MONDAY 6/22
(FILM) Brazillian director Antônio Carlos de Fontoura’s 1974 film The Devil Queen reimagines the life and crimes of 1930s druglord/drag performer João Francisco dos Santos as a 1970s queen swathed in psychedelic fabric, who uses her jackknife to slit throats and shave her legs. Told through stunning candy colored makeup, costumes, and sets, this film is a real feast for the eyes. Just take it from filmmaker/writer Christian Jacob Ramón, who once said of the film, “If Scorsese and Almodóvar got drunk and went to bed together in Rio in the ’70s, this movie would be the stain left on their bedsheets.” AUDREY VANN (The Beacon, 7:30 pm)
TUESDAY 6/23
(THEATER) If you’ve seen flyers for Frida…A Self-Portrait around town (which you probably have; it genuinely feels like they’re everywhere), take this as your final sign to grab tickets to this truly transcendent production. Written and performed by Vanessa Severo, this one-woman show meditates on Frida Kahlo’s life through a personal performance that explores the parallels between Severo’s own experiences and Kahlo’s complicated world. Blending movement, music, storytelling, and imagery inspired by Kahlo’s artwork, the production captures the late artist’s pain, humor, relationships, philosophy, and enduring cultural impact in a remarkably intimate way. (Union Arts Center, 7 pm) LANGSTON THOMAS
WEDNESDAY 6/24
(FILM) Bottom is about bottoming, as in, one anonymous man’s grail quest to get rawed by as many men as he possibly can in a year. Come for the “load count,” stay for all the ways this documentary will make you feel. (Northwest Film Forum, 7 pm) VIVAN McCALL
THURSDAY 6/25
Ak’chamel, Diminished Men, Derek Monypeny
(MUSIC) The mysterious Houston entity Ak’chamel wear robes and elaborate headdresses and masks apparently made out of decaying flora, and they call their music “Fourth World post-colonial cultural cannibalism.” Recording for the great French label Akuphone, Ak’chamel use oud, hand drums, self-made fiddles, and hurdy-gurdy to summon ritualistic, hypnotic folk music of unknown origin. Some of their songs possess melodies of exquisite beauty, like Sun City Girls when they stop being arch. Some emit Glass Beams’ otherworldly chill vibes, but without the head-nodding beats. Some sound arcanely demonic. Guaranteed, you won’t hear and see anything like Ak’chamel any time soon. Derek Monypeny is a master of the shahi baaja, an Indian instrument that’s like a zither with typewriter keys attached to it, to change pitch. It also possesses 10 unfretted strings that serve as a drone harp. He exploits its unusual timbres to create pieces that coalesce into mesmerizing Moebius strips of sound. (Tractor Tavern, 8:30 pm, 21+) DAVE SEGAL
FRIDAY 6/26
Sir Richard Bishop, Climax Golden Twins
(MUSIC) After helping elevate Seattle legends Sun City Girls to avant-rock illuminati status, Sir Richard Bishop has forged a solo career that’s flaunted his erudite guitar skills and innovative electronic-music inclinations. His large discography abounds with bejeweled virtuosity on electric and acoustic guitar, as he improvises sonic travelogues that transport you to foreign realms (North Africa, India, the Middle East) as well as to John Fahey’s Appalachia. The Portland-based wizard’s previewing Hillbilly Erotica (out July 31), whose fleet-fingered, serpentine inventiveness on acoustic guitar will give your ears benevolent whiplash. Seattle’s long-running, shape-shifting rock group Climax Golden Twins released their magnum opus in 2022, Climax Golden Twins, a sprawling double LP of funky psych-rock, eerie imaginary soundtracks, and surreal folk. It’s impossible to replicate live, but do know that anything can happen at a CGT show—and probably will. (Black Lodge, 7 pm, all ages) DAVE SEGAL
SATURDAY 6/27
(MUSIC) Between the reformation of the Softies and now Heavenly, it’s a really good time to be a twee-pop fangirl. The British quintet will return to the Pacific Northwest to support their first album in three decades, Highway to Heavenly. The album picks up right where they left off in the mid ’90s with upbeat pop hits reminiscent of the Cardigans and Stereolab. Don’t miss the chance to hear Heavenly frontwoman Amelia Fletcher’s saccharine vocals, which have also fronted legendary punk-minded bands Marine Research, Tender Trap, and my personal favorite, Talulah Gosh. I wouldn’t be surprised if PNW music man Calvin Johnson (of Beat Happening) graces the stage to perform their collaborative tracks “C Is the Heavenly Option” and “Pet Monkey.” Fellow twee legends the Umbrellas and Fletcher’s side project, Swansea Sound, featuring Hue Williams of the Pooh Sticks, will open. (Crocodile, 6 pm, all ages) AUDREY VANN
SUNDAY 6/28
(PRIDE) This festival is sort of like if Seattle PrideFest got tangled up in the Capitol Hill Block Party. Outside of Capitol Hill’s Queer/Bar, gaggles of queer icons will take the outdoor stage with two days of music, drag, and burlesque performances. After last year’s lineup with Lil’ Kim, Rebecca Black, and Countess Luann, it was hard to imagine what could top that, but oops!…they did it again. Multi-hyphenate superstar Keke Palmer will headline along with City Girls rapper JT, rapper/actress Junglepussy, and electronic DJ Honey Dijon (best known for her work on Beyoncé’s Renaissance). In classic Queer/Pride Fest fashion, reality TV villainesses Tiffany “New York” Pollard and Erika Jayne will DJ. Plus, RuPaul’s Drag Race stars Sasha Colby, Willow Pill, Bosco, and Jane Don’t will goop and gag the crowd alongside local drag royals Stacey Starstruck, Norvina Dubois, and Moscato Sky. (Queer/Bar, times vary, 21+) AUDREY VANN
