Saturday, April 18 // combobox LIVE at The Rosebud, w/ Sellout, James & The Lost Dogs // $15 // All Ages // Doors 6pm, Show 7pm // Alt-Punk, Spankwave, Indie Rock // Buy Tickets Here
Portland’s combobox makes precision‑cut, high‑energy alt‑punk they’ve nicknamed spankwave, with songs that snap, grin, and go. Imagine the nervy angles and deadpan wit of Talking Heads colliding with the hair‑trigger dynamics of System of a Down. Modern peers includie Gustaf and early Bloc Party. The writing is compact, with most tracks landing well under three minutes, and the live show mirrors that economy. Minimal time between songs; maximum momentum. Crowds skank, a little pit bubbles up, and the band’s black and white jumpsuit uniform turns the stage into a blinking logo.
Lyrically, combobox lives where big human feelings meet their own absurdity. “Oh No!” is an absurdist bark at another Trump run; “Coffee Shop” begs off secondhand drama; “Back in Style” refuses to look away from atrocity; “Worth It” relives a vacation-turned-break-up.
Hailing from Roseburg, Oregon, James and the Lost Dogs blend blues-infused alt rock with a sharp lyrical wit that turns everyday curiosities into big philosophical questions — sometimes very big. (Their fan-favorite single Dust Mites in My Eyes wonders whether the microscopic creatures on your eyelashes write poetry or fall in love.)
With Roseburg’s own alternative rock sensation Sellout.