SMMR BMMR: THE INTELLIGENCE, GUANTANAMO BAYWATCH, THE MEAN JEANS & MORE (Plan B, 1305 SE 8th) Search all you like, odds are you won't find a band as criminally slept upon as the Intelligence. The band will be touring on the just-released Males, the first recording from the band that features frontman Lars Finberg letting go of the reins and allowing his rotating supporting cast (which includes members of Eat Skull, Mayyors, and more) to contribute to the excellent finished product. The nomadic band supposedly resides in as many cities (four) as they have members (five), but regardless of where they lay their heads at night, as long as the Intelligence continues this glorious run, we're fine with things being exactly the way they are.
VISQUEEN, REBECCA GATES AND THE CONSORTIUM, SCHOENBERG/SIELAFF (Mississippi Studios, 3939 N Mississippi) After only a few minutes of talking with her on the phone, Rachel Flotard feels like a dear old friend. Perhaps it's because she is quite possibly the friendliest person on earth, chatting about her sister's baby due to be born any second, her iPhone ("I am kind of like a crack whore for it," she says without a trace of shame), and her excellent band, Visqueen, who released its third album, Message to Garcia, in September of 2009. It had been five years since Visqueen's previous album: "The way it works for me, I'm not the kind of person who wakes up every morning and sings and plays and whatever comes out comes out," Flotard says. "It usually just like explodes and a lot of songs come out at once. I'm a procrastinator on a lot of things so that's just kind of the way I think songs happen for me." During that period, Flotard had plenty to keep her busy—she acted as caregiver for her Seattle roommate, George, who was dying of cancer. George also happened to be Rachel's father.
...Continue reading the rest of Ned Lannamann's article on Visqueen here.
THE ANGRY ORTS, THE ASCETIC JUNKIES, NUCULAR AMINALS (Doug Fir, 830 E Burnside) While the Angry Orts had few peers that could match their onstage spunk, the band always seemed to be one good album away from solidifying themselves amongst the elite of Portland music. That album is here. Their new self-titled LP is everything you want of the Orts (tightly wound, bouncy, and with enough massive pop hooks to stretch across 13 songs), but without sacrificing their energetic onstage flair. Their bio might drop names like Sleater-Kinney and the Yeah Yeah Yeahs, but this quartet also owes a bit to the sadly forgotten Discount (the pre-Kills and Dead Weather outfit of Alison Mosshart), as they smooth out the pop-punk edges to sculpt a wondrous sound devoted to the melodic voice of frontwoman Sara Hernandez. Look out Portland, the Angry Orts have arrived. EAC
Wavves, Temper Trap and Lara Mitchell after the jump!
As always, you can find our complete live show listings here.