Album Reviews [TWEE FOR TOTS] I love kids, but I hate kids’ music. This is a major reason I don’t intend to have children: I’m just not willing to spend six or seven years of my life listening to Uncle Wo   More

Album Reviews [BLUEGRASS] Contemporary pickers have a very real dilemma: They can play strictly traditional bluegrass and run the risk of flying completely under the radar, or they can attempt to modernize the    More

Cover Story The air is hot and humid in the Portland Building’s dimly lit second-floor auditorium. A mix of flannel-clad twentysomethings, long-haired retirees and fussy neighborhood-watch types have filled   More

Album Reviews [WAIT, DISCO? REALLY?] I am fascinated by disco. And I don’t mean the contemporary electronic dance music that passes itself off as such: I’m talking half-naked, coke-snorting, mirror-ball, blowjo   More

Music It's nice to see Cool Nutz taking a moment to celebrate his victories in this video: Having a few friends over, cooking up some pasta, passing around the champagne and reminiscing over old albums. It's also nice—in real life, I mean—to see the Godfather of Portland hip-hop embracing his classic material in recent live shows. I first saw this mini-renaissance happening at this summer's Bas...   More

Music I guess I'm a romantic. 
Of all the tough-talking tracks on Illmaculate's new free download, The Skrill Walton EP (the second free disc he's dropped this year), I pick the love song to post on LocalCut. But, you know, I think Illmac is a romantic at heart, as well: His love songs are often his strongest cuts. Maybe it's all those years of battling that make Illmac's relationship jam...   More

Music Hello and welcome back to my infrequent column, Deep Cuts. If you've forgotten the format, it goes like this: I ask an artist about one song, and we talk at excruciating length about both that song and all its corollaries. This week I'm humbled to have one of my favorite MCs in the world, Murs, here talking about his fantastic song "The Science." Murs, it should be said, plays Refuge TONIG...   More

Music Hey kids, we know you're all on the edge of your seats keeping an eye on the Occupy drama, but it's music video time! This week's video round-up features an extended Volvo drive, some funky haircuts and lots of explosions. Let's get started right away, shall we?
Key Losers, "Limited Time"
First up, it's the directorial debut from States Rights Records' godhead and party king Steve Sch...   More

Featured Stories About 24 hours ago, I started playing Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 online in the middle of the Willamette Week office. I have stopped for food, bathroom breaks and occasional unescapable professio   More

Music Slabtown, one of the few music venues (beyond downtown) in Northwest Portland and the city's second most stacked pinball bar, is going up for sale this week after a five-year run. Brinda Coleman, who bought Slabtown with two other co-owners in 2006 and opened on Groundhog's Day of 2007, has been running the business alone since co-owner Sam Soule left last February, and she says it's time to ...   More