Samlejer med mikrofoner (PDX Pop Now! III)

--This is Part III. Read Part I and Part II first.--

And Sunday. Due to another scheduling weirdness, World’s Greatest Ghosts were on at 12:40. (PM, not AM.) For the first time in recent memory, I managed to arrive to something early; I got there around 12:15 or 20, in time to see about half of Wooden Indian Burial Ground’s set.

And, oh my god, they are my new favorite band. They sat in chairs and played on the pavement rather than the stage, which is endearing enough. Maybe they sounded kind of like a folk or bluegrass band -- a banjo made an appearance -- but it was so much more than that. I’m having trouble remembering now… It was very weird -- Syd Barret would have loved it -- but whereas in many cases the weirdness takes away from the musicality and the enjoyability, in the case of Wooden Indian Burial Ground, it didn’t. I thought they were great, and I’m now absolutely obsessed with finding out how the singer makes his voice sound like that. If you’ve heard them, you’ll know what I mean. If you haven’t heard them, there are songs to be played on myspace. Go now.

Thinking back now, I realize that I could have easily missed this entire set. If I’d slept a little longer, or eaten a more complete lunch… or if I’d taken into consideration that even though it was overcast the entire morning, the clouds would probably blow off later (they did, and I got my only sunburn of the year), and put on sunblock… Or even if I’d just been slightly more self-conscious that morning and timed my walk to arrive exactly when the Ghosts’ set began, so as to minimize feelings of awkwardness. It’s really pure coincidence that I saw Wooden Indian Burial Ground at all. I’m very, very glad I did. It was just, like, standing there and wow. Arya described it as going back in time (by about 150 years) and, yeah, I’d say that was pretty accurate. But, as I said before, it was so much more that that, too.

World’s Greatest Ghosts played after that. Personally, they seem like a really nice, fun band. You can tell they’re having fun playing, and that makes it fun listening. More bands should be like them. Really.

I saw Meth Teeth, too, but I don’t really remember anything.

Poddington Bear, who was dressed in a white t-shirt, white pants, and a children’s bear hat (the kind that Velcros under your chin and has ears) started things indoors with an unexpected twist -- rather than a “normal” musical set, as would be played by a band or soloist, he delivered forty minutes of karaoke. He had programmed the backing tracks, as well as the video part that tells you what words to sing, in advance, and, after performing a cover of the Beatles’ (not Hello Saferide’s – more on that later) Anna, he brought a number of Portland musicians up onstage to show off their best -- or worst; you can never tell with karaoke. My favorite was the guy from I think Weinland, who did Rocket Man. Anyway, the whole thing was very bizarre. It was the first live Poddington Bear performance, and he said it wasn’t typical, so I can only wonder what sort of the thing the next one might be.

Grouper, also one person (this one female) was next. In terms of volume, it wasn’t quiet; in terms of sound, it was. I liked it, but it felt out of place. It’s not standing-up music, or even really festival music. Grouper is the kind of music you (or at least I would) listen to softly on the speakers while spacing out in your bathtub in the dark, not coming through enormous mains in a close, humid room filled with sweaty teenagers. I might like to see her again, but at the moment, I can’t think of any venue where such music would be appropriate. Maybe it’s more of a record thing…

I ended the festival mid-afternoon, with Mattress. This was several hours before the event’s actual conclusion, but it’s been pretty much established that I have neither the stamina nor the social skills/tolerance to remain in large groups -- even, unfortunately, large groups of music fans at music festivals -- for long periods of time.

Mattress was a good one for me to end on. He’s an interesting performer. Everything was pre-programmed, so all he actually did was sing. (I realize this sounds very similar to the Poddington Bear/karaoke description, but it was not at all.)

Normally I feel that machines have no place onstage, but in this case it worked. Everything sounded vaguely familiar -- but in the good way -- and I kept thinking this phrase: “making love to the microphone.” When he played El Dorado, I was seriously waiting for him to put the microphone inside his mouth. I do not know why, in any way; I guess to me, it’s just that kind of music. As it turned out, he did not put the microphone inside of his mouth -- but if he had done, it would have been perfect.

So, my second festival in a month. (Think about this: one month, two festivals, on two continents.) PDX Pop Now!, clearly, was different from Roskilde in many, many ways. Not complaining. Aside from the music of course, one of the things I enjoyed most was actually knowing people, like Darren and Joey, who, in between sets, took turns shaking up a two liter bottle of soda and trying to drink it before it fizzed out all over the place; or Brandon, who got ridiculously excited about the presence of Michael Ian Black, and who attempted to continue my education in sound teching every time we heard a bit of feedback; or Arya, who I think was there the entire time, and who kept appearing and disappearing, always grinning, like the Cheshire cat. And there were others… I was surprised by how many faces I recognized (and by how many seemed to recognize -- even if only vaguely -- me). Everything’s so much better when you know someone there. Thank you to everyone who kept me company and made me feel less awkward, even if for just the tiniest amount of time.

Anyway -- overall? Yeah, there were a few more bands I missed but would like to have seen -- a few for the first time, a few again -- but for the time I was there, it was generally pretty super. Or -- remember when I decided to bring back the word ‘keen’? It was pretty keen. I think it’s an amazing example of how great even (or especially) a free, all-ages festival can be, and I wish I’d known earlier that I’d have the weekend off work, so that I could have been more involved. Always next year, I suppose. Looking forward to it already.

(Real PS -- If you want to see pictures, go read Michael Mannheimer's Local Cut Reviews.)