SOU’WESTER EVENTS!

Country music was not always about glitz, glamour and praising the red, white and blue. In its earliest inception, it was a means for communities and families to get together, quaff whiskey from jugs and mason jars, and share stories about the hardships of life. While most mainstream country artists like to ally themselves with “real” country, few of them come within a good squirt of tobacco juice of it.
Leave it to Portland, Ore.’s Lana Rebel to hit the mark. Dusty roadhouses and the front seats of beat-up Chevys are the landscapes for her broken hearted tales, delivered in a sweet alto with just enough instrumentation to keep it interesting. Don’t expect boot-kicking barnstormers here, or sassy odes to “redneck woman” power; these are love songs, and Lana knows that that is one four-letter word that often rides with hurt.
Lana avoids many of the clichés of country music, like annoying vocal inflections and clever turns of phrases that are just too predictable. Her music falls somewhere between The Virginian-era Neko Case and Mary Gauthier records. If sad songs don’t drive you to drinkin’, and if tales of woe don’t bring you down, this record will be your friend.

The Sou’wester is so excited to have these two ladies joining us!

Rebecca Clay Cole is a musician from Great Crossing, KY. She has played a multitude of keyboards, drums, and/or percussion instruments in many bands including The Minders, Wild Flag, Rebecca Gates & the Consortium, and Portland Cello Project. She currently plays keytar in Portland’s own Chanti Darling and keyboards in Seattle’s Telekinesis, in addition to performing and recording her own music as Clay Cole.

Rebecca Gates is a US based musician, curator, artist and audio editor. She has released five albums, three as leader of the critically acclaimed group The Spinanes (Sub Pop), toured internationally and appeared as a vocalist on numerous records by artists as wide ranging as The Decemberists and Willie Nelson. Her record Ruby Series was hailed by Spin Magazine as “warm, thoughtful, and melodically gorgeous.”

A swing group from Portland, OR inspired by 1920s-40s swing, hot jazz, Louis Armstrong, Charlie Christian, Django Reinhardt and Stephane Grapelli, Les Paul and Mary Ford. From Brazilian to Bebop to Bach, to Parisian musette waltzes; this Guitar and Cello fronted ensemble comes in a lot of combinations, additional players, and permutations but always employs the freedom and spirit of improvisation, a good time, and simply enjoying and loving life.

Sharing vocal and songwriting duties, Birger Olsen, Mike Elias and Tom Bevitori are the heart of Denver, while the rest of the line-up has long included several of Portland’s finest players. Currently, the band consists of drummer Sean MacNeil, bassist Billy Slater (Grails) and the legendary Lewi Longmire on lead guitar. Past and future editions include Blitzen Trapper’s Eric Earley and Michael Van Pelt, Ben Nugent (Dolorean), Ryan Spellman (Quiet Life), Ray Raposa (Castanets), Tom Menig and many others.

Paste praised their 2012 self-titled debut’s “perfect tunes,” while KEXP hosted a live session and proclaimed, “sweet harmonies and tight arrangements abound.” Statements like these become all the more relevant with their upcoming release, Rowdy Love, as Denver teamed up with Earley and Adam Selzer (M. Ward, Norfolk & Western) for their first trip to a proper studio. Recorded live in just two days at Selzer’s Type Foundry Studio, Rowdy Love certainly showcases all the endless chops at Denver’s disposal.

The record’s true focus, however, lies in the rare way Olsen, Elias and Bevitori’s distinct voices co-exist. There’s a natural melding of styles that’s evolved from afternoons on Olsen’s back porch, late night’s around Elias’ fire pit, and every last time they’ve nailed “The Weight” harmonies at the old Triple Nickel. Denver’s three songwriters may come to the process with varying style and influences, but Denver’s songwriting is universally honest and bare, whiskey-fueled, sweat-soaked, and steeped in working class life. Some might call it country. Some might call it rock. Some might call it a few drunks on a stage. Either way, bullshit and irony have no home here.

Tara Jane ONeil is a multi-instrumentalist, composer, and visual artist.  She creates melodic and experimental music under her own name and in collaboration with her brilliant friends. Her recordings and live performances range from solo songing to noise improvisations. TJO has composed and performed music and sound for films, theater and dance performances, and written large and small ensemble experimental architectures.

Katy Davidson (formerly Dear Nora, Key Losers) writes and performs lyrically-driven experimental pop music that explores the liminal zones between reality and alt-realities.

Cynthia Nelson writes songs and sings them and plays them on instruments. in order of appearance: ruby falls, retsin, the naysayer, the sophie drinker music project, cynthia nelson, cynthia nelson band. new album forthcoming in 2016.

Geoff Soule lives in Portland, Oregon.

Bart Budwig doesn’t write the big songs. He writes the songs about the places between the hills, in the draws and hidden canyons where truth is a little more in focus, stories can take their time gettin’ told, heartbreak is a place of deep reflection, and melodies don’t have to wear rhinestone suits or drive new, shiny, cars to be beautiful. Bart’s also not afraid of working out of the spotlight- he engineered not only his own full-length Whiskey Girl (2012), but also albums and tours with Radiation City, Holiday Friends, Girlfriends, Misé, John Craigie, Edmund Wayne, and Mama Doll.

“Mike Midlo is a storyteller disguised as a musician. His latest project, MidLo, received a grant from Portland’s Regional Arts & Culture Council and was released on March 5, 2013.” www.getyourpitchforkon.wordpress.com

If you have a love for old classic country artists such as Hank Williams and Patsy Cline then you might have a soft spot for this Portland band. Jenny Don’t sings from the heart and Sam, Kelly, and JT play like there is no tomorrow. Sit back and enjoy!

Ora Cogan’s music is deliberate medicine for fresh sorrows. Her voice is hypnotizing as a candle flame. This music demands our full attention, in a tender way. Cogan’s versatile, haunted voice opens up a mystical reality; hallowed, forlorn and full of promise. She has let her curiosity lead her into many genres over the years, combining the intricate guitar picking of Americana with grunge and psychedelic dreamscapes. She has been compared to 70’s folk legend Karen Dalton and Angel Olsen, while still setting herself apart in her own unique way.

Ora became a part of Vancouver’s eclectic music community at the age of 19, co-producing her 2010 album The Quarry with Jesse Taylor at Nite Prison and collaborating with a multitude of artists participating in Fake Jazz Wednesdays & Her Jazz Noise Collective. Cogan has released six full-length recordings to date and has shared the stage with the likes of Chelsea Wolfe, Hope Sandoval and Grouper while touring extensively across Europe and North America for the past 10 years. She has appeared on radio shows, such as WNYC’s Spinning on Air, and played numerous festivals including Vancouver Folk Festival, The Festival of Endless Gratitude in Denmark, and Tanned Tin in Spain.