| clubs by night | bands in town this week | club directory |
| jazz clubs | pop concerts | classical concerts | jazz concerts | hot links | local band websites |

Sweet Christ, a monster

By Sherie Dyer

The artist Robert Williams once referred to imagination as a “beast.” If that’s true, at this point in Portland’s music scene, we are all in the jungle.

2000 has come and gone bearing matured talent in every single genre in town. It’s nearly impossible to cover everything that’s gone on this year, so if I’ve left anybody out, please forgive me.

Lets start with this year’s releases. Munjoy Hill Society’s Bon Voyage made quite the impact earlier this year, creating a special place for solid lounge music riddled with humor and Latin influence. Singer Darien Brahms worked her ass off on her own solo album, Little Bundle of Sugar, which was the second release off the DIY label Red Sparkle Records, a label she funded off her game show winnings.

6gig made it big through touring endlessly. I’ve never seen so many kids fawn over and fight for an autograph from our locals! Their album Tin Can Experiment did well for them and for Portland, yet again placing us on the ever-changing talent map.

Then, of course, there was the most anticipated release that never happened. Rustic Overtones fought their way out of their dead-end Arista contract, salvaging rights to their own material after a year of being set aside. All joy we shared for them in the beginning was turned into animosity for the commerce of the music industry. However, that free time allowed The Popsicko, Spencer Albee’s acclaimed side project, to release an album.

Cerberus Shoal, with the help of North East Indie, changed their lineup and toured Europe in October, 11,000 miles and 13 countries. They released Crash My Moon Yacht on top of re-releasing two older albums: And Fair Well to High Tide, their second chronological work, and Elements of Structure/Permanence, their third. Both were greatly in demand.

The Taxis continued to make a place for new-wave ska with their album Autopilot, proving that being young is a benefit where motivation is concerned. The Taxis, who are also on the NorthEast Indie label, have released two full-length CDs in their short career of two and a half years.

Twitchboy put out the gigantic American Far West, bringing the rock scene to it’s drunken knees. The much-anticipated full-length CD followed last year’s EP, Crush.

King Memphis have continued to work in and out of the studio, releasing Action Action Action, as well as lending members to other bands and projects in the area. The McCarthys self-titled release and Long Haul Trucker Charlie Gaylord’s roots-country compilation Greetings From Area Code 207 are both on the shelf thanks to the continued vibrancy of the area’s Americana scene.

On the club scene, Portland started the year with a new addition and ended with a sad subtraction.

The Skinny comes first to most people’s minds. February 11 was the final opening date for this multifaceted club, housed in the former Fine Arts Cinema. The Skinny, owned by John and Mellow Lomba, is a perfect example of DIY resurrection: the husband-and-wife team carried out all of the renovations themselves with a little help from their friends. And the Skinny has taken a very broad definition of a night club, catering to all kinds of art and music in the past year — movies, plays, poetry, live national acts, musicals — with the promise of even more diversity next year.

At this point we have all shared confusion and lament over the Stone Coast turning into the Steak Coast. Wally Wenzel, the club’s soundman and creator of hip-hop open mic night and Eggbot’s weekly showcase, is looking forward to the upgrade to The State Theatre. To others the room will be sorely missed; it was of perfect size and professional sound quality. It was also a comfort zone for many local acts from The Horror to Hawthorne. The State Theatre may be another venue to use, but it doesn’t make up for the loss of the medium-sized room. But the Stone Coast went out in style: the Horror held their CD-release party there on December 25 with Eggbot. (Christmas night with The Horror? Premeditated irony). New Year’s Eve will be the last scheduled live show upstairs in the soon to be deceased “smoking room.” kNOw Complex, a band made up of some of the top talent spawned from the hip-hop open mics, will lay the space to rest.

On the label front, Gigaphone Records launched their notably unique endeavor this fall. Rob Sylvain, a local roots musician, called upon his friends in the community to help start up a quarterly subscription oriented label. There are four compilations per year, and the music is almost all local — and recorded completely live on location. On the first edition, folk artist Jeff Aumuller was recorded on his boat. Jeff, The Half Moon Jug Band, Boo and Haakon (of The Piners), and Long Haul Trucker Scott Conley are featured on the first volume.

Each genre has been equally productive this year in its own right. Hip-Hop and house music have made a solid place for themselves in 2000, crafting an urban feeling in a little city. The bar owners seemed to have relaxed a little bit more around the turntables, too, which has helped.

Rock has been invigorating as all hell. Trivium, The Horror, and Colostomy have had the entire year to truly cultivate their sound. Surrounded and supported by Twitchboy, Rustic Overtones, and Broken Clown, shows are almost constant.

Acoustic music has always been a large part of Portland’s musical foundation. The Free Street Taverna, Java Joe’s, and The Bramhall Pub have continually housed the masses of musicians and avid fans of honky-tonk, bluegrass, folk-blues, and any other phylum in that genre.

Portland has had a busy year, and it seems like it flew by. Between running to catch the next Broken Clown show at The Better End, hard house night at The Ale House, or a Jerks of Grass show at the Free Street, there has been very little rest.