music
Looking Grimm
Belting it Out
After sitting down with the Strangled Darlings’ latest work, a 12-track LP entitled Red Yellow & Blue, it’s
clear that Portlanders George Veech and Jessica Anderly are comfortable with the sound they’ve cultivated.
Deft, confident songwriting — as haunting as their particular brand may be — is one of the duo’s honed-est
talents, and they’ve set in motion a vessel to prove that freak-folk and pop can hold hands. Their sound is
that of an energetic Devendra Banhart (here played by multi-instrumentalist Veech) marrying the weaving,
poppy swing of a string band with Black Prairie’s eerie style and Jack Johnson’s thirst for acoustic grooves.
If there’s ever a time to incorporate nursery rhymes — the ones that might sound far more twisted from
the mouth of, say, a vaudeville-era ringmaster — it’s here, alongside an assortment of disjointed plucks and
tweaks that Phil Spector would probably want to shoot himself over. Despite the creepiness and yawning
chasms of holey production, Red Yellow & Blue’s into-the-woods-with-a-banjo-and-fiddle aesthetic fits Veech
and Anderly far more appropriately than a wall of sound ever could.
Beyond this, there’s a rockabilly characteristic to what would otherwise be considered unique folk-pop,
and it lends the duo their mysteriously caustic presence. Hey, there’s nothing like a slanted punk undertone
to get the feet stomping — and this furthers both the antiquity of the group’s sound as well as the downright
impishness of their lyrics. Don’t be surprised to hear Veech literally howl like the wolf that ate Little Red’s
gramgram, and don’t be shocked if the corners of your own mouth start to curl into a menacing grin as the
sound of fun-loving decay washes over you.
Strangled Darlings & Aeon Now play 9 pm Thursday, May 10, at Sam Bond’s; $1-$5. — Andy Valentine
Pretend for a moment that you’re trapped in a bad trip and the only thing you can
hear is the cyclical recycling of washed-out psychedelia diluted through decades of
designer drugs and synthesizers. The drippy glitches and wobbles are nauseating
auditory distractions from a starscape of potential sound. So you listen up, and the
points come together as Orion belts you back into a more organic, funk-in-the-trunk
era without making you feel like you’ve already come down.
The three musicians holding Orion in place are Cory Howie (bass, guitar and
vocals), Aaron Eells (guitar and bass) and Peter Wells, drumming jazz and hip hop into
the cold blues and progressive-melodies. Howie and Eells, having played together
since high school in Gold Beach, Ore., united with Wells three years ago to form the
current incarnation. Now, after a series of booze-fueled runs at the Black(out) Forest,
Orion is set to release its eponymous first record.
Recorded in Eugene at Telos Studios and mastered at Unc D Studios in Portland,
Orion is a rich album that traverses the astral plane and plunges into the rabbit hole.
“The Outside” is a loud, raucous, funk-driven blast-off, while “Bob Saget in Space (Part
IX)” is a trippy, goofy cool-down before you set the controls for the heart of the sun.
Orion plays with Full Lush and Stein 9 pm Saturday, May 5, at Sam Bond’s; $5.
— Patrick Newson
Get It Done with Curtis Salgado
The beauty of the blues is in its “ba-bah-bah-bump my baby she left me” simplicity. The same simplicity
makes the blues so easy to parody, but also makes it relatable to so many people and allows other musical
styles to easily join the party, like soul, gospel and rock.
Portland’s Curtis Salgado, one of the Northwest’s best-known blues artists (he got his start here in
Eugene) is no stranger to local blues enthusiasts. Salgado has built a career playing solid, dependable and
competent baby-boomer blues-rock, the stuff of Viagra ads. So I threw on his latest Soul Shot on Alligator
Records, expecting more of the same. And let me say, expectations are exceeded.
There’s been a blues-rock and soul revival running a few years now, with the younger crowd eating up
Amy Winehouse, Black Keys, Raphael Saadiq and Mayer Hawthorne (who appears on campus the night
after Salgado plays WOW Hall). Soul Shot is a high-energy collection — owing more to Marvin Gaye, Isaac
Hayes, Temptations and classic Motown than average bar-band blues music. Smooth baby-makin’ sounds
meet scorching dance numbers, with Salgado adding a healthy dose of soul to his always-evident vocal
chops.
So — whether you’re a veteran R&B fan in all your grey-haired glory, or a new kid getting into the neo-
soul revival planning on catching Mayer Hawthorne’s set on campus — let Salgado show you how the
veterans do it. Like those Viagra ads say: There’s nothing like experience.
Curtis Salgado plays 5 pm Friday, May 4, at Skip’s Records & CD World; FREE; and 8 pm Friday, May 4,
at WOW Hall; $20 adv., $25 door. — William Kennedy
PHOTO BY DILLON DONOVAN
DIY Grass Widows
San Francisco’s Grass Widow is a lovely mess. At first listen,
skittery drums underscore rumbling bass lines. Wiry guitars entwine
with angelic female harmonies that make sense in that universe ruled
by the B-52s. And ultimately it feels like it’s all going in different
directions, functioning with its own internal logic “like outsider art,”
says Grass Widower Hannah Lew.
On second listen, the disparate elements start to snap into focus.
There’s some vintage surf-rock and girl-group sounds in Grass Widow,
along with some arty post-punk experimentation (think Joy Division,
or The Fall). Like fellow garage-rock/girl-group revivalists Vivian Girls
and Best Coast (but minus the warm fuzz those bands utilize), Grass
Widow breaks rock ’n’ roll down to its DIY elements — which is pretty
punk rock.
“We’re all equally dedicated to the band,” says Lew, who also
mentions that the band members gather inspiration from one
another rather than outside influences. She says the three-piece is
definitely inspired by the punk-rock ethos. She says she likes to feel
“this person had to make those sounds” when listening to music, and
to be reminded that “anyone can do it … Which is a nice thing to hear,”
she adds.
Grass Widow toured with Wild Flag after opening on the Portlandia
live tour and appearing in a Portlandia skit. In May the group releases
Internal Logic (all puns intended) on its own label HLR Records.
Grass Widow plays 7:45 pm Saturday, May 5, at the Willamette
Valley Music Fest on campus; FREE. — William Kennedy
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