Crappy Indie Music -- The Blog!: Ben Meyercord's Live Music Picks for May 22nd to 24th

Hello Dear Readers,

Last Night I went and saw Jesse Bettis (of Oh Captain, My Captain) and his friends play at the Matchbox. They were great. Matchbox is very small and doesn't have shows that often for a reason. But I do love to be in a crowded room to witness some music being made before my very eyes. Even if there is a lot of talking. Anyways, here are the shows I am interested in this weekend.

Friday, May 22nd

Backspace is having a show Oh Captain, My Captain, Brothers Young and The Skinnyz. Like I said I saw Jesse play last night. I like the Oh Captain songs acoustically. But I also like them all rocked out. I can never decide which I like more. But both are really good. Oh Captain, My Captain label-mates The Skinnyz ( Portland based Blanden County Records) play pretty good rock and roll that has a pop tinged feel to it. I have heard good things about Brothers Young. I saw them a loooong time ago and have no recollection of what they sounded like. Apparently they do really good vocal work. The show is $6 doors are at 8:30 PM.

Mississippi Studios is having a show with Dent May & His Magnificent Ukulele (Taylor, Mississippi), Dirty Mittens and All Smiles. I first heard of Dent May when it was announced that Paw Tracks, The Animal Collective's label, was putting out his record. I think is good. There are not many bands that are built around the Uke. But don't worry it is an actual band, not just some guy and his tiny instrument. Plus being from Mississippi, this is the perfect venue. The Dirty Mittens are great. They make really really good pop music, sax solos and all. I recently played a show with them and pretty much danced their entire set. All Smiles is lead by former Grandaddy guitarist Jim Fairchild. Last time I checked, his band also had members of Menomena and Modest Mouse, if that means anything to you (whoa, I just did a lot of name dropping). The show is $10 and starts at 9 PM.

Crystal Ballroom is having a show with The Avett Brothers (Concord, NC), Jason Webley (Seattle) and Sallie Ford & The Sound Outside. I saw the Avett Brothers at SXSW earlier this year and thought they were pretty good. They are are on a major label and therefore may not technically be crappy indie music, but that is not why I am listing the show. I am listing this show because, I think that Sallie Ford is great. I have always known this since I first heard her sing. This is a very high profile show for her. I am super excited for her, as a lot of people are about to see how good she is. The ALL AGES show is $20-22 and starts at 9 PM.

The Waypost is having a show with Solyoni, Green Ladies and The Harvey Girls. I am mostly listing this show because I know that The Harvey Girls is a band that Goldie likes. Plus I have seen and enjoyed The Green Ladies Before (I don't recall any ladies in this band green or otherwise). The ALL AGES show is FREE and starts at 8 PM.

Saturday, May 23rd

Crystal Ballroom is having a show with The Avett Brothers (Concord, NC), Jason Webley (Seattle) and Sallie Ford & The Sound Outside. This is a repeat of Friday's show. Apparently when you reach the big time you do things like play the same show at the same venue more than one day in a row. Way to go Sallie. The ALL AGES is $20-22 and starts at 9 PM.

Dante's is having a show with Big Business (Los Angeles), Tweak Bird (IL and CA) and Black Elk. This is a Rock show. In every since of the work Big Business and Tweak bird, who are on tour together, play riff-based almost stoner rock. Portland's Black Elk play Heavy rock that has metal tendencies all over it. The show is $10-12 and starts at 9:30 PM.

Someday Lounge is having a show with Copy, Atole, Jeffrey Jerusalem and E*Rock. This is a dance show. But not like disco dance. Well, kinda like disco (Jeremy Jerusalem is a one man disco band). All these people are really good dance/electronic based acts. I love Copy, but have not seen him play in ages. I saw Jeremy Jerusalem play the other week and was very impressed. If you do not have any, go get some dance shoes before attending this show. The show is $6 and starts at 9 PM.

Slabtown is having a show with Drew Grow, Michael Vermillion (Seattle) and Go Engine Now. This looks like it is the Portland stop on a baby tour theses three bands have planned with each other. I think it is cool when more than two bands go on tour together. I am sure it is a lot of fun. Plus all of these bands are really good if you like indie Americana type stuff. The show is $6 and starts at 9 PM.

Mississippi Studios is having a show with Little Pieces (Seattle), Sabertooth and Radiant Silvergun. I list this mostly because I think that Sabertooth is a very good Portland band. Their song "The Doctor" is awesome. It kinda reminds me of Papa M at times (if you know who that is, then you know what I mean). The other bands seem a little more in the same pop rock ballpark. The show is $8 and starts at 9 PM.

Laurelthirst is having a show with Lonesome Radio Heart and The Spindles (Santa Rosa, CA). Lonesome Radio Heart makes slower indie music that utilizes both male and female vocals and I think it is good. On their myspace player they have a bunch of live tracks. So if you want to know what they sound like, you can play those and have a very good idea of what to expect. The Spindles, also do the male/female vocals and are good but they tend to vary the tempo a little more (not a bad thing). It is $5 and starts at 9:30 PM.

Berbati's Pan is having a show with The High Strung (Detroit) and Yeah Great Fine. I saw Yeah Great Fine several months ago. It was very good. For real check out their song "O O O". It is so good. I suggest you check them out. It is FREE and starts at 10 PM.

The Know is having a Rose City Rollers Benefit. It will feature the punk stylings of The Mean Jeans. I have never been to a Rose City Roller Derby function, but I love the idea of my town having a roller derby team. I don't really want it to go away. Plus there will always be a part of me that loves punk rock (I think of The Mean Jeans as being punk rock, please correct me if I am wrong). There is a $5-7 cover and it starts at around 9 PM.

Sunday, May 24th

Rontom's i shaving a show with DoublePlusGood, Breakfast Mountain and Pep Assembly. DoublePlusGood and Breakfast Mountain both play electronic pop music with an DIY edge (oh my god, did I just say DIY Edge, what a tool I am). Pep Assembly play good ol' indie pop music. It is FREE, so why not check it out? The show starts at 9 PM.

Mississippi Studios is having a show with Shoeshine Blue, Leonard Mynx, Run On Sentence and Nick Jaina. This is a CD release show for Shoeshine Blue's new album "Howl at the Wooden Moon". I have been lucky enough to have heard it and it is great. It is folky bluesy and indie at the same time and features many contributors including Run On Sentence and Nick Jaina and from what I hear one of Blind Pilot's members. That being said I think that Leonard Mynx is equally as good and often plays with Shoeshine Blue. I would not be surprised if he is playing as part of the band on Saturday. And I didn't mention it but both Run On Sentence and Nick Jaina are very good in their on right (they are both on local Hush Records)The show is $8-10 and starts at 8 PM.

Holocene is having a show with Windy & Carl (Dear Borne, Michigan), White Rainbow, Christopher Willits (San Francisco) and Benoit Pioulard. This is mostly an ambient-ish show. It may boring to some, but I think it is beautiful. Though I think is a sitting down type show for sure. Unless of course you are looking at all the gear that is sure to be on stage. The show is $8-10 and starts at 9 PM.

So if you see me at any of these shows, it would be a perfect time to say "Hi". I hope you do.

-Ben