Lunch w/ Darwin Deez

We are approaching the hungry gap at Wealth Underground Farm, the time of the year when what is in the field flowers or becomes woody and we must wait for new plants to grow.  We are furiously eating the collards, cabbage, garlic, and other vegetable remainders from last season.  Darwin Deez joined me at the farm in the middle of this frenzy, sharing in the abundance offered by this end of season.

We are getting hit with the final flood of Brussels sprouts at the moment so I roasted a lot of them as well as made a cream of roasted rutabaga soup.  We ate the meal and shared stories, which can be found here: Road Snacks Podcast.

Later that night, I biked down to the Doug Fir for the show.  I don't think I've ever seen a band having more fun playing music.  Everybody in the band was smiling for pretty much the entirety of their set, especially when they would perform their interlude choreographed dances.  At one point, Gregory excitedly ran off the stage to the sound booth.  I heard him say, "You said I could run the lights for this song!"  At the end of the dance, he just barely made it back to the stage to begin the next song.  You would have to hate fun to not have a good time at a Darwin Deez show.

Thanks to Darwin Deez for taking the time to visit Wealth Underground Farm for the Farm to Artist project.  Please check out their new album, Songs for Imaginative People.  Also, get caught in the whirlpool of Darwin Deez's wildly creative music videos (like the one below).

Lunch w/ Big Business

Big Business was not phased by the rain, which makes sense as they were once based out of the Washington and have a song called, "Another Beautiful Day in the Pacific Northwest."  They borrowed Red Fang's van for the tour, choosing to leave behind the band jet on this "back to our roots" tour.

It was just Jared and Scott who sat down with me for the meal.  That said, if you listen to the podcast, Coady jumps in and makes a few (mostly rude) remarks here and there.  If you listen until the end, Jared and Scott give an a cappella teaser of the upcoming record that they haven't started recording.

The show was at the White Owl Social Club, a restaurant/venue that has recently opened in what was once Plan B.  The food is worth it alone to go to shows here, where their burger varieties include buffalo, salmon, and pulled jackfruit.  But this is not a food review.  Following the Portland band Rabbits, Big Business maintained their larger than life sound for the entire set.  The music is great because of the drumming alone but the fact that they write catchy songs makes them a force to be reckoned with.  Also, Jared might have the best vocal stylings in contemporary heavy metal.

Thanks to Jared and Scott of Big Business for joining me at Wealth Underground Farm.  Go to the band's website for more information.  Here's a song to get you pumped for the podcast:

Brunch w/ Terrible Feelings

 The months of December and January are perfect times to take stock.  You look back on the previous year, the celebrations and pitfalls, and you look toward the year to come.  In this part of the world, the harshness of the outside environment pushes one inside where, in the absence of much physical work, there is time to think.  It is also a time to have people over to share warmth and to revel in the midst of darkness.

Terrible Feelings visited Wealth Underground Farm during their recent US tour but, more importantly, it was also on the day of Andy's (drums) 30th birthday.  If you have ever wanted to hear someone being serenaded happy birthday in Swedish, be sure to listen to the podcast for you opportunity.  The conversation over fresh veggies generally revolved around the Swedish foursomes interaction with a number of beautiful (read: disgusting/insane) Americans as they drove past the amber waves of grain.

After the brunch, in the evening, Terrible Feelings played a show at Blackwater Records.  I had only been into the shop area of Blackwater Records and didn't realize they had a large room/stage beyond all the vinyl.  Anton (guitar) jokingly described the sound as "dark power pop" and though they deserve to have punk somewhere in the description it was hard to pin down their sound exactly.  I'll describe the music as powerful, the songs are epic but without the frills of music that generally gets labeled epic.  Terrible Feelings is a band who you can see, not knowing any of their songs, and feel like you've known their music for your whole life.  Try not to fall in love when you see this band live.

You can hear the music of Terrible Feelings on their soundcloud page.  Check out their website for news or to see if they are playing any shows near you.

Also, tune in to KBOO every third Wednesday (tomorrow!) at 11am PST to hear me on the Food Show.