Willamette Weekend: 20 Things to Do and See Oct. 30-Nov. 1

Shakey Graves plays the Schnitz, Cargo celebrates it's birthday and The Builders & the Butchers are back!

FRIDAY, OCT. 30

The Builders & the Butchers

The Builders and The Butchers The Builders and The Butchers at Valentine’s

[THEY'RE BACK] The Builders and the Butchers played at Valentines in 2007, here's what singer-guitarist Ryan Sollee remembers: "I remember being so amazed that we actually sold 20 records at the show. It was a really incredible night. Valentines was full of buddies, and we could barely hear ourselves over the singing along. At the end of the show, we took the crowd outside and then into Voodoo Doughnut, and immediately got kicked out. It's really crazy to think of how much downtown and Portland in general has changed since this night. This was one of our last (mostly) unplugged shows at a venue, and I really miss shows like this." The Builders and the Butchers celebrate their 10th anniversary at Bunk Bar, 1028 SE Water Ave., with Hillstomp, on Friday and Saturday, Oct. 30-31. 10 pm. $13. 21+.

Wand, Personal Best, Grandparents

[PSYCH ROCK] Wand embodies the new-psych sound, embracing a mix of every genre ever built by on a foundation of LSD. Borrowing from stoner rock and shoegaze, with a bit of S.F. Sorrow-era Pretty Things and Ty Segall-esque modern rock thrown in, Wand delivers a potpourri of sounds appealing to the urbane young doper. Despite its list of obvious influences, the band is not a throwaway rip-off, either. It has actual hooks, with honest-to-God catchy choruses, and its constant stylistic shifts don't grate on the ears. BRACE BELDEN. The Know, 2026 NE Alberta St. 8 pm. $8. 21+.

All Well

[SOUND PLAY] Imagine the sounds inside a stranded Arctic ship, right before the crew resorts to cannibalism. It's no surprise that a theatrical group with "experimental" in its name and a former EDM DJ in the director's chair would create a "sightless" show built on that exact premise. Touring 25 patrons at a time through the basement of an old Masonic lodge, tucking them into hammocks in complete darkness and whispering stories in their ears about an 1845 Arctic expedition—that's Portland Experimental Theater Ensemble director Jacob Coleman's plan. "Worst-case scenario: Someone falls out of a hammock in the darkness." Imago Theatre, 17 SE 8th Ave., petensemble.org. 10, 10:30 and 11 pm. Other showtimes through Nov. 1. $25.

Kristin Hersh

[BOOKS] As the leader of the band Throwing Muses, Kristin Hersh was at the forefront of '80s alt-rock—they were on 4AD, bro. But after reflecting on this time in 2010's Rat Girl, in this year's Don't Suck, Don't Die, she sets her pen on another musician: Vic Chesnutt, the Athens songwriter who released some 17 solo albums and several collaborations despite being quadriplegic. She'll be interviewed by The Oregonian's Peter Ames Carlin, who loves Bruce Springsteen even more than your dad. Powell's City of Books, 1005 W Burnside St., 228-4651, 7:30pm, Free.

SATURDAY, OCT. 31

Shakey Graves

Shakey Graves IMAGE: Courtesy of Big Hassle.

[SOLID ROCK] As a massive fan of Star Trek: The Next Generation, Alejandro Rose-Garcia has some requests for the crowd attending his upcoming Halloween show at the Schnitz. "If someone pulls the deep-cut shit out, oh man!" says the ebullient 28-year-old singer-guitarist (and former Friday Night Lights actor) from Austin, who performs rollicking, foot-stomping blues under the name Shakey Graves. "I'd love to see a Borg. That would really impress me." You probably wouldn't peg Rose-Garcia as a Trekkie purely based on his music. Shakey Graves moves between Americana and noisy rock in songs that range from acoustic duets with Esmé Patterson ("Dearly Departed") to snarky ramblings ("Word of Mouth"). Between multiple independently released recordings, as well as last year's Dualtone Records debut, And the War Came, Shakey Graves has established himself as a proficient studio musician and a fierce performer. Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall, 1037 SW Broadway, with Tennis, on Saturday, Oct. 31. 8 pm. $30. All ages.

FearNoMusic's Halloween Extravaganza

[FEARLESS HALLOWEEN] If you think classical music costuming is all black tuxes and gowns, new music ensemble FearNoMusic will show you the more flamboyant side of contemporary classical. In this all-ages concert, costumes are encouraged for the audience but required of the performers. Composer Robert Erickson's 1969 General Speech re-imagines Gen. Douglas MacArthur's infamous 1962 farewell speech and asks Pink Martini trombonist Robert Taylor to dress in military regalia. One of America's finest current composers, Michael Daugherty, is also one of its most fun-loving, and his music teems with pop-culture tropes from Superman to UFOs. For his 1996 Sinatra Shag, FNM violinist Inés Voglar Belgique dons Nancy Sinatra's 1966 garb, presumably including boots made for walkin'. And George Crumb's 20th-century masterpiece, Voice of the Whale, puts the performers in masks and special lighting that complement its haunting atmosphere. BRETT CAMPBELL. Mississippi Studios, 3939 N Mississippi Ave. 1:30 pm Saturday, Oct. 31. $10 advance, $15 day of show. 21+.

Broomstick

[STAGE FRIGHT] Gemma Whelan (the founder of our favorite local underground Irish theater, not the Game of Thrones star) directs the always-stunning Vana O'Brien in Artist Repertory's Halloween offering. New York Times columnist John Biguenet's one-woman thriller follows an Appalachian witch through her very long life of lost loves. The heartbroken witch eventually turns bitch and exacts her long-awaited revenge on everyone who's wronged her. Artists Repertory Theatre, 1515 SW Morrison St., 241-1278. 7:30 pm. Other showtimes through Nov. 22. $48.

King Dude, Drab Majesty, Big Haunt, Tetrad Veil

[SOUTHERN GOTHIC] Metal and folk make stranger bedfellows. So when TJ Cowgill switched from fronting death-metal outfit Book of Black to writing rootsy dirges as King Dude, it initially puzzled a lot of people. But Cowgill manages to show that metal and Americana really aren't all that different. With his epic baritone and haunting lyrics recalling Nick Cave, King Dude's albums contain enough melodramatic and morbid mysticism to rival any group of Scandinavian satanists. With the Rocky Horror Picture Show of shoegaze, Drab Majesty, opening up, this show is objectively the best way to spend your Halloween. SHANNON GORMLEY. Mississippi Studios, 3939 N Mississippi Ave. 8 pm. $12. 21+.

Grandparents

[KALEIDOSCOPIC POP] Of all the psych-pop bands in Portland—and there a lot of them these days—Grandparents are the most likely to have recorded inside a carnival funhouse. Unlike many of its peers, which start with kooky effects and worry about songs later, Sincerely, Bagman, the sextet's first true full-length after a series of EPs, is grounded in classic '60s pop melodies and garage-rock guitars, except it's all been stretched out, distorted and pulled apart like cotton candy. The Know, 2026 NE Alberta St., with Wand and Personal Best, on Friday, Oct. 30. 8 pm. $8. 21+.

The Ghostbusters ball

[BILL MURRAY] This city is headed for a disaster of biblical proportions. So you might as well put on your backpack and tan onesie and get slimed with four XRAY.fm DJs of Dig A Pony notoriety. With cheap Eagle Lodge liquor, by night's end someone might ask you, "Are you a god?" for real. East Portland Eagle Lodge, 4904 SE Hawthorne Blvd., 232-7505. 9 pm. $10.

10th annual Zombie walk

[WALKING DEAD] Covering Chihuahuas in fake blood and terrorizing Japanese tourists outside Abercrombie & Fitch just never gets old. Or rich—the Walk's gofundme.com campaign for legit permitting is dead. Turns out zombies aren't philanthropic, or concerned by city ordinances. Pioneer Courthouse Square, 701 SW 6th Ave. 2 pm. Free.

The Exorcist

[FRIGHT NIGHT] What it is: Possibly the most notorious (and maybe best?) horror film of all time, the tale of two priests, a demon and a possessed little girl who lets Jesus inside her in the worst possible way. Who it will scare: I have met approximately one person who wasn't scared shitless by this movie. And I married her for protection. Mission Theater, 5:30 and 8:30 pm.

SUNDAY, NOV. 1

Shannon and the Clams, Shopping, Woolen Men, Gazebos

photo from Shannon and the Clams photo from Shannon and the Clams

[NEW-WOP] Shannon and the Clams' latest LP, Gone by the Dawn, is a tale of two breakups. Like the majority of the Oakland group's previous releases, it's a retro-inspired sucker punch of emotion, effortlessly drawing upon '50s doo-wop and rolling surf rock while examining the respective heartache of Shannon Shaw and guitarist Cody Blanchard, who both had relationships end while writing the album. The swath of influences gives them room to breathe, though, rendering their bubbly sound more authentic than campy from the moment the plucky staccato and sliding bass kick in. The downside? The songs are so short you'll likely miss two or three before you even manage to get back from the bar. BRANDON WIDDER. Star Theater, 13 NW 6th Ave. 8 pm. $12. 21+.

Cargo's Anniversary Party: Day of the Dead

Before Cargo became a Pearl anomaly full of international curios, art and interior designers' dreams, it grew up in the Eastside Industrial district. A year ago, it moved back. Using Day of the Dead as the theme for it's second first birthday on the East side, Cargo is inviting people to contribute photos for their Dia de los Muertos shrine, decorate sugar skulls, enjoy confections fom Alma Chocolates and Goldfinch Carmels, get a tarot reading and peruse art hung in the store. Works on display includes heirloom style prints of skeletons from a 100-year-old book that Reading Frenzy's Chloe Eudaly discovered and local filmmaker Janet McIntyre's encaustics, which mix beeswax with feathers via blowtorch. Cargo, 81 SE Yamhill St., 4 pm. Free.

Tavi Gevinson

[BOOKS] Tavi Gevinson first gained attention for her blog, Style Rookie, which garnered thousands of followers each day before she was even of bat mitzvah age. These days, she's going to NYU and running Rookie magazine, a site for teenage girls that treats them like the sentient beings they actually are (looking at you, J-14). The best stuff from Rookie's fourth year is now out in a volume. Wanna feel like crap? Gevinson isn't even 20. Powell's Books at Cedar Hills Crossing, 3415 SW Cedar Hills Blvd., 228-4651. 2 pm. Free.

Victoria

[MOVIE NIGHT] A two-hour-plus, city-spanning crime drama that was filmed in just a single extended shot (and reportedly completed on only the third take), Victoria deserves attention for harboring such seemingly impossible ambitions. Director Sebastian Schipper manufactures an intricate choreography of street life and character interplay to compensate for the absence of story-advancing edits in this film about four Berlin bank robbers orchestrating a heist. But the film never feels like an empty spectacle. Though the pace lags as conventional genre elements appear (mobsters, police, the getaway plan), the film's continuous motion perfectly captures that internal momentum of fast friends and poor decisions made during an extended debauch. And those opening scenes—in which a Spanish cafe girl meets up with the mismatched band of boozy hoodlums to roam the seamier side of early-morning Berlin—burst from the screen in a furious whirl of reckless youth, untamed and defiantly uncut. Critic's Grade: B+. Not Rated. JAY HORTON. Cinema 21.

Carrie the Musical

[BLOODY SUNDAY] Carrie White still gets her bath in this remake of the classic Halloween fodder that notoriously flopped on Broadway in 1988. The multi-million dollar flop lasted just five performances during its original Broadway run, but now it's became such a legendary emblem of theatrical folly that a new generation felt obliged to raise the overly-maligned project from the grave. The original was penned by Lawrence Cohen (screenwriter for the famous film) and scored by Michael Gore & Dean Pitchford (the platinum Fame and Footloose songwriting team). This Stumptown Stages production follows a triumphant Los Angeles revival earlier this year that won fans over with a streamlined script, inventive staging and soft rock balladry that creepily fuels the story of a bullied teen girl's telekinetic revenge. JAY HORTON. Antoinette Hatfield Hall, 1111 SW Broadway, 381-8686. 7:30 pm. Other showtimes through Nov. 8. $25-$40.

Jenny Conlee with Steve Drizos

[WHITEWATER INSTRUMENTALS] Jenny Conlee is the queen of embellishments. She's served as an integral part of the Decemberists and the lesser-known Black Prairie since the inception of both, dressing the sound of each band with light touches of accordion, melodica and a mélange of baroque details rooted in a different century. Her first solo venture, French Kayaking Music, places that ornamentation at the forefront. Doug Fir Lounge, 830 E Burnside St., with Blue Cranes, on Sunday, Nov. 1. 8 pm. $10 advance, $12 day of show. 21+.

2nd Annual Dia de los Muertos Festival de Cervezas

[DEAD DRUNK] At Bazi Bierbrasserie and nearby Imperial Bottle Shop & Taproom (3090 SE Division St.), all hell will break loose on the Mexican day of the dead, with more than 20 themed beers, ciders and wines ranging from Belgium's Brouwerij Het Anker Lucifer Black to a Mexican-style lager from 21st Amendment. It's $10 for a glass and two tastes, $2 for each additional five-ounce taste. Bazi Bierbrasserie, 1522 SE 32nd Ave., 234-8888. 1 pm.

OneBeat

[GLOBAL COLLABORATION] While the Trumpheads try to build walls, the 4-year-old OneBeat program, organized by NYC's Bang on a Can new music collective, brings young musicians from around the world to collaborate on original music, play it on tour, lead workshops with local audiences and "develop strategies for arts-based social engagement" when they return to their home countries. This year's lineup includes Cuban experimental electronic musician and producer Jorge Peña, aka GreenCh; Colombian circus performer and cumbia accordionist Katherine Suavita Niño, aka La Real Esa; Malaysian composer, sound designer and environmentalist Ng Chor Guan; Balkan singer Dragana Tomić, one of Serbia's first professional female kaval players; and Senegalese kora virtuoso Vieux Cissokho. BRETT CAMPBELL. Mississippi Studios, 3939 N Mississippi Ave. 8 pm Sunday, Nov. 1. $10 advance, $15 day of show. 21+.

Willamette Week

Willamette Week’s reporting has concrete impacts that change laws, force action from civic leaders, and drive compromised politicians from public office. Support WW's journalism today.