Eleven PDX Magazine September 2018 by Eleven PDX

MUSIC, COMMUNITY, AND CULTURE IN PORTLAND

ISSUE 88 | SEPT 2018

INSIDE: MOTHERS | THE JOY FORMIDABLE | BEAK> | THE WOOLEN MEN ELEVEN PDX MAGAZINE - VOLUME 8, ISSUE 4

COMPLIMENTARY

contents

ELEVEN PDX MAGAZINE VOLUME 8

THE USUAL 4 Letter from the Editor 4 Staff Credits

ISSUE NO. 4

FEATURES Local Feature 12 The Woolen Men

Cover Feature 16 NEW MUSIC

Big Thief

5 Aural Fix Blood Orange James Supercave Astronauts, Etc. Trevor Powers

COMMUNITY Meet Your Maker 24 Modular8's Phillip Berryhill & Steve Westbrook

8 Short List 8 Album Reviews Beak> The Joy Formidable Swamp Dogg Mothers

Literary Arts 26 Airstream Poetry Festival

Visual Arts 28 ArtHouse 23's JoAnne Gilles

LIVE MUSIC 10 Musicalendar An encompassing overview of concerts in PDX for the upcoming month. But that’s not all–the Musicalendar is complete with a venue map to help get you around town. more online at elevenpdx.com

HELLO PORTLAND! Dear readers, As the daylight hours become shorter and what seemed like endless sweaty, and unfortunately smokey, days turn back to the gray and gloom that we’re accustomed to, try not to fret the end of summer. Take full advantage of these last weeks of warmth, but embrace the onset of fall colors and coming winter months. This philosophy of living in the now is echoed through this month’s issue. In our Cover Feature, Big Thief front-woman Adrianne Lenker touches on the beauty in the mystery of not knowing what lies ahead, and staying in touch with the child part of herself–being curious and open to what unfolds. In our Local Feature, members of The Woolen Men touch on how music survives despite things shifting around in the local music community (old venues closing and new ones opening; bands dissolving or evolving into new projects), and that the music that’s currently happening in our city is perhaps the most interesting in the whole country. Until next month–continue going to shows and experiencing our wealth of musical culture while it still thrives.

EXECUTIVE STAFF EDITOR IN CHIEF Ryan Dornfeld (ryan@elevenpdx.com) CREATIVE DIRECTOR Dustin Mills (dustin@elevenpdx.com) MANAGING EDITOR Travis Leipzig (travis@elevenpdx.com)

SECTION EDITORS LITERARY ARTS: Scott McHale, Morgan Nicholson VISUAL ARTS: Mercy McNab

GRAPHIC DESIGN Dustin Mills

4 | ELEVEN PORTLAND | www.elevenpdx.com

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CONTRIBUTING WRITERS Laurel Bonfiglio, Brandy Crowe, Liz Garcia, Eirinn Gragson, Kelly Kovl, Ellis Samsara, Eric Swanson, Matthew Sweeney, Charles Trowbridge, Henry Whittier-Ferguson

PHOTOGRAPHERS Mathieu Lewis-Rolland, Molly Macalpine, Mercy McNab, Katie Summer, Todd Walberg

Dutifully yours,

- Travis Leipzig, Managing Editor

ONLINE Mark Dilson, Kim Lawson, Michael Reiersgaard

COVER PHOTO Shervin Lainez

ELEVEN WEST MEDIA GROUP, LLC Ryan Dornfeld Dustin Mills

SPECIAL THANKS Our local business partners who make this project possible. Our friends, families, associates, lovers, creators and haters. And of course, our city!

new music aural fix

AURAL FIX

up and coming music from the national scene

BLOOD ORANGE SEPTEMBER 16 | ROSELAND THEATER

Like his namesake, Blood Orange contains a duality, a pairing of colors, sweet fruit and violence. At its center stands the multi-talented British musician and producer Dev Hynes, surrounded by a plethora of artists and collaborators who’ve lent their talents to the project since its inception sometime around 2009. It wouldn’t be until 2011 that Hynes would

Photo by Nick Harwood

release the first single as Blood Orange, “Dinner,” a throwback to late ‘80s drum machines and sparse synth lines behind

be home on “Charcoal Baby,” and how to occupy a hostile space

Hynes’ ethereal voice.

in the intro to “Jewelry,” Negro Swan’s two singles.

It’s the voice that’s remained largely constant through four

The project is concerned primarily with confronting ideas

studio albums, the latest of which, Negro Swan, was released

about identity and sexuality and blackness, belonging and

August 24 of this year on Domino. Musically, Negro Swan finds

performing, and though its tone is certainly critical, it’s done

Blood Orange moving further into the realm of contemporary

with a kind of self-conscious understatedness, content to let

R&B, though still in its own genre-bending way, carving out a

the music speak where words fall short, and never losing sight

space between lines to live in.

of the inherent positivity that exists in any groove. Synths and

The album continues Hynes’s trend of using vocal

keys and guitar lines fall over one another in layers, voices

samples at the beginnings and ends of songs as a way of

come and go, and what’s left is a feeling like a color, or a taste,

contextualizing the music, and here the snippets of speech are

a sweet red, and the sharpness of citrus. »

all about that existence in spaces, discussing what it means to

Photo by Anastasia Velicescu

JAMES SUPERCAVE SEPTEMBER 18 | HOLOCENE

James Supercave could not fit into any box you want to put them in, even if they allowed you to. Whereas many bands today follow up the same genre-stream of what’s already working, the Echo Park-based psych-pop four-piece goes completely, and unapologetically, against that current. Take their track, “Get Over Yourself,” for example. So what sets them apart? It’s a combination of things, but most of all it’s frontman Joaquin Pastor’s meticulous and overwhelming attention to detail/borderline perfectionism and the band’s truthful messages via their lyrics. They

- Henry Whittier-Ferguson

aren’t pushing any agenda, they’re being themselves, which is a bold move in a world where being yourself isn’t always recommended by society. They are perfectly representing imperfect emotions through their music. Maybe it’s in part due to the fact that a strong sense of social and self-consciousness is shared among the LA group. Long before the 2016 release of their debut LP Better Strange, James Supercave had a devoted following. Leading up to the release of their debut record, the guys had already been touring and supporting acts such as Warpaint and Future Islands, as well as working with Gus Seyffert, who has produced and engineered artists like Beck and Michael Kiwanuka. As if their music wasn’t enough already, the creativity and quality of their music videos adds another intricate layer to their work. Their videos play off of their truthful themes. “The Right Thing,” and title-track “Better Strange” both scream to listeners that being yourself may not be the easiest thing or the mainstream thing to do, but you will feel a refreshing sense of liberation when you do finally let go of social expectations and allow yourself to be, dare I say, weird. With a new single, “Something To Lose,” out earlier this year and a (late) summer tour in effect this September, it’s safe to say we’ve got a lot more to look forward to from James Supercave. » - Liz Garcia

www.elevenpdx.com | ELEVEN PORTLAND | 5

new music aural fix

ASTRONAUTS, ETC.

Photo by Brendan Nakahara

SEPTEMBER 22 | JACK LONDON To say that Anthony Ferraro’s style is retro would be somewhat of a fallacy. Ferraro, who records music under the name, Astronauts, etc., is more like someone who was put in a time capsule that was reopened in the 21st century. No, Ferraro’s style isn’t retro, it’s just from another time, as is Ferraro. Perhaps his anachronistic aesthetic comes from his classical piano background. Now, Ferraro is a pop arranger based in Oakland. In addition to his solo career, he is a keyboardist for Toro y Moi. So it is no surprise that Chaz Bundick, of Toro y Moi, produced the latest Astronaut, etc. album, Living In Symbol, and released via Bundick’s own label, Company Records, in July. Living In Symbol is a smooth, funky and ornate work. It makes sense considering who the producer is. However, even more so because Ferraro drew inspiration from Latin psychedelia and orchestral arrangements from David Axelrod. “Kelly on the Moon” could blend in perfectly on Axelrod’s 1968 album, Song of Innocence. Yes, you are going to feel like you are listening underwater by the end of the track. “Stray Observations” has the most psychedelic flare and is the most Toro y Moi-esque, which is a very important distinction to be made, because while Bundick elevated (or more like,

6 | ELEVEN PORTLAND | www.elevenpdx.com

levitated) the album’s sound, Living In Symbol is Ferraro’s very own masterpiece. There is something so elegant yet simplistic about the strings instrumental on “The Border.” Together with the funky guitar hook, a glitzy combination is created. Moreover, watch the video for “The Border,” and try arguing that Ferraro isn’t from another time. Really, it's impossible. The video, which Ferraro directed himself, features himself playing multiple instruments in a house that time has forgotten, and all through a lens of blue and red fuzziness. If someone handed me a vinyl copy of Living In Symbol and told me they found it in their grandpa’s attic, I’d believe them. » - Liz Garcia

new music aural fix Photo by Chris Schoonover

9/1 LET’S EAT GRANDMA ODETTA HARTMAN 9/4 FLOATING ROOM BABEHOVEN LAYPERSON 9/5 PACIFIC DUB 9/6 JOEY DOSIK

TREVOR POWERS

9/7 ZIGGY ALBERTS

SEPTEMBER 29 | MISSISSIPPI STUDIOS

You knew and loved Youth Lagoon, but forget that name and that name’s woe. Trevor Powers has moved on and he wants you to come with him. The Idahoan continues his quest for life’s answers and a new album shows us where he has been looking the past couple of years. Releasing this work under his own name is your first clue. Mr. Powers is in, what I believe to be, his best form. Hyper aware of life’s contradictions and paradoxes, at that tender age of 29, when you start to finally figure things out, the poet did what so many other artists fail to do—get off the boat before it sinks. A handwritten letter to fans clarifies that Youth Lagoon was “a mental dungeon.” Releasing himself of these constraints has been the shift he, and we, all needed. Like a broken mirror glued back together, the sounds on Mulberry Violence are very individual, yet belong together and remain functional. This is by far his best work since Year of Hibernation in 2011. A story written by Trevor himself titled, “The Karaoke Tapes” reminisces about mixtapes he used to make for his Uncle

Terry every year as a kid. That eagerness he describes to share his music with his uncle is so endearing and evident in this new project that Mulberry Violence could have been one of those tapes. Trevor Powers has seemingly endless motivation and inspiration from within. As he continues to work it out sonically, no matter what alias he releases it under, fans will continue to adore his astute sense of sound aesthetics. » - Kelly Kovl

QUICK TRACKS A “ACHE” On the surface a very catchy track, but just below lies dark, suggestive and threatening lyrics to make someone sorry soon.

9/8 ARTHUR BUCK LINE & CIRCLE

9/22-24 STRFKR (9/23 ALL AGES) 9/26 DOJA CAT WES PERIOD 9/27 LITHICS TABLE SUGAR MOPE GROOVES 9/28 ELEANOR FRIEDBERGER PILL

9/9 RAYLAND BAXTER SKYWAY MAN

9/29 THE BOXER REBELLION FORT ATLANTIC

9/11 RIVVRS PAUL MCDONALD

9/30 THE CORONAS

9/12 SPORTS KEITHCHARLES 9/13 EL TEN ELEVEN TENNIS SYSTEM POCARI SWEAT 9/14 CHAD VANGAALEN VALLEY MAKER LOVING 9/15 RAMBLE ON (LED ZEPPELIN TRIBUTE) LIQUIDLIGHT 9/18 J RODDY WALSTON & THE BUSINESS 9/19 HATCHIE WILDHONEY 9/20 THE BLOW 9/21 CARBON LEAF BETH WOOD

COOL KIDS PATIO SHOW

FREE COMEDY & MUSIC THURSDAYS AT 6PM! HOSTED BY ANDIE MAIN

9/6 MOHANAD ELSHIEKY, BO JOHNSON, DEREK SHEEN, BARBARA HOLM MUSIC BY LARISSA BIRDSEYE 9/13 KATE MURPHY, DAVID MASCORRO, JASON TREAGER MUSIC BY BOONE HOWARD 9/20 NARIKO OTT, DEBBIE WOOTEN, DYLAN JENKINS MUSIC BY JOAQUIN LOPEZ 9/27 MILAN PATEL, SHAIN BRENDAN, SPECIAL SECRET GUESTS MUSIC BY PAPI FIMBRES

B “COMMON HOAX” The last song and the best song. He melodically and quietly asks, “What are lovers then /But a common hoax?”

(503) 231-WOOD ALL SHOWS 21+ 830 E. BURNSIDE SERVING BREAKFAST, LUNCH, DINNER & LATE NIGHT HAPPY HOUR 3-6 EVERYDAY & 10PM-12AM SUN-THURS TICKETS AND MORE INFO AT DOUGFIRLOUNGE.COM

www.elevenpdx.com | ELEVEN PORTLAND | 7

new music album reviews

ALBUM REVIEWS THIS MONTH’S BEST R REISSUE

L LOCAL RELEASE

Short List JEFF the Brotherhood Magick Songs Paul Simon In The Blue Light Waxahatchee Great Thunder Aphex Twin Collapse We Were Promised Jetpacks The More I Sleep The Less I Dream Supersuckers Suck It Voivod The Wake

Beak> >>> Temporary Residence Ltd./Invada It’s been two years since we last heard from Beak>, an experimental rock band heavily driven by the presence of drummer/vocalist Geoff Barrow (Portishead). On 2016’s Couple in a Hole, the trio (Billy Fuller handles the bass, Will Young the band’s cerebral keyboard work) tackled a film soundtrack. A fitting project for a band whose nervy, percussive instrumentals

Mudhoney Digital Garbage Mini Blinds Dust

Lyrics Born Quite A Life Dilly Dally Heaven Mirah Understanding Lenny Kravitz Raise Vibration Buy it

Stream it

Toss it

The Joy Formidable AAARTH Seradom

facebook.com/elevenmagpdx @elevenpdx

8 | ELEVEN PORTLAND | www.elevenpdx.com

The Joy Formidable has a busy schedule as they close down the summer season, releasing their fourth studio album AAARTH on September 28. As the heavy and powerful energy of this album comes kicking and screaming into existence, the song “Y Bluen Eira” creeps into the forefront with dark chants and a mix

would perfectly suit some art-house obscurity from the 70s. On their newest outing, >>>, Beak> return to form with their gloriously Europeansounding psychedelia completely intact, and plenty of bona fide songs, to boot. Beak> is a genuinely eclectic collection of guys, musically, but their modus operandi is a cold, minimal sound reminiscent of their krautrock heroes and post-punkers like Wire. The subdued but tense synth and bassline of the instrumental “Teisco” show a band that has always had a taste for the dark, obscure and obtuse. And they still know how to nail it. As for the songs that are, well, “real” songs, “Brean Down” and “King of the Castle” are groove-driven masterstrokes that would do Ege Bamyasi-era Can proud. Barrow and Fuller’s work is the core of the band’s appeal: hypnosis through minimalist repetition. As for Barrow’s tranced-out wailing and mumbling, well, that vibe is the perfect guide through this gloomy, hazy haunted house. » - Matthew Sweeney

of professional production that sounds as if an array of ‘90s heavy/pop/rock bands got together for some sort of twisted and sadistic orgy taking place in the depths of hell. The sound that sets the stage for this album does sustain in most ways throughout, but there are a few songs that display a deeper sentiment of originality and sensitive innocence such as “The Wrong Side” and “All In All.” It would seem that the Joy Formidable has tasted sweet success in the mainstream rock ‘n’ roll world. This kind of success, however, looks strange to a city that loves it’s gritty hole in the wall venues and uniquely original music scene. The Joy Formidable will be opening for the Foo Fighters (per Dave Grohl’s personal request) at the Moda Center on September 10, and then will be returning to PDX in October without Grohl and his cronies to headline the Doug Fir. » - Ellis Samsara

new music album reviews singer, real name Jerry Williams Jr., is

character.” Recording under a persona,

a testament to this survivor’s status,

speaking truth through absurd comedy

standing with one foot in the roots of

and musical equivocation, was ahead

southern R&B and soul, and the other

of its time then, and the never-out-of-

out in the auto-tuned future space

character figure is largely what has

of synth pop. It’s the kind of crazy

allowed Swamp Dogg to keep moving

album that could only exist now that

forward as an artist long after most of

everything is a swamp, and could only

his contemporaries from the early days

come from a man who’s been at home in

hung up their hats.

that space for the past forty-odd years. After several close brushes with

Swamp Dogg Love, Loss, and Auto-tune Joyful Noise Swamp Dogg survives. Through love and loss, through the changedyet-unchanging landscape of American music, through the “draining of the swamp” that really resembles its acreage expanded, the whole country seemingly sinking into the bubbling muck, Swamp Dogg survives. Love, Loss, and Auto-tune, the newest album from the cult-soul

mainstream success in the ‘50s and

legend Guitar Shorty, a more classical

‘60s writing under his own name,

pairing, as well as Ryan Olson, of

Jerry Williams Jr. had a revelation,

Poliça, and Justin Vernon, better

and Swamp Dogg was born, debuting

known as Bon Iver, who oversaw the

his newly dissociated, irreverently

auto-tune portion of the project,

poignant sound on the 1970 classic

helping to guide it into the unique

Total Destruction to Your Mind. Of

sonic space it occupies. The tone of the

this new persona, he later said: “I came

album shifts from the haunting “I’ll

up with the name Dogg because a dog

Pretend,” to the tongue-in-cheek “Sex

can do anything, and anything a dog

With Your Ex,” to the classically clean

does never comes as a real surprise; if

“Star Dust,” which serves as the closer,

he sleeps on the sofa, shits on the rug,

and though he never quite settles into

pisses on the drapes, chews up your

a single mode, Swamp Dogg seems

slippers, humps your mother-in-law's

always and still at home. »

leg, jumps on your new clothes and

With a dark, wispy beauty, Mothers is about to release another masterpiece into the wild. Render Another Ugly Method is a true work

- Henry Whittier-Ferguson

licks your face, he's never gotten out of

of art with soft drony

outcry against beauty standards and

melodies and poignant,

norms. “Tell me how happy I could be,”

poetically political lyrics.

Leschper cries slowly into an echo,

Each song title is written

amid short guitar plucks and slow tom

fully in capital letters, as

and cymbal hits. The song picks up,

if to shout the importance

ending on a sardonic punch in the gut:

of each message to the

“Show me a beauty routine/to erase

world.

me completely.”

Mothers stems from

Mothers Render Another Ugly Method Anti-

Love, Loss, and Auto-tune has Swamp Dogg working with blues

While not specifically discussing

Athens, Georgia and is

gender, the contents of much of

a full body compiled

the album seems to touch on the

of Kristine Leschper,

experience of being female in a world

Matthew Anderegg, Chris

with off-putting standards. “BLAME

Goggins and Garrett

KIT” appears to be a dark image of

Burke. Leschper, the

shame culture surrounding women

mother of Mothers,

and their bodies. Oh, not to mention

originally kicked off the

the stress of having to absorb these

piece as a solo project as

norms tossed from all directions, a

an art student in 2013. Everything

body full of criticisms, other’s ideals,

about the band screams artist, from

expected never to spit out a word.

the messy collage album art that looks

“Not the first time/I've watched her

like the desk and/or mind of a creative

body expand/A hundred times its size/

animal, to the twists and turns of each

To contain everything/Your subtle

serenely crafted melody.

detachment/Spit straight from the

“BEAUTY ROUTINE” slowly opens the album doors as a melancholic

mouth of/A modern blame kit.” » - Eirinn Gragson

www.elevenpdx.com | ELEVEN PORTLAND | 9

live music SEPTEMBER CRYSTAL BALLROOM

SKIDMORE ST.

RUSSELL ST.

830 E BURNSIDE

TA VE

NORTH WEST BROADWAY ST.

PEARL 2

BURNSIDE ST.

23 18

MLK BLVD.

405

DOW NTO WN

3939 N MISSISSIPPI

GRAND AVE.

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OLD TOWN

MISSISSIPPI STUDIOS

Ezra Bell | Kiki & The Dowry | Maurice & The Stiff Sisters Cherry Glazerr | Sรกvila Jay Cobb Anderson | TK & The Holy Know Nothings Amy Helm Lvl Up | Pllush Unwed Sailor | Early Day Miners Cat Hoch | Bryson Cone Robert Ellis | Anna Tivel Mirah | Dear Nora | Ings Bed. } Blushh | Snow Roller Patrick Sweany Andrew Duhon | Hook & Anchor Tribe Mars | Neptuna | Mindhala Lost Dog Street Band Deaf Wish Black Joe Lewis & The Honeybears | Paul Cherry Slothrust | Summer Cannibals Sims | Air Credits Smooth Hound Smith | The Get Ahead Jonathan Wilson | William Tyler Matt Andersen Natalie Prass | Stella Donnelly The Essex Green

23RD AVE.

MLK BLVD.

DOUG FIR

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WILLIAMS AVE.

8 NW 6TH

VANCOUVER AVE.

ROSELAND THEATER

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MISSISSIPPI AVE.

2 4 6 12 14 15 16 20 22 26 30

1332 W BURNSIDE

INTERSTATE AVE.

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live music SEPTEMBER MISSISSIPPI STUDIOS (CONT.) Yungblud | Arrested Youth Trevor Powers Lawrence | Joe Hertler & The Rainbow Seekers

ALBERTA ST.

WONDER BALLROOM

ALBERTA ST.

ALBERTA ARTS

1280 NE RUSSELL

42ND AVE.

15TH AVE.

11TH AVE.

PRESCOTT ST.

FREMONT ST. 24TH AVE.

HOLLYWOOD

KNOTT ST.

33RD AVE.

28TH AVE.

D. BLV Y D AN

BROADWAY ST.

HOLOCENE

RONTOMS

LAURELHURST GLISAN ST.

KELLY’S OLYMPIAN 426 SW WASHINGTON

8 11

STARK ST.

MORRISON ST.

HAWTHORNE

LADD’S ADDITION DIVISION ST.

CLINTON ST.

POWEL

L BLVD.

CESAR CHAVEZ BLVD.

HAWTHORNE BLVD. 24

BELMONT ST.

11TH AVE.

8TH AVE.

2 9 16 23

DJs in The Taproom (weekends)

BURNSIDE ST. 3

EASTBURN

1 5 6 8-9 11 13 18 26 28

1800 E BURNSIDE

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600 E BURNSIDE

1001 SE MORRISON

28 29 30

NO VACANCY 235 SW 1ST

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90s Dance Party Sofi Tukker Presents: Animal Talk DJ Sets Stanton Warriors Throttle King Beta Curtis Salgado

1 2 7 8 23 13

www.elevenpdx.com | ELEVEN PORTLAND | 11

features SEPTEMBER NO VACANCY (CONTINUED) 14 15 19 21 22 28 29

BlackGummy Sirus Hood Chance Hayden Sandra Collins Sacha Robotti J. Worra Jeremy Olander

REVOLUTION HALL 11 1300 SE STARK 7 14 16 17 19 20 21 28 27 29 30

TOFFEE CLUB 12 1006 SE HAWTHORNE ALBERTA STREET PUB 13 1036 NE ALBERTA 5 6 7 8 12 13

Photo by Eirinn Gragson

LOCAL FEATURE

Fox & Bones | Brother Not Brother Michael Jodell | Anita Lee & The Handsome Three Pretty Gritty Julie & The WayVes Local Roots Live Series Foamtown | Seafox | Sunbaby

The Woolen Men

awton Browning and Rafael Spielman have been roaming the streets of Portland their whole lives, having grown up in this city before it was “cool,” and when the punk scene thrived in venues now unknown THE SECRET SOCIETY by the youth. Joined by Alex Geddes of 116 NE RUSSELL Washington, The Woolen Men came to Honky Tonk (Tuesdays) be in 2009, making a crash with a sound Zydeco (Wednesdays) Swing (Thursdays) revisiting ‘90s indie rock nostalgia and a The Juleps | The Hot Lovin' Jazz Babies twist of old punk. Growing up listening Michelle Malone to Wire, Portland ‘70s punk legends The Bossa Luna Metts, Ryan & Collins | Old Mill Wipers, and (as Alex wants you all to The Sentiments | The Cascadians | DJ Yoni know) The Toadies, it’s clear that their WHITE EAGLE style shines true authentically. 836 N RUSSELL While punk venues like The Know Jonathan Pierce | Common Hours | Samsel have shut their doors, the group Biddy On The Bench appreciates The American Legion and The Lagoons Billy D & The HooDoos Black Water Bar for keeping music Manx alive and thriving, especially when allOjos Feos | Chasing Ebenezer ages venues are few and far between. True North | Sam Hill Trio Jenny Sizzler Punk is still alive in Portland, but as Christy Hays documentary All Ages: The Rise and Fall Joypress The Stubborn Lovers | Gina Villalobos | Amee Chapman of Portland Punk Rock will tell you, it Grant Farm | Mexican Gunfight ain’t what it used to be. Big Water | Wind Fields This is why bands like The Woolen Harvest Gold Men are an awe-inspiring show. With Mic Check Local Hip Hop Showcase Soul Impression influence from the old ages of punk and

14 8 9 14 21 22

8 9 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 20 21 22 23 27 28 29 Sharlet Crooks

12 | ELEVEN PORTLAND | www.elevenpdx.com

reference to ‘90s indie rock, their new single Brick Horizon floods reminiscent of The dB’s pop-rock track “Black and White” with a hint of Ramones. While the Portland scene is ever changing, The Woolen Men use the past to choke up the present, adding a refreshing sound to the Portland music scene. The full album release show is September 1 at The American Legion on Alberta. ELEVEN: Where are you guys from? Rafael Spielman: We’re from here, the two of us are from here. Alex Geddes: I’m from Washington. Up north of Spokane, little town. 11: When did you move to Portland? AG: It would have been… I think 12 years ago. I was actually dating someone at the time in Eugene who was going to U of O, I had moved down here to play music with a friend who was in school there and I met Eliza, who played in Golden Hours, which is how I met Raf. 11: Rafael and Lawton, how did you guys meet?

Lawton Browning:: We went to high school together.

LB: We like to work with artists that we admire.

11: What kind of music were you all listening to growing up?

11: Do you kind of collaborate on the idea? They’re all very different, but they’re still kind of cohesive in style.

LB: I listened to music in high school, but I didn’t really learn what music was until I was in college. But I listened to some real garbage and then I listened to Devo. 11: Garbage like the band Garbage? LB: No! Like really bad music! AG: I listened to The Toadies and Beastie Boys. I liked Medeski, Martin & Wood, someone turned me onto that as kind of... LB: Oh wow, that’s where all your jazz love comes from. Raf was the cool one in high school, he had a music club that was cool. They listened to Weezer records. RS: It was indie rock back then, that’s for sure. A lot of Built to Spill and Pavement and stuff like that. LB: Well, you’re permanently in the good books for having that Pink Flag T-shirt in high school. Custom made– incredible. RS: In high school I made myself a Pink Flag T-shirt. It was not very punk though. LB: Wire was a big one for me in college. RS: Yeah, I listened to Wire in high school. 11: I can see that influence a lot in your music. LB: Yeah, a buddy named Carl Hughmeyer in college who played me good music, but it was like… it was still indie rock kind of, so like Yo La Tengo and Pavement. RS: By the time we started the band, I feel like we were all listening to Wire, and The Clean was another big influence, and The Wipers. 11: Who puts together your album art? RS: We often work with friends. So our friend Jeff Hale just did the art for the most recent record, he did a great job.

RS: Yeah. There are certain design ideas that are important to us, just basic stuff like having the name of the band written on the cover, and legible. Simple stuff like that. 11: Let’s talk about the new album, when’s that coming out? LB: September 1! Right now there are 3 singles, and there’s going to be a 4th one. It’s going to come out like right now. Like tomorrow. If this German guy gets back to me before we release our album, it will come out. Doesn’t really matter. 11: And the release show is at American Legion? RS: With Mope Grooves and Table Sugar. Mope Grooves, which is Stevie’s band, and Table Sugar from Olympia. 11: Do you want to talk about Stevie (Pohlman)?

features SEPTEMBER TURN! TURN! TURN! 8 NE KILLINGSWORTH

Deathlist | Dovecotes | Elizas Teton | Banny Grove | General Baby | Schaus Barra Brown Trio | Negative Press Project | Paper Gates Pelican Ossman | Burt Sienna | Cynthia Nelson Band Nick Normal | Boy Romeo | Alternative Milks Miss Massive Snowflake | Braille Stars | Sam Human The Very Least | Plastic Weather | Peace Sign Suicide Notes | Wild English | Lost Nerves Mercury Tree | Ealdor Bealu | Childspeak Baronic Wall | Pulse Emitter } Ron Spoons | The Occupant Code Talkers | Doug Theriault Sir Richard Bishop | Tashi Dorji Hammer of Hathor | Center Pieces | Uneasy Trio Lovesores | Communist Eyes | Street Hassle Dusty Santamaria + Moira Ichiban | Hey Lover Ali Ippolito | Stephen Weiss | Lilith Coffin Apt. | Licky Chomps | Pet Weapon Thollem McDonas | Hungry Ghost somesuprises | Plankton Wat Grand Style Orchestra

HAWTHORNE THEATRE 1507 SE 39TH

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RS: Sure! Stevie’s great. LB: Stevie helps run See My Friends, which is a record label we have a relationship with. 11: Are you on the label? LB: Sometimes. RS: The last record that we did was on that label. 11: So what is Stevie playing? RS: Stevie’s playing keyboard on a couple songs. LB: We have overdubbed keys on the record, but minimally, and it felt like a good opportunity to invite a friend. RS: The release show we did for the last record, Temporary Monument, we got our friend Griff to play. So same idea, once every couple of years.

VALENTINES

232 SW ANKENY

Onry Ozzborn Yawning (DJ set) Massacooramaan Battery Powered Music Sad Day | Buckmaster Lebenden Toten DJ Club Soda Isha Sound

ALADDIN THEATER 3017 SE MILWAUKIE

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Lucius | Cornelia Murr Mark Kozelek Al Di Meola | Jordan Rudess The Wailers Aerosmith Rocks | Steelhorse Dave Alvin & Jimmie Dale Gilmore | Jon Langford Ural Thomas & The Pain David Bromberg Quintet

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11: What’s your songwriting process like? Is there someone who leads the way, or is it more collaborative?

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features SEPTEMBER THE GOODFOOT

20 2845 SE STARK

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LIQUOR STORE 22 THE 3341 SE BELMONT 14 15

Hodge | Strategy (DJ set) Lily Ackerman | Experimental Housewife | Carly Barton HOLLYWOOD THEATRE A not-for-profit organization whose mission is to entertain, inspire, educate and connect the community through the art of film while preserving an historic Portland landmark. NE HOLLYWOOD 4122 NE Sandy Blvd (97212) 503.493.1128 | hollywoodtheatre.org

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24 1937 SE 11TH

THE FIRKIN TAVERN

8 Wild Animals | Grandfater | Cave Full of Spiders 21 Retirement | Hollow Sidewalks | Fantastic Plastic

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Erotic City Norman Sylvester Band Tevis Hodge Jr Kris Deelane & The Hurt

FUN 26 NO 1709 SE HAWTHORNE 1 Each Both | The Hague | Talktin & Easy 2 Moogwynd

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Photo by Todd Walberg

RS: It’s becoming more collaborative the longer that we play together, but usually one of us will bring the main idea to the band. Usually the verse and the chorus, then from there we’ll work together to turn that into a song. AG: I have the least kernels. I’m a little slower. 11: How long have you been playing? AG: A long time! I guess since I was 17? 16? LB: Yeah, 16 was when I played guitar for the first time. 34 now, so 20 years. RS: I didn’t start playing drums seriously until this band. 11: So when did Woolen Men exist? LB: 2009. These two were playing together in their band, Golden Arrows, with his then girlfriend at the time and then Woolen Men started. 11: I guess we kind of touched on this a little bit, but who are some of your favorite local artists to play on shows with or to Jam with? LB: Well, we’re going to Europe with Honey Bucket. I love Old Grape God, he’s a rap guy in town–he’s awesome. Lithics, they’re our friends from a long time ago. Sad Horse. 11: Sad Horse is so great!

RS: Our second show ever was with them, early–like February/March of 2009 at the Fridge. 11: Where is that? LB: Long gone… We’ve seen a lot of clubs and venues come and go. RS: Now it’s cool. Lithics, those guys were all in bands, like when we started out 10 years ago. Those guys were all in separate bands that we played with. So that part, now it’s cool when things shift around. LB: Music survives. RS: Turn Turn Turn is great, it’s a great spot. LB: The Know going down was pretty rough. The second time. AG: The Legion coming up. LB: Yeah, the Legion is a big deal. AG: It’s all-ages. LB: The Legion seems immune to gentrification on Alberta. 11: Is there a reason that that is the place you’re releasing your album? Did you pick it? LB: Yeah, I booked the show there. I just love it. It’s gotten better too. AG: Stevie really was the one who broke through and realized they were open to having shows there. And then she decided to be the one to open that door. RS: It’s relatively cheap to rent. LB: If you have a relative who is a veteran, then you can rent it for $50.

11: I didn’t know that! LB: Now you do! Tell your audience! Make shows at the Legion! 11: So lyric wise, are they usually autobiographical? AG: As the one who writes the least amount of songs–me–I tend to write more autobiographical songs. But there’s more variation between Raf and Lawton. LB: I try to write as much as possible from the unconscious. I try not to think too much about what I write, it’s better. My wife is an expert at surrealism, and I’m not a huge fan of most surrealist art, but I do really like the way in which you’re allowed to not take ownership over what you make. 11: Is there anything else you’d like the readers to know about you?

L The Woolen Men

Post Dogs Table Records

The Woolen Men who recorded Post are not the same Woolen Men who recorded 2015’s standout Temporary Monuments. But given the Portland trio’s methodical and factory-like approach of constantly re-writing, re-recording and rerehearsing material, perhaps it’s not so surprising that the band has managed to expand and hone all aspects of their songwriting and musicianship between releases. Clocking in at just sub-35 minutes, one gets the idea that The Woolen Men left a lot of material on the cutting room floor during the

LB: Oh, I love this question. If you don’t buy records by bands, then bands won’t make music anymore. If you listen to music on Spotify, you are fucking musicians over. AG: I want people to know how much I love The Toadies and Beastie Boys and to listen to our music and think about that. That’s all. RS: This is what I want to say: I want to say that what’s going on in the music scene in Portland right now is probably the most interesting in the whole country and that people should go to shows and see it. Because it’s happening now, in their city! » - Eirinn Gragson

features SEPTEMBER NO FUN (CONTINUED)

TWILIGHT CAFE & BAR THE WOOLEN MEN CELEBRATE THE RELEASE OF POST THIS MONTH, SEPTEMBER 1 AT AMERICAN LEGION craft and curation of Post’s nine airtight tracks. Every song and guitar solo (several standout performances) sounds like it was played hundreds of times until it was distilled to its purest, most necessary parts. Album opener and lead single, “Brick Horizons,” wastes no time in setting the emotional and lyrical themes of the record. You can hear the band racing against the clock as they muse about the dangers of looking back and standing still, as a driving rhythm section blossoms into a dreamy Peter Doherty-esque chorus that will have you wondering when you left the US for the UK. The rest of the album is full of similar surprises as tracks take hairpin turns into unexpected sonic detours. Featuring an eclectic mix of inspirational sprawling yurt-jams (“Amateur”), stormy barn burners (“Weatherman for Sale”), and cutting observations of millennial apathy, by the time album closer “The Chip” unfolds into a soaring Route 66 outro, one gets the idea that the band doesn’t want to get caught standing still and are probably already racing towards the post Post horizon. » - Eric Swanson

1420 SE POWELL

WHITE OWL SOCIAL CLUB 1305 SE 8TH

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THE FIRKIN TAVERN Located on the west side of Ladd’s, the Firkin Tavern features an astounding selection of craft beers to enjoy inside or on our patio. Art enthusiasts will enjoy a variety of local artwork on display and sold comission-free! SE LADD'S 1937 SE 11th Ave (97214) 503.206.7552 | thefirkintavern.com

BUNK BAR

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Matt Mays Summer Heart | Buhu Gringo Star | Autogramm | Perfect Buzz Ryley Walker | Health & Beauty Lucy Spraggan

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PORTLAND’S MUSIC MAGAZINE SINCE 2011

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orn into a cult, never attended high school and had recorded two instant classic albums before, really, even having a record deal. That is the “yada, yada, yada” version of Adrienne Lenker’s life. The main singer/ songwriter for Big Thief, Lenker’s life story seems like it was both birthed of a parable and yet the antithesis of predictability. The mythos of Big Thief is centered on the tale of the wandering troubadour. Trained as a musician from a young age, Lenker eventually bucked the well-crafted path set before her in favor of pursuing a less certain but more personal journey that would take her from the Berklee College of Music, to backyard gigs, to sleeping in the group’s van on the side of the road while on the never-ending tour. Somehow, the creation of the band’s two albums feels simultaneously improbable and inevitable. After years on the road, in 2016, the group decided to pool its meager resources, borrow anything they could and create a studio in an acquaintance’s lake house. Twelve days later, Masterpiece emerged–an album that instantly put Big Thief not only on the map, but at the top of the list for one of the best new bands of

the last five years. Capacity followed a similar karmic path: given the opportunity to tend to a friend’s land for a month in exchange for time in an actual studio, the group hunkered down for a month and created the monster sophomore effort in 2017. It doesn’t take close examination to see the appeal of Big Thief. The sonic composition of the band balances Lenker’s whispery voice with occasionally jagged electric guitar riffs or punctuating bass lines. The melodies are inescapable, and the lyrics are visceral and personal. Aside from the hit single “Masterpiece,” which remains one of the best debut singles for a band in recent memory (especially considering the strength of the group’s two albums), the individual tracks seem to catch you when you least expect it. Perhaps it’s the deceptively steady percussion, or the subtle intricacy of the guitar lines winding around each other–there’s plenty to hear and just as much to miss. In 2018, as Big Thief closes out its most recent international tour, Lenker has spent time recording her second solo album, abysskiss, due out in October. Produced by Luke Temple of Here We Go Magic, abysskiss finds Lenker accompanied mostly by an acoustic guitar–the instrument she’s played since age six. We caught Lenker in between stops toward the top of the world, and she took a few minutes to chat with us about the wild creation of Big Thief’s two records, the different challenges of recording a solo album and her songwriting process.

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Photo by Shervin Lainez

ELEVEN: So, you’re in an airport in Norway–are you coming or going? Where are you headed? Adrienne Lenker: Always coming and going… I’m leaving Norway and headed to Portugal. 11: How long have you been in Norway? AL: Like two days… 11: What is it like playing shows in Norway? I’ve never really heard feedback about playing in those Nordic countries. AL: It’s nice–It’s interesting to feel the different energies and different crowds. I definitely think that– without making too many generalizations because there are individuals that make up each crowd and each crowd

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is different–but you can feel different cultures and collective ways of expressing things like enthusiasm. I’ve found audiences in the Scandinavian to sometimes be more quiet and more attentive and... I don’t know, I kind of find that all over. There are a lot of Norwegian and Swedish and Scandinavian immigrants in Minnesota, where I grew up. My grandparents are Norwegian, and they’re pretty soft spoken. Their way of expressing is not super extroverted and outward. So I guess it makes sense to me when there’s a bit more of a reserved-ness, and I do feel that in some of the Scandinavian countries, as opposed to playing in a places like... anywhere else. 11: Interesting, because it seems to fit your style of music. You mentioned that some of the audiences are similar to your grandparents and how you grew up, more soft-spoken and introverted, and I see that reflected your music, and I’m wondering if that is just a natural facet of your music?

features national scene AL: I don’t really think about it, to be honest, when I’m actually making music. I won’t say there’s any intention behind how it comes out; it just kind of comes out the way that it does. I am more introverted naturally, but this sort of career path, or whatever–this life–

"The biggest difference is really just that solo is me–my body, my person, my spirit, my energy working with itself. Working with the band is the alchemy of working with four people"

a bit in my music–t’s really personal. So, in that way, it’s not really private. 11: It does seem like from a lyrical standpoint, especially, and then you add in the musical accompaniment, it sounds like there is a lot of emotional

that I’m currently on

rawness. From a

has sort of forced me

creative standpoint, how do you put songs

to go against my own nature in that way. Being in front of people or being on

together? Do you write lyrics and then set the music?

stage is always like… I’ve probably played 900 shows in

Sometimes it feels a lot like poetry set to music, but

the last few years and it still feels crazy to be on stage.

what does that look like?

I get nervous… feel like I don’t know what to do with my body. I feel like it’s interesting though: the music

AL: Lyrics usually come last for me. Usually I write

can be, even though it’s soft and there’s tenderness, I

melodies–it always starts with guitar, or at least the

don’t feel like it’s reserved. I feel like I talk about a lot

most often. I would say the guitar is my first instrument.

of things that don’t feel soft. I feel like I expose quite

Even before singing, I loved the guitar. It always inspires

www.elevenpdx.com | ELEVEN PORTLAND | 19

features national scene me; I play it all the time. That’s still what I do with all

of it in exchange for actually using the studio, so we

my free time is play guitar. So, usually, something will

actually got to use a fully functioning studio for a whole

pop out on the guitar and then I’ll start singing a melody

month for Capacity. Masterpiece was recorded in the

that’s gibberish, and then words will form. So, the poetry

summer, and we were right on a lake, always sunny and

part of it kind of comes later.

always hot, and Capacity was recorded in the dead of winter, and not really on a body of water, in the woods.

11: Between Capacity and Masterpiece, what would you

Days were shorter–it was a lot colder and gray, but we

say was the biggest difference in the creation between

had a lot more time. We were truly isolated for a whole

those two albums?

month with Capacity. We didn’t see other people or do anything.

AL: Well, Masterpiece was done–I would say, sort of the space and the environments were pretty different,

11: You’re working on a solo album right now, right?

and the time of year. But with Masterpiece, we’d been touring for a year on our own, in our van that kept

AL: I just finished recording it, actually–it’s coming out

breaking down, and we gathered up all the money that

in October.

we could and borrowed as much gear as we could and made a studio at a friend’s great aunt’s lake house in

11: What’s the difference between working on the solo

New York. We just turned it into a little studio and

album–for you personally–and working with the band?

recorded for like 12 days. I think we spent like $3,000 on the whole thing between everyone’s food for 12

AL: The biggest difference is really just that solo is

days, and transportation and everything. And we had

me–my body, my person, my spirit, my energy working

that ready to go before we had a label or a booking

with itself. Working with the band is the alchemy of

agent or anything. And then we got offered a really cool

working with four people and just meeting at this center

opportunity to live on a friend’s land and help take care

point where we’re all finding flow together. It’s really

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20 | ELEVEN PORTLAND | www.elevenpdx.com

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features national scene a manifestation of our relationship and friendships over time all feeding into the music. So, like, living together for the past three years solid definitely goes into everything we make and everything we play. It’s constant compromise and just sacrificing things like having a home, having routine… there’s a lot that goes into deciding to live on the road with three people and having most of your time spent with them–even more than your loved ones. Those friendships are so deep, so making music together is kind of an indescribable thing. It comes out the way it does because it is the four of us. When I’m making something by myself it’s just… well, I suppose I did the solo record with Luke Temple, he produced it and played a couple things on there. But, mostly, it centered on me and the songs in the form they originally come out in. Like when I’m sitting in my room and writing a song on the guitar, it changes shape pretty intensely when I bring it to the band; it becomes the band’s song. But, I wanted to take a collection of some of the songs I didn’t really feel had a place with the band, and then a couple that may be reworked later with the band, and just document them in their original forms. Have some version of it just to archive that energy because I also think there’s something that feels good about that and honoring the acoustic guitar which is something I’ve played since I was six years old and I don’t really play much with Big Thief.

"We’re making a record of place and time; we’re not making a record of some perfect thing that we’re not already" 11: You talked about how influential being around the group is and how influential the entirety of the band is when you’re playing music together as Big Thief– was it easier or harder to dive in from a solo aspect, to open up knowing it’s just literally what you want it to be, and there’s no one else that’s going to have any extreme influence on it? AL: Well, I wouldn’t say that I find either of those things to be difficult, so it’s not easier or harder, just maybe like it’s just different. I suppose it could be easier in the sense that there’s fewer steps… it depends–some solo artists are meticulous and perfectionists when they’re

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features national scene working on a solo album, and they’ll work on it for years because they don’t have anyone being like, “No, this is great, let’s just use this.” They get into their own heads and turn things over and over and over, but for me, it’s not really in my personality. I think the band is pretty harmonious in that we’re just playing the songs. We’re not editing and splicing together like, “This part’s from this vocal take, and this part’s from this vocal take, and fix that drum fill.” It’s not like that. They are what they are; we are where we are. If we give it our best and it doesn’t sound that great to us, that’s just where we are. We’re making a record of place and time; we’re not making a record of some perfect thing that we’re not already. We’re just making a record of what the music actually is, and I feel like I operate like that. So, when I’m making something solo, the easier thing is that there’s fewer steps. We’re not laying down drums and bass–there’s fewer ideas to address, so it’s a lot quicker because I’m just going in there and sitting down with my acoustic guitar and we’re pressing record and just deciding, “Oh, we got it, that one felt good.” It’s a smaller, more stripped-down process. 11: As you continue down this creative pathway that you’ve made for yourself, is there anything that you want to try, or that you’re looking down the road at– like, I’d really love to work with this person, or make this kind of record, or record in this place, or get the band doing something like this? AL: I would love to meet Neil Young and pick his brain. You know, I want to explore, that’s all. I don’t really have a picture of, “Oh I want to go here and do this.” I definitely want to explore. In general, I don’t really operate from this place of wanting to do this, this and this. Even from when I was a teenager I remember getting asked this question: “Where do you see yourself in five years or ten years?” All the way down the line it’s like, “I don’t know.” It’s just such a mystery and that’s what’s so beautiful about it. I just know I want to stay in touch with the child part of myself, being curious and being in tune with my own well of creativity, be present and open to what things unfold that I can’t even imagine at this point in time. »

BIG THIEF PLAYS LIVE IN PORTLAND THIS MONTH, SEPTEMBER 22 AT WONDER BALLROOM 22 | ELEVEN PORTLAND | www.elevenpdx.com

features national scene

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community meet your maker “The way I fit into this community is that I’m tying a lot of aspects of electronic and underground music together. It’s enjoyment and production, and supporting it in various ways,” says Berryhill. “Our store offers a lot. A collection of local art, obscure and weird music in CDs, tapes and vinyl, books and zines, live performances, demos and equipment from local manufacturers.” There are two levels to Mod8. To help people put together their own custommade modular synthesizer, which means picking Photos by Mathieu Lewis-Rolland

MEET YOUR MAKER

Modular8's Phillip Berryhill & Steve Westbrook

and choosing from over a thousand available mods, or to purchase some of the best that are designed internationally right here in Portland. Mod8 carries circuits and boards from Møffenzeef Mødular, Retro Mechanical Labs and Melekko (Dark Place’s house brand). Scott Jaeger (AKA Harvestman under the industrial music electronics banner), just released his Hertz Donut 3 module. These makers often give detailed demos in-house about their equipment and how to use it properly. “There’s a lot of gear out there, a lot of it’s good but some

of it is really amazing. alking into Modular8 is a fascinating sensory

It’s one thing to support local, it’s another thing to

overload of art, retro gaming consoles,

support it when it’s fucking awesome. And that’s what it is”

humming frequencies and Euroracks that

says Berryhill.

evoke thoughts of spacecraft

dashboards. It’s sci-fi and science meeting sound and creativity. Owner Phillip Berryhill draws no parallels from his radical career change as a board-certified neurosurgeon to all of the wires and blinking lights of his shop, but it’s clear he had a vision to create a nerve center for all things electronic music. Inspired by many visits to synth stores and his own experience making music with modular synthesis, Berryhill became acquainted with Dark Place, an advanced synth manufacturing facility in which Mod8 now shares a building. Another equipment centered business, StereoTypes, resides across the street.

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community meet your maker

For those who haven’t gone down the rabbit hole of sequencers, waveform, oscillators, patching and the art of combining hardware and software, Berryhill and his partner Steve Westbrook also offer workshops like an intro to synthesis bootcamp and “Glitch Synths,” or video synthesis for visual effects. There’s also just a lot of individualized instruction for visitors on the daily. “The bottom line is we’re

CHAIN — M AILLE . c o m

here for advice, too,” says Berryhill, “For example, how to solve a particular problem with a studio or a synth or a drum machine.” Designers, musicians and nerdy events lie ahead for autumn at Modular8. On September 1 they host an equipment demo from Mystic Circuits, and in October they will host a special re-release of Production Unit Xero’s rare album Shades of Distortion. Mod8 will also be celebrating Chip Tune and 8bit music, using chips from old gaming systems and putting together a retro arcade, just in time for the Portland Retro Gaming Expo. » - Brandy Crowe

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community literary arts hike on the coast, attending a workshop on Surrealist writing, then sitting for the readings. Afterwards you might even be able to sit down for a sing-along with beloved Portland poet and amateur banjo player Ed Skoog. “It’s Like poetry summer camp in the fall” is how Mother Foucault’s Bookshop owner Craig Florence describes the event. “The place is arranged for reading and writing poetry, chatting and laughing and having fun… and the beach is right there. It’s so inspiring to have really talented writers in one spot. It’s like being at the shop. No one is putting on airs, there’s no pretense.” “Mother Foucault’s Airstream Poetry Festival is a chance for Portlanders to find themselves in a rustic setting with good company, great conversation and an

LITERARY ARTS

excellent platform for sharing new work,” says Carl Adamshick of Tavern Books. Natalie Garyat (also of Tavern Books) adds, “Book culture thrives out here in the unlikeliest environments.” University of Hell and Copper Canyon Press will also be representing Portland at the festival. This year’s scope of the poetic talent is widened both north with Seattle press Entre Rios Books and south

Airstream Poetry Festival

to Los Angeles with several poets and writers scheduled to

artists have attended previous Airstream Poetry Festivals,

contribute. Several poets who have been ELEVEN featured literary

he Sou’Wester Lodge in Seaview, Washington

including Zachary Schomburg, Liz Mehl, Ed Skoog, Matthew

was originally the summer home to Portland

Dickman and A.M. O’Malley. Portland remains one of the few

magnate Henry W. Corbett, who built a railway

cities to experience a renaissance in poetry as an art form.

directly to the coastal town in the 1890s.

The Airstream Poetry Festival is a rare occasion to find many

These days, the Sou’Wester welcomes visitors to relax in its serene setting, including a vintage trailer resort which in

of these supremely talented poets in one setting. » - Scott McHale

mid-October will be the setting for Mother Foucault’s Fourth Annual Poetry Festival & Fellowship. This year’s featured readers include Alicia Jo Rabins, Anis Mojgani, Melissa Stein, Sophia Shalmiyev and the newly awarded Airstream Fellow (to be named September 16). Last year’s fellowship winner Zosia Waitr had this to say about her experience: “Mother

LOCATION: SOU’WESTER HISTORIC LODGE & VINTAGE TRAILER RESORT DATE: OCTOBER 19-21

Foucault’s Airstream Poetry Festival is an unusual and radiant opportunity to share time with lovers of books, publishing and

TICKETS ARE AVAILABLE FOR $15 IN PERSON AT

translation, and it’s a great party. The fellowship was amazing.

THE BOOKSHOP, AT THE SOU’WESTER FRONT

I loved my days alone, focused on working, in the rain.” A typical day at Airstream might involve cooking in your trailer for the “Potluck in the Pavillion” dinner, going on a

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DESK, OR ONLINE VIA BROWN PAPER TICKETS

community literary arts

www.elevenpdx.com | ELEVEN PORTLAND | 27

community visual arts With the help of a supporter, I was able to buy this notable, majestic structure that functioned as a place of healing and spirituality throughout its history. It seemed appropriate to continue the tradition through art, upgrading its structure little by little. 11: What is the process like in gaining resident artists for this creative space? How many artists do you offer creative space for and what types of artists do you house?

VISUAL ARTS ArtHouse 23's JoAnn Gilles

ELEVEN: What is ArtHouse 23? Can you tell us a little about the history of the house, how you acquired it and the conception of the idea? JoAnn Gilles: ArtHouse 23 is a place for painting and process designed to foster creativity and community with a complete lack of competitiveness or conflict. As an artist who took a long time to answer the call to paint, when I finally braved having a studio of my own I felt stunted by the isolation. It’s tricky because creating a vision requires self-reflection, which requires solitude. But with no dialogue, a too-narrow focus is all too easy. I was lucky to find a community studio in the ‘90’s that, for a while, struck the perfect balance. But ultimately it imploded because of rivalry. As a near-evangelist for what creative endeavor can bring to life, I searched for like-minds and found few. So I set out to create a community of artists, starting by creating the artists. In a “borrowed” gutted Victorian in SW Portland, with little more than a kitchen sink bolstered by a makeshift counter, ten women without formal art education gathered to pursue meaning by learning to draw and paint. As the leader of this "band of sisters" I was determined to develop an environment and a curriculum that allowed each person to glean whatever she needed from a weekly art class in hopes of an evolution into a group of art mavens. Together we produced and celebrated art so individual that it was impossible to tell that the resulting paintings came from the same exercise and the same subject on the same night. It was eye-opening and exciting. It fueled my work. They became pros. Word spread, experienced artists joined and we soon occupied a large space in the NW Seed building. It had all the romance of beams, bricks and light of an industrial art space. It was big and expensive and cold in winter. Although the landlord was terrific, I hated paying rent. The search for a large enough space led to this 6,700 sq ft historic house built for a Chinese healer in 1909. At the time, it was owned by a Baptist ministry that used it as a halfway house for recovering addicts. It was in rough shape. But they had built a very large, open room for their “church” in the back–it was perfect for our studio.

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JG: There are 30 artists who make up ArtHouse 23 who found it by word-of-mouth. They come weekly for a threehour painting session that may include art history talks or a creative exercise. Twelve or so rent space in the house– everything from a corner to call their own to a whole room. Two other artists, with whom I shared studios with in the past, also rent space but don’t participate in the community. Everyone is a painter, although media varies. 11: Can you elaborate on how ArtHouse 23 situates itself in the neighborhood and weaves its way into the community? What is it that this space offers that makes it so unique? JG: We just happened upon this house in a convenient location that seemed workable. But since we purchased in 2006, the Eliot neighborhood has gentrified rapidly. It is a mix of commercial and residential, however it has grown with an affinity for “outside-the-box” neighbors. Williams Avenue history of jazz is commemorated with street signs and in Billy Webb’s Elks lodge around the corner. PICA (Portland Institute for Contemporary Art), moved in across the street. Painter and printmaker William Park is around another corner, he and I co-taught printmaking to a group from ArtHouse 23. One neighbor is a writer and two other families of artists live on the street. NW Documentary is just behind us. Although there may be little day-to-day interaction, there is a consciousness that “heart” is at the root of what goes on inside neighboring walls. My brother-in-law, Jesse, who is a woodworker, lives in the lower level apartment. He makes frames for many of the artists as well as his own wood creations. In the house there is a fireplace room lined with art books available to all. Although there are no cooking facilities, the main floor kitchen has a large commercial sink where we can scrub paintings as part of the process, make coffee or heat up lunch. In the classroom studio we have shared resources like mediums, cleaners, paper-cutters, light table, tools, still-life and reference materials, as well as a projector for art videos, which we enjoy frequently. As a group, in one configuration or another, we may visit galleries, PICA or museums (here and in other cities). Our weekly evening gathering is also a potluck, and there is always a bottle of wine in the fridge. We share proceeds from our annual open studio in the support of a local charity. This year we are partnering with CHAP, Children’s Healing Art Project that “brings the healing power of art to children and families facing medical challenges.”

"Kelley Point Park" (mixed media on canvas)

11: You are both the founder and an artist yourself! Much of your work would be considered abstract paintings, though some of your pieces seem to take definite form. What captivates your creative mind and beckons your creative expression? What inspires your pieces or influences your brushstrokes? Has the Chinese history of this house influenced you knowingly (or unknowingly)? JG: Despite being inspired by a wide range of subjects, including the figure, rocks, water, weather, dead birds, shriveled plants or eviscerated bats (I have one), I’ve concluded that it’s always about the landscape for me. Landscape is more than just a peaceful scene. It is a record of the Earth and its inhabitants, for good or ill. It nourishes. It shapes us. It separates and connects us. And unfortunately, it can harm us as we are not always good stewards. I’m drawn to exploring it in different ways. My latest body of work looks at “residual beauty”–how places scarred with abuse and unrest, like the Pennsylvania coal mines, (where my family is from) and the trespassed Malheur Wildlife refuge (which infuriated me)–can retain a reassuring exquisiteness. My current painting began with a modeling session with Autumn, our amazing model. It is already on the way to being something I do not yet know, but it will likely involve a sky. I can’t say that the Chinese motifs that are integrated into the design of the house, like the yin/yang symbol carved in the stairwell, have influenced me. But I sense the spiritual nature of the place. And, coincidentally, much of the furniture we bought long before moving here is rustic Chinese. So there’s something about the aesthetic that fits, although I am not Asian, at least, not that I know of.

community visual arts 11: What about your creative process has influenced your design and execution of ArtHouse 23 as a community of creative individuals? JG: I’m very much a believer in the power of process and I’m absolutely convinced that turning myself over to it is the best way to cultivate vision, meaning and expression. And, if motivated, anyone can develop their own visual language and tell their tale in the same way. It is centering, life affirming and stimulating. More than any learned ability, it takes trust, being comfortable with ambiguity and patience. Once you experience that connection to the internal, and your unique articulation speaks to the viewer, it is exhilarating. When people say they would like to paint but can’t draw, I’m so sad. Drawing is a great skill, a helpful skill and maybe a necessary skill at some point. But it can have little to do with creative expression. If you are willing to explore vague and challenging territory without needing to show a “product” in the end, it WILL come together. I’ve got proof! I offer guidance, encouragement and creativity exercises. I facilitate coming together in three weekly, separate paint sessions, room for ten people in each. People can switch days if there is room. An environment that is bright, warm and comfortable with great lighting and not too much dirt is also part of the picture. 11: What benefits do you see with artists working both in close proximity and collaboratively with one another? Are there ever any difficulties that arise from this arrangement? JG: An example: Just walking in from watering flowers I bumped into a studio-mate. He shared an “ah-ha” painting moment he just experienced. I related it to taking a mental journey I just took during a medical procedure. Both stories revealed how elusive, yet magical, tapping into the unconscious is, how painting continually affords that

"Sudden Storm" (mixed media on paper)

11: Where did your creative talents originate? Do you have formal art training or are you a self-taught artist? Have you always been a painter, or have you worked in other mediums? JG: As a child my box of colors was the most valuable thing to me. But it took over 30 years to have the courage to commit to using them on a regular basis. I graduated from PSU with a degree in design and an art teaching certificate (Had to keep it practical). Two teachers I found in my 30’s made me believe I am a painter and I am forever grateful. I have experimented with many crafts and media, but dancing with a brush always is preferred.

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community visual arts opportunity, and how aspects of life weave into the painting process. The conversation was maybe five minutes, but it touched deep subjects we understood on multiple levels. Sharing these ideas over the years, we resonate on a similar frequency. In a traditional studio these are missed moments that proximity provides. Borrowing, lending a “shoulder,” getting and giving feedback and a shared sandwich is always nice too. We’ve been at this location since 2006 and the only issue I can recall is when our old dog peed on someone’s reading chair. 11: You emphasize the importance of “community” in the success and prosperity of this space. Can you elaborate on what that means for ArtHouse 23? JG: Whether mindful of it or not, each person values and contributes to a nurturing environment. The space is loved and respected. People pitch in with chores and supplies. The group offers a support system even when it is not overt. We teach and learn from each other. It is so much more about affirmation and joy. The art-making sometimes can feel like a by-product of the atmosphere. 11: You also live above this creative space on the top floor of the house. What is that experience like for you as the owner, permanent tenant and fellow artist?

"Rhaosody in Blue" (acrylic on canvas)

JG: We never intended to live here. But the third floor “servant’s quarters,” turned apartment, was too delicious to resist. It’s shabby chic with exposed bricks and beams and seven skylights. The rooftop deck made it really something special. Our quarters are completely private, and no one would ever infringe. We hear people come and go, but it’s a subtle, friendly sound whatever time of day. I can always tell who it is by the rhythm of their footsteps. And it always makes me smile because I know they are happy to be here. I get a lift when I hear the door open when I’m painting. I know whoever is there will provide a welcome break. 11: Does ArtHouse 23 have any upcoming events or workshops? Where can we find the work of ArtHouse 23’s artists?

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JG: We rarely ever have workshops any more. Our space is limited and quite full. But we’d love to have folks visit during our annual open studio and share refreshments, see the space, the house built for Dr. Leo G Wo and the much-varied art that is created here. DATE: Saturday and Sunday, September 28t and 29. Hours are 2:00-7:00 on Saturday and 12:00-3:00 on Sunday. We had our own gallery in Milwaukie for several years until the owner got inspired to use the space for her personal studio, and I showed at Mark Woolley Gallery until the lease was lost. So now artists show at varying venues, including curated group shows and online at Saatchi and their own websites. There is an ArtHouse 23 Facebook page and you can find us on Instagram. Currently you can see art at Stoller Vineyards, Tint Salon and then the Northeast ReMax Annual Art Show, coming up in October. » - Laurel Bonfiglio

IN STORES NOW 41 tracks from Portland and beyond featuring artists from our label and our friends!

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FIND THIS ARTIST ONLINE WWW.JOANNGILLES.NET WWW.ARTHOUSE23.COM

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"Engaged" (acrylic paint on canvase) by Portland artist JoAnn Gilles