LARAAJI, ETERNAL TAPESTRY, LYRELS
(S1 Gallery, 4148 NE Hancock) Ambient 3: Day of Radiance, his collaboration with Brian Eno, is the best primer for Laraaji's music. The first half features quick pulses of notes that seem like they should fill your nerves with sparks of nervous energy. Instead, they hypnotize and soothe, moving you gently into the slowly strummed chords and lingering melodies that close out the recording. The effect of this album, and most everything Laraaji has recorded since, is demonstrated by the state he enters when he performs the pieces: eyes closed, beatific smile, completely lost in the sound. "I access my inner score, my inner lead sheet," Laraaji says. "I like to temporarily forget that I'm playing for separate beings and am interacting with a unified energy field. I can access my imagination, too. I imagine angelic dancers or oceans or the blood flowing through people's veins." ROBERT HAM Read our article on Laraaji.

ALTADORE, THE HUGS, TENTS
(Valentine's, 232 SW Ankeny) Altadore describes itself as "indie rock." What on earth does that mean in the year 2015? From listening to their appealing new five-song EP, Wandering Ghost, it means, I think, that the Portland band has drums, guitars, and a singer, but they're more interested in exploring sonic textures with those instruments than banging out three-chord blues-derived jams. The guitars shimmer with just-so amounts of echo (rather than bellow and crunch); the drums lope along elegantly (rather than bash and clatter); the songs are pretty (without being folk-derived). It's not exactly an uncommon sound in this day and age, but the melodies, delivered by lead singer David Katz, are where Altadore gaze in the rock 'n' roll rearview and find their anchor. The tunes evoke '50s prom ballads, Brian Wilson-esque chord structures, and Raspberries power-pop. If Altadore's sound is nebulous, their grasp on timeless songwriting is not, and it's what sets this indie-rock band apart from countless others with the same designation. NED LANNAMANN

FRAMEWORKS, PRAWN, LEE COREY OSWALD, HOLY TENTACLES
(Analog Café, 720 SE Hawthorne) Massachusetts emo label Topshelf Records was arguably the frontrunner in the emo "revival" that caught the blogosphere by storm a couple of years ago. Virtually every twinkly, Kinsella-fetishizing outfit that gave the scene a name was a Topshelf band (The World Is a Beautiful Place and I Am No Longer Afraid to Die, Empire! Empire!, You Blew It!, Portland's own tragically defunct Duck. Little Brother, Duck!, just to name a few). In the last year and a half, the label has seemingly—and understandably—attempted to diversify, with pretty great results. They reissued Wild Ones' debut LP Keep It Safe and released Special Explosion's The Art of Mothering last year, two records that were pretty dissimilar from the label's preexisting oeuvre. Kingfisher, the 2014 LP from New Jersey's Prawn, is another such release, a grandiose indie pop/emo-lite record replete with bold orchestral flourishes; songs like "Scud Running" and "Thalassa" sound sort of like Arcade Fire if Win Butler had been reared on pop-punk. The group's latest effort is the Settled EP, a two-song extension of Kingfisher. MORGAN TROPER From All-Ages Action!

NOSAJ THING, CLARK, D TIBERIO
(Doug Fir, 830 E Burnside) Clark's performance at Branx two years ago was a spiritually affirming affair, with washes of low end massaging the internal organs of all within earshot and beats constructed with an architect's understanding of form and function. I expect nothing less from the British electronic producer's upcoming appearance at the Doug Fir, especially if his latest eponymous album is anything to go by. The 14 tracks are masterpieces of modern house that all seem built around the title of one of its tracks: "Strength Through Fragility." Even at their hardest-hitting, Clark's compositions are leavened with a warm airiness that will make you want to spin through them like a giddy flower child. ROBERT HAM

BEACH FIRE, ROBIN BACIOR, ERIK EMANUELSON
(Al's Den, 303 SW 12th) Don't call it a comeback. Sloan Martin's been fronting Portland bands for years—most notably, the pedal steel-and-whiskey ruminations of Celilo, and more recently (and briefly), Steelhead. Still, his new Beach Fire project feels like a rejuvenation of sorts. "I started playing piano two years ago and this happened" is how Martin tells it, and those keys form the backbone of the band's output thus far. The new instrument also seems to have unlocked the gate to unlikely musical territory for Martin, whose summery, vaguely tropical songs on the Comeback Kid EP are bolstered here and there by saxophone, electronic beats, and female backing vocals. Beach Fire plays this week's Al's Den residency beginning tonight with a bevy of diverse guests ranging from singer/songwriter Robin Bacior to a Barbara Mandell tribute to the hiphop of Two Planets. JEREMY PETERSEN

SHLOHMO, PURPLE, NICK MELON
(Branx, 320 SE 2nd) Henry Laufer, the LA-based producer known as Shlohmo, is a ridiculously young talent who has burst out of the Wedidit collective thanks to his mind-expanding, head-nodding beats. It's the kind of music that make you feel—as the title of one of his best tracks says—like you are emerging from a cloud of smoke. Laufer's been on an amazing run with his incredible recent collaboration with R&B singer Jeremih and his new wave/industrial-inspired album Dark Red, but looks to keep challenging himself: On this current tour, he'll be backed up by a guitar/bass/drums lineup that should add some heft to his already substantial tunes. ROBERT HAM