Let's see, it's Thursday afternoon from where I sit, and if you happen to be reading this instead of, say, in route (or at least packing to go to) Coachella, you're probably not going. Neither am I, and I'm here to make both of us feel OK about it, or at least OKish.

Some things to consider: Indio's bound to be hot and dusty-- who needs that? Umm, scratch that, I suppose there are a few of us who wouldn't mind three days of hot and dusty right about now. Alright then, just imagine what it would cost to drive there at the moment. You'd have to load four or five fellow travelers in with you just to manage the gas, and still none of you would be eating well-- and this is assuming an average MPG of 40 or greater. Granted, you could hop a freight (trips up and down the California coast always bring to mind this option, preferred by Steinbeck and Kerouac, not to mention Duffy Littlejohn), but times are desperate, and there's no guarantee you'd make it there with your iPod, laptop, digital camera, AND keyboard pants intact. Indeed, the risks are steep. Who needs it anyway? Prince AND the lately Prince-aping My Morning Jacket at the same fest? Psshhh. Portishead, Kraftwerk, AND The National on the same bill (not to mention Jens Lekman, The Breeders, The Raconteurs, Sharon Jones & the Dap-Kings, Man Man, M.I.A., Carbon/Silicon, and Spiritualized)? Umm, so. A Saturday afternoon/evening block that features DeVotchka then Stephen Malkmus & the Jicks then Dwight Yoakam? OK! I relent! I'm a loser because I won't be there, and so are you! We will never do anything worthwhile! Ahhhhh!

Ahem, sorry about that. Truth is, we're in Oregon, where it isn't just raining....rain, it's raining music, too! Indeed, we don't need no stinking Indio this weekend! Case in point, tomorrow night's show at the Doug Fir Lounge featuring Scott McCaughey's Minus 5, the "historic" pop of The Dimes and Oakland's Heavenly States. McCaughey's (pictured right) band has been churning out occasionally retro-leaning, occasionally roots-leaning indie pop for a while now, and their hometown shows are always good for an unexpected cameo or two. The Dimes, in case you missed it, wrote a whole album based on the contents of a depression-era newspaper late last year, and recently spoke at length about that very fact, among some others, with opbmusic's David Christensen. The Heavenly States, meanwhile, issued a head-bopping gem of an album earlier this year called Delayer. In short, it's a can't miss bill, and the beer is a sure bet to be cheaper and colder than you'll find at Coachella, not to mention the water.

Elsewhere Friday, Danbert Nobacon plays Mississippi Studios, The Wiyos wrap up their run as part of the McMenamin's Great Northwest Music Tour at the Hotel Oregon in McMinnville, and David Dondero invades the rare air of Corvallis, with a performance at Iovino's.

A few highlights on a busy Saturday, too, including the 10th annual Wulapalooza Festival at Willamette University in Salem. The self-described "urban earth, art, and music festival" takes place all day long on the Willamette campus, with the music portion beginning at 5pm. An impressive line-up this year includes Panther, The Blow, Mobius Band, and Salem-bred/Portland-based Blitzen Trapper. Admission is free with a suggested canned food donation. Also Saturday, it's double the Loch at Mississippi Studios, as Loch Lomond (pictured left) plays early (7pm, with Y La Bamba) and late (10pm, with Holcombe Waller). It's the beginning of a west coast tour for Loch Lomond, who take off down the California coast early next week (it's unclear if that's by auto, or the aforementioned freight train, but I'd like to think it's the latter). In case you missed their opbmusic in-studio session earlier in the year, catch up to it here. Hush called it "gorgeously recorded." Also Saturday, former Soul Coughing frontman Mike Doughty and his band play the Wonder Ballroom (as well as a Music Millenium in-store at 3:00 that afternoon), Point Juncture WA and The Lymbyc System are at the Doug Fir Lounge, it's Roger Clyne & the Peacemakers at the Roseland, and local stalwart Lewi Longmire plays a CD release show at the Mission Theater for his new Fire 'Neath the Still.

Of course, you can also catch our weekend show In House this weekend, Saturday and Sunday nights beginning at 9:00, simulcasting on radio, online, and HD. Saturday night's show features an in-studio visit with Portland songstress Laura Gibson, who's currently out on tour with head Decemberist Colin Meloy, but returns home for a show with Meloy at the Wonder Ballroom next Saturday, May 3rd. We'll hear four gorgeous tunes from Gibson, and talk to her about her small-town Oregon roots and the role they play in her songwriting, among other things.

Posted by jpetersen on Thursday, April 24 at 6:56pm