Flashback: Quasi

Quasi playing a record-release show for its album, Featuring “Birds”, at Jackpot Records on Southeast Hawthorne Boulevard, in 1998. 

"This was the start of the busiest period for Quasi. Janet [Weiss] had joined Sleater-Kinney and they were blasting off, and I was touring with Elliott [Smith], in addition to Quasi's expanding schedule. Honestly, I was also a little bit of an emotional mess in those days, and my specific memories are a little garbled. Things, I think, were changing pretty quick around then, not just for me personally but for the scene in general. Even Jackpot, now a venerable institution, was a new record store at the time of this photo. Anyway, a couple interesting things jump out at me looking at this now. What were we doing with an accordion? I am playing my old Rocksichord, which within a year or so would have bitten the dust, but which is sort of the sonic signature of the earlier songs. Janet was still carrying her drum hardware around in an old golf bag—a real back-breaker. I think it was an interesting time for Portland music. We were all still just figuring it out. Interesting things do tend to happen in the nebulae before things get figured out and nailed down." —Quasi singer-keyboardist Sam Coomes.

SEE IT: Quasi's 20th anniversary celebration is at Doug Fir Lounge, 830 E Burnside St., with Blues Control, on Saturday, Nov. 23. 9 pm. $15 advance, $17 day of show. 21+.

WWeek 2015

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