The Doug Fir was packed on Saturday, as three songwriters took the stage, each one backed by incredible bands. Seattle’s Johanna Kunin started the evening with skillful keyboard pop; she played a warm-sounding Wurlitzer piano and was backed by trumpet, vibraphone, and drums. If that sounds weird, well it worked. Kunin’s crystalline voice is reminiscent of Bjork at her least crazed, and her thoughtful songs take a few interesting left turns.

Matt Sheehy was up next and despite the fact he was playing a poly-carbon-fiber guitar (Ovation, yech), he sounded great. He was backed by dynamite drummer Drew Shoals, with Jen Harrison playing French horn on a few tunes. As good as the band was, the highlight of his set was actually a solo number he performed alone. Unfortunately, the audience wasn’t quite as polite as one would have liked. Indeed, the entire night had a schmoozy-industry vibe that one doesn’t typically encounter in Portland.

Loch Lomond closed out with a triumphant set. Songwriter Ritchie Young surrounded himself with seven (or more?) of Portland’s finest musicians. They brought a baroque sensibility to Young’s acoustic songs, with viola and bass clarinet fitting neatly alongside bass, drums, and guitar. I thought the set started out incredibly strong, then lost a little momentum as it progressed, but many of Loch Lomond’s rely on subtlety - and picking up on subtlety late Saturday night (with drink in hand) was never one of my strong suits. Thankfully the crowd was, for the most part, attentive at this point, even singing along to certain lines. When my friend said he hoped they’d play their signature song, I responded, “These all sound like signature songs to me.”