Album Reviews [PSYCH ROCK] You’d never know Viva Voce had such a tumultuous recent history—the duo of Kevin and Anita Robinson has had side projects, full-band experiments and label switches since 2009—from   More

Album Reviews [BIG BEAT FROM STUMPTOWN] As much as I loved Mattress, something about Rex Marshall’s basso profondo voice never seemed to jibe too well with that band’s lo-fi electronic leanings. But with his    More

Album Reviews [ONE-MAN POP BAND] Sometimes a little love gets you further than a lot of polish. So while it sometimes sounds like the technology on Quiet Countries’ third disc, The Ancient Motorcade—loop ped   More

Album Reviews [ROOTS-ROCK COCKTAIL] If opening tracks are meant to forecast an album’s mood, then “Long Fall,” the first cut off Redwood Son’s two-disc debut effort, The Lion’s Inside, signals clear sk   More

Album Reviews [FRESH HIP-HOP] Northwest hip-hop is most often derided for lacking a distinct regional aesthetic. But the Sandpeople crew—and by extension, iAMe, one of its premier MCs—has a sound. The squad r   More

Album Reviews [THE PIANO INFLATES] Good piano balladeers are hard to find these days. Though squealing synthesizers pimple a guitar-riddled indie-music landscape, acoustic pianos are markedly less popular. But p   More

Album Reviews [THROWBACK HIP-HOP] Animal Farm’s key demographic is hip-hop fans who are sick of hip-hop bullshit. It’s a hungry market, as evidenced by the Portland squad’s formidable success on college mus   More

Album Reviews [EXPERIMENTAL FLUTTERINGS] Tara Jane O’Neil is that rare musician who always sounds like she’s searching for new modes by which to  express her overwhelming supply of artistic ideas. While   More

Album Reviews [CINEMATIC POST-ROCK] Local music obsessives who pore over the liner notes of their LPs and CDs will probably recognize the name of Jay Clarke. Since moving to Portland, he has been a member of the   More

Album Reviews [SHOW-TUNE TWEE] New Century Schoolbook is an orchestral pop quintet composed of what I suspect are ex-drama students. They are literary and enamored of the twee-er edges of pop, and they express t   More