I can’t justify my actions on July 13, 2002. I will say that it was swelteringly hot that Portland summer evening, and whatever temperature it was outside was no match for the stagnant heat of the Meow Meow, a venue known for a lot of things, fresh air circulation not being one of them. I […]
Ezra Ace Caraeff
Ezra Ace Caraeff is the former Music Editor for the Mercury, and spent nearly a third of his life working at the paper. More importantly, he is the owner of Olive, the Mercury’s unofficial office dog. His writing has appeared in The Fader, The Stranger, The Onion's A.V. Club, ESPN's TrueHoop network, and countless fanzines that are thankfully long out of print. He makes a mean tofu scramble and yes, Ace is really his middle name.
Posted inMusic
Success in Failure
Poppa Wainwright
Loudon Wainwright III is an economic failure. Over the past 37 years, no less than a dozen record labels (some as large as Atlantic and Columbia, others as small as Hannibal or Red House) have invested in this singer/songwriter, trying to mold his talent into gold records to hang proudly from their walls. They failed. […]
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Once More with Feeling
Planes Mistaken for Stars
A few weeks from now, Planes Mistaken for Stars will be no more. The Denver band—known more for their unfortunate moniker than their penchant for riotous live shows—is hanging it up for good after a decade of debauched performances and overlooked recordings. Formed in Peoria, Illinois (a city with a hilarious, salt-of-the-earth motto: “See how […]
Posted inFeature
College Survival Guide
How to Score, Get Good Grades, and Become Rich!
Pullout: Back to School 2007
Posted inUncategorized
Coincidentally Vegan
Nutshell Is What it Is
Simply put, Nutshell is defined by what it serves, not what it doesn’t. It seems that most vegan and vegetarian restaurants bow to an unseen pressure to do whatever it takes to make their key ingredients taste as close to meat as possible. Granted, faux-meat dishes can be fun, and a handy method to help […]
Posted inMusic
Once More with Feeling
Lifetime
The first time I saw Lifetime it was one of those magical events that could only happen to a teenager at an all-ages show. It was a night of friendship, burgeoning romance, and standing so close to the speakers that my chest rattled with every bass line and my eyes blinked in unison with the […]
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Real Genius
The High Water Mark of Praise for Okkervil River
If you read the word “genius” enough times in the bevy of glorious praise thrust at Okkervil River songwriter/singer Will Sheff, you might actually believe it to be true. Granted, it’s a tag that wields much heft—in addition to unrealistically lofty expectations and a songwriting bar set to Dylanesque heights—but with Sheff, the word just […]
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Death to Safe Music
And Long Live Halleluwah
In the peak days of the precious Portland summer, when the entire city seems to open up, there is never an excuse not to have a music festival. Whether it is an inspiring nonprofit salute to our local music scene (PDX Pop Now!), a DIY feminist punk/metal gathering (BABE Fest) or an event sponsored by […]
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Once More with Feeling
Deer or the Doe
Deer or the Doe came together in the spring of 2006, when former members of well-received local bands Spiders on Spiders and Curse of the Carousel Pony joined forces to create a more pop-oriented musical output than their former endeavors. The band recently wrapped up recording their debut full-length, Go to Sleep Quit Listening, and […]
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The People’s Junkyard Band
The Builders and the Butchers + Everyone Else
The original intention of the Builders and the Butchers was to make funeral music, but on the way to the cemetery something changed. Instead of heads hanging low and mournful elegies to the deceased, this local ensemble turned the funeral plot into a graveside party by way of the junkyard. Liberally grabbing from bluegrass, country, […]
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Once More with Feeling
Mickey Avalon
First and foremost, it needs to be said that the music of Mickey Avalon is an absolute atrocity—the single worst thing to happen to hiphop since someone put four bullets in the body of Tupac Shakur. The Jesse Camp of hiphop (but without the 8th Street Kidz), Avalon is an overnight sensation of worthless hype […]
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Turn On, Tune In, Drop Out, Reunite
The Return of The Strawberry Alarm Clock
If you need to pinpoint the exact moment the Summer of Love took hold—the pinnacle of flower power’s bloom—you should look no further than the time in 1967 when the playful psychedelia of the Strawberry Alarm Clock topped the charts with “Incense and Peppermints,” the hit single from the album of the same name. A […]