Concerts, Concerts, Concerts

(Editor’s note: Below is our actual letter from the editor, but due to the events of Saturday’s Oregon Ducks-Oklahoma Sooners game, I wanted to say a little extra. First off, my most sincere apologies to Sooners fans for the botched onside kick call. There’s no need to keep reading if you’re a Sooners fan.

Okay, are they gone? Holy crap, that was the most incredible game I’ve ever seen. I kid you not, I almost started crying.)

Readers,

Ah, the last few weeks have been musical/football bliss.

The Ducks won their first two games, and having the college football season back will lighten the coming lack of sun here in the Northwest. Next week we have to worry about Adrian Peterson running all over us, though.

But the highlight of the last week has revolved around music. Last weekend, MusicFest NW (previously known as North By Northwest) kicked off across Portland. Some good friends created the commercials you can view under our “Link of the Moment”, and they hooked me up with a wristband. Because of the Ducks game on Saturday night, I missed the first and last day of the festival (Saturday was the actual game, and Thursday had to be spent with my girlfriend due to the fact that I’d be watching concerts and football all weekend). I caught Dolorean at the Doug Fir, which was a typically fantastic show from Al James and the boys. The set was a bit slower than the last time I saw them, more typical of their studio sound. From there, it was on to the Crystal Ballroom (my least favorite venue in Portland) for Viva Voce and Stephen Malkmus. I missed out on Britt Daniel and a show featuring The Brianjonestown Massacre headlinging with The Dandy Warhols for the first time in many years. Fans of the documentary DiG! will understand what that meant…

The best show of the night, though, was last night. Alex Dupree, who I’ve talked about extensively on this site, swung through town with his friend Seth Woods. When I heard he’d be coming through, I figured we’d organize a small concert in my girlfriend’s backyard, also helping to raise awareness for The Belmont Foundation. Around 60 people showed up, many of them friends and neighbors.

Look, I know I rave about this guy, but part of me wondered how his live show would stack up, especially with new songs.

I was blown away, absolutely. Alex and Seth are the greatest guys, and they put on an amazing live show. On top of my favorites, the songs off Alex’s upcoming album indicate a new level of songwriting. Don Miller and I kept looking at each other in amazement, and my friend Jessica and I agreed that it was like watching a young Bob Dylan. That sounds crazy, I know, and every singer-songwriter gets compared with Dylan at some point, but I’m talking about the lyrics here…Alex’s words cast heavy visions.

I’d never heard Seth’s stuff before, but he was great as well, and I’m looking forward to diving into his first album with the Sad Accordions. Check out their myspace page here for some sample tracks.

I’m making it my personal crusade to get these guys noticed, so go on iTunes and search for Alex Dupree. Listen to some tracks, buy the album, and you’ll be able to say you knew about him way back when he was playing in people’s backyards. Many thanks to Alex and Seth for a great evening.

So, on to this issue. Penny dug up two fantastic social justice pieces, one on music and one on the American Dream. Don’t miss either of them. Becky Garrison, Senior Contributing Editor for the legendary Wittenburg Door, has a book out, and we’ve got an excerpt from chapter four, entitled “How Would Jesus Vote?” Along those political lines, Brent Bourgeois is back with a discussion on the credibility of Presidents past and future.

On the arts side, Aaron Donley has written his first full length piece after attending the county fair down near Eugene, Oregon. Adam Newton reviews a couple of albums, including Sufjan Stevens’ Avalanche. Even though it’s too late, I thought I’d give one more plug for the best television show I’ve ever seen.

In sports, Jon Adams talks about the sports highlights of the year so far. If you’re wondering if Zinadine Zidane made the cut…why? Of course a headbutt by a soccer superstar in the final game of the World Cup would make the list. Come on!

Sincerely,
Jordan Green
BWC

P.S. Our Letters to the Editor page will be changing a bit. Next issue, we want to compile a definitive list of the best U2 albums from our readers perspective. Send an email to reviews@burnsidewriterscollective.com with your five favorite U2 albums in order, and any comments you have about each one. Next issue, we’ll tell you how this semi-poll turned out.

P.P.S. Three new audio files are available at donaldmillerstore.com, and you don’t want to miss them. On top of the new files, David Allen has also made the ordering process about seven billion times easier, so get on over there!