Birds & Batteries – Tuesday, October 27th @ The Woods
Our fearless leader wrote a small profile of this California-based band (pictured) back in May when they were gearing up to play Doug Fir. If you missed that show, you’d do well to pick up the slack by seeing them tonight. Dave said they reminded him of early Brian Eno, which I can also hear in their fine melding of electronic bleats and slow simmering pop. I also pick up on a similarly playful aesthetic that aligns them with groups like Super Furry Animals. We recommend going to the show and building your own analogies.
Britt Daniel – Thursday, October 29th @ Mississippi Studios
Seeing a rare solo set by the leader of the consistently fantastic band Spoon would be enough, but this show, like Highlights Magazine, is fun with a purpose. Proceeds from the show are going to support the PDX Pop Now! Festival, tucking a bit of capital in their pockets so they can put on another incredible event in 2010 and continue their outreach work in schools and the community at large.
Meyercord – Sunday, October 25th @ Valentine’s
When he’s not lending his talents to the band Y La Bamba, Ben Meyercord spills out buckets of pure emotion and beauty all over his own compositions. Recorded, they tend to have a naive, lo-fi quality – anchored by his gently picked acoustic or with roughly stitched together drum machine accompaniment – to them that only adds to the withering ache that lay at the heart of Meyercord’s affecting voice and lyrics. In concert, it comes out even clearer and cleaner and is even harder to shake.