Not many modern acts have truly captured the endearing pop sensabilities of doo wop quite like Moon By You. Having transcended the usual bar most acts in the same genre typically operate at, Moon By You have used their time spent as soulfully psychedelic callback to one of the only good parts of that era to essentially run that part of the local scene. It seems MBY might be at its end, but they've left us a parting gift to soothe our disbanded sadness.

You Are an Alien is the band at its best, of course, showing the musical heights they've reached in such a short time. The album may be coming out on the low, with only limited physical copies to be acquired, but track comparisons to influencers like Temples and Iron Butterfly make it a worthy release to end on.

Tomorrow may be your last time to see Moon By You for the forseeable future, as they'll be playing Mississippi Studios with Washington stoner rock heavy hitters Weeed and the most delightful local acts in a while Reptaliens. We might be in denial, but let's see them off in style.

 *photo by Calvin Chen

It's always nice to switch up your musical routine and add some fresh talent to your aresenal. Rentz Leinbach is exactly who I'm talking about when I say this. The recent Deli Artist of the Month is multi-instrumentalist, inspired by greats like Guided by Voices, Hasil Adkins and Elvis Costello. He's been a solo acoustic artist (under the names the Pink Leather Tats and Root Shocker) and part of a three-piece band (Neither v. Either), but his current incarnation is quite addiciting. Rentz has got a show coming up on the 18th with Moon By You and Dim Wit at the Liquor Store, and a cassette release show at Mother Foucault's Bookshop on June 18th. He may only be one person, but he can put on one hell of a performance.

At some point or another, it's likely you've been asked if you're "DTF" or not. Usually, the acronym would imply you're down for some, let's say, "sensual relations," but here in Portland in references a different sort of gathering. December to Forget is our giant "F U" to this month of lame weather, ugly sweaters and gifts you didn't ask for. The last December to Forget, hosted by Party Boyz in 2013, got quite crazy. The ladies of Party Boyz are hoping for the same this year.

December to Forget will be held at the Liquor Store this Saturday, December 12th. Sets at the show include breakout band Moon By You, our beloved Wampire and San Francisco's Everyone Is Dirty. Tickets are $5 and the show starts at 9pm, so come prepared to get messed up with the best of us!

DTF is also doubling as a canned food drive, so if you bring a can of shelf stable food with you, you'll get $1 off your ticket! All the food is being donated to the Oregon Food Bank to benefit those less fortunate this holiday season, so nutrient dense foods are highly needed (think vegetables, soups, etc.)!

-Cervante Pope

It wouldn’t be wise to end the year without a solid night of rock and soul. This Friday, the Doug Fir hosts a pre-Christmas eggnogger with some of the hottest bands on the circuit. The night starts with Moon By Youand their psychedelic surf-soul then gravitates to some bluesy Motown soul with local nine piece Brownish Black. Continuing the festivus will be The Lower 48. Their sweet mix of folk and vintage pop combined with slightly grungy rhythms and soft vocal harmonies has come together to create the Lower 48’s own brand of soul. They are returning from a rainy California tour and are putting on a party to celebrate another rainy, Portland Christmas. Tickets are $10 and the show starts at 9PM.

- Colin Hudson 

Portland's beloved surf/psych twangsters, The Shivas, are back at it with the release of their fourth LP, You Know What To Do. The Album is already available digitally through their bandcamp page, with physical copies to be released through K Records on CD and Vinyl and Burger Records on Cassette. You Know What To Do is a lenthy 13 tracks, chaulk-full of their steadfast and throwback vocal harmonies, staccato guitar, hand claps, and reverb.

Album opener and title track "You Know What To Do" teases the listener with a brief fourty five seconds of a slowed down surf-meets-the-wild-west intro before paddling full bore into a wave-thrashing speed ball with hints of Thee Oh Sees influence. Appropriately titled tracks "Beach Heads" and "Stroking Off" eminate their obvious influential references of Beach Boys and The Strokes, respectively. A personal favorite on the LP, "Used To Be Cool," boasts one of the coolest surf guitar licks I've ever heard throughout the song's intro, verses and outro. Catch The Shivas official release show for You Know What To Do this Friday night, November 8th, at Bunk Bar along with Jollapin Jasper and Moon By You.

- Travis Leipzig