The (Un)Grateful Dead

Ryan Lella of Portland’s A Happy Death loves vintage garage rock like The Beau Brummels, The Sonics and The 13th Floor Elevators.

The songwriter is also into stuff by Thee Oh Sees and Ty Segall — contemporary artists leading the Bay Area’s recent garage and psychedelic rock revival: a movement that seems to be catching on up in Portland as well.

“Ty Segall and Thee Oh Sees kick ass!” says Lella, who sings and plays guitar in A Happy Death. “They totally reinforce how stoked we are to play the kind of music we do.”

Like Segall and Thee Oh Sees, A Happy Death updates the original ’60s-era sound — amping up the noise to a deafening squall, recalling British art-rockers My Bloody Valentine.

“We also dig bands like Talking Heads, Dead Kennedys and The Pixies,” Lella says. “That’s where it all kinda comes together.”

The Pixies influence is particularly apparent in “Wet Dream” from the group’s latest release, Introducing: A Happy Death, with Lella ably mimicking Frank Black’s cadence and tortured yelp over keyboardist Jaclyn Hardin’s buzzing Farfisa organ.

Elsewhere, “Commie Killer” is awash in a tsunami of cacophonous guitars and cymbals, and “The Devil” is Jack White meets The Sonics’ classic “The Witch.”

A Happy Death is releasing its latest on, of all things, cassette (with digital download). “Tapes are super rad,” Lella says. “Besides, being an analog format that is compact, they invoke a nostalgia that is associated with actually giving a damn about music.”

A Happy Death celebrates its latest release with Eugene’s Mudpuppy and Bestfriend 8 pm Tuesday, April 1, at Black Forest; FREE.

A Note From the Publisher

Dear Readers,

The last two years have been some of the hardest in Eugene Weekly’s 43 years. There were moments when keeping the paper alive felt uncertain. And yet, here we are — still publishing, still investigating, still showing up every week.

That’s because of you!

Not just because of financial support (though that matters enormously), but because of the emails, notes, conversations, encouragement and ideas you shared along the way. You reminded us why this paper exists and who it’s for.

Listening to readers has always been at the heart of Eugene Weekly. This year, that meant launching our popular weekly Activist Alert column, after many of you told us there was no single, reliable place to find information about rallies, meetings and ways to get involved. You asked. We responded.

We’ve also continued to deepen the coverage that sets Eugene Weekly apart, including our in-depth reporting on local real estate development through Bricks & Mortar — digging into what’s being built, who’s behind it and how those decisions shape our community.

And, of course, we’ve continued to bring you the stories and features many of you depend on: investigations and local government reporting, arts and culture coverage, sudoku and crossword puzzles, Savage Love, and our extensive community events calendar. We feature award-winning stories by University of Oregon student reporters getting real world journalism experience. All free. In print and online.

None of this happens by accident. It happens because readers step up and say: this matters.

As we head into a new year, please consider supporting Eugene Weekly if you’re able. Every dollar helps keep us digging, questioning, celebrating — and yes, occasionally annoying exactly the right people. We consider that a public service.

Thank you for standing with us!