omn’s guide to the 2013 sasquatch! music festival

We all know there's way more happening here than you can possibly witness. The 12th annual Sasquatch! Music Festival at the Gorge Amphitheatre features some 120+ artists and bands performing this Memorial Day weekend (Friday, May 24th through Monday, May 27th) on five stages (although one—Cthulhu—with only three acts per day hardly counts).

So, disregarding some the biggest billed names in popular culture right now—those who you either love or you hate, those you're either sure not to miss (insert: Mumford & Sons, Macklemore & Ryan Lewis, Vampire Weekend, The xx, The Lumineers) or sure to miss—OMN will attempt to distill each day down to three must-see acts (as well as a few honorable mentions) and then we'll make an effort to follow our own advice come Friday. Feel free to join if you fancy.

Friday, May 24th

ONE: The worst thing in the whole entire world is knowing Portland's RED FANG is melting faces on the Bigfoot stage (from 5-5:45pm) while you're stuck in a never-ending line of cars trying to get into the campground. Don't let that be you. Arrive early—that means early enough to polish off the six pack holstered in your Red Fang-branded, leather beer holder. Then, forget about setting up your tent and get your ass to the venue because there'll be lines there too. Until Sasquatch kicks off, get your air guitars warmed up with "Hank Is Dead"—a metal ode to a deceased cat:


TWO: The disparate MATTHEW DEAR will bring an hour of his dark-yet-dapper dance music to El Chupacabra (from 9:45-10:45pm). Full of murky emotions and beats that are both grinding and grindworthy, find someone to put your smell on because Dear's gonna make the tent sweat.


THREE: No stranger to the Northwest, FATHER JOHN MISTY's J. Tillman is a former member of Fleet Foxes and friend of mainstay, singin'/songwritin' Seattleites Damien Jurado and David Bazan. His indie folk and candid stage presence is sure to draw a crowd to the Bigfoot stage (from 7:30-8:30pm). Get spiritual with "Hollywood Forever Cemetery Sings":

HONORABLE MENTIONS

You'll have to choose between the rapid, garage-y riffs of the Arctic Monkeys (Sasquatch at 8:30pm) or the psychedelic spirituality of Youth Lagoon (Yeti at 8:30pm).

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Get the rest of our picks on OMN.

resources for your ride — it's national bike to work day

It's National Bike to Work Day today, which means it's National Bike Month, which, in turn, means it's PDX Bike Month. Got it?

In honor of all of the above, I've written a Local Agenda for today as well as one the other week on some Portland-made biking accessories like bags from Black Star and Queen Bee, caps from Double Darn, and more really cool stuff from PDW and others.

Then, there's the behemoth of a list, featuring classes, co-ops and maps to guide you, dubbed:

Biking in Portland: Where to Learn and Ride

Greenest city, best coffee, hottest indie music scene. In the eyes of others (read: national media outlets), Portland is constantly competing for top listicle honors.

In 2012, Travel + Leisure liberally bestowed upon Portland "the best" titles for environmental friendliness, street food and food trucks, public transportation and pedestrian friendliness, pet-friendly vacation, and microbrewed beer (as well as "the worst" weather, naturally). Plus, CNN just named us the best beer town in the USA.

While the recognition is appreciated (and delivers a little ego boost), the measures are, honestly, completely arbitrary. Most Portlanders aren’t striving to be acknowledged—they’re just doing these things because they have a passion for the ideas, ideals and tastes (and to, hopefully, make a living).

As we continually vie with Minneapolis for the crown of America’s #1 bike city, one thing is official: The month of May is National Bike Month, which means the city has also declared it PDX Bike Month. With morning ride bike breakfasts and a free bike summit (the meeting kind, not a hill ride), May is an opportunity for Portlanders to celebrate the thriving bike community and culture that lives here. (Points of pride: Portland has the highest percentage of bike commuters for a large American city and is the only large American city awarded a platinum rating for bicycle friendliness by the League of American Bicyclists—plus more fast facts.)

But if you’re a little intimidated by the scene or simply don’t know where to start, we hope the following list of resources will show you that Portlanders love spreading the bike gospel through activities, education and affordable access to information for riders of all skill levels and ages.

Where To Learn: Hands-On Bike Maintenance and Safety

Tori Bortman, owner of Gracie's Wrench

Depending on what you aim to do with your developing bike knowledge, Portland offers a multitude of opportunities to learn in a variety of environments.

A good place to start is the Portland Bureau of Transportation’s (PBOT) Portland By Cycle program, which hosts spring and summer classes and rides (all are free but some classes require registration). You can learn basic bike maintenance and safety in interactive clinics or discover new cycling routes while practicing these skills during group rides—and maybe you’ll make some two-wheeled friends along the way. Find the 2013 schedule for upcoming dates of interest.

While Portland By Cycle has several dates specifically for seniors, Women on Bikes is a female-only series of free clinics and rides. With activities from now until September, find one that works for you and join in.

For those determined DIYers desiring more advanced training, become a bike mechanic under the tutelage of Tori Bortman at Gracie's Wrench where she offers everything from beginning to intensive tune-up classes and individual tutoring, or learn wheel building from the experts at Sugar Wheel Works.

And if you’re really serious about being official, get professionally certified at the United Bicycle Institute, “the industry's leading technical school offering courses in repair, frame building, and mechanic certification for beginner to advanced technicians.” That’s right, you can literally build your own bike from scratch. Fire up your torch and start brazing that chromoly. (And if you have no clue what that even means, just start hanging out at the adjacent Hopworks BikeBar and maybe you’ll learn through inebriated osmosis.)

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Find out where to learn safty tips, how to self-service your ride, and discover a plethora of riding routes inside and out of the city on Neighborhood Notes.

atl invasion : big boi + killer mike running the roseland

Although Three Stacks just released a cover of Amy Winehouse ("Back to Black," in which he splits time with Beyoncé, for The Great Gatsby soundtrack), it's unlikely his musical output is going to increase any more than the smattering of songs he's infrequently released over the last five or so years.

Meanwhile, the other half of Outkast—Big Boi—dropped his second solo album, Vicious Lies and Dangerous Rumors, six months ago, a release that saw him mashing genres by collaborating with rising rappers (A$AP Rocky, B.o.B., Kid Cudi), longtime ATL homies (Ludacris, Sleepy Brown, T.I., Killer Mike), and indie darlings (Phantogram, Little Dragon, Wavves). While not as universally solid as his debut, the maximalist effort that blends indie rock (like production by Phantogram on "Objectum Sexuality"), Dirty South rap (the bumping "In The A"), and soulful, electronic funk (provided by guest Kelly Rowland on "Mama Told Me"), and proves Big Boi is still the master of the hook.

Compatriot and recurrent collaborator Killer Mike also released his sixth record in 2012, the critically acclaimed R.A.P. Music (an acronym for Rebellious African People), that was co-produced by El-P. (Since, the two have officially formed a group, Run The Jewels, together, and a free, self-titled LP will be out on Fool's Gold in June.) While the powerful, political album already has a sequel planned (with El-P again) for 2014 (as does part four of his Pledge series), there's another record you should be ecstatic about.

Big Boi on the mainstage at Seattle’s Bumbershoot in 2011. Photo by Alex Crick.

Prior to the official release of VLDR, Big Boi revealed that he already had another 10 songs recorded for a third solo album. And in the months leading up to VLDR, he spread some rumors of his own posting two fully realized tracks typical of his style ("Gossip" with southern guests UGK and Big K.R.I.T. and the explicitly erotic "She Said OK" featuring Theophilus London and Tre Luce), neither of which appeared on the record.

As demonstrated by the aforementioned, it seems both of these artists look to be entering a prolific stage in their careers.

So, is that what you should be you excited for? Nope.

It's the big news the two drop on Shoes For Running mixtape (below) in advance of their joint tour. In the intro to "A.D.I.D.A.S.," Killer Mike tells us to enjoy this mixtape "while me and Big Boi get a whole brand new album ready for y'all. That's right, me and Big Boi. Album. Heads are exploding now."



And during his freestyle to the beat from 50 Cent's "Wanksta" on the final track, Daddy Fat Sax adds, "We got a brand new record coming out—two CDs, not one." Boom.

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Read the rest on OMN.

get out! kisses + trails and ways

My contribution to this week's edition of Get Out!

Here's to a Sunday night of warm, California-hued, unabashed electro-pop. Headliners Kisses look like they live inside an Instagram filter. One look at their Tumblr or the wood-paneled album art of their upcoming sophomore release (Kids in LA due out May 14th on Cascine), reveals a decade-spanning, sun-soaked sensibility for fashionable kitsch. It's an appealing style—full of palm trees and Aloha shirts (including one they designed themselves) as well as something fabulous we'll dub the disco pineapple—and a retro mood which is definitely carried onto the inviting analog keys and danceable drum machines of the new record.

Mixing Latin influences with dreamy pop and Brazilian jazz, the Spanish- and Portuguese-infused "bossa nova dream pop" of Oakland-based Trails and Ways is a pleasant complement to open the night. Set to release their debut EP on June 6th, Trilingual is presumably named for lead singers Emma Oppen and Keith Brower Brown's escapades in Spain and Brazil following studies at UC Berkeley. With these two on the bill, it'll be a summery night that fans of Portland's Pure Bathing Culture can enjoy.

Sunday, May 12, Holocene, 8pm, $8 advance / day of show, 21+

Listen to four tracks from Kisses upcoming record Kids in LA:

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Check out the rest of OMN's Get Out! picks for May 9-15.

¡salud! — it's cinco de mayo

In honor of Cinco de Mayo, today's Local Agenda features tacos, cervezas, margaritas made with aguas frescas, tamales and homemade salsa from several of my favorite spots around town. (We're talking Robo Taco, ¿Por Que No? and suggestions for several tamale spots.)

Every. Single. One of those things is literally my favorite thing in the whole wide world. ¡Qué rico!

just brew it — it's national homebrew day!

It's National Homebrew Day so naturally we planned accordingly for today's Local Agenda as well. Find out where to meet up with some homebrewing comrades and how to spend your sunny Saturday afternoon.

weddings galore

Here's another batch of small business blurbs written for Neighborhood Notes' The Localist. Most of these have a matrimonial angle, featuring specific products and services for brides- and grooms-to-be.

There are custom-made invitations for any occasion at both Paperjam Press and Ecru Modern Stationer (which also provides myriad convenient personalization options via Envelopments), plus flowers, bouquets, centerpieces and more at both Emerald Petals and Broadway Floral, and then a few little bits on beauty and gift registries.

divine digging — it's record store day!

To celebrate some 400 limited edition titles available at thousands of indie record stores across the world today, I wrote up a few pieces on Portland happenings related to Record Store Day 2013.

In case you don't know, Record Store Day is when:

Record collectors rejoice! Your national (and fast-becoming international) holiday is upon us again: Record Store Day—the day when thousands of independent music retailers across the U.S. offer an incredible selection—literally hundreds—of exclusive limited edition releases that are only available at indie record stores. The focus skews heavily towards vinyl including special collaborations, colored and picture discs, reissues, rare boxed sets, and other one-time-only anomalies, which come in seven, 10 and 12-inch varieties. Each indie record shop often has a different assortment of musical goodies, as well as freebies and activities planned (like in-store performances, DJ sets by local musicians, and record signings), so check with your neighborhood digs to see what they have planned. There’s more than a dozen participating locales in Portland, so get started early before all the hottest commodities are gone!

Find out what's going down today at three indie staples—Music Millennium, Jackpot Records, Everyday Music—on Neighborhood Notes' Local Agenda.

And get even more info on all of the above at Oregon Music News, including a few special snoochie boochies specifically designed for four-twenty.

how to trademark + protect your business name or ideas

You’ve officially decided to follow your dream.

Whether you’re ready to reveal the product you’ve been meticulously developing in your workshop or studio to the world, or you’re ambitiously opening your own restaurant, bar, bakery or boutique, you should step back a moment and consider the name of your product, business or service from a legal perspective—you’ll thank yourself later.

There is definitely a cost to choosing the wrong business name, which is exactly what two Portland bar owners have become acutely aware of since opening their northwest kitchen and lounge almost two years ago. The lesson Sepal Meacham and Josh Johnson (of the recently renamed Paymaster Lounge) would like you to take away from their experience is that you can easily save yourself undue stress, as well as wasted time, money and energy, if you take basic trademark law into consideration when selecting your business’ name.

Even if you’ve had the perfect name in mind for years, you’d be wise to pay attention to the following advice before you publicly brand yourself under that moniker. And if you don’t necessarily have that name picked out, pay attention so you can do it right the first time.

Determine If Your Product Is Eligible For a Trademark

But first, what is a trademark?

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Subscribe to Neighborhood Notes' small business education center, Local U, to read the rest of this article as well as two more about frequently asked trademark questions on international registration and how long it takes to receive a trademark.

get out! : there is no mountain

My contribution to this week's edition of Get Out!

Formerly The Ascetic Junkies, the husband-and-wife team of Matt Harmon and Kali Giaritta have pared down to a duo and are excited to make their live debut under a new moniker: There Is No Mountain. Kicking off a two-month national tour (their most extensive to date) as well as celebrating an album release, Kali and Matt have chosen an intimate house show, which will feature Q&A sessions between songs (you can submit your own questions!), to modestly introduce their reconfiguration to the world. Space is very limited but anyone who purchases an advance copy of the record is guaranteed entry. The self-titled album will officially release on April 16th—so check Bandcamp and iTunes then to download your own bundle of acoustic-turned-electric guitar, ever-present guy-girl harmonies, and bouncy, African-tinged Americana reminiscent of classic (Paul Simon) and contemporary (Vampire Weekend, Dirty Projectors) influences.

Saturday, April 13, Hippo Campus, 8:30pm, $10 advance (includes new record) / $5 (or more) suggested donation day of show, all ages

Listen to There Is No Mountian’s first single “Owl Hymn” (and right click to download):

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Get the rest of OMN's Get Out! picks for April 11-17.