Wednesday, April 27

Local Voices

Seattle Arts and Lectures’ “Writers in the Schools” program delivers some of the best Seattle-area writers (and visiting authors) to local students who are hungry for writing education. Tonight, Seattle-area WitS all-star teachers present new work, including Rachel Kessler, Sierra Nelson, and Anastacia Tolbert. Hugo House, 1634 11th Ave., 322-7030, hugohouse.org. Free. All ages. 7:30 p.m. PAUL CONSTANT

Thursday, April 28

Hannah Faith Notess and Amelia Martens

Seattle author Notess, who writes wonderful poems about the problematic experiences of avatars in video games, teams up with Kentucky poet Martens, whose new book The Spoons in the Grass Are There to Dig a Moat is a beautiful little collection of prose poems about nature, Jesus, and IKEA housing for refugees. Queen Anne Book Company, 1811 Queen Anne Ave. N., 284-2427, qabookco.com. Free. All ages. 7 p.m. PC

Heatwarmer

DIY scene veteran Heatwarmer is a must-see, but the bands opening tonight’s show—Sick Sad World, Ghost Soda and Thank You—are rising stars in Seattle’s basement-party realm. If you like skateboard pop, freaky synths, or perpetual chill-dom, you’ll find plenty to enjoy tonight. Chop Suey, 1325 E. Madison St., chopsuey.com. $7. 21 and over. 8 p.m. KELTON SEARS

Friday, April 29

Tod Marshall, Heather McHugh, & Lucia Perillo

Three Washington poets celebrate the end of National Poetry Month at downtown’s newest literary events space. McHugh (who does not read in Seattle nearly enough for my tastes) and Perillo are both MacArthur “Genius” grant winners. Marshall is Washington state’s newest Poet Laureate, and a tireless advocate for local poetry. Folio: The Seattle Athenaeum, 324 Marion St., 402-4612, folioseattle.org. $5. 7 p.m. PC

Twist Top Issue #1 Release Party

A brand new zine named Twist Top claims it’s taking up the mantle of young Bruce Pavitt’s ’80-’88 Sub Pop zines and promising to provide a “living, breathing endurance against the new wave of developers” by promoting underground music and culture. Can I get an amen? Grab the first issue tonight. With Zen Mother, Julia Shapiro, Invisible Hand, Peg. Hollow Earth Radio, 2018 E. Union St., hollowearthradio.org. $12 (zine included). All ages. 9 p.m. KS

Bleached

In their early-’00s outfit Mika Miko, sisters Jessie and Jennifer Clavin carried the riot-grrrl torch with a frenetic live show, undeniable riffs, and a shout-sing style that probably drove your parents nuts. With their newer band Bleached, the duo has invested more in its studio sound, beefing up those riffs and harmonizing those vocals for a pop-punk sound that recalls Joan Jett more than it does Kathleen Hanna. Some might miss the unhinged energy of their early efforts, but there is no denying that Bleached has crafted a sound that hits the pop-punk sweet spot. And they still put on an excellent live show. With No Parents. Barboza, 925 E. Pike St. $13. 21 and over. 7 p.m. MARK BAUMGARTEN

Boost Festival

Boost is back—after a brief hiatus, dancemaker and presenter Marlo Martin has revived her mixed-choreographer festival. Doing good for the community has been good for Martin as well, since this mixed-rep program has space for established choreographers like Michelle Miller’s Catapult Dance and Martin’s badmarmarDANCE, as well as emerging artists like Amy Johnson and Markeith Wiley. Broadway Performance Hall, 1625 Broadway Ave., brown papertickets.com. $20. 8 p.m. Fri., April 29–Sat., April 30. SANDI KURTZ

Saturday, April 30

Eldridge Gravy & The Court Supreme

The funkiest crew in town is back to pack the Tractor stage with a dozen horn-blasting, hip-swinging freaks. Though they’re already pros at working a crowd, they’re sure to woo extra-hard with that silky-smooth new single “Truthfully.” Also on deck: the Yada Yada Blues Band, a mix of Motown, funk, and blues with a soulful front man and lingering riffs on electric guitar and Hammond organ. Tractor Tavern, 5213 Ballard Ave. N.W., 789-3599. $15. 21 and over. 9 p.m. SARA BERNARD

Intruder #19 Release Party

Seattle’s premier alt-comix newspaper, The Intruder, celebrates its penultimate issue tonight before officially calling it quits. Bittersweet for sure, but after four years of publishing, the paper’s rotating crew of artists certainly aren’t disappearing: Tom Van Deusen is getting published on Vice; both Darin Shuler and Joe Garber have healthy new fantasy/sci-fi web comic series; you can catch Marie Hausauer and James the Stanton’s illustrations in this paper every week; and Seth Goodkind spearheaded the new comics gallery this event takes place at. All the more reason to enjoy the last few issues of The Intruder while you can. Push/Pull Gallery, 5484 Shilshole Ave. N.W. Free. All ages. 7–10 p.m. KS

Erik Blood

Fresh off guiding Tacocat into more serious terrain as the producer of Lost Time, Erik Blood returns to center stage for his second full-length Lost in Slow Motion. Like his porn-themed 2012 debut Touch Screens, Blood naturally has a producer’s touch, layering a multitude of sounds—lots of vocals and synths, here—to singular, awe-inspiring effect. Each song is a work of toned-down psychedelia that tugs at the heart, at times swelling into monuments to fleeting moments. In other words, it’s romantic as hell. With Wall of Ears, Fruit Juice. High Dive, 513 N. 36th St., 632-0212. $8 adv./$10 DOS. 21 and over. 8 p.m. MB

Radost Folk Ensemble

Hold hands and make a circle—that’s how millions of people on earth dance with each other, and that’s how Radost started bringing the dance and music traditions of the Balkans to Northwest audiences 40 years ago. The company is celebrating their anniversary doing what it knows best—dancing and singing for us. They are the real deal, and a local treasure. Shoreline Conference Center, 18560 First Ave. N.E., radost.org. $12–$17. 7 p.m. SK

Sunday, May 1

Weed & Memoir

While there will be no pot sold or consumed on Hugo House’s premises for this event, organizer David Schmader wants you to, if at all possible, show up stoned. He, Angela Garbes, and Tina Rowley will read original memoir pieces, and readers including Charles Smith and former Seattle Weekly music editor Michaelangelo Matos will read provocative pieces from entertainingly trashy celebrity autobiographies. Hugo House, 1634 11th Ave., 322-7030, hugohouse.org. $5. All ages. 7 p.m. PAUL CONSTANT

Club Shostakovich

“Play it so that flies drop dead in mid-air” is Shostakovich’s wry comment on the somberness of his 15th and final string quartet, from May 1974, but it truly applies only to the first of the work’s six slow movements, an Elegy. The others traverse a vast emotional range: agitation, numbness, despair, consolation—the usual for this composer, but intensified by his age, ill health, the loss of friends, and likely, in the year before his death, thoughts of his own passing. (Though apparently he had started to sketch a 16th quartet.) It marks the end of the journey, too, for Club Shostakovich’s complete cycle of the 15 quartets, launched in July 2012—and since then, likely the most vital, important, and satisfying chamber-music series in town. The Royal Room, 5000 Rainier Ave. S. $10–$15. 7:30 p.m. GAVIN BORCHERT

Monday, May 2

Pamela Haag

Americans feel helpless when it comes to the gun epidemic in part because we’ve been bamboozled by advertising. Haag is the author of The Gunning of America, which tells the true story of how America’s gun-crazy culture was created by marketing campaigns bought and created by the gun industry. Town Hall, 1119 Eighth Ave., 652-4255, townhallseattle.org. $5. All ages. 7 p.m. PAUL CONSTANT

Tuesday, May 3

Rocking Fatherhood

Anyone who’s seen Almost Famous would be forgiven if they saw little connection between rock journalism and fatherhood. Yet former Seattle Weekly music editor Chris Kornelis has managed to draw from these two divergent streams a hilarious, informative, and cohesive how-to on being a great dad while not selling your vinyl collection. Rocking Fatherhood, out today, is a week-by-week rundown of how guys can be good partners and even better parents, with an emphasis on the sorts of punk-rock practicalities you won’t see in the pages of Parenting (“Week 15: Don’t Let Her Microwave Bologna”). Catch Kornelis tonight in conversation with Chris Ballew of The Presidents of the United States of America. Third Place Books, 6504 20th Ave. N.E., thirdplacebooks.com. Free. All ages. 7 p.m. DAN PERSON