Top 5 Califone, Quicksand/Cradlesnakes (2003)Not only a Thrill Jockey fave, but one of the best bands of the past decade, in my opinion. These dudes mix gorgeous folk melodies with out-there noise like    More

Music This is what it sounds like when an experimentalist goes pop. Unsurprisingly, it doesn't sound much like what anyone else would label "pop." Nick Bindeman is probably best known in Portland as a member of space-rockers Eternal Tapestry and longstanding improv-freaks Jackie-O Motherfucker (whose new record, Earth Sound System, came out this week -- hear it here), but he has also produced a lot of music ...   More

Music Madonna homages. Asshole teenagers. Sci-fi acid trips. Justin Bieber singing about his testicles, or lack thereof. Why, it must be the week in new Portland music videos! Let's get to the ocular explosion!Beth Ditto, "I Wrote The Book"In this tribute (not ripoff *cough* "Born This Way" *cough*) to Ms. Ciccone and her hornirific "Justify My Love" video (with references to the "Vogue" vid as well), Gossip ...   More

Music Set your calendars, folks: The 2010 PDX Pop Now! festival is coming in a short seven weeks. Today the free, all-local, all-ages festival announced the lineup for this year's fest—set to take place July 30-August 1—and it's predictably great. Au! Parenthetical Girls! Cloudy October! Joggers! But even with the bigger names, this fest has always been about discovery, about seeing a band you've ...   More