PDX POP NOW!'S 2016lineup gives us all a lot of reasons to be stoked. As usual, Portland’s premier all-ages festival is treating the audience to a handful of genres. Here are a few bands I’m excited to see, but regardless of music preference, come ready to jam—all three days are stacked with sweet tunes for everybody.
OLD GRAPE GOD
Old Grape God’s slithering, drawling vocals exist somewhere between the more traditional DJ Screw rap formula and a fresh-faced warbling style that favors rhythmic onomatopoeias. Like the heavyweights of the latter genre (Young Thug, Future), OGG uses his voice as a melodic instrument that hypnotizes. But unlike Thugger, OGG has a slam-poet-like articulation that vibes prophetic. With each unexpected pregnant pause we become further enveloped in the words of Old Grape God. Like a slowed-down, vaped-out Gil Scott-Heron equipped with a King Krule vocal range and the charismatic cadence of a hip-hop cult leader, it’s easy to drink the Old Grape God Kool-Aid. Sat 4:40 pm
LITHICS
For a city filled with minimalist coffee shops and rad women who don’t give a fuck, I’m shocked there aren’t more Portland bands like Lithics. Their twangy, blunt guitar playing has a clean-cut neuroticism that, paired with lead singer Aubrey Hornor’s deadpan and disassociated vocals, is uptight but still way cooler than most of us will ever hope to be. Taking a chic approach to art-punk, Hornor sounds like she could be the demure younger sister of one of the Delta 5 girls. Lithics is less angry, tidier, and more focused on simplicity than their proto-punk predecessors—but their sterile, new-new wave is intriguing. Sat 4 pm