Straight-A students: The A3 Group

The Coup

Straight-A students: The A3 Group, an advanced nine-piece instrumental music ensemble from the Springfield Academy of Arts and Academics, will fill the Wildish Theater with the sounds of “Bass Folk Song,” “Django’s Castle” and other music by A3 student composers 7:30 pm Friday, Feb. 28; $5 students and seniors, $7 general. Local favorite Mood Area 52 takes the stage next, performing its signature blend of jazz, American folk, Brechtian cabaret and classical music. The groups will cap off the night with a joint performance of “St. Continue reading 

Forget The Tortoise and the Hare

Forget The Tortoise and the Hare, The Tortoise and The Crow is the hot, faster-paced new duo. That’s the name of The Grouch & Eligh’s latest project, a triple album featuring a solo Grouch disc, a solo Eligh disc and a third disc with both indie rappers. The Grouch & Eligh will drop this expansive collaboration on Eugene with a little help from their friends, Madchild, Pigeon John and DJ Fresh, 9 pm Sunday, Feb. 23, at WOW Hall. The pair released the album in February 2014 with the help of a $90,000 Kickstarter infusion. Continue reading 

Valentine’s Day Roundup

Concrete Loveseat

Valentine’s Day Roundup: Whether this day makes you groan or swoon, whether you have zero or 10 sweeties, at least there’s some good music to put you in the mood or take your mind off the faux holiday. The jazzy poppers of Concrete Loveseat present “Moonglow Valentine” in two shows, 7 pm ($10) and 9 pm ($8) Friday, Feb. Continue reading 

Don’t miss: The blues-folk-rock of The Wood Brothers

This Sunday, Feb. 9, would have been the 26th annual Eugene Record Convention. With the passing of the convention’s beloved founder Bill Finneran in October, the reins have passed to Thomas Jones of Portland. Jones, owner of Crossroads Music (a Portland record shop), has been frequenting the event since 1997 and this year, he hosts a continuation of the convention, the Eugene Record Show, 10 am to 5 pm Feb. 9, at the Eugene Hilton; $3 (or $15 for early entry 7 to 10 am). Continue reading 

Matt Knight Arena has booked Grammy-winning rock group Tool and pop king Bruno Mars

Matt Knight Arena has booked Grammy-winning rock group Tool for March 7 and pop king Bruno Mars for Aug. 11. We’re glad to see these big names in music coming to Eugene, but besides these two concerts, a handful of UO basketball games and monster truck rumbles, Matt Knight’s event calendar is glaringly empty for 2014. What happened to concerts being a crucial source of revenue? And why is one of the country’s most expensive basketball arenas ($200 million-plus) sitting empty most of the year when it could be booking bigger music acts? Continue reading 

The Jazz Station has three big nights of brass in a row

Whitey Morgan and the 78's

The Jazz Station has three big nights of brass in a row. Beginning 7:30 pm Thursday, Jan. 9, with Zero Gravity presenting a folk tribute of the “Afro-origins of bebop in the spirit of John Coltrane,” continuing 8 pm Friday, Jan. 10, with the Adam Harris Quartet exploring the lesser known legacy of saxophonist Stan Getz (of “The Girl from Ipanema” fame) and concluding 8 pm Saturday, Jan. 11, with the Tony Glausi Sextet playing standards (Victor Young, Duke Ellington, Kenny Dorham, Horace Silver) and originals.   Continue reading 

Back Beat

Music news & notes from down in the Willamette valley.

Wetsock

Eugene-Springfield experienced a brutal domestic abuse tragedy last month with the loss of 26-year old Casey Lynn Wright, a devoted equestrian, at the hands of her ex-boyfriend Robert Cromwell. Domestic abuse remains a grave but silent problem; Womenspace reports that one in four women in the U.S. will be a victim of intimate partner violence. In honor of Wright, Womenspace is hosting a benefit, “Sing Through The Blues,” featuring Savanna Coen, Bajuana Blues, Deb Cleveland as well as a silent auction 6 to 9 pm Thursday, Dec. Continue reading