This Week in the Mercury
Photography
Thursday, May 23, 2013
Live Review / Photography Fabolous and Pusha T at Roseland, Monday May 20
Posted by Minh Tran on Thu, May 23, 2013 at 12:14 PM
This is a tale of two rappers, one clever and suave, the other punishing and incendiary, sharing the stage at the Roseland for the Portland stop of their "Life Is So Exciting" tour. As an aging hiphop fan attending an all-ages show featuring two aging rappers, I struggle to muster much of my own excitement as Pusha T's DJ begins warming up the crowd with time-proven exclamatory verbalizations accompanied by an array of bomb and siren sounds.
I find myself wondering where either Pusha T or Fabolous will be in 10 years—the popular transition from rapping into acting represents a foreboding challenge for both: Despite his tremendous charisma within the confines of 16 bars, Fabolous is surprisingly shy and awkward in music videos and skits. And Pusha T is far too menacing a persona to get cast for anything but long-departed gritty prison dramas such as Oz and The Wire.
Wednesday, May 15, 2013
Live Review / Photography Magic Mouth at Langano Lounge, Fri May 10
Posted by Nilina Mason-Campbell on Wed, May 15, 2013 at 9:14 AM
Not every band can turn a concert into an impromptu underwear party, but Magic Mouth did just that as headliners of last Friday night's Langano Bash 2013. After performances from Smoke Rings, Tiny Knives, and Havania Whaal, the gritty and danceable four-piece took to the floor-level stage for a sweaty, kinetic performance that quickly led to the disrobing of audience and band members alike. After a full set full of throbbing baselines and crowd-surfing to boot, Magic Mouth closed out their midnight set with their soulful and smoky take on Pet Shop Boys' "West End Girls," allowing everyone to catch their breath in the very humid air.
Lots more skin—I mean photos—after the jump!
Tuesday, May 14, 2013
Live Review / Photography Sun Angle Album Release with Nice Nice and Like A Villain - Friday May 10 at Mississippi Studios
Posted by Katie Summer on Tue, May 14, 2013 at 6:58 PM
- Katie Summer
- Sun Angle at Mississippi Studios
Sun Angle held their debut album release party at Mississippi Studios last Friday. With Like a Villain and Nice Nice on the bill, there was plenty of celebration. I feel extremely lucky every time I get to see Holland Andrews play: her amazing solo project Like a Villain is a thing of power and beauty. Using a clarinet, glockenspiel, loop pedals, and her flawless voice, Andrews seems like a celestial being full of raw emotion one minute, and your most intimate friend the next. It's really quite magical. Nice Nice brought the dancing and carried the show into the much anticipated main event!
The men of Sun Angle are all extremely talented musicians with very broad musical tastes and influences. Mark Lore detailed the creation of their album Diamond Junk last week, and it's no secret how busy these guys are. I admit that Sun Angle is by far my favorite of Papi Fimbres projects—the energy that he brings to all his bands is mirrored in singer Charlie Salas Humara, and together they are electric. Marius Libman on bass is definitely the glue of the Sun Angle chaos, cutting through the frantic guitar and drums to keep everything grounded; grounded, but dancing. His bass lines have always reminded me of Mike Watt. I imagine that if the Minutemen had escaped tragedy, dropped some acid, and time traveled to 2013 they would sound like this album. Crazy good tunes from crazy good dudes, congrats!
Can't wait for the next show, and check out the new album! Lots more photos after the jump!
Photography Make It Pop! The Cleaners at the Ace Hotel, Thurs May 9
Posted by Nilina Mason-Campbell on Tue, May 14, 2013 at 12:08 PM
All photos by Nilina Mason-Campbell.
On Thursday night, the Ace Hotel welcomed back PDX Pop Now! for the festival's annual Make It Pop! fundraiser at the hotel's corner spot the Cleaners. Boasting a sold-out attendance, the evening featured performances from Monarques, Grandparents, Kelli Schaefer, Ezza Rose, and OPB's Jeremy Petersen handling DJ duties. Also on hand? Delicious homemade ice cream from local brand 50 Licks; over the course of the night their unusual flavors developed a own fanbase equal to that of the bands. In between performances, board members made the special announcement that this year's festival will be entirely outdoors and will feature both a vendor market and the launch of this year's Rigsketball tournament.
Lots more photos after the jump!
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Monday, May 13, 2013
Live Review / Photography KPSU Kruise with Onuinu and Grandparents, Fri May 10
Posted by Rachel Milbauer on Mon, May 13, 2013 at 2:33 PM
All photos by Rachel Milbauer.
The KPSU Kruise took off around midnight on Friday to a series of cheers and whoops. It's safe to say that everyone had been imbibing for a few hours, enjoying the unseasonably warm evening breeze off the Willamette. The crowd was certainly celebratory, buying raffle tickets, drinking champagne, and hanging out on all decks of the boat.
Grandparents played to a packed room as the Portland Spirit lazily floated from St. Johns to Sellwood, under the bridges of Portland. Onuinu started close to 1 am, serenading his audience with his electronic disco-groove beats. Almost as soon as everyone found their sea legs, the boat docked, and the sailors left one buoyant party to find another.
More pics after the jump!
Monday, May 6, 2013
Live Review / Photography Brainstorm and Social Studies at PALS Clubhouse, Fri May 3
Posted by Nilina Mason-Campbell on Mon, May 6, 2013 at 3:25 PM
- Nilina Mason-Campbell
- Brainstorm
- Nilina Mason-Campbell
- Brainstorm
Hit the jump for more!
Wednesday, May 1, 2013
Live Review / Photography Crystal Castles at Roseland, Mon April 29
Posted by Minh Tran on Wed, May 1, 2013 at 5:37 PM
Photographer Minh Tran took in the Crystal Castles show at the Roseland on Monday. Here's what he heard and saw.
Sequestered in a minute area stage left, directly facing an array of rapid-fire, high-power stage lights, and allowed only to photograph the first three songs, I mustered what I could. Then I spent the remainder of the show watching the crowd take photos four inches from Alice's face with their HD phones. I imagine this is what the horseshoe maker felt like watching the construction of a freeway.
Much, much more after the jump!
Monday, April 29, 2013
Photography Dr. Dog at the Crystal Ballroom, Sun Apr 28
Posted by Ned Lannamann on Mon, Apr 29, 2013 at 3:42 PM
Last night, Dr. Dog brought their medical degrees and delightfully furry coats to the Crystal Ballroom, co-headlining a show with Dawes. Photographer Rachel Milbauer was there to capture Dr. Dog's set, and she reports: "Dr. Dog rocked (as usual). They played mostly old songs, maybe only four off their new record, closing with an awesome, stripped down version of 'Lonesome.'"
More photos after the jump!
Wednesday, April 10, 2013
Live Review / Photography The Caldonias at Valentine's, Mon April 8
Posted by Nilina Mason-Campbell on Wed, Apr 10, 2013 at 5:35 PM
- Nilina Mason-Campbell
- The Caldonias
More photos after the jump!
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Live Review / Photography Alt-J at the Roseland, Mon April 8
Posted by Nilina Mason-Campbell and Rachel Milbauer on Wed, Apr 10, 2013 at 10:12 AM
As far as I was concerned, British band Alt-J had two strikes against them before performing Monday night at the Roseland—one strike being a particularly flaccid gig that I'd caught in Paris over the summer and the other being a friend's comment that they sounded like Adam Sandler covering Yeasayer, a comparison almost too true it pretty much wrecked the band for me. However, to balance out those two strikes, the songs on their debut album An Awesome Wave could perhaps count as 14 marks in their favor? With a Mercury Music Prize under their belt, a song on the Silver Linings Playbook soundtrack, and a continued string of sold-out shows, I ventured forth to see if their live show could further justify their recorded output.
Tuesday, April 9, 2013
Live Review / Photography Denver at the Landmark Saloon, Sun April 7
Posted by Nilina Mason-Campbell on Tue, Apr 9, 2013 at 11:56 AM
While there was barely room to stand—let alone move—a couple of brave (and possibly tipsy) souls tightroped their way onto the sliver of floor space in front of the band to dance with abandon. That very much captured the vibe of the whiskey-sloshing night; a vibe of anything goes as long as it's merry.
More photos after the jump!
Friday, April 5, 2013
Live Review / Photography Wild Ones at Holocene, Wed April 3
Posted by Nilina Mason-Campbell on Fri, Apr 5, 2013 at 11:44 AM
To watch Wild Ones is to fall in love... and potentially contemplate marriage proposals to the band members as Wednesday night proved. The poppy fivesome took to Holocene's stage to headline a showcase including local talent Stepkid and Oakland trio Ash Reiter. Dressed in American Apparel, Wild Ones frontwoman Danielle Sullivan shared an exciting bit of news with the crowd; they'd just booked their album release show to happen at Mississippi Studios on July 5. That segued into the set's highlight—album track "From Nothing" that sounded just as lush and ambitious as one could hope would come from the camp. Mighty catchy too...
More photos after the jump!
Monday, April 1, 2013
Live Review / Photography Phoenix at the Crystal Ballroom, Sat March 30
Posted by Ned Lannamann on Mon, Apr 1, 2013 at 1:15 PM
All photos by Minh Tran.
French pop kings Phoenix played a sold-out Crystal Ballroom on Saturday night, and judging from these photos, they let their songs do all the work. Despite the lack of flashy visuals, Minh Tran was there to take these photos of the band in action, as they played hits from their immensely popular back catalog and offered ample helpings from their upcoming album, Bankrupt!, which they reportedly played in full. Minh tells us the show was "solid," with vocals that matched those on the album almost without flaw—take that as you may. The new songs had "lots of A-Ha 'Take On Me' full-speed dropping to half-speed drums. Sounded promising, although the show as a whole made it apparent that all of their hits kinda blend together and are largely interchangeable."
Wednesday, March 13, 2013
Live Review / Photography Benoît Pioulard at Holocene, Sun March 10
Posted by Nilina Mason-Campbell on Wed, Mar 13, 2013 at 5:32 PM
Stationed in front of abstract projections and scenes of glittering lights, Benoît Pioulard returned to the stage in his former hometown Sunday night at Holocene. Newly minted as a resident of Seattle, Pioulard (AKA Tom Meluch) played a set heavy on newer tracks off of his week-old album Hymnal. His live style has evolved leaps and bounds since he began playing live with more frequency in 2009. While he's still surrounded by oodles of pedals, he's standing front and center rather than seated on the floor with all his playthings. Also in his arsenal of instruments for the evening was a bow that he used to strum his electric guitar. However, his onstage persona is still quiet and very much a secondary character to his soft, collage-like folk renderings. Mentioning that his grandparents have all passed away over the past year-and-a-half, Meluch performed the last song of his 40-minute set in dedication to them.
More pics after the jump!
Monday, March 4, 2013
Photography Alabama Shakes at the Crystal Ballroom, Sat March 2
Posted by Ned Lannamann on Mon, Mar 4, 2013 at 2:14 PM
Saturday night, Alabama Shakes shook down the Crystal Ballroom, slinging their feel-good, soulful Southern rock to a sold-out Portland crowd. Jason Quigley was there to take these great photos, all of which are well worth putting in front of your eyes. Click the jump for lots more to look at, including shots of opener Michael Kiwanuka.
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