I’ve never seen Widespread Panic live, but apparently that’s the only way to really experience what they’ve got going on. Like Phish or the Grateful Dead, Widespread Panic’s music is more complex than the average jam band and the sound is just as playful and digressive. According to guitarist/singer John Bell, they never play the […]
Bend OR Music
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Persistence Pays Off for The Receiver
It shouldn’t be this hard to sell music
The Receiver, a synth-pop-centered duo from Columbus, Ohio, had to go quite a ways to get a stalled career restarted: all the way to England, in fact. Things got off to a reasonable enough start when brothers Casey Cooper (vocals/keyboards/bass) and Jesse Cooper (drums/vocals) started out a decade ago as The Receiver. Signed to a […]
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All Stars
The return of Smash Mouth
Smash Mouth came on the scene in 1997 with the album “Fush Yu Mang,” which is the noise you make make while screaming expletives at the person that just smashed your mouth. With that album, the San Jose, Calif.-based band jumpstarted a resurging Ska craze almost single-handedly, becoming totemic to the idea of a “Summer […]
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Ben Harper Returns to Les Schwab Amphitheater
It took seven years for Ben Harper to reunite with the Innocent Criminals, and he says in making “Call It What It Is,” his new album with his long-time band, there was a fundamental change in the dynamic. More than ever, billing “Call It What It Is” as a Ben Harper and the Innocent Criminals […]
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The Great Outdoors
4 Peaks returns to Central Oregon
Central Oregon plays host to many events: tons of live music, all kinds of outdoor activities and a steady plethora of festivals, block parties and outdoor markets. If there were something missing from our High Desert oasis (other than, you know, affordable housing), it would be a massive, weekend-long music festival with camping, food and […]
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“The Tides”
Raman Ellis
“The Tides” is the first album put out by the Sisters-spawned group called Raman Ellis. The album is 11 tracks of Americana-folk style music that is both familiar and appealing to those living in Central Oregon. Produced in Sisters by Brent Alan Studios, this album was released in 2015. This month the band will be […]
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Slightly Spectacular
Slightly Stoopid comes to the Les Schwab Amphitheater
The band Slightly Stoopid has been around for literally decades. Their creative sound is an energetic fusion of reggae, punk, hip-hop, folk, jazz and whatever else they feel like bringing to the mix. Often compared to the legendary group Sublime, this Southern California-born band has made a name for itself across the globe and will […]
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Stephen Marley’s Roots in Rasta
Bob and Rita’s second son delivers “The Fruits of Life”
Some roots in music reach deeper than others. Some have strong ties that burrow just under the surface, but for Stephen Marley, his roots in music would be the envy of any cotton tree in Jamaica. Stephen Marley is the second eldest son of Bob Marley and Rita Marley, but he is by no means […]