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In what has become a regular event (in terms of solstice and equinox), Planets Around The Sun organized a Winter Solstice celebration on November 20th at the Hogfarm Studios Annex in Biddeford, Maine with performances by Tin Ceilings and others, with food served in between acts. The Pine Haven and DoorYard folks helped set the vibe with an installation, and Galen Richmond (Computer At Sea), Tempera, and friends (including all in attendance) concluded the night with a massive Casio keyboard drone. Read on for photos from the whole lovely event. Read on…
Due to some apparent miscommunication, it turned out that Annuals weren’t actually scheduled to open for Company Of Thieves at Port City Music Hall on Monday, December 14th. Any disappointment was quickly washed away by the headliner’s energetic performance, as they might as well have been performing to a crowd of thousands, despite a small turnout and lack of an opener (though their keyboardist helped to fill the time by playing a solo opening set). Having only briefly heard a couple of songs from this band before the show, I was quickly and thoroughly impressed by their songs and performance. To get caught up, check out this video from the band’s TV debut. Read on for (lots of) photos!
I’m not sure what it is about Tuesday, but it has suddenly become a hot night in Portland on a weekly basis. Sure, there’s the Clash Of The Titans at Empire, but not everybody wants to watch cover bands. Of course, there are usually plenty of fun shows happening on Tuesdays (always check the showlist!) but now there’s another regular event that should satisfy those of us looking for something a little different. Atomic Tuesdays are a free weekly party at Styxx featuring theme nights, contests, costumes, dancers, mystery bands, guest dj’s, free candy, super cheap drink specials… do I need to go on? It’s fun, it’s free, and it’s a great way to warm up the middle of your week. I checked out the John Waters-themed party last night with guest DJ Sandman (aka Shawn Lawrence), who we met recently.
Read on for more photos! Read on… In a front page story with the headline “Record Prophets,” the Portland Daily Sun reported on the curious phenomenon of vinyl record shops clustering around a section of Congress Street in the Arts District. It’s definitely something that the recent addition of Sounds Absurd made more apparent, as it left many wondering how and perhaps why another record shop could be opening in such a small city, and hopefully with the holiday shopping season in full swing all four listed in the article (plus of course the tried-and-true Bull Moose Music) find success and continue to make Portland special in the way that they do. Collaborations between artists who don’t usually work together can be incredible sometimes – in the case of the [dog] and [pony] show dvd release party this weekend, part of the plan was to encourage such social and musical experiments onstage throughout the night. One of the best was clearly the Jacob Augustine + Lady Lamb The Beekeeper collaboration on a Dilly Dilly (who recently announced her return to music after a hiatus) song, “Hollerin’ Man.” Check out the video documentation below: Look for a HFIWK photo recap from the show soon. I know everybody is talking about all the crafts and the music and such happening at the PICNIC Holiday Sale happening today (Irish Heritage Center, 34 Gray St at State, Portland), but the real draw is the Yeti that will be on hand for you to take a picture with. Seriously. Don’t miss it.
Ok, if a giant furry monster isn’t enough to lure you in, I should at least mention that Kris Johnsen and myself will be there at the Portland Pins table selling our own prints and pins (illustration/design and photo), as well as the new SPACE Gallery grant project book & CD, Treble Treble. Plus free HillyTown pins for all! Tonight, as previously mentioned, [dog] and [pony] celebrate the release of their Season One DVD at SPACE! Then, if you haven’t gotten all of your holiday shopping done (or maybe it’s just time to treat yourself to something after all that running around for other people), you should definitely check out the great selection of art offered up by our friends over at Corduroy. You can even check it out and buy it online (though I recommend seeing it in person, especially those Woodsy Creatures).
The Bollard published their list of The 10 Best Local Rock Albums Of The Decade (complete with mp3s). Is your favorite Portland band/album listed there? I’ve heard a few different opinions on what they missed or what shouldn’t have made it on such a list but did, but altogether it seems to make a lot of sense to me. This weekend is another busy one, starting tonight with the Bakery Photo Collective’s annual fundraising photo auction, Photo A Go-Go from 6-8pm, with music by the venerable King Memphis. Check out a preview of the work available here. The fun continues tomorrow, with the first PICNIC Holiday Sale, happening at the Irish Heritage Center (34 Gray Street) in Portland. I’ll be there at the Portland Pins table, selling photo prints, pins, and more. Get more info on the event – which will include live music – here. Once you’ve gotten some holiday shopping out of the way, head over to SPACE for the [dog] and [pony] dvd release show, featuring performances by Jacob Augustine, Marie Stella, Jesse Pilgrim, Wes Hartley, and more (including some interesting collaborations). The [dog] and [pony] guys have a new episode up, this time featuring Jakob Battick + Friends. For more events this weekend, check the showlist.
On Saturday night, South China (pictured above, after their set, in the first snow storm of the season) played their last show in New England for the winter. Today they headed south (to play at Pete’s Candy Store in Brooklyn with Greg Jamie, who they first shared the stage with in their until-today-hometown of Biddeford with his band Blood Warrior). Vince Nez (and The Last Sip) opened the show at the Apohadion on December 5th.
Read on for photos from South China’s set, which included help from a number of friends as they performed their excellent new album, Washingtons (Peapod Recordings), in its entirety. Read on… Not only does this evening bring another First Friday Art Walk, but the day also signals the beginning of Portland kicking its holiday diy craft season into high gear. You have three big double-sized art/craft sales this weekend, with The Society For East End Arts Holiday sale (Fri 6pm-9pm, Sat 10am-6pm, East End community School), Shop-A-Do (Fri 4pm-10pm, Sat 10am-4pm, SPACE Gallery), and the MECA Holiday Sale (Fri 5pm-10pm – LLTB performs at 8pm, Sat 10am-8pm) taking place on Friday and Saturday. As for First Friday-only events (tonight, December 4, 5pm-8pm), here are some hilights: We have the Artist Studio‘s (536 Congress) annual open studio. I got a chance to check out some of the work being hung for it the other night, and it’s not to be missed. It’s rare that this group of (some of Portland’s best) artists invites the public in to their studios to get a look at work both finished and in progress. At the Meg Perry Center (644 Congress), Local Sprouts presents Food : Art : Community, a show featuring art made inspired by food and community. Geno’s Rock Club (625 Congress) gets in the Art Walk mood with new paintings by Avery Shaughnessy on the walls of their front lobby. Over at the Arm Factory (200 Anderson Street #8), there’s another annual holiday sale and party. A Feast of Friends III features screen prints and other media by Ratio, Team Space Pirate, Pat Palmer, Zack Howard + friends. Also of note, though not exclusive to the art walk, is that the popular local coffee chain, Coffee By Design, is currently showing the annual CBD Holiday Art Show, featuring work in various formats by Virginia Anderson, Charles Brandt, Paul Chiles, Alex Helfen, Audrey Hotchkiss & Morgan Martell. A good way to kick off (and caffeinate yourself for) the art walk. For a full listing of officially-sanctioned Art Walk events, check out the listings here. If you find yourself with energy left after all there is to see (and buy) then I highly suggest you catch a ride to Biddeford for the Brown Bird cd release show at the Hogfarm Studio Annex. The rest of your musical weekend is potentially packed, with options ranging from MMW to South China to The Accident That Led Me To The World to Benjamin Burgess (and his cd release dual-show celebration) to OLAS. Have fun out there, whatever you choose to do. For those planning ahead, next weekend will be a busy one as well, with the PICNIC Holiday Sale happening on Saturday, December 12 and then the [dog] and [pony] DVD release show at SPACE Gallery that same night. I’ll be at PICNIC selling some photo prints and Portland Pins (I’ll have free HillyTown pins as well), then playing at SPACE with my band, Marie Stella, later that night. |
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