Ben Meyercord's Live Music Picks for Sunday, April 10th

Hello Dear Readers,

Yesterday was awesome. Y La Bamba played the Cherry Music Festival as part of the Tender Loving Empire showcase. Sadly I missed Brainstorm, but I got to see Jared Mees & The Grown Children, Loch Lomond, and Typhoon. They were all great. It was the first time I saw Jessie Bettis (Oh Captain, My Captain) as the Grown Children's bassist. I had not seen Loch Lomond in years. Their latest six piece configuration is pretty great. Typhoon are always jaw dropping. Sigh, I wish all shows were like that one. Anyways, here are the shows happening tonight:

Rontoms is having a show with Gardens & Villa (Santa Barbra), Hosannas, and aan. This show rules it. I met the Gardens and Villa guys a while back when Y La Bamba played a very memorable show in Santa Barbra. We were blown away by the guys. And I just listened to the new 7" on Cool Summer Records, but you can get those tracks for FREE at their bandcamp. The crazy thing about those recordings is that that they were recorded in by Richard Swift (Secretly Canadian) and master by TW Walsh (Ex-Pedro the Lion). Nice one, guys. They have a chill sound that incorporates a lot of synth. The second song on the 7", "Orange Blossom", is destined to be one of my summer jams. It is kinda funky and sounds like a slowed down jam from the 80's. I love it. Hosannas, apparently used to be from the Santa Barbara area and are good friends with Gardens & Villa folk. I love Hosannas. Lately the brothers have been playing as a duo and have been killing it. They recently came back from a SXSW tour excursion. I look forward to seeing how touring has changed or tightened their set. The thing that they do best is play with the dynamics of a song. Plus they sing really well together, as you might expect from brothers. You can get their latest, Thug Life Nicole EP, right here. The EP is made of four older songs that have been rearranged and been made brand new. It is a perfect example of how their arranging abilities. aan played just last night opening for The Rural Advantage, and Lord Hurons. I feel that this show is a much better fit. His music is dark and very much a play of shifts in emotion and rhythms. Bud Wilson's voice is one of the most distinct in Portland. You will have to hear it to know what I am talking about. I love everything that has been put out under the aan name. You may have noticed that I have used the word love a lot in this show pick. It is intentional. The show is FREE and starts at 9 PM.

Mississippi Studios is having a show with Pigeons, Sam Humans & The Light, and The Besties. Pigeons are a band that I feel are starting to get the kind of attention they deserve. They sound cool and Justin Ready's voice is just… cool.They are a great band live, and what's more: they made some recordings that get pretty close to that sound. Probably because they recorded with Mike Coykendall who is known for recording live with out overdubs. You may not get too many more opportunities to see this band for free. Sam Humans is a guy who has been around the music scene for a while now. I think he gained the most attention in his last project, Modernstate. It has always been a grab bag of genres and emotions. I think now that he is going under his own name it makes more sense. One is not expected the music to sound a certain way. Whatever comes out is just Sam following the muse. Then there is Besties. If I am correctly informed it fronted by the same guy who fronts Orca Team. It has a different spin than that band, but it has just as many pop hooks. I think they sound great. The show is FREE and starts at 9 PM.

The Alice Coltrane Memorial Coliseum is having it's first show. The Grand Opening will feature Matt Ingalls (San Francisco), Sam Coomes, Mitchell Brown, and The Tenses. If you want to now more about Alice Coltrane look here. If you want to know why this venue is called Alice Coltrane Memorial Coliseum, you got me. I am not sure why it is name this. It used to be called The Wail and before that Rererato. I have seen some good shows in this building. My favorite was seeing Church (now Hosannas, see above about them) play as a three piece for the release of the Gold Day 3" CD. Tonight looks pretty good, too. Most of these bands would fall into the "experimental music" category. Plus Quasi's Sam Coomes. Sweet. The show is $5-$15 and starts at 8 PM.
If you see me at any of these shows please say "Hi". Who knows, you might like me.

Ben

Hosannas - Be Careful from Emile Rosewater on Vimeo.

Hosannas play a kick ass show tonight at Rontoms.