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According to lore, Pink Floyd's mega-hit album The Dark Side of the Moon synchronizes perfectly with the film The Wizard of Oz, leading to speculation that the album was inspired by the 1939 film. Although band members and producers of Dark Side of the Moon have said this is coincidence, the legend—known as Dark Side of the Rainbow—lives on.
This weekend, Portland-based Pink Floyd tribute band Pigs on the Wing are re-creating one of rock music's most famous urban legends at the Wonder Ballroom. We're taking a page from the Pigs' playbook and imagining some other Portland tribute bands re-enacting some of rock 'n' roll's most infamous incidents and urban legends.
Ramble On at Moloko
Led Zeppelin knew how to party in its heyday, but the band has one particular word attached to its name whose very mention elicits knowing smirks and shudders in equal measure: mudshark. For those whose dads weren't cool enough to share the tale with you, the rumor is that on a fateful evening at Seattle's Edgewater Inn in 1969, members of the Zep…uh, "loved," a particularly eager groupie with the aid of a mudshark they had caught with a fishing reel from a window of the hotel, which abuts Elliott Bay. What better place for Zeppelin tribute act Ramble On to re-create the mudshark incident, with a willing fan, of course, than North Mississippi Avenue's premier fishtank-adorned cocktail lounge? Sushi dinner included with ticket.
Motorbreath and Appetite for Deception at Ash Street Saloon
The early 1990s were a prime time for gigantic arena megatours, chock-full of now-legendary rock acts. The 1992 Guns N' Roses/Metallica Stadium Tour—with Faith No More opening, naturally—was one of the big ones, at the height of both bands' astronomical popularity, and the height of Axl Rose's notorious show-canceling stage drama. On the Montreal leg of the tour, Metallica frontman James Hetfield narrowly escaped immolation when he accidentally stood on a pyrotechnics display, burning his left arm to a crisp.
GNR took to the stage after a long delay, but Rose closed their set early because of throat problems. Aggrieved Montrealers rioted, smashing cars and windows, looting businesses and setting fires bad enough that Montreal police struggled to get the crowd under control.
There are many rock- and metal-friendly bars in the West Burnside/Old Town area. But the Ash Street Saloon, scheduled to close in 2018, deserves a going-away party worthy of its raucous legacy. Motorbreath is going to have to take one for the team, but literally "Jump[ing] Into the Fire" would cement its legacy as the greatest Metallica tribute act in history.
Gold Dust at any nightclub in Old Town
By the mid-'80s, Fleetwood Mac frontwoman Stevie Nicks had done so much cocaine she burned a hole through the middle of her nose, a habit so out of control her surgeon told her she was at risk of dropping dead. As part of the blizzard, rumours emerged that she had an assistant find a different method of administering her coke that avoided her nasal passages: through the anus, by way of a straw or suppository or whatever other implement seemed funniest.
Now, it's going to be hard for members of Mac tribute band Gold Dust to belt out a rousing rendition of "Go Your Own Way" with their pants around their ankles. But if there's any part of Portland where we can make that dream into a reality, any Old Town nightclub should do the trick.
Pigs on the Wing perform The Dark Side of the Moon at Wonder Ballroom, 128 NE Russell St. on Friday, March 10. 9 pm. $12 advance, $15 day of show. 21+.