When asked what venue best represents the Portland punk music scene your first thought probably isn’t Black Water bar, but if you want to find the heart of punk music, Black Water is the place to be. That was especially true on May 23rd with Vexx, Chemos and The Cigarette Burns.

The Cigarette Burns started the show in a frenzy, each of their songs louder than the last, proof of entropy in action. That being said their set wasn’t gimmicky, which is a true display of how much they’ve grown in the year they’ve been together. Their sound has become more refined, growing more authentic, powerful, and driven with each show. Erik’s stage performance is feral and absolutely hypnotizing, drawing the crowd in, reminding everyone what it’s like to be young, and since The Cigarette Burns inception each member has only gotten better, growing steadily more technical and confident.

Building on the same chaotic energy of The Cigarette Burns, Chemos took the stage, showing off an array of simple and fast-paced songs that the crowded audience at Black Water seemed into. Chemos is fresh to the Portland music scene and despite being able to get the crowd moving, hopefully they can further define their sound as they continue playing together. Punk music isn’t known for its carefulness of craft, for refinement, but that doesn’t mean it can’t have a uniqueness or clarity of voice.

That being said, Chemos ended their set by trashing their drum kit, turning the stage to rubble, so maybe that kind of don’t-care attitude is all they need to keep pulling in crowds.

Vexx however, is completely set apart from their peers because their music stands alone without any showmanship added to it. Their intentionality in songwriting permeates every part of their music. This is especially true in songs like “Stress” or “Clairvoyant” where rhythms build out of chaos and melodic guitar hooks snake themselves out of the tumult. Singer Maryjane Duphne, who is nothing if not unpredictable, personifies all of this. Sure, a singer can pitch themselves into the crowd, drop to their knees or writhe right off the stage, and everyone in the audience will be totally into it, but when Maryjane sings she wanders into an otherworld and she invites you to follow her, trance-like into the hysteria.

You can check out Vexx’s new release, “Give and Take” here:

-Sarah Eaton

The days are getting longer and the weather dude is telling me the temperature isn’t going to dip below 80 degrees anytime soon, so this could only mean one thing, What The Festival 2015 is right around the corner! This year marks the festival’s fourth go-around, and the folks that put this shindig together are gearing up Oregon’s Wolf Run Ranch for another successful weekend.

This festival has a little bit of everything. It takes place on a gorgeous campground about 25 miles east of Mt. Hood. There’s enough room to walk through a (glow in the dark!) forest, lounge on plush sofas, benches, and any other designated or non-designated chill zones, dance in a splash pool with a stage that pumps out beats all day long. You can attend workshops, go to yoga and all that jazz. And to top it off, you get to witness a slew of the top producers and DJs in the game.

Names like Big Gigantic, Griz, and Seattle’s ODESZA top the list of a funkafied lineup, and there is also a number of local acts and up-and-coming artists that fill out the three day extravaganza. This event is held in Oregon for good reason. There is plenty of Portland influence, especially on the music side, here is a list of local flavor:

Indubious – Electronic reggae, or reggae with electronics. Somewhere in the middle of that is the hard hitting duo from Ashland. A live bass player and keys/and synths mix beautifully in front of beats will go off in psychedelic tangents, but always find their way back to the traditional reggae songs they’ve been making for years.

Hustle and Drone – Synth pop straight outta Portland. H&D has seen a large growth of success over the past year. The songs they write have an indie rock influence and always hold a danceable beat.

Ernest Lovers w/ Pete Krebs – Quite a bit of a different pace than the majority of the lineup, but these are local legendary song writers. They will provide a nice break from the chaos and give your brain cells a minute to rejuvenate with some slow and melodic honky tonk.

EPROM – Bass heavy with a little bit of hip hop. EPROM is one of the most notable Portland acts on the list and is set to have a big summer. He makes his beats with old school drum and bass influences and touches and dabbles of dubstep and trap. It’s damn near impossible not to dance for this.

Solovox – Piano extraordinaire and beat maker. Carl Solovox knows how incorporate his refined piano skills and put them to use on a synthesizer. He’s been known to remix some classic rock and roll (Johnny Cash, AC DC, the list goes on) and always creates a dance party of epic proportions.

Barisone – Master of silk and smooth. Barisone has become a household name in the Portland community with a steady working relationship with FAK Wednesdays and Bubblin. His music is grounded in hip hop and R&B and will change what you thought you knew about the word “sexy.”

Device Grips – straight up dance funk – full band! The (relatively) new Portland band, Device Grips are making their name quickly with blues infused horn-heavy funk with a little bit of rap n’ roll to create some of the liveliest music out there. Don’t be the person that has to tell people a year from now that you missed this set because you were trying to get a burrito (nothing against burritos, but trust me on this one).

Lovebomb Go-Go Marching Band – One of the most extravagant acts you’ll see, ever. This band hails from outer space, I assume, given their space helmets and vibrant clad of silver linings that make up their uniforms. Who knows what they’re going to pull out for a festival like this?

Other notable local artists include: Chrome Wolves, Lincoln Up, Mr. Wu, Takimba, Trashcan Joe, PRSN, Tyler Tastemaker, Deafmind, Octaban, Hal-V & Space Case, Quarry, Laura Lynn, Computer Pham, Diablo, and Montel Spinozza.

Moral of this story: Get your tickets to What the Festival and try and catch every one of these!

-Colin Hudson