Sound Stories & Interviews

Listen to enough bluegrass and you’ll be Living in a Band down by the River.The first time I saw Yonder Mountain String Band was at Portland's Roseland Theater in 1999. They were opening for Leftover Salmon in a room that seemed much too large for their acoustic instruments, and I remember the band's infectious enthusiasm was hitting my group of friends at the back of the room with full-force.
We were all blown away, and after their show, when we spied mandolin player Jeff Austin standing near the bar we decided to introduce ourselves. It was a forgettable meeting, to say the least, as we practically threw ourselves at the poor guy, telling him how "awesome" we thought the band sounded.
It would be another two years before I had the chance to see Yonder Mountain perform again, this time on the East Coast in Asheville, N.C. at a little rock n' roll dive called Stella Blue's. This time, we caught Jeff in front of the venue a couple of hours before show time. He was on a payphone, and we boisterously approached him, not even considering he might want some privacy for the phone call.

You don't see punk faces like that these days.The Subhumans have been pushing buttons for a quarter century, letting their frustrations with the world loose on stage while challenging audiences to rethink their values. The guitar riffs are infectious, the bass lines are distinctive, and the beats are furious, keeping new generations interested in the band's music. Singer and lyricist Dick Lucas (although he prefers just Dick), with his thick accent and British slang, still has something to say that's worth hearing - a rarity in punk rock these days.
 
The band has taken its share of time off from the music scene, twelve years in fact. But almost a decade since recording their last full-length studio album, Dick, Bruce, Phil, and Trotsky kicked out another disc, fittingly dubbed Internal Riot. The sound on the album is the continuation of the youthful energy and political discontent that fueled the Subhumans more than twenty years ago. Though the entire new album was recorded last year in a matter of 10 days, much of that music was written a good 20 years ago. The West Coast tour promoting the new album, which was released just this past August on the band's D.I.Y. label, Blurrg, stops Saturday night at the Domino Room. But before they show up, we thought we'd get a few words from Dick.

Such a nice looking boy, that Jackie Greene.Jackie Greene's electrified Americana sound has led many listeners to assume that the music is being made by a man much older than Greene's 27 years. It's been that way since he snuck onto the scene about a half decade ago. His music incorporates styles that became popular long before his birth, and his new association with the Grateful Dead empire suggests deeply rooted associations with legendary musicians.
 
A few days before his new record, Giving up the Ghost, hit the streets, Greene shied away from remarks about his age, which he's faced most of his career. But he doesn't mind talking about his new album - a record that's receiving warm reviews and being hailed as a positive step forward for the emerging star. Tracks from Ghost, like "Shaken" have a modern, Ryan Adams-like feel that are at the same time wrapped in a classic Jackson Browne model. Greene doesn't see the inclusion of these 1970s tastes as intentional or a conscious departure from his earlier work.

Free to be you and me.There's no shortage o' Bendites who make the pilgrimage to Nevada's Burning Man Festival each summer. And those who head south for a few days of mind expansion and desert wandering during the festival likely have come across the tunes of Albino! (Note: We don't mean to scream that sentence at you, the San Francisco-based band uses the exclamation point in their official title.) And, for all those who shy away from the Burning Man scene, Albino! is bringing its world beats to the streets this spring.
The 12-piece Afrobeat ensemble frequents festivals across the country and is known for its high-energy tracks and exhilarating live shows. Albino! is currently on tour to promote the release of a new live album featuring saxophonist Karl Denson (the same Karl D who recently jammed in Bend with the Greyboy Allstars).

A long way from alice’s restaurant.Legendary folk hero and activist Arlo Guthrie is coming to town to play a benefit for KPOV (106.7 FM), and we wanted just a bit of his time, say ten minutes or so to catch up with him - and he gave us almost half an hour, and probably would have stayed on the line for half the day if we asked kindly. Here's a look at what he had to say about his music, the music of others, and everything else in between.
Looks like you're on the road for a while now?
Jeez, it's going into next year and beyond, so it's getting a little nuts. Where are you calling me from again?
Bend, Oregon.
Oh, Bend. We're looking forward to getting up there.

A rare shot of the Buckethead species (kentuckyfriedus bucketenius) in its natural environment.

There are really only a few things we know for sure about Buckethead. One: he wears a bucket on his head. Two: he doesn’t do interviews and if he does he provides largely nonsensical answers by way of a demented hand puppet. Three: He can play the shit out of a guitar. Buckethead is also the man behind the song “Jordan” which is largely considered one of the most difficult tracks to play on “Guitar Hero.” In addition to his new fame within the ever-expanding “Guitar Hero” stratosphere, Buckethead has long been respected by fans of metal as well as funk, and many styles in between. He’s a true student of the axe and also wields a pretty mean pair of nun chucks – but more on that later.

The real life men of the Greyboy allstars.The Muppets have always creeped me out. But if you turn the Greyboy
Allstars, the rejuvenated San Diego funky, jazzy boogaloo band, into
fuzzy puppets, then I can cope, as long as they bring the funk.

The
band's video for their James Brown-flavored track "Still Waiting"
features the Greyboys onstage in a juke joint, each member somewhat
accurately depicted in Muppet form. Without a live actor in sight, the
Muppeted men of GBA rip through the funk-laden track with the
representation of saxophonist/vocalist Karl Denson leading the way as a
dancefloor of fellow fuzzy figures dance their fake little asses off.