Hear in Portland music news this week: "Just Have Fun!"—the new joint EP from Covi. & Drae Slapz—is... really fun! Jenny Don’t and the Spurs headline a New Year's Eve cowboy prom Portlanders reeling from the 1905 closure, check out Keys Lounge by Jenni Moore Hanukkah starts next week and Christmas is just around the corner, so we know that readers are weighing the costliness of music shows against the price tag of holiday prep, but we’ve got the scoop on a new free jazz night at Keys Lounge, a new hip-hop collab from Covi. and Drae Slapz, and a New Year's Eve cowboy prom, starring Jenny Do ..read more

With its second year of funding, MusicOregon's Echo Fund has awarded $57,000 in grants to 18 Portland- and Vancouver-area musicians. Here's a little about the winners and their projects: MusicOregon announced Monday that it has awarded $57,000 in grant funding to 18 local musicians and bands. This is the second round of grants from the nonprofit's Echo Fund, which helps pay for non-performance or touring projects. Here's a little about the winners and their projects. by Ben Salmon MusicOregon announced Monday that it has awarded $57,000 in grant funding to 18 local musicians and bands to help ..read more

Your music news Hear in Portland this week: One of the area's most beloved nonprofits is raising funds to start an all-ages venue Portland rapper-producer Fountaine farewell shows Ural Thomas and the Pain headline a stacked New Year's Eve bill by Jenni Moore Major local music news this week: One of the area's most beloved nonprofits is raising funds to start an all-ages venue, and you can help them do it—just by going to a well-curated slate of shows! It's almost time to part ways with Portland-raised rapper-producer Fountaine, but he has a few DJ nights left on deck. We’re also looking ahead ..read more

Portland music duo Wonderly committed some ironic irony reversals in their new music video—for their cover of Billie Eilish's "Getting Older." by Suzette Smith Into the narrows of 45th parallel winter mornings and early sunsets, Portland two piece Wonderly just dropped a little joy—in the form of a music video for their cover of Billie Eilish's "Getting Older." A track from their album of acoustic covers, Appropriate 'til Death, Wonderly's adaption and video for "Getting Older" feel like ironic reversals of Eilish's own humor—since she released the song about "aging well" at just 19 years old ..read more

The rumors are unfortunately true. Portland is about to lose another venue—this time a North Portland jazz club. by Robert Ham North Portland jazz club the 1905 is no more.  Thursday evening, the club's owner Aaron Barnes broke the news in a missive to the venue's newsletter subscribers and Instagram followers, writing: “Despite our sincerest efforts to overcome challenges, we couldn't sustain our journey." A few hours before he drafted the message, Barnes spoke on the phone with the Mercury, expressing a mixture of relief and disappointment. “I’m worried about my staff,” he said, “and I ..read more

Read this review of Liz Phair at Revolution Hall in Portland and instantly get "Flower" stuck in your head. Melissa Locker waxes nostalgic on the Exile in Guyville Guyville 30th Anniversary Tour. by Melissa Locker The car in front of me on the way to see Liz Phair in concert had a Jawbreaker bumpersticker. And that got me thinking about a 2017 Emily Flake New Yorker comic on the power of music-fueled nostalgia. So it was only fitting that I would end up on a nostalgia-induced crying jag when the first notes of "Canary" hit Revolution Hall's auditorium.  Phair was in town to mark the 30th ..read more

by Wm. Steven Humphrey Who's ready to have some fun? Well, the Mercury is here to help with FREE TICKETS to see some of Portland's best concerts and events—our way of saying thanks to our great readers and spread the word about some fantastic upcoming performances! (Psst... if you want to say thanks to the Mercury, please consider making a small monthly contribution to keep us alive and kickin'!) And oh boy, do we a fun event coming at ya this week! CHECK IT OUT! • ENTER TO WIN FREE TIX to see Grouplove with Bully at the Crystal on February 29! As shown in their joyfully communal live show, G ..read more

Portland-based rapper Wynne handed out hit after hit this year, both on and off her "Some Like It Hot" EP. We sat down with the emerging star to discuss her album, her tour, and her career's steady, hard-won climb. by Jenni Moore In case you’re a Portlander who’s been living under a rock, Sina Wynne Holwerda, known simply as Wynne, is a Lake Oswego-raised University of Oregon grad, and rapidly rising hip-hop star based in Portland. Here at the Mercury, we are certified card-carrying Wynne stans, initiated into her “Hunnycomb” fanbase even before her excellent 2019 debut full-length If I May ..read more

A new full length album from Portland-based rapper Milc A song written from the perspective of our music columnist's boisterous and goofy 75-pound dog—it's good! How is this Beyoncé dance night not sold out? We've got your fresh local music updates happening Hear in Portland. by Jenni Moore It’s officially the holiday season, music nerds! This week we’re celebrating a co-headliner show for Federale and the Prids, another edition of RENAISSANCE//RENAIDDANCE at Holocene, and two Portland rap projects score a feature from underground New Jersey rapper Fatboi Sharif. Read up on these fresh and not ..read more

Now for Oregon Jazz News: Yes, the people are hungry for it. Oregon Hall of Fame Jazz Guitarist Dan Balmer will release a new album on PJCE Records, a local label offshoot of the Portland Jazz Composers Ensemble. With his new album, When the Night, Oregon Hall of Famer Dan Balmer chose to elevate a local label, PJCE Records—an offshoot of Portland Jazz Composers Ensemble doing interesting things. For instance, to go with Balmer's release show PJCE commissioned five composers to expand Balmer's tunes with new arrangements. Read Ben Salmon's profile of the artist and the event. by Ben Salmon Gui ..read more