When Big Freedia is bouncing through town you know that’s gonna be one hell of a weekend, right? But mankind cannot subsist on azz alone (but it’d be fun as hell to try), and there’s much on the menu for connoisseurs of fine entertainment to sink their teeth into, including sets from Brother Ali & Evidence, Sallie Ford & the Sound Outside, The Preservation Hall Jazz Band, Broncho, and way more. Hit the links below and load your plate accordingly.
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Friday, Nov 15
Brother Ali, Evidence
The beauty of hip-hop’s multifaceted evolution over the past couple of decades is that there’s something out there for everyone. If, for example, singsong pop-hop or slurry Soundcloud rap isn’t your thing, you can dig into artists like Brother Ali and Evidence, two skilled MCs connected to respected indie hip-hop label Rhymesayers Entertainment. Ali is the better known of the two, thanks to a two-decade career built around his thoughtful, soft-spoken style and his social activism. His most recent album All the Beauty in This Whole Life is another banger in an incredibly consistent catalog. Evidence’s sound is more aggressive, both in its lyrical content and its beats. He came up with LA’s Dilated Peoples, one of the giants of the ’90s underground, but he ain’t falling off: His most recent album Weather or Not was one of the best releases of 2018, regardless of genre. (Fri Nov 15, 8 pm, Hawthorne Theatre, $22-26, all ages) BEN SALMON
Sallie Ford & the Sound Outside, Weezy Ford, Mike Coykendall
Thanksgiving is still a little ways off but goddamn if this Mississippi lineup isn’t a prime opportunity to give thanks to whoever you believe in for gifting Portland with so much high-quality musical talent. Sallie Ford & the Sound Outside, back together, headlining a bill that also includes Mike Coykendall and Weezy Ford? That’s the goods, right there. (Fri Nov 15, 9 pm, Mississippi Studios, $20-24)
Broncho, Hot Flash Heat Wave, Rinse & Repeat
It seems like every other band that captures more than its fair share of buzz comes from a big city. This is understandable, but it also means acts like Broncho—a fine pop-rock combo from little ol’ Tulsa, Oklahoma—are often left to toil in the shadows. The solution? Record killer albums and tour like crazy so people have no choice but to pay attention. For nearly a decade now, Broncho has been one of America’s great (if underappreciated) purveyors of poppy guitar rock, and their 2018 album Bad Behavior finds them mixing in more beats, more ’80s vibes, more echo, and more danceableness. That’s not a word, but then again, neither is Broncho. (Fri Nov 15, 8:30 pm, Star Theater, $20) BEN SALMON
X Ambassadors, Bear Hands, Vérité
The Ithaca, New York-hailing alt rock trio known for their break-out single “Renegades” swing back through town for an all-ages Portland stop on the “Orion” Tour. (Fri Nov 15, 8 pm, Crystal Ballroom, $32.78-37.78, all ages)
Kumoricon 2019
Portland’s biggest celebration of anime, manga, and Japanese pop-culture turns 16 this year, with panels, vendors, costume contests, and much more, including an AMV contest, a full-on anime-inspired fashion show, a lip sync showdown, a tea party (really), and something called the KumoriProm! (Fri-Sun Nov 15-17, 8 am, Oregon Convention Center, $35-70)
Live Wire! Radio
Luke Burbank once again assumes the duties of Portland’s favorite variety-show host as Live Wire! Radio returns to the Alberta Rose stage, this time with special appearances from TV correspondent and author Mo Rocca, writer Heather Christle (The Crying Book), jazz vocalist Jimmie Herrod, and more! (Fri Nov 15, 7:30 pm, Alberta Rose Theatre, $20-35)
Julia Michaels
Fresh off a tour supporting Pink, Grammy-nominated pop singer/songwriter Julia Michaels returns to Portland for an all-ages stop on the “Inner Monologue” Tour (Fri Nov 15, 9 pm, Wonder Ballroom, $25-30, all ages)
Nots, Mr. Wrong
The first album by Memphis four-piece Nots was the sound of a group trying to coalesce. Founding members Natalie Hoffmann and then-bassist Charlotte Watson hit the studio soon after, adding keyboardist Alexandra Eastburn and new bassist Meredith Lones (Watson became the group’s drummer) to the mix. The album that came out of those sessions, 2014’s We Are Nots, was still great, an appropriately agitated fusion of riotous punk and new wave angularity. After a healthy amount of touring and working together, Nots has found its collective center, and the band’s 2016 full-length, Cosmetic (released via Goner Records), feels much more lived-in and steady as a result. The band messes with slower tempos, more atmospheric touches, and songs that stretch out and ride a rhythm straight at the molten-hot core of what we call post-punk. (Fri Nov 15, 8 pm, Polaris Hall, $12-14) ROBERT HAM
Broke Gravy & The Siren Theater Improv Giants
Portland’s own Chris Williams, Eric Simons, and Leon Anderson (AKA Broke Gravy) link up with the Siren Giants (featuring Shelley McLendon, Tyler Quinn, Nicholas Kessler, and Kristen Schier) to bring a night of local improv to the Siren stage. (Fri Nov 15, 8 pm, Siren Theater, $10-15)
Amy Rigby, Scott the Hoople
In my dream Coachella-style music festival, Amy Rigby would be the big headliner. She’s certainly got the talent and the tunes to command an audience of thousands. Just give a spin to her spotless 1996 debut album Diary of a Mod Housewife or her equally perfect 2018 release The Old Guys, records that are brimming with chiming power-pop tunes and Rigby’s arch yet sensitive worldview. As it is, Rigby will be bringing her inestimable skills to the much smaller confines of Turn! Turn! Turn! to perform some tunes and read from her recently published memoir Girl to City. (Fri Nov 15, 8 pm, Turn! Turn! Turn!, $10-12) ROBERT HAM
Saturday, Nov 16
The Get Up Kids, Kevine Devine, The Whiffs
The second wave emo pioneers out of Kansas City keep their reunion going strong when they swing through the Doug Fir Lounge for an intimate Portland show supporting Problems, the band’s first new full-length since 2011’s There Are Rules. (Sat Nov 16, 8 pm, Doug Fir, $27-32)
Helmet
Helmet is not the band it was in the early ’90s, when the New York City bruisers released seminal records like Strap It On and Meantime. In fact, guitarist/vocalist Page Hamilton is all that remains, and he’s trotted out a crew of freshly shorn musicians in recent years that don’t resemble John Stanier, Peter Mengede, or Henry Bogdan. That’s okay; those songs still deserve to be heard. (Sat Nov 16, 8 pm, Dante’s, $20)
Sea Caves, Lee & the Bees, Jame Doe
After being nearly finished writing and recording their latest record, founding Sea Caves member Shiloh Halsey fired himself as lead singer, and the group searched for someone new to front the band. Having recently reformed with singer Sydney Rohrs, at the helm, Portland dream-pop five-piece Sea Caves is set to release Across the Water, their follow-up to 2016’s easily likeable Bright Forest. Across the Water (out November 15) comes after two excellent singles, “Dart” and “Birds”—and the rest of the album is just as pleasant. The 10-track project embraces change in spite of the inevitable discomfort that typically accompanies it. (Sat Nov 16, 8:30 pm, Bunk Bar, $10) JENNI MOORE
Ulthar, Tithe, Hungers
Oakland’s Ulthar are the musical equivalent of some ethereal being from an H.P. Lovecraft story; a grotesque sin against nature, dripping goo from its unreasonable amount of appendages and eyeballs, handily exposing mankind’s flaws with its ancient knowledge and biological superiority. Ulthar is scathing, ever dissonant, and, depending on which side of the creature you’re hearing, straight death metal, black metal, or even crust. And wouldn’t you know it, upon further research, their lyrical themes are Lovecraft-inspired as well. Sound, meet context. The band formed in 2014, releasing their first full-length Cosmovore last year. Seeing as how this monster is in the early gestation period, you can expect Ulthar to get even stranger and more dangerous. (Sat Nov 16, 8:30 pm, High Water Mark, $12) ARIS HUNTER WALES
Kuinka, Lemolo, Lost Lander
Seattle’s Kuinka play heart-bursting, jangly, all-together-now folk-pop that’ll have you stomping your feet and singing along. Don’t be surprised if you hear them in a cutesy movie or car commercial soon. But first, they’re in town to help you emerge from your winter haze. (Sat Nov 16, 9 pm, Missisippi Studios, $15-18) BEN SALMON
Zhavia
The Hawthorne Theatre presents a night of pop and R&B with the 18-year-old Los Angeles-based singer/songwriter who rose to fame as a finalist on the Fox reality television show The Four: Battle for Stardom and went on to record a cover of “A Whole New World” with Zayn Malik for the 2019 Aladdin soundtrack. (Sat Nov 16, 8 pm, Hawthorne Theatre, $20-25, all ages)
J.D. Pinkus, Eddie Spaghetti
Butthole Surfers bassist J.D. Pinkus links up with mustachioed Supersuckers frontman Eddie Spaghetti to bring an array of acoustic rock ‘n’ roll and country-tinged punk to the Star Theatre stage. (Sat Nov 16, 9 pm, Star Theater, $15)
Tow’rs
An evening of harmony-driven acoustic folk-rock and pop with this duo-turned-quintet out of Flagstaff, Arizona, currently making the rounds in support of their latest album, New Nostalgia. (Sat Nov 16, 8 pm, Polaris Hall, $12-15)
Ghost Light
Holly Bowling, Tom Hamilton, Raina Mullen, and Scotty Zwang bring their psych-tinged jamming to the Wonder Ballroom stage for an all-ages Portland set supporting their anticipated debut album, Best Kept Secrets. (Sat Nov 16, 8 pm, Wonder Ballroom, $15-18, all ages)
Icon for Hire
The Illinois-hailing electronic rock duo headed up by singer Ariel Bloomer and guitarist Shawn Jump bring the “Icon Army” Tour to Portland for an all-ages show at Lola’s Room. (Sat Nov 16, 7:30 pm, Lola’s Room, $15, all ages)
Sunday, Nov 17
A Tuba to Cuba: The Preservation Hall Jazz Band
The nearly 50-year-old Preservation Hall Jazz Band embodies the best of New Orleans’ slightly sloshy French Quarter: the music. A cornerstone of the city’s jazz scene, Preservation Hall’s upbeat, brassy tunes sound plucked from a Frenchmen Street second line procession. So It Is (2017), the septet’s second album containing all-original melodies, infuses the band’s historic jazz tunes with Afro-Cuban beats, adding to Preservation Hall’s magical ability to transform melodies into a layered history of New Orleans. Now the prolific band is touring in support of their new record A Tuba to Cuba, out on November 29. Their recent main-stage set at Pickathon was worthy of all the standing ovations, and their upcoming show, while indoors, should be just as marvelous. (Sun Nov 17, 8 pm, Revolution Hall, $26-30, all ages) ALEX ZIELINSKI
Big Freedia, Low Cut Connie
New Orleans bounce artist Big Freedia comes to Portland quite a bit. Most recently, Freedia played a wild, twerk-forward opening set at the Roseland while on her joint tour with fellow NOLA act Tank and the Bangas. Freedia is known for her high-energy live shows, and inviting a bunch of audience members on stage, where they can present their best twerking skills while Freedia hypes them up. Having toured with other contrasting acts like LCD Soundsystem and the Postal Service, Freedia’s current tour with roots rockers Low Cut Connie should come as no surprise. (Sun Nov 17, 8:30 pm, Wonder Ballroom, $25-28) JENNI MOORE
Suga Free, Champagne James, T Low, Savage P, Rich, King Majah
Has anyone on Earth ever, in the history of ever, represented Pomona, California as thoroughly, or as stylishly as the emcee known as Suga Free? And has anyone from Pomona, California ever blessed a microphone with as many freaky tales as Suga Free has? This isn’t just an evening of salacious rhymes and bottomed-out beats. This is a chance to see history, and have history try to steal your significant other while you’re standing there. (Sun Nov 17, 8 pm, Roseland, $25)
Devon Welsh, Sorry Girls
Devon Welsh’s voice is a little miracle, a consoling gift akin to dawn light streaming through a lover’s window or the smell of rain on hot concrete. It’s hard to describe how a voice like this echoes inside of the listener. It is a presence, not a force. And thank god. There is too much force in the world and not enough presence. There are too few subtle sharpenings of time and space, too few voices like Welsh’s, which seems more poured than pushed, something purified and released back into the world from which it came, where it will dirty itself once again. It is the sound of being alive inside a self that is inside something too huge to comprehend. (Sun Nov 17, 8 pm, Mississippi Studios, $12-14) CHRIS STAMM
Pearl Charles
Los Angeles-based singer/songwriter Pearl Charles brings her blend of psych-tinged folk, classic rock, and cosmic Americana back to town for a headlining show supporting her debut full-length, Sleepless Dreamer. (Sun Nov 17, 8 pm, Polaris Hall, $10-12)
Anthony Ramos
The Brooklyn-hailing actor and singer known for his roles in or his roles in Hamilton, A Star Is Born, and the Netflix series She’s Gotta Have It brings his live show to Portland to head up an intimate show at the Doug Fir Lounge. (Sun Nov 17, 8 pm, Doug Fir, $15-20)
2nd Annual Rose Quarter Guitar Festival
Whether you prefer to pick, pluck, twang, rip or shred, this festival is where you need to be: Some of the area’s best vendors, makers, and musicians will be gathering to play, pay tribute to, and purchase the finest guitars around. Performers include Larry Mitchell, Terry Robb, John Standefer, and Erik Hailstone. (Sun Nov 17, 10 am, Veterans Memorial Coliseum, $15)
Don’t forget to check out our Things To Do calendar for even more things to do!