Local Cut » Portland Lounge Series

LC PODCASTS: Portland Lounge Series XX with Carcrashlander, Shelley Short and Adam Shearer

Amy McCullough — Wed, 02 Jul 2008 04:40:14 +0000

Right before this past Sunday’s 20th Portland Lounge Series, I had a strange realization: Adam Shearer, frontman for local folk-rock outfit Weinland, played the first ever Portland Lounge Series, and he was about to play my last (more about that here). I wondered—since that first PLS was also ex-WW music editor Mark Baumgarten’s last—if Shearer’s got some sort of intrinsic closure-giving powers.

While that may still be undetermined, he did quit his day job last year, finish a tour just last week and close out what I heard was a stellar show the previous night playing with Norfolk & Western and A Weather at the Aladdin (how’s that for a homecoming?). All of that, of course, made good fodder for an interview, and chat we did—on stage, as is the PLS way. Shearer went on to play a lovely set that included (here comes that knack for closing again) a finale of Elton John’s “Rocket Man” featuring Weinland pianist/keyboardist Ian Lyles (pictured above, rocking the keys on a different date) on the Towne Lounge’s rustic ol’ ivories. He also let me pick quite a few numbers (what a guy!), and I was pleased to hear oldie/goodie “Young and Smart” as well as newer fave “Curse of the Sea.” It was most rad.

Download audio file (Adam_Shearer_of_Weinland__957.mp3)

Shelley Short was next to join me onstage. We talked about her time making music in Paris and Chicago, as well as her Portland roots. Family ties were a natural topic of discussion, as Short’s photographer brother Faulkner was in the house, and she recounted childhood memories of listening to her father’s record collection—noting an early love of the “Singing Brakeman” Jimmy Rodgers—when asked about influences. Though I remembered to ask Shearer about his cat’s rock ‘n’ roll fantasy, I forgot to pose the sillier question I had planned for Short: Is her name and the existence of onetime-Cheers actress Shelley Long mere coincidence? Guess we may never know. Regardless, she played a winning set of songs both new and old, and invited experimental guitar virtuoso Alexis Gideon onstage for a few tunes; he’d be the one adding all that kinda-ugly-in-an-really-good-way background noise to Short’s charming country songs.

Download audio file (Shelley_Short__958.mp3)

Finally, Cory Gray, bandleader of local noise-rock-folk-awesome outfit Carcrashlander (of which Gideon’s also a member), manned his keyboard and upped the volume ante for the evening. But first, we talked about the joys of touring—including Hamms and young fans rocking out, his high school-era opportunity to join the Cherry Poppin’ Daddies (which he apparently now regrets ever telling me about) and how it feels to sing and play his own tunes for a change (rather than contribute keys and trumpet to all sorts of other bands around town: Norfolk & Western and Graves, for two). I tried to get the ex-Bijou cook to share some scramble-making secrets with us, too (his silly question of the night), but rather than name some holy trinity of ingredients, he simply said an amalgam of random fridge stuff is where it’s at. Spoken like a true pro.

Download audio file (Carcrashlander__959.mp3)

As always, a big thanks to everyone who came out, to our excellent musical guests, to Portland Radio Authority for putting the whole thing down on (digital) tape, and to the Towne Lounge and Pabst Blue Ribbon for helping to make this awesome thing happen every last Sunday of the month.

Links:
Sign up for the PLS podcast via feedburner or iTunes
WeinlandWeb
WeinlandSpace
ShortSpace
ShortWeb
CarcrashSpace
CarcrashWeb

Photos (from top to bottom): Weinland’s Ian Lyles—who, at the time of Sunday night’s show, was the sole remaining member of Weinland who’d yet to rediscover his chin by shaving off his “tour beard”—followed by a beard-less Adam Shearer, both taken from Weinland’s MySpace; Shelley Short, shot by Maia Madison; and Cory Gray, taken from Carcrashlander’s MySpace.

Shelley Short Announces New Album With Stop Motion Video Oh, Shelle
CD Review: Shelley Short Shelley Sh
New Hush Goodies From Shelley Short, Peter Broderick There are

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LC PODCASTS: Portland Lounge Series XIX with Blind Pilot and the Chicharones

Casey Jarman — Sat, 31 May 2008 00:51:12 +0000

Keeping it short, but this was a beautiful night. If ever you needed proof that groups from wholly disparate genres could live in sweet, sweet harmony on the same bill, listen no further. Blind Pilot played a beautiful set that even a couple of wild MCs (Sleep and Josh Martinez’s set had it’s own inspiring quality, along with laughs to spare) could appreciate.

We also got to hear the first rap that Sleep ever wrote (it’s about fry bread, and it’s amazing), and see Martinez end the Chicharones’ set crouched over on the ground James Brown-style, with Sleep draping him in a jacket. After the show the groups swapped CDs and said they’d love to share a bill again. That’s the kind of stuff that makes me all giddy. Photos below the podcast.

Blind Pilot interview and Set (the interview is a bit tough to hear, sorry):
Download audio file (Blind_Pilot__929.mp3)

Chicharones (I can never pronounce that correctly) interview and Set (boom shaka-laka):
Download audio file (Los_Chicharones___930.mp3)

Links:
Blind PilotSpace
ChicharoneSpace (change that “Vancouver” to Portland, boys!)

Photos by me on the girlfriend’s fancy new camera. I still didn’t make them look great, though. Thanks to PRA, the Towne Lounge and Pabst for making us sound nice, housing us and getting us boozed up.

Blind Pilot Plays on CNN The signs
Blind Pilot Visit Daytrotter It’s
Blind Pilot to Tour with Decemberists Being Blin

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LC PODCASTS: Portland Lounge Series XVIII with Amelia, Lael Alderman, Power of County

Casey Jarman — Tue, 06 May 2008 19:45:54 +0000

For the April edition of Portland Lounge Series, we turned command over to WW contributor and LocalCutter Jay Horton. Not saying that was a mistake (as the lineup attests), but the fact that PLS landed on the same night as Horton’s birthday had a somewhat muddying effect on his interview skills. I’d better leave the firsthand accounts of the evening to the comments section (have at it). In any case, the following audio (which sounds amazing, thanks to Saffron and Portland Radio Authority) captures some fantastic sets from the swingin’ pop stars of Amelia, singer/songwriter Lael Alderman and roots rock outfit Power of County—who played perhaps the longest PLS set since Ben Barnett’s.

For your listening pleasure, we bring you…

Amelia:
Download audio file (Amelia__896.mp3)

Lael Alderman:
Download audio file (Lael_Alderman__897.mp3)

Power of County:
Download audio file (Power_of_County__898.mp3)

If you’re really into the whole podcasting thing, you can subscribe to the Portland Lounge Series by heading to our RSS feed here or adding it into your iTunes library (I believe you can also search in iTunes own podcast directory and find it there).

Links:
AmeliaSpace
Lael AldermanSpace
Power of CountySpace
Past PLS shows on LocalCut
Portland Radio Authority
Pabst

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LC PODCASTS: Portland Lounge Series XVII with Meyercord, Per Se and Laura Gibson

Casey Jarman — Wed, 02 Apr 2008 22:40:12 +0000

One of my all-time favorite entries into the annals of PLS—featuring Meyercord, Per Se and Laura Gibson—our 17th episode went off with only one minor hitch last Sunday. Our usual recording technician from Portland Radio Authority missed the boat, due to some sloppy communication (whaaa? noooo!) on my part. So we missed the interview with Ben Meyercord, as entertaining as that was. I’m sure that’s not the last we’ll be hearing from the young singer/songwriter, though. The absence of PRA also meant that my handheld recorder had to do the trick in picking up performances from Meyercord, Per Se and Laura Gibson, as well as conversations with the latter two.

Even with these technical difficulties, I stand by our product with this here PLS. It sounds pretty decent (bits of white noise open and close each section, and include some off-the-record banter!). All three performers kept the big ol’ crowd entranced (though my recorder picks up even the quietest conversations from the corner of the room, so there is some extra noise on tape), and all three put on fantastic sets. Without further ado, here’s Portland Lounge Series XVII.

Meyercord’s set:
Download audio file (meyercord_set.mp3)

Per Se’s interview:
Download audio file (perse_intvw.mp3)

Per Se’s set:
Download audio file (perse_set.mp3)

Laura Gibson’s interview:
Download audio file (lauragibson_intvw.mp3)

Laura Gibson’s set:
Download audio file (lauragibson_set.mp3)

Links:
MeyercordSpace
Per SeSpace
Laura GibsonSpace

Past Portland Lounge Series Episodes (A more comprehensive PLS History to be posted soon.)

Alela Diane and Laura Gibson Hit the UK Big Time Whoa dudes
Laura Gibson/Ethan Rose Collaboration Due in February I’ve
Laura Gibson, “Spirited,” Beasts of Seasons (Hush) Laura Gibs

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LC PODCASTS: Portland Lounge Series XVI with Nick Jaina, Michael Apinyakul (of Shoeshine Blue) and Michael the Blind

Amy McCullough — Fri, 29 Feb 2008 01:39:57 +0000

First off, a big thanks to everyone who made it out this past Sunday night for the sixteenth edition of LocalCut’s Portland Lounge Series, featuring Nick Jaina, Michael Apinyakul and Michael the Blind. As always, a fine night of music, chatting and boozin’ was had by all.

Even though it was Oscar night, we had one of the best PLS turnouts yet—and some fine interviews and performances, to boot. In a strange twist of fate (or perhaps PRA tech Ms. Saffron trying to save my rep), the audio of the Nick Jaina interview didn’t turn out, so you’ll just have to imagine me fumbling through a ramshackle list of subjects while Nick searched for questions within my jabbering. (It’s always the people you’ve listened to and read the most who are the hardest to talk to, eh?) Guess two smooth interviews out of three isn’t too bad! Somehow I knew that Jaina’d make it hard on me….JAINA!

Before we get on with it, let me add a big thanks to Portland Radio Authority for putting the whole thing down on (digital) tape, and thanks as well to Blackbird Presents, the Towne Lounge and new sponsor PBR for helping to make this awesome thing a monthly event (every last Sunday). What follows is audio of Jaina’s performance, as well as audio of my interviews with and performances by both Michaels (please excuse the buzzing on Apinyakul’s set; it’s an old sound board and we’re still workin’ out the kinks a bit). Okay, then: less reading, more listening. Enjoy!

Nick Jaina:

Download audio file (Nick_Jaina__801.mp3)

Michael Apinyakul:

Download audio file (Michael_Apinyakul__800.mp3)

Michael the Blind:

Download audio file (Michael_the_Blind__799.mp3)

Links:
Subscribe to PLS podcast
JainaSpace
ShoeshineSpace
BlindSpace

Shoeshine Blue Sunday, May 24 Michael Ap
Michael the Blind, “Hard Times” (Unreleased) “Hard Time
LocalCut Roundup: MFNW, Nick Jaina, Blitzen Trapper, Church, the Portland Round Aye, he

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LC PODCASTS: Portland Lounge Series XV with Night Wounds

NILINA MASON-CAMPBELL — Mon, 28 Jan 2008 23:50:16 +0000

New levels of noise! New levels of awkward!

How awesome was last night? You know, how Night Wounds tore up the stage and how Nathan Howdeshell a.k.a. Brace Paine used a chain-saw to cut a sleeping bag in half in some sort of symbolic reference to his former noise project to announce Feather Figure was the new frontier for him?

Actually, that last part didn’t happen mostly because Howdeshell didn’t show up, but Night Wounds truly put on a thunderous performance.

My arrival at Towne Lounge just after 8 pm was marked by many a feeling. Mostly nervousness. My nerves didn’t stem so much from not having a clue about what I was doing, but more from the fact that my gig reminder on MySpace to Nathan had gone unanswered, as had my email and subsequent voicemails from the venue.

Everything else went smooth enough. The interview with the 18-year-old drummer of Night Wounds broke new levels of hilarity given my prepared questions were for frontman Toby, the only consistent member of Night Wounds from its formation in Portland, Maine. Quickly thought up questions (often of the yes and no variety) led to one words answers. No reference to Seinfeld comes to mind to characterize the short chat that had everyone in attendance laughing each time a new word was uttered from either of our lips. I often quote movies (Can’t Hardly Wait is in my quote Hall of Fame) and songs (anything by LCD Soundsystem). I will be culling future material from our recorded conversation, as it had many quotable moments.

While the conversation was a bit…rough, the music was only rough in a good way. I’m definitely a fan of Night Wounds, especially after its showing last night. But don’t take my word for it…

Interview:
Download audio file (Night_Wounds_Interview__765.mp3)

Performance:
Download audio file (Night_Wounds_PLS_XV__766.mp3)

Night Wounds next local shows are at Someday Lounge on the 25th of February and March 4th at Dunes.

Links:
Night Wounds
Subscribe to PLS podcast

Sleep, Hesitation Wounds (Strange Famous) [INVESTIGA
Sleep, “Talk About It,” Hesitation Wounds (Strange Famous) Sleep just
Portland Cello Project: Night of the Juggalos (Detroit, MI) “HAPPY F

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LC PODCASTS: Portland Lounge Series XIV with Kele Goodwin, Andy Combs and Leigh Marble

Amy McCullough — Thu, 29 Nov 2007 01:03:50 +0000

As always, a big thanks to everyone who made it out this past Sunday night for the fourteenth edition of LocalCut’s Portland Lounge Series, featuring Kele Goodwin, Andy Combs and Leigh Marble.

It was a cold one (the night, not the show), and the Towne Lounge was suffering some heating problems, to boot. But those in attendance were rewarded with the warm and lovely tunes of Kele Goodwin, some temperature-raising audience participation-beckoning numbers from Mr. Andy Combs and a dose of the hot rock from Leigh Marble and company.

Check out a brief synopsis of Goodwin’s set—which, unfortunately, was not recorded due to a bug in the system—and audio of Combs’ and Marble’s interviews and sets below. We even stuck in a few links to previous Goodwin Cuts of the Day as a consolation prize. And a big thanks to Portland Radio Authority for putting the whole thing down on (digital) tape, as well as Blackbird Presents and the Towne Lounge for helping to make this awesome thing a monthly event (every last Sunday, yo!).

Part One: Kele Goodwin

Mr. Kele Goodwin hit the stage first, and—though he warned me of his terrible stagefright—was a fine and interesting interview subject. We discussed his growing up on a Navajo reservation, why his Alaskan rainforest childhood makes him say “pssh” to the Oregon rain and darkness, and also what it means to be a folk singer these days (he was undecided, but also didn’t want to be referred to as a “singer-songwriter”; we decided to go with “musician”).

Goodwin also discussed his nervousness with candor, mentioning that he almost didn’t come to PLS XIV and that every one of his shows is preceded by three days of anxiousness. He even admitted to throwing up before shows at Holocene, though he recalled this year’s PDX Pop Now! fest fondly, noting the lovey, seated crowd. Goodwin’s set of honest, heartfelt and Nick Drakian acoustic guitar-and-voice tunes was as refreshing and lovely as his demeanor. Check out a few of LocalCut’s fave Goodwin songs here:
“A Kiss For Your Eyes” Cut of the Day
“Cursive” Cut of the Day

Part Two: Andy Combs and the Moth

Download audio file (Andy_Combs_and_the_Moth__725.mp3)

Part Three: Leigh Marble

Download audio file (Leigh_Marble__726.mp3)

Links:
Goodwin on MySpace
Goodwin on the Web
Combs on MySpace
Marble on MySpace
Marble on the Web

Photos: all live shots taken from MySpace.

Andy Combs And The Moth, Wed., Nov. 26 Andy Combs
LC Radio: Portland Makes Music, Episode 1 January 4,
LC Radio: Portland Makes Music, Episode 2 February 1

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LC PODCASTS: Portland Lounge Series XIII with Greg Dalbey and Skyler Norwood

Casey Jarman — Tue, 30 Oct 2007 20:41:02 +0000

If you missed the 13th installment of Portland Lounge Series, lemme tell ya, you missed some fun. Even with the absence of our scheduled third guest, Martha Mosqueda, we had a nice evening and heard some fantastic tunes via Greg Dalbey (aka Train to Nowhere) of Ferocious Eagle and Skyler Norwood of Point Juncture, WA. Here are the segments for your listening pleasure. As usual, the format is interview, then a short set. Thanks again to our fantastic guests, and Portland Radio Authority for the fine recording job.

Part One: Greg Dalbey
Download audio file (PLS_XIII_part_1__682.mp3)

Part Two: Skyler Norwood (with Victor Nash and Jordan McCann)
Download audio file (PLS_XIII_part_2__683.mp3)

Links:
Point Juncture, WA
Team Evil
Kiki
Ferocious Eagle
Train to Nowhere

Photos from the ‘Space!

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LC PODCASTS: Portland Lounge Series IX with Mbilly, Yoyodyne, Curious Hands

Amy McCullough — Wed, 27 Jun 2007 21:14:55 +0000

First off, thanks to everyone who came out the the ninth edition of LocalCut’s Portland Lounge Series last Sunday (June 24). As usual, it was a blast. And, as usual, we’re posting audio of the whole darn thing right here on LocalCut for your listening pleasure. In case you missed it, here’s a brief rundown of who played and what went down:

First up was the ever-humble Will Helfrich, a.k.a. Mbilly. I have to say this was my fave interview of the night, mostly because it’s just plain easier and more effective to interview a single person than an entire band. But I also really enjoyed Will’s answers (Local Cutter Michael Byrne once wrote that Mbilly offers up “the best damn stage banter in Portland’), and his set was no less enchanting.

Download audio file (mbilly_PLS_IX_062407__198.MP3)

Secondly, PLS IX was host to Yoyodyne, the surf-pop outfit of Emily Vidal (bass/vocals), Johnny Keener (guitar/vocals) and Jason Greene (drums). We got to the bottom of the band’s name, found out that Keener’s awesomely Dick Dale-ish guitar leads are sorta accidental, and I learned that the drummer tends to gets the shaft when it comes to interviewing a trio with two songwriters (sorry, Jason!).

Download audio file (yoyodyne_PLS_IX_062407__199.MP3)

Finally, two-thirds of Curious Hands, co-songwriters Tyler Riggs and John Barrios, took the stage and–in what I perceived as a shared interest in moving things along–offered fairly brief but amusing answers to a short list of questions. (Barrios later apologized to me via email for “being a goof” during our interview.) But, however goofy, Riggs and Barrios (drummer Nick LaRue used the set’s acoustic-ness as an excuse to take the night off) were good sports about the fact that a fair chunk of the audience had retired for the evening by the time they went on–guess that’s what you get around midnight on a Sunday night.

Barrios told me after the show he was excited for out-of-town friends to hear the podcast, though, and he even offered a follow-up answer to my question about “Ogopogo” via email, saying, “I guess [it's] really about personal change and belief. Its’ hard to portray that, but that’s where it comes from. It’s a pop song at best.” Brief answers aside, hearing the Hands’ pop-punk songs delivered acoustically was freakin’ rad, and they finished the night off on a majorly fun note.

Download audio file (curious_hands_PLS_IX_062407__200.MP3)

Thanks again to all who came out (and to those of you giving us your ears now)! The Portland Lounge Series takes place every last Sunday at the Towne Lounge. And it’s always free! Hope to see ya next time!

Mbilly
Yoyodyne
Curious Hands

Photo: Mr. Will Helfrich, from Mbilly’s MySpace.

CD Reviews: MarchFourth Marching Band, Curious Hands MarchFour
Yoyodyne Saturday, April 25 Yoyodyne:
LC Radio: Portland Makes Music, Episode 3 March 1, 2

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LC PODCASTS: Portland Lounge Series VIII with Ben Barnett, Fogatron, Dhani Rosa

Casey Jarman — Sat, 02 Jun 2007 00:54:25 +0000

Here ’tis, the much delayed audio Portland Lounge Series number eight (What happened to seven, you ask? I’m gonna have to rent-a-nerd to get that figured out). We had some audio problems for this installment, which meant I had to use my pocket mp3 recorder. I think it came out alright, though there’s a large amount of echo/reverb (especially during the performance parts of the show). For Dhani and Fog, things still sound really great. On Ben Barnett’s louder tracks I think it definitely detracts from the sound quality, but his quieter tracks and the interview are so totally worth checking out anyway, that I ain’t sweatin’ it. Thanks to everyone who came out!

First up was Dhani Rosa of Eskimo and Sons. I always have to work the kinks out up front, so I’m afraid my interviewing skills aren’t great here, but Dhani is a good sport, and he follows up the interview with three fantastic songs, including one he sang with Danielle Sullivan (also of Eskimo and Sons).
Download audio file (dhanirosa.mp3)

My second act was the inimitable Fogatron, who shared some letters he’s recieved from school children (priceless). The reverb problem is extra-apparent here, and while it sounds pretty rad, I know that Fog is down on effects, so I apologize for it. Pretty sure it had more to do with my recording device than the sound at the Towne Lounge.
Download audio file (fogatron.MP3)

The final act in my trilogy was Ben Barnett (aka Kind of Like Spitting). I’m friends with Ben, and dude’s having sort of a rough, well, year…but I think that despite the melancholy/chemicals in his answers to my questions, this is probably the craziest/best interview I’ve had for PLS, and mostly a lot of fun. Ben goes into detail about his heroes, why he demolished Kind of Like Spitting, drugs, rock and roll and more. Then he plays some covers, some KOLS tracks and a fantastic finisher (again, I apologize for the reverb on the tracks here). This one is like three times as long as the others…we got carried away at the end of the night. Oh, and that hollering voice from the crowd is Ben from the Wherewithals.
Download audio file (barnett.mp3)

By the way, these files are huge (23,29 and 55 mb respectively). Eventually I’ll figure out how to make them smaller and not sound terrible. But download away if you like, or stream them from here. Either way, thanks for listening!

You can now find all LC podcasts in the “LC RADIO” section below. We will update them as they arrive, including multiple new podcasts from Arya Imig and Dmoe Funk. More on that soon.

File Photo by Dan Norton

Video: Sapient, “My Grind is Tech” Seeing as
LC Radio: Portland Makes Music, Episode 3 March 1, 2
Alan Singley and Ben Barnett Cover Alicia Keys For The Holidays Awwwww shi

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