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Thursday, May 5, 2011

Tonight! Tonight: Mogwai, Zola Jesus, Y La Bamba and more!

Posted by Arian Jalali on Thu, May 5, 2011 at 1:48 PM

MOGWAI, ERRORS


(Wonder Ballroom, 128 NE Russell) There are folks who insist that Mogwai's breakthrough 1999 album Come on Die Young is the pinnacle of their recording career. They'll tell you how the Scottish post-rock band took Slint's beautiful and beastly extremes to new levels, and about how explosively loud they were live back in the day. But there were critics who initially panned the album, viewing it as a letdown after their promising Young Team debut. The thing is, Mogwai continue to expand their sound on every record, borrowing ideas from various corners of the rock spectrum, delivering everything from piano ballads to vocoder-enhanced pop songs to Kraut rock exercises. Their consistent creative adventurism and high-quality output ultimately make whichever album served as your introduction, the most likely to be cemented into place as your favorite. BRIAN COOK

ZOLA JESUS, NAKED ON THE VAGUE, PETE SWANSON, DJ NIGHTSCHOOL


(Holocene, 1001 SE Morrison) Naked on the Vague appeared out of nowhere in 2008 with a debut LP that had an ominous, purple-hued photograph of a man and woman holding antlers, candles, mirrors, and other things on the cover. But you gotta give the Sydney, Australia-based duo (Lucy ClichÉ and Matthew Hopkins) some credit for paving the black tar on the new goth scene that currently resonates in hipster cliques worldwide. (I think people call it grave wave?) Naked on the Vague's music is a racket of dissonant tones and morbid fascinations. Their latest full-length, Twelve Dark Noons, recorded as a four-piece, showcases their decidedly fuller doom vibes brilliantly. Witchy young lady Zola Jesus is a hybrid of Stevie Nicks, Diamanda GalÁs, and Siouxsie Sioux, and her classical take on material Swans never wrote is good enough to win over the veteran goths who actually partied in the Batcave. TRAVIS RITTER


Y LA BAMBA, GRAND HALLWAY


(Mississippi Studios, 3939 N Mississippi) Looking for a Cinco de Mayo option that doesn't involve tequila and a shot-glass bandolier? Class up your fifth of May with a cuddly evening spent beside Y La Bamba and some very special guests (shhh, it's a mariachi band). Luz Elena Mendoza's mystical folk outfit recently raised $8,386 on Kickstarter—their goal was $8,000, so they now have an extra $386 to spend on something worthwhile, like a sweet airbrushed mural of an Aztec god painted on their van for their upcoming tour with Neko Case. Those donations will be used to fund their second full-length and follow-up to the promising Lupon. Joining them will be the sweet sounds of Seattle indie pop sextet Grand Hallway, who are about to release Winter Creatures, a new full-length recorded right here in Portland. EZRA ACE CARAEFF

CRYSTAL HOTEL OPENING: M. WARD, DOUG MARTSCH, THE LORD'S OWN CHOIR

(Crystal Ballroom, 1332 W Burnside) Celebrate the opening of the new Crystal Hotel with a three-day extravaganza with M. Ward as the load-bearing funmaster. He'll be entertaining the lookie-loos with a cadre of musical pals like Corin Tucker, David Bazan, and Doug Martsch. Come to gape at the former gay bathhouse, stay for the awesome concerts. COURTNEY FERGUSON

NIGHT TRAIN SOUL CLAP AND DANCE OFF


(East End, 203 SE Grand) It's a goddamn national treasure! DJ Mr. Jonathan Toubin returns with his bottomless crate of soul 45s and his crazy wicked fun dance night called New York Night Train Soul Clap! Dance-offs! A $100 prize! And buckets of sweat! WM. STEVEN HUMPHREY

 

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