courtesy of Jupiter Hotel A Portland hotel is offering help to small local businesses preparing to reopen. The new rules that will apply to those Oregon counties that get the go-ahead to enter Phase One of Gov. Kate Brown’s reopening plan could wind up leaving some workers scrambling for space to do their jobs. Per […]
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 inTheater & Performance
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time at Portland Center Stage: Tears Within the First Ten Minutes
OWEN CAREY Author Mark Haddon doesn’t diagnose the main character of his breakthrough 2003 novel, A Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, as being autistic. But the way he captures the voice of Christopher, a young man with rigid routines and unflagging honesty whose entire conception of the world comes apart, puts readers […]
Posted inMusic
EMA, Alien Boy, and Other Local Artists Speak on How Bikini Kill Inspired Them
The return of Bikini Kill is a big fucking deal.
Posted inFood and Drink
Portland’s Top Unusual Mixed Drinks
One of the best parts about living in a city with a small army of mixologists is getting to sample an array of cocktails that go far beyond what David Embury famously dubbed the “six basic drinks”: the daiquiri, Jack Rose, Manhattan, martini, old fashioned, and sidecar. This explosion in innovation has wandered into some […]
Posted inArts
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time Review: Jamie Sanders’ Portrayal of an Autistic Boy Brings Tears
It’s proper to cry at the theater.
Posted inMusic
Type Foundry Studios Closes Its Doors After 22 Years of Capturing the Sound of Portland
courtesy of Type Foundry The normally spacious live room at Type Foundry Studios is a mess. Audio equipment, instruments, shelving units, and chairs are strewn about, much of it ready to be hauled away by prospective buyers or the three men—Adam Selzer, Jason Powers, and Dylan Magierek—taking stock of it all as they get ready […]
Posted inMusic
R.E.M.’s Peter Buck on His New Album, Working with Eyelids, and the Universal Fire
Peter Buck courtesy of the artist If you go to enough concerts in Portland, you likely have a story of Peter Buck making an unannounced cameo onstage, playing guitar or bass with a friend or band that he’s tight with. He did that last Saturday when Eyelids, the psych-pop group whose last two albums he […]
Posted inMusic
Record Review: Stephen Malkmus, Traditional Techniques
MATADOR RECORDS Stephen Malkmus has reached rarefied air. The frontman for Pavement and the Jicks has reached a level of renown that allows him to follow whatever musical whim he might have. Last year that meant forcing fans to drink an astringent dose of laptop-constructed electronic whimsy with his first full-fledged solo effort Groove Denied. […]
Posted inMusic
Noise-Rock Quartet Sleetmute Nightmute Looks Back (Somewhat) Fondly
Sleetmute Nightmute ca. 2002 An easy thing for a music fan to forget is how rare it is for a band to stay together. Bad Religion, the Decemberists, Green Day… these are anomalies. Most groups fizzle out or burn bright and fast before imploding. And most of those are forgotten about entirely. That’s what makes […]
Posted inMusic
Artist Suzy Poling Brings Her Modern Electronic Project Pod Blotz to S1 Gallery
Pod Blotz Derek Rush The year isn’t even two months old yet, but there have already been some serious contenders for the best album of 2020. High on my personal list is Transdimensional System, a stunning work from multimedia artist Suzy Poling, recorded under the name Pod Blotz. The album, recorded for Dais Records, falls […]
Posted inMusic
Press Play: Music News for the Week of February 28
Luz Elena Mendoza courtesy of the artist Another week, another pile of music news for you to sort through. So let’s not waste another minute. Press play! Luz Elena Mendoza of Y La Bamba just announced she will be performing a series of shows with the Camas High School Choir this spring. You may remember […]
Posted inMovies & TV
Smart and Ultraviolent, The Invisible Man Will Leave You Reeling
Mark Rogers/Universal Pictures Film students and theorists are going to be studying the career of writer/director Leigh Whannell for decades, trying to suss out how this young Australian has mined piles of gold from high-concept but low-budget popcorn fare. Whannell’s been responsible for bringing two hugely successful horror franchises into the world—the sagas of Saw […]