Music Archives - Page 172 of 349

Behind the Counter: Mississippi Records (Portland, OR)

Each Tuesday, Behind the Counter speaks to an independent record store to ask about its recent favorites, best sellers, and noteworthy trends.

Look them up and you’ll find that Mississippi Records is a favorite in Portland. Since owner Eric Mast’s serendipitous encounter with the space 11 years ago, the shop has expanded into a record label, supplying hard-to-find music to the masses for low prices. A unique selection, rapid turnover, and an employee-curated tape series (various covers featured below) are the hallmarks of Mississippi.

Give me three great albums that you’ve enjoyed lately.

Group Inerane: Guitars from Agadez Vol. 3 (Sublime Frequencies), Hasil Adkins: White Light/White Meat (Norton Records), and the Daniel Johnston box set of his first six albums (Munster).

Mississippi Records: Men With Broken Hearts

MP3 Premiere: Igor Boxx’s “Alarm”

Guest Spots: Singer/songwriter Todd Snider’s favorite musical storytellers

We asked Todd Snider, to tell us about some of his favorite musical storytellers. What we got was a collection of musings on the writers and performers who have informed his stage persona, which is captured on his new double-disc live album, The Storyteller (Aimless, 2/1/11). Read on for some of “The Storyteller’s” favorite storytellers.

My Five Favorite Musical Troubadours
by Todd Snider

1. Bob Dylan

For me, when it comes to being a fan of a troubadour, I have to laugh with you before I’ll cry with you, simply because most troubadours expect you to cry over their journal entries with them. Most troubadours are awful people. Bob, however, is not. I think he’s America’s finest contribution to the world, of any kind. He does not have a song I don’t like, and while he doesn’t talk much on stage, when he does, it’s precise, funny, wise, and everything else. There really is no point in anyone else doing this troubadour thing. Hell, I once paid for a tape of Bob arguing on the phone…and I thought it was a great album.

Gallery Spotlight: SPACE Gallery

When Nat May founded SPACE Gallery in Portland, Maine back in 2002, timing was everything. After one of the city’s few indie venues shuttered, May decided to fill the void by creating a multipurpose gallery and performance venue that would cater to both Portland’s indie art and music scenes.

May’s intent was to offer gallery patrons additional events to attend and allow regular concertgoers to check out SPACE’s art offerings. “Part of our goal is to get people to come in for one thing and see something else that they didn’t know that they were interested in,” he says.