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Friday, Feb. 13
How to End Poverty in 90 Minutes
[THEATER] $10 of every ticket goes toward a $1,000 pile of money, and y'all gotta figure out how to spend it to save the world. What could be ass-numbing bleacher fare becomes a real and rare chance to think together. Portland Playhouse, 602 NE Prescott St., 488-5822, portlandplayhouse.org. 7:30 pm. $40 ($20 rush.)
Animal Eyes, Fanno Creek, Fog Father
[TRIPPY POP] Former Alaskans Animal Eyes mix Menomena-like hooks with Animal Collective-like prog sensibilities, combined into tracks perfect for strolling bleary-eyed and smiling down the street while bobbing your head to odd meters. The band hasn't released new tracks since 2013's Ursus EP, but it has grown much tighter in that time. Joined by local folk up-and-comers Fanno Creek and dreamy beach-rockers Fog Father, this is a local bill that will take you to three distinct places, each well worth the trip. PARKER HALL. Spare Room, 4830 NE 42nd Ave., 503-287-5800. 9 pm. Free. 21+.
Northwest Horn Orchestra
[BRASS TACKS] Twenty French horn players walk into a bar…after their annual extravaganza at the Old Church, that is. Once a year, the finest horn players in the land assemble to create the Northwest Horn Orchestra. With a sound that recalls the horn-heavy Lord of the Rings soundtrack, the group shapes rearranged classical, jazz and rock music into heart-throbbing, brass-laden epics. Accompanied by varied classical and pop rhythm sections, the group derives its success largely from turning a would-be black-tie event into a lighthearted way to spend the night, keeping Portland thoroughly weird. BRETT CAMPBELL. The Old Church, 1422 SW 11th Ave., 222-2031. 7:30 pm Friday, Feb. 13. $12 students and seniors, $17 general admission. All ages.rush, cash-only).
The Art of Bellydance
[DANCE] Local bellydance journal From the Hip presents its ninth showcase, The Art of Bellydance, as a bid to educate audiences on the styles. This performance doesn't stick solely to traditional bellydancing though, also covering Tribal Fusion—which commonly blends other dance styles like flamenco or ballet—and American Tribal Style of bellydance. Local three-piece collective Lucine Dance Company headlines, a group formed in late 2013 that specialize in a delicate, hypnotic style of Tribal Fusion. Violetta, The Tribal Kind, Endymienne, Elena Villa and Laurel also perform. Clinton Street Theater, 2522 SE Clinton St., 238-8899. 7 pm Friday, Feb. 13. $8-$15. All ages.
Hozier, Ásgeir
[RUSTIC SOUL] While it's easy to bask in the warm glow of Sam Smith and the Black Keys individually these days, why not embrace an artist who evokes both? Andrew Hozier-Byrne, aka Hozier, is a music-school dropout and onetime orchestra singer. You probably know him from his catchy single "Take Me to Church," a compelling fusion of brazen blues, folk rock and Motown. But Hozier's entire catalog is enriched by his R&B- and soul-infused vocals and bluesy, often dark, guitar portraits. Tracks such as "To Be Alone" show his near-religious side, with a much more humid, muddy sound than you'd expect to hear coming out of Northern Europe. The Irishman has one self-titled LP to his name, but it's a weighty one. He credits a small-town upbringing, combined with lots of free time to absorb seminal artists such as John Lee Hooker, Nina Simone and Tom Waits, who influence his sound. Music hasn't seen this kind of passionate, resonant, blues-according-to-a-choirboy styling since Jeff Buckley. MARK STOCK. Crystal Ballroom, 1332 W Burnside St., 225-0047. 9 pm. Sold out. All ages.
Third Angle New Music
[MOZART MASHUP] Imprisoning new and old classical music in silos does neither any favors. Programs that combine classic and contemporary works bring new audiences to each, keep classical music from turning into a musty antiquities museum, and reveal the continuity between past and present music. That connection is clear in American composer-guitarist Steven Mackey's sparkling flute quartet Humble River, whose movements he designed to be interwoven between movements of the pieces that inspired it: Mozart's cheery pieces for the same instruments, written a couple centuries earlier. That's how they'll be performed by the four Oregon Symphony musicians in the latest hourlong, intermission-free concert in Third Angle's innovative Studio Series. BRETT CAMPBELL. Zoomtopia, 810 SE Belmont St., zoomtopia.com. 7:30 pm Thursday-Friday, Feb. 12-13. $10 students, $20 seniors, $25 general admission. 21+.
Picture This!
[COMEDY] In a show that mashes standup and Pictionary, comics perform while artists illustrate their sets live. There's a predictable tendency toward penis drawings, but also an offbeat play between the visual and the verbal. Andie Main hosts. Curious Comedy, 5225 NE Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd., 477-9477. 9:30 pm every second Friday. $7-$10; $5 with the purchase of a ticket to the 7:30 pm show.
Saturday, Feb. 14
Zwickelmania
[BEER] Best Valentine's Day ever for single men with beards! Breweries all over Oregon are opening their doors and letting you try samples straight from the tanks. Check oregoncraftbeer.org/zwickelmania for full details. 11 am-4 pm.
Sir Mix-a-Lot, Smoochknob, Love Bomb Go-Go
['CONDA-MAXIMUM] Somehow, I doubt Sir Mix-a-Lot regrets writing "Baby Got Back." Its enduring popularity (mostly among fans of ironic karaoke, but still) has kept the 51-year-old Seattle rapper and producer in public consciousness going on a quarter-century now, nevermind allowed him to continue eating. And with the zeitgeist's current preoccupation with outsized posteriors, Mix is ensured an even longer run. But much like the big butts he loves so dear, "Baby Got Back" casts a rather large shadow, eclipsing his other, more artistically legitimate accomplishments—most notably his earlier single, 1988's "Posse On Broadway," which, in terms of defining of an era of Seattle music, is every bit as crucial as, say, "Touch Me I'm Sick." If Mix ever feels any existential angst over his place in the cultural, he probably soothes himself by looking at his royalty checks. I just hope he gets the joke of Sir Mix-a-Lot headlining a Valentine's Day concert, and is cool being, well, the butt. MATTHEW SINGER. Dante's, 350 W Burnside St., 345-7892. 9 pm. $20 advance, $60 couples package. 21+.
Smokey Robinson with the Oregon Symphony
[THE CUPID OF SOUL] If you care at all about American popular music, then the Smokey Robinson songbook is required listening. A simple list of the classics he either performed or penned is enough to illustrate his importance: "Tears of a Clown," "I Second That Emotion," "Shop Around," "The Tracks of My Tears," "My Girl," "Cruisin'" and on and on. He was Motown's smoothest voice (and that's saying something) and up there as one of its sharpest writers. He's never had Marvin's conflicted conscience or Stevie's expansive musical vision, but he's figured out more poetic ways to express love and heartbreak than just about any other songwriter alive. And he's playing Portland on St. Valentine's Day? Backed by the symphony? Talk about #blessed. MATTHEW SINGER. Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall, 1037 SW Broadway, 248-4335. 7:30 pm. $35-$97. All ages.
Skinner/Kirk Dance Ensemble
[DANCE] Skinner/Kirk Dance Ensemble returns to the stage after nearly three years. Eric Skinner and Daniel Kirkâalso founding members for Oregon Ballet Theatreâmet in 1989 and have danced together ever since. The group blends ballet, aerial and modern dance styles, with an emphasis on fluid strength and theatricality. For this performance, the company revists one of Skinnerâs earlier works, Urban Sprawl, which examines the romance and the isolation of city life. Later, the ensemble premieres âNatâs Farm,â a piece inspired by Skinner and Kirkâs favorite spot on Marthaâs Vineyard set to an original score by composer Tim Ribner. BodyVox Dance Center, 1201 NW 17th Ave., 229-0627. 7 pm Thursday-Saturday, Feb. 12-14 and 19-21 and 2 pm Saturday, Feb. 21 . $25-$59.
Broncho, Psychomagic, Daisy Death
[SUMMER'S LIFE] Oklahoma isn't really a hotbed for indie rock. But like most middle-sized college towns, Norman isn't all meatheads and keg stands at the Delta house, either. Garage punk trio Broncho are here to prove once and for all that some of the catchiest, most life-affirming, crush-that-beer-can-and-sing-along pop music can come out of a basement anywhere in the country, as long as songs like "Class Historian" exist in the world. The second track on the band's scintillating sophomore record, Just Enough Hip to Be Woman, "Class Historian" is aural magic, the perfect soundtrack for every acceptable summer activity: drinking at the river, watching the sunset on the coast, walking to get poutine after too many IPAs. The rest of the record—including "It's On," recognizable from the end credits of a Girls episode—lives up to the hype, offering crunchy sunburst punk tunes that are both sloppy and immaculately crafted. Your flyover-state boredom ends here. MICHAEL MANNHEIMER. Bunk Bar, 1028 SE Water Ave., 894-9708. 10 pm. $10. 21+.
Gothic Anti-Valentine's Dinner
[FOOD] Glyph hates love, or Hallmark, or something, and will be hosting an anti-Valentine's prix fixe dinner made by chef Doug Weiler only in the colors of black, red and white in homage to Edward Gorey, whose works will be read in counterpoint to a guitar and theremin duo. Wine will be had, but only in red and white. No black. Reserve tickets at BlackRedWhiteAtGlyph.brownpapertickets.com. Glyph Cafe & Arts Space, 804 NW Couch St, 719-5481. $65, $25 wine pairing.
Cocotte V-Day
[FOOD] You go Valentine's, you go French. Because the French. Expect suggestive textures in the $70 V-Day five-course, from oysters to scallop tartare to cherry duck breast. 2930 NE Killingsworth St., 227-2669, cocottepdx.com.
Sunday, Feb.. 15
Divers
[ANTHEMIC PUNK] Almost 30 years after the Replacements wrote a song about Portland, Portland has its answer to the Replacements. Divers are that damn good. Hello Hello, its debut full-length four years in the making, is worth the wait. High Water Mark Lounge, 6800 NE Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd., 286-6513. 8 pm. $5. 21+.
St. Ignatius Italian Dinner
[SPAGHETTI AVALANCHE] Every Sunday after Valentine's Day, 107-year-old St. Ignatius Catholic church has had an Italian dinner. What's on the menu? The classics. Red sauce. Spaghetti. Ravioli. Some meatballs. Like 10,000 meatballs. St. Ignatius Parish, 3400 SE 43rd Ave., 777-1491. Noon-6 pm. $11.50 adults, $10 seniors, $6 kids.
Cursive, Beach Slang, Slow Bird
[EMO STALWARTS] Staples of Omaha's Saddle Creek Records, Cursive has added new layers to an already eclectic bag of emotive, soft-yet-screamy repertoire on its recent records, though they don't have the impact of the band's earlier work. Tim Kasher's introspection has never shied away from self-criticism, so he's likely the first to admit a misstep. So the band is returning to the old stuff: Cursive has given 2003 breakthrough album The Ugly Organ deluxe reissue treatment, is touring with string accompaniment and, lucky for us, is playing from its entire catalog. CRIS LANKENAU. Doug Fir Lounge, 830 E Burnside St., 231-9663. 8 pm. $18. 21+.
Dead Man's Cell Phone
[THEATER] Profile Theatre kicks off its season of Sarah Ruhl—a two-time Pulitzer Prize nominee who has one of the most distinctive voices in contemporary American theater—with the playwright's 2007 comedy about a woman who comes into ownership of a dead man's cellphone. That sets her down an unexpectedly twisty path, one that involves much more than text messages and and mysterious voicemails. Like much of Ruhl's work, the play juggles the eccentric and the mundane, and does so with vibrant, bold and lyrical language. Artists Repertory Theatre, 1515 SW Morrison St., 242-0080. 7:30 pm Thursdays-Saturdays and 2 pm Sundays through Feb. 15. $15-$32.
Grand Lake Islands, Future Historians, Jackson Boone
[STONED FOLK] Erik Emanuelson's rich, pastoral folk isn't the kind of music you would expect wafting out of a New York apartment complex—perhaps that's why the former teacher moved to Portland in the first place. The outstanding Song From Far, his sophomore effort, lingers with lo-fi melancholia and drifting electric guitar that recall the late Jason Molina in his prime. The ambience is interrupted by expansive Southern-fried guitar and organ, with Emanuelson's laconic lyrics uttered atop it all with a fragility best reserved for the moody folk he creates alongside his three bandmates. The fact the album was recorded in a basement only adds to its sullen nature. BRANDON WIDDER. Mississippi Studios, 3939 N Mississippi Ave., 288-3895. 8 pm. $7. 21+.
WWeek 2015