MDS Archive
Zinester’s Guide to Portland
Author: Nate Beaty & Shawn Granton
Publisher: Microcosm Publishing
Genre: Travel
Pages: 128
Retail Price: 5.00
Buy on Amazon.com: link
The Zinester’s Guide to Portland is an informative guide to the top things to do and see in Portland, Oregon. It also provides transportation information and an honest history of the “City of Roses.”
The authors did a great job on this. The guide is an easy read, highly informative, and doesn’t drown you in all the glamour and hoopla that most travel guides dish out. In fact, I found this guide refreshingly honest.
For example, I actually lived in Portland for six months, and prior to making this trip I did a lot of research. In every travel guide I flipped through, I was given an array of lovely images of progress and scenery.
One book described one neighborhood in particular: Old Town/Chinatown. It was portrayed as a “classic” part of the city, full of night clubs, music venues, art galleries and the ever-famous Saturday Market (basically a very large flea market, held on weekends). It seemed to be a lovely spot, full of culture and activities.
When curious little me ventured into Old Town, I was in absolute shock at my discovery. The Asian population is few, and they’re buried behind blocks upon blocks of homeless men and women, lining the sidewalks. The bars and night clubs were horrible and sleazy (I was offered Meth six times on one trip to the restroom). The buildings are crumbling and worn, and the only liveliness is from the ambitious prostitutes working the bus stations.
The Zinester’s Guide actually tells it like it is. It got deep into the actual grittiness of Old Town; it was brutally honest and to the point.
The Guide also doesn’t get into the things not worth seeing, but gives you a rundown of what you’ll inevitably see if passing through certain districts. The transportation info is very clear and easy to follow (I was totally bewildered by their transit system, upon arrival). The Guide defined accurately the attitudes, vibes, and social settings of particular neighborhoods, as well as listed a decent assortment of local and inexpensive cafes and restaurants. This is definitely worth getting if you’re planning a trip to Portland.
RATING & SUMMARY:
Bottom Line: I wish I read this before I went to Portland.
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Seafood “Paper Crown King”
Record Label: Cooking Vinyl USA
Genre: Indie
Band Link: link
Buy on Amazon.com: link
Seafood sounds a bit like A Perfect Circle, but still maintain an individual sound. Their music flows so well, with smooth vocals and great rhythm.
In the song “Signal Sparks,” there’s a part of the main chorus where the line “Don’t forget to live” is wailed in the most powerful way possible, and it absolutely grabs you. I’m a firm believer in the concept that if something stirs you up emotionally, then it’s great. And there you have it.
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Notable Tracks: Signal Sparks, Awkward Ghost
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Bluetones, The “The Bluetones”
Record Label: Cooking Vinyl USA
Genre: Indie Rock
Band Link: link
Buy on Amazon.com: link
Lead vocalist, Mark Morris, is in desperate need of either saline spray or a new pasttime. His nasal whining on top of the band’s perky boy band sound is enough to drive one into a murderous rage… and not in a good way.
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Postmarks, The “The Postmarks”
Record Label: Unfiltered Records
Genre: Pop
Band Link: link
Buy on Amazon.com: link
Tim Yehezkely (a female) has a wonderful voice to back up the cutesy, whimsical mess that is The Postmarks. Unfortunately, they hold the same tempo in every song. They need more variation in pixie land, I tells ya.
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Oblio “Create The Night Part I”
Record Label: Casino Records
Genre: Alternative/Folk
Band Link: link
Buy on Amazon.com:
…YaWn**…. Oh.. hey… I’m out of the coma, that’s good. So… yeah. Oblio sucks. Very dreary, no variety in any of the tracks, and they had to throw in accordians. Just a slow, wearisome box of… ZZZzzzZZZ…
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Max Power Trio “Max Power Trio”
Record Label: Off-Guard Records
Genre: Reggae/Funk
Band Link: link
Buy on Amazon.com:
First of all, don’t bullshit in your bio! It is your freakin’ report card!
They call themselves a “reggae/funk” band. They make constant comments equating themselves to Sublime.
They are a blues band, with very little funk influence, and absolutely nothing reggae-inspired. A majority of their songs make reference to “the summer time.” Hmm… CRAWL OUT OF SUBLIME’S ANUS, LOSERS.
Plus the track “Dem Reggae”’s lyrics proclaim continually that it is a reggae song. Why are you trying to so hard to make us believe? Huh? You wanna throw down? Yeah, thought so.
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V/A “Happy Together: A Lujo Records Wedding Compilation”
Record Label: Lujo Records
Genre: Various
Band Link: link
Buy on Amazon.com:
Shit, even if you’re not getting married, even if you’re not in a relationship… Okay, as long as you get laid occasionally, get this album. At first you’ll think it’s a bunch of hokey old love songs… and it is, but they’re amazingly recreated into some of the steamiest covers ever.
I don’t know how many times “Lay, Lady, Lay” has been covered, but how can that song not make you want some bun?
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Notable Tracks: Coho’s version of “One In A Million”
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Northern Liberties “Secret Revolution”
Record Label: Worldeater Records
Genre: Punk
Band Link: link
Buy on Amazon.com: link
Lusterless, densely slacker-ish, and bad vocals. I thought musicians loved what they do.
There’s no effort whatsoever, and the “singing” is just a muffled talking-through.
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Great Crusades “Four Thirty”
Record Label: Innocent Words Records
Genre: Bluesy Rock
Band Link: link
Buy on Amazon.com: link
I rather liked The Great Crusades. Just a really cool, mellow, kinda Hendrix, soulful, funky.. ummm… running out of adjectives… lumpy, salty.. ummmm…
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Notable Tracks: I Got Away, Hollywood Bungalow
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Bloody Wall Of Gore “Greetings From Planet Bwog”
Record Label: As Is Records
Genre: Metalcore
Band Link: link
Buy on Amazon.com: link
…I am speechless for a moment because I’ve never heard anything so terrible in my life. These guys are such a joke, and not in a funny way because they take what they do seriously.
Instead of purchasing instruments, they should have spent their hard-earned cash on some poisonous cashews or something. They try to bite off of System of a Down’s vocals with the random pitching and quick tongue flow, but instead produce a shrill, ear-shattering horrid sound that’s drowning in kooky sound effects and whammy bar abuse.
I heard tires screeching and hoped it was a large bus about to kill them… but, alas, it was just the lead vocalist asking the time.
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