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Portland Mercury

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What Art Goes With Your Job?

Portland Mercury ·

2024/09/05

Make art, truth, and beauty work for you for a change. by HR Smith When I was in preschool, my mom took a writing class at the local community college. Then she took it again. And again. The whole time I was growing up, she was taking some iteration of the class. Her writing crew was an eclectic bunch, very different from the goody two-shoes that she hung out with during her regular social life. She was proud of

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Randoserus in Portland

Portland Mercury ·

2024/09/05

Tsuchiya Kaban opens its first US retail space in the city's Downtown. by Melissa Locker If you’ve been to Japan—or watched any Japanese film or television show that features schoolchildren—you’ve seen a randoseru backpack. There’s no way you haven’t. The rounded-yet-blocky leather shape is on the back of pretty much every child in Japan. It’s so common that there are anime shows about “randoseru girls.” There are

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The Mercury's 2024 Time-Based Art Festival Picks

Portland Mercury ·

2024/09/05

Don't miss the dance parties, itty bitty music collages, and complete cacophonies—planning your itinerary is an art form in itself. by Martha Daghlian In keeping with its perma-tentative title, Portland Institute for Contemporary Art (PICA)’s annual experimental performance fete has regularly seen major shifts with each year’s iteration. But one thing we can always count on is the Time Based Art (TBA)

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Talk About Political Theater

Portland Mercury ·

2024/09/05

Risk/Reward’s newest theatrical adventure, the Election Anti-Party, wants to rescue you from this year’s anxiety-spiral. by Wm. Steven Humphrey Newsflash: Election years are not fun. Now more than ever, big election cycles—like the one we’re currently enduring—are stressful, anxiety-inducing, and for some, soul crushing. Worse still, we as a nation don’t seem to have a constructive way of processing our

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Portland Opera Makes History Come Alive

Portland Mercury ·

2024/09/05

Our Oregon debuts commissioned work about poet and advocate Shizue Iwatsuki. by Robert Ham Portland Opera’s 60th season finds the eminent arts institution at a fulcrum. In recent months, it sold the Hampton Opera Center, the organization’s home base for over two decades, and now it’s deeply embroiled in ongoing discussions about the future of the Keller Auditorium. It’s little wonder then that the company has kept

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St. Johns' Shoegaze Revival

Portland Mercury ·

2024/09/05

Members of Portland bands Ten Million Lights and Kallai worked together to organize two-day music fest Dreamgaze PDX. by Ben Salmon Shoegaze is having a moment. It’s not the first moment for the cult-fave genre—a hypnotic amalgam of gossamer vocals and distorted guitars played, often loudly, through an army of nifty effects pedals. Not long after Shoegaze emerged from the British Isles in the late 1980s, its first

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Portland Summer—Reviewed

Portland Mercury ·

2024/09/05

A deeply subjective account of music events we attended and what we thought of them. by Suzette Smith To be outdoors, in weather, in summer feels increasingly fraught. Outdoor concerts carry a persistent charm and are safer for those with COVID concerns, but climate change increases the riskiness of these open-air events. We’re not just considering heat and unexpected weather, but also the now-seasonal wildfire

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How Lola Milholland Cooked Up Group Living and Other...

Portland Mercury ·

2024/09/05

It’s a memoir. It’s a cookbook. It’s a combination memoir cookbook. by Suzette Smith The thing I keep repeating is that I’m not a group-living guru,” says Lola Milholland. The Portland noodle company CEO and author is discussing things people frequently say about her hybrid memoir cookbook Group Living and Other Recipes. “I don’t think group living is a solution to housing inequality or inequity

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A Moment of Appreciation for Comedy in the Park and...

Portland Mercury ·

2024/09/05

In its fourth year, Kickstand's outdoor comedy experiment continues to expand! by Corbin Smith In 2021, in that weird netherspace between vaccination distribution and the widespread sense that being inside was cool again, Dylan Reiff, the Artistic Director of Kickstand Comedy was looking for a way to get Portland’s robust comedy scene back up and performing again. “We knew that there were opportunities to do

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Your Guide to Fall 2024 Arts Events in Portland

Portland Mercury ·

2024/09/05

Portland Book Festival, Carson Ellis, and More by EverOut Staff Nothing screams 'fall' like the slow, inevitable retreat back indoors—but don’t let the cozy vibes trigger your FOMO. In fact, this is prime time to trade your blanket for a sweater and soak up all the artsy goodness the season has to offer. From the Portland Book Festival to Amélie, Carson Ellis’ One Week in January, André 3000’s flute-heavy

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Dyke Hoops Courts Community in Portland's Queer...

Portland Mercury ·

2024/09/04

A growing pickup basketball group ensures all players can shoot their shot. by Cameron Crowell On any given summer afternoon, in parks across the city, you can find groups of guys—men mostly—clamoring to stay active in pickup basketball games. Semi-frequently the games fall into fighting, often enough that we don't think about how weird it is. A grown man taunts another grown man as "not a real hooper," while the

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Good Morning, News: Fred Meyer Union Calls for...

Portland Mercury ·

2024/09/04

by Wm. Steven Humphrey If you’re reading this, you probably know the value of the Mercury’s news reporting, arts and culture coverage, event calendar, and the bevy of events we host throughout the year. The work we do helps our city shine, but we can’t do it without your support. If you believe Portland benefits from smart, local journalism and arts coverage, please consider making a small monthly contribution, because without you, there

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SAVAGE LOVE: Quickies

Portland Mercury ·

2024/09/03

The "daddy/babygirl" dynamic, asexual curious, holding in your orgasm, swallowing curved appendages, and more! by Dan Savage 1. Why do so many people — even kinky ones — regard the Daddy/babygirl dynamic as hot but think Mommy/little boy role play is disturbing? Because people can’t stand to see middle-aged women happy and in control. 2. Am I on the asexuality spectrum or do I just have a very low sex drive 95% of

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The Top 47 Events in Portland This Week: Sept 3–8, 2024

Portland Mercury ·

2024/09/03

Rose City Comic Con, PDX Pop Now!, and More by EverOut Staff We're back at it, suggesting all of the week's top events from Rose City Comic Con to Culinary Breeding Network's Variety Showcase and from Gracie Abrams' The Secret of US Tour to PDX Pop Now! For a look at the month ahead, check out our September event guide. WEDNESDAY FILM LIVE MUSIC Buena Vista Social OrchestraIn 1996, British record producer Nick

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THE TRASH REPORT: Private Planes and Film Festival Pains

Portland Mercury ·

2024/09/03

Let's go, trash lovers! It's time for your H-O-T-T-Ohhhhh-G-O gossip. by Elinor Jones Hello Trash Pandas, and happy day-after-Labor Day! Like (hopefully) every one of you, I honored Labor Day by not crossing the picket lines at Fred Meyer's or New Seasons, and let me tell you, my grocery shopping has never been more fucked! I've been hitting up QFC and Winco and cannot find a damn thing. Neither can anyone else

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Good Morning, News: Massive Protests in Israel, the...

Portland Mercury ·

2024/09/03

by Courtney Vaughn The Mercury provides news and fun every single day—but your help is essential. If you believe Portland benefits from smart, local journalism and arts coverage, please consider making a small monthly contribution, because without you, there is no us. Thanks for your support! Good morning, Portland! Today is Tuesday, September 3. Hope you enjoyed Labor Day weekend. If you were bummed about yesterday’s gray, drizzly

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Essential Workers

Portland Mercury ·

2024/09/02

by Anonymous Hey! Remember when we were all holed up watching Netflix and beating pots and pans for "essential workers"? Well, guess who was out there making $12/hr to literally feed all of us? It was the people that work at grocery stores. And now they're on strike. And guess what? I'd rather vote for Trump than break that strike. God bless you essential workers. I don't care about politics or the economy or the country. But if the

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If life gives you lemons…

Portland Mercury ·

2024/09/02

by Anonymous Hate to break the news, kid, but your lemonade stand sucks. The shit was warm, and your hair was a bit unkempt. Also, I don't think you have ever washed your hands thoroughly. You were missing a few teeth too, but I'll let that slide. The sign said it was organic, so I asked you if the lemonade was certified organic. You shrugged your shoulders. No reply, just shrugged. What the fuck kind of business plan do you have here? I

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The Best Things To Do in Portland This Month:...

Portland Mercury ·

2024/09/01

Geek Week PDX, Time-Based Art Festival, and More by EverOut Staff School is starting, apples are ripening, and the days are getting ever-so-slightly shorter, but it's technically still summer until September 22. That means you have almost the whole month to soak up those precious last golden hours of the season at outdoor festivals, ease into fall with exciting performances and book releases, and simply enjoy

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YOUR SUNDAY READING LIST: Drunk Driving Cop, Grocery...

Portland Mercury ·

2024/09/01

by Wm. Steven Humphrey GOOD MORNING, SUNDAY! It's the perfect time to catch up on some of the great reporting and stories the Mercury churned out this week! (PRO TIP: If you despise being "the last to know," then be one of the first to know by signing up for Mercury newsletters! All the latest stories shipped directly to your email's in-box... and then... YOUR HEAD.) • Portland Police Sergeant Placed on Leave After Drunk Driving

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