WEDNESDAY 9/20Â Â
(COMEDY) If you were one of the hundreds of comedy fans who packed into the Egyptian for The Stranger's inaugural Undisputable Geniuses of Comedy showcase last month, then you already know Dewa Dorje is hilarious. For further evidence, head to Here-After Wednesday night for Dee's Nuts, Dorje's monthly talk show-style comedy night where she gathers up some of her favorite fellow funny people to discuss everything from current events to beef jerky. This month's guests are Ev Jensen and Monica Nevi and Dorje says it's the last installment until 2024. Go! (Here-After, 2505 First Ave, 7 pm, $15, 21+) MEGAN SELING
THURSDAY 9/21Â Â
(BOOKS) Four years ago, a crew of scientists set out for Thwaites Glacier, an unusually broad Antarctic glacier that had never been visited by humans before. Their goal? To learn as much as possible about the ice formation, which was purported to be deteriorating and potentially contributing to catastrophic global sea-level rise. Elizabeth Rush, author of the Pulitzer Prize finalist Rising, documented the voyage in The Quickening, engaging with the unknown, the sublime, and the everyday. Activities like ping-pong and lab work comingle with "staggering waves" and "unfamiliar contours" at sea, and the story is woven with more intimate questions: namely, what does parenthood mean in an era of "radical change?" (Elliott Bay Book Company, 1521 10th Ave, 7 pm, free) LINDSAY COSTELLO
FRIDAY 9/22Â Â
Who Is She? Record Release Party with Lemon Boy and the Misties
(MUSIC/ROLLERSKATING) Girlboss energy is out, and Goddess energy is very in. Just ask the musicians behind Who Is She?, the Seattle supergroup comprised of members of other local music scene favorites including Chastity Belt, Tacocat, and Lisa Prank. Their new album Goddess Energy is absolutely brimming with it. The band came together in 2017 when Julia Shapiro, Bree McKenna, and Robin Edwards started to write buoyant and breezy songs about Myspace Top 8s, romantic comedies, and crushing on people while riding the 44 bus. After releasing their debut album Seattle Gossip that same year, the group kept a pretty low profile while the trio focused on their original bands. Almost six years and a whole pandemic later, Who Is She? are finally back to keep the Seattle scene from taking itself too seriously. Read our full interview with Who Is She? here! Lemon Boy and the Misties open. (Southgate Roller Rink, 9646 17th Ave SW, 9 pm, $15 for the show, $5 to skate, 21+) KURT SUCHMAN
SATURDAY 9/23Â Â
New Albums from Gabriel Teodros and Khingz
(MUSIC) On September 23, Gabriel Teodros and Khingz—two rappers who, as Abyssinian Creole, helped launch a movement in local hip-hop that ultimately led to Macklemore's millions—drop solo albums. (They also perform at Clock-Out Lounge on Saturday, but the show sold out long ago.) Teodros's album is called From the Ashes of Our Home; Khingz is A Safe Place for Us. It's hard to separate these solo works because together they form the politics and lyricism of Abyssinian Creole, introduced in 2005 with Sexy Beast. Teodros is not, however, stuck in the past. His work explores his marriage to author (and former Stranger contributor) Ijeoma Oluo, who appears on a track ("You and Me"), developments in East Africa ("Soul Cries"), and also the paradoxical situation of East Africans in Israel ("Open Letter to My Cousins in Israel"). Khingz's album is more dreamy than his musical partner's: tracks like "Jennie," "UberDash," and "Pot from Potholes" have a beauty that, like oneirical images, is intangible and impressionistic. The album also has the duo's key collaboration, "Badtz Maru." If you don't have a ticket to the show, you can spend an evening absorbing these love-filled albums. (From the Ashes of Our Home by Gabriel Teodros is available on Bandcamp here; A Safe Place for Us by Khingz is available here) CHARLES MUDEDE
SUNDAY 9/24Â Â
(MUSIC) Much like their namesake, Japanese four-piece pop band CHAI are a sweet, slightly spicy delight. In songs like "Maybe Chocolate Chips" and "Donuts Mind If I Do," CHAI write lyrics that are cheeky yet poignant, with an overall goal to "deconstruct the standards of beauty and cuteness that can be so oppressive in Japan." Their live shows are known to include lively choreography and extravagant matching outfits. With an opening set from Utah-based weirdo-pop star 26fix, you won't want to miss this one, folks. (Tractor Tavern, 5213 Ballard Ave, 8 pm, $25, 21+) AUDREY VANN
MONDAY 9/25Â Â
Three-Body Problem
(TELEVISION) This week KCTS 9 begins streaming the best TV series of the year, the Chinese adaptation of the first book in Cixin Lui's trilogy The Three-Body Problem. Directed by Yang Lei and Vincent Yang, written by Tian Liangliang, and primarily bankrolled by China's tech giant Tencent, the series' fidelity to its source has the impressive power of a miracle. I failed to find even one of the first book's key points missing from its 30 episodes (yes—30 episodes for Season 1!). The connection between the Cultural Revolution and stars is there, so is the theory behind using the sun as an amplifier for radio waves, so is the crucial role of nanotechnology, the detonation of a mini-nuclear bomb, the formation of pro-alien organization (ETO) and its factions, and a thorough explanation of how the information of a world-destroying weapon can be packed in the tiny space of a photon. The television version also includes Black Africans in the multi-national military command center that's learning more and more about the perverse sociology of our universe. (Cixin not only excluded Africans but also Indians, who are included in a Chinese science fiction novel recently translated into English, Han Song's Hospital trilogy.) When completed (100 episodes?), Three-Body might be the best sci-fi TV series of the decade. (Stream Three-Body Problem starting Saturday, September 23 on KCTS 9's website) CHARLES MUDEDE
TUESDAY 9/26Â Â
Catherine Howe: Ultra – Florescent
(VISUAL ART) If you were once a kid who liked making squiggles with shaving cream, New York painter Catherine Howe's Ultra – Florescent will likely appeal to you. The show's textured paintings were created with an "alchemical" blend of acrylic mediums, white matte glaze, and mineral pigments, resulting in a thick, tactile effect and curious luminosity. Howe's strange garden is set against shimmering backdrops, and her floral forms burst from the picture field like silly string. The works are super-satisfying to look at, but chances are good that you'll be wishing you could touch 'em, too. (Winston Wächter Fine Art, 203 Dexter Ave N, Tues-Fri 10 am-5 pm, Sat 11 am-5 pm, through Oct 21, free) LINDSAY COSTELLO
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