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Portland's Lab Notes

AIR DATE: Wednesday, February 27th 2008
Download the mp3 for this show.
Can you hear the Portland in Portland's music?

Eric Stern, the lead vocalist and accordion player for Portland's Vagabond Opera, puts a scientific spin on Portland's musical ferment. He's a classically trained singer who left Baltimore for Portland a number of years ago. And he told me he likes to think of Portland as a "laboratory of sound," an environment that inspires creativity with distinct and varied results. (Vagabond Opera describes its own results, in case you're keeping score, as "European Cabaret! Vintage Americana! Balkan Belly Dance! Neo-Classical Opera! Old World Yiddish Theater!")

We've been wondering around here about how this jives with a recent article in Slate that argues that while bands such as the Shins, Sleater Kinney, the Decemberists, Spoon, Death Cab for Cutie, Stephen Malkmus and others have put Portland on the map as an "Indie Rock Mecca," "Portland has neither a distinctive 'sound' nor a 'scene' to speak of."

Can you meld genres without generating a new "sound"? Can you be a "laboratory of sound" without creating a scene? How does the local landscape -- the challenges and opportunities, connections and collaborations -- find its way into the music? In other words: can you hear the Portland in Portland music?

We'll be joined by Courtney Von Drehle of 3 Leg Torso and Ron Blessinger of the Third Angle New Music Ensemble, along with Terry Currier of Music Millennium (and the Portland Music Hall of Fame), to start tackling these questions. But this is a laboratory, after all, so we're eager to hear about your own experimentations.

Photo credit: Amanda Gillispie / Flickr / Creative Commons. (This was taken in Austin, TX, by the way, but we couldn't resist. It might have been taken in PDX, right?)

Tagged as: music · rock

Let's be frank, Portland does not have a distinct sound. I moved here myself from Florida where nearly all venues play Lynard Skynard style rock. However, I draw comparisons to New York City's Broadway scene in that the indie rock scene in Portland is a place where you can and will be noticed. Just like potential Broadway stars moving to New York City, would-be indie rock stars move to Portland because of its plethora of music venues friendly to indie music.

-Jonathan in Beaverton
usfjonathan —
In response to Slate's article, I believe that the fact that Portland has no distinct sound will prove that Portland will have staying power as a musical mecca. Other past "scenes" have withered when audiences grew tired of their "sound", recall Seattle, Athens, GA, and Manchester, Britain. The fact that we can have a various vibrant jazz and alternative rock festivals speaks to the longevity of this city's music scene. It speaks to the ecletic ears of the Portland music lovers.
-Caroline Rouwalk in Pdx
caribou —
I agree - Portland is not a one-trick pony - there's a lot going on here, a lot of experimentation and cross-pollination, even amongst the largest arts organizations in the region, such as the Oregon Symphony, Chamber Music Northwest, FearNoMusic, Portland Opera, Oregon Ballet Theater, WhiteBird Dance, and others.
nobleviola —
Having spent an entire year going out to music everyday with 95%+ in Portland I think I have a rather unique perspective on the music scene in Portland.

I find constantly the "hip talk" is always about popular culture and yet fails to mention the music that is coming from Portland. Everyone wants to talk about this famous band or that famous musician live in Portland. The comments by Slate are fairly accurate but only in respect to the "Indie" aka Pop music scene. The media seems to only ever talks about signed artist who are on tour or are already famous. I understand this need as it is the same problem many radio stations, music shows, and publications fall victim too.

They have to sell product. Be that a magazine or tickets to a show.

In doing so they constantly over look some of the best places this town offers and what I think is a better representative of the sound of Portland outside and beyond the Indie scene.

There are many small venues in town that do music 7 days a week. Happy hour times where you will see some amazing artist perform. These artist go beyond Indie and into some of the best guitar, violin, bass, and drum playing that you may ever see. Not to mention banjo, mandolin, and cello.

One thing I have also discovered that has happened to Portland is the Quarterfication. Yes, that is not a word but more of a definition. It is becoming more and more common for folks not to leave their quarter of the city. To stick to the SE, NW, SW, NE, and now North parts of the city (yes that's five areas). To venture across the river or across Burnside seem more and more a challenge for many folks these days. I think this is a sign of a growing city. It is interesting how a small city for all its charm grows into a large city then is again sectioned up into small charming areas. I'd suggest that folks venture out of their quarter of the city and go see what other areas of the town offer. Take a leap of faith out of your musical genre and get inspired by another. This towns music scene like the town is made up of many different people with different styles. Something I love and have watched evolve over the years. Go see some blues, jazz, country, folk, rock, punk, roots rock, drunken bluegrass, and of course Indie. It is this cross culture awareness that will eventually help define what is the "Music Scene" in Portland.

Thanks,

Josh
MediaCampus —
Portland's music scene is a varied hodge podge of many scenes. It doesn't have to be Portland's sound, good music is good music in any genre. I am in a band...Former Form (thanks for the plug). We play rock, with a country/punk twist. I think there's a great platform for bands here vs other markets (NYC or SF). Here you don't have to be a signed band or have a huge budget or following to play clubs. I am not talking about making a living right off the bat, but just like Zach's Shack or Whole Bowl...where there's very little separating a downtown lunch cart from a real restaurant - bands in Portland have opportunities, and that's all that matters. Former Form is playing the Tonic Lounge this Sunday night!!! myspace.com/formerformmusic!!!!!
andrewkalt —
Why do you CARE what Slate thinks? Go listen, play, dance!
nilram —
Portland isn't Motown, this is 2008. A distinctive sound from a single place is a thing of the past. This is a global world. The reason there is so much music in Portland, is because it is an intelligent city. Not necessarily a book smart intelligence, but a modern philosophical intelligence. Artists are drawn to this type of collective intelligence. Portland's creative free thinkers don't want to fit into some box, hence no collective sound. Which in my opinion is a great thing and the way it should be.
scottmil —
I feel the distinctiveness of Portland's sound lies not in what it shares, but in its deliberate, almost defiant individuality. Artists seem not to copy each other, or feed into a local "sound", but rather do their own thing, the seek to collaborate to make something new.
nobleviola —
What this show seems to be missing is the extent to which the Portland music scene focuses around music that our host may not personally enjoy: punk rock, heavy metal and neo-modernist grunge. To be fair, I can't stand it either, it makes my ears bleed, but to leave it out of the discussion and only play sound clips of violins really misses the point.
Jesse42 —
Jesse42,

I'll bring your question up. (And just so you know, we did try to get some punk voices into the show... but they didn't want to get up so early in the morning!)
David Miller —
You should ask Ron Blessinger about the cross-pollination between classical music and the literary scene, which is an essential part of the landscape in cultural portland.
nobleviola —
Another big influence is the band Pink Martini, which has a strong classically-trained base, uses musicians from the Oregon Symphony in its shows (including Carnegie Hall and David Letterman appearances), and promotes a strong dialog between various genres and styles - as well as promoting Portland as a vibrant place where things are happening.
nobleviola —
Hi. This is Nate Query from the Decemberists. Two points I would like to make: I think that cost of living and availalbility of music venues are two factors that contribute greatly to the experimental and open-minded nature of the music scene here. Even musicians who need day jobs can get by with part-time work and dedicate themselves to their art. Another point regarding genres- genres are for the most part created by music critics, not musicians.
natemusic —
How is it possible that in a show about Portland music bands like Modest Mouse, The Shins and The Decemberists -- bands who've received great critical acclaim and international profile -- have not been mentioned?
babytess —
I still feel like the direction of this show is indicating that we are missing something by not having a distinctive sound in Portland. If Portland creates a distinctive sound across a group of artists it is no longer a distinctive sound. We should be proud we have so many unique artists here, all with their own styles. It seems like the desire for this Portland style music is one of ego, because it would be easier to market to the world. Easier to box up, package with a pretty ribbon. We should be glad there is no Portland Style music because, it would quickly go out of fashion.
scottmil —
There is a vibrant electronic music scene in Portland that few know about. Several electronic musicians run the gamut of styles from techno to IDM to ambient to the more popular dub-step and electro-house. As a producer, I have found that, in Portland, people in the scene are really supportive of each other as opposed to other cities. If the listeners of this program want to check out what the EM scene is like, check out the Panzen nights at Rotture or the Kulturszene nights at Branx or Unrecognizable now at Holocene tonight. EM in Portland is not the typical brain-dead music. It's more thoughtful and heady. Maybe its because of the rain and the dark winter.
senorfrio —
I'd like to remind your listeners about a great Portland resource, the Community Music Center. It offers music classes and performing opportunities for aspiring musicians of all ages, interests and abilities, and is funded by the Park District. Many professional musicians had their start there and continue to be involved as teachers.
Kathleen Culligan —
We can't talk about Portland's unique sound without mentioning March Fourth Marching Band. They are the ultimate collaborators, mixing not only musical genres (marching band-punk-funk-blues etc) but also adding in performance art, playing all kinds of venues and for all types of audiences. They represent whats best about Portland, showing off our openness to new types of music and new mixes of established genres as well as having fun with your music and building community.
Emily Fielding —
I think one of the signifying influences to the 'portland sound' is derived from an abundance of house and basement shows, where you'll find the louder rock and noise or experimental groups playing alongside more quieter fusions of genres, and folk acts. The DIY scene is prominent, and gives a lot of people room to create and experiment without having to cater to a specific venues regiment.
apersonhumming —
Great conversation earlier on the top of music and architecture.

The notion of narrating space with music and sound is one that's still in its infancy...just adding music to a space is something that limits its experiential potential, not unlike the concept of television being simply "radio with pictures." As artists, we can create meaningful spatial experiences when we can think and work across multiple disciplines, including visuals, light, and all aspects of audio; music, sound, voice and silence.

This is something that's easier said than done. Fortunately events like Martyn Ware's ongoing Future of Sound UK conferences (http://www.futureofsound.org) and the upcoming 5D Conference (http://www.5dconference.com) at Cal State Fullterton this fall serve to foster collaboration and participation among all types of artists as we strive to create compelling physical experiences with sound.

I expect Portland to host similar collaborations soon. We're too forward-thinking not to.

nfranus —
Tonight at Holocene is the Vision+Hearing show featuring live video artists colaborating with musicians. We do have a small, yet budding space for what you describe above. Here's a link to vision+hearing: http://www.vimeo.com/vhlandmarks
senorfrio —
Lets not forget the local aggressive synth-pop bands. Old new wave created new and fresh. Electronic is back!
hellsfireside —
Let's not forget Portland's Tech culture in all of this.

Putting the P2P sharing controversy aside; Some of the best and freshest music out there is available on the internet, put there by the artists themselves so that people, no only in Portland, but around the world can listen in to our art.
Jon.Miller —
Hip-Hop. Portland's hip-hop scene is amazingly diverse within and of of itself. Artists such as Lifesavas which are huge on the national underground scene, and rappers such as Dialek who are recognized as one of Portland's best rappers. Sandpeople another large group that performs concert after concert and album after album. Dirty, of Ghetto studios is an amazing producer. I co-hosted a radio show at OSU called "Peep dis" for 4 years and we dedicated one hours of our weekly show to hip hop from the northwest and it was a hit, so many artist kept us well stocked with incredible music.
ocious —
Great to hear Graham right now. Also, I want to add that, just as there are many garageband artists/music hobbiests who like to get together with their friends and create their own rock/pop/metal/name the genre of music. I know so many people who love to get together with their friends and produce hip-hop, just for fun, whether with real musical instruments, computer composition programs, or a mixture of both, and then take turns rapping and singing, sometimes freestyling, sometimes lyrics previously written.

Even Portland's notorious hipster scene is a presence in Portland's hip-hop scene.

ocious —
I find it facinating that everything I'm listening to Right Now on this topic "Portlands Music Scene" is absolutely geared towards white music. Why not be honest and call this topic Portlands White Music Scene? Who are you trying to represent here???
Why must everything be so segregated???
Cant you at least TRY to be more inclusive in who you talk about or invite to partake in your interviews?
whynot —
Here we go again with the racism!!! Maybe this occured because this show is in response to a Slate artical about I think mainly white bands. If Portland's minorities start up some music scene that gets national attention, I am sure we would be talking about that. Not every discussion is bigoted. Everyone time someone cries wolf it really makes people not care anymore. Statistically there are more white musicians here so objectively we would be more likely to talk about them. THIS ISN'T A CASE OF RACISM!
scottmil —
It may not be racsism I agree but what it is is in your face exclusivism. [not sure if that's a word]. I could care less if this whole topic stemmed from some Slate article. I've never heard of Slate. All I know is I tuned into a show that I thought would be facinating and thought provoking,a show called Portland's Music scene. The title sounds all inclusive does it not??
Are you telling me that there is no [zero,zip,none] "Minority Music" here in Portland that merits being included in a discussion of Portland's Music Scene?
I apologise about playing the race card but what the hell am I left to think here?
As to the statistics you quote, I don't think that's relevant here. If we base our decisions to objectively discuss the music scene here on racial demographics, aren't we just digging a metaphorical hole and filling it up again?
whynot —
Just because there are other people doing things doesn't mean they have to be included to have an objective discussion. I am sure there are country musicians here also. Should we talk about them? Should we talk about religious choirs too? It is hard to talk about anything anymore without someone playing some-kind of card. It really lessens the real injustices.

I don't have statistics, but I am not so sure that the "Minority Music" scene in Portland has made the national scene in the way that the "Not Minority Music" scene has. If we are having a discussion about the music scene that has gotten national press, why should we include every other music scene? It makes no sense. This is not bigotry or exclusivity, it is simply the topic of the discussion.

If the "Minority Music" scene in Portland makes it big and OPB has a show about that, do we have to include the "Not Minority Music" to be fair? Of course not.

Perhaps you also feel, when teaching evolution in a science class, the religious idea of Intelligent Design should be discussed or Creationism.

You yourself are stereotyping people by saying only white people listen to this music, which is absurd.
scottmil —
Portland is becoming a victim of it's own success. With the median house going for well over $300K there's no way artists can afford to buy. Rents are still fairly affordable, but that will likely change.

The Pearl district is a microcosm of what happens: artists start out in a cheap area, it becomes cool, non-artists get interested, developers move in and finally the artists can no longer afford to live there. That's happening all over Portland now.
skeptictank —
sad, but true.
jefforysimmons —
Here in Bend ... I feel like our relative distance from major music "markets" if you will has been a great benefit. I'm part of the Resonant Sound DJ crew down here and I feel like our isolation has allowed us to develop our own approach and sound while we watch the people in the cities doing often very homogenous things. We've seen the DJ scene in Portland grow and implode all while we've maintained a fairly healthy scene down here with a lot of freedom to do interesting and noncommercial stuff. Staying independent and isolated has been great for us.
DJSmoke —
Portland's vibrant classical and folk scenes are obvious - a guitar player's paradise. oregonian musicians tend away from the more agressive sounds, perhaps indicative of a state that has no active military bases. anyway, the sound is there, but muted, echoing around every street corner.
londonnewtonavery —
I used to think that PDX haed a distinct sound after moving here from Boston in 1996. I thought it was bluegrass infused everything...I've come to realize how wrong I was. My band, Miriam's Well, is made up of a complete cross-pollination of players--our drummer, Drew Shoals, just won PDX Best Jazz Artist of 07. My lead guitarist, Mark Bowman is a new tranaplant from Boston who comes from more of rock pop foundation. Our bassist is jazz/rock. My organ player was sent over thru Curtis Salgado, a blues singer. I write anything--rock, ballads, country, country rock. And as far as PDX being open, it sure is. I've been turned on to all these phenomenal players because people out here don't live in fear of eachother. It's incredibly supportive here. People dug my songwriting and turned me on to Lee Garrett who wrote Signed, Sealed, Delivered for Stevie WOnder among numerous other hits. Now Lee and I have a publishing company together are are recording our current catalog of over 30 tunes. This came about because people are cool here and open to good music and art for art's sake. Just wanted to share this because this wasn't my experience on the other coast.
Miriam
Miriam's Well
MiriamsWell —
I think the media plays a huge role in terms of helping new musicians and defining, or purposefully not defining, a Portland sound. It would be great to see more variety of genres covered in the major publications in Portland.
arkrebs —
I think it might be better to say that Portland has a distinct attitude or frame of mind towards musicians, as opposed to a distinc sound. I operate artist development studios in both Portland and Seattle and feel I can speak very knowledgeably about what is up and coming and what is current.
The answer is that MUSIC is what is current - and people will gravitate towards areas that support and encourage their creative pursuits. At times that generates into a "scene" or a "genre" because positive energy breeds positive energy and people are attracted to that.
As for musical styles - I have all genres respresented in my studios, jazz, musical theatre, neo-soul, gospel, singer-songwriter, punk-a-billy and rock - it's all going on here. Mary Beth Felker - The Voice Project.
TheVoiceProject —
I thought there was nothing particularly distinct about Portland's sound either, until a few weeks ago. I'm a 9-year Portland resident recently transplanted New York City, where I work as a live sound engineer @ NYC's Knitting Factory and DJ @ praradio.org (remotely now). It took me a long time to see the common thread, but I now believe that Portland musicians, for the most part and as an outstanding commonality among them, have higher artistic standards than many scenes in the US, and that's what makes PDX different (not to mention that plenty of basements, cheap rent, and high unemployment are the respite of musicians not looking for a career, but looking to make their mark). Most music coming from large US cities is SOAKED with what the band thinks is marketable and will get them paid as soon as possible. What stands out about the Portland music scene is the great deal of attention paid to aesthetics in the aural and visual parts of the art-form. Posters, demo CDRs, and even stage presence are all judged equally alongside indie and major-label releases in the uber-competitive arts community that is Stumptown. The past 10 years have seen epic numbers in artist migration and have created the head-turning attention Portland now gets. Bands like Modest Mouse, Spoon and Scout Niblett becoming "Portland" acts only goes to show that the huge amount of attention Puddletown receives is not only from the music press and music industry, but high-caliber artists themselves. To give you a little NYC perspective, Williamsburg is full of Portland clones preparing to move there -- and even the radio now sees need to simulcast KEXP in NY public radio (what's that tell you?). The wave Kurdt predicted in the 90's is seriously about to break -- it's just been moving as slowly as the residents of Cascadia do. Never fear, the hype will pass, and Sam Coomes will still be in the basement making miracles.
jefforysimmons —
I play bass for a North Portland psych rock band called Night Pipe. Portland is a melting pot - our two guitarists are from the Bay Area, our drummer is a 60 yr old native who played the Vortex. Like many other Portland bands, our jams are hybridized but cohesive.

Chris
http://netnp.org
chrisward —
I don't think collaboration and mixing of genres in necessairly a good thing. It usually tends to make watered down versions of the source genres that is mushy and is just generic 'world music,
esmeraldo —
The word is GIBE; "jive" is a slang term whose connotations are a misfit with this story.
n8head —
lost on-air, here are my comments: I guess I represent the kind of artist you might encounter in neighborhood pubs, coffeehouse and wine bars --- smaller, acoustic venues. These thrive and incubate artists because of the Portland LISTENERS. I've had a few hometowns, and there is nothing like the audiences here: and while it is nearly impossible to make $ (oddly, clubs&shops rarely pay, people rarely tip) So Portland has created places where this freedom of speech and willingness to listen take place: hip hop to punk, folk to rock, classical melding with world music . . . People like your guests, Terry (MusicMill) are like patron saints to the cause, offering live shows in-store, promoting locals. This place is open, and I consider this crucial to democracy. I do what they call "Neofolk" not completely excluding the old chestnuts of Dylan, PP& M, Joan, etc.from my collected song bag and certainly leaning on what I've gleaned from trad. folk and my time in the british isles, I write poli/history ballads and cover some of the best from way younger folk artists (anais mitchell, rachel ries) and perform a lot of political stuff in small venues and for benefits. (myspace.com/debra giannini

I used to say I had a career in neighborhood enviro organizing until Bush took office; now I say the Bush pushed me back into folk music. Art can be the best way to use your voice in politically charged times . . . Of course, I do other things to earn money. As a substitute for MESD spec ed, I've been in classrooms across the county ---- I see the hunger for this (when I've allowed the time and such for music-arts curriculum) and my biggest fears are about the children who are deprived of arts in the schools. I worry about their voices, their futures. On tours, often walkabouts of downtown, my guests are often locals just wanting to dig deeper into there place and its stories. We love stories. We love humanity. We listen. We are Portland.You also interviewed someone from Marylhurst Univ. and they are a catalyst for the arts and for individual voices in the artistic landscape of Portland --- they stress muti-disciplinary approaches --- a crux of your guests' comments.

One emblem for this topic will always be, for me, the community chorus assembled by Rinde Eckert and Sarah Dougher for PICA's TBA:2007 Openning ---MIgration--- we did not accomplish all we set out to do, but what metaphor for our city of light.
To me, we are living in the "New Paris" --- much more like the old Paris of salons and free thinking and listening ---and art and democracy still in the making.



neofolk debra —
""I am not so sure that the "Minority Music" scene in Portland has made the national scene"...

two words: Mel Brown

... and that's just ONE place to start your education concerning "minority music" in Portland.
porsadgai —

Comments are now closed.

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