Like Sarah McLachlan before you, you are building a mystery...

it was a noise show... you guys wouldn't have liked it anyway.

A noise show? Gosh, that sounds awful loud. Good thing we missed it.

its funny that the mercury is so out of touch with the underground portland scene that the description of the house wouldn't be a dead giveaway. we've been having shows there for over a year. and not just noise shows either...

Hey Ex-Roommate + Former Freelancer-
It turns out that one of our music writers was actually at the show, but whatever, if you want to paint us as being out of touch with the "underground portland scene," then we are. I'm not going to argue about it.

ezra

yes. "EX"-freelancer is a good title indeed. and of course, you can't argue about it because you would be wrong and who wants to be wrong?!

The timing of this show couldn't have been any better given the recent press noise has been given in your paper. I can understand your interest in pursuing coverage of genres of music that the majority of your readership are interested in, but I believe that support of the underground music scene in The Mercury is pretty pathetic. Is it wrong to hope for more from the local alternative weekly? I don't think so. This community obviously gets along fine without you, but as the music editor, don't you think this is an issue that should be seriously considered instead of stubbornly stood against? I mean, Thurston Moore has a better understanding of what's going on in the local underground scene than you guys do.

I didn't know Thurston Moore was underground...

Everyone wants to be "underground" until they realize no one pays attention to them.

oh, and by the way, do you really want us writing about house shows and having half the town show up to piss in the bushes and steal stuff from yr. house?

she didn't say Thurston was underground. she said that he knows more about Portland's underground scene than the Mercury does.

In your further attempts to be defensive, or maybe just due to lack of reading comprehension, you've completely missed my point. Not surprised.

Andrew.. we definitely do not want you writing about any of our shows. But that has more to do with the fact that you don't seem to know what you are talking about over us wanting to keep secrets.

James/Keira
A few things.

When you mention "local underground scene" I assume you are referring to a small segment of said scene, correct? In the past few weeks we have run articles about local independent artists that run the gamut from country (Shelly Short) to Christian Rap (Braille). If these artists are too mainstream for your tastes, than that is fine. I assume we all have different concepts to what the phrase "underground" refers to.

Since I think you are referring to whole noise thing, let me address that: In the past this paper has been incredibly generous in its coverage to the local noise scene. In fact, I doubt there was a weekly paper anywhere that could have matched our devotion to said scene. But while we did that, we ignored other genres of music. This went on for years on end. We didn't write about a single electronic/techno show, our hiphop (both local and national) coverage was pathetic, I could go on and on...

I'm trying to establish a balance. Is there anyway we can please everyone every week with what acts we cover? Oh, God no. But, I've always been open to suggestions.

My email address is ezra@portlandmercury.com and feel free to contact me anytime about this paper's (musical) coverage. If you have specific suggestions for what we should cover any given week, or think we aren't doing a good job with a certain style of music, let me know. I'm open to whatever you have to say.

Thanks for devoting so much time to reading and posting here, I appreciate it.
ezra

If the Mercury wrote about the underground noise scene every week, then it wouldn't be underground any more, and then all the kids would be all, "Fuck, man, noise was cool until it sold out and went mainstream," and then they'd have to find some other genre to like that nobody cares about, and then they'd be all, "The Mercury is so out of touch for not covering my bike gang's acappella death metal band," and then etc.

Oh, Kids I love you!

i like how these kids think you are so pathetic, but manage to read the merc blog,,,hmmmmm

i like how these kids think you are so pathetic, but manage to read the merc blog,,,hmmmmm

...not to change topic on this riveting and productive discussion, but anyone know what (obviously uncool) band actually played at Slabtown last night?

Frank Black was test-driving a new band he's forming with Janet Weiss and Britt Daniel, and they KILLED it!

...odd that Carrie Brownstein didn't bring that up last night while she and Issac Brock were jamming in my basement

telling the readers of your shitty mag about this show was just plain rude. tell me about your private house parties so I can invite a bunch of lame hipsters. THANKS FOR ALL THE FREE CONVERSE THIRSTIN'.

yr welkum. r u gonna wear those? regardless of who did and didnt make the "scene" at the house gig i had ablast - little claw ruled, tenses ruled , bike killers ruled , nick ruled - everybody there totally in sweet vibe... i'd move here n a second

o wait I need to learn to read, this came out the next day- still, I could totally spot the journalist scum in the 10 TIMES FIRE CODE OK crowd ;)

yrs
-flatfoot