Interview with Matt King, Booker of Portland's Towne Lounge

Thankfully for Portland, Matt King realized his real calling was in planning shows not the city. King first got involved with Towne Lounge while volunteering for Musicfest NW (which he now serves as Volunteer Coordinator and Production Manager), and in addition to serving the intimate 125-cap venue well as its booker, King is also involved with Portland's Bladen County Records.

Q: Since you started booking there in February, have you made any changes to Towne Lounge's programming?

A: The talent has always been very eclectic at Towne Lounge, but I've definitely tailored some variables. I'm into hosting 'secret shows' that are directly marketed to an act's friends and fans as opposed to openly advertised; it feels more like a private party and the excitement generated by people 'in the know' is always fun. Sunday nights, I've started a weekly showcase called '2 Bands 2 Bucks' for emerging local talent. I'm also working on putting together an annual Fourth of July block party with an all-ages stage outside of the venue and a 21+ stage inside.

Q: What do you look for in the bands you book?

A: I book musicians who play music because it's what they love to do. It's easy to tell. There's nothing more annoying than some band sleeping though a performance because they're playing to a crowd that doesn't meet their expectations. It's so much easier on everyone if people are respectful, gracious and professional. Flakiness, entitlement and miscommunication are deal breakers for me because it becomes too messy to justify the effort.

Q: How can a band looking to play a show make your life easier?

A: Any band that is enthusiastic, professional, original and willing to promote their performance can get a gig at Towne Lounge. Good communication is the key to making my life easier. I'll get a handful of phone calls and emails every month from bands that fail to communicate succinctly. Bands: please leave all pertinent information in your messages to bookers.

Q: What makes the venue unique?

A: Personally, I've always been a big fan of the club - I actually met my wife at a show there. The vibe is very different from most venues in town. It's an ideal small venue for touring bands that are worried about playing a larger room that's maybe at half capacity. I can't think of another club in the country where the audience and musicians are in such close proximity, except maybe the Replay Lounge in Lawrence, Kansas.

Q: Fun fact about Towne Lounge?

A: The fact that the Towne Lounge was once a funeral home has taken on sort of an urban myth quality here in Portland. There are definitely some ghosts in the room if you pay close enough attention.

www.townelounge.com

Portland Acquires New Non-Commercial Radio License

This May, MetroEast Community Media, in collaboration with a coalition of community groups, received some incredible news from the FCC: they were approved for a non-commercial educational (NCE) radio station, something they had been waiting over a year for. Located at 91.1 on the FM dial, this opening is incredibly rare.

91.1's transmitter is located on Mt. Hood, its signal said to reach most of the East Metro area and the portion of the city that lies east of the Willamette River. As an NCE, the station will run no advertising and be supported by its listeners and underwriters.

In a city with such a rich music scene and serious shortage of local programming on its airwaves, those in the community are hopeful about the new station. MetroEast CEO Rob Brading said in the organization's press release, "Other than our founding, this license is probably the most important event in MetroEast's 25-year history. We're very excited with the opportunity to offer radio with an Eastside emphasis and to give voice to the vibrant local music scene." The new station is expected to air in 2009.

www.metroeast.org

IN THE NEWS

PDX Pop Now! returns

for its fifth year on July

25-27. Held at Rotture,

the former home of

Loveland and Meow

Meow (PDX Pop

Now!'s original homes),

the free all-ages

festival will feature

nearly 50 of Portland's

finest, including New

Bloods, The Builders

and The Butchers,

Panther and

Argumentix. As with

last year's event at

Audiocinema, there will

be an indoor and

outdoor stage. PDX

Pop Now! 2008, a two-

disc 40-track

compilation that

celebrates Portland's

musical diversity and

greatness, is out now

and features some of

the festival's

performers, as well as

previously released

tracks from artists like

Talkdemonic, Blitzen

Trapper, Horse

Feathers, Yacht and

Faux Hoax.

www.pdxpopnow.com

Portland's Jared Mees

recently received the

honor of CMJ

Sonicbids Spotlight

Artist. With his backing

band The Grown

Children, Mees is

working on a new

album, Caffeine,

Sunshine, Alcohol,

Money, due for a fall

release on his Tender

Loving Empire imprint.

This month, Mees will

be on the road touring

the West Coast.

www.tenderloving

empire.com

Portland's The Old

Believers will release

their new album, Eight

Golden Greats, on July

10 with a release party

at Berbati's Pan.

Comprised of Alaska

natives Nelson Kempf

and Keeley Boyle, the

band will be on the

road this month touring

the greater West Coast

in support of the new

release, returning

home just in time to

perform at the

Pickathon Festival in

early August.

www.myspace.com/

oldbelievers

Hockey, the Portland-

by-way-of-Spokane-by-

way-of-L.A. quartet has

a new guitarist and a

new album, titled Mind

Chaos. The band has

been gigging the West

Coast regularly over

the last few months

and will take to the

road again at the end

of July to tour the

western U.S.

www.myspace.com/

hockey

Portland's Paper or

Plastic recently

released the full-length

follow-up to their 2006

EP, Best of Luck to

Cody James! . Titled

Don't Be Like That, the

new nine-song album

will be a digital-only

release, with the

exception of CDs at

shows.

www.paper-or-

plastic.com

Leigh Marble has

added a new bassist,

Jesse Emerson of

fellow Portland band

Amelia, to his live

ensemble. Marble also

recently released a

remix EP of songs off

his Red Tornado

album, titled Twister.

www.myspace.com/

leighmarble

Childhood Friends will

release their third full-

length album, Key

Party, nationally on

July 22. Comprised of

multi-instrumentalists

Ilima Considine and

Jake Rose, the

Portland-based band

has been busy touring

the West Coast over

the last month.

www.myspace.com/

forestfriends