Magic Sword brought cloaked, glowing eyed synthwave mayhem to Mississippi Studios, with a cinematic light show, a sea of glowing swords, and live arrangements packed with more energy and shreddy guitar than the records. Add in one of the best crowds in recent memory, and it all adds up to one simple word: fun.

Twilight Cafe is loud for a reason, and Harm Retreat proved they could handle it. A metal version of Paramore, tight as hell, no missed beats in their whole set. Check them out.

"What You Wanna See" stopped me cold on a random Spotify playlist, so when MaryAnne Muglia hit Portland, I had to see her live. No band, just her, solo, at Twilight Cafe. Turns out that was more than enough.

Three Generations of Pop Mastery Under the Napa Sun