BY VANESSA SALVIA
Refreshing Pop
WOW, Luna host lively ensembles.
T
he WOW Hall will host a night of
refreshing, hummable pop Sunday,
July 20, as the Long Winters, the
Carolines and Clem Snide converge
upon our humble burg. These three ensem-
bles have quietly perfected what they do,
which alternates between wistful, sunny and
twisted pop. Long Winters frontman John
Roderick played in Harvey Danger and for-
merly fronted the band Western State
Hurricanes, which once upon a time was
poised to sign with Sub Pop.
When that fell through, Roderick went on
hiatus, taking a solo trek during the winter of
2000-2001 on foot from Amsterdam to
Istanbul. A rowdy Alaskan native with a bad
case of wanderlust, Roderick emerged in
2002 with a debut CD, The Worst You Can Do
Is Harm. That release catapaulted Roderick
back into the limelight, along with the musi-
cians who helped make that CD possible, for-
mer Harvey Danger frontman Sean Nelson
and Death Cab For Cutie guitarist Chris
Walla. The immediate critical acclaim Harm
garnered inspired two coast-to-coast tours
and a retreat back into the studio.
Songwriter Roderick and friends have
crafted a powerful second effort that will
dazzle fans of pop everywhere. On When I
Pretend To Fall, we see Roderick stitching
together his ideas into a more cohesive
whole. Joined by many of the same musi-
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cians who helped round out Harm, Pretend
also features newcomers Scott McCaughey
(Minus 5, Young Fresh Fellows) on
boomerang harmonica, Jon Auer (Posies)
on guitar and Peter Buck (REM) on man-
dolin. All told, 26 guest musicians con-
tributed to Pretend, with the core-and-tour-
ing band being Sean Nelson, Eric Corson on
bass and accordion, Michael Schilling on
drums and of course Roderick contributing
guitars, vocals, farfisa, lap steel, etc.
Producer Ken Stringfellow (Posies, REM,
Minus 5) also contributes vocals, piano,
bass and kurtzweil.
After Roderick’s epic walking journey,
he said he became more comfortable in his
own skin, and that shows in the mood of this
CD. While the music and lyrics are defi-
nitely still quirky (as on “Prom Night at
Hater High”) we sense that his demons have
loosened their grasp and the mood is light-
ened.
The Long Winters will be joined by two
fantastic other bands. The Carolines hail
from Portland and produce “pop with a ‘60s
vintage flair,” ideal for fans of both the
Beach Boys and Pavement. You will surely
be hearing more about this young fivesome
in the future. Clem Snide is another distinc-
tive songwriter with a brand new CD enti-
tled Soft Spot. This show is definitely a
must-see.
Clem Snide performs at WOW Hall on Sunday.
Luna Jazz Club will host an exciting
evening of electronic jazz when Echo
comes to town on Tuesday, July 22.
Composed of duo Joy Askew and Takuya
Nakamura, Echo is known for blending
down-tempo electronic grooves and jazz
standards with trumpet, voice and occa-
sional Brazilian guitar flairs.
A native of England, Askew has toured
the world and produced four solo CDs,
Tender City (1996), Gorgeous Creature
(1997), When (1998) and The Same (2000).
Nakamura and Askew hooked up in the
New York City nightclub, Shine. The pair
began to collaborate, and there seemed at
once to be a shared sense of jazz emerging
in a non-traditional, fresh way.
For instance, early on in their collabora-
tion, Nakamura shared with Askew a new
“bubbly” track he’d been working on.
Instantly, Askew was compelled to sing
along with the Cole Porter standard “I’ve
Got You Under My Skin.” Both recognized
right away that something special was hap-
pening and recorded the whole thing in
about 20 minutes. Since then, Echo’s ap-
proach has continued to be a happy mar-
riage of known and unknown, expected and
unexpected, electronica and traditional jazz
currents. Luna is a great, intimate place to
see such a show, with endless possibilities
of groove, jazz, pop, and lounge.
ew
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JULY 17, 2003 23