Most of the people going to Red Bull Sound Select’s 3 Days in Portland concerts probably live in Portland, but whatever—the three-day mini-festival has an incredible lineup and the tickets are cheap ($10 per show). Here’s what to expect each night, from Alvvays’ yacht-pop to NAO’s supernatural-sounding voice.
THURSDAY 5/18
Alvvays, the Courtneys, CandaceWonder Ballroom, 128 NE Russell
To be honest, at first I didn’t like Alvvays. Sailing in the Atlantic? Marriage? What is this, a J. Crew ad? But something changed—that dang “Archie, Marry Me” song is irresistible, and after enough listens, frontwoman Molly Rankin pried my heart open like a stubborn clam. Soon I realized that pretty much every song on the Canadian band’s 2014 self-titled debut is great. It’s low-stakes indie-pop with nonstop hooks thrown in your face like rainbow glitter. No one I argue about this with agrees, but I think Rankin sounds like Dolores O’Riordan of the Cranberries (without the Irish accent). Alvvays’ fellow Canadians the Courtneys sound like Vivian Girls covering New Order. In February they released The Courtneys II, an album of lo-fi punk that’s caught in a California fever dream. Rounding out the bill is Portland’s own Candace (FKA Is/Is), the self-described “witchgaze” three-piece responsible for writing the song “Midnight Blue,” which I love. They hang out at the intersection of shoegaze and psych-rock, with loud guitars and feathery harmonies. CIARA DOLAN