Al Pachino said it in Scarface: “I always tell the truth; even when I lie.” For some reason, Nova Scotia hip-hop artist Buck 65—born Richard Terfry—lives that quote out each time he’s asked him where he got his stage name. His responses are so quick and packed with so much detail, he oozes authenticity. In […]
On Stage
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Wired to be Vulnerable
Acoustic Americana archetype Matt the Electrician is an open book
A song portraying the very personal struggles a spouse goes through when losing a parent is about as forthright as one can get with their musical craft. And that’s just what listeners get with woodsy Austin singer/songwriter Matt Sever, aka Matt the Electrician: the hard truth. Rather than shroud such events in metaphor and vague […]
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Folk in the Firs
The Sisters Folk Festival is Bend’s biggest backyard party
Music festival heritage in Central Oregon goes back a long time. Nearly two decades, before the big population explosion; for nearly half the population here—the ones who moved during the go-go years, it may seem as if Sisters Folk Festival has always been here. Nope, just since the mid-90s. But ever since 1995, the Sisters […]
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Listen Local
Longtime Bend rapper Jay Tablet blazes anew with solo effort
Bend’s music scene doesn’t produce a lot of hip-hop; but when it does, look out, because it’s dope. (That’s how the kids say it, right? Dope?) Case in point: the sophomore album from Jay Tablet (Jay Tab for short). Tablet is known for an extensive list of collaborations in Bend. Most notably as the duo […]
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For the People, By the People
Bend Roots Festival is back and needs the community’s help
Ever since the cancellation of last year’s Bend Roots Revival at Century Center, organizers of the arts and music festival have been in problem-solving mode. This spring, that work paid off with the announcement that the popular event would return in 2013 with a serendipitous new venue and a new look in September. Pakit Liquidators […]
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On Demand
How a sitcom landed singer-songwriter Joshua Radin a career in music
A famous friend with connections to the music industry is a good thing to have if you’re trying to launch a singer/songwriter career. The thing for Ohio-born Joshua Radin and his college buddy Zach Braff (“Scrubs”) is that the last thing Radin wanted was to be a musician. “I didn’t grow up playing music,” explained […]
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Vegetarians Rock
Cattle Decapitation is actually a call to keep your head on straight
If ever there was an indictment of the human race, the catalog of music from San Diego’s death grind band Cattle Decapitation certainly contributes greatly to it. Imagine humans treated as livestock. Imagine teeming hordes of uncivilized people engaged in morbid self-destruction; a sort of zombie apocalypse. That’s Cattle Decapitation’s thesis for where our species […]
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Ivory Whisperer
Ukranian piano genius Vadym Kholodenko in Sunriver
In a kind of World Cup for pianists, the Van Cliburn International Piano Competition in Fort Worth, Texas, crowns perhaps the planet’s very best every four years. In 2013 the best was Ukrainian-born and current Moscow P.I. Tchaikovsky Conservatory student Vadym Kholodenko. On Aug. 19, Kholodenko will grace the Historic Great Hall at Sunriver Resort […]
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A Gumbo of Swamp Sounds
Cedric Watson wraps up summer series
Yes, it is cliché to describe something from Southern Louisiana as “gumbo,” but it is also so, so apt. Gumbo, if I must explain, is a spicy stew made with seafood, meat, celery, onions and other root vegetables. Most important are the bitter okra leaves that draw together the dish. Likewise, Cedric Watson, an East […]
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Jumping Flea
Island music invades the High Desert
It’s a small guitar from a small island chain, but it’s responsible for an entire musical culture that transcended continental isolation. Yes, a ukulele. From July 19-21 an entire festival dedicated to the miniature instrument with a rich history will be held at Runway Ranch in Bend. Conventional historical thinking traces the instrument’s origin to […]