May 07, 2008

Port O'Brien -- FREE INSTORE

Port O'Brien In-store Performance
Monday, May 12th, 7:00pm

Too often we get wrapped up about hosting big name, well-established artists, and it's understandable to a large degree as those folks are on the top of their game, but the real magic happens when we score a young band and get to truly introduce them to all of you guys. Port O'Brien are going to be a big deal and when they come back in a year or, so there will be a line down the block. Their music has a frantic energy that recalls the Cold War Kids and Arcade Fire while the undertone is closer to the acoustic roots of Fleet Foxes and Band of Horses. If that math isn't good enough for you, M. Ward called Port O'Brien his favorite new band when he was talking to the folks at Pitchfork and they've toured with bands as diverse as Vetiver, Bright Eyes, Rogue Wave, and Modest Mouse - and all of them sound like the combination would have made for one hell of a night.

He's the middle part of their bio:
Every summer, Van works on his father's commercial salmon fishing boat, the Shawnee, on Kodiak Island in Alaska. The work is exhausting and the weather could be much better, but the contrast between the serenity of the wilderness and the rigorousness of the labor seem to cause quite a bit of musical inspiration. Meanwhile, on land and around the corner, Cambria also writes music while maintaining her position as the Head Baker at Larsen Bay. Her days can be even longer, and the work even more tiresome. After both write parts and lyrics separately, they fix them together when Van comes ashore. For the first time this summer, Caleb also joined the ranks at the cannery, and their cumulative effort while up in a latitude and longitude few of us may ever see resulted in the creation of the songs that comprise the band's first studio-recorded album "ALL WE COULD DO WAS SING." Because when you're working all day in the freezing cold, what the hell else are you going to do? "Stuck on a Boat" tells of the frustration related to being so close yet so far away. Van stuck on a little fishing boat, while Cambria bakes across the bay...yet weeks go by without having a chance to go to port. "Fisherman's Son" speaks of the frustrating, yet contented thought of destiny. "Don't Take My Advice" captures the endless quest for settling, while remaining in awe of the entire world to explore. "In Vino Veritas" expresses the flurry of emotion caused by isolation, while emerged in substance.

This could easily be the one that everyone is talking about by the end of the year.

Sneak preview their songs at their myspace page.

All We Could Do Was Sing will be out May 13th.