The annual Big Ass Boombox Festival is a free showcase of a huge spread of up-and-coming local bands and writers. Building from the festival’s success, the monthly showcase, Lil’ Ass B-Bo, as everybody is calling it, offers a smaller sample of great new bands, authors, and starting this month, comedians. This month’s lineup includes Sweet Tooth, Adam Brock 4, Family Night, Max Fortune, and Sioux Falls. You gotta catch ’em all, but definitely catch Adam Brock 4 for sweet pop tunes somewhere between jazz and folk with remarkable vocals, and sioux Falls for a throwback to late 90’s indie pop reminiscent to early Modest Mouse crossed with Foo Fighters. 

Little Ass Boombox is happening Friday, 3.28.14 at Kelly’s Olympian. The show is free. – Chandler Strutz

If you’re one of the lucky ones who is making it out to Treefort Music Fest in Boise, Idaho this weekend, you’re probably losing your mind right now. And with good reason, as your life is likely to change forever. To make things easier for you, we’ve dug through this year’s lineup to highlight the overwhelming amount of Portland bands whose performances this weekend demand your presence. Persuasion is done best quickly and carefully. Pay close attention.

Curated by local all-star Theo Craig, this week’s Rontoms Sundays Session is simply a must catch event. Eidolons headline the show with their quiet, fluttering vocals, hard hitting drums and jazzy, progressive rock. Seattle’s Cataldo boasts smooth pop and catchy songwriting. Opening the night is Portland’s new low-fi/grunge/pop band Bed, who is also one of the bands in our current Artist of the Month Poll (tomorrow, 3/22, is the last day to vote for Bed, Daydream Machine, or Swansea in our Poll here). Bed will be releasing their single, Brother, and it’s accompanying music video at the show. You’ll sure feel weird if you miss out.

The show is free and starts at 8:30pm. – Chandler Strutz

This Friday night Mississippi Studios will play host to a trio of awesome bands from both sides of the country. Opening the night is Portland’s own Settlers whose knack for driving, atmospheric indie rock can be heard on the track “Proskater” which you can download here for free or $100… name your price. Next up will be the anthemic and energetic Team Spirit of Brooklyn, who blend a power-pop attitude with surf rock vibes to create an irresistibly rocking sound. Also from New York and closing out the night is Skaters, who are able to seamlessly combine a classic indie rock sound with a nihilistic energy typically reserved for garage rock groups. Their performance, along with the entire venue, is bound to be ecstatic as they play songs off of their debut album, Manhattan. Show starts at 9pm, do yourself a favor this weekend and get to this show.

– Ben Toledo

I’m a big fan of Bubble Cats and their epic pop/gateway metal–think heavy Weezer, like if Rivers Cuomo hadn’t phoned in the last five albums while getting restraining orders in Japan. These guys have the baddest guitar melodies and harmonies (guitarmonies) around. The Tamed West opens the show with their blend of groovin’ garage/psych pop remeniscent to the late Gauntlet Hair crossed with Tame Impala meets Elliot Smith esque vocals. Splitting up these two fine local acts Friday night, and measuring up quite nicely, is sothern California based Dharma. 

The show is only $3 this Friday at Habesha. 8:30pm. – Chandler Strutz

The Ghost Ease will be shipping out for a West Coast tour after a kickoff party this Tuesday (3.18) at the industrial northsiders’ favorite venue. Their psych rock tunes will be a perfect fit for the World Famous Kenton Club as their distorted and guitar driven songs echo swimmingly into the garage sound that this music was born into. The Ghost Ease focus on a steady rhythm and noticeable, grungy guitar sections to fill things out while guitar/vocalist Jem Marie’s dreamy vocals bring their songs into folky ballads. Come on out to send them off the proper way. Opening the show is fellow psych-folk rockers, WL. – Colin Hudson

Portland super group Tada is coming out of hibernation with their third self-released album since 2008, Way Out. The album offers listeners an elegant ebb and flow of sonic tension and release. Although it sounds soft as a kitten at times, and showcases beautiful instrumentation and harmonies by the album’s numerous collaborative members (including members of Builders and the Butchers, Cambrian Explosion, Kelli Shaefer, Modern Kin, and Turbo Perfecto to name a few), it’s not a stretch to feel the presence of Tada front-man Matt Thornton’s dark roots in hardcore and metal music.

Thornton was awesome enough to give The Deli Portland the privilege to be the first to share his tracks ‘Not Alone’ and ‘Way Out.’

‘Not Alone’ begins with the melancholic, slow drone of Matt’s bass strumming, but quickly transforms into a newly inspired, upbeat, banger as he is joined by piano and then drums, as if he’s just realized that significance of who the musicians are who’ve just joined him. Appropriately enough to that theme, the song ends with the triumphant chanting of “we are not alone”, leaving the listener with that feeling of, “fuck… we can do this shit!”  

The album’s title track, ‘Way Out’ carries a similar droning, washy resonance of sadness, but builds to an epic climax of reverbed-out slide guitar, cello and heavy drums. This track has the brilliant and heavy feel of something you would expect to hear if Mogwai, Pink Floyd and OK Computer era Radiohead were to drop acid together and write a song in one day. It’s a good thing.  

Join Tada for the release of Way Out at Red and Black Café on March 15. Kelli Shafer opens up the show at 7pm and Old Age close out the night.

– Travis Leipzig and Cory Huennekens

Among selfies, teenage twerking and insincere social networking, there’s authenticity left in modern day culture. On March 16th,  The Verner Pantons will be performing at Valentines with The Cry and Chantrelles (members of Modern Kin and Tiger House). The Verner Pantons have been creating engaging rock n roll since 2010, with generous influence from  60s pop art and the underground. Their recordings present clean and flowery lullabies, but their live performance asserts rowdiness and far more energy than what could be experienced without the band members standing right in front of you. Stand-out single "Melancholy Girl" could easily entice the aforementioned twerking teenagers while simultaneously charming your sweet grandma. Bands with that type of power demand attention and this show demands your attendance. This show will also serve as the record release party for The Cry’s newest album Dangerous Game. – Colette Pomerleau

Wooden Indian Burial Ground has gained a following in the last few years, playing a million shows (including The Deli’s CMJ showcase in NYC) and signing with Mon Amie records. Each player in the trio gets lost in their own instrumental force-fields, and still the music rises and falls together into a hypnotic rabbit hole of lo-fi psych-rock. Their new Problems EP has a tighter, quickened pace since their 2012 self titled;  seamless rhythms, vocal harmonies, and well-placed feedback rule over spacey notes.  It’s more of a wild garage style with an underlying mind-fuck wave that leaves you kind of dizzy. If you haven’t experienced the live performance, get thee to Mississippi Studios on 3-13.

Tango Alpha Tango headline the Doug Fir this Thursday with their high-energy, bluesy classic rock sounds–watch frontman Nathan Trueb for shredding guitar solos. Main support Fox and the Law have long been infiltrating the Portland scene with their hard-hitting rock n roll, including a recent live performance recorded at Banana Stand Media to be released in the near future. The Lower 48 open the night, trading guitar solos for harmonies and rad Beatles esque pop tunes.

Sponsored by the wonderful folks at KZME, expect catchy hooks and some in-your-face cool guy stuff Thursday 3.13.2014. The show starts at 9pm and costs $12 at the door or $10 in advance here. – Chandler Strutz

I arrived at the Wonder Ballroom after work ready to enjoy the Friday edition of Malt Ball 2014. 24 brewers were on hand, 12 of which collaborated with the weekends bands to create a beer/band line-up. With friends I tasted each and every one of the beers. This year seemed IPA heavy, but all were delicious. 

Hey Ladieeeez!