Wednesday December 5top

Mars on Life

[EXTENDED RUN] Susannah Mars is one part old-school diva, one part Martha Stewart and one part indie comedian. It’s a bizarre combination for a “holiday cabaret,” but Mars’ multiple personas bring something for everyone. Sometimes she’s graceful and sublime, perfectly polished in four-inch heels and a well-lacquered hairdo; the next minute she’s prancing around in a potato latke costume, or singing, “For Betty Crocker I’d go gay.” These unabashedly weird moments are the real treat of the show, but Mars brings a refreshing candidness to the more traditional songs as well. A guest artist accompanies Mars during each performance. STACY RIGER. Artists Repertory Theatre, 1515 SW Morrison St., 241-1278. 241-9807. 7:30 pm Tuesdays-Saturdays, 2 pm Sundays. Closes Dec. 30. $20-$47. All ages. Map

A Christmas Carol

After a five-year run of one-man holiday shows, Portland Center Stage is returning to Dickens with a brand-new, flashy adaptation by Mead Hunter. This special-effects extravaganza has a great cast, an astounding set and an excellent, original score of familiar Victorian carols. I’ve just one quibble: The Ghosts of Christmas Past, clad all in white with glowing red eyes, look more like a band of horrible albino Jawas than time-traveling spirits. Sure, they’ll walk Scrooge through the mistakes of his youth, but only if they can stop on the way back to devour a baby or two. PCS has put together the most impressive of this year’s holiday shows, and the most soul-shakingly terrifying. BEN WATERHOUSE. Portland Center Stage, 128 NW 11th Ave., 445-3700. 7:30 pm Tuesdays-Saturdays, 2 and 7:30 pm Sundays, noon Thursday, 2 pm Dec. 22. Closes Dec. 23. $16.50-$61.50. All ages. Map

Don Caballero, Enablers, Thrones

[INSTRUMENTAL MATH-ROCK] Throughout the '90s, Don Caballero put instrumental math rock on the map with a seemingly endless stream of albums and singles that defied all logic of 4/4 rock while also avoiding the introverted trappings of fusion jazz. Then, before anyone could count out a 5/16th measure, the band broke up in Y2K. Guitarist Ian Williams landed in the equally innovative instrumental act Battles, and after a brief spell in Bellini, notoriously tempestuous drummer Damon Che reformed Don Caballero with all new members in 2003. Don Cab Mach 2 released its exquisitely complex Relapse Records debut, World Class Listening Problem, in 2006. DAVE CLIFFORD. 9 pm. Doug Fir, 830 E Burnside St., 231-9663. $14. All ages. Map

Portland Cello Project feat. Horse Feathers and 3 Leg Torso

[CLASSI-COOL] Cellos (or is it celli?) are cool again. This thanks in large part to the laudable efforts of the singular Portland Cello Project, one of the fastest-rising ensembles forged in this city’s hot indie-meets-classical scene. Usually bored (although you really shouldn’t be) by Bach? Underwhelmed by Vivaldi or Villa-Lobos? You’ll hear it with new ears after the Cello Project takes it for a spin. The PCP is joined tonight by Porltand's own endlessly lovely and lovable chamber-folk outfit Horse Feathers as well as the inimitable 3 Leg Torso. STEPHEN MARC BEAUDOIN. 8 pm. Holocene, 1001 SE Morrison St., 239-7639. $8. All ages. Map

Viva Voce, Ohmega Watts, Boy Eats Drum Machine

[HIP-HOP MEETS PSYCH-POP] See music feature. 9:30 pm. Berbati's Pan, 231 SW Ankeny St., 248-4579. Free. All ages. Map

Aimee Mann

[SIREN POP] After releasing her Christmas album, One More Drifter in the Snow, last winter, Aimee Mann began a small series of yuletide-themed concerts—star-studded affairs that consciously sought to recapture the variety-show revues of generations past, rather like Bing Crosby's wartime Christmas cavalcades, absent the radio broadcast and adding some seasonal affective disorder. Mann's originals arrive as singably bleak insta-standards: Few artists can so cheeselessly wring the poignancy from sentimental chestnuts (Charlie Brown's "Christmas Time Is Here" steeped in dignified whimsy), but it's the comfortable staging, time-worn but never old-fashioned, that warms the cockles. Ever-rotating guests to include Nellie McKay, Grant Lee Phillips and members of the Decemberists. JAY HORTON. 8 pm. Aladdin Theater, 3017 SE Milwaukie Ave., 233-1994. $35.50. Map

OGLE GALLERY

Group show.
Featuring artists Rob Tyler, Yoshi Kitai, Brenda Mallory, and Mary Lang 310 NW Broadway., 227-4333. Closes Feb. 2. Map

ROCKSBOX GALLERY

Benedikt Ender's sculptural installation.
6540 N Interstate Ave., 971-506-8938. Closes Jan. 6. Map

SMALL A PROJECTS

Sincerely, John Head's multimedia extravaganza.
1430 SE 3rd Ave., 234-7993. Closes Dec. 8. Map

Debbie Stoller

Legend has it that if a man does not wear a gift his special lady has knitted for him, the relationship is doomed to fail. Come learn how to prevent this unfortunate turn of events with the author of the popular Stitch ’N Bitch series of knitting books. She will be signing her latest, Son of Stitch ’N Bitch: 45 Projects to Knit and Crochet for Men. Powell's City of Books, 1005 W Burnside St., 228-0540. 7:30 pm. Free. Map

Thursday December 6top

Southerly, Graves, BOAT

[POP AWESOMENESS!] First off, let me say I have nothing against Southerly. In fact, I think frontman Krist (real name) Krueger is a fine songwriter who embodies a lot of what could feel old about Portland (hoodies, self-deprecation, mass consumption of cheap beer) in an endearing way. And his fuzzy folk songs have a darkness that's both uncomfortable and warmly familiar. However, I just don't see how Seattle's "sloppy pop saviors," BOAT, get billed to open for, well, anyone! Granted, I have no concept of these bands' respective popularity, but if you had a super-fun pop sensation on your hands (and Graves' wonderfully lazy, jazz-pop slotted in between), wouldn't you wanna hear it last? You know, so you leave feeling good, instead of like burying your hoodie-clad head in the sand? I thought so. Any way you slice it, though, this is an effing great lineup. I do not say "show up early" lightly. AMY MCCULLOUGH. 9 pm. Doug Fir, 830 E Burnside St., 231-9663. $6. All ages. Map

Portland Cello Project feat. Horse Feathers and 3-Leg Torso

[CLASSI-COOL] See Wednesday listing. 8 pm. Holocene, 1001 SE Morrison St., 239-7639. $8. All ages. Map

The Fix One-Year Anniversary: DJ Spinna, Rev Shines, Ohmega Watts, DJs Kez, Dundiggy

[HIP-HOPPIN’] The Fix celebrates one year with legendary DJ Spinna, a heavyweight from the late-‘90s NYC underground hip-hop scene. Local DJs Rev. Shines (Lifesavas), Ohmega Watts, Kez (KBOO) and Dun Diggy have turned the Someday Lounge into the best dance party in town holding it down every Thursday night with the best soul, funk and hip-hop around. This is DJ Spinna’s first PDX appearance, and he’s in good company. Act like you know. JIM SANDBERG. 9 pm. Someday Lounge, 125 NW 5th Ave., 248-1030. $7. All ages. Map

Finn Riggins, Jared Mees & the Grown Children, Mill Race

[MIXED-BAG ROCK] Idaho's Finn Riggins has a whole lotta tricks up its sleeve—so many, in fact, that it's awfully hard to pin ’em down. One minute, the trio's blasting distortion-loaded, surf-tinged noise à la the Pixies; the next, it's engaging in funk or even ska-based jams that—despite hints of said genres—smack mostly of jangly, joyous rock. As if that weren't enough, there are psychedelic keyboard breakdowns and alternately spastic and smooth guy/girl vocals mixed all through the band's debut full-length, A Soldier, A Saint, An Ocean Explorer. And, unlike lots of bands crafting a hodgepodge sound, Finn Riggins doesn't lose (or fail to create) an identity amid all its sound-tinkering and fun-having. True trickery, indeed. AMY MCCULLOUGH. 9 pm. Slabtown, 1033 NW 16th Ave., 223-0099. $5. All ages. Map

Southern Belle, World's Greatest Ghosts, Ghosties

[DARK POP] Southern Belle’s Ross McCleron sings like a softer version of Portland acoustic pop purveyor Tractor Operator. McCleron's falsetto—muffled and cracking in the band's (very) lo-fi recordings—has that nasal tone that works so well for personal songs driven by an acoustic guitar. Ghosties hail from the formidable Boy Gorilla record label, a collective of Portland youth making some of the most raw and true music in town. The Ghosties song “Glands” is a perfect example of the sound that drives that unique all-ages scene. JIM SANDBERG. 8 pm. Dunes, 1905 NE Martin Luther King Jr Blvd., 493-8637. Cover. Map

Rennie Harris Puremovement

Hip hop for the mind—and body. See full review, here. HEATHER WISNER. Portland State University, 1825 SW Broadway., 725-3000. 8 pm Thursday-Friday, 2 and 8 pm Saturday, Dec. 6-8. $16-$26. All ages. Map

Spacenight: A Tribute to Bill Mantlo

This event not only pays homage to the creator of cult comic-book hero ROM Spaceknight, but it will also raise money for Mantlo, who suffered servere injuries in a hit-and-run accident in 1992 and never fully recovered. On display will be prints from a forthcoming collection featuring over 100 different artists' depictions of Mantlo’s most beloved hero. Floating World Comics, 20 NW 5th Ave. #101., 241-0227. 6 pm. Free. Map

Friday December 7top

1942 Christmas from Home

[CLOSES SUNDAY] Drawn from real stories and letters mixed with some great music and period advertisements, the second play in Pat Kruis Tellinghusen’s pentalogy presents a complex portrait of life during wartime that doesn’t shy away from the more sinister aspects of America’s domestic policy. The acting in Tapestry Theatre’s production is uneven, but the swinging band and nifty sound effects alone are worth the price of admission. BEN WATERHOUSE. Hollywood Theatre, 4122 NE Sandy Blvd., 281-4215. 245-6919. 7:30 pm Fridays-Saturdays, 2 pm Sundays. Closes Dec. 16. $16-$18. All ages. Map

As Is

I was surprised to hear that Troy Lakey’s Key Productions had chosen William M. Hoffman’s 1985 drama about the burgeoning AIDS epidemic and its effect on the lives of an infected writer and his loved ones for their second production. It's a tough show to pull off, and just the third directing project for longtime Portland actor Michael Mendelson. It’s a pretty good production, well-cast and competently acted throughout. Mendelson’s direction favors too much melodramatic shouting, but he’s created some very nice blocking and held a few of the script’s more maudlin moments in check. Although David Berkson is somewhat emotionally flat as Rich, a volatile and dying gay writer, Michael Teufel gives a fine performance (when he’s not yelling) as Rich’s former lover and caretaker, Saul. The supporting actors similarly range from decent to good. It’s not a great staging, but certainly above average for Portland, and it’s further proof that Lakey means business. BEN WATERHOUSE. Interstate Firehouse Cultural Center, 5340 N Interstate Ave., 781-3464. 8 pm Thursdays-Saturdays, 3 pm Sundays. Closes Dec. 22. $20. All ages. Map

Sharon Jones & the Dap Kings

[OLD SOUL] What Sharon Jones & the Dap Kings does goes far beyond words like "throwback" or "tribute." The group is downright "disturbingly obsessed" with capturing the Stax/Volt and Motown sounds it emulates, from the recording tone and quality to the vocal and instrumental arrangements. And why not? A quick trip up your radio dial is all it takes to discover that most modern R&B is aimed at horny teens who can't for the life of them figure out where to buy some romance. When your whole genre gets misguided, it's probably time to go back to the drawing board, and the Dap Kings do foundation soul better than anyone in show business. Don't hold it against Sharon & co. for being born in the wrong decade. CASEY JARMAN. 9 pm. Doug Fir, 830 E Burnside St., 231-9663. Sold out. All ages. Map

DJ Santo w/ Chauncey Canfield

[SOMETHING DIFFERENT] See Here Comes Your Fan. 7 pm. Press Club, 2621 SE Clinton St., 233-5656. Free. All ages. Map

Punk Group (DVD Release Party), Punk Group Karaoke, Magic Cyclops, Fogatron

[SYNTH JOKE PUNK] See Sound Seen review. 9:30 pm. Dante's, 1 SW 3rd Ave., 226-6630. $6. All ages. Map

Prefuse 73, School of Seven Bells, Blank Blue

[GLITCH-HOP] After Barcelona's Scott Herren gave us his sophomore glitch album as Prefuse 73, One Word Extinguisher, he also released his studio outtakes and variant mixes—37 minutes of luminous chaos called Extinguished: Outtakes. It featured samples, strange noises, breaks and snippets of infectious melody, like a glitch incarnation of the Avalanches but without a coherent plan behind it. Most songs on the album clock in at just a minute or two and hold several completely different song-pieces, but those lead up to the penultimate, six-minute track, "Drum Machine, Cello, Headwrap," a brilliant cinematic tune that makes good on all the awesome that the lead-up material promised. BRANDON SEIFERT. 9 pm. Holocene, 1001 SE Morrison St., 239-7639. $12. All ages. Map

Emma Hill, Ryan Sollee, Cary Judd

[CATCHY SOLO ACOUSTIC] I first heard Moose—Wyoming singer-songwriter Cary Judd—at a film festival. His song "Everything Stops" was playing over a homemade montage of extreme sports footage. Just one guy with an acoustic guitar, and he still managed to strongly complement footage of people jumping off cliffs and out of planes. Tonight he's joined by Alaska transplant Emma Hill, whose touching lyrics and shockingly lovely voice are an excellent counterpoint to Judd's poppy, driving folk. Ryan Sollee, frontman of the Builders and the Butchers, is this lineup's wild card; his solo songs explore a wider acoustic territory than his band's plot of graveyard blues. BRANDON SEIFERT. 7:30 pm. Muddy Waters Coffeehouse, 2908 SE Belmont St., 233-1923. Free. All ages. Map

Hornet Leg, Meth Teeth, Sue Ellen

[GARAGE SOUL] See profile. 9 pm. Worksound, 820 SE Alder St., . Cover. Map

Saturday December 8top

Swim Swam Swum, Reporter, Typhoon

[FRESH CLASSIC] See profile. 8 pm. Artistery, 4315 SE Division St., 803-5942. $6. All ages. Map

Reptet, Nodding Tree Remedies, Eaglekin

[KOOL JAZZ] I don't know how to make "cool" any cooler besides spelling it with a "K." And that's what Seattle jazz-improv group Reptet is: kool. From its I-pledge-allegiance-to-the-power-of-improv mission statement (founder-drummer John Ewing is all about the interpretive) to the fact that it actually makes all that off-the-cuff, freewheelin' effort sound good—unlike a lot of "Look Ma, I got a flugelhorn and some fingerless gloves and now I'm an "indie-rock [read: wannabe] jazz player" types. But then, it wouldn't be "kool" to wax so acerbic, so let's just say this is a crowd of honest-to-God musicians who put their instruments where their mouths are—and the sounds elicited are as classic as the Blue Note-lookin' cover to Reptet's recent Do This!, and as fun as the Dr. Seussian drawings inside. AMY MCCULLOUGH. 9:30 pm. Towne Lounge, 714 SW 20th Place., 241-8696. Cover. All ages. Map

Laura Gibson, Cave Singers, Fleet Foxes

[CHAMBER FOLK] When Band of Horses left Seattle, someone must have left a vocal mic in the studio with the echo still turned on, because the boys in both the Cave Singers and Fleet Foxes got around to singin’ into it. Don’t get it twisted—it’s not like they’re copying the Horses, both bands have different singing styles and voices—but that echo is damn contagious. Fleet Foxes’ Robin Pecknold sings in a style similar to Stephen Stills, while the Cave Singers’ Pete Quirk sings in a pained, quavering falsetto that’s unlike any other. Local favorite Laura Gibson ends the show. JIM SANDBERG. 9 pm. Doug Fir, 830 E Burnside St., 231-9663. $8. All ages. Map

Wreckless Eric, Amy Rigby, The Nevada Lunatics (feat. Scott McCaughey), Linda Pitmon & Steve Wynn, DJs Phaedra & Two Arm Tom

[HUSHED PUNK] As earth shattering late-’70s sorta-punk ballads go, I'd put Stiff Records alum Wreckless Eric's "Whole Wide World" on par with Johnny Thunders' "You Can't Put Your Arms Round a Memory" without reservation. Heck, I'd take the former's whole catalog over Thunders': It's funnier, has less strung-out live albums, more lyrical breadth and best of all (no offense intended to Thunders, who passed in 1991), it's still growing! Tonight Eric performs alongside his main squeeze, the deceptively domestic and equally funny pop singer-songwriter Amy Rigby. They perform as a duo, covering tunes from their respective catalogs and the classics that make them tick. Should be a lot of fun. CASEY JARMAN. 9 pm. East End, 203 SE Grand Ave., 232-0056. $15. All ages. Map

George Balanchine’s The Nutcracker

Oregon Ballet Theatre stages one of the oldest American versions of this holiday chestnut: George Balanchine’s dazzling creation for New York City Ballet, featuring the Dewdrop Fairy and (spoiler alert!) the magically sprouting Christmas tree. Dancers don’t always love The Nutcracker—one friend, cast for many years in the taxing Chinese tea version, calls it "The Buttcracker"—but audiences always do, and countless ballet careers have been launched from so many starry-eyed tots picturing themselves in tulle and tiara, whirling through the enchanted Land of Sweets. HEATHER WISNER. Keller Auditorium, 222 SW Clay St., 248-4335. 222-5538. 7:30 pm Wednesday-Friday, 2 and 7:30 pm Saturday, 1 pm Sunday (1 and 5 pm Dec. 23), noon Monday. $10.50-$120. All ages. Map

Britten's A Ceremony of Carols

There is one piece of holiday music so perfect that it doesn't ever seem to cause the exaggerated groans or gnashing of teeth associated with announcements of yet another Messiah (groan!) or Nutcracker (gnash!). It's Benjamin Britten's haunting and ineffably beautiful little cantata called A Ceremony of Carols. In an instrumentally spare setting for boys' choir and harp, Britten wrings out substantial color and feeling: Listen to the exquisitely brief solo "That Yonge Child" and try not to weep. Portland's Belle Voci Women's Ensemble (Margaret Green, conductor) tries their hand at the work and other seasonal carols, with Jeff Parsons at the harp. STEPHEN MARC BEAUDOIN. St. Mary's Cathedral, 1716 NW Davis St., 228-4397. 8 pm. $10-$15. 21+. Map

We are Santa

It starts with a distant chant, a primal grunt echoing from afar. It gets louder by the second, accompanied by the tromping of boots, squeals of psychotic laughter and the smell of liquor floating in the wind. Soon, the sound begins to become clearer, until finally, syncopated "ho-ho-hos" signal an army of Santas traipsing through downtown, bringing tidings of Southern Comfort and joy. For more than a decade, Santacon has been crashing Christmas parties, strip clubs, Saturday Market, Pioneer Courthouse Square and every place in its path. It's become a global phenomenon, with cities like Chicago, Munich, Calgary and London listed as participants in the Santarchy. Reports on numbers for the Portland Cacophony Society’s gleeful celebration of bad-Santing ranges—WW has reported past numbers of 200, others place the number of Santas on the march at anywhere from a reasonable 300 to a drunken 12,000. But one thing’s for sure: Santacon is the best, most hysterical and all-out insane bar hop on the planet, a day of total anonymity. To the uninitiated—or to those who still haven’t figured out why the fuck this happens every year—Santacon meets at noon for a rally at Skidmore Fountain (at least that’s the tradition, although that’s not printed on Cacophony’s website). The mass of Santa proceeds through Saturday Market to the general amazement/horror of people doing last minute shopping. Santa’s a generous guy, so Santas are encouraged to bring gifts (which range from pork rinds and liquor to handmade "mutant toys") to hand out to gawkers. From then on out, it’s a tour-de-random. Last year, Santas packed like sardines onto the MAX, marched into a holiday concert at Pioneer Courthouse Square and crashed wedding photos at the Marina, where boaters were happy to transport Kringles across the river for a blitzkrieg attack on Outlaws, Union Jack’s and any place that would take them until 9 am. (From a personal standpoint, it was quite possibly the best night of my life.) Santa is discouraged from drinking in public, but drinking from gas cans, Listerine bottles or bleach containers is perfectly normal. Santacon is, after all, a marathon day of good-natured anarchy, and a centuries-old saint like Old Nick needs to stay hydrated. Skidmore Fountain, Southwest Ankeny Street and Second Avenue., noon. 21+. Free. Map

Sunday December 9top

Festival of Latkes

David Siegel and his conspirators in the monthly East Side Dining Club project return with a festive feast centering on the humble latke—crafted outta everything from Yukon gold spuds and parsnips to sweet potatoes and apples, and served with Festival-of-Light-worthy sides like braised beef cheeks and halibut gravlax. Who’s jealous of Santa now? Nobody. Visit eastsidediningclub.com to reserve your seat. Victory, 3652 SE Division St., 236-8755. 7 pm. $55, plus gratuity, per guest. Map

Golem, Vagabond Opera, DJ Global Ruckus

[ALT-KLEZMER] On the sixth night of Hanukkah, my Portland gave to me: six klezmerites from NYC. Golem, named after the mythic Jewish monster built from clay to conquer anti-Semites, is a swinging sextet that's conquered the Big Apple instead. Its latest disc, Fresh Off Boat, nabbed a rave from Village Voice macher Robert Christgau, and features such guests as Lenny Kaye and Phish's Mike Gordon. Like the ancient rabbi who carved the word "truth" into the Golem's forehead to bring it to life, this Golem revives traditional Jewish music by infusing it with true hipster chutzpah. JEFF ROSENBERG. 9 pm. Doug Fir, 830 E Burnside St., 231-9663. $10. All ages. Map

Tuesday December 11top

Angela Reed w/ Julia Dawn (9:30 pm); Jimmy Lott (6:30 pm)

[SINGER-SONGWRITERS] Broad-shouldered, tousle-haired baby boomer Jimmy Lott (who plays tonight's happy hour set) has the type of folksy, conversational voice—like a James Taylor or (gasp) John Denver—that immediately attracts and pulls a listener in. Portland-born headliner Angela Reed is a younger, more peppy-poppy type of singer, but she’s also an easy communicator. On her album Undertone, she mines familiar folk laments but occasionally breaks the surface, sifting for a simple and startling observation: “I miss your little things,” she sings in a voice veering from a Sheryl Crow whisper to an Alanis Morisette full cry, “like peanut butter on toast.” STEPHEN MARC BEAUDOIN. 9:30 pm; 6:30 pm. Alberta Street Public House, 1036 NE Alberta St., 284-7665. Cover; Free. All ages. Map

The Brontosaurus Word Processing Exchange

This queer writing collective will be performing their unique brand of “collaborative storytelling.” If they can come up with a name like that, they have to be at least somewhat entertaining. In Other Words, 8 NE Killingsworth St., 232-6003. 6:30 pm. $3-$10 donation. Map