rejuvenating piano pieces on radiation city's 'cool nightmare'

Fresh off of their first appearance at SXSW, Portland's Radiation City have been working their way back home up the West Coast since departing the anointed indie fest in mid-March. Down in Austin, Rad City played seven shows in four days, including The Portland Party (which we threw for ourselves, damn it!), and, although they just released their debut LP in September, they've been playing plenty of new material from their new EP, Cool Nightmare, which will be released on April 10th via Tender Loving Empire.

The full-length, The Hands That Take You, was largely the efforts of Rad City creators and couple Cameron Spies and Lizzy Ellison, but the latest seven-track EP sees contributions from three additional members: Matt Rafferty, Randy Bemrose, and the newest addition, Patti King.

With Cool Nightmare, there's an intriguing story of finding inspiration in a decrepit piano before destroying it, documenting the whole process audibly and visually, and sharing some mementos of this exercise with fans.

To understand the ideas and muse behind this eerily bewitching EP, which is also full of "dream-like ambience and warmth," OMN spoke to Cameron Spies before the band returns to the NW in the beginning of April for two Oregon shows: Sunday, April 1st at Sam Bonds in Eugene and a free EP release party at Rontoms in Portland on Sunday, April 8th with Seattle's Legendary Oaks.

But first, listen to the spectral power of the latest single "Eye of Yours":

Two months ago, you released a music video for "Find it of Use" (below), which featured the destruction of a piano. Tell me the story behind your new EP and that piano's role.

The imagery for this record involves this piano that lived in Randy's basement. We recorded a lot of the piano tracks for the album [using this piano], and by the completion of the record, the piano was essentially useless—a ragged heap wasting away in the dark. We decided it would be best to give it new life through its destruction. We captured audio of a decent amount of the moving/smashing part of the process for use as samples on the record or for use in later recordings (hence the title "Find it of Use," I guess, although the song title came first). That imagery is not an accident though. The record evokes the idea of destruction and rebirth through a gentle tug of war between darkness and levity.

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'sex with the lights on' : a q/a with seattle’s pickwick

Listening to Pickwick’s soul-injected pop, it’s hard to image the Seattle six-piece making any other style of music. And once you've seen their dynamic, youthful live show, you’ll recognize a band that’s found their sound.

Pickwick began with lead vocalist Galen Disston writing folk songs on an acoustic guitar backed by drummer Matthew Emmett. The band grew to five members in 2008, including Cassady Lillstrom (keys, background vocals), Garrett Parker (bass) and Michael Parker (guitar, background vocals), but finally cemented their lineup with the addition of producer, engineer, percussionist and mentor (aka “father figure”) Kory Kruckenberg–a Grammy winner no less for 2011′s Best Engineered Classical Album.

It’s the classic story of a band reinventing their sound, but Pickwick’s metamorphosis was profound, going from a Wilco derivative to an emotionally charged, garage-pop, R&B force. But guitarist Michael Parker would rather you think of their sound as “sex with the lights on.”

The process of transformation allowed the group to “figure out what kind of band we were meant to be all along,” continues to Parker. Listen to "The Round":

Shedding their inhibitions and drawing from influences like Sam Cook, Otis Redding, Spoon, The Walkmen and Cold War Kids, Pickwick decided to go for "low-fi soul" rather than kill the band, which had stagnated in a genre that simply wasn’t for them. And although their name (and typographical choices) may still contain a countrified air, the material is anything but.

Their few recordings envelope a raw, lucid, harmonic bliss that transforms into live shows packed with spirited verve. But don’t think you can easily brand Pickwick as another pack of neo-soul white boys. While they are still defining and refining their sound, discovering that universal lesson of “less is often more,” according to Parker, Pickwick’s new material is instinctive and self-fulfilling, a natural expression that wraps the tangible passion of lead singer Galen Disston’s vocals with a driving bass and drum backbone plus key touches, guitar riffs, and a bevy of hand percussion. The result is intended to be self-liberating and the fact that audience’s seem to relish it as well is just a perk.

The band is hardly solemn though; their live performances are ebullient. Displaying a sense of humor, Parker says, “Up until recently, the pinnacle of our success was our short residency at the Emerald Queen Casino opening up for a troop of John Candy impersonators… it went ok. Lately we’ve been playing bigger and bigger shows and festivals around the Northwest. As a band who has been slugging it out for a few years we feel very fortunate to be where we’re at. In the next month alone we will have played Doe Bay Fest, Bumbershoot, and [an unofficial] MFNW [showcase]. It’s a trip.”

Visiting Portland for their third time in September, Pickwick will be at Rontoms’ free Marmoset Music Party on Sunday, September 11th (the final day of MFNW) appearing alongside PDX favs like Tu Fawning, Dolorean, Pancake Breakfast and Seattle pals Hey Marseilles.

OMN had the chance to chat with guitarist and the band’s pseudo-psychologist Michael Parker about Pickwick’s beginnings and future.

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pegasus dream releases debut album at rontoms

As the festivities of PDX Pop Now! wind down Sunday night, August 1st, an unofficial after party will be ramping up at Rontoms with Pegasus Dream celebrating the release of their first album, Painting Pantheons. Playing alongside Astrology (featuring members of Panther and Copy/Atole) and XDS, the gig is free and will showcase the debut of an album that’s been three years in the making from Spokane to Portland.

Since the last time OMN spoke with Pegasus Dream in late April, they’ve returned to their core duo of JT Lindsey (guitars, samples, vox) and Andy Carlson (keys, vox) parting ways with former drummer Mikey Dane, as he moved back to Spokane, but picking up producer/drummer Jeff Bond (Diamond Liars, Asphalt Thieves) as a live drummer at Superfest 2.

Running just over 35 minutes, Painting Pantheons retains the tones of influences like Ratatat but without the droning repetition that can bore; rather Pegasus Dream’s debut manages to remain anchored in a poppy aesthetic but with enough experimentation and reigned in psychedelia to wander and tease the right extremes without taking the plunge.

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free, sunday gig: the pack a.d. + sex life at rontoms

Put two loud girls in a small space like Rontoms and let ‘er rip.

A female Black Keys pulsing with crude bluesy energy and endlessly crashing cymbals, drummer Maya Miller puts Meg White to shame while singer, guitarist Becky Black drawls and hauls with the best male garage rockers.

The blues stompin’, rhythm rockin’ Vancouver-duo The Pack A.D. comes to Portland on Sunday, March 7th rocking a free gig at Rontoms alongside dance-makers Sex Life and a disco DJ set from Maxx Bass at 9 PM.

There’s no reason to spar with words here, just one quick listen and you’ll understand. (Download their single “Crazy” here.)

Three guys, a girl, and percussionary dance vibes...

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