PDX Pop Now! 2006

I've got a couple of regrets—never took any art history classes in college, too shy around girls in high school, should've tried out for the tennis team—but one of the most glaring is that I've still never been to Portland. So many bands I love hail from there. I used to drink its famed Stumptown coffee on a regular basis. My friend Scott was constantly filling my head with idealized pictures of that woodsy city he grew up in. And yet, due to lack of funds or plans falling through, I never made it up to the Pacific Northwest. And then today, citing my love for Talkdemonic, a reader named Jeff sends me a Hello Damascus track featuring Lisa Molinaro on backup vocals. I do a little research and learn it was on the most recent PDX Pop Now! festival compilation. Pulling up the double-disc tracklist, I find a who's who of Portland bands I already enjoy and many more that I've been meaning to check out. There's even Talkdemonic themselves, representing folktronic hop with "Ending The Orange Glow" and Kevin O'Connor-approved band Horse Feathers on there as well. I read more about the three-day festival of homegrown talent they have up there every year, and my longing to check out Portland just gets sharper. For now though, I'll settle for some of that city's terrific music. The 2006 CD can be purchased for $7 at record stores around Portland. PDX Pop Now! is also now accepting submissions for their 2007 compilation. * MP3: "Randy" - Hello Damascus from PDX Pop Now! 2006 [Visit them] * MP3: "Ending The Orange Glow" - Talkdemonic from PDX Pop Now! 2006 [Buy other Talkdemonic] * MP3: "Finch on Saturday" - Horse Feathers from PDX Pop Now! 2006/ Words Are Dead [Buy it] Tags: PDX Pop Now!, Talkdemonic, Hello Damascus, Horse Feathers, Portland, MP3