High Notes: The Best Live Music in Portland This Week, Feb. 3

Tuesday, February 03, 2015

John Chandler, GoLocalPDX Contributor

The Shrine Courtesy of Tee Pee Records

The Super Bowl is dunzo and if you’re of a tragically mundane mind-set, you might be seeing a massive void on the cultural horizon—at least until your next episode of St. Paddy’s Day binge-drinking. Remove your head from the sand and take a look at our carefully curated concert calendar. You’ll feel invigorated; we promise.

The Shrine, Danava, Nasalrod

Feb 3 @ 9pm

Given enough time to ferment, even the most unlikely raw materials can make a brain-melting brew. Venice, California power trio the Shrine plays hesher-punk with flashes of gnarly riffs from stadium rock acts like Motorhead, Blue Oyster Cult, and Black Sabbath. And it cooks like your mother after a dozen cups of coffee. A pair of primo Portland bands, Danava and Nasalrod, will open the show, making this officially one of the coolest Tuesdays in recent memory.

Doug Fir Lounge, 830 E Burnside St.

Lloyd Cole

Feb 4 @ 8pm

Bookish Brit singer Lloyd Cole is one of those blokes who came storming out of the gate with a drop-dead brilliant record, in this case, ‘Rattlesnakes’ from 1984, with its jingle-jangle single “Perfect Skin.” Despite flying under the radar commercially, Cole continues to confidently explore different paths over a dozen or so albums, including collaborations with Matthew Sweet and Jill Sobule. His latest record, ‘Standards,’ serves as Cole’s Portrait of the Artist as a Mature—But Not Boring—Man. Lloyd Cole is not old—he’s aged to perfection.

$25. Alberta Rose Theatre, 3000 NE Alberta St.

Sabretooth Micro Fest

Feb 6-8 @ 8pm

Three nights in the belly of the blast can be yours by attending the debut of Sabretooth Fest, a sensory salute to the Crystal Ballroom’s psychedelic rock legacy. You’ll find bright and shiny amusements all over McMenamins’ East Burnside network of venues. In the big room on the first night, stoner-rock deities Sleep will pummel and grind attendees into a fine powder that causes powerful visions. Blissful troubadour Kurt Vile headlines the second evening, and Stardeath and White Dwarfs—frequent collaborators and acolytes of the Flaming Lips—will take Sunday night in bold new directions.

$30. Crystal Ballroom, 1332 W Burnside St.

Deep Sea Diver Courtesy thedeepseadiver.com

Deep Sea Diver, The Delines

Feb 6 @ 9pm

Seattle’s Deep Sea Diver is a beguiling pop band under the direction of Shins’ guitarist Jessica Dobson, who is obviously far too talented to settle for being a sideman. On the most recent DSD release, a four-song EP called ‘Always Waiting,’ her sunny, sturdy voice and nimble fretwork are front and center where they belong. Also on the bill is songwriter-novelist Willy Vlautin’s other band (besides Richmond Fontaine), the Delines, a soulfully romantic crew of Countrypolitans fronted by former Damnations vocalist Amy Boone.

$10. Mississippi Studios, 3939 N Mississippi Ave.

Ariel Pink

Feb 9 @ 8pm

Los Angeles-based singer-songwriter Ariel Marcus Rosenberg, better known as Ariel Pink, is part of a particular pantheon of pop personalities that are noteworthy for having labored in obscurity until being discovered by an established star. It was Animal Collective that fortuitously stumbled upon an Ariel Pink CD while on tour in 2003 and immediately signed him to their label, Paw Tracks. Like Guided By Voices mastermind Robert Pollard, Pink has absorbed countless influences (the Cure, Zappa, Sparks, and vintage psychedelia, among others) and has made a career out of recombining these elements into something fresh and catchy.

$18-20. Hawthorne Theatre, 1507 SE 39th Ave.

John Chandler has been writing about rock and/or roll for 25 years with The Rocket, Portland Tribune, Portland Monthly, Magnet, Dagger, No Depression, and Puncture. He also writes about beer, booze, and bars for Portland'sBarFly website and plays in a couple goofy bands when the mood strikes him. He can most often be found at the wheel of horrificflicks.com, a review website dedicated to horror movies.