Author: Jim Desmond
Waxed - Record Review from Issue #50 March-April 2004
Jim White – Drill A Hole In That Substrate And Tell Me What You See
Jim White’s mesmerizing voice and narrative songwriting cast a spell. David Byrne calls White’s music “Beautiful, dark and weird stuff.” I find the songs here even more compelling than those on White’s fine prior records, including the highly regarded Wrong Eyed Jesus. Particularly strong are the songs (roughly half) produced by Joe Henry, who infuses [...]
Miked - Live Reviews from Issue #46 July-Aug 2003
Kathleen Edwards – Aladdin Theater (Portland, OR)
Well into her set, Kathleen Edwards’ remarkable artistic promise made itself evident as she threw caution aside during “Mercury”. Down on her knees, back to the audience, Edwards gave one of the quieter songs on her fine debut Failer an extended and noisy workout as she pulled far more emotion out of a guitar solo [...]
Waxed - Record Review from Issue #43 Jan-Feb 2003
Little Sue – The Long Goodbye
Susannah Weaver, stage name Little Sue, has grown up. Her third record is her most nuanced and accomplished, in large part because of terrific production by Ezra Holbrook and tasteful contributions by more than a dozen of Portland’s best musicians and singers. Weaver’s artistic growth has apparently not been without its struggles. The Long Goodbye [...]
Town and Country - Shorter Artist Feature from Issue #42 Nov-Dec 2002
Dan Zanes – Family style
Dan Zanes and I have come full circle. In a memorable night in the summer of 1984, after seeing R.E.M. and the Dream Syndicate, I rushed off to the Cubby Bear Lounge in Chicago to catch Dan Zanes lead the Del Fuegos through a blistering set opening for the Replacements. Today, Zanes is still quenching [...]
Town and Country - Shorter Artist Feature from Issue #41 Sept-Oct 2002
James Low – Movin’ on up
James Low comes by songwriting honestly enough. His grandfather wrote show tunes and his father wrote folk songs in John Day, Oregon, a scenic but struggling timber town in remote Eastern Oregon where Low was raised. Now living in Portland, Low, 31, has just self-released his second album, Black Heart, a collection of country and [...]
Miked - Live Reviews from Issue #38 March-April 2002
Chocolate Genius – Crystal Ballroom (Portland, OR)
Contemporary R&B is too often out of touch with its roots, while contemporary roots music too often lacks soul. There are exceptions (Ben Harper, the Roots, Bob Dylan, Joe Henry), but no one is transcending the genres and making more satisfying and soulful “roots” music than the man who calls himself the Chocolate Genius (Marc [...]
Waxed - Record Review from Issue #38 March-April 2002
Dolly Varden – Forgiven Now
Dolly Varden is a gem of a band. On Forgiven Now, their fourth record, the Chicago quintet continues to refine their appealing blend of pop and country. Husband and wife Steve Dawson and Diane Christiansen exude warmth and good taste. It doesn’t hurt that Dawson and Christiansen’s voices sound great together. But what works best [...]
Waxed - Record Review from Issue #37 Jan-Feb 2002
Dexter Romweber – Chased By Martians
Feeling patriotic but just not quite able to fly a flag on your car or praise Donald Rumsfeld? Well, my suggestion would be to find an old Lincoln or Caddy and cruise through your ‘hood blasting some Dexter Romweber music. Seemingly possessed by rock ‘n’ roll, Dexter has been dishing out his unique brand of [...]
Screen Door - Last Page Essay from Issue #34 July-Aug 2001
Still Feeling Almost Blue
An unlikely source turned me on to country music twenty years ago while I was living in Nashville. In May 1981 Elvis Costello, my musical hero, came to Music City to record Almost Blue. This might not seem surprising now, given Costello’s work with artists as diverse as Burt Bacharach and the Brodsky Quartet. But [...]
Waxed - Record Review from Issue #32 March-April 2001
Jerry Joseph – Everything Was Beautiful
Reputations can be hard to shake. Jerry Joseph, now based in Portland, Oregon, after bouncing around various western cities, sometimes is written off as a “hippie rocker” stemming from his days with jam band Little Women, or dismissed as noisy and raw from his more recent work with power trio the Jackmormons. The common problem [...]
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