CRYSTAL CASTLES' SWEETLY OPPRESSIVE SYNTH PUNK
Toronto duo Crystal Castles (Alice Glass and Ethan Kath) are one of the few popular '00s electronic acts who are actually quite good. Their tracks typically alternate between dulcet, ethereal, melodic tunes and rambunctious synth-punk fuck-yous buttressed by end-of-their-tether bass lines. Crystal Castles are touring in support of their new slicker-than-expected, expansive album, III, whose main theme is, Kath says, "oppression," so get ready to party hard, Seattle. With Health and Kontravoid. Showbox Sodo, 7 pm, $28 adv/$32 DOS, all ages.
CHOREOGRAPHY, BLIMEY: MANIFOLD MOTION'S CD RELEASE PARTY
Local electronic-music label Peloton Musique celebrates its fourth release tonight, Under by Manifold Motion. The CD includes the score to a dance described by the label as "a beguiling re-imagination of natural growth, decay, disease, and perseverance." Soundtrackers Crown Hill Repeater, Joris Kamma, and aut0audi0 will be performing their hauntological pieces that evoke the eeriest facets of Autechre, Coil, and Demdike Stare. Ooohhh. With Made Like a Tree DJs Struggle and D'jeronimo, Paul Beaudry, ANATOMY, and Killing Frenzy (visuals). Electric Tea Garden, 9 pm, $10 (cover includes CD), 21+.
GEEK FREAK-OUT: LAPTOP BATTLE
As a judge for a few Laptop Battles and as a spectator for more, I can vouch for their nerve-racking excitement. When contestants have to compress their production ingenuity into three-minute bursts, a lot of dynamic shit goes down. Seattle's loaded electronic scene thrives in this pressure-filled context. For tonight's competition, WD4D, Suttikeeree, Showbot, Macros, Vox Mod, Chocolate Chuck, PotatoFinger, and Nicenate will be busting out their most potent studio ideas. Afterward, party-starting favorites DJ Scene, Four Color Zack, and Neight1000 showcase their own considerable deck skills. Neumos, 8–9:30 pm (for the laptop battle), free, 21+.
SLUGABED'S WOOFER-PUNISHING MUTANT FUNK
Another Stop Biting, another rising Ninja Tune star on the bill. This week, Slugabed (aka 23-year-old Brit producer Greg Feldwick) steps into Lo-Fi's hiphop meeting of the elite to give the woofers a serious workout. Slugabed's tracks traffic in sensuous low-end-frequency pressure and complex, mutant-funk rhythms, over which he sprays diaphanous, pitched-up vocals like a weird perfume. It's kind of like if night-bus music came equipped with hexagonal wheels. Check out Slug's lush debut album, Time Team, replete with a gutsy Yes sample. With Ohmega Watts, Introcut, WD4D, Sean Cee, and Absolute Madman. Lo-Fi Performance Gallery, 9:30 pm, $6, 21+.
