[June 25th, 2008]

Portland plays host to a wide range of fauna, but if you’ve visited Estacada’s Hong’s Lounge (a.k.a. The Safari Club ), with its display of old-school taxidermy, you know wild animals are most accessible when they are stuffed . Now you too can go on a city safari, spying animals that aren’t camera shy and are never sleeping (because they’re dead). Any sightseer can see a head in a steakhouse or bar, but the real thrill is in chancing upon a beast where you least expect one. We’ve documented a few examples of the interaction between exotic, stuffed wildlife and the urban PDX jungle. (And thanks New York mag, from whom we poached this big-game idea.)

RUDY’S BARBERSHOP

“We cut heads,” reads the slogan of this Pearl District coiffeur, which is rather appropriate given the large bison hanging out on the wall above the front desk. Is there a “buffalo-style” in their repertoire of hairdos? “No, but my mom used to say my dad’s hair made him look like a water buffalo,” one stylist quipped. How unfortunate.

212 NW 13th Ave., 525-2900.

FLUTTER

There is a certain chic quality about taxidermy that has been captured by the boutique Flutter. Bavarian horn plaques and decorated deer busts abound, but the stuffed birds are the most valued specimens. All manner of fowl are preserved for posterity right next to an enormous cage of live finches—which must be a curious kind of hell.

3948 N Mississippi Ave., 288-1649.

REEL M INN

This grungy dive bar, which has garnered rave reviews from WW for its chicken and jojos, lacks a Big Buck Hunter video game but makes up for the omission in hunting trophies. Reel M Inn features everything from a marlin in the corner to a fox above the bar (not a red fox or a gray fox, just a “dirty fox”), but the real gem is the deer keister in the corner. The business end of this white tail is a memorial to the “one who got away.”

2430 SE Division St., 231-3880.

OLD PORTLAND HARDWARE & ARCHITECTURAL

The estate sale of a game hunter led to the acquisition of a spotted hyena named Terrence , who now guards the door of this salvaged hardware shop. “He was just Addams Family enough for me,” says shop owner Bret Hodgert. Apparently so were the ostrich and emu leg lamps , named Gomez and Morticia, respectively.

4035 SE Division St., 234-7380.

THE RED LIGHT CLOTHING EXCHANGE

Glance upward while perusing the racks of secondhand threads and you’ll be staring at the oddest bust in town. Like a cheetah with a neck that’s a foot too long, this stuffed “animal” thrusts itself from the wall and is certainly faux, a quality made more evident by the very real deer bust next to it. Says man-behind-the-counter Steven Hitsman, “I’m a vegan so I hate the deer…but it’s not hard to love the imposter.”

333 SW 10th Ave., 294-0800.

^Headout Picks

THURSDAY JUNE 26

[MUSIC] DEATH CAB FOR CUTIE, ROGUE WAVE

Just ‘cuz teenagers like it doesn’t make it bad. Death Cab for Cutie rocks the Edgefield tonight in support of its brand new record, Narrow Stairs. The band’s half a million MySpace friends rejoice. McMenamins Edgefield, 2126 SW Halsey St., Troutdale, 669-8610. 6:30 pm. $36. All ages.

[CLASSICAL] PETER SCHICKELE

Schickele’s accessible and imaginative compositions have always been overshadowed by his creation, the disreputable P.D.Q. Bach. The more you know about classical music, the funnier Schickele’s PDQ shtick tends to be. Kaul Auditorium at Reed College, 3203 SE Woodstock Blvd., 294-6400. 8 pm Thursday, other dates, see page 70. $10-$43.

SATURDAY JUNE 28

[MUSIC] TYPHOON, THE EVOLUTIONARY JASS BAND, ESKIMO AND SONS

Sham 69 once sang that “If the Kids are United/ They Will Never Be Divided.” That’s the conceit of Boy Gorilla Records, whose massive youth bands, Typhoon and Eskimo and Sons, return from tour tonight. Artistery, 4315 SE Division St., artistery.net. 8 pm. $6. All ages.

[BEYOND IKEA] 80TH ANNUAL SCANFEST

Scandinavians: more than just hip furnishing creators. Soak up the culture at one of the oldest midsummer fests on the West Coast. German American Cultural Center, 7901 SE Division St., 977-0275. 11 am-6 pm. $5 adult, $3 kids 6-12.

[BIKE] SPROCKETTES BIKE BASH

Pedalpalooza’s two-wheeled reign ends with a massive bike/art/music bash organized by PDX’s own “bike dance team.” Wheel fun. Organics to You, 606 SE Madison St., sprockettes.org. 8 pm. $5. All ages.

MONDAY JUNE 30

[MUSIC] THE CONSTANTINES, LADYHAWK, THE WEATHER UNDERGROUND

Toronto’s the Constantines are probably the best rock band in North America. Recommended if you like AC/DC, beat poetry and ringing headaches that last for days. Doug Fir, 830 E Burnside St., 231-9663. 9 pm. $11 advance, $12 day of show. 21+

[STAGE] ANONYMOUS THEATRE 2008: RUMORS

Cast members audition and rehearse individually, arrive at the theater in street clothes and sit in the audience, not knowing with whom they will share the stage until they hear the first line shouted from the house. Don’t miss out. Gerding Theater, 128 NW 11th Ave., theatrevertigo.org. 7:30 pm. $20.