"When Prince died, I started crying at work. He’s the only reason I picked up a guitar when I was younger and has always played a huge influence in the music my sister and I write for Skull Diver. We chose the songs we will do because The Beautiful Ones, Darling Nikki, I Would Die for You and Cream have actually inspired us during the writing process. He will always be our #1 inspiration musically." -Ally Payne, Skull Diver

"I always find inspiration through Prince. The music he plays, the actual notes, have such personality. Incredible individuality. And listening to that powerful uniqueness enables me to find inspiration in my own uniqueness. You forgive yourself when you listen to Prince. You love yourself.

We arranged a stripped down version of ‘Little Red Corvette,’ a clever spin on a classic. Then ‘Pop Life’ kicks up and gets the room movin’ and shakin’. ‘Diamonds and Pearls’ was my first "OMG I need to binge Prince" moment, so I had to do it. We close our set with a lesser known track called ‘Mountains.’ ‘There’s nothing greater/Than you and me.‘"  -Mitch Wilson, Formerly Known As 

“I chose these songs because they’re absolutely sexy and I like sexy songs. Prince’s music is very sexy and in turn, inspired me to approach music more sensually… maybe with a glass of wine and some chocolate and or fog.” -Febian Perez, Eclisse

These are just a few words from some of the musicians involved in Princedelic: A Psych-Rock Tribute to Prince, on exactly what Prince means to them and why they chose the songs they’re playing. It’s a pretty obvious statement to say Prince has been an influential figure to damn near everyone in the entire world basically ever, but Princedelic goes even further to show how his music transpired genres to inspire. 

Presented by feminist non-profit Bitch Media and Veronica Booking, Princedelic will feature the Portland bands Skull Diver, Eclisse, Queen Chief, Murderbait and the Pining Hearts, as well as a supergroup of various musicians playing under the moniker Formerly Known As. Each will be playing 4-5 Prince tracks of their choice.

Tons of giveaways will be happening at Princedelic wiht the benefits going to Bitch Media. Some of the prizes include a local swag package with an over $1,000 value, gift certificates to Scapegoat Tattoo, Sizzle Pie and See See Motor Coffee, a night stay at Jupiter Hotel, a pair of Frends Headphones, ProCanna Cannabis accesssories and a Bitch Media subscription.

Princedelic will be held this Tuesday, August 9 at the Doug Fir Lounge. If you cop your tickets ahead of time, which can be found HERE, they’re $7, but you’ll be paying $10 if you buy at the door. A setlist of tracks can be found on the Princedelic Facebook event page. 

There will never be a time when Prince’s legacy won’t be celebrated, but it’ll be amazing to see his songs transformed into a psychedelic freakout.

Not all of us were able to make it to Pickathon this weekend. For those that are feeling that pain, tonight’s Saturday Night Sounds is dedicated to you. Both Myke Bogan and Blossom had sets at this weekend’s festival and we love it every time they collaborate on a track.

Myke Bogan is like Portland’s Danny Brown and Action Bronson all wrapped up into one, with an extra dash of his own distinguished gusto. His lyrics both make you think and make you laugh and his voice is one of the more recognizable in the city. On "How We Do," he rhymes over a cool old school sounding beat with Blossom’s saintly voice.

Enjoy tonight’s Saturday Night Sounds and try not to be too bummed you’re missing the Pickathon festivities.

A sonic landscape blanketed with dark overtones and glum ambiance, drowse‘s Memory Bed EP streches slightly further from is previous works of incredibly reverb-laden drone by continuing to capture the essence of mental turmoil, only now through a more minimalistic lens.

Using just a microphone, acoustic guitar and laptop, Kyle Bates (the man behind drowse) recorded the EP directly succeeding his soon asleep album, with each release acting as the conflict and the resolution to Bates’ story involving his descent into certain medications. Memory Bed is the elucidation of confusion, pain and lost intimacy expressed through processed clamor.

As drowse, Bates has made good with using female vocals as yet another instrument. On Memory Bed, Maya Stoner of Sabonis lends the serenity of her voice and personal experiences shared with Bates through lyrics in all three tracks.

Without a doubt, the Memory Bed EP is more than just an conceptual collection of songs, but it’s an emotive art form.

drowse had his album release/welcome back show last night, is having a short in-store performance today at Music Millenium and will be playing again later this month as part of Festicide. 

A couple months ago, the Secret Sea dominated and won a round of the Deli Portland’s Artist of the Month poll. We’re now pleased to share the Secret Sea’s newest single "Army Of Souls" and the release show in support of it, which happens to be kicking off his month long foray along the West Coast and beyond.

Relocating to Portland from Tel Aviv, Amit Erez, the Secret Sea’s main vein, throws himself deeply into his songwriting with an uninhibited beatific expression. Each track finds the listener more closely connecting with Erez as an artist on an emotional level and "Army Of Souls" is no different.

First premiering on Next Northwest this last Thursday, "Army Of Souls" is yet another song showcasing Erez’s ability to delicately tug at your internal strings with an Elliot Smith-ian sort of mastery. 

A single release show for "Army Of Souls" will be TONIGHT at the Turn! Turn! Turn! along with two Boston artists, Annabelle Lord-Patey and Matt Minigell, and fellow Portland solo artist GLASYS, who also provided keyboards on the Secret Sea’s track.

Peep the Secret Sea’s tour dates while you listen to "Army Of Souls" below.

THE SECRET SEA TOUR DATES

8.6 TURN! TURN! TURN! (SINGLE RELEASE SHOW) – PORTLAND, OR 

8.7 NNPC – TACOMA, WA 

8.13  THE HATCH – OAKLAND, CA 

8.14  MILK BAR – SAN FRANCISCO, CA 

8.16  THE MINT – LOS ANGELES, CA

8.20  OLD TOWN PUB – PASADENA, CA 

8.26  SEATTLE ACOUSTIC FESTIVAL – SEATTLE, WA 

9.7 THE ZONE – TEL AVIV, IL

9.16  PETE’S CANDY STORE – NEW YORK, NY 

This last round of the Deli Portland Artist of the Month poll resulted in a tie between two different nominees. It doesn’t happen very often, but when it does it shows the wealth of good music offered in the city that just can’t be ignored. That being said, both Two Moons and Arbor Daze are artists deserving of more than just local attention.

Arbor Daze, a solo project by Aspen Koch, is actually quite indicative of the moniker itself, educing the state of calm often felt while taking in the beauty of a forest. Koch illicits a certain halcyon ambiance, dressed in a doleful cloak. Her interesting usage of looping adds texture to Arbor Daze tracks, taking them to a whole other level of interest and turmoiled relation.

Two Moons bring out a different sort of reaction with their songs of heavier broodiness. Guitarist and vocalist Aaron Liu takes the term "shredding" to a whole other level, using his guitar as a fierce weapon supporting his at times emotionally savage vocality that’s especially heard during live sets. While not necessarily always applying the "loud, quiet loud" structure to their songs, Two Moons have proven they’ve mastered just the right amount of force to strengthen soft songs and the appropriate amount of delicacy to abate benevolently porcine tracks.

Congrats to both Arbor Daze and Two Moons, the latter of which will be playing their next show Sunday at Kelly’s Olympian with Fringe Class. The newest round of the Deli AOTM poll features Bruhn, the Empty, Seahorse C-Section and Toothbone, so be sure to give them all a listen and vote for the one(s) you dig!

When former members of BRAINSTORM, Wampire and Blouse creatively combine with parts of Fog Father, you get an indelibly lo-fi, twee, garage pop-like sound à la a cocktail of Cults, Beach House and Ariel Pink that is impossible not to lovingly drink up. That cocktail comes by the name of Portland group Reptaliens, and they’re taking their delicious sounds on a musical ride down the West Coast.

Reptaliens as a group may be newer, but its members are vets in the Portland music scene that know their way around a tour or two. This upcoming week-long excursion will find them starting out with their tour kickoff as part of XRAY.fm‘s benefit show and making their way down to the sunny skies of Los Angeles for a few shows, before stopping in Eugene on their way back up to Portland.

Check out Reptalien’s tour dates below and be sure to see them off properly at Dig A Pony!

___________________________________________________________________

8/22 (XRAY.fm Benefit/Tour Kickoff) @ Dig A Pony w/ Lola Buzzkill, Psychomagic, SECRET HEADLINER TBA

8/25 @ Fort Funston (San Fransisco, CA)

8/26 @ The EggTooth (Oakland, CA) w/ The Classical, Golden Drugs

8/27 @ Ham & Eggs (Los Angeles, CA) w/ Susan, Tacoma Night Terror

8/28 @ Gnar Burger (Los Angeles, CA)

8/29 @ Hyperion (Los Angeles, CA) w/ Water Slice, Mikey Kampmann

8/30 @ Luckey’s (Eugene, OR) w/ Surfs Drugs, VCR

Let’s just go ahead and say it – the Shivas are Portland’s pride and joy. The trio, who first started at the pinnacle of their youth way back in 2006, have put hard work and a high level of talent to good use in the last decade. Backed by both K Records and Burger Records, the Shivas have four full lengths under their belt, a series of single releases and are actually returning back to PDX today from a two month long European tour in support of their latest release, February’s Better Off Dead. As a welcome home gift to us all, the Deli Portland has the pleasure of premiering the video for the album’s title track.

Better Off Dead itself shows a more mellow output from the Shivas with a heavier use of country western elements. As a track "Better Off Dead" showcases this well in its simplicity. The harmonic pairing of guitarist Jared Molyneux and drummer Kristin Leonard are the focal point of the song, with a light riff as the basis.

The video matches the track in its minimalistic beauty. Shot in black and white, it features Molyneux trudging around an industrial area alone. It’s reminiscent of old school French noir art films and couldn’t be a better fit aesthetically with the pace of the song.

It seems the Shivas will be taking some weeks off before they perform again, with their next show scheduled for September 11 at Mississippi Studios with L.A.’s Death Valley Girls. Until then, get your fix of the trio by watching the new video for "Better Off Dead" below.

Rigsketball is notorious out here for a reason. Starting back in 2011 by everyone’s favorite mohawked musician and talented And And And drummer Bim Ditson, Rigsketball pins 32 local bands against each other in numerous rounds of basketball narrowing each down until an obvious winner prevails. 

The last rounds of the Rigsketball tournament are tomorrow starting at 2pm with a world record setting (Guiness Book of World Records officials will be there to prove this) game of H-O-R-S-E and the final game round starts at 7pm. Accompanying the heated game rounds will be performances by nine Portland artists.

Music begins at 4:20pm (hah!) with two different stages. The Rigsketball Musicfest 2016 is free, all-ages and sure to be a damn good time. Peep the lineup times below and be sure to come on down and chill outside of Water Ave. Bunk Bar to watch all the action.

4:20pm – Ali Muhareb’s Mujahedeen

5:00pm – Laura Palmer’s DEATH PARADE

5:40pm – FOG FATHER

6:20pm – Ah God

7:00pm – Rigsketball 2016 FINALS

8:20pm – The Lower 48

9:00pm – Chugger

9:40pm – Mic Capes

10:20pm – Aan

11:00pm – Magic Sword

Back for its second year, the Portland Psych Fest has made good with presenting what’s finest in the psych realm along the West Coast. This is exactly what we can expect from this weekened’s happenings as well.

Starting tomorrow night and running all day Saturday, Portland Psych Fest features 17 artists and 3 DJs from here all the way down to Mexico, with a couple hailing from Idaho and Chicago. Four artists are slated to represent good ol’ PDX, with two performing each night of the fest.

The much adored Jacksoon Boone will be taking the stage Friday along with Zozma, whose witchy psych includes trippy elements pulled from Middle Eastern pop.

Hawkeye‘s lo-fi indie britpop will surely delight fans of Spiritualized, as their influence can be heard throughout Hawkeye’s songs. For a band made up of members of Souvenir Driver and Hollow Sidewalks, the influence makes sense and has only been perfected by the members’ all around mastery. 

Portland psych can’t really be discussed without mentioning Cambrian Explosion, who even for being in the scene three years have already solidified their place in it. Internal changes within the band haven’t hindered them in any sense musically. They’ll be on a few slots before headliners Spindrift and will be helping properly close out an intense weekend.

To view the few lineup and purchase tickets, visit the Portland Psych Fest website. Howler opens up the fest at 7:30pm tomorrow, so make sure you come out early.

 PDX Pop Now’s 2016 festival weekend is coming to a close and with its posted lineup, it’ll be ending on a high note. Youth bands Fossa Club and the Living Skins open up this sunny Sunday, leading into the blowing up and of Blowout.

Cilantro will be offering a more worldly spice, followed up by a lively punked fueled performance from Bobby Peru.

Deli Portland favorites A Volcano, Force Publique and Cat Hoch have slots on the closing day, along with experimental noise act Consumer, who shared his spontaneous sounds on the PDX Pop segment featured on KATU.

Renaissance Coalition breakout artist Maze Koroma will spit some mad flows just before one of Portland’s current biggest bands Summer Cannibals closes out this year’s fest just before the 10 o’ clock hour.

This year’s PDX Pop Now festival was one of the best to date, with an outstanding turnout backing one of the most diverse lineups in its history. It’ll be exciting to see what the non-profit has up its sleeve next.

Day 2 of PDX Pop Now actually starts at noon, with Friends of Noise and Music in the Schools act The Scribes. Mr. Bones will be repping an early but good spot for Good Cheer Records, and the Tamed West round out a nice early afternoon block of performances before the afternoon starts kicking in.

Andrew Endres Collective is bringing some jazzy vibes to the fest and Wave Action is filling in for Little Star just before 3:30. 

Old Grape God and Speaker Minds are the fest’s hip hop flavor for the day leading into punk af Tiny Knives and Love Cop, who have got their self described "hood goth" on lock.

Experimental artist Antecessor will ring the night in with a bit of strangeness, followed by a block of r&b feels from Lola Buzzkill and Fur Coats. Older school Portlanders Wooden Indian Burial Ground are closing out the night on a garagey note.

With just today and tomorrow left, PDX Pop has been off to a great start!

After months of strenuous hard work, the 13th annual PDX Pop Now Festival is here to be enjoyed by Portland’s newest wave of all-age music appreciators. Each year, numbers of volunteers spend so much of their personal time trying to make the festival happen by showcasing the city’s best up and coming artists and today, the fruits are now ripe for entertainment.

Sabonis, a somewhat shoegazey, somewhat lo-fi alt indie group is opening up the fest, using the chill vibes to ease everyone into a weekend of craziness. Saola, playing after Sabonis, is probably one of the greatest bands out there right now that still happens to be in high school. They’re bringing the heaviest element to the day’s lineup, with a doom metal output.

Folky stylings are represented by Loch Lomond, Dragging an Ox Through Water and Snowblind Traveler, with a country-ish twang coming from Jenny Don’t & the Spurs.

Ali Muhareb’s Mujahedeen and Eyelids are the trippiest of the bunch and electronic lovers Gold Casio are helping one of the only hip hop acts, Mic Capes, get bodies moving towards the end of the night.

The first day of PDX Pop Now offers a little bit of something for everyone, as do the other two days of the fest. It officially begins at 6pm tonight, so be sure to come out. It’s free!