Portland is a town that’s littered with large ensemble folk bands. It’s an easy aesthetic to get behind: take a tender song, add lots of chamber instrumentation and orchestral flourishes, and storm the stage, group style. Often, though, all the extra bells and whistles (violin and trumpet, most likely) only serve to distract from subpar songwriting. That’s not the case for St. Frankie Lee, a ramshackle collection of local musicians led by Chelsea Campbell and Derrick Martin.

“Very Last Blues” is almost a misnomer for the group, a quiet and easy folk number from a gang that loves to lead a crowd through a good ol’ Americana romp. Campbell takes the lead vocal on the track, and it’s a great vehicle for her sultry voice. I especially love how she repeats the words “very” and “ever” on the inviting chorus, something that Phoenix’s Thomas Mars does to great effect on my favorite album of the year, Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix. With her voice at the center, the song can stretch out a bit—bits of piano drift in and out, and the banjo keeps the song somewhat grounded. St. Frankie Lee seem more likely to rise from a swamp in the South than the damp Northwest, but I’m happy that its chosen to call PDX home.

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

St. Frankie Lee plays tonight at Holocene with Michael Hurley and Sallie Ford & the Sound Outside. 8:30 pm. $7. 21+.

Links:
St. Frankie LeeSpace

Photo courtesy of St. Frankie Lee

Related posts:

1. St. Frankie Lee Tuesday, Nov. 3 The fire-a
2. Paper Brain, “Dead, Dead, Dying Town,” Ain’t Nobody Cares (Self-released) The second
3. All Smiles, “Our Final Roles as Birds,” Oh For the Getting and Not Letting Go (Self-released) All Smiles
4. Boy Eats Drum Machine, “Blazer Theme” (Self-Released) Back in Oc
5. Neal Morgan, “Birch Bark Boat in Space,” To The Breathing World (Self-released) The cut of

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.