Now Hear This
By Sara Freedman

The Builders and the Butchers
Bladen County Records, 2008

It must be something about the nine months of gray skies and Portland’s industrial landscape that inspires songwriters to hearken back to a time when the country was full of coal miners and sailors. Either that, or those themes are just way more romantic than writing about investment bankers and synergy marketing specialists. Whatever the case, Portland’s beloved Decemberists have spawned a whole generation of young musicians interested in conjuring up images of darker Depression days gone by, peppered with sounds of old-school mandolins, organs, and horns. Portland’s new favorite in the genre, the Builders and the Butchers (TBATB), is a louder, twangier version—made up of five young men who aren’t afraid to get a little rowdy on stage, or even pass out instruments to the crowd so everyone can participate. TBATB, formed in 2005, is driven by Alaskan-turned-Oregonian frontman Ryan Sollee, bassist Alex Ellis, organist/percussionist Ray Rude, drummer Paul Seely, and mandolin/banjo player Harvey Tumbleson. These Americana boys roll heavy on the stringed instruments and bang hard on the percussion with songs like “The Coal Mine Fall,” “The Gallows,” and “Bottom of The Lake,” bringing back a blue-collar sound that may well resonate in the recession years to come.

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Susquehanna
The Cherry Poppin’ Daddies
Space Age Bachelor Pad, 2008

Eugene favorites The Cherry Poppin’ Daddies (of “Zoot Suit Riot” fame) are back with their 2008 release Susquehanna. While still firmly rooted in the swing-ska-rockabilly sound that defied grunge back in the mid-90s and made the band a household name, Steve Perry and the Daddies are more recently inspired by the sounds of greaser rock and Latin beats. Susquehanna, a cohesive yet eclectic album, includes the loungy, flamenco-esqe “Rosanne,” the surfy “White Trash Toodle,” and the sweet, sweet ska sounds of “Blood Orange Sun.” But the Daddies are still at their best with the swingy track “Hi and Lo”—the classic Cherry Poppin’ sound that, along with an energetic khaki commercial from retail giant The Gap, filled swing classes to the brim during the last decade of the 20th century.

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Keep Your Eyes Ahead
The Helio Sequence
Sub Pop, 2008

Portland band The Helio Sequence is just two guys—Brandon Summers (vocals/guitar) and Benjamin Weikel (drums/keyboard)—but you’d never know it from the rich layers of electronica-rock they produce. With Summers’ nostalgic lyrics and some serious whole-body drumming from Weikel, pop melodies are washed in sounds of waves and crashes, such as on “Can’t Say No,” or made into a fiery anthem, as in “Halleluiah,” or a celebration of 80s keyboard goodness with “The Captive Mind.” It’s the title track, though, that shows the depth of their 10-year partnership, proving that some things really do get better with age.

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