St. John is a neighborhood in
the northwest of Portland, the tip of a peninsula (I had to google this – it was
my impression but seemed improbable – but I forget how water-centric the PNW
is). It holds on to old Portland ways (weird & quirky rather than hipster, diverse
rather than White yuppie) to its benefit, through its physical disconnection. I
attended this annual neighborhood festival in 2019 and loved it – well
attended, great music. This year, I attended it with IfIdBeenBornInIowa, despite our divergent tastes in music.
IfIdBeenBornInIowa, my adventure buddy,
and the person who literally saved me during the pandemic from total and
complete isolation and annihilation, was diagnosed with cancer in fall 2024. It
was a devastating experience for her obviously but also for her circle of devoted
friends. Because she is an adventurous badass, she is back to our exploits only
months post chemo.
Plaza Stage St. John’s Bizarre,
Portland, OR
Rhodendron [from Portland OR]: I felt like the whole crowd was murmuring ‘but they’re So Young.’ The lead guitarist & vocalist was clearly nervous with his smiles and facing the drummer. The multitudes of girls in gold spangle dresses roaming the audience were disconcerting – they had nothing to do with the band. The band was math rock. They were fine but I’ve seen fifteen bands that sound exactly like they do. Their bio reads “makes post-apocalyptic campfire music for woodland giants” – could they be more Portland? Portland is so deeply unweird. Their recorded music is more abrasive and screamo.
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