The Festival of Music located in the Northwest Taking Place in the Year 2010

For the first time I decided to get a wristband to Musicfest NW. There were a number of shows that I really wanted to see and was able to see most of them. Below is my review of all the venues and bands that I saw.

First up, the venues. On Friday night I was at the Doug Fir on the east side. I've been here lots of times, and while I like the space itself, I've never thought it was perfect. The crowd is usually my biggest source of annoyance since it usually attracts more hipsters that I care to be in a crowded room with. The sound there can be a bit iffy sometimes, though on Friday it seemed pretty good. I do appreciate that they sell their beer at reasonable rates. On Saturday I spent the evening at the Crystal Ballroom downtown. I have way more complaints about this venue then I do positive things. For starters, I hate the setup for all ages shows, of which this was one. If you're over 21 and don't want to be surrounded by kids you have to go to the far side of the venue where you can get drinks, but aren't allowed to be closer than 30 feet from the stage. Second, they charge outrageous prices for, at best, mediocre beer. The room itself is very nice and I like all the history of it, but it's often difficult to see and sound isn't always great. Moving on to Sunday, I found myself at Pioneer Courthouse Square which I had low expectations for as a venue. I was pleasantly surprised that they set it up well for those inside. They erected a six foot fence of heavy black fabric around the entire square so you couldn't see from the sidewalk. Then the stage was setup in the NE corner facing the steps on the SW corner. You could see well from just about anywhere and the sound was surprisingly good given the location.

Now on the bands that I actually saw.

Friday:

S. Carey - Great chill, ambient indie rock
Mimicking Birds - Good indie rock
The Cave Singers - Really fun folksy, bluesy rock. Think Black Keys or BRMC
The Tallest Man on Earth - Very talented one man band. He has a great voice and is a talented guitar player

Saturday:

Akron/Family - Decent musicians, but zero cohesiveness. They tried to incorporate about ten different styles of music, but didn't do any of them amazingly well. They jumped around musically way to much. One song they'd really get the crowd involved and then meander into some weird song that used sampling and noise. Every time they did this the crowd would completely lose interest.
Menomena - Probably the best show I've seen by them. In addition to all of the great music they've already made, they have a great new album to draw from.

Sunday:

Talkdemonic - I only saw half of their set, and wasn't paying close attention, but it was good background music with a violin and guitar
Helio Sequence - I always love seeing these guys and they put on a great show, but I'm really looking forward to some new material
The Walkmen - I'm not too familiar with their music, but it was a good show.
The National - I'm a big fan of their music, so this was an easy show to like. The music was what you want and expect from a rock band: loud and rocking. The lead singer is particularly entertaining as he likes to scream as he sings and is also a bit neurotic. This was probably my favorite show of the festival

All in all, it was a very successful weekend of music and I had a great time.

Some Faves

Recently I've gotten the chance to go to a couple of my favorite spots in Portland and I figured I should probably write about them. First off there's Laurelhurst Market. If you like meat then you need to check this place out. Somehow every time I go there I end up ordering the brisket. And this is some mean brisket too. It's Wagyu beef slow-cooked for 12 hours with a homemade BBQ sauce that only makes the world a better place. Thankfully I've been there with groups of six a few times and have gotten the the chance to try a lot of what they offer, though the menu does change frequently. When they offer the NY strip steak there should be little hesitation on your part to order it as it completely lives up to expectations. The prime rib and daily steak selections are also excellent. The one thing that really surprised me on the menu though was their double-cut pork chop. I'm usually not one to eat pork chops, but these are the best I've ever had. There's some sort of magic, saucy concoction on top that makes my mouth water. Don't forget to order sides like kale, green beans or baked beans. And lastly, for god's sake, let yourself be tempted by the dessert, you shan't be sorry.

Next and last for today is The Observatory, which is located in a fun little strip of Stark just west of 82nd. For many years the only thing worth checking out here was Flying Pie Pizzeria. In recent years a few places of note have started becoming available like The Academy Theater and the subject of this paragraph. So what do I like about The Observatory? For starters, and chiefly, the gin lavender lemon drop. Normally when I want a cocktail I stick to the basics, a gin martini, gin and tonic or a Manhattan. However, this is one occasion to go for something on the foofier side if you usually don't. The food is no slouch either. I've tried several things on both the happy hour and regular menus. I heartily recommend some garlic rosemary fries for the table to share. And for dinner you can't go wrong with the trout, which is soaked in deliciousness. When I was there recently I had the special which was a pesto linguine loaded down with fresh veggies, and I enjoyed it to the last drop.