Music Has there been a more hotly anticipated first album by a local band than this Danny Seim-produced debut by Sun Angle? Not for a good long while, I would argue. And for damn good reason too. This trio has been tearing it up on the live circuit for 18 months or more, finding its collective sound and building ample strength along the way. Trying to capture the manic energy of the band's live sets ...   More

Music Stories The Helio Sequence and Menomena have a lot in common. Both are made up of Portland-area natives (Beaverton, specifically). Both are signed to...   More

Headout When I heard that Menomena—apparently some big-deal Portland psychedelic rock band—was going to match up its new record, Moms, with laser Floyd...   More

Top 5 The Great Idea, Friday, Aug. 10, at Enchanted ForestIt’s a show in a creepy theme park for kids. And Quasi is playing. Come on, what more do you want?Pop-Up Pool Party, Sunday, Aug. 19, at Portland    More

Top 5 Golden Retriever, Occupied With the Unspoken (July 24)More majestic electronic craziness from these Thrill Jockey signees. There’s a release show for this one at Holocene on Aug. 1. Raymond Byr   More

SCOOP INKY GLORY: Portland graphic novelist Craig Thompson won an Eisner Award for “Best Writer/Artist” for his epic 2011 tome Habibi. Presented at San Diego...   More

SCOOP WHY CAN’T THIS BE LOVE: Last week, someone dropped what we thought was a box of Voodoo Doughnuts at the WW office. Naturally, it sat for a few hours before anyone opened it. But in the box was s   More

Music Can't say I didn't see this one coming. This afternoon Menomena announced on its website that multi-instrumentalist Brent Knopf—founding member, skilled keyboard player, and the creator of the Deeler looping system used to create all the band's music—is leaving the band to focus on other projects, including Ramona Falls. I hesitate to call Ramona Falls a solo project, because 2009's Intuit ...   More

Music Two weeks ago, we announced—along with the rest of the Internet—that Brent Knopf, one of the three original members of Menomena, was leaving the band to focus on his solo project and on recording a few records for his friends. Since then, Menomena has mostly keep quiet, but both Knopf and Seim were kind enough to answer some of my questions on record about the future of Menomena. Here are ...   More

Music Stop everything you are doing. I think you're going to want to hear the new Menomena single. This morning, on an official announcement on the band's website (and also Pitchfork, Stereogum, and your kid brother's blog) drummer Danny Seim finally gave some concrete details on the upcoming Menomena record, Mines, which is out on July 27 on Barsuk records. First, we've got the debut single, "Five Little ...   More