Various Artists - "PDX Pop Now! 2007"

Ethan Rose - Celing Songs 3 (excerpt) (PDX Pop Now! 2007)

Lips and Ribs - Battle in Nagoya (PDX Pop Now! 2007)

Ferocious Eagle - Bastards (PDX Pop Now! 2007)

Various Artists – PDX Pop Now! 2007 / self-released

Growing up on the east coast and now relocated to the Midwest, sometimes I fail to get on the same wavelength of west coast artists. It is just a different frame of mind out there, and one that I have just not spent enough time in to really be able to get down with a lot of their particular trends. Granted there are certainly exceptions to this and the internet’s ascension as a way of life is really breaking down regional differences anyways, but as for now, there is still a considerable disparity between my Midwesterian way of life and, say, the regular routine of a Pacific Northwesterner. Besides the obvious geographical and climate differences, I think it’s all of the smaller details, from grocery stores to local bands, which really make up the void between us. For me at least, immersing yourself in the local music scene is the best way to at least be introduced into the frame of mind of your contemporaries, which is typically spelled out in stylistic choices (for example: Midwest=pastoral post-rock=laid-back but innovative culture… I am so biased). Well if this is true, then Portland has been trying to lure music fans of all sorts of styles and mindsets over the last few years by not only putting on an all local, multi-genre, free-of-charge festival showcasing the cream of the cities musical crop, but also releasing an accompanied two-disc compilation of all Portland-bred acts. The 2007 installment of PDX Pop Now! is as strong and diverse as ever, which is an excellent reflection on Portland’s continuously expanding local scene and the wide variety of creative minds taking part.

“PDX Pop Now! is a volunteer-driven nonprofit organization dedicated to celebrating, promoting, and enhancing Portland’s vital and diverse music community. We also strive to connect this community, in various ways, to the public.” The mission statement pretty much sums it up. Now in it’s fourth year, the festival itself is still a free three-day, all-ages event that let’s Portlanders experience fifty of the cities brightest groups in a live setting. It is certainly a respectable, worthwhile grassroots operation, and other cities really should take note and perhaps start one of their own.

While the 2007 festival line-up is still not completely unveiled (The Blow, The Shaky Hands and Blitzen Trapper are a few of the notable names already revealed), this years compilation has been released, and while a bit top-heavy, it’s a solid two discs of quality music. After jotting down loose, one-line descriptions of each of the forty artists included, four particular styles emerged: folksy singer/songwriter, art-pop, electro-whatever and rap. While you have got to love the diversity of genres, it very much reflects what is popular on a national scale of independent music. The real question is whether it’s a reflection of or an inspiration for what’s happening on a bigger scale.

Before we get to the oddballs of the 2007 PDX Pop Now! installment, let’s point out both the most notable and my personal favorites of the four main styles. Of the folksy singer/songwriters, The Decemberists’ Colin Meloy has got to be the most familiar as he has become the sort of poet laureate of Portland. “Culling of the Fold” is classic Meloy: somber, acoustic-guitar driven and eerily catchy. My personal choice comes from quirky folk popsters The Ocean Floor, whose “A Simple Adventure” could have just of easily fit into the art-pop group with its whimsical song structure. And speaking of art-pop, after their monumental 2007 release, Friend and Foe, Menomena has to be the biggest name, with an inclusion of a track from that album, “Wet and Rusting.” Energetic trio Ferocious Eagle with their anthemic rocker “Bastards” gets my personal vote in this category. I was glad to see such strong representation from the Portland hip-hop community as well with five different artists contributing tracks. “No Surprise,” one of the best songs from Lifesavas excellent 2007 release, Gutterfly, is the most notable and would also be my personal choice if it wasn’t for female emcee Syndel. Her contribution, “Lemme Hear It,” reminds me a lot of Psalm One and is a biting, empowering banger. And finally, the electro-whatever category. I guess either YACHT or Panther would be the most familiar, both have had surges of popularity as of late, but Lips and Ribs’ all too short “Battle in Nagoya” is my personal favorite. Like an 8-bit video game soundtrack hopped up on Red Bull, I’m sure it completely destroys basement parties on regular occasions.

And as far as everything else that does not fit into those four categories, I am happy to see inclusions from the art-metal, ambient, big band and punk side of things. Bands like Black Elk, The Better to See You With and The Hand That Bleeds add a welcomed dose of aggression, while on the complete other side of things, Ethan Rose contributes an excerpt of one of his gorgeous ambient pieces from his phenomenal 2006 release, Ceiling Songs. Both the Evolutionary Jass Band and Klezmocracy contribute excursions into big band, pulling from New Orleans jazz and klezmer music respectively to round out their sound. And finally, punk gets it’s due with bands like The Exploding Hearts and Nice Boys keeping with the pop side of the genre, while Swim Swam Swum and Junkface both stem from the post-punk sub-style.

As you can see, there is a lot to be discovered on PDX Pop Now! 2007. And it speaks significantly of the accepting and encouraging catalyst culture that Portland has become in the last decade. It would be tough for a city of New York or Los Angeles size to be able to sum up their counterculture in a two-disc set, but Portland appears to be at just the right magnitude to both cultivate artists and launch them onto the national stage. It is at a small enough level that the music scene is still accessible for anyone willing to put in the time and energy, yet big enough to reward them with a significant amount of attention. PDX Pop Now! is a great outlet for the scene to be heard, and it’s become a compilation I look forward to hearing every year.