Events

The Portland Black Music Expo​ is a multi-day entertainment experience and cultural conversation which unifies and reflects the richness of Black people and their culture. This production combines live entertainment in a variety of Black-influenced genres, informative panel discussions, and a hub for community resources. The Expo highlights artistic elements of the Black experience in an inclusive space intended to promote, uplift, and empower patrons from diverse backgrounds both personally and professionally. ​This year’s event will use the platform of music to highlight the importance of voting in our upcoming presidential election.

You need a laugh. Put this one on your calendar. Space is limited, especially for VIP "No Mitch" ticket packages! Buy a ticket to see Portland's top comedians like Amanda Arnold, Nathan Brannan, Susan Rice, and Art Krug!

Tickets available here.

Friday, October 2nd at 7pm XRAY FM and Vortex Music Magazine Presents "the Maurice and The Stiff Sisters Vinyl Release Livestream" with Stoner Control, Maurice and the Stiff Sisters, Seven Year Sleep and Minda Lacy. Each band will host their own livestream on their own social media pages. A list of when and where to tune is available on the XRAY Facebook Events Page. 

2020 XRAY Awards!

Honoring audio achievements and outstanding activism in the greater Portland area. Join your community at the 2020 XRAY Awards for an evening celebrating the best makers and shakers among us. Featuring a live musical performance, dinner by Snackrilege, special desserts and more. 

Streaming on YouTube, live from Clinton Street Theater and hosted by Andy Lindberg, the XRAY Awards show features performances by Black Belt Eagle Scout and Brown Calculus!

The XRAY Awards is an annual celebration gala, honoring those whose work impacts our community in a positive way. More information on the Award winners and presenters will be unveiled on XRAY.FM’s social media pages in the coming weeks. This year, expect to see an emphasis on organizations and individuals promoting social justice and policy change, community aide, and advocacy.

The VIP Cocktail Hour starts at 6 pm, followed by the Awards show at 7. Headlining Music Performance at 8:30 pm. VIP tickets are $120 and include dinner and drinks delivered to your home, along with an exclusive VIP gift box. GA tickets are sliding scale, starting at just $5. 

Catering will be vegan this year, provided by Snackrilege and Shoofly Bakery. Drinks come from Migration Brewing and New Deal Distillery.

Reserve your tickets here.

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Taking place across Portland bedrooms and living rooms, the House Show series aims to bring people virtually together during this time of social distancing and separation. As a result of Covid-19 venues have remained closed and tours have been cancelled across the country. Artists who depend on performing have been hit particularly hard, our goal is to support artists in our community as long as we are staying safe and social distancing. 

Each house show begins at 7PM with two featured artists performing live from their home. Attendance is free and open to the public. Donations are encouraged, 100% of the funds raised goes towards directly supporting artists. Join us on the dates below! 

Support for this series comes from The Falcon Art Community, and our media sponsor Grapevine Outdoor. 

More information on how you can donate and support artists in our community HERE.

Unless otherwise noted all events begin at 7PM and are streamable through:
Youtube HERE  & Facebook Live HERE

Upcoming Events:

8/28 - Escare Album Release Show 8PM on YouTube 

09/04 - Kyle Craft from 4-6PM dual broadcast on XRAY.FM + YouTube

09/11 - Out From The Shadows Festival Showcase II

Past house show performances are available on the XRAY.FM Youtube channel here, featuring:

Fruit Bats/EDJ, AAN, Saintseneca, Faustina Masigat, Tim Perry of Ages & Ages, Black Belt Eagle Scout, Cay is Okay, Luz Elena Mendoza of Y La Bamba, Ryan Oxford, Mic Capes, Jordan Fletcher, Minority Retort Comedy Showcase, Sallie Ford, Mike Coykendall, Advance Base, Popular Music, KayelaJ, Mr. Wrong, Kassi Valazza, Nalani Proctor

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This year marks the 100th Anniversary of passing the 19th Amendment, which guaranteed and protected women’s right to vote in America.

While the 19th Amendment, which passed in August 1920, stated all women on paper, many states in our country introduced hurdles: poll taxes & literacy tests kept black voters disenfranchised, obstacles which weren’t outlawed until the passage of the Voting Rights Act in August 1965.

Even now we continue to face obstructions to the right to vote. In 2020 alone we’ve seen polling places closed in disproportionately poor and urban neighborhoods, an attack on the Postal Service to fight Vote by Mail and continued Gerrymandering of districts to marginalize voting groups.

In Suffragette City we’ll look at the history of Women and the right to vote, from the start of the Suffragette movement in 1848 to the Voting Rights Act of 1965, and into today. We also hope to entertain as we educate, tonight’s program will feature empowered female musicians from Portland and beyond, as well as a digital vendor showcase. 

So please stay tuned, we hope that you’ll enjoy the performances, support some local businesses and please REMEMBER TO VOTE!

Join us on August 18th at 6PM on the XRAY.FM YouTube page.

Featuring female artists, DJs, musicians, writers, historians, and activists to contribute segments to our live broadcast House Show, Suffragette City, 6-9 pm on August 18th. 

Music from:

KayelaJ
Mr Wrong
Nalani Proctor 
Kassi Valazza 

Cinema Unbound Drive-In Movie Theater
Get tickets HERE! https://nwfilm.org/film-series/drive-in-at-zidell-yards/

AUGUST
Weekend 1 - Theme: ManKind
8/6 John Lewis: Good Trouble (NEW RELEASE!) dir. Dawn Porter (2020) w/ DJ Bad Wizard
8/7 John Lewis: Good Trouble (NEW RELEASE!) dir. Dawn Porter (2020) w/ DJ OG One
8/8 Moonlight dir. Barry Jenkins (2016) w/ DJ KM Fizzy 

Weekend 2 - Theme: Ch, Ch, Changes
8/13 Milk dir. Gus Van Sant (2008) - w/ DJ Elizabeth Elder 
8/14 Fast Times at Ridgemont High dir. Amy Heckerling (1982) w/ DJ Sundae Shoes
8/15 Do the Right Thing dir. Spike Lee (1989) w/ DJ OG One 

Weekend 3 - Theme: Black Lagoons, Bowie & Badass Women
8/20 Creature From the Black Lagoon dir. Jack Arnold (1954) w/ DJ Sundae Shoes
8/21 Labyrinth dir. Jim Henson (1986) w/ DJ KM Fizzy 
8/22 Knives and Skin dir. Jennifer Reeder (2019) w/ DJ Kittybot

Weekend 4 - Theme: Living, Loving & Phoning Home
8/27 Sword of Trust dir. Lynn Shelton (2019) w/ DJ Elizabeth Elder
8/28 E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial dir. Steven Spielberg (1982) w/ DJ Bobby D 
8/29 The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert dir. Stephan Elliott (1994) w/ DJ Shi Shi 

SEPTEMBER
Weekend 5 - Theme: Suntory and Sports Time
9/10 Lost in Translation dir. Sofia Coppola (2003) w/ DJ Bad Wizard 
9/11 Love and Basketball dir. Gina Prince-Bythewood (2000) w/ DJ OG ONE
9/12 A League of Their Own dir. Penny Marshall (1992) w/DJ Bad Wizard 

Weekend 6 - Theme: Escape & Roll Bounce
9/17 The Birds dir. Alfred Hitchcock (1963) - DJ KM Fizzy 
9/18 The Great Outdoors dir. Howard Deutch (1988). DJ Elizabeth Elder
9/19 Xanadu dir. Robert Greenwald (1980) DJ Nate C 

Weekend 7 - Theme: There’s No Place Like Home
9/24 House Party dir. Reginald Hudlin (1990) w/ DJ OG ONE
9/25 Pee-Wee’s Big Adventure (pending) dir. Tim Burton (1985) w/ DJ Kittybot
9/26 The Shining dir. Stanley Kubrick (1980) w/ DJ Nate C 

*Films Subject to change

Get tickets HERE! https://nwfilm.org/film-series/drive-in-at-zidell-yards/

For up-to-date event information regarding weather and the Drive-In at Zidell Yards, please visit the event’s website. Please assume the show is on unless otherwise noted.

About the Northwest Film Center: Established in 1971, the Northwest Film Center is a Portland, Oregon-based year-round organization, an extension of the Museum and space where artists and audiences explore our region and the world through cinema and cinematic storytelling in all its forms.

About PAM: Founded in late 1892, the Portland Art Museum is the seventh oldest museum in the United States and the oldest in the Pacific Northwest. The Museum is internationally recognized for its permanent collection and ambitious special exhibitions, drawn from the Museum’s holdings and the world’s finest public and private collections.

About Zidell Yards: Located in the heart of Portland’s south waterfront district, Zidell Yards sits at the meeting point of the Portland Aerial Tram, OHSU's rapidly expanding riverfront campus, South Waterfront's residential towers, streetcar, the coming light rail, and the river.

Using drive-in movie theaters as inspiration, audience members will drive to a secret location in Central Eastside sent to them only hours before the show. Then, they will park their cars and witness the spectacle from the safety of their vehicle. XRAY.FM’s team of sound engineers will relay the sound directly into audience cars as artists perform throughout the parking lot, just like at a drive-in movie. Food will be available on site for pick up. A select number of standing room spaces are available to those without vehicles. Masks are required for anyone not in an enclosed vehicle.

The show will feature short performances from a variety of local artists including dance artists: Suba Ganesan (Portland Creative Laureate), KT Kusmaul(Body Home Fat Dance), Oluyinka Akinjiola (Rejoice! Diaspora Dance Theater), Musicians: Kenji Bunch and Monica Ohuchi (Fear No Music), Portland Opera, and Amenta Abioto, theatre artist Gerrin Mitchell and spoken word by Anya Pearson.

RSVP HERE. 

On Friday, June 19th at 7pm, Minority Retort, Portland’s premier stand-up comedy series featuring comedians of color, hits the virtual stage for its first ever online showcase!

Join host Jason Lamb as he welcomes an amazing lineup of comedians from all across the country for a one-of-kind Juneteenth celebration!

All proceeds will go towards Self Enhancement, Inc. providing academic support and comprehensive wraparound services for African American students and their families.

Scheduled to appear:

- Co-host Curtis Cook (LA)
- Tawanda Gona (NYC)
- Reese Samuels (Boise)
- J. Jones (Seattle)
- Janae Burris (Denver)
- Nathan Brannon (Walla Walla)
- Maggie Maye (Austin)
- Shanna Christmas (Las Vegas)
- Dahlia Belle (Portland)

Streaming live on 6/19 at 7PM from the XRAY.FM YouTube Channel: https://tinyurl.com/xrayhouseshows


About Minority Retort:

Minority Retort has become one of Portland’s most popular and critically-acclaimed comedy shows. Hosted and produced by Jason Lamb (XRAYFM radio, Portland Podcast Festival), Julia Ramos (All Jane Comedy Festival) and some of the NW’s finest comedic talent, the show’s goal is to provide comedians of color with a platform to speak their minds and share their unique perspectives, as well as reach the diverse comedy audience that exists within the so-called "whitest city in America".

National touring comedians Baron Vaughn (Netflix’s Grace & Frankie), Nico Santos (NBC’s Superstore), Dulce Sloan (The Daily Show), Marcella Arguello (@midnight) Ahmed Bharoocha, Dino Archie, Yedoye Travis, David Gborie and Maggie Maye have performed on the show, as well as many POC comics frequently featured in Portland's Bridgetown Comedy Festival: Curtis Cook, Bri Pruett and Nathan Brannon. Minority Retort is also a part of XRAY.FM’s morning show Fridays at 8:40am.”

Youth Power PDX is taking over XRAY.fm and Instagram with Speak Up, Sing Out, a multiplatform teen summit that will focus on the issues that matter to them. We'll be making space for their voices and the music and poetry that they are listening to every Monday in June from 2-3 pm. Follow Youth Power PDX on Instagram and bookmark our website, https://youthpowerpdx.org/ to learn how you can contribute and participate in this month long event.

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Taking place across Portland bedrooms and living rooms, the House Show series aims to bring people virtually together during this time of social distancing and separation. 100% of the funds raised will go towards directly supporting artists impacted by Covid-19. 

Join us on Friday May 8th at 7PM 
Featuring sets from Pure Bathing Culture and Altadore 
Stream it LIVE:

Youtube HERE 

Facebook Live HERE

About Pure Bathing Culture:
Website

The roots of Pure Bathing Culture stretch back to 1999, when Versprille and Hindman befriended one another on the first day of freshman orientation at William Patterson University in Wayne, New Jersey. A decade later, they became bandmates when they both joined Vetiver for their Sub-Pop albums Tight Knit and The Errant Charm. It was while playing in Vetiver that Pure Bathing Culture emerged as its own entity.

“Dan was working on some instrumentals that he would make on a looping pedal,” Sarah said. “One night he was out and I just listened to this loop and wrote some lyrics to it. He came home and I showed it to him. We laughed at first, as we didn’t have some grand plan to start a band. It just happened naturally.” That song “Lucky One,” wound up in the hands of Richard Swift, who encouraged the duo to keep writing. “Richard pushed us along and became an inspiration,” Dan said. Swift wound up producing the band’s first EP and dreamy full-length, 2013’s Moon Tides at his National Freedom studio.

From there, PBC evolved from simply being the product of Versprille and Hindman writing songs in their own home to hitting the road as a full touring band. “Sarah and I conceptualize music and then write so it’s a pretty fragile state,” Hindman said. “Playing live was a huge change for us.”

When it came time to write and record their follow-up to Moon Tides, the duo knew what they didn’t want. “We didn’t gravitate towards someone making indie dream-pop records,” Dan said. That was when producer John Congleton (St. Vincent, Swans, Angel Olsen, The Walkmen) reached out to the band and invited them to come record with him in his Dallas, TX studio.

“John pushed us to not make clichés, to not play into the style of other bands,” Dan said. The challenges came right away as Congleton pressed the group into unfamiliar and at times uncomfortable territory in the studio. “He tricked me with the guitars on the album,” Dan said. “We got the basic tracks down and he asked me to do scratch guitar and then John wouldn’t let me go back and do the guitars again. He refused to do any layering.”

As a result, everything on Pray for Rain is pretty much as Pure Bathing Culture actually sounds, all analog gear, with virtually no plug-ins or effects added afterwards, no hiding behind multiple layers. “There aren’t a lot of tricks; What you hear is naturally what’s there,” Dan said.

It was a taxing yet ultimately rewarding experience when the album was completed. “It was shocking to hear what the finished product was,” Sarah said. “It was like being in a vortex and then we came out with this record.” She adds with a laugh something John Congleton told her when all was said and done: “You were very brave.”

Sarah summarizes the Pray for Rain experience as one of “stepping into the realm of discovering who we are as a band and as songwriters,” echoing a theme of the album itself, the process of change and transition. “You can find the best version of yourself in those hardest moments,” she said. To which Dan adds: “You have to be backed up against the wall in order to really feel those feelings and respond to them.” Pray for Rain is the sound of Pure Bathing Culture transforming from who they were to who they will be, of finding their way, ready to take steps both small and momentous on their musical path.

About Altadore:
Bandcamp

This Friday Tony Smiley will be rocking out at his house for you all!!

From Tony: This week I have joined up with XRAY.FM to try to help them raise some funds. They have, like many other organizations, fallen on some tougher times. So I will be donating some of your incredibly generous tips to XRAY.FM. To try and help them out!!

XRAY FM is needed now more than ever! As we face the impacts of COVID19, XRAY has the information you ​need​ and the music you ​love​ to help us get through this time... together! At XRAY, we are not shrinking in this time of need, we’re working harder than ever to give you what you need. 24 hours a day. 7 days a week. We are here for you! In these changing times, it’s hard to find things you can count on. At XRAY you can count on us. We provide 168 hours of content to keep the rhythm in your life. Volunteers all over this community are coming together at XRAY to keep the records spinning and latest news rolling. We bring you what you need... when you need it!

RSVP Here!

Presented by XRAY.FM and The Liquor Store

Treefort season is upon us!
Send these Portland gems off to Boise with us on March 24th.

9pm | $10 adv/$12 dos | 21+

- White Bike -
White Bike is a brand new band based in Portland, Oregon. Started by the founding members of Tango Alpha Tango, Nathan Trueb and wife, Mirabai Carter are eager to share the latest evolution of their musical partnership. They are joined by Arianna Rose who shares the role of lead singer with Trueb, and Robin Levy who plays the drums. Their sound is framed by classic riff-age straight out of the psychedelic ‘60’s & ‘70’s; more of an homage than a throwback, the pop sensibilities and modern production take the sound in a direction all their own. The live show- which takes pages out of the Tango Alpha Tango playbook- is not one to be missed either: Trueb’s guitar work is more refined and succinct while the sultry vocals of Mirabai and Arianna take the sharp edge off of the raw, heavy sound by almost whispering in the listener’s ears producing a surreal, dreamlike experience.

- No Aloha -

Portland pop band on Good Cheer Records
Brette + Blake + AliRae + Alexander + Zac

- Bodies On The Beach -
Bodies On The Beach began as solitary exploration for Navid Eliot. With the addition of two Seattle music scene mainstays (Evan Gackstatter and Andrew Ginn), the home recordings of Eliot began to make the shift from art project to art-centric rock n roll.

As in his work in the nationally-celebrated Planes On Paper, Eliot’s fingerpicking remains the simple, skeletal foundation of Bodies On The Beach, though now amidst swirls of tape delay and reverb. “Like other self-aware tunesmiths, Eliot knows that good tremolo guitar and song chops go a long way.” - Ari Rosenschein

Their first EP, “Ghost,” released December 4th, and currently enjoys rotation on the Northwest’s finest radio stations.

Back Fence PDX: RUSSIAN ROULETTE is coming back to The Old Church on Saturday, March 21st and we are so ready for more compelling stories from our talented group of storytellers! 

Please let me know who the party-people-story-lovers are that I can put on the guestlist. Along with a killer group of Portland Storytellers, not only are shows ASL interpreted, but we are now an 18+ show! 

Ticket link: 

https://www.merctickets.com/events/102996825/back-fence-pdx-russian-roulette

Facebook link:

https://www.facebook.com/events/624051651723864/

As always, we have a kick-ass group of storytellers including:

SHANNON BALCOM GRAVES Returning SIX-TIME RUSSIAN ROULETTE champ!, HR Manager, Won a Prettiest Baby Contest as a Baby

KATIE PIATT Returning RUSSIAN ROULETTE Winner, Wrote/Directs/Performs a One-Person Show About Male Fragility, Seasoned Performance Artist, Grandma in Training

JOEY SLAMON Returning RUSSIAN ROULETTE Winner, Writer for Arrested Development, Show Runner for I'm Sorry

OZ DU SOLEIL International Excel Trainer (Literally), YouTube Channel: Excel on Fire, Loves a Cigar With a Rye Old Fashioned: Chilled, No Ice, Spent October 1987 Under Water in a Submarine

PATRICK MCCREERY Pretty Quality Educator, Tolerator of Pet Cats, Roaster of Coffee in His Garage, Unabashed Approacher of Famous and Semi-Famous People for Purposes of Self-Aggrandizement

MISS BEN MCCOY Professional Tarot Card Reader, Works at the Library Trying Not to Get Run Over by Baby Strollers, Ink and Watercolor Painter, Descendant of the Infamous Hatfield/McCoy Feud, Quadruple Scorpio, Believes the Burrito is One of Humanity's Greatest Gifts

As a reminder, we donate 10% of ticket proceeds to Oregon Food Bank and they will be present at the show collecting bottles of cooking oil in plastic, or in spray bottles (believe it or not, this is one thing that rarely gets donated -- so it’s our way of helping).

We are also a part of Arts for All. Meaning that anyone in the SNAP program can get $5 tickets to the show by emailing info@backfencepdx.com. 

We are so excited to welcome back BLAKE WALES, who is our ASL interpreter. Blake is a C.O.D.A and has been signing his entire life. He has also worked with various non-profit arts organizations in attempts to make events more accessible for all audiences and has been featured on KGW and KOIN news. Blake is always thrilled to be able to intertwine his performance background with his deep-rooted love for ASL and the Deaf/Hoh community.

Ides of March Fest is a new music festival happening all across east Portland this March. Hosting bands and artists like Helvetia, jo passed, Candace, MARQUII, Dommengang, Blowout, Fringe Class, Guayaba, Ice Princess, Babytooth, Mini Blinds, Pleasure Curses, Seance Crasher, Vexations, White Glove, and more!

The shows will take place at The Fixin' To, The Firkin Tavern, and Killingsworth Dynasty, as well as a smattering of all ages shows at some of our favorite spots: Hawthorne Game Exchange, Zero Wave, Speck's Records & Tapes (with some more announcements on the way)

Many of the youth organizers that brought 20,000 people out into the streets of Portland to strike for climate justice are at it again, and this time they’re bringing youth climate activism to the Portland Mayoral race. Join Sunrise PDX, 350PDX, and Harriet Tubman Middle School Environmental Club for the Mayoral candidate climate and environmental justice forum this city needs.

Together with Emilly Prado -- the polymath DJ/Journalist/Interim Director of Youth Programs at Literary Arts -- youth climate leaders will question Portland’s would-be mayors on their plans for bringing about a just and equitable future for Portland.

Candidates participants include:
Incumbent Mayor Ted Wheeler
Sarah Iannarone
Teressa Raiford

This event is sponsored by The Oregonian, Oregonlive and XRAY.fm. If you would like to become a supporter or sponsor of this event, please reach out to organizers at info@sunrisepdx.org

Doors open at 6pm

More information at https://www.facebook.com/events/647890486015709/

Motrik / Party Witch / Slanted Floors

About Motrik:

The beat is in 4/4 time and of moderate pace. The pattern is repeated each bar throughout the song. A splash or crash cymbal is often hit at the beginning bar of a verse or chorus.

More details at: https://www.facebook.com/events/1015691685454821/

The pandemic has meant our once very busy calendar of shows and events around town has to take a pause for a little while. We hope to be back together soon once it's safe to gather. 

In the meantime, check out XRAY's 2020 series of House Shows for your favorite Portland artists live from their homes and our friends at The Fixin' To.