During the last incarnation of my music festival, Squeak and Squawk, I was lucky enough to be able to bring up a band from Oakland, California, called Twin Steps. Led by Drew Pearson, their maniacal frontman, Twin Steps are a stubbornly undefinable group of weirdos who mix warped vocal samples with visceral percussion and interchangeably nightmarish and sweet vocals. They were divisive, let's say - one woman at the bar told me she thought they were "trying too hard," which is a statement too stupid to get into. Now, Pearson is returning to the Northwest with his new project, Golden Drugs, which streamlines the mayhem of Twin Steps in exchange for a more concentrated dose of dread.

Read Rev. Adam McKinney's full feature on Golden Drugs in the Music & Culture section.

GOLDEN DRUGS, w/ Chung Antique, Clayface, Derek M. Johnson, 8 p.m., Saturday, Sept. 13, Northern, 414 ½ Legion Way, Olympia, $5