tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-54413942083884317532012-01-25T09:08:13.285-08:00Jason Simmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06907211517322043736noreply@blogger.comBlogger1941100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5441394208388431753.post-14861761153204155412012-01-06T12:40:00.000-08:002012-01-06T17:16:12.845-08:00

Last summer, I spent a lot of time at a place called High Rocks. It's a park just outside of Portland, about 15 minutes from my house, where you can jump off a cliff into a river. It didn't take long before I got to know Tiger. He's sort of a volunteer caretaker of the park, cleaning up trash and making small changes to the landscape to make the diving safer. I wrote a story about him for The

Jason Simmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06907211517322043736noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5441394208388431753.post-50819407380790701482012-01-02T16:16:00.000-08:002012-01-02T16:50:08.300-08:00

Last month I took the hour drive to the beautiful small town of Vernonia, Oregon, to interview one of America's best bladesmiths, Murray Carter, for a profile in The Oregonian.Murray is moving his Carter Cutlery operation to Hillsboro, just outside of Portland, and he's one of those treasures that when you learn about him, you just can't believe you didn't know he was in your community. Murray is

Jason Simmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06907211517322043736noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5441394208388431753.post-20103755503476053892011-11-27T17:50:00.001-08:002011-11-27T18:06:13.085-08:00

I contributed to the Holiday Gift Guide in Friday's Oregonian. It occurs to me that some of the gifts I recommended aren't terribly festive. But everyone needs something for the bah-humbugger in their life.First of all, I'm pretty stoked I got the phrase "Satanic map of Oregon" in the gift guide. Though the analysis of Witch Mountain's new album that "Amy Winehouse didn't die; Uta Plotkin ate her

Jason Simmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06907211517322043736noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5441394208388431753.post-92101695547128812732011-10-26T12:29:00.000-07:002011-10-26T12:55:24.867-07:00

From now on, when ever I hear "Pinball Wizard," I'll picture the "silver ball" being the ball at the end of the microphone. I recently previewed Roger Daltrey's performance of Tommy for The Oregonian, and focused on the return of his epic mic swinging, which took a break of a few years because of vision problems. The swinging was really over the top at the Rose Garden on Monday night, prompting a

Jason Simmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06907211517322043736noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5441394208388431753.post-35928058185591730242011-10-16T17:34:00.000-07:002011-10-16T17:40:34.048-07:00

For most bands with a vintage style, hindsight is 20/20. Not the Tomorrow People. This exciting new trio from Portland made a debut record that is a veritable time machine to the 1970s, quixotically imitating the Beach Boys and T. Rex baggage with the glory. And it is awesome.I wrote a preview of their CD release show last week for The Oregonian, and here is the extended ending that didn't make

Jason Simmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06907211517322043736noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5441394208388431753.post-152948745479207352011-10-05T21:57:00.000-07:002011-10-05T22:12:50.049-07:00

It's fall, and for the fourth year in a row, that means it's time for Fall Into Darkness, Portland's underground metal festival. I took the opportunity to do a bit of a Portland metal scene report in The Oregonian this week, and music scribe Bob Ham invited festival organizer Nathan Carson, metal booker Carly Henry and yours truly to be guests on the latest edition (episode 6) of his podcast, For

Jason Simmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06907211517322043736noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5441394208388431753.post-31608199233585466802011-09-19T18:20:00.000-07:002011-09-19T18:54:19.231-07:00

Did you know there's a Golf Channel? I've recently been watching it. My dad used to watch golf when I was growing up (he still does, I'm just not usually around to see it). I never took much of an interest. But when I discovered how many international players there are on the LPGA tour, I went out to the Safeway Classic in the Portland area to do interviews for English, baby! and had a great time

Jason Simmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06907211517322043736noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5441394208388431753.post-86429196705596415942011-09-12T19:15:00.000-07:002011-09-12T19:27:34.760-07:00

This weekend Musicfest Northwest took over Portland and my life and it was a beautiful thing. I reviewed seven bands for The Oregonian in three posts:Dirty MittensArchers of Loaf, Butthole Surfers, KylesaWild Ones, Youth, Off!Best discovery of the festival? Wild Ones. I had heard some good things about this local indie rock band and they blew me away. Their singer has a fantastic voice and the

Jason Simmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06907211517322043736noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5441394208388431753.post-66829507445182814412011-07-24T11:30:00.000-07:002011-07-24T11:46:39.649-07:00

Did you know a member of Los Lobos lives in Portland? I didn't until Chelsea Morrisey of Dirty Mittens mentioned it. Conveniently, Los Lobos was planning to play at the Oregon Zoo just a few weeks after that conversation--perfect timing to do an interview with saxophonist and keyboardist Steve Berlin for The Oregonian.Steve was extremely friendly and happy to do an interview even though he was in

Jason Simmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06907211517322043736noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5441394208388431753.post-4618457066360920322011-07-17T20:34:00.000-07:002011-07-17T21:00:24.818-07:00

Acrassicauda--the only metal band from Iraq--reminds us why rock is important. I was honored to get to do an extended phone interview with vocalist Faisal Mustafa for this story in The Oregonian.A lot of good material didn't make it into the story, so I posted it below. In preparing for this interview, I listened to Acrassicauda's 2010 EP Only The Dead See The End Of War many times and was really

Jason Simmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06907211517322043736noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5441394208388431753.post-61524120858273798072011-07-17T20:16:00.000-07:002011-07-17T20:34:03.857-07:00

Dirty Mittens really is kind of the heart of Portland. They sprang up with more gusto than skills (although I even liked them in their house party days) and after five years, many new members and lots of great shows, they finally released their first album, Heart of Town, last week. I covered it for The Oregonian.Though it's their first official album, even their demo made my top 10 albums of

Jason Simmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06907211517322043736noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5441394208388431753.post-33286861876737706002011-06-25T13:12:00.000-07:002011-06-25T14:22:48.098-07:00

When it starts stayng warm out after dark, I know it's almost time for True Blood. My favorite thing about the show is how much you can sense the heat. Everyone is sweaty and scantily clad. It's a great contrast with the all pale vampire action. Last season, a new character named Crystal Norris was introduced. She is a werepanther and the latest love interest of Jason Stackhouse. Crystal is

Jason Simmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06907211517322043736noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5441394208388431753.post-53880579995588740612011-06-25T11:49:00.001-07:002011-06-25T12:10:14.218-07:00

Every now and then, it can be really rewarding to take on album reviews of genres I don't really know much about. That's how I learned about Latin guitarist Alfredo Muro, who I listen to frequently a couple of years after writing about him. My most recent exploration is Portland funk saxophonist Patrick Lamb, whose new album, It's All Right Now, I reviewed for The Oregonian last week.The first

Jason Simmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06907211517322043736noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5441394208388431753.post-47320672822029762232011-05-22T18:23:00.000-07:002011-05-22T18:52:37.002-07:00

Portland jazz trio Go By Train is releasing a new CD called Transmission tomorrow and I got to interview them for a story for The Oregonian. It was fun to reconnect with them--I first covered the band for Willamette Week five years ago. There's one thing that didn't make it into the story: Go By Train does an amazing cover of "Everlong" by the Foo Fighters on the record. The band exhibits such a

Jason Simmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06907211517322043736noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5441394208388431753.post-86529902452543068582011-05-14T01:55:00.000-07:002011-05-14T13:40:47.512-07:00

Back when I wrote for Willamette Week, I used to get to pick a show of the year. I kind of miss that. I still think about it whenever I see a really good show.About a month ago, I saw a show that would definitely be my frontrunner for 2011 so far. After not performing for like 3 or 4 years or something, Michele Wylen, a local producer and singer, booked a headlining First Thursday gig at

Jason Simmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06907211517322043736noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5441394208388431753.post-20829746113583536262011-04-29T13:12:00.000-07:002011-04-29T13:27:42.511-07:00

After about a decade of playing and writing about rock shows, I'm still fairly new to the world of live hip hop. This month, I got to review both Ice Cube and Mos Def for The Oregonian.The crowds at these shows make rock audiences look really square. There is so much movement and enthusiasm. One friend of mine said she saw people "practically having sex on the dance floor" at Mos Def. While I

Jason Simmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06907211517322043736noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5441394208388431753.post-37139506170328339182011-04-13T00:03:00.000-07:002011-04-13T00:34:39.161-07:00

I saw Bad Religion three times in 2002. They've hardly aged in the last 9 years. Seeing them open for Rise Against this week at the Rose Garden was a relaxed and enjoyable experience as detailed in this review for The Oregonian. It also helps that I like their new album, Dissent of Man.Rise Against was pretty much new to me for this assignment. I liked how well their attitude fits the pop-punk

Jason Simmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06907211517322043736noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5441394208388431753.post-86783953798994726292011-03-27T23:23:00.000-07:002011-03-27T23:57:39.758-07:00

In the last few weeks, I've been able to profile two fantastic new Portland bands for The Oregonian, both of which just released their first full-length albums, and neither of which sounds anything like the other.Even before I saw Radiation City play last winter at Rontoms, I could have complimented them on having some good looking vintage gear. They rocked those tube amps and electric pianos in

Jason Simmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06907211517322043736noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5441394208388431753.post-81478616836982847912011-03-06T17:47:00.001-08:002011-03-06T17:54:05.650-08:00

So, thanks to a fellow Pioneer and Dixon Scholar, I got to go see the President speak at Intel and make an English lesson out of it. It was really cool, although I never did find the White House Press Pool (I even had trunks on under my clothes). Grasp the meaning of that joke and see some behind-the-scenes photos on the English, baby! blog.

Jason Simmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06907211517322043736noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5441394208388431753.post-54419158488706608212011-02-21T23:16:00.000-08:002011-02-21T23:39:18.867-08:00

I think I have been transported back in time to 1996. During this year, I spent a lot of time watching music videos on a weird UHF station called The Box, where for $3.95, you could call up and request a video.The first time I heard "Tha Crossroads" by Bone Thugs-n-Harmony, I liked it. Their rapping style is so musical, it's hard not to love it. But that video was by far the most requested on The

Jason Simmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06907211517322043736noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5441394208388431753.post-41362886054288091312011-02-17T23:47:00.000-08:002011-02-18T00:03:01.628-08:00

Last year, I loved watching Juwan Howard play for the Blazers. Anytime there was a disagreement on the court, he would step up and defend his teammates while making amazing faces. So, when I got the chance to go to a Miami Heat practice to get some Celebrity English Lessons for English, baby! (I was told I could approach anyone but the big 3), I asked him to teach the phrase, "I got your back"...

Jason Simmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06907211517322043736noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5441394208388431753.post-66833085019522112242011-02-07T11:31:00.000-08:002011-02-17T23:47:26.927-08:00

Strangely, I've written a couple of articles lately involving the verb "to bend." I made my first great local music discovery of the year writing an Oregonian review of the first night of the Portland Oregon Hip-Hop Festival (which also happened to be my 27th birthday) in the form of Rose Bent, a group fronted by three female MCs and backed by live instrumentation. I also had fun at the second

Jason Simmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06907211517322043736noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5441394208388431753.post-65762140626131309732010-12-26T13:38:00.000-08:002010-12-26T20:33:10.553-08:00

As usual, I don't purport to know the top 10 albums of the year since I didn't listen to them all. These are the 10 albums that came out in 2010 that I was most into. I'm glad the forces that brought them to my ears did!1. Judgement Day - Peacocks/Pink Monsters. You might have heard of Apocalypitica. They're a band that plays mostly metal covers on cellos. It's pretty cool, but inviting guest

Jason Simmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06907211517322043736noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5441394208388431753.post-17730592879845231232010-12-24T14:22:00.000-08:002010-12-26T15:08:58.023-08:00

I write on a deadline all the time as a journalist. But as a songwriter, I'd never had an assignment I had to complete by a particular day until I got invited to be on the 4th edition of Willamette Week's holiday compilation this year. It's raising money for p:ear and you can download the whole thing for $5 (recommended) or just my track for $1 (or stream it for free).After waiting all week for

Jason Simmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06907211517322043736noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5441394208388431753.post-22221392910620767182010-12-19T19:33:00.000-08:002010-12-30T01:22:18.647-08:00

Back in 2007, I got to interview Greg Graffin, the singer of Bad Religion, over the phone for Harp Magazine. Recently, I got to meet him in person for the latest in English, baby!'s Celebrity English Lessons series.I just waited in the book line and asked him to do the interview when he signed mine. I also had him sign one for my friend Mark. He was writing "Good luck!" in most of the books, but

Jason Simmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06907211517322043736noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5441394208388431753.post-65549479235587897762010-12-07T01:58:00.000-08:002010-12-07T02:06:24.271-08:00

When I discovered that Carmelo Anthony was making a movie in China last summer, I set out to try to get him to do an English lesson for English, baby!With all the trade rumors surrounding him this season, I was surprised how chill he and the whole Nuggets squad was when I attended their practice. It was the most relaxed NBA practice I'd ever been to. Someone farted and everyone made fun of it.

Jason Simmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06907211517322043736noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5441394208388431753.post-91239574319480119402010-11-20T01:54:00.000-08:002010-12-19T19:01:43.269-08:00

It's a fact. Most cool people like old country. It might be the coolest music ever made really. Songs by Willie Nelson, Merle Haggard and the like are just so tight. The seemingly surface-level lyrics have subtle implications. The melodies are clear, easy and miraculously emotional.Anyway, I didn't know this until recently, but there's sort of a little club of Portland musicians who get together

Jason Simmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06907211517322043736noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5441394208388431753.post-4183396436766771172010-11-07T01:43:00.000-07:002010-12-07T02:15:13.246-08:00

Freelance writers don't pick their headlines. Sometimes an editor picks something really goofy and it's kind of a bummer. But I like the ring of the title that ended up in the print edition of The Oregonian for my profile of the reunited Clorox Girls got.The trio played in Portland for the first time in a few years over Halloween weekend, and in classic fashion, something and someone got broken.

Jason Simmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06907211517322043736noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5441394208388431753.post-16496652599603465282010-11-02T01:28:00.000-07:002010-12-07T02:12:56.919-08:00

It was a tenuous claim to fame, but we needed it. Portland needed an historical rock venue. But alas, Satyricon, where everyone liked to point out the jukebox next to which Kurt met Courtney, is no more.I recorded its second to last show for posterity in the Oregonian. The lineup featured punk bands from the club's early '90s heyday. It was a good show. It was also a little bit like being at

Jason Simmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06907211517322043736noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5441394208388431753.post-86255924114803365222010-10-25T23:45:00.000-07:002010-10-25T23:54:32.866-07:00

The latest additions to the Celebrity English Lesson series over at English, baby! are my recent interviews with rappers E-40 and Tech N9ne. They played the Roseland Theater in Portland earlier this month and tore it up. I saw a guy outside with a sign offering $100 for a ticket, so you can imagine the inside was packed and rowdy. See for yourself. Not pictured: girl across the balcony from me

Jason Simmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06907211517322043736noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5441394208388431753.post-52842596988379538182010-10-23T14:02:00.000-07:002010-10-23T14:18:52.242-07:00

TV. It's trendy to hate it. But I gotta be honest, I'm into it. As an entertainer, I love watching other entertainers. And few TV sports casters are more entertaining--for better or worse--than the Blazers' Mike Rice. I wrote a scouting report on him for yesterday's Oregonian. See what we can expect this season when he takes to the air for another season of Blazers broadcasting Tuesday.This

Jason Simmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06907211517322043736noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5441394208388431753.post-78380979485350995392010-10-12T01:42:00.000-07:002010-10-12T02:30:56.312-07:00

As a young kid, I really liked the show Taxi. It's kind of a weird show for a 7-year-old to like. Latka was my favorite character. I named my snake after him.Later, once I was a teenager in a punk band, I discovered that Latka was played by a man named Andy Kaufman, a performer who did all kinds of unusual things. He became one of my heroes. I read his biography, tracked down tapes of his

Jason Simmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06907211517322043736noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5441394208388431753.post-90399055884875596282010-10-09T15:23:00.000-07:002010-10-09T15:44:14.995-07:00

This weekend, Portland's best metal festival, Fall Into Darkness, has taken over Berbati's Pan and I wrote a preview of it for the Oregonian. Unlike festivals where every band sounds and looks the same, Fall Into Darkness features diverse and creative bands with common heavy and dark elements. Last night, Fauna gave a performance that was half ritual, half concert, spreading leaves through the

Jason Simmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06907211517322043736noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5441394208388431753.post-68101209156761450812010-09-21T01:19:00.000-07:002010-09-21T02:55:13.987-07:00

This month saw Music Fest Northwest, the best weekend for live music in Portland. Even though I've been recovering from knee surgery, I managed to get to see a few things. Sleep performed an incredible 2 hour show that at its best moments was basically exactly what you imagine a metal show should be. It was a like a Platonic, picture perfect show at its peak. I reviewed it for the Oregonian, and

Jason Simmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06907211517322043736noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5441394208388431753.post-91638310036362617892010-08-27T17:47:00.000-07:002010-08-27T18:02:57.283-07:00

I have an article in today's Oregonian about one of my favorite Portland bands, Pure Country Gold who is releasing their second album tomorrow at Club 21. Somewhere a few years ago, though I can't find it now, I remember them saying something about how, even if there isn't one, they imagine a good looking gal in the front row of their shows and play the kind of show that would make her dance.

Jason Simmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06907211517322043736noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5441394208388431753.post-87224800093471974512010-08-15T14:22:00.000-07:002010-08-15T14:58:45.879-07:00

I've never had a bad time at Warped Tour. I kind of lived for it as a teen. The first out of town shows I played with my old punk band were scheduled around getting to see Warped in Denver (it never hits my hometown of Albuquerque).So it was actually a huge thrill for me to get to talk to Warped founder Kevin Lyman for this preview of today's Portland-area show. In fact, I figured he'd probably

Jason Simmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06907211517322043736noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5441394208388431753.post-76203475410180190682010-08-12T01:19:00.000-07:002010-08-14T14:02:04.959-07:00

Well, the band that made my favorite record of 2009 is splitting up. SubArachnoid Space is ending their 14-year run tonight at Mississippi Studios, and I was fortunate to be able to write a brief oral history of the band for the occasion.The story focuses on the partnership between drummer Chris Van Huffel and guitarist Melynda Jackson. Melynda and I talked for over an hour on the phone for the

Jason Simmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06907211517322043736noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5441394208388431753.post-57396614745929253012010-08-12T00:54:00.000-07:002010-08-12T01:04:44.022-07:00

I recently volunteered for the assignment of reviewing a Justin Beiber show. I kind of look for opportunities like these to write about music I don't know that much about, but that doesn't require that much knowledge to write about. It's fun to just take something like this on and be as objective as possible.And of course, I thought it would be fun to bring someone to a Justin Bieber concert.

Jason Simmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06907211517322043736noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5441394208388431753.post-14447443557834723872010-07-10T18:45:00.000-07:002011-01-11T10:38:58.716-08:00

In ten days between the release of my LeBron James free agency song and "the decision," the video I made got a lot of media attention and thousands of views. Here are some reviews.Yahoo! Sports' Ball Don't Lie blog: "...definitely the most earnest LeBron James song of all-time."NBA.com's Sekou Smith: "...has plenty of good-natured fun at the expense of the King with no rings."ESPN.com's True Hoop

Jason Simmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06907211517322043736noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5441394208388431753.post-42878497133970487562010-07-10T17:11:00.000-07:002010-07-10T17:15:09.593-07:00

Last night I had a good time at what started as one of the most mellow metal shows I've ever been to and ended in a full-on mind blowing at the hands of Brothers of the Sonic Cloth. 'Twas the first night of the Day of Hel Fest at Berbati's, and you can read of my adventures in the Oregonian here. It continues tonight and is recommended!Image: Atriarch, who also slayed last night.

Jason Simmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06907211517322043736noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5441394208388431753.post-54881578365158412942010-07-08T16:24:00.000-07:002010-07-08T16:43:33.757-07:00

Last night, Austin Lucas put on an incredible show at the White Eagle, and I reviewed it for the Oregonian. He'll be doing it again tonight, and I highly suggest going if you can! I can't guarantee he'll lead the crowd outside again to finish the show. But who knows? Maybe tonight he'll end up on the roof.I first saw Lucas at a house show in 2006. When I mentioned this to him last night, he

Jason Simmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06907211517322043736noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5441394208388431753.post-68327394209543436142010-07-07T01:34:00.000-07:002010-07-07T02:11:00.299-07:00

Last weekend I reviewed Lilith Fair's Portland stop for the Oregonian. It was a lot of fun! I actually got to meet Sheryl Crow--more on that at a future date. In the mean time, photos!I thought Erykah Badu would probably be awesome, but she wasn't really. Although I gather she put on a great show later that same night at the Someday Lounge. And you gotta hand it to her for wearing two colors of

Jason Simmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06907211517322043736noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5441394208388431753.post-54269677253278312482010-07-03T15:42:00.000-07:002010-07-03T16:20:00.143-07:00

Tomorrow, JonnyX and the Groadies is releasing their second album, and I had the treat of reviewing it for the Oregonian. One thing I didn't get to mention in the piece is that the cover is actually a photo of a model the band built. The volcanoes in the background light up and even the stars are light shining through black cardboard. It reflects the overall vintage horror vibe of one of the most

Jason Simmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06907211517322043736noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5441394208388431753.post-44324236235287579752010-06-27T16:42:00.000-07:002010-06-30T11:33:20.158-07:00

I wrote an allegorical song about LeBron James. It's a cautionary tale imagining him the king of a humble realm. It was a lot of fun to record, so I hope you have fun watching it!For more music, visit my Facebook page.

Jason Simmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06907211517322043736noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5441394208388431753.post-71182132860179936772010-06-15T14:51:00.001-07:002010-06-15T16:45:44.644-07:00

Last weekend, I interviewed Cool Nutz for a story about his new album for the cover of the How We Live section in today's Oregonian. In the intro to the piece, I compared Cool Nutz's new album, Incredible, to Dr. Dre's The Chronic for having boastful titles and a simple cover with the artist's image. So I figured I'd put them here side by side as well provide the full text of our more than

Jason Simmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06907211517322043736noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5441394208388431753.post-3509280949222626802010-06-15T14:08:00.000-07:002010-06-16T14:18:25.983-07:00

I remember the first PDX Pop Now! Festival in 2004. I was 20. I went all three days and did a lot of drinking on the railroad tracks. Suddenly, I had a glimpse of this indie rock scene everyone was talking about. Each band was a new introduction. Since the festival was free and the weather was good, and it wasn't terribly overcrowded or anything, it was pretty much the ideal setting to learn

Jason Simmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06907211517322043736noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5441394208388431753.post-40045651152189339902010-04-16T14:56:00.000-07:002010-04-16T15:11:36.108-07:00

The world is littered with bands. New bands with an instantly recognizable sound are rare, but Cleveland's mr. Gnome is one of those bands. Last weekend I talked to frontwoman Nicole Barille on the phone as they drove through Texas for this Oregonian story tied to their show at the Knife Shop at Kelly's Olympian tonight.I reviewed mr. Gnome's 2008 album for Spin, and met them several times, but

Jason Simmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06907211517322043736noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5441394208388431753.post-28226139307001197262010-03-19T11:14:00.000-07:002010-03-19T11:36:44.305-07:00

Swallows is addicted to making records. Between the Sea and Sky, the Portland duo's third full length which comes out tomorrow, is the band's 9th release, and they're already working on their 10th. When I stopped by their practice space to interview them for this profile in today's Oregonian, frontwoman Em Brownlowe plugged in an acoustic guitar (for the last 6 years, she's rocked electric). She

Jason Simmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06907211517322043736noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5441394208388431753.post-45401336481619366682010-03-18T17:30:00.000-07:002010-03-18T17:52:06.466-07:00

Since I wasn't able to review the great new album from local madman Professor Gall for The Oregonian, I wrote a live review of his CD release show last Friday.I had put off seeing Professor Gall for a long time, because while I liked the spirit of his 2006 album, Intravenous Delusion, I thought it was a bit scattered and loose. While the The Psychology of Booze & Guilt isn't perfect, the

Jason Simmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06907211517322043736noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5441394208388431753.post-70259587893293637832010-03-14T14:50:00.000-07:002010-03-14T15:21:48.126-07:00

I am a huge, huge Blood Brothers fan. Their 2006 post hardcore masterpiece, Young Machetes, was probably my favorite that year, and I remember not even caring that at 23, I was one of the oldest people at their show in Portland that year. They were just too magical, too intense for a lot of grownups to handle, and I mean that completely seriously.The band broke up in 2007 and basically split into

Jason Simmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06907211517322043736noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5441394208388431753.post-84083133779520373192010-03-13T16:35:00.001-08:002010-03-13T16:40:54.539-08:00

Yeah, so my band the Metal Shakespeare Company auditioned for America's Got Talent and it landed us on the local news, again. Can you believe we got Drew Carney to wear our shirt and a costume? Well, actually, that's not that hard to believe.Wish us luck!

Jason Simmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06907211517322043736noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5441394208388431753.post-42012398961858603582010-03-12T13:29:00.000-08:002010-03-12T14:05:56.974-08:00

Maybe it was just seeing all that snow, a rarity in New Mexico, but I remember as a young boy, I loved the Winter Olympics. This year, they were just a 6 hour drive from where I live and work, so the English, baby! team rented an RV and headed north to make English lessons at the Games.The first question everyone asks me is, "What events did you see." We saw the luge, and it actually turned out

Jason Simmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06907211517322043736noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5441394208388431753.post-19296976567947738062010-01-19T11:36:00.000-08:002010-01-21T11:46:17.671-08:00

Neat! For my birthday, I got a little blurb about Dethklok published in the Village Voice as part of their big year-end critic poll.

Jason Simmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06907211517322043736noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5441394208388431753.post-16167322928270065212009-12-27T21:08:00.000-08:002009-12-28T10:08:12.593-08:00

I'm not a big fan of formal year end lists, but I always get talked into it. This time by Michael Byrne at City Paper, who let me write a blurb about number 2 on this list.1. Subarachnoid Space - Eight Bells. From my Oregonian review: SubArachnoid Space soundtracks the superconscious, with all the breadth of wonderment and horror between sleep and wake and between Dali paintings and Cortazar

Jason Simmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06907211517322043736noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5441394208388431753.post-80956902358522618542009-12-23T22:55:00.000-08:002009-12-23T23:07:35.948-08:00

Whoa, so Christmas Eve is tomorrow. Got some last-second shopping to do? Take some tips from my interview/English lesson with Shane Battier of the Houston Rockets about the term "buzzer beater." There's more info on how this video came together on the English, baby! blog.Here are a couple of other notable sports interviews I did this year and neglected to post here.* Sebastien Le Toux (at the

Jason Simmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06907211517322043736noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5441394208388431753.post-60075565194852929272009-11-21T13:23:00.000-08:002009-11-21T14:15:52.606-08:00

For 15 minutes last Thursday, I stood between team Jacob and team Edward, gathering evidence for team irony. While at the Brokencyde show I reviewed earlier this week, Ezra, a music critic colleague from the Mercury, mentioned how funny it would be pretend as if you were camping out for the Twilight: New Moon midnight opening on your facebook status. I mentioned this to my friend Nate C, and he

Jason Simmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06907211517322043736noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5441394208388431753.post-60015598164913630372009-11-21T13:00:00.000-08:002010-05-05T16:57:29.543-07:00

It makes so much sense that a band that's been called "fucking horrendous" and "a mockery to the world of music" by the national media is from Albuquerque, which also happens to be my home town. Albuquerque is a pretty apocalyptic place. I had guns pulled on me there. For entertainment, my friends and I burned wreckage in a wasteland on the edge of town where there was once a housing development.

Jason Simmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06907211517322043736noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5441394208388431753.post-52467757843900956232009-11-17T22:26:00.001-08:002009-11-17T22:48:13.274-08:00

October was a big month for metal here in Portland, and I had such a serious bangover I just got around to writing about it now.Mastodon and Dethklok kicked things off, and I wrote a preview and review of their show, which I thoroughly enjoyed. My favorite part was the first three songs of Dethklok when I got to photograph the band in front of the barricade. This is always a fairly cool thing to

Jason Simmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06907211517322043736noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5441394208388431753.post-67301849988261425012009-10-27T23:22:00.000-07:002009-10-27T23:32:16.652-07:00

It's my new pop vice, I suppose. After seeing quite a few tweets about how great their tour kickoff in LA was, I decided to review the Killers' show at Memorial Colosseum for the Oregonian. I hadn't been to a show there in years and it's fun sometimes to remind myself how most people experience live music. There was a hipster here and there in the crowd, which was amusing. In full urban cowboy

Jason Simmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06907211517322043736noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5441394208388431753.post-72797523021545146142009-10-17T21:55:00.000-07:002009-10-17T22:07:37.990-07:00

Attending tonight's multi-venue, wristband Scion Garage Fest in Portland (Dirtbombs were delightful, one of the best shows I've ever seen at 3pm) reminded me that I wrote a preview and review of Music Fest Northwest for Blurt a few weeks back.The review is in the form of yearbook style awards like "best dressed" and "best hair." I actually co-wrote it with my girlfriend, Erin Harrell, so we could

Jason Simmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06907211517322043736noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5441394208388431753.post-44277263034831500292009-10-13T20:30:00.000-07:002009-10-13T20:59:15.071-07:00

Last month, I had a piece in the Oregonian about a new bar and restaurant in Southeast Portland called Hobnob that offers a special menu for dogs. Yes, there is a dog menu, with, like, entrees you can order...for your dog.It was fun to write a story with as many k-9 characters in it as Homo sapiens. The photo above is of Lewis, who really is Hobnob's number customer and unofficial mascot.See more

Jason Simmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06907211517322043736noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5441394208388431753.post-85276425452377332702009-08-23T21:37:00.000-07:002009-08-23T21:45:44.268-07:00

I liked the Lonely H's new album, Concrete Class, the first time I heard it. Then I discovered they are really young--all but one underage--and that they only recently developed the classic rock sound they do so well. They used to sound like Weezer, according to one Seattle Weekly review. These are interesting facts about the Lonely H.Ever since I listened to Concrete Class a few times in a row

Jason Simmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06907211517322043736noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5441394208388431753.post-48319412077259557932009-08-14T17:39:00.000-07:002009-08-14T17:50:45.006-07:00

Today's Oregonian features a review I wrote of an absolutely amazing experimental album, Eight Bells by SubArachnoid Space. Melynda Jackson is a fierce guitarist and it can be hard to capture that kind of energy on a recording. This album exceeds all expectations I had for the band, and really for heavy instrumental music in general.The release party for the record is tonight at Berbati's. Wear

Jason Simmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06907211517322043736noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5441394208388431753.post-45402157190023555202009-07-17T14:44:00.001-07:002009-08-23T21:46:10.206-07:00

Relive the glory of last year's tour in anticipation, and follow the adventures this year on twitter!7.17 Seattle, WA - Blue Moon7.18 Portland, OR - Ash Street Saloon7.23 Arcata, CA - The Alibi7.24 San Francisco, CA - Kimo's7.25 Berkeley, CA - 924 Gilman7.26 Los Angeles, CA - Spaceland7.27 Laguna Beach, CA - Sandpiper7.28 Tucson, AZ - Hotel Congress7.29 El Paso, TX - (just canceled...ideas?)7.30

Jason Simmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06907211517322043736noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5441394208388431753.post-37029772688674863822009-07-08T16:30:00.000-07:002009-07-11T15:51:21.989-07:00

Behold! The Metal Shakespeare Company made a video for Hamlet III.i. It's the first music video I've ever been in in 10 years of playing in bands. It was raining the day we shot it up at the place our band was formed, Lewis & Clark College, which made it kind of miserable, but more metal. The editing was done by Matt Miadich who edits all the videos for English, baby! and the camera work is by

Jason Simmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06907211517322043736noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5441394208388431753.post-59316350204583809992009-07-06T22:51:00.000-07:002009-07-06T23:23:41.934-07:00

It's so nice when an out-of-the-blue assignment happens to connect with something you're randomly obsessed with at the time.I had already agreed to write a story for The Oregonian on Louisiana blues man, Kevin Gordon, when I discovered that he's from the part of the state where "True Blood", the TV show I had been watching every night that week to catch up on the first season I missed, was filmed

Jason Simmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06907211517322043736noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5441394208388431753.post-16753558352603722932009-07-02T16:53:00.000-07:002009-07-02T17:03:01.661-07:00

Throughout my career as a freelance writer in Portland, the punk scene I initially covered for the Willamette Week has viewed me as an outsider (little do they know I have mad punk cred in New Mexico, but that's another story). And when it comes to the rest of the music scenes in Portland, with the exception of metal, I am an outsider.But that's OK. That's often the roll of the journalist--

Jason Simmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06907211517322043736noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5441394208388431753.post-42743631993980948592009-06-29T17:08:00.000-07:002009-06-29T18:42:23.891-07:00

Monday is the most dreaded night in light life. But in Portland, it's pretty well taken care of between three regularly occurring events, which, by my calculations, would satisfy 89% of the over-21 crowd in this town.Option 1 - Heavy Metal Lady's Night at Tube. DJ Nate C blasts bands like Voivod and Anvil in the hippest bar in town, while ladies drink at happy hour prices all night. This is where

Jason Simmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06907211517322043736noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5441394208388431753.post-73687786980485450712009-06-27T22:49:00.000-07:002009-06-28T02:50:13.698-07:00

Day one of Superfest, Portland's new all-ages electronic pop fest which I wrote about for The Oregonian, is wrapping up right about now and I'm...at home...blogging. I'm saving it all for tomorrow, OK!? I'm going to need it, because according to Manny Reyes of Atole's Facebook updates, tonight was pretty crazy. My favorite update so far was "COPY was sooo Good, 99% dancing crowd, AMAZING!!"The

Jason Simmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06907211517322043736noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5441394208388431753.post-38256068487464915842009-06-22T02:16:00.000-07:002009-06-23T13:20:09.535-07:00

I'd been wondering what the album of the summer would be for me. I did not expect that it had been recorded in 1969.Last Friday's Oregonian contained a story I wrote on Rodriguez, who is coming to the northwest this week. The assignment came out of nowhere--I had never heard of Rodriguez--but I was excited to write about him as soon as I heard about his back story. A pair of records he recorded

Jason Simmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06907211517322043736noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5441394208388431753.post-8727991786214756342009-06-16T19:59:00.000-07:002009-06-16T20:28:19.718-07:00

Add to Portland's extensive list of film festivals--which includes fests for underground films, international films, films made in 48-hours, undead films, and films made on bikes, to name a few--an under-18 film fest.Well, not quite yet, but this summer Movie Camp PDX will train 75 teens who have already grown up in a video-savvy, YouTube world, how to write, audition for, act in, and produce

Jason Simmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06907211517322043736noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5441394208388431753.post-8993130189584537392009-06-02T23:38:00.000-07:002009-06-02T23:50:18.542-07:00

Last Thursday, I saw local experimetal bands The Better to See You With and Silentist put on a great show at Berbati's Pan. I wrote a review of it that came out in Saturday's Oregonian.I have to admit, in hindsight, I didn't do the best job of writing for the O's audience in this case, and for that reason, a lot of the meaning of the write up was lost in editing (for instance, it would be hard

Jason Simmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06907211517322043736noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5441394208388431753.post-56772845016601929192009-05-27T00:53:00.000-07:002009-05-27T00:59:19.080-07:00

This is how the Metal Shakespeare Company delivers our merch, should you want some.

Jason Simmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06907211517322043736noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5441394208388431753.post-11808140027691840872009-05-24T02:03:00.001-07:002009-05-24T02:37:20.094-07:00

I recorded these two songs with my friend Mark Jackson-Weaver last year, and despite the fact that I think they're the best songs I've recorded so far, this is the first daylight they've seen. I wanted to put out a call for musicians to play this style of music with me (Mark lives in Albuquerque) but I didn't know what to call it or how to describe it or even what I was going for really. But

Jason Simmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06907211517322043736noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5441394208388431753.post-2479623757743815922009-05-21T16:16:00.000-07:002009-05-21T16:39:51.237-07:00

I remember being at the Multnomah County Bike Fair last summer at Colonel Summers Park and thinking, "I wish there was some place nearby I could get some food." Too bad Tiger's Cafe hadn't opened yet--although a falafel waffle might have killed me that day considering how hot and full of beer I was. But in search of food I went and not finding anything, I returned to the park, fell asleep in the

Jason Simmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06907211517322043736noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5441394208388431753.post-76629583409176349952009-05-18T14:20:00.000-07:002009-05-18T14:42:33.210-07:00

Growing up, one of the things that appealed to me about punk was its anti-Christian message. I saw religion as the cause of problems in the world, so I was drawn to bands that tore it down. But with the exception of Bad Religion, there aren't a lot of punk bands that are interested in filling the spiritual gap left if one casts out organized religion. That's why I'm glad to see folk metal rising

Jason Simmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06907211517322043736noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5441394208388431753.post-50249262904700604262009-05-16T15:18:00.000-07:002009-05-16T16:03:20.133-07:00

"I believe in good music," Alfredo Muro told me over pie at Laughing Planet on Mississippi when we met forthis story that was in yesterday's Oregonian.His open mindedness is apparent in his solo guitar Latin jazz work, which doesn't hesitate to borrow from pop or the bizarre while interpreting classical and folk pieces. Muro seemed really happy doing what he does, which, when you think about it,

Jason Simmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06907211517322043736noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5441394208388431753.post-10820590799154858232009-05-13T13:41:00.000-07:002009-05-13T13:55:22.171-07:00

Last week, KGW did a news segment on English, baby!. I appear in the clip they play, interviewing Sasha Vujacic. I never realized that when they show clips like that, they're actually just played on a TV which has a camera pointed at it.Overall the operation was amazingly simple. It was just the host and one crew member on site with a producer coming through the earpiece. The appearance ran like

Jason Simmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06907211517322043736noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5441394208388431753.post-39152490200560562502009-04-23T18:52:00.000-07:002009-04-23T19:06:02.560-07:00

Up until about three months ago, I was living alone in a house that sat on a acre of land by itself. I'd never lived alone before--let alone in a place with no neighbors. The 14 months I lived there was a rewarding experience--I really enjoyed singing at all hours and having loud parties without worrying about disturbing anyone.One night when I was driving on I-5, I saw a few scattered lights on

Jason Simmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06907211517322043736noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5441394208388431753.post-24908131231528202552009-04-05T19:15:00.000-07:002009-04-05T19:18:48.910-07:00

Since his lifestyle as a globetrotting Japanese singer who sings in English so suits the mission of English, baby!, we featured an interview with PWRFL Power last week. I was surprised to find that it was really popular with our users--his lesson got more comments than many lessons we do on more famous artists.

Jason Simmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06907211517322043736noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5441394208388431753.post-71740969166738970482009-04-01T23:09:00.001-07:002009-04-01T23:13:13.600-07:00

If you didn't already see it on the websites of the LA Times or the Oregonian, here it is, my interview with Sasha Vujacic. Although I highly recommend looking at the full lesson on English, baby! since the comments there are hilarious.

Jason Simmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06907211517322043736noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5441394208388431753.post-28205027806424956622009-03-23T09:40:00.000-07:002009-03-23T09:48:32.076-07:00

So last time I interviewed an NBA player for English, baby!, the video turned out great, but a behind-the-scenes disaster drew some hilarious media attention. When I interviewed Sasha Vujacic at the Lakers' practice space last week, it went smoothly, and still managed to garner a mention in the LA Times the next day!Times scribe Brian Kamenetzky was charmed by the Ebaby! high five, which is how

Jason Simmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06907211517322043736noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5441394208388431753.post-80379128755886563362009-03-09T22:56:00.000-07:002009-03-09T23:07:51.084-07:00

I haven't done this for a while, but I was suddenly struck with a good idea for a theme band today.Some rude boys in Detroit should form a ska band called the Pistones. They could have songs like "Big 3 Skank," "Rudy's on the Dole," and "Laid Off and Pis'ed."

Jason Simmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06907211517322043736noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5441394208388431753.post-13013295991127737282009-03-08T14:46:00.000-07:002009-03-08T14:53:20.520-07:00

I get asked this a lot, since I post videos from English, baby! here somewhat out of context.Basically, it's a social network for people learning English outside the US that provides lessons based on American pop culture.It's not my company (it was founded when I was 16), but it's based in Portland and I do a little bit of everything for it, mostly marketing, videos and writing.We put together a

Jason Simmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06907211517322043736noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5441394208388431753.post-12666079139567999472009-02-22T12:45:00.000-08:002009-02-22T22:58:57.174-08:00

Last summer, my fascinations with the end of the world, zombies and cowboys led a very smart girl to say, "Why don't you write a movie about cowboys who survive the 2012 zombie apocalypse?"So I rounded up another very smart girl, Audrey Dilling, and together we wrote a screenplay called The Black Road (I spoke of this on Love Phones). We're finishing up revising it right now and in a couple of

Jason Simmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06907211517322043736noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5441394208388431753.post-80703922784269520912009-02-11T00:34:00.000-08:002009-02-11T01:00:47.059-08:00

In early 2007, I met pack of musical wanderers and punks who took me for an adventure on the North Portland waterfront.One of them called himself Nick the Creature. He wound up crashing in my living room that night and said he'd be in touch about the circus he was planning to start once he moved up here.Of course, I didn't believe him. I hear stuff like that all the time. People love to talk

Jason Simmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06907211517322043736noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5441394208388431753.post-12823384111608618322009-02-03T22:10:00.000-08:002009-02-03T22:15:41.123-08:00

The following is an op-ed I sent to the New York Times last week. They chose not to publish it, but I had a lot of fun writing it.Of course I thought it was completely outrageous when I heard what that now-former Illinois governor Rod Blagojevich planned to sell Barack Obama's vacated Senate seat. I even sarcastically posted "Blagojevich '12!" on my Facebook page. But, as the politician's demise

Jason Simmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06907211517322043736noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5441394208388431753.post-34696943650479882922009-01-30T00:51:00.000-08:002009-01-30T01:08:58.477-08:00

As I've mentioned before, I'm a fan of PWRFL POWER. And when I went to see him play on December 6 at the Artistery, I really didn't know anything about the opening acts.When I walked in, I was surprised by how many people there were. I wasn't expecting four dozen people because on my walk down the stairs into the venue, they had been silent. It was between songs and the entire crowd seemed like

Jason Simmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06907211517322043736noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5441394208388431753.post-29239235231456992792009-01-23T22:52:00.000-08:002009-01-23T22:58:20.251-08:00

Bless our video editor Matt Miadich for making it look like none of this ever happened. Although it wasn't good enough for this blog that called this the "worst interview in the history of basketball." It's nice to be a superlative! C'mon. The part where his voice gets high is pretty funny.View the full lesson on English, baby!

Jason Simmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06907211517322043736noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5441394208388431753.post-27245833554494734972009-01-17T15:42:00.000-08:002009-01-19T00:33:35.044-08:00

I just received a press release listing the nominees for the Music Spectator-sponsored Portland Music Awards. One of the nominees struck me as rather odd.Best Compilation Album of the Year:'Failing Records: Volume' by Failing Records'PDX Pop Now! 2008' by PDX Pop Now!'We Rock For Food' by The Union Records'Lights Out 11'by KINK fm'Rose City' by the Rose City ProjectHmmm...do you notice

Jason Simmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06907211517322043736noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5441394208388431753.post-77884365352021578042009-01-15T21:23:00.000-08:002009-01-15T22:17:28.500-08:00

At a time when the news is full of lost jobs and lost savings, what have the people who have neither lost?Anawim is a Portland church that is primarily by the homeless and for the homeless. I found more hope there than I had expected to when I started this story that ran in today's Oregonian. But the short answer to the above question--which didn't make it into the story--is that, according to

Jason Simmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06907211517322043736noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5441394208388431753.post-54163355243126006112009-01-10T12:51:00.000-08:002010-08-21T02:28:27.387-07:00

It was only a matter of time before something like this happened. I mean, I've gotten away with a lot of silly things, like tricking a local musician into a date in the guise of an interview and there's that whole fisting thing and the time I tried to become a stripper. But why did my downfall have to take place in front of the entire Portland Trail Blazers and about 30 or so members of the media

Jason Simmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06907211517322043736noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5441394208388431753.post-3680806416702089562008-12-31T17:21:00.001-08:002008-12-31T18:26:29.433-08:00

I know I know I know, I already said I hate top ten lists and I do! But I was one of 1,500 i*l*l*u*s*t*r*i*o*u*s music journalists asked to submit a top ten for the Village Voice's poll, so I bit the bullet and put one together in hopes that Rob Harvilla who I think is probably the music editor at the Voice (and if not is at least someone important) will see my picks and go, "Oh my God, Jason

Jason Simmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06907211517322043736noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5441394208388431753.post-80319929218253367042008-12-30T00:37:00.000-08:002008-12-30T00:53:00.353-08:00

On Thursday, when it becomes '09, Evelyn Benson will hit the big 9-0. I interviewed this skydiving, waitressing great-grandmother for this story earlier this year, so she invited me to her birthday party today at the Refectory in outer Northeast Portland (which is oddly where I first saw this GNR tribute that I wrote about in 2006).I stood out a little as the youngest person there by a about 30

Jason Simmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06907211517322043736noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5441394208388431753.post-16985315265031755852008-12-11T19:38:00.000-08:002008-12-11T19:52:40.772-08:00

Tomorrow's Oregonian will have a story I wrote on These Arms Are Snakes, a story which jumps through several hoops not to use the phrase "post hardcore," a term that I think sells the band short, but is certainly convenient.I was very qualified to write this story because I've been following the band since their inception. But it also made it tough to write, since I wouldn't let myself get away

Jason Simmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06907211517322043736noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5441394208388431753.post-65163203992547573532008-12-01T21:03:00.000-08:002008-12-01T21:12:58.618-08:00

The Colbert Report website has a call for bands to submit covers of the show's theme song featuring the sweet graphic seen above. So far there are only two (2, count 'em) legitimate entries. Probably because you have to register to see the contest page and you have to submit through an obscure video portal called Viddler. Anyway, it seems the odds of this video or at least a split second of it

Jason Simmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06907211517322043736noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5441394208388431753.post-41062119387712092372008-11-27T14:03:00.000-08:002008-11-27T14:10:36.634-08:00

This fall, Portland's Lewis family can be thankful for 50 years of business at their Southeast Portland hardware shop, through good times and bad. I visited with them in late October, and I think it's somewhat appropriate that the article was held until today.Theirs is truly a remarkable story and very different than anything I, or most people in this day and age have experienced. So take a look

Jason Simmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06907211517322043736noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5441394208388431753.post-64256212864850535602008-11-13T13:17:00.000-08:002008-11-13T13:21:38.260-08:00

Part of the plan earlier this year when Dagger of the Mind changed its name to the Metal Shakespeare Company was to become more of a performance group than a band. Our show at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival solidified that direction, and here's our first stab comical YouTube videos.

Jason Simmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06907211517322043736noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5441394208388431753.post-26793513597568303112008-11-01T15:30:00.000-07:002008-11-01T15:55:03.542-07:00

It is impossible to rule out the possibility of a zombie apocalypse. Really, it is. It seems rather unlikely, I'll admit, but it is possible in a number of different ways. But I'll let the experts explain that.Yesterday I had a story in The Oregonian about the walking dead. When I sent it off, my editor called me and said, "These people can't be serious. They must be pulling your leg."It took

Jason Simmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06907211517322043736noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5441394208388431753.post-72832633961996470052008-10-27T23:02:00.000-07:002008-10-27T23:26:10.102-07:00

When I arrived in LA in September 2007, the first thing I asked my friends was if they had any good leads. Matt, who was born in Puerto Rico, said he suspected that a breed of frog thought only to live on the island and Hawaii was inhabiting a hotel pool at Disneyland.So when an Orange County toga party turned out to be lame, we headed for that place of which children dream. Sure enough we heard

Jason Simmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06907211517322043736noreply@blogger.com0