Portland's "Most Influential"

I'm very honored to be named by the Phoenix as one of Portland's "Most Influential Movers & Shakers" for the work I've done with Tower of Song and Eternal Otter Records. I started these projects because I love this city and wanted to properly showcase its many talents, so I'm glad that they have been recognized as a vital contribution to our local culture.

Also, these projects couldn't have succeeded without the help of many dedicated and creative supporters, some of whom were also recognized by the Phoenix, including Aly Spaltro (Lady Lamb the Beekeeper), Bryan Bruchman (who has given us lots of great publicity through his hillytown blog), and Kris Johnsen (who has designed a number of posters and album covers for us). Even more people were left off, but are equally deserving of attention, including John Fountain, Alicia Sampson, Roy Ghim (Liberation by Sound on WMPG), [dog] and [pony], Dominic Lavoie, and many others.

In any event, Eternal Otter Records plans on continuing its efforts to celebrate Portland's music. The Phoenix is also hosting a reception tonight at Bull Feeney's around 7 pm - hope to see you there.

First Friday Art Walk

Tomorrow is February's First Friday Art Walk in Portland. As always, Eternal Otter Records will be contributing to the celebration of our city's art and artists.

Naturally, we will be kicking off Building of Song around 5:30 pm. Meander your way through the crowd and to Congress Square to hear live music echoing out of the 5th floor of the Congress Street Building. If you want to get closer to the action, make your way up the stairs of 142 High St and into the Eternal Otter Record Studios. Dominic Lavoie will be playing along with special guest, D. Gross.



Next, make your way across the street to the Hope.Gate.Way (185 High Street), where Panda Bandit Alicia Sampson is hosting her solo show, "I sail oceans in maps". The exhibit will include her collage poster series she created for Tower of Song/Building of Song, as well as watercolor and gouache paintings, drawings, and an experiment in digital collage called Nature in Motion featuring sights from Maine and New Jersey. Alicia also currently has a piece on display at SPACE Gallery's "Free for All" exhibit.

The recently released "The Death, Rebirth & Transformation" vinyl singles series will also be available at Time-Lag Records starting tomorrow. You can also pick up the records at Building of Song and the Hope.Gate.Way. Eternal Otter Records T-shirts will also be available for sale.

Liberation by Sound Podcast

Check out the Podcast from last weeks' Liberation by Sound, featuring interviews with Will Ethridge and Alicia Sampson of Eternal Otter Records. DJ Roy asks them about the "Death, Rebirth & Transformation" vinyl single series that was released on January 29th. Also features music from performers featured at the Eternal Otter Records Vinyl Release Party.

The "Death, Rebirth & Transformation" vinyl single series is now available for mail order online.

Don't Miss This Show!

Port City Music is hosting an incredible show tonight that you won't want to miss. Two of our city's most talented ladies- Lady Lamb the Beekeeper and Dilly Dilly- are taking the stage starting at 8 pm. This will likely be Dilly Dilly's last Portland performance before she moves to L.A. Tickets are only $2 and there will be $2 drafts all night!

Vote for Building of Song as "Best Public Event"

The Portland Phoenix is hosting its annual poll of the Best of Portland!

Please nominate the Building of Song/Tower of Song as Best Public Event (City Life category). You can vote once per day.

If you need further convincing, please come by Congress Square this First Friday of February to hear live music by Dominic Lavoie and Dana Gross! If you are feeling particularly adventurous, make your way to the 5th floor of the Congress Street Building to check out the musicians up-close.

Eternal Otter Records Release Party Recap

Thank you to everyone who made it out to the Eternal Otter Records Release Party. Everybody who didn't- you missed quite a show.

Things got started when the Panda Bandits took the staged and opened the evening with their theme song, "When the Panda Bandits Come To Town". They were promptly followed by Jesse Pilgrim & The Bonfire, who careened through a number of their best songs, including "Ernest Shackleton's Antartic Adventure" which will be appearing on vinyl in just a few months from Eternal Otter Records. They were also joined on vocals by Aly Spaltro (Lady Lamb the Beekeeper) for a couple of tunes.

The always entertaining Over A Cardboard Sea followed to sing a selection of their classic vaudeville hits. Their set concluded with one of the best performances of one of the greatest songs ever written- "Brother, Can You Spare A Dime?"

After three rawkus acts in a row, Dana Gross took the stage solo and picked and strummed his way through a meditative trilogy of songs, before ending with the charming "Hummingbird" played on banjo. The Panda Bandits then joined him onstage to sing Samuel James' "Path of Ashes" -- with special guest vocalist, Moses Atwood, for whom the song was written.

Moses proceeded to wow the crowd with a performance of a song he had written only the night before. He was joined by Elliot Heeshan on drums and Don Dumont on dobro (both of Dead Man's Clothes) with Dana filling out on bass. They had all learned the song just a few minutes before the start of the show, though you never would have guessed it.

Then it was time for the second-half of the show when things got truly weird and spectacular. The Panda Bandits took the stage for the final time, joined by Dead Man's Clothes and Blaque Boose to perform a messy but suitably creepy version of Cerberus Shoals' "Baby Gall".

Blaque Boose then performed a short skik featuring the multiple deaths of Rasputin before seemlessly taking the stage to deliver a single masterful suite of dark folk. It was clear that the audience was spellbound by this unknown band from Southern Maine.

Finally, TJ Metcalfe and Aly Spaltro separately took the stage to sing their solo songs from the vinyl- Metal Mouth and Sunday Shoes, respectively. Then they joined forces for a Lady Lamb the Beekeeper reunion, which in my mind is already a contender for best musical moment of 2010. A great night to see old friends and hear new music!

The "Death, Rebirth & Transformation" vinyl single series is currently available for mail order online. It will be released to Time-Lag Records this coming Friday.

Check out photos from the release show below (courtesy of Bryan Bruchman).

Eternal Otter Records Vinyl Release Show from Bryan Bruchman on Vimeo.