Author: William Kennedy

Bossypants

A side project of Jon Spencer of the Jon Spencer Blues Explosion, Boss Hog

Music
Boss Hog

After 16 years, Boss Hog, a side project of Jon Spencer of the Jon Spencer Blues Explosion, has returned with the Brood Star EP, a self-described amuse-bouche to the band’s forthcoming full-length album Brood X.  Boss Hog frontwoman, and longtime partner to Spencer, Cristina Martinez tells EW that after so many years, the time had come to release new material. “We have never stopped playing together,” Martinez says. “Eventually, we had accumulated so much stuff it seemed stupid to not put them on a record.” Continue reading →

Cassette Season

Eugene garage-rock trio VCR

Music
VCR

Kneeling at the altar of The Kinks, The Pixies and Nirvana, Season One!, the debut album from popular Eugene garage-rock trio VCR, has finally arrived. And rest assured, it’s fantastic.  The self-produced album, recorded in Portland on analog tape, features Chase Clarke on guitar and vocals, Emily Hurt on bass and Tyler P. Howard on drums.   “Outta My Head” is a three-chord blast of pummeling proto-punk ecstasy — a lesson that rock ‘n’ roll is best served recklessly noisy and defiantly tuneful (while staying in-tune remains optional).   Continue reading →

All About That Barrel

A lesson in barrel-aged beers from the new Alesong Brewing & Blending

Drink
Doug and Brian Coombs with Matt Van Wyk

One of Eugene’s newest breweries features some familiar faces: Matt Van Wyk and Brian Coombs, formerly of acclaimed local brewery Oakshire. In 2015, Van Wyk and Coombs, along with Coomb’s brother Doug, struck out on their own, launching Alesong Brewing & Blending, a company with a unique emphasis on barrel-aged beer. Van Wyk tells EW that Alesong, located in west Eugene, is an artisan brewery “that’s going to mainly focus on barrel-aged beer and Belgian-inspired beers.”  Continue reading →

Ghosting

A brand new Eugene band

Music
Ghost Tour

A brand new Eugene band, Ghost Tour, debuts Saturday, July 2, at Hi-Fi Music Hall’s Lounge. Ghost Tour features several familiar faces for Eugene music fans, such as Olive DelSol (Bohemian Dub Orchestra) on keyboards and vocals, and Michael Steinkirchner (Caitlin Jemma & The Goodness) on lead guitar.  Continue reading →

The Jester’s Court

Weimar Cabaret meets Eugene Blues with local rising band Pancho + The Factory

Music
Stephen Buettler is Pancho

Stephen Buettler is the principal provocateur behind rising Eugene band Pancho + The Factory. He’s also the primary songwriter and vocalist. Sitting next to me at the bar in Eugene’s Wayward Lamb, Buettler vibes like an off-duty, dock-working Pagliacci with a rock ‘n’ roll edge — due in no small part to his blue-collar handlebar moustache and black fingernail polish. He has a malleable, expressive face, a gentle, kindhearted sadness in his eyes and a soft, teddy bear-like physique that some might call cuddly. Continue reading →

Brain Cream Pop

Music

For touring bands, finding a reliable person to run the merch table, selling assorted paraphernalia, can be a challenge. But on one of Jaill’s passes through Eugene, the band found a creative solution.  “We were bringing an elderly man-puppet on tour to help sell merch,” recalls Jaill bandleader Vincent Kircher. “We were putting taquitos in its mouth, glasses on his face and people posed with the doll. That sounds dumb and unfun, but it wasn’t.” Continue reading →

The Sad Ballad of Bobby and Willy

Music

In any era, Bob Dylan is a transcending icon of cool. Other ’60s-era musicians tried to break the rules but Dylan, rebellious and irreverent, made up a whole new game. At this point, Dylan is everywhere; many of his tunes are as ubiquitous as “Baa, Baa, Black Sheep.” Almost everyone’s life seems to intersect with this jangly-limbed trickster from Minnesota. So the question is not so much are you a Dylan fan, but what is your Dylan discovery story?  Continue reading →

Regret, Regret, Regret

Theater

Chekov updated for a post-Prozac world in OCT’s uneven production of Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike As with writers David Mamet or Aaron Sorkin, to properly experience playwright Christopher Durang you first have to commit to the musical rhythms of his language. Durang’s humor, dark and cynical as it is, lies within that rhythm. Continue reading →

The Cutting Edge of Youth

Music

L.A. hardcore industrial duo Youth Code is touring in support of its second studio record, Commitment to Complications. With this record, Youth Code, featuring Sara Taylor and Ryan George, push deeper into the rough, serrated electronic territory of bands like Skinny Puppy, Godflesh and Ministry.  This is not pleasant music, but it is thrilling, challenging and rewarding. Hardcore vocals accompany a throbbing, pulsating beat that almost inspires you to dance but instead hammers your consciousness into a brutal kind of awareness. Continue reading →