You heard me. Portland, Oregon is the kindie capitol of the world. So much music is coming out that city that I can't keep up with it all. I realized that even though I'd semi-recently reviewed new albums from Cat Doorman and Lori Henriques, there were a whole bunch of other albums from that city that I hadn't yet reviewed, and every time I was getting close to writing a Portland-based review, another album would be released. Aaaargh. You're killin' me, PDX. (But in a good way.)
And here's the thing, not only are there are a ton of artists emerging from Portland right now, they're all incredibly supportive of one another. They definitely have each others' backs.
Here, then, are six from the past 18 months or so that are worth your time -- they're all recommended. It's not the full list of Portland albums I've received over that time, and there are more on the way. But it's a great place to start, and you're bound to find at least one album to meet your family's needs. They're ordered roughly from most "traditional" sounding to least so.
While I am reluctant to do comparisons between albums in a single post, if I had to direct your attention to just one or two albums, it would be Red Yarn's The Deep Woods and the Pointed Man Band's Swordfish Tango -- they're two debuts that stretch the notion of what kids music can be even as they draw on songs and sounds that are 50, 100, or even 500 years old. Swordfish Tango is definitely recommended and The Deep Woods is highly recommended.
Without further ado, then, here are the reviews...
Songs for Johnson Creek: Various Artists - This benefit album for the Johnson Creek Watershed Council is coordinated by JCWC Executive Director Matt Clark (himself a kindie musician with a few albums under his belt). It features mostly-previously unreleased songs from a bunch of Portland-area artists (Aaron Nigel Smith, Laura Veirs, Lori Henriques, Cat Doorman, and some folks noted below) and, as you might expect, has a nature theme. In terms of the new tracks, I really liked the Alphabeticians' "Roe Together," Red Yarn's "Big Blue Dome," and Lori Henriques' "Let's Go Take a Peek at the Creek." The album is roughly split between songs that more explicitly encourage a conservation/eco-conscious approach and those that just celebrate nature. The album will be especially appropriate for those in a outdoors-y mood. This album has a mix of songs and age ranges that makes a target age range difficult to peg, but you can stream the 36-minute album here to check for yourself.
Be Alive: Johnny & Jason - Fuzzed-out rock mixed with a bit of British Invasion mostly for toddlers and preschoolers. The second album from duo Johnny Keener and Jason Greene features short, sharp rock tunes written mostly for bouncing around, with very kid-simple subjects. Leadoff track "Up Up Up" is definitely on the toddler end of thing while the country-folk "Lollipop Trees" is far more fanciful and for your daydreaming kindergartner. I also dig the swirly organ on "Let's Play" You can stream the 23-minute album here.
Monster Suit: Mo Phillips -- Lo-fi Bakersfield-tinged indie rock with a side of goofiness and dollop of tenderness on top. "The Princess and The Cowboy," on which Phillips duets with Little Sue, sits on the tenderness side of the equation ("It doesn't matter what you do just how you do it / Make sure it's full of happiness and heart") while "Rollerskate Banana Peels," well, you can guess where that sits. Song topics sit squarely in the field of kid-centered topics (the zoo, messy hair, trucks). Best for ages 3 through 6, you can stream some of the songs from the 34-minute album at Phillips' website.
Junior: The Alphabeticians - The duo of Eric Levine (Mr. E) and Jeff Inlay (Mr. Hoo) proudly represent the TMBG/BNL wing of PDX kindie rock, and not just because I used a lot of alphabetical letters there. I mean, it's not everyday that you get to hear the word "sycophant" in a kids' song (appropriately rhymed in "Elephant"), right? This album continues the brainy wordplay of their previous albums (see "General Relativity" for an explanation of how you're specifically related to your distant relatives) and multiple alphabet-inspired songs (natch) with a slight expansion of their sound (banjo! cello!). Best for ages 4 through 8, you can stream the 37-minute album here.
The Deep Woods: Red Yarn - The most ambitious album in the bunch is from Andy Furgeson, AKA Red Yarn, who uses ten musicians and 150 friends and neighbors ("The Community Singers") to give 11 traditional songs (plus one original, the title track) the folk treatment in the old meaning of the term. "Bob the Rabbit" is a driving rock melding of "John the Rabbit" and "Rabbit Soup," while "Old Blue" with its yelps might remind you young whippersnappers of the Lumineers. (I personally had an early Arcade Fire feel throughout.) "Mr. Rabbit" has an almost desperate urgency while "The Fox," which brings together "The Fox," "Midnight Special," and "Go Tell Aunty Rhody," is absolutely gorgeous. This is a folk revival, in all the many meanings of the word "revival." Best for ages 3 through 10, you can stream the 36-minute album here.
Swordfish Tango : Pointed Man Band - The oddest-sounding album of the bunch is from Pointed Man Band. A combination of Tom Waits and Shel Silverstein, the Beatles and Parisian cafes, the music smells of hardwood floors and flannel and wood construction blocks. Let's put it this way - it's an album that besides featuring a song about an invisible duck and Western Washington witches, it includes a song about dancing without pants -- in French. (Plus, of course, the title song, in 3 parts.) If this sounds all a bit too precious, perhaps it comes close to that line, but I don't think ever crosses it -- it's fun, earnest, and delightfully weird. Best for ages 5 through 10, you can stream the 34-minute album here.
