Friday night’s episode was different than any we’ve done before, but we felt like it was the best possible way to get you in touch with what John Nastos and Clay Giberson are doing with the Duo Chronicles. Check out the episode and then go to the Duo Chronicles site to see what the guys have been up to in the last several months.

SLL Episode 147: Afterhours with the Duo Chronicles

Want to see more with John and Clay? Check out the their first appearance on Strange Love Live from February of this year.

SLL Episode 83: Afterhours Jazz with John Nastos

Or watch the episode.

***

This Friday night we’ll be joined by Brian M. Westbrook. It’s been a few months since he’s joined us on the show and he’ll be back in fine form with some gadgets you may want to take a peek at for the holidays. Join us live Friday night at 10 pm.

Related Posts

• March 1, 2009 -- SLL: A Night With John Nastos (1)
• October 27, 2009 -- Splendor on a Gloomy Monday (2)
• July 1, 2009 -- The South Park Blocks (1)
• May 29, 2009 -- Leftbank Project unveiling (2)
• May 11, 2009 -- SLL: 100 Episodes, Vidoop & No Kind Of Rider (0)

Portland is such a beautiful city during the sunny summer months, but the transition into the darkness of winter is not a pretty one. My Monday morning Twitter stream was full of tweets about heavy rains and self-diagnosis of various diseases. It was as if I could actually hear bottles of Zoloft being opened all over the city. And then I saw this tweet from @PinkMartiniNews:

“First ten people to tweet us win a pair of tickets each to tonight’s Pink Martini CD Release show at the Crystal Ballroom!”

OMG! I hit reply, tweeted “Hello”, the clouds parted, and the next thing you know I had two tickets waiting for me at the Crystal Ballroom box office.

But I said to myself, “Self, you kind of blew it last week when you acknowledged your parents 47th wedding anniversary with just a congratulatory tweet – no card or gift. No one loves Pink Martini more than Dad does. You could totally redeem yourself by giving the tickets to them.” And so I did, but I also purchased a ticket for myself because, well – it’s the Pink Martini CD Release show and I didn’t want to be left out.

I’m kind of new to the Pink Martini fan club. I had never actually seen them live until I saw Oregon! Oregon! (or Shut It, Margie Boule! – as I like to call it) at the State Fair two months ago. It’s hard to say how good Oregon! Oregon! actually was because a certain cast member’s voice was nothing short of an auditory assault. The Pink Martini portion of the show, however, was so divine that your ears were completely willing to forgive you for what you had just put them through.

I’d also never been to the Crystal Ballroom before. My parents and I arrived early enough to snag the bench closest to the stage, thus avoiding most of the personal space violations that come with general admission. For example, one lady had the balls to ask my 70 year old mother to move so that she could sit on the bench instead. Keep it classy, Portland. Or, more accurately, keep it disgruntled.

In contrast, 12,000 brightly colored helium balloons decorated the ballroom ceiling, somewhat reminiscent of the Chihuly installation at the Bellagio in Las Vegas. Long sparkly ribbons dangled from each balloon, filling the ballroom with twinkles as the lights went down and the stage lights went up. Everyone was given a flower. Seriously. It may sound a little Pollyanna-ish – but if you want to cheer up a rain soaked Portlander – give them a colorful balloon and flower.

Pink Martini took the stage to the cheers of an enthusiastic but somewhat subdued crowd. The band played as China Forbes’ voice melted over us like drops of sunlight. Thomas Lauderdale punctuated the set list with his playful explanations between each number. Couples canoodled. Single ladies swayed. Those who could really dance, did. Everyone else seemed to be nodding their heads in agreement with each beat. The evening ended with the show-stopping Brazil, much to my Dad’s delight. (The man has a home-made CD with 18 versions of the song.)

Following the show, the entire ensemble signed autographs and posed for photos. Class acts, all the way.

It’s kind of a bold move to release an album titled Splendor in the Grass on a textbook Portland rainy day. Frolic in the grass today and you’ll find yourself soaking wet and covered in a mixture of leaves, bugs and mud. It’s hard to turn that experience it to a romantic lounge number. Actually, Pink Martini could make it work. But while Pink Martini is based in Portland, it is not of Portland. The liner notes of their latest album read like a travel guide and the list of collaborators would make Joseph McCarthy spin in his grave. I suspect this is a large part of their appeal.

Pink Martini takes you away from where you are to a much much better place.

Personally, I’m not ready for winter this year at all. I can’t believe I’m putting myself through it again. But, like a good native Oregonian, I know it is my duty to suck it up and endure. But this year I’ll be cueing the Pink Martini, my new secret weapon against the color grey.

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• April 7, 2009 -- Four Portland Kid Bands Hold Benefit Concert (0)
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• February 4, 2010 -- Winter Olympics in the NW (3)

On sunny days, I spend a lot of my lunch hours out in the South Park Blocks. The South Park Blocks will always be special to me because of the years I spent at PNCA, which at the time was housed within the walls of the Portland Art Museum. Those tree-lined blocks hold a lot of memories of a time when my life was dedicated solely to the purpose of drawing and painting. My life is a little different now.

Yesterday was one of those perfect Portland summer days, not a cloud in the sky and in the upper 70s. I headed out into the South Park Blocks for my afternoon ritual of park bench sitting and daydreaming, a ritual that is shared by quite a cross-section of the local population. Grey-hairs, street kids, office workers, tourists, homeless, and students on summer break – the sun brings them out in droves. But yesterday? Our daydreams had musical accompaniment.

I’ve seen this guy and his xylophone before, but unfortunately I’ve been too rushed to really stop and take more than a brief listen. How sad is that, really? That I didn’t have time to appreciate an impromptu musical performance staged in the very park that I used to sketch in? And I have no memory of what was so important at the time that it kept me from enjoying the moment. My former self would have stopped.

But yesterday I had my entire lunch break ahead of me, no rushes or worries. I took my spot on a nearby bench and fully indulged all of my senses. Xylophone music is so soothing and hypnotic and there is this certain way that music sounds when heard through sunlight. I watched as others stopped and listened for a while. I watched those tall trees sway as the breeze moved through them. I studied the kaleidoscope of patterns created by the shadows and sunbeams. I felt a moment of pure joy in a day mostly filled with office tasks.

There has been a lot of worrisome cyber-ink lately dedicated to the survival of the arts in Portland, especially over on the Portland Arts Watch blog. Economic times are tough and artists are hardly immune from the impact. Some would argue that in hard financial times, art is expendable. I both agree and disagree with that sentiment.

But I also know a secret. As tough as the economic times are, artists are tougher. Making art is, in many ways, taking nothing and turning it into something. All you really need to create a masterpiece is a pencil and some paper. Did you know that Toulouse Lautrec made hundreds of paintings on cardboard? He was hardly deterred by not having the money for finely stretched canvases and his cardboard paintings now hang in the world’s finest museums. Those artists who are driven to express themselves will always find a way to do it. Like the guy and his xylophone.

This notion was reinforced again for me today when I saw this simple child’s drawing sketched into the bricks in front of the Portland Art Museum.

It’s actually kind of a brilliant idea. If you want to get your work noticed but don’t have a significant portfolio – make some drawings on the sidewalk just outside of the city’s largest visual arts institution. Fantastic! I only wish I had thought of it first.

Artists are highly adaptable and can turn almost any environment into their canvass or stage. Chalk + sidewalk = art gallery. Park + xylophone = concert hall. The equation can be really that simple. The arts in Portland will survive. Our job is to take the time to notice and appreciate the art around us, and ideally open our wallets when we can.

I only had a dollar on me to throw into xylophone guy’s hat, but I can give him a little free publicity here to make up for it. I Googled him. Turns out, his name is Michael Charles Smith and what I’ve been calling a xylophone is actually a marimba. Check him out.

Related Posts

• November 16, 2009 -- SLL: Duo Chronicles (0)
• October 27, 2009 -- Splendor on a Gloomy Monday (2)
• October 5, 2009 -- SLL: Art Night with Mark Colman (0)
• May 11, 2009 -- SLL: 100 Episodes, Vidoop & No Kind Of Rider (0)
• May 6, 2009 -- Bob Log III and Willem Maker @ Doug Fir (2)

Boy did we ever have a full slate Friday night. For our Tech Edition we were joined by Troy Harlan and Sam Alexander from Vidoop. Then we quickly moved into Afterhours where we were joined by No Kind Of Rider. Having a whole band in the studio meant all kinds of shuffling of guests, but we managed to hear from Jeremy, Joe, Wes, Jon and Sam, listen to some great tunes, celebrate our 100th episode and eat a delicious celebratory cake from Julie & Troy. It was a good night full of fun, I hope you enjoy it too!

On to technical matters. If DrNormal ever posted to the blog that he had me set up for him he’d tell you all sorts of behind the scene technical tidbits and goodies. But he doesn’t. This week there’s something he really wants you to know before you listen to the audio podcasts and since I’m a saint I agreed to take a few moments and tell you that starting this week the audio episodes will be released at a higher quality. That means the files are twice the size they used to be, but he swears that it’s worth it because the sound quality is at least twice as good.

Now on with the shows:

SLL Episode 100: Troy Harlan & Sam Alexander from Vidoop

Watch the Tech Edition

SLL Episode 101: Afterhours with No Kind Of Rider

Watch Afterhours

Want more No Kind Of Rider? They have an album almost ready to goand they’ll be playing this Thursday night at the Red Room on 82nd. You can check their Myspace page for more upcoming shows.

***

Join us next Friday May 15th to talk to Dana Plautz the woman behind Mrs. P.com, a storybook entertainment site that encourages literacy in a really fun way. Then in afterhours we’ll be back to our everyday shenanigans with a little help from our friends.

****

Are you attending WebVision 09? If you are stop by and see us. We’ll be there broadcasting live Thursday & Friday. A portion of our day will be set aside to talk to attendees and find out why they’re attending, we’d love to hear from you.

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• May 6, 2009 -- Bob Log III and Willem Maker @ Doug Fir (2)
• March 1, 2009 -- SLL: A Night With John Nastos (1)
• December 8, 2009 -- SLL: Get Your Geek on With Foodgeeks (0)
• November 23, 2009 -- SLL: Back with Brian Westbrook (0)
• November 16, 2009 -- SLL: Duo Chronicles (0)

Bob Log III
Originally uploaded by dieselboi

I love the Doug Fir. When it first opened, I was floored by the design and how they created a log cabin inside an old 50’s/60’s style hotel. Also, they were part of the rejuvenation of that stretch of Burnside, an area in much need of revitalization a few years ago. And then I discovered the music venue.

The Doug Fir hosted Bob Log III with Willem Maker and Pure Country Gold opening. I’m a regular subscriber to the weekly Loglove newsletter, so scored a pair of free tickets to tonight’s show. Wizardboots and I had a grand old time.

Pure Country Gold is a local Portland band that isn’t country. I thought their music was bluesy, yet rocky. A single guitarist (and singer) and a vibrant drum. Enjoyable fast paced music.

Willem Maker, kind of surprised the crowd when he started. Honestly, I thought they were still setting up for the band when he sat down and started into a song with his acoustic guitar and deep raspy voice. True southern style. After his first song, he introduced himself, stating he was from Alabama – a long way from home. His set was amazing. He played the blues with some songs having folk influence. His voice was deep and raspy at times, reminding me of Tom Waits. I couldn’t get enough of his music. I have fallen in love with the blues.  It was a time when I wished he was in my living room and we were sitting around with beers and guitars.

Bob Log III is the third iteration of Bob Log, a venerable musician known by many for his unique stage presence and music. Bob Log strolled out on stage to the sound of blues guitar in a nice black suit and a gold helmet. Yep, a gold helmet with sun visor equipped with the handset of a vintage AT&T telephone. The handset acted as his mic. He wore that helmet the entire show. After a rip roaring bluesy, guitar rich first song, he engaged the crowd while tearing off his suit to reveal a gold jumpsuit. Wow! A helmet and a gold jumpsuit. I had no idea what we were in for. Bob Log’s set was mostly rockin’ blues tunes. Some were melodic, some fast. The crowd was really into him, unlike most Portland concert crowd, even moshing at times to some of the faster songs. Bob Log is a performer beyond the music. He engaged the crowd with humor and antics, even having band meetings with his favorite band member – Heineken. The peak of the show consisted of two women getting on stage with the one man band and sitting on his knees while he ripped through yet another great song. Needless to say, this was pretty risque for everyone. I think I even knew one of the women, but I’ll never tell.

The entire show was awesome and I want to thank the Doug Fir booking bunker for bringing these bands to town. I had never heard any of the bands before tonight and ended up purchasing a vinyl edition of Willem Maker’s latest full length album. If you get a chance, hit up a show at the Doug Fir.

Related Posts

• May 11, 2009 -- SLL: 100 Episodes, Vidoop & No Kind Of Rider (0)
• June 29, 2008 -- Wizardboots’ Portland debut (3)
• November 16, 2009 -- SLL: Duo Chronicles (0)
• October 27, 2009 -- Splendor on a Gloomy Monday (2)
• July 1, 2009 -- The South Park Blocks (1)

Mark your calendars for April 10th at the Crystal Ballroom. Four Portland kid bands (10-17 years old) will rock out to raise money for charity. The kids were inspired to put together a benefit show after they saw the movie Slumdog Millionaire.

They are great musicians, and it’s refreshing to see the next generation take up a social cause and to be optimistic about using music to promote positive change in the world. More information, sound clips, interviews, etc. may be found at kidsrock4kids.org.

Proceeds will benefit Mercy Corps for disaster relief and development around the world.

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• November 19, 2009 -- OurPDX shared links for November 19th (1)
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• November 5, 2009 -- OurPDX shared links for November 5th (0)
• October 16, 2009 -- More Holy Than Righteous (2)

Greg's last-ever photo from his iPhone.

Shortly after moving to Portland, I discovered a radio show on 94.7 FM called “The Bottom Forty,” hosted by Greg Glover, who is also host of the station’s “Alternative Morning” show. I became an instant fan of “The Bottom Forty” because I got to hear music by bands not usually heard on the radio.

I recently reached out to Greg to ask him about running a record label in 2009, the local music scene, what music is catching his ear these days, and his favorite Afghan Whigs album. (It’s Gentlemen.) Due to his crazy schedule, the interview was conducted via e-mail. He supplied me with a photo taken with his iPhone, which he noted was “the last I’ll take with it as I’m getting rid of the damn thing” after two years. He’s not a fan of the keyboard.

Originally from Alabama, Greg, who relocated to Portland five years ago, is the sole owner of the Arena Rock Recording Company label. The label came into existence nearly 15 years ago with co-founder Dan Ralph while Greg was living in NYC. Over the years, the label has released albums by Superdrag, The Sheila Divine, Talkdemonic, and many more.

Given the huge shifts in the state of the music industry over the past several years, I was interested in learning about how those shifts have affected Arena Rock. “The fact that records aren’t selling like they were when we started in 1995 or even 2005. I used to dream of doing the label as a living back then but I’ve given up on that idea, which is probably the wisest move,” Greg said.

Fortunately, he hasn’t given up on running a label entirely. Instead, he works as a DJ, even if it does involve waking up at 4AM, and uses the money made to support the label. “It works out pretty good–this indie-rock Robin Hood scenario. I make money working a corporate job then give back to the struggling indie musician by putting out a record from time to time!”

Some of those records being put out include a number of Portland-area bands. He recently signed Saudade, which he feels will complement local act, Wroom, which is also on the label. Arena Rock will also release Richmond Fontaine’s new album in September. Of the band, Greg said, “I’ve respected that band as well as Willy Vlautin as an author for a long time, so it’s a true honor to be able to work with them.” Additionally, new music from Kelly Blair Bauman, which Greg describes as his favorite Americana album since Ryan Adams’ Heartbreaker, as well as an album from Sabertooth will be released on the label in the coming months.

So, I wondered, how does he find bands these days? Greg doesn’t get out to many shows due to his schedule, but said he’s usually tipped off on bands via friends. While he does still receive demos and messages from bands via MySpace, it’s very rare for him to sign someone in that manner.

As the role of the record label continues to change, I asked Greg for his thoughts on the continued trend of bands foregoing the label process altogether and opting to self-release their albums. “I think it’s great that bands can be heard and keep it DIY,” he said. “Clap Your Hands Say Yeah! were a phenomenon a couple years ago. The blogs started writing about them and all-of-a-sudden they were selling thousands of records out of their apartment in Brooklyn. It’s fascinating.”

His advice to bands as they decide whether to seek out a label or self-release is pretty straightforward. “I’d tell any artist to do it on their own if they can find distribution and deal with the day-to-day operations. If not, then find a label that you trust and loves what you do and let them help deal with the stuff you don’t want to deal with such as publicity, marketing etc.”

In addition to the local music acts signed to Arena Rock, Greg is also committed to supporting Music Millennium. “I don’t think I’ve met a nicer person here than its owner, Terry Currier. The guy KNOWS music like nobody I’ve ever met. He’s a real-deal music lover and everyone else pales in comparison. They’ve been here 40 years at this point and are truly a dying breed,” he said. Indeed they are. Greg expressed his disdain for artists such as Prince, Bob Dylan and AC/DC who are giving chain stores exclusivity to their new releases. “Who the fuck do you think helped support those artists’ careers early-on? It sure as hell wasn’t Best Buy or Wal-Mart, etc.” Here, here!

“The Bottom Forty” airs Sunday nights on 94.7FM from 8-10PM, or you can hear Greg weekday mornings from 5-9AM.

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• November 16, 2009 -- SLL: Duo Chronicles (0)
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• May 11, 2009 -- SLL: 100 Episodes, Vidoop & No Kind Of Rider (0)

The interwebs are abuzz about a possible reunion of Sleater-Kinney tonight as part of the Reading Frenzy benefit. The benefit will feature 5 bands, 2 authors and a screening. Heck, even if Sleater-Kinney weren’t there, it is for a good cause and the cost is sliding scale.

Reading Frenzy Benefit
Holocene
1001 SE Morrison; 8:30pm

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• October 27, 2009 -- Splendor on a Gloomy Monday (2)
• July 1, 2009 -- The South Park Blocks (1)
• May 11, 2009 -- SLL: 100 Episodes, Vidoop & No Kind Of Rider (0)
• May 6, 2009 -- Bob Log III and Willem Maker @ Doug Fir (2)

thanks to verso for taking this pic

Friday night saw another big first in the history of SLL. During Afterhours we had a live musical performance right there in our little studio, but before that happened we had a very informative Tech Edition. Usually I like one episode from the night better than the other and it’s usually pretty clear cut for me which it was, but if you ask me to pick a favorite this week I’m likely to stare blankly at you for a while before asking if you listened to them both.

I mean come on… it was a whole tech edition around applications built for twitter. Then it was an episode about music that started out with the awesome new version of the Strange Love Live theme song. During the Tech edition we talked with John Nastos about Tagalus and Combotweet. Then in Afterhours John pulled out his sax and we were joined by Clay Giberson on keyboard.

I can’t choose, and you don’t have to either. Give both episodes a listen and then if you’re so inclined, let us know what you think.

SLL Episode 82: Tech Edition with Tagalus & ComboTweet

SLL Episode 83: Afterhours Jazz with John Nastos

Other links from this episode

John on twitter
Clay on twitter
Tagalus blog
ComboTweet blog
JazzPDX

***

Next Friday night is the coming together of 3 Portland projects: Shizzow, Beer & Blog and Strange Love Live. How can that be? Surely there isn’t enough room in our little studio for the whole Beer & Blog crew and everyone who’s ever shouted out their location! No, there isn’t. But Shizzow will be at Beer & Blog at the Green Dragon from 4-7 telling Portlanders a few secrets of communication at SXSW and then they’ll join us in the studio!

Join us live Friday March 6th at 10 pm to find out what secrets the Shizzow team have been keeping from us.

**

Many thanks to Christine Kistner who put in a bunch of time editing video this week… and to Justin who didn’t kill us for taking away his entire Sunday.

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• December 8, 2009 -- SLL: Get Your Geek on With Foodgeeks (0)
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It may be a cliché, but 2008 was a really good year for music, especially music coming out of Portland. Or, maybe I just listened to a lot more music than usual last year.

Local magazine Music Spectator is recognizing Portland acts and venues and wants the public’s help. Voting for the 2009 Portland Music Awards is now open and you can vote up to five times per IP address!

Although I could, I won’t try to sway your vote any particular way.

*cough* vote for the Dimes! *cough*

*cough* vote for the Thermals! *cough*

Ahem, excuse me. My laptop took over for a second. Anyway, you have until January 20 to vote for your local favorites. Winners will be announced on January 29 at an awards ceremony to be held at the Crystal Ballroom.

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• July 26, 2008 -- PDX Pop Now…happening right now (0)
• February 21, 2010 -- 30 Years of Loving Portland (3)
• February 4, 2010 -- Winter Olympics in the NW (3)
• January 13, 2010 -- The Writing Was on the Wall (2)