Sound Stories & Interviews

Mop tops welcome. A close friend of mine once wrote - in delicate cursive handwriting
nonetheless - that the fact that the Beatles ever existed is remarkable
in and of itself. The author, now a Ph. D. candidate in classics at the
University of Pennsylvania, asserted that the notion of four so
ahead-of-their-time musicians (well, three really - we all know that
Ringo doesn't count) living in the same working-class town at the same
time is on plane with sorcery. And, the fact that they came together to
form a band, as my Ivy League comrade insists, is nothing short of a
sign of divine intervention.

Volumes have been written on the
Beatles. Some have gone as far as to claim the band's music is more
spiritual than some religious texts and others have used the band as a
backdrop for the cultural rift created by the 1960s. Even with all of
this having been written, there are actually people who don't like the
Beatles. Seriously, there are people who just plain don't like the
Beatles. Just as I don't like Dane Cook, or Bud Light, or NBA
officiating, some people don't like the Beatles. But most people do
which, too, might be just as strange when you consider that the band
hasn't been playing together for almost 40 years.

Tuck and Roll, the lighter side of the Music is Life Show.There's something about large-scale gatherings of local music that gets
us a little giddy. Last month, there was the Source's Seven for Seven
show at the Old Stone that brought together a genre-crossing mix of
bands to the stage for a night of eclectic fun. And it's pleasing to
see the trend continuing as the harder rocking bands join forces this
weekend for the Music is Life Concert.

It wouldn't be a local
collaborative show, of course, if Larry and His Flask wasn't on the
bill, which they are. And we're not complaining about that. We're
delighted, in fact, that the road-hardened "hardcore folkies"
(apparently that is a classification, as the band has previously used
it to describe themselves) but further enthused by the rest of the
loud-leaning acts on the bill.

Laurel Brauns and the Sweet Harlots are just one act to catch on your musical stroll through downtown.We've had art walks in this town for a long while now. You know, the
casual strolling of downtown, stopping on street corners to chat it up
with friends in your most stylish duds before plunging into the next
business, one eye on whatever artistic endeavors adorn the walls and
the other searching for the free wine that for some is as much an
attraction as the artwork itself.

The art walks have served as an
easy, one-stop-shopping approach to local art appreciation and social
who's-whoing. For local music, however, it hasn't been so simple to get
such a quick and diverse sampling of the area's talents. But Dillon
Schneider, executive director of the Cascade Community School of Music
had an idea of how to do just that, while also giving a sizeable chunk
of Bend's less-experienced musicians a chance to play in public.

Mirrors, Water and Bodies.Reinventing one's self is tough. Just ask Michael Vick.

But for a
band, it's not always that hard. There're myriad acts that have
disappeared for a bit, then returned, sometimes triumphantly, sometimes
not, with a new look and sound. Radiohead, of course, did it. And so
did Fleetwood Mac back in the day.
For Water & Bodies, the
reinvention is a little more complex than simply rolling out a new
mission statement. The Portland band, two members of which are Bend
natives, is essentially the same lineup as the indie and slightly emo
rock band Kaddisfly, who maintained a steady and loyal following for
much of the past decade. But after bassist Kile Brewster left the band
over the winter, the remaining four members decided to put the
Kaddisfly name and sound to bed. And thus was Water & Bodies born.

A whole lotta knobs and a whole lotta dreads.By the time I wrap up my interview with Heavyweight Dub Champion's
Resurrector - my second in two and a half years - I'm a little worn
out. And a little curious, as well as a bit angry and slightly inspired.

I'm
not pissed off or inspired necessarily by Resurrector or his band or
its elaborately constructed new record, Rise of the Champion Nation,
but just generally overwhelmed by the sociology lesson I've just
absorbed and further curious about some simple things Resurrector has
told me about how the world works, including, but not limited to the
swine flu hysteria of 2009. Remember that? Roll back your Twitter log a
few weeks and you'll find it there in your friend's then supposedly
reasonable fears of collapsing in the streets along with the rest of
humanity.
As HDC's producer and ringleader, Resurrector (real
name: Grant Chambers) enjoys discussing the San Francisco collective,
which sounds something like hip-hop colliding with dub inside the eye
of an electronica hurricane, and its philosophy as much as it is music.
The overarching idea: "To lift the veil of perception." HDC is all
about conveying an ultimate message, and not in the way that Michael
Franti is trying to deliver a message. In fact, HDC's devotion to its
message makes Franti seem as trivial as Katy Perry and her penchant for
same-sex kissing.

And that's just the side stage. Yup, Sasquatch is a pretty big deal.The wait is finally over for the most anticipated music festival in the
Northwest. Hope you got your tickets early because Saturday and Sunday
are both sold out!

Sasquatch starts the weekend off with a big bang
at the Gorge Amphitheater. The Decemberists, Animal Collective,
Devotchka and Mos Def are among the artists kicking off the festival on
Saturday. The biggest acts of the night will be headliners Kings of
Leon and Yeah Yeah Yeahs. Kings of Leon are touring in support of their
latest album Only By The Night. No doubt, on Saturday you'll be able to
catch their irresistible single "Sex on Fire." I am kicking myself for
not getting tickets, solely for the Yeah Yeah Yeahs. Be sure to bring
your dancing shoes because Karen O and the boys will have you grooving
to the beats of their latest album It's Blitz! So, don't be a "Zero"
and miss this performance because "Heads Will Roll."

Larry lays it on the line. It could be argued, and argued quite convincingly, that there is no harder touring band in Central Oregon than Larry and His Flask. Even before the Redmond-based outfit went from a hard-driving punk outfit to a gang of raucous Americana pranksters, these often-grizzly looking gentlemen were rampaging across the country (as well as Canada and Mexico) sometimes leaving home for months at a time.

From the crowd, all we see is the band take the stage, play its set, perhaps tell a few humorous stories in between cuts, wrap up the show and then they're gone - out of our consciousness until the bus (or van) rolls into town the next time around. But for a band like Larry and His Flask, there is much more that goes into touring than simply playing a string of shows. There's also, of course, a whole lot of driving. And there're also some wild cards that are sure to be dealt the band's way.
And LAHF hasn't been without its share of wildcards during its recent touring days. From jail cells to sleeping on dirty floors to playing street corners for extra cash - LAHF has seen it all.