Basement Of Our Brain

Decemberists Edgefield Saturday Ticket Release

2009-07-15T11:20:00.000-07:00

A limited number of tickets for the previously sold out Decemberists show this Saturday at Edgefield have just been released. These are sure to sell out quickly so GO ONLINE AND PURCHASE NOW!

There are also a very limited amount of tickets left for Sunday's show and can be purchased HERE.

Info:

The Decemberists

with Andrew Bird and Blind Pilot

Saturday July 17th and Sunday July 18th

Edgefield, Troutdale, OR

PDX Pop Now! Festival Daily Schedule Released

2009-07-13T14:49:00.000-07:00

Start planning your Festival strategy because here is the daily schedule for PDX Pop Now! Fest next weekend at Rotture in SE Portland:

Friday July 24

INSIDE

6:00-6:30 Dirty Mittens

6:40-7:10 The Estranged

OUTSIDE

7:25-7:55 Chamber of Commerce

8:05-8:35 Don Hellions

INSIDE

8:50-9:20 Fear No Music

9:30-10:00 Peter Broderick

10:10-10:40 The Mint Chicks

OUTSIDE

10:55-11:25 Animal Farm

11:35-12:05 Explode Into Colors

12:15-12:45 The Minus 5

Saturday July 25

INSIDE

12:00-12:30 Teeath

12:40-1:10 White Hinterland

1:20-1:50 Morning Teleportation

OUTSIDE

2:05-2:35 Magic Johnson

2:45-3:15 Rob Walmart

3:25-3:55 Fist Fite

INSIDE

4:10-4:40 Benoit Pioulard

4:50-5:20 Breakfast Mountain

5:30-6:00 Nucular Aminals

OUTSIDE

6:15-6:45 Luck-One

6:55-7:25 Inside Voices

7:35-8:05 Red Fang

INSIDE

8:20-8:50 Church

9:00-9:30 Tara Jane O’Neil

9:40-10:10 Deelay Ceelay

OUSTIDE

10:25-10:55 Laura Gibson

11:05-11:35 Nice Nice

11:45-12:15 Pierced Arrows

12:25-12:55 Strength

Sunday, July 26

INSIDE

12:00-12:30 Ah Holly Fam’ly

12:40-1:10 DASH!

1:20-1:50 Guidance Counselor

OUTSIDE

2:05-2:35 The Andrew Oliver Sextet

2:45-3:15 The Quick & Easy Boys

3:25-3:55 Purple Rhinestone Eagle

INSIDE

4:10-4:40 Sallie Ford & The Sound Outside

4:50-5:20 Daniel Menche

5:30-6:00 Jeffrey Jerusalem

OUTSIDE

6:15-6:45 The Old Believers

6:55-7:25 MY-G

7:35-8:05 Cull

INSIDE

8:20-8:50 Grouper

9:00-9:30 Nurses

9:40-10:10 Thrones

OUSTIDE

10:25-10:55 The Shaky Hands

11:05-11:35 Lightheaded

11:45-12:15 Au

12:25-12:55 Menomena

Explode Into Colors @ Holocene - July 15th! + PDX Pop Now! Festival

2009-07-12T07:55:00.000-07:00

Willamette Week published their annual “Best New Band” editorial for 2009, highlighting 10 of area’s rising stars, as decided by “121 bookers, label folk, PR people and musicians” from the Oregon area. Edging out a tie for second place between Blind Pilot, and psych-pop act Nurses, Portland all-girl trio Explode into Colors nabbed the top spot in this years poll.

Although two members of Explode Into Colors met in a West African drumming class at Evergreen State College, this Portland-based all-girl trio isn’t making crunchy hippie music. With a percussion-heavy sound that recalls bands like The Slits, the band is another entry in the Pacific Northwest’s long history of angular post-punk bands with a pop heart. Signed to Kill Rock Stars, their debut album is already in the works, but in the meantime the girls will be releasing a series of 7-inch singles and curating local art shows under the Explode Into Colors name.

This year, Explode Into Colors will put out their first recordings, which will take the form of three distinct 7-inches on three separate labels (one of which is Kill Rock Stars). These songs will later be collected, paired with some unreleased tracks, and released as an EP. The three 7-inches in the works are ; one on KRS (”Eyes, Hands, Mouth” + 1), one on M’Lady’s Records (”Coffin” b/w “Sharpen the Knife”), and one on Just For The Hell Of It. All will feature artwork by a different Portland artist, but they’ll share a consistent theme. Later, all of the 7-inches’ tracks will be collected into an EP (CD/vinyl), and that will be followed by EIC’s first full-length.

URL: http://www.myspace.com/explodeintocolors

PRESS: Melophobe / Penny Jam / WWeek

MP3/Download: Explode Into Colors - Paper (Hot Sax Version)
MP3/Download: Explode Into Colors - Sharpen The Knife

Wednesday, July 15th
Explode Into Colors
Holocene

+ Tune-Yards
+ Drakkar Sauna

Time: 9PM / Tix: $7

Explode Into Colors will also play Friday, July 24th as part of the PDX Pop Now! Festival in SE Portland.

The Crystal Ballroom Adds Three More Modest Mouse Shows

2009-07-10T14:21:00.000-07:00

Following up the story from earlier in the week, Modest Mouse will now play 4 consecutive nights at the Crystal Ballroom beginning with their headlining slot at the Glacial Pace Showcase on Sunday, September 20th and culminating with a performance on Wednesday, September 23rd.

Tickets are on sale now and will most defintely go fast.

Crystal Ballroom
Modest Mouse
September 20 (MFNW), 21, 22, 23
Tix: $30 / Time: 9PM

Blitzen Trapper's "Black River Killer" Video

2009-07-07T10:45:00.000-07:00

We jumped the proverbial gun a couple months ago when we posted the unfinished video for Blitzen Trapper's "Black River Killer" and were respectfully asked to remove the footage until it was ready for release. Today we get word that it's now ready for public consumption.

"'Black River Killer' represents not only our first attempt at a fully live action video, but also a massive collaborative effort on the part of at least 120 people in and around Portland," drummer Brian Koch tells Spinner. "The generosity and enthusiasm of everyone involved was overwhelming and humbling. Hopefully it is obvious when viewing the behind-the-scenes footage that the process of making this video was just so much fun."

We are proud to present "Black River Killer":

Modest Mouse to Headline Bonus Night of MFNW at Glacial Pace Showcase

2009-07-07T09:21:00.000-07:00

This morning's big news comes via Willamette Week: Not only has MFNW been extended by one day, but Sunday's lineup will feature a showcase from Issac Brock's Portland label Glacial Pace Recording's. at the Crystal Ballroom.

On Sunday, September 20th MusicfestNW brings you an evening of music featuring artists from Portland record label Glacial Pace Recordings. The line-up includes one of music’s up and coming artists, Love as Laughter, plus two homegrown acts, Mimicking Birds and Morning Teleportation (who will also play PDX Pop Now Festival) and will be topped off with a performance by Modest Mouse.

Modest Mouse is preparing to launch an August tour in support of their recently released 7" featuring new tracks"Autumn Beds" and "Whale Song". The tour will hit San Francisco's Outside Lands Music and Arts Festival in addition to Seattle's Bumbershoot among other stops along the way in both the U.S. and Canada. Guitarist Johnny Marr will not be joining them on this trek but we are keeping our fingers crossed that he will be back in time for their hometown return at the Glacial Pace showcase.

Info:

Glacial Pace Recordings Showcase as part of MusicfestNW

Sunday, September 20th

Crystal Ballroom

Featuring: Modest Mouse, Love as Laughter, Mimicking Birds, and Morning Teleportation

Tickets:

Entry permitted on a First Come, First Serve basis with a MFNW wristband on SALE NOW

or for this show only via Ticketmaster on sale Saturday, July 9th

Mississippi Street Fair 2009

2009-07-07T01:24:00.000-07:00

MISSISSIPPI AVE STREET FAIR!

SATURDAY, JULY 11, 2009

10:00am – 9:00pmAll activities take place on Mississippi Avenue Street Fair (between N Fremont and N Skidmore)

Fun Activities for all, all day:

10-7pm Local Market - featuring interesting arts & crafts vendors plus community service displays & food vendors
Tupello Alley Reusable Art Fair & Water Features
Kids Area - Boise Eliot Eliot Elementary features bouncy castles and kids games for all sizes at Beech
Bingo - lots of prizes
Sustainability Fair at the Mississippi Avenue Lofts (4138 N. Miss Ave)
Salted Ice Cream outside at The Meadow (3731 N. Mississippi Ave)
Rose wine tasting inside at The Meadow

12:00 Children's Parade - starts at Beech

Four stages - featuring a multi-cultural roster of entertainment

10am-9pm MAIN STAGE at Shaver (middle)
1pm Norman Sylvester
2pm Freak Mountain Ramblers
3pm The Dimes
4pm Linda Hornbuckle band
5pm
6pm The SEI Sounds of Soul Gospel Ensemble
6:40pm Matt Sheehy Band
7:30pm Weinland

11am-10pm SIDE LOT STAGE (Mississippi Station)
1pm Nathaniel Talbot
2pm Sneakin Out
3pm James Low
4pm
5pm Bridgetown Saints
6pm Swing Papillon

11am-7pm DANCE STAGE at Fremont (south end)
Celilo
Tezeta Band
Samba Sol
Taylor Newville
Sudden Anthem
The Beauty
Funk Plastic
Cloaked Characters and Mosely Wotta

11am-7pm ACOUSTIC STAGE at Skidmore (north end)

Businesses and eateries along Mississippi will be open on the street for patio dining & summertime refreshments:

Por Que No? Floating Margarita Garden
Mississippi Pizza & Pub Beer Tent
Amnesia Brewing Patio
Lorenzo's Patio
Mississippi Station Patio
Crow Bar Bar
Casa Naranja Patio
Pastaworks Wine Tasting Patio

11am–9pm CRAFT BEER TASTING - Local Organic Beer Tasting at Shaver (by the Main Stage)

Featuring:
Roots OG Brewing
Hopworks Urban Brewery
Lucky Labrador Brewing Company
Deschutes Brewery
McMenamins Breweries

The Rural Alberta Advantage @ Backspace This Week

2009-07-05T10:05:00.000-07:00

The Rural Alberta Advantage made waves at the SXSW conference last year in Austin. To stand out there you need to be doing something right & this 3 piece is! The band was recently signed to Saddle Creek Records, which is based in Omaha and also includes Bright Eyes, Cursive, Two Gallants and more!

The Rural Alberta Advantage play indie-rock songs about hometowns and heartbreak, born out of images from growing up in Central and Northern Alberta. They sing about summers in the Rockies and winters on the farm, ice breakups in the spring time and the oil boom’s charm, the mine workers on compressed, the equally depressed, the city’s slow growth and the country’s wild rose, but mostly the songs just try to embrace the advantage of growing up in Alberta.

The inspiring success story of the Rural Alberta Advantage has continued to gain momentum and attract fans and followers, with a breakthrough performance at the 2009 SXSW festival in Austin, Texas getting the ultimate seal of approval from Pitchfork ("This band could be huge") and a nod as a "buzz band" from the Associated Press.

More glowing press reviews and sold-out club dates in major cities throughout the United States have followed, and Hometowns will be released properly for the first time on Saddle Creek in July 2009.

URL/LINK: http://www.theraa.com/

PRESS: Paste / Pitchfork / MOKB

MP3/Download: The Rural Alberta Advantage - Sleep All Day
MP3/Download: The Rural Alberta Advantage - Frank, AB
MP3/Download: The Rural Alberta Advantage - Don't Haunt this Place

Tuesday, July 7th
The Rural Alberta Advantage
Backspace - 115 NW 5th
+ Dallas County Potential - featuring Nathan Delffs (ex Shaky Hands)
+ Keyboard
+ James McFarland
Time: 8PM / Tix: $6

Sandman The Rappin' Cowboy at the White Eagle

2009-07-02T17:12:00.000-07:00

He needs to be seen to be believed, he is Sandman the Rappin' Cowboy and he will be making his Portland debut next Tuesday, July 7th at the White Eagle. Sandman's show is a fusion of raw-country, hip hop, folk, and punk and has been touring the country for years in a true DIY fashion making new fans along the way.

The great-grandson of Montana and North Dakota pioneers, Sand grew up hearing cowboy poetry and country music. When hip hop culture hit "the Rez" (the Flathead Indian Reservation in western Montana, where Sand lived most of his early years), he learned to rap and rhyme to the pulse of baling machines and irrigation pumps. Sand explains: "When I heard hip hop for the first time, it kind of turned me loose. You're able to say more things. It's not - what's the word - polite." By his late teens, when he discovered Marley and Dylan, he had already begun to find his own voice.

Sandman has toured the country many times, sharing bills with acts ranging from Baby Gramps to the Microphones to Michael Franti to Dan Bern. Selling "Sandman" t-shirts and pillowcases (recycled items slapped with the Sandman brand), worn leather belts, and old cowboy shirts, Sand keeps his audiences entertained during the breaks as well as on stage. He stays in touch with fans and friends between tours through his blog. Tuesday night's show will truly be one of those unique experiences which is sure to leave you with a smile and an appreciation for Sandman and his brand of entertainment.

Richmond Fontaine Releases a New Track from Upcoming EP

2009-07-02T07:22:00.000-07:00

Just in time for the big 4th of July Holiday weekend we get a new track from Richmond Fontaine entitled "You Can Move Back Here" from the upcoming EP We Used to Think The Freeway Sounded Like The River due to hit stores on July 20th. We hear that the band has been busy recording in the studio and should be dropping a full length record in the fall. They have also scheduled a few U.S. shows in the coming months including a Portland play at The Kenton Club on August 28th with Mike Coykendall Band before heading to Europe for an extensive fall tour.

MP3 Download: Richmond Fontaine - You Can Move Back Here

Three Girls and Their Buddy featuring Emmylou Harris, Patty Griffin, Shawn Colvin, & Buddy Miller @ Oaks Park

2009-06-30T08:20:00.000-07:00

Emmylou Harris, Patty Griffin, Shawn Colvin and Buddy Miller have announced they will again join forces for a series of collaborative shows in 2009. Portland gets a stop on the tour tonight @ Oaks Park in Sellwood. The "Three Girls and Their Buddy" shows feature all four artists performing onstage together, sharing the songs and stories that have defined their venerated careers. All four artists performing onstage together, sharing the songs and stories that have defined their venerated careers.

The four have a long-established history of musical associations, having been in each other's bands, produced and played on each other's albums, covered each other's songs, and guested on each other's shows many times over the years. Buddy Miller was Emmylou's band leader in the outfit Spyboy and produced her live album by that name. Patty Griffin's song "One Big Love" was recorded by Emmylou, who has made appearances on Patty's last two studio albums. Emmylou, Patty and Buddy - with Gillian Welch and David Rawlings - toured together as Sweet Harmony Traveling Revue, a special run of collaborative shows. Buddy has performed many times over the years with Shawn Colvin, beginning with her inclusion in The Buddy Miller Band in the 80s in New York City and leading up to the These Four Walls tour in the fall of 2006. The group was recently reunited in October for a spirited performance at San Francisco's Hardly Strictly Bluegrass Festival.

URLS:

http://www.emmylouharris.com/
http://www.pattygriffin.net/
http://www.shawncolvin.com/
http://www.buddyandjulie.com/

Tuesday, June 30, 2009
Three Girls and Their Buddy
featuring Emmylou Harris, Patty Griffin, Shawn Colvin, & Buddy Miller
Oaks Amusement Park - 7805 SE Oaks Park Way, Portland OR 97202
Ticket Price: $39.50 adv / $43.00 dos
Doors at 5:30 PM, Show at 7:00 PM

Basement Monthly Mix - June 2009

2009-06-29T01:58:00.000-07:00

Side A

1. Those Legendary Shackshakers - Hunkerdown
2. Eric Lindell - Dirty Bird
3. Bloodkin - Little Margarita
4. Grayson Capps - Going Back To The Country
5. Son Volt - Jukebox of Steel
6. Lucinda Williams - It's A Long Way To The Top
7. Here We Go Magic - Fangela

Side B
1. Deer Tick - Easy
2. Tim Easton - 7th Wheel
3. A.A. Bondy - Devil's Loose
4. Centro-Matic - Patience for the Ride
5. Dead Confederate - Start Me Laughing
6. Romantica - Drink The Night Away
7. Willy Mason - One Simple Thing

MFNW Announces Preliminary 2009 Lineup

2009-06-25T12:49:00.000-07:00

Willamette Week's MusicFestNW returns to metro area venues on September 16-19th and promises another year of great performances from local and national acts.

MFNW's strives to provide Portland with a unique and special musical experience that features all types of acts including nationally renowned artists while still honoring and supporting the special musical scene of the Northwest.

Without further ado, here is this year's lineup:

Sunny Day Real Estate

Explosions In Sky

Bad Brains

Girl Talk

The Get Up Kids

Will Sheff (of Okkervil River)

Dirty Three

Monotonix

Mudhoney

Frightened Rabbit

Twilight Sad

Dillinger Four

Swollen Members

Grand Duchy (Frank Black)

Beach House

John Vanderslice

The Long Winters

The Pains of Being Pure At Heart

Pink Mountaintops

Portugal The Man

Viva Voce

The Builders and The Butchers

Langhorne Slim

Bobby Bare Jr

Chairlift

Loch Lomond

Team Dresch

Erase Errata

J.D. Twitch (Optimo)

Eluvium

Youth Group

Titus Andronicus

The Zeros

Mount Eerie

Trash Talk

Despise You

Crom

Japanther

Mayer Hawthorne & The County

Grouper

Richard Swift

Austin Lucas

Amazing Baby

Brother Reade

Love Language

Anders Parker

The Morning Benders

The Miniature Tigers

Common Market

Jacob Fred Jazz Odyssey

We Were Promised Jetpacks

Say Hi

Rocky Votolato

Cymbals Eats Guitars

Copy

Red Fang

Saviours

Norfolk & Western

Nurses

Explode Into Colors

Portland Cello Project

Guidance Counselor

Fences

URL > http://musicfestnw.com

More Act to be announced soon! Stay tuned for an extensive artist preview leading up to the Festival over the course of the summer.

Live @ Doug Fir: A Weather

2009-06-25T01:17:00.000-07:00

A Weather is an indie band from Portland, Oregon, fronted by Aaron Gerber and Sarah Winchester. In 2007, they toured and opened for Conor Oberst's Bright Eyes and gained some national attention and lots of momentum! In 2008, they signed with the New York based label Team Love Records who also represent Jenny Lewis and The Felice Brothers and recorded their debut album, Cove.

BIO: From deep within the confines of the storied Portland mist comes indie-folk outfit A Weather and their debut album, Cove, was released in March on Team Love. A postcard from the green and gray environs of Portland, Cove is moody and warm, rife with odes of looming loss, hopeful notes to self and hushed revelations that speak directly to the yearning heart. Produced by the one & only Adam Selzer (M. Ward, The Decemberists, Norfolk and Western), the songs on Cove are marked with an intimacy so striking that it feels like you’re eavesdropping on the pillow talk of two forlorn lovers. Indeed, this is music to curl up with.

At the core of A Weather’s warm, soft-spoken sounds are the comely vocals of frontman/singer/songwriter Aaron Gerber and singer/drummer Sarah Winchester. With remarkable restraint and understated delivery, their harmonies trace each other, cross paths, diverge and intertwine, undercutting the gravity of A Weather ’s material. “In one way Cove is a catalogue of closely observed moments and particulars,” says Gerber. “In another it is an oddly inspirational document of transience and entropy and trying to keep yourself together when things are falling apart.”

It’s been a relatively short journey from A Weather’s first house show to their current status as the new kids on the Team Love block – though a journey crammed with hard work, dedication, empty bottles of Gatorade, Fleetwood Mac-style love affairs, tears, laughter and a great deal of excitement. The band came into its current line-up – Gerber, Winchester, Boyle, guitarist Aaron Krenkel and bassist Louis Thomas – over the holiday season of 2006.

In a year’s time, A Weather has received generous media buzz for its “lush folk,” “bedroom bards,” “quiet folk-pop,” “darkly fuzzy, warm and tender acoustic folk-pop” and “hush-pop.” They’ve shared the stage with the likes of Bright Eyes as well as Portland’s The Builders and the Butchers, Gregory Miles Harris, Laura Gibson and Bark, Hide and Horn. And A Weather was signed to Team Love, who released the group’s first seven-inch record, “The Feather Test” w/ “One More One Night Stand,” in the spring of 2007.

As for Cove, there’s a great amount of wit and subtle humor accompanying all of the sad stuff, while there is always a sense of self-consciousness woven throughout. “Spiders, Snakes” opens the record with an immediately catchy drum riff, joined by a plodding, mournful Fender Rhodes. It’s good to know that A Weather – and Cove – have arrived.

LINK: http://www.aweathermusic.com

PRESS: Oregonian / NPR

MP3/Download: A Weather - Pinky Toe
MP3/Download: A Weather - Screw Up Your Courage

Doug Fir
A WEATHER
plus SUPER XX MAN and OLD BELIEVERS and HELLO DEMASCUS
Time: 9M / Tix: $8 advance, $8 day of show

Hardly Strictly Bluegrass Festival 2009 - FREE in Golden Gate Park, S.F.

2009-06-24T08:28:00.001-07:00

The BEST Bluegrass Festival on the west coast ~ Hardly Strictly Bluegrass ~ is returning to Golden Gate Park in San Francisco, CA this fall. Even better, the festival is FREE!!!

Hardly Strictly Bluegrass Festival
When: October 2, 3, 4, 2009
Where: Golden Gate Park, San Francisco

Hardly Strictly Bluegrass Initial Artist List:

Booker T. & the DBTs
World Party
Neko Case
Old 97's
The Chieftains
Okkervil River
Doc Watson
Mavis Staples
Aimee Mann
The Del McCoury Band
Earl Scruggs
Dr. Dog
Lyle Lovett and His Large Band
Little Feat
Old Crow Medicine Show
Marianne Faithfull
Richie Havens
Steve Martin with the Steep Canyon Rangers
Hazel Dickens
The Wronglers
John Prine
Allen Toussaint
Gillian Welch
Billy Bragg

MANY MANY MORE SOON TO BE ANNOUNCED!

URL > http://www.strictlybluegrass.com/

PDX Pop Now! 2009 Festival Lineup Announced AND City Hall Show!

2009-06-23T12:31:00.000-07:00

PDX Pop Now! will be returning to Rotture (320 SE 2nd Ave) on July 24th, 25tthh and 26th for the free, all-ages festival that showcases Portland’s diverse musical talent.

Here is the 2009 PDX Pop Now! Festival lineup:

Ah Holly Fam’ly

Animal Farm

Autistic Youth

Benoit Pioulard

Breakfast Mountain

Chamber of Commerce

Church

Cull

Daniel Menche

DASH!

Deelay Ceelay

Don Hellions

Explode Into Colors

Fear No Music

Fist Fite

Grouper

Guidance Counselor

Inside Voices

Jeffrey Jerusalem

Laura Gibson

Lightheaded

Luck-One

Magic Johnson

Menomena

Mint Chicks

Morning Teleportation

MY-G

Nice Nice

Nucular Aminals

Nurses

Peter Broderick

Pierced Arrows

Purple Rhinestone Eagle

Red Fang

Rob Walmart

Sallie Ford and the Sound Outside

Strength

Tara Jane O’Neil

Teeath

The Andrew Oliver Sextet

The Estranged

The Minus 5

The Old Believers

The Quick & Easy Boys

The Shaky Hands

Thrones

White Hinterland

Stay tuned for further updates and artist profiles over the coming weeks as we approach this great event!

In the meantime , on July 16th PDX Pop Now will host a pre-festival all-ages event on the steps of City Hall in downtown Portland from 5-8:30pm. This lead-up to the PDX Pop Now! festival will feature performances by Y La Bamba, Point Juncture WA, and YACHT.

PDX Pop Now! Board Member Cary Clarke details a bit more behind the City Hall event concept: "PDX Pop Now! is thrilled to once again bring local music to the steps of Portland City Hall in a celebration of the unique climate of civic support independent music enjoys in our town. By presenting a free, all-ages concert featuring some of the most exciting musicians creating in Portland today, and doing so in the middle of downtown just as many people are getting off of work and looking for a way to enjoy a summer evening, we intend to provide an accessible form for Portlanders to discover and appreciate the staggering wealth and diversity of incredible music being made by their neighbors. Additionally, we hope to throw a bright light on the fact that involvement in one's local arts community is a legitimate and productive form of civic involvement, and one that can serve as a conduit to broader interest and participation in neighborhood and municipal affairs."

Details:

Thursday, July 16th

The Steps of City Hall (1221 SW 4th Avenue)

YACHT

Point Juncture, WA

Y La Bamba

5:30-8:30pm / Free / All-Ages

Here We Go Magic: Live @ Mississippi Studios

2009-06-23T01:56:00.000-07:00

Inde-hipsters Here We Go Magic were HUGE HIT in Austin at SXSW this year & I would expect Portland to fall in love at first sight! Developed over a two-month period of stream-of-consciousness recording in Greenpoint, Brooklyn, Luke Temple’s self-titled debut under his new moniker Here We Go Magic is a remarkable departure from his signature singer-songwriter material. Luke recorded the album at home using analog synths, a cassette 4-track, and his trusty SM-57 mic, coloring the sound with warmth and creating textures you want to wrap yourself in.

The album opens with the trance-inducing polyrhythms and gorgeous multi-layered vocals of "Only Pieces. " What follows is an album oozing with sounds maternal and subconscious...like floating in amniotic fluid, ripe, hiccup-y and desperate to emerge. Many of the songs pulse with infectious afro-beat and kraut-rock influenced grooves, calling to mind classic albums like Remain in Light and Graceland. In contrast, the instrumental tracks conjure mystical introspective landscapes reminiscent of Popol Vuh's unforgettable ambience.

Despite the album's murky aquatic underpinnings it's hard to resist shakin what you got to ebullient blissed-out tracks like "Fangala" and "Tunnelvision." The album closes with "Everything's Big", a bleak commentary on weakness and fear birthed of opulence and gluttony. Luke's fragile tenor delivers this absurd carnival waltz with the fervor and abandon of a teetotaler under the influence, never breaking the spell of the album's mood of rejuvenation and release.

Luke is joined by fellow Brooklynites Baptiste Ibar (bass) and Peter Hale (drums) for Here We Go Magic’s psychoactive live incarnation. The self-titled album will be released on Feb 17th for digital and Feb 24th for physical on label, Western Vinyl.

LINK: http://www.herewegomagic.com

PRESS: DayTrotter / Steroegum / My Old KY Blog

MP3/Download: Here We Go Magic - Fangela
MP3/Download: Here We Go Magic - Tunnelvision
MP3/Download: Here We Go Magic - Only Pieces

Mississippi Studios
Wednesday, June 24
Here We Go Magic
w/ Throw Me Your Statue
w/ Miles Benjamin Anthony Robinso
Time: 8PM / Tix: $10

Outformation Comes to LoLa's Room This Week!

2009-06-21T09:38:00.000-07:00

Atlanta based Outformation released “Fastburn”, the follow up to their 2007 release, “Traveler’s Rest” in April. According to guitarist/vocalist Sam Holt says, “We didn’t have a plan making this record, why restrict ourselves. This is our best work.” "Fastburn" was produced by Outformation and Eli Akins at Mitch Easter's (R.E.M., Suzanne Vega) Fidelitorium Recording Studio, and is a culmination of high energy and creative relationships.

Outformation’s sound draws on a variety of genres, from electrified southern tunes to powerful, melodic vocals. Since being named Honest Tune’s Magazine's “Best New Band” in 2005, Outformation has built a reputation with their relentless tour schedule, blistering live shows, and rapidly growing fanbase. As an appreciation gesture to these fans, Outformation offered “Fastburn” for free via download for two weeks, a month before the album’s actual release. The fans were in fact much appreciative, as the album received several thousands of downloads in the first week.

In addition to Holt, the band features newest member guitarist Benji Shanks, bassist Grady Upchurch, drummer-singer Lee Schwartz, and percussionist Jeff “Birddog” Lane. They bring their southern rock to Crystal Ballroom's Lola's Room this week with local favorites Mexican Gun Fight.

LINK: http://www.foryouroutformation.com

PRESS: TimesStandard / SF Station / Bier Magazine

MP3/Download: Outformation - Can't Change The Past (Live)
MP3/Download: Outformation - Can't You See (Live)

Lola's Room at the Crystal
Wednesday, June 24
OUTFORMATION
Mexican Gunfight (Al Toribio/Mike Walker/Dave Coey/Ned Failing)
8 p.m. doors; 9 p.m. show | Tix: $10 | Ages: 21 and over

A New Record from The Minus 5 and Young Fresh Fellows

2009-06-17T09:31:00.000-07:00

It has been almost a year since we've caught up with our friend Scott McCaughey. The omnipresent musician has been busy as usual touring with Robyn Hitchcock, putting together all-star tribute shows in Portland, cutting some new tracks for the next R.E.M. record, and most recently, putting the finishing touches on two new records of his own: one from his current group The Minus 5, and another from his former band The Young Fresh Fellows.

Killingsworth, the new release from The Minus 5 is aptly named after a thoroughfare that borders northeast Portland's Alberta Arts District, where these songs were primarily conceived and executed with an all star cast of Scott's friends and musical cohorts. Scott's old buddy John Moen, who has been a Dharma Bum, a Maroon and a Jick, and now a Decemberist, helped lasso his current bandmates and other notables to flesh out the arrangements for many of the tracks on the record. The effervescent Little Sue and the four ultra-stylish priestesses once known as the Shee Bee Gees provided welcome feminine counterpoint to the song cycle's wanton depravity. Various members of M. Ward's combo, as well as the very great Norfolk & Western played crucial roles in cultivating the sound on the record as well. Noted novelist and Richmond Fontaine frontispiece Willy Vlautin provided a golden lyrical trampoline, and Timothy Bracy of Mendoza Line fame collaborated on the dance-floor-bound "Dark Hand of Contagion". As ever, Peter Buck put twelve strings or less to optimal use whenever cajoled, and Ken Stringfellow contributes vocals all the way from Europe. Killingsworth is due to be released on July 7th on Chapel Hill's Yep Roc Records with a CD Release show at Doug Fir Lounge on July 10th.

In other news, Scott has reunited 1980s garage-punk rockers The Young Fresh Fellows who will release I Think This Is, their first record since 2001's Because We Hate You. The new record is produced by McCaughey cohort Robyn Hitchcock and has a contrasting sound to the country-rock offerings of The Minus 5. The new record will deliver the mix of 1960s pop, garage and punk rock that YFF were known for. They will debut the new material this weekend in Seattle and Portland with the Portland show being their first performance in the Rose City in 8 years! Opening the show will be From Words to Blows, the new group featuring Little Sue, Jesse Emerson, Jenny Conlee-Drizos, and Steve Drizos

Download: MP3 - The Minus 5 - Ambulance Dance Hall

Info:

The Young Fresh Fellows

with The Tripwires and From Words to Blows

Saturday, June 20th

Dante's

9:30 pm

$8 at the Door

The Woods - New Venue Opening in Sellwood!

2009-06-16T12:57:00.000-07:00

Portland's newest venue, The Woods, is set to open on June 26th with an inaugural celebration featuring Portland Cello Project, Weinland, Loch Lomond, Nick Jaina and Brittain Ashford. The space located on SE Milwaukie Blvd in downtown Sellwood was formally the Wilheim Funeral Home and will showcase local and national acts in a very intimate environment and include a full bar and kitchen. We are looking forward to having a venue in one of our favorite parts of town!

Tickets for the opening night celebration are available now on a sliding scale of $20-40.

The Builders & The Butchers: Live @ Wonder Ballroom

2009-06-16T05:18:00.000-07:00

Alaska is a most unlikely origin for the five young men who comprise the Builders and the Butchers. Between 2002-2005, each of the members that would eventually form the band moved to Portland from Alaska pursuing music as a means of escaping subzero temperatures and the endless winter darkness. Soon after moving to Portland Ryan Sollee, singer songwriter and guitarist for The Builders, immersed himself in pre-1950’s American music, and started writing Southern Gothic themed story-songs “I was raised on Punk Rock but when I moved to Portland I discovered American Roots music, I felt as though there was similarities between the two styles. They are both genres that you cannot passively listen to, they almost evoke a response or an immediate reaction from you.”

They played in the rain and cold of Portland winters until instruments were warped and broken, then one day the Builders sold out and booked a real show, then another, and crowds soon were seeking the Builders out. At the early shows it was hard to distinguish the band from the audience, nothing was mic’d or amplified, and seemingly everyone in the audience had a shaker, washboard, or were just beating on the wall and singing. All in attendance saw something special happening, a Portland audience was having fun, singing along and participating, the music demanded a celebration. Within a year, the Builders would win the Willamette Week’s “Best New Band of 2008” and Seattle Sound’s “Best Live Performers 2008” and completed supporting tours with the Helio Sequence, Brand New, Langhorne Slim, Amanda Palmer, Dax Riggs, Murder By Death and Port O’brien.

The Builders don’t pay homage to old America, they channel it. All of the basic instruments are there, acoustic bass, drum, guitar, banjo, and mandolin. They mix gospel, blues, and bluegrass and howl desperate story-songs that latch onto your brain and demand immediate attention.

The timeless sound of their songs, harkens back to a time long passed in music, but reflecting the dark times of the present. Their self-titled debut was released in 2007 and showcases the bands early raw sound. Their latest release titled “Salvation Is A Deep Dark Well” is a much more complete work showcasing the bands full potential. On Salvation, the Builders worked with producer Chris Funk from the Decemberists who brought with him a throng of expertise, patience, instruments, and some of the best musicians in Portland. Salvation record combines the immediacy of the Builders early work with more a developed songwriting, each one with its own personality and story to tell. In the vein of the Southern Gothic tales Ryan weaves stories of struggle with the usual cast of characters God, the Devil, soldiers, branches, wind, rain and hell fire. The record starts with a piano chord and an eerie wind escalating into the thunderous “Golden and Green”, stomp and grinds its way through “Devil Town” and “The Short Way Home”, to the Spanish tinged “Barcelona" and “Raise Up”, and the soaring chorus of “In The Branches”, ending with a lesson of hope in the gospel homage “The World is a Top”.

LINK: http://thebuildersandthebutchers.com

PRESS: DayTrotter / ClapTrapped /

MP3/Download: The Builders & the Butchers - Barcelona
MP3/Download: The Builders & The Butchers - Black Dresses
MP3/Download: The Builders & The Butchers - Spanish Death Song

Wonder Ballroom
Thursday, June 18th
Time: 8PM / Tix: $12 ADV / $14.00 DOS / All Ages

Win Tickets to PJ Harvey and John Parish!!

2009-06-15T09:01:00.000-07:00

We have 2 tickets to give away to see PJ Harvey and John Parish at the Roseland Theater this Wednesday!

The fifth person to correctly answer the following question will win the pair of tickets to this great show:

PJ Harvey and John Parish are touring in support of A Woman A Man Walk By, but they have collaborated on a previous release. What is the name of this record and what year was it released?

Email your answer to basementofourbrain@gmail.com

Info:

PJ Harvey and John Parish

Wednesday, June 17, 2009

Roseland Theater

All Ages

$36.50

Tickets on Sale Now! Order HERE

Gene Ween (Solo) Comes to the Doug Fir This Week!

2009-06-14T17:34:00.000-07:00

Yes, the group is a side project for Gene Ween (real name Aaron Freeman), one half of the duo that makes up Ween’s creative heart and soul. So while the voice, guitar playing and even some of the songs might be the same, Dreiwitz insists that the new band is not Ween. "To a degree, I think [the comparisons are] inescapable, but we’re not going to let that bother us or worry about it,” he said during a recent phone interview from a park in New York City. “We are trying to give it its own identity, something of its own.”

With the other principal Ween member, lead guitarist Dean Ween (real name Mickey Melchiondo), having recently announced on Ween’s Web site that the band has begun rehearsing again, the Gene Ween Band may be falling by the wayside for a while. But Dreiwitz doesn’t see the group calling it quits anytime soon. "This is something we plan to keep going as an ongoing project that we can pick up when Ween’s not working,” Dreiwitz said. “We want to play and Aaron wants to play.”

The Gene Ween Band grew out of Freeman’s solo work, which he’s done on and off in between Ween albums and tours throughout the years. His desire to flesh out the songs led him to team up with Dreiwitz, and eventually to pull together an entire band in October of last year. “I’ve done duo stuff with him, but he just wanted to do some playing and flesh it out into a full band, as opposed to just doing the duo thing,” Dreiwitz said. “He called me and asked me to put a little band together.”

Recruits came from one of Dreiwitz’s other projects, an instrumental Led Zeppelin tribute group. The group has a fairly high musical pedigree: guitarist Scott Metzger plays with New York City’s RANA among other projects, and drummer Joe Russo makes up one-half of the instrumental Benevento-Russo Duo. “They’re good buddies of mine, and I know they love Ween, so I just thought they’d be perfect for this thing,” Dreiwitz said. “Aaron hadn’t really met the other guys, but when he met them, they instantly got along on a personal level.”

This will be a SOLO Gene Ween Show. Enjoy!

URL > http://www.geneweenband.com/

PRESS: Glide / MOG / Ween @ Wiki

MP3/Download: Gene Ween Band - Eye In The Sky
MP3/Download: Gene Ween Band - Mr. Sandman (live)

Doug Fir
Thursday June 18
A special evening with Ween vocalist
GENE WEEN (Solo)
and CLAUDE COLEMAN JR., SOLO AMANDLA
Time: 9PM / Tix: $20 advance, $23 day of show

Pickin' On Sundays! @ Doug Fir Returns this summer

2009-06-12T03:34:00.000-07:00

Doug Fir Outdoor Patio Summer Sunday Series
3pm-7pm
FREE on the PATIO!!
Come join us every Sunday July 12-August 30 on the outdoor patio for some amazing summertime concert action! Things will get hot, but don't fret, you can cool down with an icy bucket of PBRs!

JULY 12 - Pete Krebs, Casey Neill

JULY 19 - Jon Garcia, Celilo

JULY 26 - Marty Marqui (Blitzen Trapper), Haley Bonar

AUGUST 2 - Super XX Man, Shoeshine Blue

AUGUST 9 - Adam Shearer (Weinland), Justin Power

AUGUST 16 - Matt Sheehy, Leonard Mynx and Audie Darling

AUGUST 23 - Jared Mees & The Grown Children, Hey Marseilles

AUGUST 30 - Lewi Longmire & Annalise Tornfelt, Pancake Breakfast

Live @ Doug Fir: Ben Kweller

2009-06-11T01:11:00.000-07:00

Unlike his previous albums, Kweller produced Changing Horses himself. "I've been lucky. I've worked with some of the greatest producers and learned from them all. For Horses it was time to take the wheel." Clearly, a lot of time was spent on the arrangements, which come alive thanks to his stellar rhythm section, Chris Morrissey (bass) and Mark Stepro (drums). The jaw-dropping talents of Kitt Kitterman, (Pedal Steel and Dobro) are debuted here and play off Ben like a vocal duet. The 11-day recording session took place in Austin, TX at Public Hi-Fi, an all-analogue studio founded by Spoon drummer Jim Eno. Public Hi-Fi's gear list wasn't the only reason he recorded in Austin. "I've gone through a lot of changes in the past few years. Re-prioritized, found the important things in life. After our son Dorian was born, [my wife] Lizzy and I started to crave open spaces. Wanted to simplify. We needed nature. I was growing tired of writing songs in my apartment. I used to write outside all the time. I missed that. As a new father I started thinking about my parents and my roots, which were in Texas.

In April of 2008, after nearly nine years in New York, the Kwellers packed up and headed south to their new home in Austin. "I'll always love New York and the albums I made there. They have an urgency to 'em that I really like, but of all the albums I've made, this was the easiest. It was so nice to sit around and make music with those guys. We're brothers." Those brothers include Ben's long-time engineer Steve Mazur who turned the knobs at the old Neve desk.

"I've always been at ease in recording studios," Kweller says. "They're magic places I can escape to, where everyday confines don't exist. That's why art is so important, there are no rules." With his art, Kweller views the world with fresh eyes and empathizes with all walks of life. "This album's about the people in the background, in the alleyways of society. I relate with them because we take life as it comes. We roll with the punches, twists and turns." In the third verse of "Fight", he sums it up, "Some days are aces and some days are faces, some days are twos and threes." Changing Horses is a whole deck.

LINK: http://www.myspace.com/benkweller

PRESS: DayTrotter / SteroeGum / PasteStudio

MP3/Download: Ben Kweller - No Reason
MP3/Download: Ben Kweller - Sawdust Man

Doug Fir
Ben Kweller
Tuesday, June 16
+ Jones Street Station
Doors at 8pm, Show at 9pm / Tix: $18