Pitchfork

Portland, Oregon has got the current U.S. indie scene on lock, and they know it. But it's not just about big-time bands like the Decemberists, Modest Mouse, and the Shins. It's also about the up-and-coming sounds on display at the PDX Pop Now! festival, a three-day showcase of the best the Pacific Northwestern port city has to offer.

On August 3-5 at Portland's AudioCinema, local boys-and-girls-made-good the Blow, Blitzen Trapper, Yellow Swans, the Robot Ate Me, the Shaky Hands, Copy, Nice Boys, and more and others will stick it to Seattle, big time. Many more artists, we're told, are still to be announced.

Shut-ins, take heed: On June 19 (which some might call "today"), a bargain-priced, double-disc compilation of songs from Portland powerhouses will hit shops around the 503. For a measly $7, you can get a preview of the new Mirah and Spectratone International joint venture, a solo Colin Meloy demo for a Crane Wife b-side, and 38 other jams, including rare trax from Old Time Relijun, Kristen Hersh, and Ohmega Watts, and previously released tunes from Menomena, Lifesavas, Exploding Hearts, YACHT, and many more.

Proceeds from the sale of the compilation will go to fund the festival, which smacks of good karma. Ex-pats and vacationers can get theirs via CDBaby.

Disc one:

01 Swim Swam Swum - "Without Your French"
02 Lips and Ribs - "Battle in Nagoya"
03 Modernstate - "SSMF"
04 Menomena - "Wet and Rusting"
05 Syndel - "Lemme Hear It"
06 The World Court - "Maps"
07 The Hand That Bleeds - "Shattered Love Trance"
08 The Ocean Floor - "A Simple Adventure"
09 Laura Gibson - "Come by Storm"
10 Mirah and Spectratone International - "Community"
11 Evolutionary Jass Band - "Phyllis' Frindge"
12 Old Time Relijun - "The Tightest Cage"
13 Black Elk - "Toss You to the Wolves"
14 Ethan Rose - "Ceiling Song 3 (Excerpt)"
15 Lifesavas - "No Surprise"
16 Alela Diane - "Up North"
17 YACHT - "See a Penny (Pick it Up)"
18 Starfucker - "Rawnald Gregory Erickson the Second"
19 Colin Meloy - "Culling of the Fold" (Demo)

Disc two:

01 Junkface - "ATAMAKATAHIZAASHI"
02 Kristin Hersh - "Blackstone"
03 Sweater! - "Mediterranean"
04 Panther - "How Well Can You Swim?"
05 Ohmega Watts - "4 Days in Geneva"
06 Run On Sentence - "Carrie Pt. II"
07 Exploding Hearts - "(Making) Teenage Faces"
08 Derby - "If Ever There's a Reason"
09 The Hugs - "North"
10 Eric John Kaiser - "L'Odyssee"
11 Ferocious Eagle - "Bastards"
12 The Better to See You With - "Garden"
13 Hungry Mob - "To the People"
14 Klezmocracy - "Hava Netze B'machol"
15 Wilding & AED - "Broken Branches"
16 The Robot Ate Me - "Empty Feelings"
17 Alan Singley - "Never Knew"
18 Nice Boys - "Johnny Guitar"
19 31Knots - "Sanctify"
20 White Rainbow - "Mystic Prism"
21 The Shaky Hands - "Soul"