Blog entries posted in The Blender

Local Middle School Student Takes 3rd Place in CSPAN Video Contest

Mike Bookey — Thu, 11 Mar 2010 15:57:44 +0100

In January, Source staffer Anne Pick wrote a feature story about the CSPAN StudentCam contest, which put cameras in the hands of local students and asked them to put together a video that dealt with pressing national issues.

Several area students submitted videos and now the winners have been announced. One of the third place winners in the middle school category was Aleczander Reese, an eighth grader at High Desert Middle School. His short film, "What You See and What You Don't:Read More...

Bend For Haiti Concert Announces Lineup

Mike Bookey — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 17:51:44 +0100

It's been in the works for more than a month now, but the lineup has been finalized for the Bend For Haiti concert to take place at the Tower Theatre on March 19. The show is the culminating effort led by Reed Thomas Lawrence, the local pop rocker who will come out of relative live show dormancy to perform at the gig.

The rest of the lineup includes the poppy Oregon funk and reggae act Rootdown as well as Eugene's David Jacobs-Strain, the blues guitarist and songwriter who has a solid Read More...

Latest LSA Announcement: Willie Nelson Coming to Bend

Mike Bookey — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 21:44:58 +0100

Here it is, the next installment of Guess Who's Coming to the Les Schwab Amphitheater?

And in this edition, we're announcing a familiar name to the LSA stage, Mr. Willie Nelson. The Red Headed Stranger last played the LSA in 2007 and is touring this summer in support of his upcoming album, Country Music. This year's show is slated for Friday, September 17.

This is the second country artist to make the LSA schedule thus far, joining legend Merle Haggard, who will play on June 20Read More...

The Mother Hips Coming to Bend

Mike Bookey — Sat, 06 Mar 2010 01:04:52 +0100

I’ve been hearing quite a bit about a band called the Mother Hips lately and how their roots rock attack is blowing up on the West Coast right now. Well, wouldn’t you know it if an e-mail came across my electronic desk this morning announcing that the Mother Hips would be playing in Bend.

The show is slated for April 15 for Mountain’s Edge Bar (what isn’t going on there lately?) and is part of a tour supporting the Mother Hips’ record Pacific Dust, which wRead More...

KOHD Stops Its Local Newscasts

Mike Bookey — Fri, 05 Mar 2010 16:15:33 +0100

And then there was one...

One remaining local newscast remains in Central Oregon as of today, that being the folks over at KTVZ now that KOHD, the local ABC affiliate, has announced today that it will no longer produce a news program.

In a statement this morning on the KOHD website, KOHD General Manager Jerry Upham announced that tonight’s 11 p.m. broadcast will be the last for the station, which took to the air in September of 2007. Upham cited the station’s low Nielson ratinRead More...

Video: Eric Tollefson and the World's Greatest Lovers

Mike Bookey — Thu, 04 Mar 2010 16:53:30 +0100

Eric Tollefson and the World's Greatest Lovers played the free Wednesday night show last night at McMenamins here in Bend, serving up a feast of blues rock jems before heading down to Hollywood for a show at the Whiskey A Go Go on Saturday.

I've got some video here, but sadly it is not of the show's defining moment, which was when a youngish man in the crowd challenged Feverishly Dancing Bespectacled Woman (if you've been to a McMenamins show, you know who she is) to a dance off. It waRead More...

Eric Tollefson and The World's Greatest Lovers Tonight for Free

Mike Bookey — Wed, 03 Mar 2010 18:23:47 +0100

Yes, that is the real name that local blues rocking singer songwriter Eric Tollefson has chosen for his band. I profiled the red head in this week's issue of the Source in advance of the band's triumphant journey to Hollywood to play the Whiskey A Go Go.

But before they head out of town, Tollefson and his band, which includes Pat Pearsall, Lindsey Elias and Keith O'Dell from Empty Space Orchestra and Tim Schroeder, formerly of the Bond Brothers on lead guitar, will play a free show toRead More...

She & Him to Open for Band of Horses in Bend

Mike Bookey — Mon, 01 Mar 2010 20:07:08 +0100

On Friday I wrote about the fact that Band of Horses are coming to the Les Schwab Amphitheater on May 30, prompting at least one reader to complain about that band's lack of guitar solos. I also stated that info on an opening act would be coming soon.

Well, soon is now, because it's been confirmed that She & Him, the power duo of actress/vocalist/pianist Zooey Deschanel and producer/songwriter extraordinaire M. Ward will open the show.

The band debuted with Volume One in 200Read More...

Band of Horses at Les Schwab Amphitheater! In Bend! May 30!

Mike Bookey — Fri, 26 Feb 2010 21:35:19 +0100

Yeah, I had to read that headline a couple times myself before believing it myself, but yes, indeed, Band of Horses, the massive-sounding rock band now located in South Carolina, are coming to Bend on May 30.

The announcement came by way of a Twitter post from the Old Mill District yesterday. Isn't it fun receiving excitement in 140-character bursts?

This, for the most part, erases the allegedly snot-nosed attitude pervasive in my last posting about the respectable, but you knRead More...

For the Audio Geeks: Silver Moon Brewing Gets New Soundsystem

Mike Bookey — Thu, 25 Feb 2010 19:50:20 +0100

Given that it's become one of Bend's most visited live music venues, it's fitting that the Silver Moon now has upped it's in-house sound system.

I'm hardly an audio guru, and for the most part don't complain about a venue's sound during a show -- unless it's unavoidable -- but from what the venue had to say in a press release yesterRead More...

Seriously, Matthew Fox? You had to do that in Bend?

Mike Bookey — Wed, 24 Feb 2010 15:43:56 +0100

In case you're not the sort of person who hounds the In Touch website, you may not have heard about part-time Central Oregon resident Matthew Fox allegedly having a two-time affair with one of the professional, err, dancers at Stars Cabaret here in Bend.

The In Touch story tells about how Fox (who is married) met the danRead More...

Steve Miller Band is Coming to Bend...and hopefully some other acts

Mike Bookey — Mon, 22 Feb 2010 23:05:48 +0100

It’s almost spring here in the glorious highlands of Central Oregon, which means that if you’re a lover of live music, it’s time to start praying for some big news to come out of the folks at the Les Schwab Amphitheater.

We already knew that Merle Haggard would be diverting his tour away from the steady string of casinos it’s scheduled for to arrive on the LSA stage come June 20, but now it’s been confirmed that another classic name is on the summer concerRead More...

Video of Eric Tollefson Live at Silver Moon on Saturday Night

Anne Pick — Mon, 22 Feb 2010 04:04:31 +0100

If you were in Bend on Saturday night there were plenty of options for entertainment. Roller derby, people beating the crap out of each other, ska music, rock music; you name it, it was going on in town on Saturday.

We made it down to Silver Moon to catch the soulful (and dreamy) Eric Tollefson debut his new band The World's Greatest Lovers. The show was great and Eric announced they'd be playing a free, all ages show at McMenamins on March 3 at 7pm. If you missed this show at the MoonRead More...

A Conversation With The Men Behind the Beard and Moustache Championships Coming to Bend

Mike Bookey — Fri, 19 Feb 2010 16:32:30 +0100

In the event that you’re habitually are slow on the uptake when it comes to facial-hair-related news, the Beard Team USA National Beard and Moustache Championships are taking place in Bend this year.

In advance of the Championships, which are slated for June 5 at the Les Schwab Amphitheater during the Balloons over Bend festival, the founder (and “self-appointed captain”) of Beard Team USA, Phil Olsen and two-time defending Natural Full Beard World Champion Jack PassiRead More...

Our Mini-Documentary of the Bend WinterFest Weekend

Mike Bookey — Thu, 18 Feb 2010 21:28:12 +0100

The Source Weekly's calendar editor/video magician Anne Pick took all the largely cattywompus video I shot during the three days of Bend WinterFest last weekend and quilted it into a nice little documentary.

Take a look and relive the joy that was WinterFest. By the way, we just got word from the WinterFest organizers who estimated that some 32,000 people visited the festival during the three days.

[video:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uNvItyN_Ae8 4Read More...

Hippie Jams, Michael Cera and Problem Stick: What happened last night

Mike Bookey — Thu, 18 Feb 2010 16:44:56 +0100

I arrived at McMenamins Old St. Francis School last night and quickly discovered that there were a couple hundred other people who also thought it clever to take in a free show from Blue Turtle Seduction.

The bubbly Lake Tahoe jam band had the place packed (even more jammed than the typical free Wednesday show) and bobbing along to their bright, sunshine-filled songs and improvisations. People were dancing wholeheartedly, sweating the place up and giving me a slight case of claustrophoRead More...

Blue Turtle Seduction: Back in Bend once again tonight

Mike Bookey — Wed, 17 Feb 2010 18:04:39 +0100

Blue Turtle Seduction won’t leave Bend alone. By our count, tonight’s free show at McMenamins Old St. Francis School is the Lake Tahoe jam band’s 11th (at least) concert in Bend since 2006, when they played at the now-defunct Grove.

The poppy, world-music band was a staple of both years at the 4 Peaks Music Festival and played a pair of shows at the Annex in between. Recently, they’ve moved across the street for gigs at the Silver Moon Brewing Co., but now Blue Read More...

Sasquatch Lineup Announced: My Morning Jacket, Pavement, Massive Attack, Ween and more

Mike Bookey — Tue, 16 Feb 2010 16:18:21 +0100

Summer festival season is still a ways off, but it feels much closer now that the Sasquatch! Music Festival has unveiled its downright impressive lineup.

Taking place over Memorial Day Weekend (May 29 through 31) up at the Gorge Amphitheater, the festival boasts arguably the strongest lineup of its eight-year history with headliners like My Morning Jacket, Pavement, Vampire Weekend, MGMT and plenty others, like The Hold Steady, for one.

Once again, the lineup is intentionally elRead More...

Video From the WinterFest Music Stage

Mike Bookey — Mon, 15 Feb 2010 19:57:06 +0100

If you were one of the several thousand folks who descended on the Old Mill District for last weekend's Bend WinterFest, you probably saw some of action below.

Friday night featured a headlining set from Bend favorites, The Gourds, making for a packed stage as the skiers jammed the rail behind the crowd. The Austin alt-country powerhouse proved raucous as ever, despite the fiercely blowing cold winds that whipped up against the stage.

[video:http://wwRead More...

WinterFest Music Video Preview: The Gourds, Hell's Belles

Mike Bookey — Fri, 12 Feb 2010 21:44:19 +0100

It looks like that nasty little wet burst of stormy weather has passed and things are looking food for tonight's kick off of WinterFest.

While many out there are heading down to the Old Mill District to watch the always insanely popular Rail Jam, others (maybe you) will be there to take in some first-class music.

Tonight there's an appearance by The Gourds, the Austin, Texas alternative country act with a nice and hefty following in Bend. But that show also features sets from loRead More...