ELLIOTT BROOD, THE PACK A.D.
(Doug Fir, 830 E Burnside) If you caught Toronto's Elliott Brood at Pickathon, you already know they're a terrific folk-roots band with a damn fine live show. And with Vancouver, BC's garage chuggers the Pack A.D. opening, this night's gonna fall on the good side of rowdy. NED LANNAMANN

ALELA DIANE, RYAN FRANCESCONI
(Oaks Pioneer Church, 455 SE Spokane) Quickly following last year's band effort, Alela Diane & Wild Divine, local songwriter Alela Diane already has a batch of new material on the way. Early reports from Diane indicate that it'll be very much a solo record, perhaps the most intimate work she's done since her debut, The Pirate's Gospel. Such cozy material cries out for a cozy room to play it in, and Diane has found exactly that, playing a two-night stand at the tiny, historic Oaks Pioneer Church in Sellwood. With scarcely 50 tickets available a night, both shows promptly sold out. NL

ADVENTURES! WITH MIGHT, POCKETKNIFE, GRANDPARENTS, DOUBLEPLUSGOOD
(Holocene, 1001 SE Morrison) Here's the deal with Pocketknife and Adventures! With Might's fantastic split 7-inch: Each band contributed one new song and covered their favorite song by the other band. Though both bands have a strong affection for keyboards, Pocketknife's romantic hooks presuppose a certain gravity to your dance party. Adventures! With Might, on the other hand, make synthpop so libidinous that you can't hear it without blushing. While both band's original contributions are great, the covers are what make this record so compelling. Pocketknife turns A!WM's supersexy dance jam "You Think Too Much" into a contemplative, bass-driven song with a strong New Order vibe. In its original state Pocketknife's "Should I Kiss the Viper's Fang" was moody and intense; A!WM transforms it into a sweaty club song to which countless teenagers can lose their virginities. REBECCA WILSON

ALELA DIANE, EVAN WAY
(Oaks Pioneer Church, 455 SE Spokane) Quickly following last year's band effort, Alela Diane & Wild Divine, local songwriter Alela Diane already has a batch of new material on the way. Early reports from Diane indicate that it'll be very much a solo record, perhaps the most intimate work she's done since her debut, The Pirate's Gospel. Such cozy material cries out for a cozy room to play it in, and Diane has found exactly that, playing a two-night stand at the tiny, historic Oaks Pioneer Church in Sellwood. With scarcely 50 tickets available a night, both shows promptly sold out. Tonight's show also includes Evan Way, whose band the Parson Red Heads just entered the studio to record the follow-up to last year's lovely Yearling. In the meantime, six Parsons tracks from the Yearling sessions will be released on a new EP, Murmurations, next month. NED LANNAMANN

SUSAN AND THE SURFTONES, WAVESAUCE, SURF WEASELS
(Duff's Garage, 1635 SE 7th) Susan SurfTone's backstory is easily as interesting as her richly paced surf-rock revivalism. Weaned on the fertile beachside pop of the Ventures, SurfTone abandoned careers in law and with the FBI to focus on her love of cresting melodies and fluid surf-core jams. With an impressive number of albums and worldwide tours on her rÉsumÉ, SurfTone is playing live again for the first time in a very long time, on the weight of her excellent 2011 album Shore, a collection of bouncy, instrumental surf tunes that are notable for their wholly unironic qualities as much as their sturdiness. SurfTone's album release will enjoy the benefits of an incarnation of her band the Surftones, with warm organs and tight drumming softening the hard edge of SurfTone's lead guitar. RYAN J. PRADO

YOU WHO!: THE SHINS, SNEAKIN' OUT, DJ ANJALI
(Kennedy School, 5736 NE 33rd) Why should the 21+ set get all the good shows? What about the very, very underage crowd? Today the Shins take a break from the grown-up world to play a set for toddlers at the Kennedy School's lovely You Who! kid's rock show series. It's super sold out, but maybe you'll get lucky. SARAH MIRK

LISTEN:

Divers - "Glass Chimes"

DIVERS, BIG EYES, FREEDOM CLUB
(The Know, 2026 NE Alberta) Few things are more concisely satisfying than a perfect 7-inch single, and the debut from Divers, out on Olympia's Rumbletowne Records and available for free download on the Rumbletowne site, is exactly that. The new Portland band, formed from the remnants of the much-loved Drunken Boat, has crafted two marvelous tracks—gritty, tender, heavy, wistful rock numbers torn straight out of the Boss' playbook, with a bit of punk snot for good measure. A-side "Glass Chimes" features guest vocals from RVIVR's Erica Freas alongside Divers frontman Harrison Rapp, and it's an urgent, captivating, full-throttle ride with an indelibly hooky melody. B-side "Montrose" (also known as "Brothers") might be even better, a lengthy ode to a long-gone friend that ends with a double-time call to arms. These are astonishingly good songs, and all signs indicate that Divers is an astonishingly good band. They punch you right in the gut—and you'll thank them for it. NED LANNAMANN

THE BUSINESS, THE DOWNTOWN STRUTS, RUM REBELLION, SHOCK TROOPS
(Rotture, 315 SE 3rd) A relic from 1979, South London's the Business still hold that Oi! spirit—yelling stories about politics, society, drinking, and girls over crude punk constructions. But there's a sense of unity and belonging here, one that's delightfully appealing to those who may be feeling lost. The band's most recent, 2010's Doing the Business, sports those same brisk, runaway drum beats and steady, up-tempo guitar strains. Their sound hasn't really changed much over time, but there's nothing like some good throaty, angry, body-thrashing British punk music to make your Sunday night (and potentially ruin your Monday). To wit: No one judges you when you enter the pit, and certainly no one cares at all if you're dancing "properly." Lose control and take comfort in the fact that if you take an elbow or even a skull to the face, the perpetrator will likely pause to check that you haven't lost consciousness before thrashing on. ELENA BUCKLEY

PANTERA CELLO PROJECT
(Wonder Ballroom, 128 NE Russell) There is only one band in Portland who could adequately pay tribute to the 20th anniversary of Pantera's Vulgar Display of Power, and that band is... the Portland Cello Project. Known for executing unexpected genres, PCP might deliver the only Pantera concert that doesn't threaten a case of tinnitus. MARJORIE SKINNER

ILYAS AHMED
(Nationale, 811 E Burnside) Read our article on Ilyas Ahmed.

BENEFIT FOR JEN McCARGAR AND KENNY ZIMMERMAN: GASHDIG, THRESCHER
(Ash Street Saloon, 225 SW Ash) Read our article on Gashdig and Threscher.

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THE JEALOUS SOUND
(Hawthorne Theatre, 1507 SE 39th) Read our article on The Jealous Sound.

CALEB KLAUDER COUNTRY BAND, PETUNIA AND THE VIPERS
(The Spare Room, 4830 NE 42nd) I don't care if you don't like country music: the Caleb Klauder Country Band is the best live band in Portland. When this crack team of ace players lets 'er rip, the dance floor explodes in a hullabaloo of twangin', twistin', good old-fashioned American music. Don't miss the expert yodeling of opening band Petunia and the Vipers. NED LANNAMANN

SLABTOWN REOPENING: CHEMICALS, BLOODTYPES, DEFECT DEFECT
(Slabtown, 1033 NW 16th) After changing hands following this year's Bender, Slabtown reopens its doors tonight, ushering in a new era of rock, booze, pinball, and other disreputably fun times. If that's not enough, how does Giant Ruinous Monster Wrestling grab ya? For tonight's grand reopening, Slabtown's new owner Doug Rogers claims that there will be exactly that—it's kind of their own version of Boston's Kaiju Big Battel, in which grown adults wear monster costumes (along the lines of Godzilla and Gamera) and grapple each other. I can't think of anything more hilarious, and neither can you. There will also be live music and DJs, plus free food—so there's no excuse to miss the dawning of the new Slabtown. NL

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