FILM
Mention Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory to anyone and they immediately recall the factory tour: the girl who turns into a blueberry, the Oompa-Loompa songs, and what is probably Gene Wilder’s greatest role ever. Not so many people remember just how ultra-black the humor was in the film’s first third, in which everyone goes nuts looking for a Golden Ticket; to my mind it’s up there with Network and Nashville as a pitiless satire of America in the ’70s. Watch for the scene in which Mike Teavee, the fourth ticket-finder, whips out a toy pistol and ruefully tells a reporter his dad won’t yet let him have a real one. His father’s smiling response? “Not ’til you’re 12, son.” That queasy feeling in your gut is not from eating too many Everlasting Gobstoppers. GAVIN BORCHERT. Central Cinema, central- cinema.com. $5–$10. 7 p.m. Fri., June 22–Tues., June 26, plus 1 p.m. Sat. & Sun.
MUSIC
Snail Mail sounds like Chastity Belt’s not-yet-jaded little sister. Despite turning 19 just days ago, singer/guitarist Lindsey Jordan possesses an ability to craft dreamily detached mid-tempo indie rock well beyond her years. On Lush, her band’s first LP for Matador Records, she balances guitar playing that sounds equally effortless and subtly crafty with songwriting that feels like the beginning of an awakening that teenage ideals of love are actually going to be much more complicated and messy (you can hear the disappointed weight in Jordan’s voice as she repeats “I’m feeling low/I’m not into sometimes” on “Heat Wave”). SETH SOMMERFELD The Crocodile, thecrocodile.com. $15. 8 p.m. Sat., June 23.
Looking for some blindingly sunny new music for heavy summer rotation? Check out Peach Kelli Pop’s new album Gentle Leader. Allie Hanlon’s Los Angeles-based band blitzes through 10 buzzy, twee garage-pop punk tunes in under 24 frenetic minutes that capture the hyperkinetic jubilation of cotton candy-fueled kids going wild in a bounce house. It’s delightfully unrelenting whether Hanlon’s bubblegum vocal melodies are musing about bad-luck omens, self-care, or big dogs over the backdrop of quick beats and power chords. SS. The Vera Project, theveraproject.org. $10–$12. 8 p.m. Mon., June 25.
SPORTS
The New York Times’ coverage of Major League Soccer has always been, at best, crappy, but it hit a new low two summers ago in a lazy and clueless smear-by-association article, “The Dark Side of American Soccer Culture.” In summary:
1) Fandom in America is in some surface details (say, scarves and chants) modeled on European fandom;
2) Some European fans have been known to be racist;
3) We are racist.
By way of half-assed research (in addition to citing a book on British soccer hooliganism—from 1990), the author attended one game in, yes, Seattle. If that was the match I strongly suspect it was, the author omitted to mention that it was Pride Weekend and CenturyLink was stuffed to the brim with rainbow flags. Which would have blown up his theory, unless you find it plausible that a sport can simultaneously pioneer sexual inclusion and perpetuate racial exclusion. Anyway, it’s Pride Weekend again, and this Seattle Sounders home game against the Chicago Fire will also be rainbow-drenched, as per tradition since 2015. With the team’s record currently 3-8-2 (but with visible light at the end of the tunnel, as players return from injury and the World Cup and a demigod striker from Peru gets signed), let’s hope the festivities help give a little extra push to victory. GB. CenturyLink field, sounders fc.com. 7 p.m. Sat., June 23.
