Visqueen blew minds at Stubbs on Wednesday!

Seriously, writers have been going bananas at the stellar show Visqueen played for the NPR showcase on Wednesday:

"I've wanted to see Rachel Flotard and her band play live pretty much since I first listened to their album Message to Garcia last year, but got waylayed a few times en route to the NPR showcase at Stubb's tonight. I slipped in just in time to hear them close the set, playing this song to a nearly-capacity crowd in the amphitheater behind the BBQ joint. It was tight and fierce and totally generous in the way most Visqueen songs are and all I wanted was for the band to just keep on playing. All the hundreds and hundreds of day parties and showcases that didn't book these guys for the rest of the week are absolute failures." Rachel Maddux, Paste

The group only had time for five songs, but they were five winners: “Capitol” was flat-out blistering, and Flotard’s powerful voice filled the amphitheater on “Ward.” Visqueen ended with “Fight for Love.” Eric Danton, Listen Dammit

"Visqueen was able to make it bring their unique four-to-the-floor brand of rock ‘n’ roll to SXSW. “I can’t believe that my band is actually here,” gushed Flotard." Darren Ressler, Limewire

Jared Mees & the Grown Children gambled it all in Vegas...

...and won!!!!

"As the night roared on, you wouldn’t believe the kind of sounds coming out of Jared Mees and the Grown Children, also from Portland. Earlier, the lead singer was just a guy standing quietly, listening to all the bands,. But when Mees and his band hit the stage, the atmosphere exploded.

Mees’s lyrics came off as informational pop, as he lamented how hard a year everyone’s had on the song “Tallest Building in Hell.” On “Grave Robbers,” the band switched gears and hit some great rockabilly rhythms that had the crowd dancing en masse. Trumpet player Javier was an underlying current in the whole affair. His high-blasting sounds channeled Herb Alpert.

Mees was thankful to the whole crowd and spoke of supporting local music, and received a huge ovation as a result." Aziz Bawany, Las Vegas City Life

Archeology release new video for "By the By"

Archeology | By the By | Music Video from shieldsfilms.com on Vimeo.

Archeology "Memorial" out today!

If you're yet to hear this wonderful slap of thoughtful indie pop, please do get in touch now!

"The brainchild of Oregonian musicians Jason Davis and Daniel Walker,Archeology crafts harmonic, lush pop with a sharp lyrical edge."Leigh Belz, Teen Vogue

"If you’re not from Portland, this is probably the first time you’ve heard of the band, but I suspect it won’t be the last." Abbey Simmons, Sound On The Sound

"Minimalist folk roots and vocal harmonies that rival Fleet Foxes permeate the record. The quality of the work grows more and more apparent the more times you listen to it, until songs like the triumphant "White Walls" become irresistible." Peter Kearns, Snob's Music

"The band shines when they steer away from the dreary, though, and show their fun side, like in the drum-heavy “White Walls” and the catchy “New San Salvador.” Deeanna Uutela, the Deli Magazine

"Their backgrounds make for some predictably ripe lyrical territory: sins, faith, heaven and hell provide the ruminative fire behind the hand-claps and gentle instrumentation." Matt March, In Forty

SPINNER interviews Shellshag!

Brooklyn-based musical duo Shellshag isn't your typical girl/boy band. Jennifer Shagawat beats away on the drums, playing next to John Driver (Shell), who belts out the lyrics, and the duo is also a couple off-stage. Before Shellshag embarks on a trip to SXSW, Spinner recently caught up with Jen Shag (with Shell sometimes piping in with an answer or two) while the band was camping out in Florida getting to ready to perform at the Harvest of Hope Festival.

Describe your sound.

Minimal rock. Indie punk. Warm and fuzzy, recorded. Loud and unpredictable, live.

How did your band form?

We lived together, and love playing music. Not sure how the band actually formed.
Were you a band before a couple or a couple before a band?

Couple before a band. When we met, we really didn't want to become a couple. We tried to ignore each other, because we liked each other so much. We've been a couple for 12 years. We have recorded as Shellshag that long too, but only been doing it live for five years.

Who are your musical influences?

The Breeders, This Bike is a Pipe Bomb, Pavement, Sonic Youth, 50 Million, Kung Fu USA, Static Faction, to name a few.

How did you pick your band name?

John's nickname is Shellhead, my last name is Shagawat ... get it?

Beatles or Rolling Stones?

Jen: Beatles.

Shell: Beatles.

What's your biggest vice?

Cigarettes, green tea and honey.

What's in your festival survival kit?

Jen: My pillow.

Shell: Right now, the autobiography of Lemmy from Motorhead.

What's your musical guilty pleasure?

Jen: Eminem.

Shell: The Darkness.

What's the craziest thing you've seen while performing?

During one of our shows at mission records in San Francisco years ago, we passed out lighters with little American flags, so when you lit the lighter, the flag would go up in flames. So a guy in the middle of our set bent over and stuck the flag up his (butt). And that was really memorable. The flag was about 10 inches, and it had a red ball on the end of the stick. Later on, the guy came up to us and said that when he pulled the flag out, the little red ball got stuck, so he was walking around with the ball stuck up his bum all night.



Kelly Rose is a contributor from Seed.com.

PARTY! We're heading down to SXSW and hosting a massive showcase!

It's going to be a wild time and we'd love to see you there! Did we mention it's free?

Event Details:

Riot Act Media / Smoke Signals / Tender Loving Empire Presents
The Portland Indie Industry Party

Saturday, March 20th
The Liberty
1618 1/2 E 6th St, Austin, TX 78702
FREE / 21+ / 11am - 6pm

White Fang - 11:00 Portland, OR - Gnar Tapes http://www.myspace.com/whtfng

World's Greatest Ghosts - 11:40 Portland, OR - Luck Madison http://www.myspace.com/worldsgreatestghosts

Shellshag - 12:20

Brooklyn, NY (aka Portland East) - Don Giovanni http://www.myspace.com/shellshag

Boy Eats Drum Machine - 1:00

Portland, OR - Tender Loving Empire http://www.myspace.com/boyeatsdrummachine

Wampire - 1:40

Portland, OR - High Scores & Records http://www.myspace.com/wampiremusic

Carolyn Mark - 2:20

Victoria, BC (aka Portland North) - Mint Records http://www.myspace.com/carolynmarm

All Smiles - 3:00

Portland, OR - Small Aisles http://www.myspace.com/allsmilesmusic

Blunt Mechanic - 3:40

Portland, OR - Barsuk Records http://www.myspace.com/bluntmechanic

Finn Riggins - 4:20

Boise, ID (aka Potato Portland) - Tender Loving Empire http://www.myspace.com/finnriggins

Jared Mees & the Grown Children - 5:10

Portland, OR - Tender Loving Empire http://www.myspace.com/jaredmees

Tender Forever "No Snare" coming June 8th!

It's with great, massive joy that we can tell you that there's a new album from Tender Forever coming out June 8th from Olympia's esteemed K Records. Be prepared for No Snare!

Watch the video for "How Many" from her previous release Wider: