Sound Stories & Interviews

Galaxie 500
Today
Released 1988

Galaxie 500's debut, Today, is the sum of an odd confluence of events that conspired to make a genius record. The Boston trio of school friends formed in 1986 with Naomi Yang (who was just learning the bass) and a sound that was atypical relative to the scene at the time. But with the guidance of famed underground rock producer Kramer, Today was released as a solid marker that the band had arrived.

A few years ago, Jason Beard found himself in his garage late at night as Pink Floyd's Dark Side of the Moon played in the background. This really isn't unique – 30 percent of American males have probably been privy to a late-night Dark Side garage session. But what happened next is where things get interesting. Surrounded by recording equipment and instruments, Beard picked up his mandolin and started playing along. It's an odd marriage – the congress off a bluegrassy instrument and rock's seminal piece of psychedlia – but it worked for Beard, a founding member of Bay Area genre-smashers Poor Man's Whiskey, and by morning he'd outlined a bluegrass adaptation of the album.

Going to see guitarist/songwriter Leo Kottke perform live is a lot like walking downstairs on Christmas morning and seeing all of the brightly wrapped presents under the tree – you'll receive several gifts you expected, some flat-out surprises and a few more that make everyone in the room glance at each other with beaming smiles.
Kottke, whose personal life is as ambiguous as his chord phrasings, doesn't give many interviews, but he talked to the Source via e-mail about his long career and his recent exposure to a younger audience.

No, it's not a covers record. Nor is it a greatest hits collection. In fact, you may not know Yo La Tengo yet. Well, here's the quick rundown. The Hoboken trio has been twisting the alt-rock genre since 1984 and are heralded by critics and underground rock fans for their ability to create often catchy yet strangely unpredictable songs.
Popular Songs, their 14th studio album, is a fine representation of the group's skill in penning songs with incredible depth. “Here to Fall” opens the record as a perfect example of said depth. From quiet beginnings, the song builds a complex layer of dreamscape melody packed with a bunch of interesting instrumentation. By contrast, the super-catchy “Nothing to Hide” is one of those tracks that in my ideal world would be played all over mainstream radio. “When It's Dark” is a wonderfully easygoing acoustic-based tune that a Wilco fan might dig. Completing their overtly dynamic range is “If It's True” which uses Hammond organ as a backbone and clean string section to deliver a tight thoughtful pop song.

At the Bend Roots Revival a couple weeks back, the sun was starting to set and the crowd at the Victorian Café grew steadily as curious onlookers tried to get a better view, and perhaps more dancing space, as by far the most bizarre act of the weekend cranked away on the stage.
The act was a trio called Ruins of Ooah and it doesn't have a guitar player, or a bass player or keyboardist. There's no horn section or turntables or any of that fare. It's just your typical didjeridu, harmonica and drums collective… not that this is typical by any means. Tyler Spencer, a local didjeridu maker (that's a typical profession, right?) leads the act, which also includes Justus Williams on harmonica and Adam Bushey on drums, both of whom are based out of Eugene and once accompanied Spencer in that city's jam band of record, Reeble Jar.

The Avett Brothers aren't trying to impress you with their new record, I and Love and You. The bluegrass/folk rock trio has garnered an enthusiastic following over the last few years, and this record, their first on a major label, is one that could be a watershed disc for them. But I and Love and You is a girl-next-door kind of record – quirky and lovely, infectious, even, but unassuming. It has lush harmonies, quotable lyrics, and grown-up arrangements, but the Avett Brothers remain true to their folk roots in the mood of the record, a back-porch-with-a-PBR kind of sound.

“You don't see Clark Kent and Superman at the same time, do you?” asks Karl Denson from his home in San Diego, the city where he's lived for the past 15 years.
He's talking about the difference between the saxophone and flute master's two bands, the Greyboy Allstars and Karl Denson's Tiny Universe, the latter of which is coming to Bend this weekend and has also just released its first full-length record in seven years. Denson's name is always associated not only with the jazz, blues and funk genres, but he also pulls some weight in the jam band and dance club circuits, with both Greyboy and his Tiny Universe playing well in all of those camps.