Yosemite is the real magic kingdom…
Tuesday night February 9 marked the annual return of ska masters The Toasters. They embarked immediately on long time favorites, “I’m Running Right Through the World” and “Pirate Radio,” but it was when they played “Weekend In LA” that the dance floor really lit up. I didn’t see a still body on that dance floor. …
In December 2015 I wrote about evangelical Wheaton College’s decision to suspend Larycia Hawkins, its’ first ever female African American tenured professor due to a seemingly innocuous FB post. Well, the acrimony intensified and now Professor Hawkins will not return. http://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2016/feb/07/wheaton-christian-college-professor-larycia-hawkins-muslims-worship-same-god In my EPB post, I referenced a similar trial of a Seminary professor, Fred …
Bird do it, bees do it, even the Black Keys do it… https://theholygasp.bandcamp.com/
When the NFL comes to town for the Super Bowl, it is not just a visit: it is an occupation. In addition to the game itself, the NFL has taken possession of the Moscone Convention Center for the week for its NFL Experience, a theme park and autograph show that one can attend for the …
I went to my third Lamb of God concert a couple of days ago. They are a pure American metal band from Virginia who met at Virginia Commonwealth University at least 20 years ago. In 2003, I flew from Chicago to a municipal airport in Creighton, Nebraska for work. I had a nursing case in …
Coldplay has definitely found the sweetspot where East meets West:
This article is an interesting update on the Blazers/Cavs game last December, suggesting that the LeBron and company may have scaled down their level of play on purpose, possibly to persuade ownership to ship Coach Blatt out the door. http://www.blazersedge.com/2016/1/22/10818480/david-blatt-cleveland-cavalaiers-lebron-james-portland-trail-blazers No one will likely confess to the deed, but it would not be the first …
I must admit I didn’t see this coming. Who’d a thunk Aht Gahfunkel would be the last hippie standing? This makes the photo of Trump and Neil Young so much sadder.
Laugh in the Dark by Tommy Keene catches you by surprise and reminds you of fun as would a county fair stop on your way to a funeral. On “All Gone Away” Keene delves into the brief, transitory nature of our existence and asks “27 minutes left for you, how do you want it to …
Recording artist Dreezy teams up with fellow Chicago native Jeremih for her first official single, “Body.” Produced by Blood Diamonds, this smooth sultry track is digitally available now. The spitfire rapper proves just how versatile her style is. She’s one of the game’s most promising artists so stay tuned for more to come in 2016.
Formed in the spring of 2014, High Waisted is an NYC surf rock band with pop sensibilities and an affliction for rock and roll. Every show is a party. Lo-fi fuzzy bass, reverb drenched guitars and radiant harmonies mesh to create the melodies of your wave-crashed daydreams. Fronted by Jessica Louise Dye, and backed by …
Dig the layers in this tune… Raised in the suburbs of Austin, Texas, Angela Burns grew up listening to 90s grunge, pop-punk, and post-grunge bands circa 2000s. Her biggest aspiration being acting, she wrote her first song at age 9 and began playing drums in a band with her two sisters, Kathryn and Carolyn. After …
Cameron Heger is a musician and dog lover from right here in our beloved Portlandia, Oregonia. After writing songs and playing drums in a few bands, this past year he decided to venture out on his own and see an entire musical project through from writing, to arranging, to performing. He enlisted his friend, Sam …
Tvärvägen, the crossroads man, Henrik Öhberg, has a released a new song called “Phantom Signals” and it’s cool like January in the arctic. Give it a listen. https://www.facebook.com/tvarvagen
Wow this is super weird – I have no idea what to say about it! Bob Fosse was great! Super great! Super weird great! – John Ambrosavage
Damien Lillard of the Portland Trailblazers is back with another song and video:
Samm Henshaw & Bonkaz single “Autonomy (Slave)” operates on many levels, utilizes a stunning array of tools, and drives the lane down the center of your brain. The lyrics bring to light the captive, mediated pawns that in the current life game forever run in patterns unchanged. Visceral, ballsy, soulful and sweet, the vibrato of …
On Christmas Eve, before eating the roast beast, my family reads the Nativity story found in Luke. Verses 1-2: “At that time Emporer Augustus ordered a census to be taken throughout the Roman Empire. When the first census took place, Quirinius was the governor of Syria.” Matthew 2 explains King Herod felt threatened that his …
It’s January the first and it’s my first concert of the year. After being out until well past midnight seeing the fireworks shoot off the Space Needle, I was exhausted all the next day and wouldn’t have made the effort for any lesser band. But the Crocodile Cafe, in the heart of Seattle’s Belltown, was …
meet The Spiders From Mars, Ziggy Stardust’s backing band. they were originally were called David Bowie & The Hype (only with later manager Tony Visconti on bass). when the Ziggy Stardust album came out, their name was changed to The Spiders From Mars. but, they played on all the tunes, helped craft the music, arranged …
I’ve been trying to get my hands on this album for decades, today is the day I’ve got it in my hands! Georgie Fame and the Blue Flames live at The Flamingo Club in September 1963 recorded by Glyn Johns. The music has been described as involving “distinctly sensuous body movements and even the most …
December 1979’s Concerts for Kampuchea, a fairly successful meeting between 70s classic rock in its final breaths and a crop of ‘new wave’ bands starting to hit commercial success. Plant was the only old dude to mix it up with a ‘contemporary’ band – although nobody thought about it at the time – Rockpile’s frontmen …
This early Saturday Night Live video (season 3) is astonishing too, and bizarre, and awesome — for a couple reasons. 1. John Belushi’s Samurai character. He did it in a number of contexts, I think some of the cultural context is lost now, or maybe it was never there and that was the point, an …
Wheaton College is a nondenominational evangelical Christian institution located in the Western suburbs of Chicago that maintains a special relationship with the Reverend Billy Graham (currently 97 years old). Wheaton operates the Billy Graham Center for Evangelism, The Billy Graham Museum and Archives, and the Billy Graham Scholarship Program. According to a website called First …
The Revenant!!! Yes, there’s a lot of anguish and pain on screen, and I had questions about how they might have enriched the story more, but as filmmaking, it’s fantastic. Gripping, poetic, beautiful and utterly transporting… You will see things you haven’t seen before. Winter is coming, upper Missouri River 1823 (Montana, the Dakotas) and …
Jerry Douglas and Peter Rowan will be appearing at Portland’s Alberta Rose Theatre on New Year’s eve. Should be a great show. Jerry Douglas is the Bela Fleck of the dobro. This is high praise indeed. By this I mean he has taken the sound and performance capacity of the dobro to the highest levels …
Some old friends are making a great film about MALI, its music, and the culture of a special place in a difficult time. if you can throw them even a few bucks so they can finish it, that would be great. >>>>>>>>>> “Malian Pieces is a feature documentary and accompanying online series that follows musician …
These agile musicians get a great sound, an urgent beat, and the brass section busts some surprisingly nimble dance moves while playing a bass sax. Thanks to Daniel Housman for sending along this viral vid to me. 20 years ago Daniel and I saw Morphine, that excellent 90s sax-based band, at the Off Ramp in …
On Friday night December 18th I sacrificed seeing the new Star Wars on opening night to instead see Nick Lowe at Seattle’s Neptune Theater. The sacrifice was well worth it. Now white haired and bespectacled, Nick Lowe got on stage as a solo act for about the first two or three songs. Then the real …