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Jonathon Galyon is in Kingston, Tennessee on a Tuesday morning, talking about a music festival about to take place 2,500 miles away in Portland, Oregon.

You could say Galyon first dreamed up North West Hesh Fest as a teenager growing in Tennessee attending rock shows—from sweaty punk affairs to lit-up arena performances. "Almost every band is connected to some part of my past," he says. "I never imagined I'd be doing this."

Galyon's Southern drawl is still thick, but his connection to the Pacific Northwest is not so distant. He moved to Portland from Kingston in 1999 and lived here until 2003 (he also did a short stint in 2007)—years during which he worked at Dante's and went to plenty of rock shows. Galyon has spent the last few years in Austin, Texas, where he started American Icon, which specializes in vintage rock tees. From there he's expanded the company to include a record label, and now a series of small festivals, including a SXSW showcase called Heavy Metal Parking Lot.

It seemed only a matter of time before Galyon would do something in Portland. In addition to bands like Pentagram and Acid King, North West Hesh Fest—his first production here—includes plenty of local heavies and rock 'n' rollers, including Sons of Huns, P.R.O.B.L.E.M.S. and Dead Moon. "To me Fred Cole is up there with Johnny Cash," says Galyon. "He's a great American songwriter who did everything from scratch."

He knows what he's talking about. Here's a rundown of what to expect from Hesh Fest.

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