Hello Dear Readers,
Have you noticed that it is ridiculously cold outside. Last night I checked my phone and it informed me that it was 18 degrees outside. Too cold. I do not care. That is too cold. I did not leave my house. I stayed in my bed with a heater dangerously to me. Besides I had already done some music stuff by that time. Y La Bamba played The hallway of The Rose Garden for a Blazer organized event for the homeless of Portland. They offered a meal, hair cut and even some dental work for the less fortunate of our city. Plus there were some bands. We played followed by Portland Cello Project, Drew Grow & The Pastor's Wives, and Typhoon. One woman made use of her middle finger and proceeded to tell us to "Fuck Off". Which was a refreshingly brutal critique of our music. Or maybe she was just not all there. Regardless here are the shows for tonight:
Roadside Attraction is having a benefit event for the upcoming Y La Bamba tour. Here is a little something that we put together to talk about the event, "Hello friends and good folks of Portland! We, Y La Bamba, would like to ask for your help in raising a few dollars to help support our upcoming tour with Horse Feathers. Why should you help you ask? Well, as a seven piece band at this early stage of our tour career it is next to impossible to make ends meet at home while leaving our jobs for three weeks. In order to make it worth your while we have put together an amazing night of music and surprises. Y La Bamba plus some very special guests will play an intimate show, We will also have a silent auction and even a cupcake walk! So with that, we ask that you please attend our very special evening and bring your generous spirit! Thank You." As of today we know what the musical line up is. We will play as will Pancake Breakfast and Denver. Mike Midlo of Pancake Breakfast leads the band in whatever direction they choose to go. They are hard to peg, but easy to enjoy. The band always seems like they are having a blast which, as it turns out, is infectious Denver is a country collective band. They are pulling a double tonight to help us out. They are playing earlier at Laurelthirst. I have seen one of the main songwriters, Mike Elias, play on a number of occasions and always been impressed. In addition to the music, there will be a silent auction for original pieces of art from Rachel Blumberg, Emily Katz, and Joan Hill Depper. There will also be items like gift certificates to local businesses raffled off on the cheap. Did we mention the cake walk? It should be a lot of fun. The event is by donation and starts at 8 PM.
Laurelthirst is having a residency show with The Parson Red Heads. Tonight the other band is Denver. The Parson Red Heads are one of the more recent kinda established bands to relocate to the perpetually greener pastures of Portland. They make jangly country rock music whose quality is hard to deny. This starts the tail end of their residency at Laurelthirst and is a great opportunity to introduce yourself to their music. Denver is a really good fit for the Red Heads. They make retro sounding country music. It is a little less rock, but really good. As I mentioned earlier, they are pulling double duty tonight. The show is FREE and starts at 6 PM.
Alberta Rose Theatre is having a special acoustic show with Fernando,Mike Coykendall, and Michael Jodell. Fernando is a underappreciated artist in the Portland Music scene. I first heard about him from Casey Jarman (now of Willamette Week, then of CD Game Exchange). But others have sung his praises as well. Scott McCaughey of Minus Five and REM has called him the "Latino Lennon". Basically he crafted some really good pop records. He doesn't really play out anymore. So this is kinda a big deal. Mike Coykendall on the other hand, has been playing out a lot. I saw him once and learned that he is just as good as any of the "more known" artists he has produced or recorded. Michael Jodell is someone that had not previously heard of. Willamette Week an The Oregonian had, though. They say some really nice things about her. I like what I have heard online. She makes music that is sometimes Jazzy and sometimes country. I listened to her myspace music player until it stopped. That is a rarity for me. The show is $10 and starts at 8:30 PM.
If you see me at Roadside tonight please say "Hi". And buy a raffle ticket.
-Ben
Go see Denver play at Laurelthirst or Roadside Attraction tonight!
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