Sahel Sounds For the better part of a decade, Christopher Kirkley has been a conduit, funneling the music of West Africa to the rest of the world through his record label Sahel Sounds. It’s been a passion project for the Portland native, fueled by his love of the music from Mali and Niger, and a […]
Robert Ham
Robert Ham is the Mercury's former Copy Chief. He writes regularly about music, film, arts, sports, and tech. He lives semi-consciously in far SE Portland with his wife, child, and four ornery cats.
Posted inBooks
Multnomah County Libraries to Start No-Contact Pickup Service on June 8
Multnomah County Library Multnomah County Library announced today that they will begin no-contact, appointment-only pickup of reserved materials starting on June 8. The rollout for this new service will start with just four library branches—Central, Gresham, Midland, and North Portland—before expanding out to other locations through the month. Also, on June 8, all Multnomah County […]
Posted inMusic
Checking Up On… Portland Musician/Artist/Time Traveler Old Grape God
Old Grape God courtesy of the artist The artist and musician known as Old Grape God has a thing about time travel. Time Travel was the name of the series of mixtapes he released last year—one for each month of 2019. And he still sells what he dubs “Time Travel Supplies” on his website, which […]
Posted inMovies & TV
The End Might Be Near for Clinton Street Theater
Clinton St. Theater Instagram The Clinton Street Theater, the moviehouse and performance space that has occupied a corner of SE Clinton for over a century, could be facing permanent closure. In a newsletter sent out to email subscribers today, Clinton Street co-owner Lani Jo Leigh admitted that the longer the coronavirus pandemic carries on, the […]
Posted inMusic
Checking Up On… Bryson the Alien
Bryson The Alien Jenni Moore If you’re still wondering what effects the pandemic might have on the global creative community, consider the current fate of Bryson The Alien. The 28-year-old rapper/producer has been making the most of the shelter-at-home order, using his new surplus of free time to polish up and release a bevy of […]
Posted inComedy
Kickstand Comedy Finds New Solutions During COVID-19
Chelsea Petrakis The owners of every space where people gather have been refreshing their newsfeeds on the regular in recent weeks as the state slowly starts to reopen, wondering when and how they’ll be able to resume normal business. In this respect, Kickstand Comedy, the nonprofit theater that took over the Brody Theater downtown last […]
Posted inVisual Art
RACC and Nat Turner Project Offer a Lifeline to Regional Artists
Naomi Shigeta’s All the World’s a Stage RACC As artists of all stripes continue to adjust to the reality of this pandemic and the impact it has had on their ability to create and earn a living from their work, two local arts organizations are stepping up with offers of financial help. Both the Regional […]
Posted inFood and Drink
Verde Cocina to Close Pearl District Location
Verda Cocina Verde Cocina, the locally-owned market and café chain that serves up super-fresh and super-healthy Mexican fare, will be closing their location in the Pearl District on Sunday, May 24. In a press release, owners Anna and Noé Garnica cite the effects of the coronavirus pandemic on the decision to shut down this location, […]
Posted inBooks
Powell’s Books to Offer Contact-Free Store Pickup
Powell’s Books K marie Bibliophiles now have a new option to snag the latest Erik Larson novel in person, as beloved Portland institution Powell’s Books is finally offering customers the option of contact-free pickup at the store’s Burnside location, starting today. As the renowned bookseller announced on its website, you can now choose to stop […]
Posted inMusic
New Music from Portland Artists Sheltering at Home
Portland’s music community has always been an agile one, adapting easily to changes in technology and weathering the mercurial state of their personal and financial lives. So as difficult as it is to have every venue in town shuttered until at least the end of September and not being able to make some noise with […]
Posted inFood and Drink
Feast Portland 2020 Officially Canceled
Feast Portland, the annual celebration of food and drink that was set to take place this coming September, has been canceled. In an announcement posted to Feast’s social media accounts, organizers said that they were holding out hope that the 2020 edition of the event would happen, but, as they write, “the recent announcement by […]
Posted inMusic
Pickathon’s Founder on Cancelling the Festival and the Policy Surrounding Refunds
photo by Jason Redmond Until last Thursday, May 7, Pickathon 2020 was set to go on as planned. The local music festival had already been slowly rolling out its 2020 lineup, which included avant pop ensemble Vanishing Twin, jazz trumpeter Jaimie Branch, and Seattle roots band Western Centuries. And, in the midst of the pandemic, […]