Riverboat Gamblers with Spike and the Gimme Gimmes

Riverboat Gamblers are playing the McMenamins Crystal Ballroom on Wednesday, December 9, opening for Spike and the Gimme Gimmes. They're a Texas power punk five-piece from Austin by way of Denton, and their garage punk has spanned nearly two decades. They built their reputation on raucous, unpredictable live shows where injury and blood took center stage as often as the iron-clad bubble-gum pop and gang vocals informed by trucker speed and free-clinic waiting rooms. The band consists of Mike Wiebe on vocals, Fadi El-Assad and Ian MacDougall on guitar and vocals, Rob Marchant on bass and vocals, and Sam Keir on drums.

They formed in the Denton house-show scene and flatly reject the expectation to mature, keeping their new material as raw and speed-driven as before. That's the same approach they've stuck with for the better part of twenty years, so the set should sound a lot like the band you've come to expect: fast, loud, and not particularly interested in toning anything down. They're opening for Spike and the Gimme Gimmes, who headline the night.

The show is at the Crystal Ballroom, 1332 W Burnside, in Portland. It starts at 8 PM on Wednesday, December 9, and tickets are $90.