Stranger Suggests: Your Agenda This Week, August 17–August 23

MONDAY 8/17

Musashi’s in Wallingford

(FOOD) Have you been to Musashi’s in Wallingford? My girlfriend and I were running errands, and popped in for a quick lunch. I spent $13.50 for five plump pieces of nigiri, an assortment of eight rolls, and delicious complementary brown rice tea. So simple and fresh, I had a Ratatouille dolly zoom moment. If you’re looking for the twist, you won’t find one (or fried rice). The waiter is rude in a way I enjoyed. If you can’t stand rejection, bring a dog. He loves dogs, but I believe you’ll have to tie them up outside. A short walk for Archie McPhee’s, if you feel like blowing the money you’ve saved on glorious crap. (1400 N 45th St, 11:30 am–2:30 pm, 4:45–8:45 pm) VIVIAN MCCALL

TUESDAY 8/18

Helado Tropical (Helado Negro & Reyna Tropical)

(MUSIC) I’ve seen Helado Negro and Reyna Tropical live separately, and both shows felt like a riotous, joyful party, so I can only imagine the uplifting vibes that will ensue when they come together for their upcoming joint slay at Neptune Theatre. Roberto Carlos Lange explores hope, grief, and Latino identity under the name Helado Negro, while She Shreds Media founder and guitarist Fabi Reyna delves into Colombian, Peruvian, and Mexican grooves and Congolese rhythms as Reyna Tropical. As Pitchfork writes, the two share a history of making “heart-on-your-sleeve electronic and indie-folk songs that touch on diaspora, longing, and love,” so it was only a matter of time until the two linked up. The result is their self-titled collaborative debut album Helado Tropical, a breezy, sun-soaked delight best enjoyed while eating a popsicle. Get ready to dance. (Neptune Theatre, 8 pm, all ages) JULIANNE BELL

WEDNESDAY 8/19

Take Care of My Cat

(FILM) Jeong Jae-eun’s 2001 sleeper hit Take Care of My Cat ticks all the boxes for a perfect film: female friendship, delicious Korean cuisine, and a cat as a central character. The film follows a group of five friends whose bonds begin to break after their high school graduation, due to jealousy and unequal opportunities based on class privilege. The film is both an ode to complex female friendships, the awkward transition from childhood to adulthood, and the effects of South Korea’s globalization efforts. I have an idea: Go see the film with a group of friends, then head over to BOPBOX (on Airport Way) to discuss the film over bibimbap and kimchi pancakes. (Beacon Cinema, 4:30 pm) AUDREY VANN

THURSDAY 8/20

The Breeders with Team Dresch

(MUSIC) As a fangirl of the Deal sisters who has obsessively followed their solo projects and bands (the Pixies, the Amps, the Kelley Deal 6000, etc), I will never miss an opportunity to hear Kim and Kelley play together as the Breeders. The alt-rock four-piece has released just five albums since their formation in 1989—each one flawless—showcasing their mastery of restraint. This control is also reflected in the music itself, which is never overworked, overproduced, or overcomplicated. The Breeders aren’t supporting a particular album on this tour (they haven’t released an album since 2018’s All Nerve), and according to recent setlists, you can expect to hear many songs from their seminal 1993 album, Last Splash, along with a few covers and deep cuts sprinkled in. You’d be a fool to miss the opening set by pioneering queercore band Team Dresch, supporting their first album in 30 years, Furthermore (out September 18). (Woodland Park Zoo, 4:30 pm, all ages) AUDREY VANN

FRIDAY 8/21

Carles Gomila: Holy Purry Order

(VISUAL ART) Roq La Rue delivers yet another stunner: a solo show by Carles Gomila, a painter based in Menorca, Spain, whose work is dripping with 19th-century symbolist energy, the divine feminine, and—perhaps most importantly—her witchy familiar, the cat. Titled Holy Purry Order, Gomila’s exhibit delves into a quasi-mystical realm of cat-female iconography, from sphinx to spinster cat lady. The show officially opens August 15, with a reception on the evening of the 14th. Also opening Friday: Gallery ERGO debuts dual solo shows by Berlin-based painter and muralist SNYDER and Seattle’s own wunderkind, Casey Weldon. (Roq La Rue, 6–9 pm) AMANDA MANITACH

SATURDAY 8/22

Coffin Farm Summer Show

(VISUAL ART) It’s the sixth iteration of Coffin Farm’s Summer Show, a site-specific exhibition on a bucolic, goat-populated, 15-acre family farm at the edge of Redmond. Since 2018, Von Coffin and their father, Edward, have invited artists from around the world to install work on the land, creating one of the region’s most unexpected (and coolest) sculpture parks. (Cover your ears, Olympic Sculpture Park!) Wander the goat field, and you’ll encounter the bones of felled sculptures and fragments of monuments half-sunk into the earth, where time, decay, and the elements become collaborators. This year’s show features a whopping 31 artists from Seattle, Vancouver, Glasgow, Philadelphia, Boston, and LA. No word yet on whether Tomo’s Brady Williams will return with the pig-roasting rig he brought in 2024; either way, you’ll cry if you miss this. (Coffin Farm, Redmond) AMANDA MANITACH

SUNDAY 8/23

Ida with Storey Littleton

(MUSIC) Musicians Daniel Littleton and Elizabeth Mitchell (now a married couple) founded their indie rock/slowcore band Ida in Brooklyn in 1991, the year of my birth. Even if you think you’ve never heard them, you probably have—the pair backed Lisa Loeb on her 1994 hit and eternal karaoke classic “Stay (I Missed You)“. That same year, they released their debut album Tales of Brave Ida on the indie label Simple Machines. Over the years, they acquired more members (including Littleton’s brother Michael as drummer, bassist Karla Schickele, and violinist Jean Cook) and accrued a cult following for their heartfelt harmonies and spare, sparkling arrangements. Last year, Numero Group brought their work to a new audience with a 25th anniversary re-issue of their 1999 album Will You Find Me, and now, the band is touring with Littleton and Mitchell’s daughter Storey Littleton, who has a solo project of her own. They’ll be joined at Sunset Tavern by former Spinanes leader Rebecca Gates and former Universal Order of Armageddon vocalist Colin Seven. If you’re a fan of other shimmery ’90s indie pop bands like Luna and Low, this show is not to be missed. (But if you can’t make it, they’ll also be playing Dylanfest on Orcas Island on August 29.) (Sunset Tavern, 8 pm, 21+) JULIANNE BELL

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