MIRAH, THAO WITH THE GET DOWN STAY DOWN, Y LA BAMBA (Mississippi Studios, 3939 N Mississippi) MOST OF ALL—Mirah makes a welcome return to Portland in advance of her awesome new single, a reworked dance-party version of "Gone Are the Days." She's got a secret guest in tow—if you haven't already guessed, it's Thao with the Get Down Stay Down! NL
FOL CHEN, GRAND HALLWAY (Doug Fir, 830 E Burnside) In the age of bands tweeting their bedtime routines and singers having adolescent freakouts on comment threads, it seems like there's no mystery left in music. Los Angeles' Fol Chen, though, believe there's magic in the unseen. From the beginning they've been canny about their identities, and the upcoming Part II: The New December continues the heroic/tragic narrative from their debut. "I've always been drawn to bands that don't reveal very much," says band mastermind Samuel Bing. "When you tell someone, 'You can't know that,' they are instantly hell-bent on uncovering whatever it is you're concealing from them."
DAY OF HEL FEST: FAUNA, ALTAR OF PLAGUES, VELNIAS, SUBROSA (Berbati's Pan, 10 SW 3rd) See Friday's listing.
The Contestants coming up after the jump!
META, COLONY COLLAPSE, THE CONTESTANTS, HONEY WARS (The Knife Shop at Kelly's Olympian, 426 SW Washington) The Contestants know their role and excel at it. Their brand new full-length, Can Die in a Fire, glistens with a power-pop sound fitting of comparisons to Velvet Crush, the Posies, and the always underappreciated the Wrens. Here, harmonies rule the roost, as the quintet's tempered delivery and pace show a band with a deep respect for their chosen genre. While the Contestants aren't much for range on Can Die in a Fire, they let loose some in the bouncy "Strangers," which sounds like it was unearthed from the Argybargy recording session. I suppose when you do something as well as the Contestants do here, there's really no point to forcing a change. EAC