, White Owl Social Club, free)
Fleshies, Divers, Daydream
Oakland's Fleshies head up a Sunday night show at the Tonic Lounge supporting their Dirt Cult Records-issued album, Introducing The Fleshies, the band's first new release in a decade. Beloved Portland punk rock outfit Divers lend support to the bill, with fellow PDX punks Daydream getting things underway. (Sun 8:30 pm, Tonic Lounge, $8)
Mo Troper, Martha Stax
Portland power-pop singer/songwriter Mo Troper teams up with rising locals Martha Stax and their retro-leaning blend of "anti-pop" to head up the latest installment of Sunday Sessions at Rontoms. (Sun 9 pm, Rontoms, free)
Evan Thomas Way & The Phasers, Matt Dorrien
Evan Thomas Way (of The Parson Red Heads) and Matt Dorrien (FKA Snowblind Traveler) head up a hometown show at Mississippi Studios that doubles as a release show for Way's new Americana-tinged shoegaze record, Long Distance. (Mon 8 pm, Mississippi Studios, $5)
Low Bar Chorale
Portland-based drop-in community choir the Low Bar Chorale sets up shop at Revolution Hall's Show Bar for a Tuesday night sing-along session. (Tues 7:30 pm, Revolution Hall, $10)
Shawn Levy
Portland author, film critic, and teacher Shawn Levy returns with The Castle on Sunset, chronicling the history of Hollywood’s storied Chateau Marmont hotel. (Tues 7:30 pm, Powell's City of Books, free)
B-Movie Bingo: Lone Wolf McQuade
Your monthly opportunity to literally check off a bingo card full of B-movie clichés! Some say that Lone Wolf McQuade is the finest film Chuck Norris made in the 1980s, and even allowing for that being a truthful statement (you have to redefine the term "fine" pretty drastically to apply it here) it's still a mostly-ugly, ham-chested, ham-fisted, ham-drunk homage to Sergio Leone that gets nowhere near that man's jockstrap, much less holds it. Norris is (like everything in his filmography) the worst thing in his own movie, but David Carradine isn't that much better. Still, it's fun to imagine this as a Walker, Texas Ranger prequel, and if you still think Chuck Norris jokes are funny you could probably shout a couple out as the movie plays and not get shushed for it? It's your money. You spent it on watching a Chuck Norris movie at a theater in 2019. Go off, I guess. (Tues 7:30 pm, Hollywood Theatre, $7-9) BOBBY ROBERTS
A Victory Lap for Portland: A Celebration of Nipsey Hussle
This community-centered homage honoring the life and lasting legacy of Nipsey Hussle, a beloved rapper, entrepreneur, and activist who was killed on March 31. Soak up the spirit of Nipsey by reveling in music and visuals provided by a stellar lineup of artists and engaging in conversation around his multifaceted work. In true Nipsey style, all profits will be support Boise-Eliot Elementary’s STEM program. (Wed 6 pm, Holocene, $10) EMILLY PRADO
Eric Liu, Wendy Willis
Co-founder and CEO of Citizen University Eric Liu reads from Become America, offering 19 “civic sermons” exploring democracy, liberty, equal justice, and powerful citizenship in today’s divided political landscape. Liu will be joined for a Q&A by Wendy Willis, author of These Are Strange Times, My Dear: Field Notes From the Republic. (Wed 7:30 pm, Powell's City of Books, free)
Ted Chiang, Daniel H. Wilson
The author of Stories of Your Life and Others (the basis for the Academy Award-nominated film Arrival) returns with Exhalation, a new collection of sci-fi short fiction addressing some of humanity’s oldest questions. Chiang will be joined in conversation by Daniel H. Wilson, author of The Clockwork Dynasty and Robopocalypse. (Thurs 7:30 pm, Powell's City of Books, free)
Mouthbreather, Bernie & the Wolf, Floral Patterns
When you think "boy, I could sure go for some spazzed-out indie rock tonight," the name that oughta jump to mind should be Mouthbreather. (Thurs 9:30 pm, No Fun, $5)
There's even more to do in our Cheap, Free, & Fun calendar, and don't forget to check out our Things To Do calendar for even more things to do!
