This event notice will stay at the top of my blog until August 1st, just scroll down for shows.

I’ve been doing this gig on KPSU for six years now, can you believe it!!?! Crazy. That’s 312 weekly episodes, seven address changes, eight Orange Alerts, two Britney Spears marriages, and one marriage and baby of my own. It’s been priceless. As in, I don’t get paid.

And I suppose I don’t mind; I’d rather do it and not make money than not do it at all.

I’ll be celebrating my show’s 6th Anniversary by having a few bands I love come and play!

Tea for Julie
Boy Eats Drum Machine
Blind Pilot
DoublePlusGood
At KPSU’s venue, The Modern Age (map)

Admission is only $5 (not much more than a gallon of gas!) This is an all-ages show.

MySpace
Facebook
last.fm
Google Calendar
Upcoming.org

Invite all your friends, even the ones who have bad taste in music! If you’ve posted this on another social networking site, put it in the comments.

You can read my press release about it here, and download a PDF of the poster here.

mp3s:

Tea for Julie - The Meantime
Boy Eats Drum Machine - Demonic with Horns
Blind Pilot - Oviedo
DoublePlusGood - Wireless

 

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This weekend is the fifth PDX Pop Now festival, a free, all-ages festival at Rotture (map). There’s 48 bands playing, and I’ve picked a selection of them (playing everyone would not only require three hours instead of one, but, I’ll be honest, I’m not really into all of them).

Oh, and I’m a little busy this week, so no “link buffet.” It’s just you and Google, baby.

artist - song - album :: extra info

The Rainy States - Suddenly Electric - In Basement Air
Tu Fawning - In Silence, We Reached the Palisades - Secession EP
Guidance Counselor - Creature - Bad Reciever EP
Dykeritz - Big Drapes - Rearrangerologyistics
The Builders and the Butchers - Bottom of the Lake - The Builders and the Butchers
The Revisions - On the Lam - On the Lam
Chris Robley - Faulkner’s South - The Drunken Dance of Modern Man in Love
Andy Combs and the Moth - Service Station - The Robot in the Clouds
Eskimo and Sons - The Blizzard - How Does It Feel To Be Crushed By One Man With The Strength Of A Million
Blind Pilot - Paint Or Pollen - 3 Rounds and a Sound
Portland Cello Project (with Horse Feathers) - Mother’s Sick
StarF-er - German Love - StarF-er
World’s Greatest Ghosts - Sleepwalkers - Exorcising Demons
Bark Hide and Horn - Grandfather - National Road

 

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This week’s show features new music from Beck, Aimee Mann, Watson Twins, Goldfrapp, and more.

artist - song - album :: extra info

Beck - Gamma Ray - Modern Guilt
(website | myspace)

Laura Gibson - Shake Sugaree (Podington Bear Remix)
(website | myspace | @ Hinah | @ Daytrotter)

Nick Jaina - Maryanne - Wool
(website | myspace)

Loch Lomond - Song in 3/4 - Paper Thin Walls
(website | myspace)

Blind Pilot - Go On, Say It - 3 Rounds and a Sound
(website | myspace)

Aimee Mann - Borrowing Time - Smilers
(website | myspace)

The Old Believers - The Glories All Been Done - Eight Golden Greats
(website | myspace)

Vancougar - Obvious - Canadian Tuxedo
(website | myspace)

Tea for Julie - Lamplights and the Long Walk - The Sense in Tying Knots
(myspace)

The Watson Twins - How am I to Be - Fire Songs
(website | myspace)

Goldfrapp - Little Bird - Seventh Tree
(website | myspace | Happiness video | A&E video)

Lotte Kestner - Crush the Bird - China Mountain
(myspace)

The Kooks - One Last Time - Konk
(website | myspace)

Santogold - L.E.S. Artistes - Santogold
(myspace | L.E.S. Artistes video)

Albert Hammond, Jr. - GfC - Como Te Llama?
(website | myspace)
mp3s:

Laura Gibson - Shake Sugaree (Podington Bear Remix)
Nick Jaina - Maryanne (via Local Cut)
Loch Lomond - Song in 3/4 (via Local Cut)
Vancougar-Obvious
Albert Hammond Jr. - GfC

 

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Ah, to be 20 again.

Actually, I take that back. I hated turning 20. I actually really enjoyed turning 30, but 20 meant that I was no longer a teenager, but I had nothing to show for it. I hadn’t yet moved away from home, and had no real idea of what I wanted to do with my life. By 30, I had, and I did.

But to be 20, and to not only know what I wanted to be doing, but actually doing it, and not just doing it, but really excelling at it–ah, to be that.

That is The Old Believers. They moved to Portland from their hometown of Kenai, Alaska after graduating from high school just two years ago. They’ve just released their second EP, Eight Golden Greats, which Casey Jarman of the Willamette Week describes as “crushing, refined Americana pop…The songs are unapologetically romantic, but investigate romance with the same fearlessness that the Believers explore the studio.” The Mercury’s Ezra Ace Caraeff calls their music “soulful country, vintage dustbowl storytelling.”

The duo, Nelson Kemph and Kelly Boyle, were kind enough to come to KPSU and perform some songs. They’re currently on tour, and will play Pickathon on August 2nd and 3rd.

The Old Believers: myspace

*Also, a technical note: If my voice sounds echoey during the interview portion of this show, it’s not because I didn’t properly turn down the reverb on the mic I was using while the Technical Director had stepped out for a staff meeting. It’s because my golden throat makes even the smallest studio sound like a cathedral.

 

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artist - song - album :: extra info

Michael the Blind - Old Fashion’d - Days and Days :: out one of these days
(myspace | Portland Mercury audio interview)

The Verve - Mover
(website | myspace)

Tilly and the Wall - Cacophony - O
(website | myspace | @ Team Love | @ Daytrotter)

The Old Believers - There it Is - Eight Golden Greats
(website | myspace)

Earlimart - Song For - Hymn and Her
(website | myspace)

Oxford Collapse - The Birthday Wars - Bits
( myspace | @ Sub Pop)

New Century Schoolbook - A is the Glue - Escape from Witch Mountain
(myspace | @ Portland Noise)

Alias (feat. WHY?) - Well Water Black - Resurgam :: out August 26
(myspace | @ Anticon)

Eef Barzelay - Lose Big - Lose Big
(website | myspace | @ Daytrotter)

Dr. Dog - The Old Days - The Fate :: out July 22
(website | myspace)

Iron & Wine - Lovesong of the Buzzard - Lovesong of the Buzzard EP
(website | myspace | @ NPR)

Finn Riggins - Glove Comprtmnt - A Soldier, A Saint, An Ocean Explorer
(myspace | @ TLE)

The Great Northwest - Chief John - The Widespread Reign of :: out July 29
(myspace)

Super Nashwan - Needle in a Haystack - Gold Future Joy Machine
(website | myspace | last.fm)

They Might Be Giants - There’s a Great Big Beautiful Tomorrow - Meet the Robinsons OST
(website | other website | myspace | fan Wiki)

mp3s:

Tilly and the Wall - Cacophony
Oxford Collapse - The Birthday Wars
Alias feat. Why? - Well Water Black
Dr. Dog - The Old Days
Finn Riggins - Glove Comprtmnt
Super Nashwan - Needle in a Haystack

 

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Portland three-piece pop outfit Derby, at long last, released their second full-length “Posters Fade” at a June 6th Wonder Ballroom show that was nothing short of a rock & roll triumph. They were joined by many friends both on-stage and in the crowd, and kept their energy high for a set that outlasted some feature-length films.

They came into the KPSU studio a couple of weeks later to perform an acoustic set, and then talked with me about their music.

Here’s the setlist:

Only What She’s Selling
Stumps
If Ever There’s a Reason
As My Own
Don’t Feed the Bear

Derby are playing this Friday, July 9th at The Hawthorne Theater with Phantom Planet, and August 2nd at The Someday Lounge with The Dimes, Oh Darling and Dominic Castillo & the Rock Savants.

Derby: website | myspace

 

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Sydney is now the World’s Youngest DJ. Take that, Little Ricky Rocko!

artist - song - album :: extra info

The Broken West - Perfect Games - Now or Heaven? :: out September 9
(website | myspace | @ Merge | @ NPR)

Mackintosh Braun - Here - The Sound
(website | myspace | last.fm | @ The Mercury)

Blind Pilot - Oviedo - 3 Rounds And A Sound
(website | myspace)

Tea For Julie - Scape - The Sense In Tying Knots
(website | myspace)

Sally Shapiro - Time to Let Go (CFCF Remix) - Remix Romance Vol 2
(website | myspace | last.fm)

Spiritualized - Soul On Fire - Songs in A&E
(website | myspace | last.fm)

Boy Eats Drum Machine - Planets + Stars - Booomboxxx :: out October 22
(website | myspace | haystack.com | in-studio on my show)

Josh Ritter - Golden Age of Radio - Golden Age of Radio
(website | myspace)

Styrofoam - After Sunset - A Thousand Words
(myspace | last.fm)

The Weepies - Little Bird - Hideaway
(website | myspace)

Jared Mees & The Grown Children - Bees - Caffeine, Alcohol, Sunshine, Money
(myspace | last.fm)

Finn Riggins - Hraka - A Soldier, A Saint, An Ocean Explorer
(myspace | @ TLE)

Eskimo & Sons - 2012 (DoublePlusGood Remix)
(myspace | last.fm)

Flight of the Conchords - Hiphopopotamus vs. Rhymenocerous - Flight of the Conchords
(website | myspace | @ HBO | Ladies of the World video)
mp3s:

The Broken West - Perfect Games
Mackintosh Braun - Here
Blind Pilot - Oviedo (via The Oregonian)
Sally Shapiro - Time To Let Go (CFCF Remix)
Jared Mees and the Grown Children - Bees (via Local Cut)
Finn Riggins - Hraka