For my third night chained to my MFNW bracelet, I decided to hit Pioneer Square for an open-air concert in the middle of downtown on a strikingly beautiful evening. Marketa Irglova was already on stage (I missed local rising star Sallie Ford), backed by a woman with a finger-played persian drum and a very subdued [...]
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The Horrors of Playing Morning Shows
Actually, there was nothing horrible about the 30 minute mid-morning set by UK goth-synth-shoegaze-pop phenom, The Horrors. Except that it could have been a little longer and the drums could have been a little softer. The Horrors wear their myriad influences proudly on their stylish sleeves, often times sounding (add looking) like the more up-beat [...]
Read entire post...Thursday Night at MusicFest NW
Smells Like Pop hit the sweltering hot (literally) scene at Branx on Thursday Night for the Suuns, Talkdemonic and Handsome Furs shows, and then raced over to the practically empty midnight performance by EMA at Holocene. Suuns played a loud and revved-up set that was all over the place (good thing) sounding at times like [...]
Read entire post...Little Set for Little Dragon
Sweden’s favorite sons and daughter, Little Dragon played a short, but sweet 30 minute set at Doug Fir this morning for the KEXP live broadcast shows from MusicFest NW. With all of the schedule conflicts of the ‘Fest, it was nice to get a chance to see this band (my first time). Morning is a [...]
Read entire post...Opening Night at MusicFest NW
The opening night of MFNW 2011 came with a mixed sense of anticipation and dread, the latter from the thought of standing shoulder to shoulder in a huge building designed for normally temperate Oregon weather. This night the Crystal Ballroom was an oven, and tempers seemed to be rising around us with the temperature. Mini-Mansions [...]
Read entire post...New Wild Flag Video or Portlandia Episode?
You decide! And, is that Dave Depper’s garage sale?
Read entire post...Haunted by Past Life Martyred Bands
EMA – Past Life Martyred Saints Souterrain Transmissions | May 2011 I admit that I checked out the EMA album because Pitchfork told me to (on their list of best reviewed records). I didn’t know anything about them/her when I first listened to this noisy and dirge-like set of pop-songs. Feedback and melodrama meet in [...]
Read entire post...Into the Odd – Cellos, Live Looping and Zoe Keating
Zoe Keating | Into The Trees Zoe Keating | July, 2010 After a few forays into the strange ocean that is Pop music; filled with emotional obscurities, oblique lyrics that mean something and other assorted toothy and man-eating fishies, your fearless purveyor of all things odd and experimental has decided to return to his home [...]
Read entire post...Five Unusually Disconcerting Things About Steely Dan
I really like Steely Dan.[1] Over the past ten or fifteen years they have served a welcomed role as a recurring interest that unexpectedly returns every other year or so, always bringing new lyrics to unpack, unusually crafty musical phrases to discover, a previously buried yet thoroughly riveting guitar solo or even an entire song[2] [...]
Read entire post...Alexander Laurence Talks with Susan Ann Sulley of The Human League
Interview by Alexander Laurence of Portable Infinite The Human League are an important electronic band from Sheffield, England. They started in 1977, during the height of the Punk movement. They achieved worldwide success with their album Dare (1981). In their 35 year history they have released nine albums and 29 singles. This makes them one [...]
Read entire post...Smells Like Tweets
Ai Weiwei - Dumbass (Explicit): http://t.co/wGHxlNsCfJ via @youtube. After Pussy Riot, Ai Weiwei turns out to be the next real punk.16 hours ago
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