If you’re a big vegetable person like Amanda Munro, who gets enthusiastic about onions, spring salad, potatoes and zucchini, getting a new community garden is cause for celebration anywhere. But for Munro and other residents of Linnton, the promise embodied … Continue reading Community Garden to Knit Town Split by Highway
Technical problems can frustrate any live musical act, but for electronic artists it’s much worse than a broken string or blown amplifier. Sonically speaking, the zeros and ones are beautiful — and cruel. Computer crash = show over. Justin Boreta … Continue reading The Glitch Mob promises ‘most insane show ever’ at Portland’s Roseland Theater
The transformation of the “Suicide Bridge” would never have occurred if not for the unique qualities found in a single, fatefully located Portland family — a spark, a conscience, and champion. It’s only halfway there, yet it may already be … Continue reading The Transformation of ‘Suicide Bridge’
The Portland Police Bureau has a problem with excessive use of force, but the women who serve as officers aren’t to blame. Across the board, female officers account for a far smaller share of the use of force by Portland … Continue reading Gender Rap: Women in Portland Police use excessive force far less than men
Leaves Russell released its first full-length, “We Chose the Devil Red,” in March 2013. Unfortunately, the quartet dissolved shortly thereafter. I play violin, viola, mandocaster and sing backup on the album. The band played the CD release party at the … Continue reading Leaves Russell’s “We Chose the Devil Red”
Emancipator’s “Dusk to Dawn” was released in January 2013, and received airplay and reviews from top U.S. media. Emancipator, a.k.a. Doug Appling, along with his Ensemble, has been touring the U.S., bringing his focused melodic downtempo to clubs around the … Continue reading Emancipator releases “Dusk to Dawn”
East Forest released a full-length LP in Fall 2012. I play violin and viola on three songs. The album’s gotten airplay on OPB and in Europe. Go to eastforest.org for more info, or click on the link below. The project … Continue reading “Love Bomb” by East Forest
The brainchild of Chris Allen, formerly of Hungry Mob Productions, and lead vocalist Fern Capella, Star Witness released two tracks on which I play viola and violin in 2012. Listen below, or download for free at http://www.reverbnation.com/starwitness Star Witness-After the … Continue reading Star Witness: “After the Show”
East Forest is the “ambient dream-core electro-acoustic experimental minimalist shaman-rock” project of Trevor Oswalt, a Portland-via-Brooklyn musician. I’ve played with him on a number of tracks, including some more meditative and long-form and some more groovetastic. East Forest just released … Continue reading East Forest’s Slowly But Forward: 12 minutes of “ambient dream-core”
Below is my contribution to “Only On The Bus,” the October 2011 column for Michael Andersen’s magazine Portland Afoot. Michael Andersen is now the News Editor for Bike Portland, bikeportland.org. Continue reading Portland Afoot: Only On the Bus
Portland State University Vanguard (3/1/11) Almost more Radiohead than Radiohead Leaves Russell releases debut album, raises local bar By Nicholas Kula Like black metal, grind and pretty much all electronic music, Portland has this unspoken ratio in play: For every … Continue reading Mercury, Vanguard, Oregon Music News review Leaves Russell EP
In February 2011, Leaves Russell released its debut EP, “A Tale of Two Basements.” The cover art was done by Jeremy Moore and looks like this: The album is available for digital download at leavesrussell.bandcamp.com for a very reasonable $5. The five songs on the album are: 1 Heart of Things 2 Paper Thin 3 La Zona Rosa 4 Na Na Na 5 Replace the Light (Upon the Stand) I played violin, viola and Fender mandocaster, and sang backup vox. Matthew Russell sang lead and played piano, Isaac Medina played bass and Jackson Conrad played drums. The album was engineered … Continue reading Leaves Russell releases “A Tale of Two Basements” EP
Here is the first big story I ever wrote for publication: a cover story for Milwaukee, WI alternative newsweekly the Shepherd Express. It came on the heels of my internship at the Feminist Majority Foundation in Washington, D.C., where I met Penny Harrington, the former police chief of Portland, OR and the first female chief of a major city. Continue reading “A Target On Their Chest”: Women in Policing
After a great show at the Doug Fir Lounge on January 22, 2011, Petoskey is releasing its new EP, titled “Little Lakes.” Recorded by Skyler Norwood at Miracle Lake Studios in Camas, WA, the EP includes five songs, including Baby Bee, Chickadee, Jacob and the Whale, Artichoke and 1627 Leffingwell. Petoskey is Angie Kuzma (center), Justin Ready (far right), Becca Vandewalle (back right), Jason Drost (mid right), Lauren Vidal (back left), and Thacher Schmid (far left). You can buy this excellent recording for just five bucks here: http://petoskey-pdx.bandcamp.com/ If you’d like a sneak peek, here are two of the three … Continue reading Petoskey releases “Little Lakes” EP
Signs Of Discontent Billboard wordplay has caught the Blazers off guard and angered some feminists. BY THACHER SCHMID | 503-243-2122 [December 8th, 2010] It takes a second glance to realize that some billboards in the city that’s home to the Trail Blazers aren’t a typo. The capital letters, several feet tall and a dozen wide, spell the words “TAIL BLAZERS” and are nestled between the faces of actors Charlie Sheen and Neil Patrick Harris. They’re plastered on at least three billboards and one MAX light-rail train as part of a NW32/KRCW ad campaign to pitch two TV series, Sheen’s Two … Continue reading Signs of Discontent
Songs & Stories 