Last Tuesday night, Portland music podcasters, Party Boyz, hosted one hell of an event at Bunk Bar. The night marked the one year anniversary for the podcast, as well as the release of their first printed Zine and first compilation album on compact disc. The Zines looked great and featured content by local artists and musicians. Wearing handmade, screenprinted covers, the compilations feature bands that have been guests on the podcast during it's first year, including some unreleased tracks by a few artists. To help celebrate this great night, the girls of Party Boyz gathered three portland powerhouses, Genders, And And And, and Sama Dams, to play some rock 'n roll. Here's a brief recap.
opening the night, Sama Dams awed the crowd with their sheer musical virtuosity, featuring intricate drum rhythms, haunting and bassy organ chops, and beautiful almost seizure-like guitar soloing. Switching between playing his guitar, bass and keys, Sam played some of the most shredding synthesizer solos I've ever heard.
Up next was And And And, who were in full partyboy rock mode. Drummer Bim Ditson's shirt came off right away per usual, Bassist Jonathan Sallas was fed beer during a song, beehive guitarist Berg sported a rocker's spike bracelet, and Nathan sang his heart out. The energy was static in the packed room, and the boys played flawlessly.
Genders closed down the night with their brilliant shoegaze garage pop. Their rhythm section alone amazes me to the point of jealousy, but with Stephen's excellent guitar tone and styling and Maggie's gentle voice and knack for songwriting, it's no surprise why they are one of Portland's favorite bands.
- Travis Leipzig
