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damn good, too. Blue Skies for Black Hearts provide precisely what their name suggests: a inspiriting, sympathetic soundtrack for those who have been ravaged by love. They’re like an umbrella in the rain. MORGAN TROPER
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SATURDAY 12/8 ANTIBALAS, STAY CALM
THE CAVE SINGERS, POOR MOON, ROSE WINDOWS (Doug Fir, 830 E Burnside) “Have to Pretend,” the brandnew song from the Cave Singers—from their upcoming album Naomi (due out on Jagjaguwar in March)—continues their stream of taking familiar, even threadbare folk and rock elements and coming up with something fresh. With an odd, incomplete-sounding guitar riff, singer Pete Quirk’s tenor bark, and little else, “Have to Pretend” is a choppy, dirt-covered mover that, sure enough, becomes an unlikely single. Since their inception in 2007, the Cave Singers have grown from a mellow, candlelit, old-weirdfolk act into a shit-kicking live band, and a blessedly idiosyncratic one at that. “Have to Pretend,” for all its rough edges, is proof of the jagged songwriting chops that have made all three of their records—and presumably the forthcoming fourth one as well—worth listening to in full. NL
FRIDAY 12/7 HOW TO DRESS WELL, BEACON, HUSTLE AND DRONE (Doug Fir, 830 E Burnside) See My, What a Busy Week!, pg. 25.
THE SWORD, GYPSYHAWK, AMERICAN SHARKS (Hawthorne Theatre, 1507 SE Cesar E. Chavez) While metalheads of the old-school variety eagerly await a new Sabbath record, they’ll always have the Sword to tide them over. The Austin quartet’s latest, Apocryphon, leans even more heavily on the NWOBHM than their previous efforts do. It’s no surprise that another little band reared on Sabbath and Diamond Head, called Metallica, has taken the Sword on tour several times. But whether these denim-clad metallers are playing head-whipping thrash or voyaging into more early-’70s psych territory—as they did on 2010’s Warp Riders—the Sword do it with the same fuck-all attitude. And until they release their “Enter Sandman,” the worst the Sword can do is bring sorcery and scifi to those willing to eat it up. This might be seen as crimes against humanity, but to others it’s simply righting the wrongs. ML
NO KIND OF RIDER, BY SUNLIGHT (Bunk Bar, 1028 SE Water) No Kind of Rider have been playing together since childhood in Tulsa, writing music that’s smart and charged with raw energy. Their songs switch between moody and melodic to poppy and electronic, with Sam Alexander’s brooding vocals and lyrics leaving a lasting impression. Layers of guitar and synth create an electric atmosphere in their music, like witnessing a storm and the calm that comes after it. They have been playing around Portland for a couple of years now, so if you haven’t already seen them, they put on a live show that you will not want to miss. RACHEL MILBAUER
HOT VICTORY, HELMS ALEE, KOWLOON WALLED CITY, THE BODY (Slabtown, 1033 NW 16th) Call it an insult, a cop out, or just plain lazy, but Weatherhead, Helms Alee’s most recent effort, could be called indie metal. (Ugh, I’m sorry. Does it feel gross reading it, too?) It’s heavy but hip, multi-influenced but untraceable. The first few tracks are loud and abrasive with rumbling bass, thumping Big Business-like drums, and red-in-the-face vocals. Weatherhead then quickly turns a sensitive corner and gets all shoegaze-y and psychedelic. The band weaves gentle, two-part harmonies and spacedout guitars that make for good night driving. However, the psychedelics don’t last long before they drop back into a fuzzed brain-smasher of a riff with vein-bulging screams. The whole thing feels very stream-of-consciousness. Helms Alee seems to take inspiration from anything and everything, at any given time, and runs with it. ARIS WALES
BLUE SKIES FOR BLACK HEARTS (Someday Lounge, 125 NW 5th) When I first became involved with the music scene here, I developed a remote kinship with Pat Kearns of Blue Skies for Black Hearts. I spent the majority of my free time in high school exhuming and obsessing over obscure powerpop bands like Shoes and the Records (after a while, Big Star and Badfinger simply weren’t enough) and was pleasantly surprised to discover a fellow champion of classicist power-pop was contemporaneously making music in that same vein, in my hometown. Not a lot of local releases have hit me as hard as 2008’s Serenades and Hand Grenades did, and last year’s follow-up, Embracing the Modern Age, was pretty
(Hawthorne Theatre, 1507 SE Cesar E. Chavez) See My, What a Busy Week!, pg. 25.
TRIXIE WHITLEY, DUMPSTER HUNTER (Doug Fir, 830 E Burnside) Trixie Whitley has a set of pipes so astounding that this is reason enough to see her live. But it’s by no means the only one. Whitley is Belgian, but her American music pedigree runs deep—she’s the daughter of the late blues musician Chris Whitley. At just 25, she has made a name among music nerds as a DJ, multi-instrumentalist, and the sometime collaborator of Daniel Lanois. Her debut LP, Fourth Corner, is coming out in January, but last year’s Live at Rockwood Music Hall showcases her prodigious talents just fine. To me, it’s the contemporary R&B vocals set against a backdrop of moody rock ’n’ roll—two familiar sounds not often heard together. An amazing range surrounds both sides of her sexy contralto. Singers capable of impressive vocal runs typically eschew restraint, but Whitley isn’t a showoff, and bluesy pain underlies every instance of vocal gymnastics. RW
SUNDAY 12/9 KING TUFF, WHITE FANG, MEAN JEANS (Doug Fir, 830 E Burnside) See My, What a Busy Week!, pg. 25.
SHY GIRLS, SOCIAL STUDIES, HOSANNAS (Mississippi Studios, 3939 N Mississippi) Shy Girls’ music transports you back to middle school, or the first time you heard those R&B hits on the radio that you can still sing along to. Dan Vidmar writes songs that sound like a mix between Smokey Robinson and Backstreet Boys, and has the formula to this niche squared away. The music is funky and sexy, and makes you want to move your hips and pull out all of those long forgotten dance moves. The songs have a similar, carefree quality to the ones that dominated airplay in the days of Mariah Carey. The distinguishing difference with Shy Girls is their ability to write songs that, while rooted in the familiar, expand past this to add fresh body and soul. RM
MONDAY 12/10 ASTRONAUTALIS, BUSDRIVER, JEL (Doug Fir, 830 E Burnside) See My, What a Busy Week!, pg. 25. THE SHINS, PURE BATHING CULTURE (Crystal Ballroom, 1332 W Burnside) The Shins have more ex-members than Def Leppard; frontman James Mercer is the one who remains from the first three fulllengths that made the band famous in the first place. But their current lineup is, technically, the Shins’ strongest. We’ve got Joe Plummer of ye ol’ Modest Mouse on drums, Yuuki Matthews of Crystal Skulls on bass, Oregon producer extraordinaire Richard Swift on keyboards, and Jessica Dobson of Deep Sea Diver on guitar. So it’s a Shins supergroup, of sorts. And seeing as how the band’s latest album, Port of Morrow, contains just as much charm, catchy choruses, and witty lyrics as before, even hardcore fans of the original lineup will find it hard not to be enamored of the Shins 2.0. Also, as an unashamed holiday-music junkie, I really hope they squeeze in their cover of Paul McCartney’s “Wonderful Christmastime” during tonight’s set. MEGAN SELING
SIT BACK
& RELAX.
TUESDAY 12/11 LOST BAYOU RAMBLERS, ALBATROSS (Mississippi Studios, 3939 N Mississippi) See Music, pg. 28.
BIG EYES, THE CRY, HORNET LEG (The Know, 2026 NE Alberta) Like some sort of new school Joan Jett, Big Eyes’ Kate Eldridge commands a blitzkrieg melody like few others. The Seattle trio parlays fast, cranky power-pop in the same breakneck vein as the Thermals, trading four-on-the-floor drumming back and forth with chunky, jangly guitars and impossibly catchy vocals. The band’s 7-inch single from spring 2012 on Grave Mistake Records, “Back from the Moon” b/w “I Don’t Care About Friday Night,” expanded ever so slightly on the punched-up M.O. of 2011 debut LP Hard Life, with head-thrashing punk and good old fuck-everything, aimless rock ’n’ roll abandon. For a refresher course in rebelliousness, bring your big old ears to the Know—and come early for excellent Portland psych-punks Hornet Leg. RYAN J. PRADO
Full Bar & Menu Until 2:30am Happy Hour 2 – 8pm DAILY
3267 SE Hawthorne Blvd.
503-239-1143
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