Now a teenager, Portland’s MusicfestNW will begin its 13th year on Tuesday, September 3rd and continue celebrating through Sunday, September 8th.
Adding more days, musical acts and shows than ever before, MFNW’s storied past is a grandiose amalgamation of some of the finest acts around, and this year is proving to be no different. As new bands gain more and more exposure alongside some tried-and-true favorites of past years, it can be hard to choose what to see. Decisions left and right can lead to what we in the biz call “festival anxiety.” So, take some of our advice with the hope of alleviating some of that tension.
Note: Festival anxiety may or may not be a real thing. Regardless, these picks were made by OMN contributors Ryan Gahris, Cat Jones, Cervante Pope and Managing Editor Chris Young.
Tuesday, September 3rd
Black Bananas at Dante’s: 10pm — Ryan Gahris
It’s going to hit the fan, hard—there is no denying that. Jennifer Herrema, the mastermind behind Black Bananas (and former mastermind behind RTX), has compiled a close-knit gang to deliver what could be easily mistaken as early ’90s, low-income housing, angry white kid music upon a passing listen, but in all actuality, Black Bananas is more accurately dubbed as a “comprehensive non-exclusive opposition rock” directive, as a wiser person put it.
With Rad Times Xpress IV as the debut LP under the Black Bananas handle, you can expect some bits of acidic funk, moments of strung out, parachute-panted metal reminiscing, and more than enough psychedelic boogie-woogie than previously thought possible. Regardless of your musical tastes, Black Bananas is going to bring genre-smashing groves to a whole new level. And just like an actual banana, the more black spots, the more anti-cancer qualities. So, do yourself a favor and disregard your preconceived notions of taste and dose yourself with a full serving of Black Bananas rock and ripeness. With that, you can expect MFNW to get weird and crazy from the get-go, and so it shall begin on a Tuesday, oddly enough, September 3rd at Dante’s.
Watch Black Bananas’ “My House”:
Click here to view the embedded video.
Redd Kross at Dante’s: 11pm — Cervante Pope
First exploding onto the scene more than 20 years ago, Redd Kross has experienced name changes, lineup changes, and even a decade-long hiatus. Returning with one of the original lineups in 2006, they’ve since played various festivals and made another record as well as a fairly limited New Years Eve split with The Melvins. Now, they’re here playing MFNW and we couldn’t be more excited. Dante’s is about to get turned up on the 3rd. Be there around 11pm to see the crowd—it’s guaranteed to be diverse, from parents reminiscing about a band from their youth to young punks born in, like 1999, just starting to appreciate what the ’80s had to offer (which definitely includes songs about Linda Blair).
Listen to Redd Kross’ “Linda Blair”:
Portland Picks: Grunge/garage pop rockers Summer Cannibals kicks off the night at Dante’s at 9pm.
Wednesday, September 4th
Deerhunter at the Crystal Ballroom: 10:30pm — Cervante Pope
There’s nothing like the shrill shrieks of psychedelic noise rock piercing your eardrums like a sound needle. Just as good as that are the slowed down, droned indie pop delights that almost put you into a dream-like coma. If you also find either of those pleasing, especially with hints of shoegaze, then you best find yourself at the Deerhunter show at the Crystal Ballroom. Their genius spans many musical stylings over the course of their six studio albums, the most recent being Monomania, which came out earlier this year. Their set starts roughly around 10:30pm but make sure you get there early so you can buy a drink or drop your acid, whichever you prefer.
Watch Deerhunter’s “Helicopter”:
Click here to view the embedded video.
Murder By Death at Dante’s: 12am — Cat Jones
Despite what their name might suggest, Murder By Death is not a metal band. But given the nature of their lyrics (death, whiskey, zombies, making deals with the devil, etc.) and the darkness surrounding their every note, they might as well be. Adam Turla sounds like a young Johnny Cash and sings like a lamenting ex-pirate weathered by years of backwoods isolation. Balancing his gruff tone is Sarah Balliet, who sings occasional backups and plays cello, but don’t let that fool you into thinking they’re soft. While their songs will occasionally throw you into a darkly introspective, heart-in-a-vice-grip rabbit hole, the majority of them will have you knocking back the bourbon and longing for days of bar fights and jailbreaks. Larry and His Flask, an old-timey punk/bluegrass band from Bend, opens the show.
Watch Murder By Death’s “As Long As There Is Whiskey In The World”:
Click here to view the embedded video.
Portland Picks: Stumptown hip-hop is represented at the Hawthorne with G_Force and TxE while electro-pop will reign at Mississippi Studios in the form of Mackintosh Braun, opening for the indelibly poppy Gold Fields.
Thursday, September 5th
Youth Lagoon at Pioneer Courthouse Square: 6:30pm — Ryan Gahris
To be frank, Youth Lagoon is an apt name that quite appropriately summarizes his various biomes of sound. From the debut release of The Year of Hibernation, Trevor Powers (aka Youth Lagoon) has more or less been an endeavor to understand the muddled meaning behind life, death and those murky moments in between it all. With that whole lagoon of contemplation, Powers pairs a youthful vibrancy that defies and distinguishes itself from the need of categorization because well, it is what it is. What you are left with is an individual with an impressive knack for sound structures, relating his experiences and thoughts through often frail and delicately delivered lyrics that don’t require a full and detailed explanation, just the feeling and understanding that innately attaches itself to it.
Where The Year of Hibernation came off as a shy and modest insight into the hopes and fears of Trevor Powers, Youth Lagoon’s followup, Wondrous Bughouse, deals with the clarified realizations and the overwhelming and confounding nature that results from it. From the open-aired moseying gem “Mute,” to the exuberant and intoxicatingly repressed merry-go round of “You’ll never die, you’ll never die, you’ll never die…”‘s of “Dropla,” Wondrous Bughouse picks up and delves ever so deeper into the lagoon of life with gooey electronic elements that present one reason after another as to why its good to get lost—in feeling both music and life—while you’re young.
Watch Youth Lagoon’s “Mute”:
Click here to view the embedded video.
Young The Giant at Pioneer Courthouse Square: 8pm — Ryan Gahris
Young The Giant’s self-titled 2010 debut LP has lifted band mates Sameer Gadhia (vocals), Jacob Tilley (guitar), Eric Cannata (guitar), Payam Doostzadeh (bass), and François Comtois (drums) to levels few bands reach in the indie pop-rock realm—especially in today’s musical climate. And on the road to success, Young The Giant has hit peak positions on the music charts and found itself making strategically galvanizing appearances everywhere from the 2011 MTV Video Music Awards to ABC’s Jimmy Kimmel Live! and even the NBC Newsroom.
So, the question has to be raised: What makes this band so appealing and effective at delivering their brand of alternative rock music? It could be the soft-spoken and, at times, forceful delivery of lyrics, such as: “And all these people with small dreams / Are looking up at the big screen / Well am I wrong or am I right?” that hook into your consciousness and never let go. Yet, that would only be one side of the coin. With an expansive and versatile instrumental pallet to belt from, Young The Giant gets the portions calculated just right to make a series of diverse tracks that range from the slow-burning ambient subtleties of “Island” to the addictive and inviting chorus harmonies of “Strings.” Whatever your fancy in the alternative rock realm, Young The Giant is sure to hit it during their performance, which will undoubtedly allow its finer elements to burst from towering speakers with crystal clarity—luckily drowning out those overworked vocal cords of yours as you feel compelled to sing along to those catchy lyrical hooks.
Watch Young The Giant’s “Cough Syrup”:
Click here to view the embedded video.
Baroness at the Hawthorne Theater: 10pm — Cat Jones
Last year was a tumultuous year for Baroness, to say the least: The band released one of the most celebrated albums of 2012, Yellow & Green, which was on seemingly everyone’s “best of” end-of-the-year lists and cemented their place as one of the biggest and most influential acts in rock or metal. However, they also suffered a huge tragedy: When touring through England, their bus lost control and went off the road, giving all of the band members serious injuries and indelible, horrific memories. The end result was nearly a year of rest and healing and the departure of two band members. This will be the first time Baroness has been back in Portland in years, and the perfect time to help the band celebrate the life and continuation of their beautiful, heavy music. Royal Thunder, their label mates on Relapse Records and fellow purveyors of riffs and moving, heavy music, will open the show.
Watch Baroness’ “Take My Bones Away”:
Click here to view the embedded video.
!!! at Branx: 11pm — Cervante Pope
If garage really isn’t your thing and you’d rather erratically seizure dance and possibly get struck in the face, !!! can make that happen for you. Most commonly pronounced “chk-chk-chk” (though they say you can really just repeat any random sound three times and it’ll still be correct—that seems fun), these Sacramento-ers have been in the dance punk game since the ’90s and they’re sure as hell not stopping soon. Their newest and very cleverly titled LP Thr!!!er came out in April and is full of songs that will make your ass shake—whether you want it to or not. Incorporating disco-era funk and soul with electronic and punk, !!! will turn Branx into a mini rave so bring your glow sticks!
Watch !!!’s “Must Be The Moon”:
Click here to view the embedded video.
Bleached at Dante’s: 11pm — Cervante Pope
This night was made for Californians. If you dig garage rock as much as I and plenty of other 20-somethings, then I’ll probably see you at Dante’s watching Bleached. These two sisters rep Los Angeles hard and all that vitamin D comes out in their music. With the recent release of their debut album, Ride Your Heart, the gals have been on stages all over the country playing their angelic rock that makes you wish the summer would never end.
Watch Bleached’s “Next Stop”:
Click here to view the embedded video.
Portland Picks: Typhoon headlining The Old Church should be nothing sort of angelic, especially as the choir-sized group supports new material from White Lighter. For something lighter (and more kitschy), Fred Armisen hosts a variety show featuring his Brit punk rock alter ego Ian Rubbish at the Crystal, while great (but very different) indie rock acts Lost Lander and Sun Angle are good ways to start a night off right.
Friday, September 6th
Dan Deacon at Pioneer Courthouse Square: 7pm — Cervante Pope
Dan Deacon has done wayyyyyy more than that damn YouTube video. With a repertoire of versatile albums going all the way back to the early 2000s, he’s partaken in film festivals, performed at museums and in art installations, and even composed music for a stage act—the man can do it all. His performances are renowned for their extravagancy and crowd participations. If you want to be a part of the fun, be at Pioneer Square at 7pm on Friday.
Listen to Dan Deacon’s “True Thrush”:
Animal Collective at Pioneer Courthouse Square: 8:30pm — Cervante Pope
You might as well just hang around at Pioneer Square because Animal Collective follows Deacon. Those fools have been making eclectic Idon’tevenknowhowtoclassifyit-music since, like way before it was considered cool to make weird music—the original hipsters. And now, Panda Bear is doing songs with Daft Punk and all that ish. Good for them. Take a trip down memory lane and go back to your school days when you first began to listen to good music. Hopefully they’ll play some Campfire Songs for us to sing along to.
Watch Animal Collective’s “Peacebone”:
Click here to view the embedded video.
Godspeed You! Black Emperor at the Roseland Theater: 10pm — Cat Jones
This enigmatic Canadian instrumental post-rock band is the type of band who can remain silent for ages, suddenly pop up and do a tour without much advertising, and sell out every date. A typical Godspeed show houses the most eclectic of fans, from metal heads to jazz lovers to those who rarely stray from radio pop—and for good reason: The band has managed to harness their music and use it to pummel you with the furor of the deepest depths of human emotion and carry an entire crowd back to a single hopeful note, all in the span of one very long, developed song.
Listen to a full album stream of Godspeed You! Black Emperor’s Lift Your Skinny Fists Like Antennas to Heaven:
Click here to view the embedded video.
Brian Posehn at the White Owl Social Club: 10pm — Cat Jones
The world’s metal-est comedian is headlining the White Owl Social Club, one of Portland’s metal-est bars. Perfect. If you’re not familiar with Posehn’s humor (or haven’t seen him in his various cameos in movies and TV shows), you should study up. Or don’t, and be awesomely surprised. Sons of Huns one of Portland’s hottest up-and-coming rock and roll acts (and recent additions to the Easy Rider Records family) will open the show. It’s only fitting for a rock band to open for a comedian who made an album called Fart and Wiener Jokes, right?
Crushed Out at the Doug Fir: 11pm — Ryan Gahris
In embodying a ceaseless rockabilly momentum and utilizing unstoppable atomic beats, the Brooklyn duo Crushed Out, formerly known as Boom Chick, has everything you could ever hope for in getting your socks rocked off and tossed clear across the room. Strapped with distortion-stretched, rapid-fire-rifle-riffs, guitarist and singer Frank Hoier lays down the law with uncontainable rabble-rousing ruckuses that tip the cap at swamp boogie blues influences and couples it with a surfy, Southern twang that your mom warned you about back in the ’70s. Hoier’s partner in crime, Moselle Spiller on drums, brings about an irrepressible rhythm and seductive presentation that can’t help but shake the foundation of your bones—there’s no point in resisting. Together, Hoier and Spiller brought the evolution of music full circle—back to where the simple and sweet impressions of rock ‘n’ roll first took hold of the soul. And with Want To Give, Crushed Out’s followup to their first full-length debut Show Pony, the Southern blues-battered twang beats better than ever and comes polished with an appropriate dose of shrilling grit.
Watch Crushed Out’s “Push Down & Twist”:
Click here to view the embedded video.
Washed Out at Mississippi Studios: 12am — Ryan Gahris
Following up Within And Without, Washed Out’s recent release of Paracosm presents a well-rounded second LP installment overflowing with lush chillwave tracks that bask in the vibrancy of brighter arrangements, which both contrast and compliment the dense atmosphere of Within and Without while avoiding overlapping redundancies and dead ends in creativity. Ernest Greene is Washed Out’s brainchild and in keeping things simple and sweet, Washed Out has a correspondingly simple goal: Feel it! With that in mind, the fantasy world that Paracosm embodies boasts a kind of tingly electronic warmth and comfort that a cozy blanket in the middle of winter couldn’t even dream of matching. As such, Washed Out’s slated performance at Mississippi Studios will bust out the best chillwave that Sub Pop has to offer—giving you an opening to sway with your girl/guy to the uplifting slow-flow of “Weightless” and break out your two-step jibs to the feel-good reggae tints of “It All Feels Right.” With that in mind, feeling it should be the least of your worries.
Watch Washed Out’s “It All Feels Right”:
Click here to view the embedded video.
Portland Picks: The night really starts at 9pm when Portland bands of all creeds and stripes—like Wild Ones, The We Shared Milk, and Youth Bitch—take stages across town. The 10pm slot features another diverse offering from Mean Jeans, Shy Girls, Old Light, and AgesandAges. Then, come the headliners with Unknown Mortal Orchestra topping the Branx bill (with Wooden Indian Burial Ground preceding them) and the electronic diva Natasha Kmeto finishing the night at Holocene, while Typhoon plays a second night at The Old Church.
The surfy, Seattle-based girl group La Luz may open the night at Dante’s, but they’re worth your attention if none of those 9pm Portlanders strike your fancy.
Saturday, September 7th
The Helio Sequence at the Aladdin Theater: 10pm — Ryan Gahris
Five records deep and still blossoming, the Beaverton pair composed of Benjamin Weikel and Brandon Summers, collectively known as The Helio Sequence, is slated to grant those who make their way to the Aladdin Theater a night filled with graceful indie rock pleasures nimbly structured to transplant listeners into a sound scape that’s infinitely intricate and detailed, yet powerful enough to twinkle-toe even the most not-in-the-mood listeners.
With Negotiations released in the fall of 2012, you can be sure that the 11-track ascent toward spacious pinnacles of boundless subtleties has been field-tested to perfection. Since the 2008 release of Keep Your Eyes Ahead, The Helio Sequence has run with the punches—adapting to damaged vocal cords and even a flooded studio space here in Portland that nearly destroyed an entire record’s-worth of material and gear. If anything, The Helio Sequence gives weight to the notion of ”singing your heart out,” not to mention the Portland weather, which many might find familiar. Whatever the case, The Helio Sequence is an act not to be missed.
Listen to The Helio Sequence’s Negotiations in its entirety:
Click here to view the embedded video.
Godspeed You! Black Emperor at the Roseland Theater: 10pm
Godspeed reprises their Friday night performance again tonight. Check yesterday’s listing for all the deets.
Chromatics and Glass Candy at the Wonder Ballroom: 10:30pm and 12am — Cervante Pope
Some of Portland’s finest retro dancemakers will be taking the Wonder stage tonight. Coming on first will be producer Johnny Jewel’s moody dream group Chromatics, who do a damn fine cover of “Running Up That Hill” by Kate Bush, by the way. Releasing Kill for Love late last year on Jewel’s Italians Do It Better label, and even playing Karl Lagerfeld’s Spring/Summer 2013 show for Chanel, the act fronted by the seductive Ruth Radelet most definitely has some well-styled street cred. To end the night, Johnny Jewel and his original partner in electro-disco crime Ida No, aka Glass Candy, will go on at midnight. Their music essentially makes you feel like you want to be really high and dancing in a really dark room—this is exactly what it’ll be like, only sweatier. If “Candy Castle” or their new track “Warm In The Winter” doesn’t make your toe tap, then you must be dead inside.
Watch Glass Candy’s “Warm In The Winter”:
Click here to view the embedded video.
The Dodos at the Star Theater: 11pm — Ryan Gahris
Meric Long and Logan Kroeber of The Dodos are a breath of fresh air when considering the crowded realm of indie rock. Since the 2008 release and success of Visiter, The Dodos have kept busy on their upward trajectory with the 2009 release of Time To Die and 2011′s No Color, followed by the recent release of their fifth studio album, Carrier. By carefully utilizing tricky song structures to their advantage and capitalizing on prickly riff arrangements, The Dodos continue to diversify their catalog on Carrier—introducing more electric guitar even if just to take things down a notch to focus on pristine clarity before shredding to distorted climaxes. Even so, The Dodos you know shine through on their latest installment with the patented acoustic momentum and tumbling tap-rhythms that first gave weight to the hollow haunt of echoing lines from Visiter’s “Fools” that bellowed: “And our failure to care for it leaves us blind / ’til we’re tired and we’re crazed in the mind.” No worries though, you don’t need sight to hear the crisp sound waves blasting and bouncing from the penetrating performance The Dodos are sure to bring to the Star Theater—but it would probably be a good idea to catch a ride there.
Listen to The Dodos’ “Confidence”:
Portland Picks: 1939 Ensemble’s bombastic beats and vibraphones open the night at the Aladdin for The Helio Sequence as Onuinu brings a different kind of electronica/hip-hop beat to the Doug Fir while Radiation City’s electronic-tinged jazzy bossa nova closes out the night. Eugene’s doom metal masters Yob headline the White Owl while The Thermals do the same, in support of their sixth studio album—Desperate Ground—at Mississippi. Then there’s gay metal from Gaytheist, wilin’ hip-hop with The Chicharones, subdued folk from Horse Feathers, and Nathan Detroit and Maxx Bass spinning Booty Bassment records till the wee hours at Holocene.
A few notables from up north also take the stage: Both hailing from Seattle, the endearing The Head and The Heart perform on the big stage at Pioneer in advance of their sophomore release, Let’s Be Still, as Odesza hits Branx with some sunny, dreamy instrumentals that’ll make bodies move.
Sunday, September 8th
Big Gigantic at the Crystal Ballroom: 10pm — Ryan Gahris
The final day of MFNW is going down and out with a blast of floor-shaking good times. Although, it’s likely you’ll spend most of your time hovering above the floor to the Boulder, Colorado, livetronica instrumentalists Big Gigantic. With Domonic Lalli on saxophone adding jazz jam-offs to DJ samples while Jeremy Salken on drums makes the case for the best of what hip-hop beats and instrumental improvisation has to offer—chances are you’re going to be dazzled and drained when all is said and done, in the best kind of way. With dynamic light shows and a reputation for high-energy performances, Big Gigantic is sure to give your idea of how to spend a Sunday a run for its money. And with the 2012 release of Nocturnal, Big Gigantic that takes note of the footwork from dubstep influences and compresses it into a combination of sounds fitting for the Oxford Dictionary’s definition of ecstasy. Just remember to stay hydrated.
Watch Big Gigantic’s “Beginning Of The End”:
Click here to view the embedded video.
Portland Picks: Well, considering only five acts take the stage today, unfortunately, none of them are from P-Town. Instead, we look to the north for some soulful inspiration from Seattle’s Pickwick and their neighbors, rockers The Moondoggies, both opening for the much-adored Neko Case.
Follow OMN all week long on Twitter @oregonmusicnews for updates live from the fest.
The post OMN’s Guide to MFNW 2013 appeared first on Oregon Music News.