SXSW - Or how I learned to tame the Armadillo in 4 HOT days...

Hello dearest Live Wirelets,

Alicia J. Rose, Live Wire's new Music Curatrix, reporting from the couch here in NE PDX. Now that i have sufficiently recovered from my bout of fun in the sun in Austin, TX I thought it high time to dig into my visual diaries and share some potentially compelling and moderately tawdry moments with you all....

Now...where to start. YES! Austin, Texas, land of delicious meats and sauces, keeper of far too many cheesy bars (on the main drag - 6th st.), and for one week in the middle of March, home to the funnest version of music business/fans summercamp EVER. I realized that this will be my (yikes!) 11th year attending....I must say it's always a treat to see old friends, and make new ones too....

Anyhoo - this is kind of a combo visual/verbal diary...so buckle up for a pictorial tour of some fun SXSW '08 adventures...enjoy!

Day 1: The Builders and the Butchers - Yard Dog Patio - NOON.

I dragged myself up at Texas' version of the crack of buns to see my PDX boyz at this Spin Magazine BBQ. Besides the gazillion official showcases held at night, there are also a bazillion non-official FREE parties happening all around town all day long for festival goers and freeloading music lovers. Basically, the fun never stops. So, noon is like 7am regular reality Portland time in Texas....so, it had to be love for me to shuck my buns outta that cozy hotel room so early. However, The Builders and the Butchers are one of my top 5 PDX combos, as they tend to rip the roof off virtually every show i've ever seen them play, so it was worth it. Their brand of broke-down punk folk reminds me of a cross between Neil Young's Crazy Horse and the Violent Femmes being gently massaged by a very dastardly early Decemberists Colin Meloy. Got that? Yeah...Of course I hadn't eaten anything when i got to the show, so I rooted around for the alleged complimentary snacks offered at this bash, eventually unearthing a choice between nasty looking sloppy joes and breakfast beer. Beer it was. I started getting a little lightheaded, then the B&B came on and rocked my pants off.
During the show the boys passed around various percussion treats, which me and my pal played, as did a suspicious looking pirate, who kept staring at us with a creepy grin on his face. Turns out he is a big Builders and Butchers fan...here he is (below) throwing the "peace" sign with the band. I don't buy it. What self-respecting pirate gives props to peace? Hmmm....


After the B&B I wandered the streets of Texas bleary and bloated on breakfast beer. I don't even like beer - so this was a unique state of mind. Somehow I made it to Gueros on S. Congress and ate some delicious breakfast tacos. Chorizo and eggs, you are my friends.

Then after a nice nap, I busted a move to see the amazing Scroobius Pip & Dan LeSac whose single "Thou Shalt Always Kill" has been breaking my brain for a few weeks now...peep it here:



Cool huh? But not as cool as this:


Who's the non-psuedo-Haside? Yeah, that's me on the right. I became a Scroobius Pip stalker. These cats rocked the scrappy 6th Street hole of a venue they were playing at with their relentless mix of hip-hop electronic ala The Streets but with just the right amount of kinetic Bob Dylan style snark. (Sidebar: During SXSW, Downtown Austin's mega-strip of 800 crappy college boobsnbeer joints turn into makeshift venues, some of which truly blow). More on the Pip 'n Sac soon....

After Pip n Sac was fabulous PDX uber-duo Yacht. Who were way more funky and awesome than i remembered. Props to them making the most of the room by getting up in it. That's Jona from Yacht in the crowd with the sexy sweat soaked tee hittin' it:


And then there was Yeasayer. Ah...Yeasayer. Perhaps my top new obsession, spawned directly from SXSW-land. A few prime insiders tipped me off to these lads, who somehow seamlessly blend bits of early Genesis, Kate Bush, TV On The Radio and early Talking Heads with their own poly-math rhythms and weird vocal genius. I was transfixed. You will be too. Check 'em out.


After getting my head blown off by the Yeay's, i headed outside with my pal Mike Jones for a Best Wurst..whose buns were about as soggy as mine. But it was the only late night snack that could quell my drunken lobe-deficient rocked-out stupor. Then it was back to the hotel for a nighttime nap sesh. Good stuff....

Stay tuned for SXSW DAY 2: How I learned to eat breakfast before beer! Also, don't miss my live report including even more sordid details at the April 12th live show at the Aladdin.

Curatrix Corner/Post # 01: Hello young blog lovers

Hello blog lovers of Live Wire land!

Allow me to introduce myself....I am Alicia J. Rose, the new girl. Otherwise known as Live Wire's brand new Curatrix of things musical. I am also rumored to wield a wily accordion and a snappy camera. That, and I am responsible for the music booking at Portland's favorite cavern of all things cozy and rockin - Doug Fir Lounge.

I've bopped around the show a little over the past few months interviewing bands (Chris Walla, Stars of Track and Field, Viva Voce), wearing fancy dresses and trolling backstage for ball-shaped snacks, tasty beverages and cast and crew hugs. It's been a glamorous and shenanigan filled journey, yes - but not one without purpose....the LW lady wizards and myself have been hatching a plan to step up the music quotient of the show, and this blog is just one aspect of the magic that we have in store for you all... I hope to drop some pearls and plop some earls for your ears to sop up over the months to come...so keep me RSS'd and ready.

love
Alicia J. Rose
aka
Puffysin

COMING SOON: Ms. Puffy hits the Texas - SXSW Style!! Saucy rock pics included!!

Oregon is better than OK

Here's a little video to go with the post below.

Oregon!

We've had some requests from people who attended our last show to post the lyrics to our our Oregon-ized version of Oklahoma, written by Faces for Radio Theater member (and show announcer) Tyler Hughs. The airdate for this show is Saturday, March 1st. Enjoy!

OREGON!

The folks at Travel Oregon know this state inside and out, top to bottom. See for yourself at traveloregon.com. But we recently discovered a surprising bit of Oregon trivia that we bet even they didn’t know about. It seems songwriting duo Rogers and Hammerstein’s musical Oklahoma! was originally inspired by our fair state. The story goes that at the last minute Oregon withdrew financial backing in favor of building a dam or a fish ladder or something, and Oklahoma was a hasty and awkward substitute. Tonight, as proof, we present a performance of the rousing finale from the first draft of Rogers and Hammerstein’s OREGON!


They couldn’t pick a better state with no sales tax
It ain’t too sunny and it ain’t too bright
Startin as a logger with a brand new axe
Soon be campin’ in a new campsite
New campsite, gonna treat you right

Gonna give you timber, filberts and salmon,
Pasture fer the llamas,
Berries for jammin’!
Beavers in the rivers, slugs on the rocks
Plen’y of dudes in Birkenstocks
Plen’y of chicks that don’t use soap
Plen’y of beer and medical dope

Ooooo-regon where the rain comes raining when it rains, (Oreguh-un)
And the logging camp can sure smell damp,
And more rain comes right behind the rain!

Ooooo-regon , my domestic partner and I, (domestic partner)
Drink a micro-brew, a pinot or two,
To forget what it’s like to be dry. (dry)

We’re singing this song to the land
From Grande Ronde all the way to LaGrande
And when we say
Dude! It’s just our attitude!

We’re only saying
You’re number one, Oreg-uh-un!
Oreg-uh-un, not Ore-gone!

Oregon, Oregon, Oregon, Oregon,
Oregon, Oregon, Oregon, Oregon,

We’re singing this song to our state
There’s no self serve, you’ll just have to wait

And when we say
Dude! We don’t mean to be rude!

We’re only saying
You’re number one, Oreg-uh-un!
Oreg-uh-un…O-R-E-G-O-N my friend

OREG-UH-UN!

Dude!

...See, Oregon is better than OK! Tune in next time when we present “Prius With a Fringe On Top”

Lyrics (c) Live Wire Radio and Tyler Hughs. All rights reserved blah blah blah don't copy them and say you wrote them or we'll be peeved and then things might get litigious and seriously, aren't the courts too full already with girlfriends suing their ex-boyfriends for the money they lent them to pay their electricity bill because they were about to be cut off and the guy's all, "It was a GIFT," and the girl's all, "It was a LOAN. Who gives somebody electricity bill money as a GIFT?," and Judge Judy's all, "I wasn't born yesterday!" and everybody shuts up. Anyway, don't steal our lyrics, y'all.

Peter Yarrow Videos

The first video is Peter Yarrow singing "Puff the Magic Dragon" with help from Storm Large, Chris Walla, Holcombe Waller and a bunch of others.

There's an uber-cute part at the end of the song, where Holcombe Waller says to Chris Walla, "Oh, give me a hug."

Listen for Chris's response.



This next video is a funny little moment with Peter Yarrow, that I don't think made it into the broadcast.

Holcombe Waller Video

Here's a Holcombe Waller video. You probably heard them singing this song when you listened to our show last night.



Well, if you didn't hear the show you can always get the Live Wire podcasts on iTunes.

A Message from Peter Yarrow

A message from Peter Yarrow.



This show aired Saturday, December 29th at 7 p.m. (without this little tidbit), but if you missed it, you can podcast it from our website.

Some Storm for your Stocking

Merry Christmas!

Here's a few Storm videos from our last show!
Stuff that in your stocking!

Bold As Love


Here We Are


Mmm... Beer.


Enjoy!

Happy Holidays from Live Wire

When Death Cab for Cutie's Chris Walla lost his voice, we got reahe-he-heally lucky and talked Storm Large into coming on the show and singing a couple songs. Here's a holiday tune we all know, sung by a master. Here's wishing you the happiest of holidays from all of us at Live Wire.


Special thanks to Taryn for shooting the video, Jim for the audio, and my new toys for helping me slap the two together.

The audio and video that is, not Taryn and Jim.

Cringe Off *NOW WITH AUDIO!*

Now you can hear what they're saying! Enjoy!

In case you missed Bruce...

Our fabulous intern, Matt Deegan shot some video of the Bruce Campbell show and here 'tis for your viewing pleasure.




And in case you were wondering, Bruce was a peach...a PEACH, I tell ya! Nicest. Guy. EVER.
Signed a million items and made time to chat with everyone after the show.

We heart him, and we're not afraid to say it.

Sean at Rehearsal

This is Sean at rehearsal reading an ad from craigslist as Christopher Walken.

You can hear the whole sketch when our Wordstock Extravaganza Show airs, on Saturday, November 24 at 7pm on OPB Radio 91.5FM.

Small Glimpse of Live Wire Wordstock Extravaganza

Lauren Weedman and Steve Almond.



John Wesley Harding.

Happy Halloween

Happy Halloween everybody. May you get more treats than tricks.

My Shameful Mistake

In a recent episode of Live Wire I made the assertion that Huckleberry Hound wore a vest. It was part of a bit in which I was promoting “The Oregon Vest Fest,” an event celebrating everybody’s favorite torso adornment. I claimed that Huckleberry Hound chose one article of clothing to wear and it was a vest, believing that celebrity endorsement really said something about vests. Gales of knee-slapping laughter followed the bit, in my memory, and subsequent jokes carried us all down a delightful comedic path and away from the whole notion of Huckleberry Hound in a vest.

That should have been the end of the story…a story I would never have even told because had it really ended there, those to whom the story would have been told might well have asked “That’s it? What the eff kind of story was that?”

Well here’s the tragic twist. A nagging sense of doubt led me to do a little research. It turns out Huckleberry Hound never wore a vest. He wore a bow tie and a straw hat.

Sure, he occasionally wore a costume. One Google image result had him posing as a sheriff, replete with a vest and tin star. But he also wore a Santa outfit, a lion tamer getup and a dress. I don’t know where I got the idea he wore a vest. I couldn’t easily find another vest-wearing cartoon character to blame for the confusion. Yogi Bear? Nope, necktie and a shabby fedora. Quick Draw McGraw? McNaw! Bandana and a 10 gallon hat. His alter ego El Kabong? El no. Zorro hat and cape. Top Cat? Well yeah, but who the hell remembers Top Cat? Nobody. The joke would have tanked.

While I feel terrible, I don’t feel 100% responsible for this situation. The audience validated the whole thing by laughing. As soon as that happened they were all accessories to the crime. None of the other writers caught the mistake in any of our meetings…and they’re usually pretty good about that kind of thing. I once wrote a sketch about a device that would convert stomach gurgles into infotainment voice overs by Pat O’Brien. Courtenay pointed out a very similar device depicted in an old SNL sketch…ouch! Since then I’ve seen similar device ideas on the Simpsons and elsewhere. I actually hope to see more, so I can point to more examples for my “collective unconscious” excus--er, argument. Speaking of Simpsons, the TV must have been on during one of my 11th hour sketch edits because a Nelson Muntz line (temporarily) found its way into the script, word for frickin word. (Hey, Nelson wears a vest! Damn!) Sean caught that one, and I think he looked at my sketches sideways for a while. I don’t blame him.

On each of these occasions I was ashamed and embarrassed. This time is no different. I want to apologize to our fans that still follow this blog…both of you…and I vow to be better in the future.
And I sincerely apologize to Huckleberry Hound’s family who may have been deeply hurt by all of this. He died in Vietnam of course but if I'm not mistaken his wife is still living and I think I heard his kids followed him into show business. H.H. Jr. played Eddie on Frasier and his daughter played the love interest in one of the Air Bud movies. I’m pretty sure.

On the Road with Oregon Bounty and Bad Drivers

Back in August, Kate Sokoloff (Live Wire producer), fellow Faces For Radio Theater member Sean McGrath and I went on a big fat adventure through all seven regions of Oregon.

The trip was a collaboration between Live Wire and our totally-kickass-in-every-way sponsor, Travel Oregon. At each stop, we created a video blog (or vlog) introducing you to brewers, chefs, farmers, ranchers, and even the owner of an old-fashioned flour mill - all people who help create the amazing food, wine and beer that makes living in Oregon so damn tasty.

Greg Robeson, our experienced leader, showed us the way and Sean acted as his co-correspondent, utilizing his extensive journalism experience.* Videos will be up on the Oregon Bounty Website for a week starting September 27th- until then, check out this preview video to see the glory that is Sean McGrath. Oh, and I've posted a few photos as well.

Here are some of the lessons I learned along the way:

1. If someone screams in their sleep, don't go in their room and check on them. Really, what are the odds that they're being murdered? Minuscule.
2. The curry cheese torta from Rising Sun Farms is like crack cocaine for cheese lovers. Holy freakin' heck is that thing GOOD.
3. Sean drives like a person who's not afraid to die.
4. Kate drives like a person who's not afraid to kill everyone else in the car.
5. 100-degree heat turns me into a giant pile of whine with a side of wussy pie.

You can read Greg's Blog here.

Sean ready for a fishing trip in Depoe Bay.


Flowers at Rising Sun Farms.


The Bend sky at dusk.


The well-worn bar at the Rainbow Cafe in Pendleton, est. 1893.

*3 months at the Columbia School of Journalism in Bogata. Unfortunately, Sean doesn't speak Spanish.

This is just...wow.

Holy crap, it's the Maria Bamford Show! To watch all eight hilariously wrong episodes, go here.

The Worst Jobs Ever

1. Richard Simmons' shorts seamstress. (No one sells those anymore. They have to be custom-made. By someone.)

2. Post-St. Patrick's Day Cleanup Crew: Vomit Division.

3. Whoever's in charge of telling George Lucas that his latest script is awesome.

4. President of the United States.*

5. Those guys who die for crab legs.

*This is only a bad job if you didn't pay a lot of attention in school and therefore have difficulty grasping complex ideas and sometimes can't remember the names of all the continents.

This One's For Father Rick

Due to a comment from our one fan, El Padre Rico, lamenting our lack of updates to this blog, Faces for Radio Theater presents:

The Dog Ate My...Something That Would Keep Me From
Being Able to Write a Blog Entry
(a.k.a. The 1st Annual Festival of Excuses)

1.) We've been really busy. Sweeps were just last month, and the damn TV's not gonna watch itself, Rick.

2.) We've lost the capacity to experience joy.

3.) Most of us are Amish now.

4.) The way Bush and Cheney are pissing people off all willy-nilly-like, we're all gonna blow up soon anyway. So what's the point of some pithy blog?

5.) Aunt Flo came to visit.

6.) Also, we got our period.

7.) We were passed out from a tequila binge and our ferret mistook us for dead and chewed off our fingers. Again.

8.) We're out there living life, not sitting in front of a glowing computer screen! Just yesterday we all went to Costco. We got som mayonnaise. (See picture at left)

9.) Do you know there are over 50 million blogs out there? Dag. That's a lot of competition. So, we're thinking of getting into the roofing business or studying the dental arts.

10.) We got stuck on the word blog. Blog. Blog. It doesn't even sound real. Sounds like a sound a muppet might make. Blog blog blog blog blog blog! Then we started doing a muppet sketch and we got distracted. But now we're back. Sorry.

Love,
Faces For Radio Theater

A Rose City Roller by Any Other Name...

In a recent episode of Live Wire we did a little game show type thingy. Our guests were Barfly, Viva Vendetta, Slaybia and several other Roller Girls from the Rose City Rollers. In our game show we asked audience members to compete by telling the real Roller Girl names from a bunch of fake ones. It was a bit of a challenge. The real names, like Intensive Scare, The Harmacist and Scratcher in the Eye, disappeared amongst the fakes like a polar bear in a snowstorm.

Here’s a big old list of our fake Roller Girl handles, for your possible enjoyment.

Rep. Karen Meanness
Gov. Barbara RobHURTS
PortlanD.O.A.
Upper Cut-prial and John
Janet Reno Means No
Ugly Betty Ford
Rachel "Death" Ray
Audrey Hipburn
Gouged Inez
Eva Battle
Junior Misdemeanor
Violent No-Regard
The Vulvarizer
Saucy Rejoinder
Ladybird Flu
Ginger Lee Hurling
Statutory Spelling
Felony Griffith
Poison Grace
Maternity Liv
Paloma Finger
Crazy Astronaut in a Diaper
Jackie the Ripper
Cruella DeWheelz
Gone-o-Rita
Princess Die
Killer Bea Arthur
Stabby Von Killingham
Knee to the Groin
My Little Dead Pony
Hello Hittie!
Mrs. Eloise P. Satan
Shmoopy
Hug It Out, Bitch
Menses Approaches
Paula Bearer
Val Catraz
Perish Hilton
Nicole Bitchie
Va Va Va Gina
EriKaboom!
Assaultin’ Pepper
Aunt Flow
Curbstomp Bettie
Slasher Spice
Holly Hunt 'N Destroy
Moo Goo Guys Suck
Thumbelina in your Eyeball
Hold Me Closer, Necromancer
G. Gordon Lydia

As you can see, there are some gems in there and the best thing to do with a gem is to give it to a special lady. There are a lot of rising stars in Roller Derby, just fixing to take off, and they’re all going to need names. So if any of those special ladies want to grab a handle off our list, that would just be our pleasure. We fear and respect the ladies of the RCR League and hope their continued happiness and future success means the asses they kick will be asses other than our own.