Music The Deep, Bright Woods

Photos by Leah Verwey

A new beacon of culture in the sleepy land I like to call "SoPo" (South of Powell) turned on its filaments for the first time Friday night, at the "Prelude" party for new nightclub Th...   More

Music When I spoke to Rodriguez by phone earlier this month, we didn't have time to discuss all the aspects of his long and improbable career (which are covered at length in Light in the Attic's typically exhaustive liner notes to his two reissued albums), but we did rap about politics, philosophy, a...   More

Music Seattle unearths cold artifacts from a rediscovered genius.

[COLD ARTIFACT] Imagine a Mexican-American Donovan, spilling out prodigious, Dylanesque poetry—only rather than Donovan’s fantasias of bananas and Atlantis, these songs rise like steam from gritty city streets. Now imagine said singer’s reedy voice and strummed acoustic emerging amid fuzztone guitar, and e...   More

Music Stories [COLD ARTIFACT] Imagine a Mexican-American Donovan, spilling out prodigious, Dylanesque poetry—only rather than Donovan’s fantasias of bananas and Atlantis, these songs rise like steam fro ...   More

Music Despite the new music he's made since moving to Portland in 1993, Bill Wadhams may forever be defined by the moment he donned that Roman helmet, poolside, in the '80s apotheosis (or apocalypse) that was the "Obsesssion" video. Despite some credible pop chops, L.A.'s Animotion never got past tha...   More

Music Folkies gone electric celebrate 20 years of sweet tunes.

Best New Bands are all well and good, but there’s also something to be said for longevity in pursuit of a shared goal. This week, singer-songwriters Adam East and Kris Deelane kick off a celebration of their 20th anniversary as musical partners­—a bond that’s outlasted their romantic partnership by 13 yea...   More

Music Stories Best New Bands are all well and good, but there’s also something to be said for longevity in pursuit of a shared goal. This week, singer-songwriters Adam East and Kris Deelane kick off a celebra ...   More

Music Local songwriter has a voice—and songs—that defy description.

[ALT-COUNTRY] Try describing the sound of your favorite singer’s voice. Tricky, huh? Writers often compare singers to other, better-known ones because it’s easy, and even the best vocalists betray their influences: similar phrasing here, a borrowed inflection there. But Portlander Paula Sinclair th...   More

Music Stories [ALT-COUNTRY] Try describing the sound of your favorite singer’s voice. Tricky, huh? Writers often compare singers to other, better-known ones because it’s easy, and even the best vocalist ...   More

Music [ROCK OPERA] When called up to the majors for 2006's The Crane Wife, the Decemberists brought their conceptual A-game. For the follow-up, they've gone fully long-form with a 17-part, hourlong rock opera, The Hazards of Love. Literate leader Colin Meloy has cast, as his story's two female characters, sweet-voiced Becky Stark of pop-folkies Lavender Diamond and powerhouse alto Shara Wo...   More