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John Wesley Harding
John Wesley Harding:
Since his much-lauded debut Here Comes The Groom on Sire Records in 1990 (declared "the first great rock record of the `90s" by Robert Hilburn in the LA Times), Harding has been single-minded in his pursuit of pop perfect songcraft. He's explored many of the darker corners of contemporary music, from traditional folk to garage rock, even recording an a capella record just for good measure. His songs have been featured in movies such as High Fidelity, and he has recorded duets with Bruce Springsteen, Lou Reed and Josh Ritter among others. One might be forgiven for thinking that he's been quiet of late. It's as if he wouldn't release another album while there was a right wing government. What's he been up to for the last nine years? A lot.
Under his real name, Wesley Stace, he wrote two novels, both published by Little Brown (USA) and Jonathan Cape (UK): the international bestseller Misfortune, nominated for a slew of awards including The Guardian First Book Award and The Commonwealth Writer's Prize, and by George, a New York Public Library Book to Remember of 2007. A third is recently completed, slated for publication in late 2009. He was also the subject of an ambitious concert movie (released on DVD), A Bloody Show, filmed at Seattle's Bumbershoot, featuring the songs from Misfortune performed by an a capella group, a string quartet and a rock band, with Robyn Hitchcock in the role of the narrator.
Of his first new album in five years, Who Was Changed And Who Was Dead, Harding notes: "Like many things in life, this record happened by chance. "There was the kind offer of some studio time in Portland, and a bunch of my musical friends are in the Northwest, where I used to live, so I gathered everyone there. I wouldn't even say I was rushing to make a record at that particular time, but I'd always intended to do a proper project with The Minus Five, so I picked the best recent songs, and decided to cut it all live. I went in to make something quite basic and emerged, from a studio in Manhattan where we did the overdubs, with something rather elaborate."
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Matt The Electrician:
Once upon a time, there was a youg man named Matt Sever. He lived in Austin, TX, and he worked as a journeyman electrician. Every morning, when it was still dark outside, he would go to work, and wire houses all day long in the blistering Texas heat. When he would come home, again, it was dark outside. And then, sometimes, with no time to shower or change his clothes, he would go straight to the bars and nightclubs of Austin to play his songs for whomever would listen. And he would apologize for his appearance, and explain to the audience that he was an electrician, and he found a certain nobility in this, even if no one wanted to sit too close to the stage. So they called him Matt The Electrician, and he did not mind this, for he was proud of himself, for there is no shame in a hard days work.
But eventually, he quit his job as an electrician, to spend more time writing and playing songs, and the name stuck with him, because everyone needs an electrician sometimes. And there are some who say, that when the moon is full, and Jupiter is aligned with Mars, you can often hear Matt The Electrician in the distance, wiring a house, and whistling softly to himself.
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LocationThe Woods
6637 Milwaukie Ave.
Portland, OR 97202
United States
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| Minimum Age: 21 |
| Kid Friendly: No |
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| Non-Smoking: No |
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