BIG POOH, PHILLY'S PHUNKESTRA, DJ ZIMMIE(Crown Room, 205 NW 4th) You miss Little Brother? Me too. But as the respected North Carolina rap duo drifts into indefinite hiatus, Big Pooh is still making the rounds. His Purple Rain-obsessed free mix, The Purple Tape, hinted at what was to come from this lyrically gifted emcee, and you can find out what Pooh is like onstage at tonight's rare Portland performance. EZRA ACE CARAEFF.
THE MEAN JEANS, WILD THING, SF BLOWS, ROOFTOP VIGILANTES, THERAPISTS(East End, 203 SE Grand) Portland's first-wave hardcore revisionists Therapists are self-deprecating, degenerative aggressors of the highest honor, unleashing unbridled pogo fury while channeling the spirits of punk's greatest fallen misanthropes. Their manic, wild-eyed lead singer, who roams and writhes around the stage with a mic cord wrapped around his throat, seems possessed by his own inner demons that beckon him to spit in the air or swipe your beer out of your hand. When I first saw the band perform at SMMR BMMR in August, they reminded me of Zero Boys, Black Flag, and early Suicidal Tendencies wrapped in one, honing catchy hooks with raw power and a sneering, fuck-you attitude. Therapists incite the sort of reckless energy that very few punk bands have been able to pull off over the last decade or more. TRAVIS RITTER
RIVERCITY MUSIC FESTIVAL(Red Lion on the River, 909 N Hayden Island) A couple changes to this year's annual RiverCity Bluegrass Festival: For one, it's now called the RiverCity Music Festival, allowing for a wider range of acoustic-based performers who don't strictly fall into the bluegrass category. For another, it leaves its home at the Oregon Convention Center for more northerly climes at the Jantzen Beach Red Lion, which holds two stages plus functioning restaurants and bars—no small thing. This year's three-day lineup boasts the likes of Texas songwriter Guy Clark and a Nashville supergroup called the Time Jumpers, plus nearly 20 other acts, including local strummers Jackstraw, who are worth the trip to Jantzen Beach even without all this other stuff going on. NED LANNAMANN