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Emmanuel Cairo

We've been awfully lucky to host monthly highlights from Portland's Pickathon festival with our ongoing Starlight Series, which features standout performances from the most recent installation of the festival. But today's video is something really special indeedā€”perhaps the single most personally electrifying moment that I've experienced in (my god) 10 years of attending the festival. I don't know if every last ounce of its magic translates to video, but I'm very pleased to be sharing it all the same.

During their second visit to Pickathon last summer, English rock band Wolf People played a triumphant, howling set on the Starlight Stage. But it kicked into a stratospheric level when guitarist Reine Fiske of Swedish band Dungen joined them for an extended rendition of "All Returns" that became a triple-dervish of fretwork and riffage. Perhaps the best part was seeing the big grins on Wolf People's faces as one of their legitimate heroes and inspirations happily entered their tangled scrum of guitars, and seeing all five musicians improvise the lengthy jam at the end is something pretty wonderful to behold.

This is just one of the many great things about the Pickathon festivalā€”there are collaborations and one-offs that you simply can't see anywhere else. Wolf People with Reine Fiske was a pretty unforgettable experience for those who witnessed it last year, and this year is sure to afford similar opportunities for spontaneous moments of magic. The festival recently announced some new additions to its lineup, including Shovels and Rope, Sheer Mag, Sunflower Bean, I'm with Her, Rasheed Jamal, and others, so head over to Pickathon's site for the full lineup and to get tickets for this summer's fest.

Check out previous episodes of our ongoing Pickathon Starlight Series:
ā€¢ Episode 1: Marlon Williams
ā€¢ Episode 2: Brent Cobb
ā€¢ Episode 3: Huun-Huur-Tu
ā€¢ Episode 4: William Tyler
ā€¢ Episode 5: Jalen N'Gonda
ā€¢ Episode 6: The Last Artful, Dodgr