We’ve been suffering with an old, creaky, out of date OMN website for a couple of years. It makes me want to pull my hair out.

On Monday, October 21, that will all be over and the new site will be up.

Honestly, if, as a fan, I had found the OMN site to be cranky, I would have abandoned it. We’re grateful to those loyal OMN readers who have not. You regulars will be happy when you find how much easier and more fun it is to explore the new site.

If you have stopped coming to OMN on the internet, we invite you to return on the 21^st and rediscover.

Has the mission changed? Not really. The hard lesson we have learned is that we can’t cover all that we’d like to cover. One of my most frustrating moments is when I open my email box for the first time every day and see the dozens and dozens of promotional emails I’ve gotten and know that we are able to only cover a small percentage of them.

Even more frustrating is when I go to the post office box and find an album by one of our friends and neighbors and know the creative energy, time, effort and money that went into getting it to us, and then to, many times, know that we’ll never be able to do anything on it.

It hurts us (me) to realize that sad fact. We do what we can, sometimes pushing our own psychic and physical and spiritual limits to the edge.

One thing we won’t have to worry about anymore is whether the goddamned site will work.

It will.

Give it a try on Monday….and every day.

The post Bye Bye old website….new OMN site coming Monday! appeared first on Oregon Music News.

Ms. Lennear today. From the film “20 Feet From Stardom”

Claudia Lennear was a key backup singer in the days when having great backup singers was essential. She was one of the greatest, best known backup singers in history. She was an Ikette in Ike and Tina Turner’s band. She was one of Leon Russell’s Shelter People, and singing

In the day.

with other bands such as Humble Pie and Delaney and Bonnie. She was dating Mick Jagger when he wrote “Brown Sugar” with Keith Richards about HER. She was dating David Bowie when he wrote, “Lady Grinning Soul” about HER.

Tom Simioli wrote in his Huffington Post story, “Since 1970 Claudia’s voice has been on the radio or streaming online – every day, every hour, every minute, every second, every continent -right now!”

She released Phew, a solo album in 1973 and then faded from the scene, teaching Spanish and French for many years.

She was in the documentary, 20 Feet from Stardom, about the life of the backup singer in those days and started performing again.

As you know, Portland’s Bobby Torres was with Joe Cocker’s band, as was Lennear. Recently they reunited at a Joe Cocker Memorial in Virginia. The result is that she’ll be in Portland at Jimmy Mak’s with Torres band on Saturday, October 17.

I spoke with her on the phone last week:

Listen to her answer to Mick and Keith’s “Brown Sugar,” entitled “Not at All.”

The post Claudia Lennear: Legendary singer and muse comes to PDX to sing with Bobby Torres appeared first on Oregon Music News.

Paul Ghun Kim, resident conductor with the Oregon Symphony

Young to be at the orchestral helm by any standard, Paul Ghun Kim, 34, resident conductor with the Oregon Symphony, has had a remarkable track record since early on.  A native of Korea, he moved to the U.S. to attend Curtis Institute of Music at the tender age of 12, where he studied violin for eight years. He joined the Symphony in August, 2013. Kim began his conducting career at 18 as a faculty member at the Hartwick College Summer Music Festival.

Since he and the popular Chinese pianist Lang Lang were classmates at Curtis  and knew each other there, Kim is a bit sentimental about the upcoming performance at the Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall Oct. 15, which includes Dvorak’s Symphony No. 8 and the Grieg Piano Concerto. “It’s a really nice way to go back to where you started, basically. I get kind of sentimental about these things. Lang Lang knew me as a violinist, so this will be quite new for him, too.”

In addition, he was the Assistant Conductor at Manhattan School of Music, the Aldeburgh Festival, the Peabody Institute of Music and the Jacobs School of Music. He has conducted in Poland and Canada, and won the Fritz Kreisler Award from the Curtis Institute of Music. Among other credits, he was a prizewinner at the 8th Grzegorz Fitelberg International Competition for Conductors. He received his Master’s Degree from Rice University and is a Doctoral Candidate at Indiana University.

We talked to Kim at the Oregon Symphony office about his life and career.

I read somewhere that of all the careers, conductors have the longest life spans.

Thank God! It’s a lot of cardio, I know. You need to be able to express yourself as a conductor with your body. So your body has to be fit. That doesn’t mean I exercise regularly, but conducting keeps me in shape.

Talk about your first connection to music.

My mother owned and operated a sort of (classical) music academy in Korea. She hired teachers to give lessons, and provided the space.Our home was actually inside those practice rooms. It was a way of life. I literally woke up to that music. I remember waking up to some horrible renditions of the Turkish March by Mozart on piano. That was the level of kids that came to study. I started on piano, but switched to violin, and stayed with it for a long time. That’s what I studied at the Curtis Institute.

But mentally, I was always thinking, “I want to be a conductor. I WILL be a conductor. Since the age of seven. I don’t know why. I think I probably saw someone conduct on TV.

It’s interesting, the rich focus on Western classical music and the wealth of musicians coming out of  Asia.

There is that focus. Not so common in the States. And it’s in Russia. I think it was Jascha Heifetz who said that every kid in a Ukrainian village plays a violin….and that is when they saw so many of those great violinist come out of that area.

I think you have to consider the fact that Korea now is actually a remnant of the Cold War. There are just so many different cultures in Korea. The folk songs we learn as children are basically western. Those songs I sung when I was little, I didn’t realize they were actually by Schubert, or Austrian or Russian folk songs. I’d listen to certain classical music and think, “This is so familiar.” It happens a lot when I conduct composers like Dvorak, which we will be doing in the concert, or Russian music, which I did in my last subscription concert.

So you were young when you first entered Curtis?

I was probably too young. I was 12. I was the youngest one there, along with Hilary Hahn, who came later. I didn’t take college courses until so much later.

How did that feel, as a kid to come to American and jump into studies?

It didn’t seem all that foreign. It was just an extension of what I was doing in Korea. I had moved when I was 11, and spent a year preparing for Curtis. However, I didn’t speak any English. I remember going to a private school in Philadelphia, and I didn’t speak a word of English for three months. I just sat there: People probably thought I was mute. Then one day, my brain had an explosion. I could hear everything, I could understand everything, and I started speaking. Later, I was in the top of my class for spelling and grammar!

After Curtis?

I started in wander, spending time in Amsterdam close to the Royal Concertgbou Orchestra, one of the best in the world. I was enrolled in a conducting class there. I was in Vienna briefly. Then I returned to the US and went to conducting school at Rice University in Houston. From there, I went to Peabody, kind of hopping around from teacher to teacher. It wasn’t until I actually spent one summer with the great conductor Lorin Maazel, that I got what I was looking for. He saw me conduct, talked to me, and immediately he knew what I needed. Right after that, I attended Indiana University, where I had the greatest experiences of my life, as a musician, a colleague, and as a conductor. Then this job opened up in Portland, and I applied.

It’s like you’re moving west, working your way back to Asia.

I do feel like that, in some way. Because I eventually want to be deeply involved in what’s happening in Asia, especially Korea. It’s a very cultured country, and I would like to go back to where I came from and share what I’ve learned. I haven’t been back in 25 years. I’ve just been so occupied here.

Talk about the Oct. 15 concert program a bit.

This is all about fun and joy. Immediately when I heard Lang Lang was to be performing the Grieg Concerto, I thought about all that pieces that would go well with that. Immediately I thought of Slavic music. You have a very popular pianist playing an extremely popular concerto. It means celebration, festivities. That doesn’t mean it’s not serious, but it’s something very inviting for the audience. It’s more easy-going, which is exactly what the Dvorak Eighth Symphony is. Also we’ve got the Offenbach Overture to “Orpheus in the Underworld” as an opening.

What do you love about conducting?

I think ultimately being able to connect with people, to connect with many people  at the same time. There’s a certain satisfaction about everybody (musicians) understanding each other within that brief moment of musical excellence, understanding exactly what we’re striving to do without talking. There’s something very remarkable about that. It’s like being in the army, in a way, working with the musicians, surrounded by your peers. You feel a great brotherhood, you know? Without the arms.

For tickets and information about this event, visit the symphony website.

The post Oregon Symphony resident conductor Paul Ghun Kim performs with Lang Lang -Q&A appeared first on Oregon Music News.

The Alternative Rock of the 90s is alive in Portland.  Hard-working quartet Mosby carries youthful energy into the genre with invigorating grooves.  The band’s white collar approach to building arrangements is highlighted in their newest single, “Disco Queen,” with high harmonies and bold lead guitar lines weaving in and out of a hard driving rhythm section.  In their short time together Mosby has proven prolific, with two full-length albums, an EP, three music videos, and three singles.  Safe to say there is plenty more to come from them, so stay tuned.  In the meantime, check out past episodes of PDX Spotlight here.

– By Nathan Earle

The post Mosby: PDX Spotlight’s October show – full show video appeared first on Oregon Music News.

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African Americans have done some great shit for music (most obvious statement, ever), but when it comes to punk rock, we’ve got Bad Brains and Death. The former became one of the biggest disappointments of the year by bailing on their Portland show some months ago with Yasiin Bey, but the latter is playing a set with locals turned big-ish time rawkers Guantanamo Baywatch.

Yes, you read that correctly. Death and Guantanamo will be sharing Mississippi Studio’s stage on the Sunday, October 18. They’re just about six months post the release of their first album in nearly FOREVER and the first without the glue of the group, brother David Hackney, but N.E.W. marks an older yet still proto-punky Death. Random, yes. Awesome, HELL YES.

It’s a surprise that Mississippi Studio’s is branching out from their usual indie faire and their occasional hip-hop twerk party, but hosting Detroit’s finest is sure to sell out. Make sure you get your tickets quickly, rewatch A Band Called Death and dust off that denim vest (or roll it around in more dirt to make it look cooler) because it’s time to party.

The post Video of the Day: Death – ‘Keep on Knocking (Live)’ appeared first on Oregon Music News.

Keith, Jason and Justin have spent countless hours, blood, sweat and whiskey on this project delivering what could be conceived as one of the best projects from the label to date. Having caught up with co-founder, Keith Littlefield, for comment, whose band also appears on the album, I asked a few questions. Here is what he had to say.

“When we first conceived the idea for this record, we wanted our favorite bands in Portland, OR to record their favorite song about Satan. It seemed simple enough. I imagined it would be a Metal record, given the theme, but I was wrong. All of these bands surprised us in good, maybe evil ways. They found Satan everywhere in Rock ‘n’ Roll, and in the end presented us with a multi-genre mixtape of the beast. This record stretches from 60s Rock to Punk to Thrash and beyond.

“The bands had chosen rarities that had never been recorded well. They reimagined songs and did what I think are superior versions. They stripped songs of pretentiousness and did loving homages to their icons. These are songs of evil, the power of Satan, damnation, and just general sin with a lust for life. This is Rock ‘n’ Roll with its horns up and temptation in its eyes. Play it loud.”

With notes on several of the acts on the LP, Side A, the Agony side, it lines up and builds anticipation for the next track. Disenchanter kicks off with “Satanispiritus,” which is an incredible version of an obscure piece taken from the one and only single from the 1970s era psychedelic occult Rock band Astaroth. Disenchanter’s lead singer Sabine Strangenberg’s vocals and bandmates’ musicianship breathes new life into this classic hit.

Track II is a respectfully performed cover of “The Antichrist” found on the Show No Mercy album from Slayer. With Metal fans being as hardcore and critical of material covered from their legendary heroes, The Thornes grabbed the proverbial Dark One by the horns and made this song their own with a fantastic version of the 1983 hit.

Track III is performed by World War Four (WWIV) with a cover of the Sonics hit song “He’s waiting”. WWIV vocalist Steve Ricke adds power to this track with vocals and bass, Jack Winslow and Chris Peterson amp things up a bit with some raw guitar riffs and leads, along with the hard hitting drumming by Venus, which brings a heavier sound and a little bit of raunch to this classic, yet complementing the original.

Track IV is one from the Decliners, who chose “Shout at the Devil” from Motley Crue, which is a tough song to cover. The Decliners have done a great job with their version, adding bong rips, backward masking, drums and guitar riffs that I believe any fan of the original will appreciate. Staying true to the tone and theme of the album, the Decliners make it their own.

And for the last in the line on the Agony side, Perfect Monster performs their version of “White Witch of Rose Hall” from the band Coven. Listening to this song in its original release and then the version perfectly performed by Perfect Monster, with a slightly up beat and magical transformation of the original, should be enough to own this LP. Perfect Monsters’ version is incredibly well performed and lyrically over the top, and it’s very hard for me to even say this on a review but I feel Perfect Monster has the winning version.

Kicking off Side Beast is “Heaven’s on Fire,” from extreme Metal kings Venom, performed by 42 Ford Prefect. They’ve taken an awesome song and elevated it to a new level in a way only this four-piece can with their hard vocalizing, powerful guitar rhythms, ripping leads, heavy bass and drumming. This is a bit faster than the original, but if you close your eyes and visualize Chronos, it would be them the band had channeled taking this song over the top.

Track II is performed by Lexxi Vexx and the Modern Gentlemen. Their version of “Eyes of Satan” from the Pagans is definitely an upbeat, harder and much sexier version of the original. I believe it’s safe to say any fan of the Pagans will fall in love with this version of the song.

Track III is a cover of “Deity” from industrial legend Ministry, performed by Stumblebum in the key of evil. The trio really put their all into this one and delivers a uniquely revised version, keeping the original darkness that envelops the original. Nothing at all is transformational with this one. It’s completely freshened up, yet is still a cover.

Track IV is performed by a band that had to undergo a lot of recent transformations themselves, not only in name but with its members as well. The Mormon Trannys’ former members relabeled themselves as The Latter Day Skanks and do “Fucked by the Devil,” by Jayne County, who was pivotal in inspiring the founder of the The Latter Day Skanks, the Prophet Josephina Smith, in forming the trio. No golden tablets or secret handshakes are needed to describe how incredibly their version of this song is. Just play it loud!

Track V is done by the Shit House Rats, who chose “Heart of the Devil” by Glenn Danzig to cover. Shit House Rats bring a lot to the table with their version of the song with slide guitar, locomotive rhythm and harmonizing, making it a fantastic addition to the album.

Track VI is the Latin statement “Nulli Domini Astri Sunt,” which has been turned into a chant. Loosely translated the phrase means “No Gods, No Masters”.

For an official release date, performances from the bands showcased on the compilation, and to get your copy of the release, be at the World Famous Kenton Club on October 31^st at 9pm. You will not want to miss this show or this release.

The post Volume Bomb Records, Portland label gets ‘Under the Covers with Satan’ appeared first on Oregon Music News.

Come see MUSE shake the very foundations of Portland’s MODA Center this December 13 at 8pm. Tickets start at $35 and can be found at Ticketmaster’s website. The new album, Drones, can be found here.

Drones is the seventh chapter in MUSE’s dystopian tragedy-epic of a planet enslaved by its trusted leaders, addicted by its own vices, killed by its own technology. Newcomers to Muse’s music will know Drones isn’t some sonic ode to Ray Bradbury, Orson Wells, or – dare we say it – Suzanne Collins. No, vocalist Matthew Bellamy and crew find inspiration for their scathing, guitar squealing, hard-hitting riffs in the good ‘ol here-and-now. And it manifests in Bellamy’s lyrics, such as these lines from ‘Dead Inside': ‘I am crushed and pulverized/Because you need control.’ Songs like ‘Dead Inside’ and the gloomy titular track are a critique of power and privilege, media and disinformation, nationalism and ignorance. Collectively they are a harrowing account of grand schemes allowed to come full circle, of global domination endorsed by hapless masses. Drones is not an album, it’s a warning. The worst is yet to come. And it ain’t for the timid or the faint of heart.

The post Video of the day: Muse – ‘Dead Inside’ appeared first on Oregon Music News.

Brian Foxworth enjoying playing with the Roseland Hunters. Aladdin Theater 3/2/2015  / Photo by Anthony Pidgeon

Hi there, we’re back in the coffeeshop this week…that being World Cup Coffee and Tea at Northwest 18^th and Glisan in Portland. This time…in the days before he will be inducted into the Oregon Music Hall of Fame…drummer Brian Foxworth is with us.

A member of the Curtis Salgado band for the past five years, also a member of the Roseland Hunters where he shows off his vocal skills…he plays with a lot of people and constantly.

He also plays in church…a lot. And he’s helping put together a reunited, rejuvenated version of the famed Portland Soul band Pleasure. And that isn’t half of it.

Coming soon…Inessa does an interview with me in this space. Like I’m not all over this enough…but she asked. Also in the coffeeshop, Jaime Leopold, an original member of Dan Hicks and his Hot Licks and survivor of the summer of love.

Right now, let’s talk with Brian Foxworth.

Listen:

You can also listen and download on the OMN Podcast page. The OMN Podcast is also available on iTunes. Now available on Stitcher! Get the app.

The Oregon Music Hall of fame Induction show is Saturday, 7pm,  October 10 at the Aladdin Theater. Tony Starlight will be MC and official wise-cracker.

Performing will be Storm Large, the Delines, The Kingsmen and friends in a tribute to “Louie Louie” singer Jack Ely, and others.

Here are the new inductees in the order they were announced from the stage in July at Tony Starlight’s by Terry Currier, OMHOF President:

The musicians

Heatmiser

A four-piece band which included Elliott Smith with a four year run beginning in 1992.

Jerry Joseph

He of the Jackmormons, Little Women, Stockhom Syndrome and lots of work with Widespread Panic.

Neo-Boys

Neo-Boys

Portland’s first all-female Rock band. Early Punk 1978-1983.

Bill Rhoades

Blues harmonica player and Party King as well as broadcaster. Most people thought he was already in the HOF.

Ellen Whyte

Versatile singer known mostly for Blues but sings Soul, Rock, Jazz, even Bluegrass. In the Muddy HOF also.

Dave Captein

Bass player’s bass player in a state of internationally known bass players. Only ventriloquist in the OMHOF.

Brian Foxworth

Drummer, percussionist, singer of Soul, Blues, Jazz, Gospel and Rock. Currently with Curtis Salgado, Roseland Hunters and What’s Your Pleasure. Current go-to guy for lots of bands.

From the industry

Marc Baker

Of the Church of N.W. Music on the radio. Managed Crazy 8s. Former OMHOF board member.

John Chassaing

Sold or rented instruments to Oregon Musicians for decades at his ground-breaking Showcase Music store.

Artist of the Year

Storm Large

Say no more.

Album of the Year

The Delines “Colfax”

Started by OMHOF band Richmond Fontaine’s Willy Vlautin. Working-class tunes have recieved world-wide attention.

Click here to view the embedded video.

The post Brian Foxworth: Coffeeshop Conversation #44 – Getting inducted into the Oregon Music Hall of Fame appeared first on Oregon Music News.

Drummer and percussionist Joseph “Smokey” Johnson died this afternoon after a long illness. He was 78.

Johnson was born in New Orleans on November 14, 1936 and is one of the “cornerstone” drummers and percussionists who created New Orleans’ indigenous jazz, funk, R&B and soul music, along with people like James Black and Earl Palmer.

Johnson was raised in Treme and originally played trombone before he began playing drums at age 12.

Johnson was loved and respected by all local musicians, and worked with New Orleans music luminaries Wardell Quezergue, Dave Bartholomew, Earl King and hundreds more. Johnson and Quezergue wrote the Mardi Gras standard “It Ain’t My Fault,” which as been covered by many musical groups, especially local brass bands, as it was one of the first tunes to incorporate second line syncopation into pop music.

Read the full report.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Click here to view the embedded video.

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