Today marks the beginning of WhiskeyFest NW's Whiskeytown USA festival--which pairs whiskey with a natural friend: music. Tonight catch Jackson Boone for a hot, psychadelic mixer. Tomorrow, Blitzen Trapper brings their seasoned folk rock to the stage, a perfect soundtrack to your sippin'. Check out the full schedule and band lineup here.
NW 17th & Front Ave, doors at 4 p.m. Friday and 12 p.m. Saturday, 21+, tickets

Start your Saturday night early with Catherine Feeny, Chris Johnedis, and Big Haunt at Tender Loving Empire. Catherine Feeny and Chris Johnedis will cool you down with their soulful, compelling tunes. Feeny and Johnedis are celebrating their new release with airy, dark-pop outfit Big Haunt.
Tender Loving Empire (3541 SE Hawthorne), 5:15 p.m., all-ages, free

If you're in the mood for something a bit more bloodthirsty, head to Double Barrel on Saturday to catch a free show from Roselit Bone. Their haunting, chaotic Western music will leave you with whiplash--and they've added an accordian player to the lineup. The band embarks on a West Coast tour this month, and won't be playing in Portland again until June.
Double Barrel (2002 SE Division), 5:30 p.m., 21+, free

Aiming to get the room jumping? This is how you do it. PKEW PKEW PKEW bring the punk-never-dies attitude to a danceable pulse and leaves plenty of opportunity for the listener to jump in. Chant, shout and scream your lungs out with this pop-tinged, two minute and thirty second, dirty, in-and-out fist pumper with a title to really drive it home; Asshole Pandemic. Raucous, energetic and catchy, they drive the point home with straight to the bone lyrics. No dressing it up, just dressing down and sweating it out. They’ve toured with some serious rock talent, and are working on a length record with producer Jon Drew (Tokyo Police Club, Fucked Up).This is music meant to be seen and felt, not just heard, so get on down to the Sliver Dollar on May 9th, and bring your skateboard.-Cody Wright

Wrong Hole began as a 2 piece band because the members wanted the option to take the bus to shows. I totally get that. However they realized it takes 3 to tango....I guess. Anyways they play pretty sweet ass garage rock. Their album "2012" starts off with the tune "What Is A Car?" and I couldn't answer that question. I got in right in to the full on dirty rock n roll though. The fuzzy guitars jive with the pissed off vocals perfectly. The album covers cleverly rips off Rush's "2112" cover which made me wonder if they asked Neil Peart to plays drums to replace their current drummer Drum Machine. I don't think it would work out with Neil. Wrong Hole for sure plays loud as shit live so if that's what your craving then go to Hard Luck Bar on Saturday for CMW where they are one of many bands opening for Agent Orange.- Kris"Big City"Gies

OL'CD are a 4 piece dirty rock band originally from London, Ontario. I first saw them a few months ago at Homegrown Hamilton and liked their attitude. They just came to party. Their latest album called "Choco Moloko" was released in April of last year and I particularly like the 1st track from the album "Nows The Time". It makes me wanna get wasted. Theres always room for that kinda tune on a weekend. Get your weekend started early at The Silver Dollar Room tomorrow night for CMW. They'll be sharing the stage with Deli Fav's Pet Sun and Together Pangea from Los Angeles.-Kris"Big City"Gies

Horsehands’ latest creation, Pissing Rain, runs the sound spectrum from straight-up punk to electro-infused jams--and that’s just in the first two minutes of the EP. The vocals are reminiscent of some bizarre Bowie/Krill collaboration, which, after thinking about it for awhile, would be one hell of an idea. “Yon” was definitely my favorite of the songs--hard, fast guitarwork, complete with some pop-punk palm mutes and a bridge that seems to take off into the stratosphere before abruptly grabbing you by the collar and yanking you back into the mosh pit. I also appreciated the strategic placement of the synths/keys in songs like “Dinner Time!”--they provide well-timed accents, elevating the sound of the songs without overpowering the rest of the music.

If you’re itchin’ to get a physical copy of Pissing Rain, the band will be celebrating their tape release show on May 9th at Lily Pad in Cambridge, MA. For more info about the event, click here.

-Dan McMahon (@dmcmhn)