The Power of No

If you haven’t heard Portland musician Ezza Rose in the past five years or so, you should know her sound has changed: She’s no longer playing folky bluegrass string music. “Growing up I listened to a lot of punk,” she explains over the phone.

Going electric with her band is a return to her roots, she says. “We’ve been sinking our teeth into a lot of material that’s geared politically.”

If you have any doubt that her music has taken a new direction, check out the pounding tom-tom intro that blasts her song “No Means No” into the stratosphere.

That song, off her brand-new album of the same name, is a slightly surf-rock, Sleater Kinney-style punk manifesto for the #MeToo era. The song’s video, filmed at various locations around Portland, shows women running daily gauntlets of male harassment and abuse. These women fight back. One pulls out her cell phone to take footage of her catcaller, making him look a fool.

While the album echoes issues raised by the #MeToo movement, Rose says it was largely written before the hashtag exploded into public awareness. More than anything, she says, it’s an album about the value of keeping your word.

“Being true to your word,” she explains. “Being impeccable with your word, and valuing other people’s word. For me ‘no means no’ is the overarching thematic idea. It’s a liberating idea for me.”

Ezza Rose plays along with The Domestics 8 pm Friday, Nov. 30, at Hi-Fi Lounge; $5 advance, $7 door, 21-plus.

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!