Skip to main contentA decade ago this week, Portland's Exploding Hearts released Guitar Romantic, a near-perfect power-pop album now considered among the classics of the genre. Although the group's career ended tragically less than four months later, the great, brief burst of music it left behind remains a vital influence on an entire generation of bands. To commemorate the album's 10-year anniversary, Willamette Week partnered with Generator and Pabst Blue Ribbon and asked six Portland artists to cover the record in full. Over the next week, we will be premiering exclusive videos of those bands performing all 10 songs from Guitar Romantic at Southeast Portland's Green Noise Records, home to Dirtnap Records, the label that released the album in America.
The Cry!, "Thorns in Roses"
"The Exploding Hearts gave me hope that there was still killer rock'n'roll out there for my generation. The album to me is flawless. Every song is perfect—complete with hooks and badass, jangly, melodic leads. It's one of my desert island discs. I can't help but have a smile on my face whenever I listen to the record. They were the best thing to come out of Portland. I wish I could have seen them."—Dave Berkham, the Cry!
Thorns in Roses from Generator on Vimeo.
WWeek 2015