Thursday, 8
Device Grips, Bombs Away Café, 2527 NW Monroe Ave. 10 p.m.
Device Grips is… different. A mixture of hip-hop, blues, and psychedelia comes together with lyrical prowess to produce a groove that is unlikely to ever fall on even a single deaf ear. Excellent Oregon band + awesome food and drink… with no cover. If you’re looking for something different (as in, excellent), this is your ticket.
https://www.facebook.com/DeviceGrips
http://devicegrips.bandcamp.com/
Wild Hog in the Woods, Calapooia Brewing Company, 140 NE Hill St. 7:30 p.m.
Fifteen-plus year Corvallis stringband veterans Wild Hog in the Woods will be taking Calapooia Brewery by storm, and I’m thinking you should be there. If you’re a fan of old-time music of any kind, you’ll thank me later as Corvallis’ finest pluckers fill you with the warmth of yesteryears.
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Wild-Hog-in-the-Woods/144350742279339
http://wildhoginthewoods.home.comcast.net/~wildhoginthewoods/
Friday, 9
The Shy Seasons and Cambrian Explosion, Bombs Away Cafe, 2527 NW Monroe Ave. 9 p.m. $5 cover
Shy Seasons is a four-piece band that’s about as psychedelic as they are alternative, sporting groovy electronic rock tunes with titles that remind me of songs titles I’d have come up with if I were on some sort of er, substance. Their stagemates, Cambrian Explosion, are also rooted in psychedelic rock, but are of a different breed altogether. Both bands hail from the far-off land of Oregon, and will undoubtedly make for an awesome double-header.
Shy Seasons: shyseasons.bandcamp.com & www.facebook.com/theshyseasons
Cambrian Explosion: cepdx.bandcamp.com & www.facebook.com/cambrianexplosion
The Low Down, Cloud & Kelly’s, 126 SW 1st St. 10 p.m. 21+, No cover
From here on out, if you find yourself at Cloud & Kelly’s on any given Friday night, your earballs will be treated to tunes tossed about by DJs Modesik and Sayhiro. This has been a test of the emergency bar scene system. Only it’s not really a test, because this is real. Beep-beep-beep-beep-beep-beep.
https://www.facebook.com/events/328211604033646/?ref=23
Saturday, 10
Sam Densmore, Calapooia Brewing Company, 140 SE Hill St. 8 p.m.
To be honest, I cringe every time I hear about another folk/singer songwriter. Sometimes I ever barf up a bit of my last meal. My wife went through a phase where she only want to listen to The Lumineers and I almost divorced her. Now, Sam Densmore, yes he’s got a guitar and writes songs in the folk vein. He also busts his ass, playing about 100 shows a year, and writes songs that I dig a lot and remind me of the best parts of R.E.M. and Wilco. Check out his show in Albany or I’ll go ahead and actually divorce my wife, and it’ll be your fault.
https://www.facebook.com/events/1402152410077327/?ref=23
http://www.reverbnation.com/samdensmore
Blookie, Bombs Away Café, 2527 NW Monroe Ave. 9 p.m.
The band with the name that you want to say over and over and over until you piss everyone you know off, Blookie is a Green Day/Weezer cover band that pays tribute to both bands’ better records (if you disagree, go to hell). This show? Oh, they’ll just be playing Dookie and the Blue Album… and then some other great songs. No big deal.
https://www.facebook.com/events/388236341336037/?ref=23
https://www.facebook.com/blookieband
Sunday, 11
Auditions for ‘The Wizard of Oz,’ Albany Civic Theater, 111 1st Ave. W. 7:30 to 10 p.m.
Everyone, at some point or another, has desired their time in the spotlight… on the grand stage. That’s a total lie, but just roll with me. If you want to strut your stuff in “The Wizard of Oz” (the real thing, not the crappy one with Zooey Deschanel), this is your chance to break a leg. Today the 12-and-unders are welcome (and dogs…), while teens and adults are green lit for the 12th and 13th.
https://www.facebook.com/events/1390898037866908/
Blues Jam!, Calapooia Brewing Company, 140 NE Hill St. 4 to 6 p.m.
Blues Jam is, contrary to popular belief, not something you spread on wheat bread when you’re sad. It’s when a whole bunch of blues enthusiasts show up at Calapooia Brewing, dump beer down their throats, and then either rock the hell out or kick back and enjoy the tunes. Seriously, you’ve had to listen to Taylor Swift’s latest yammering how many times recently thanks to your kid? Blues Jam is like a colonic for your music mind.
https://www.facebook.com/events/822475417812132/?ref=23
Monday, 12
Science Pub Corvallis, Old World Deli, 341 SW 2nd St. 6 to 8 p.m.
Beer, science. And then more of each. If you’re into those two things and have yet to get on the Science Pub train, I have to ask… WTF, bro? The amazing speaker this time around is Sarina Saturn from OSU’s School of Psychological Sciences. She’ll be discussing the issue of science and gender, as well as how women fit into the scientific enterprise. No, not NCC-1791-D, sorry.
http://oregonstate.edu/terra/science-pub-corvallis/
http://www.corvallisadvocate.com/2014/a-new-year-of-science-pub/
International Folk Dancing, 1180 25th Ave. SW, Albany. 7 to 9 p.m. $4
While they likely won’t appreciate the kind of dancing I do while washing the dishes (and neither would you), the Hoolyehs, a group of international folk dance enthusiasts that have been cutting Corvallis’ rugs since the 1960s, have a new recurring dance night. No partner necessary, every Monday, for a paltry four bucks.
Tuesday, 13
Community Movie Night with Ygal Kaufman, Darkside Cinema, 215 SW 4th St. 7 p.m. Free
The Man Who Knew Too Much (1934) starring Leslie Banks and Peter Lorre, directed by Alfred Hitchcock. This super-taut thriller is so good, Hitchcock couldn’t help but remake it himself. His 1956 version with Jimmy Stewart and Doris Day is more well-remembered, but this first version has its own charms, including the magnetic legend, Peter Lorre, in one of his best roles. Hitchcock night at Community Movie Night is always mobbed, so be sure to get there early. Free admission and the old newsreels and cartoons before the feature make this one of the best cinema nights of the month.
http://www.facebook.com/freemovienightcorvallis
Celtic Jam, Imagine Coffee, 5460 SW Philomath Blvd. 7 p.m.
When I think of Celtic Jam, I think of 30-year-old marmalade that has turned green. And that’s sort of disturbing right now because I’m really hungry. Thankfully for you, however, this Celtic Jam is actually just a hell of an awesome treat to give your ears. Any and all are welcome, regardless of skill level.
http://www.oregonlive.com/teens/index.ssf/2014/07/celtic_jam_is_now_in_session.html
Wednesday, 14
Mr. Bill’s Trivia Night, Murphy’s Restaurant & Lounge, 2740 SW 3rd St. 7 to 10 p.m.
I swear to the lord above (or over yonder, wherever said lord is), if you can resist something called Mr. Bill’s Trivia Night, hosted by a slick dude in a mustache and tux, you are a better person than I am. He’s been at it since 1984, there are prizes, and gadzooks, just stop reading this and pencil it in already.
http://www.mrbillstrivia.com/cal.html
‘Joy to the World,’ Benton County Museum, 1101 Main St., Philomath. 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
Though it opened last month, this is a truly great exhibit that might help work off that holiday hangover. Running through Jan. 25, featured artists include Studio 262 owner Jennifer Lommers as well as award-winning artists Jan Maitland and Jan Roberts-Dominguez. Work will including everything from paintings to glass art, jewelry design, drawings, and more. And as always, the museum will be packed full of Oregon’s history!
Thursday, 15
Rough Jazz, Calapooia Brewing Company, 140 NE Hill St. 7 p.m.
They’re rough, they’re jazz. The players are fantastic. Their performances are killer—I highly recommend enjoying a couple. If you dig the kind of jazz you can really just sink into, you’ll thank me later. This is the real deal, folks!
https://www.facebook.com/events/845195645522308/?ref=23
http://www.reverbnation.com/roughjazz
Freerange Open Mic, Cloud & Kelly’s, 126 SW 1st St. 8 p.m.
I had this thought the other day about peripheral vision and urinals, and how I might have been seeing all sorts of things that I didn’t know I had been seeing… and then I thought hey, I should tell people. I should get on stage at an awesome local open mic and just let it all out. However, I’m not going to, so you can safely show up and do something awesome instead.
https://www.facebook.com/events/905908642787477/?ref=23
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