Another landslide of gorgeous photos from our imaginary weekend at Musicfest Northwest!

The Builders and the Butchers

The Decemberists

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{This is part three in a series of recaps about Musicfest Northwest 2010 -- make sure you check out Thursday's and Friday's coverage too!}

The Builders and the Butchers:

Saturday at MFNW was chock full o' rad, with bands around every corner and all kinds of PDX-style awesomeness abounding. The day started off with an excellent lineup at funeral home-turned-venue the Woods, courtesy of KEXP: The Mynabirds, The Builders and the Butchers, Typhoon, and several other bands took the stage from 1pm on for our listening and viewing pleasure. The station crew did a massive amount of taping and shooting, so keep an eye out for words, video, and stills over at their website -- the BatB set was beyond epic and set up living-room style, almost microphone-free on a rug in the middle of the crowd -- and we're quite sure the fine folks of KEXP captured the performance with excellent result.

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Technically, you can get your Musicfest Northwest (MFNW) on starting tonight -- there will be a few gigs going on around town down in Portland to warm up the masses -- but our imaginary coverage will officially begin tomorrow and we can't hardly wait!  There's quite a few acts and sorta-showcases that we're espcially stoked to see... so without further ado, here are some of our picks for the best-of-the-fest shows for the next four days.

Please note: the approximate start times are listed for the first band only and are subject to change -- always check your internets before heading out!

Sallie Ford and the Sound Outside
Thursday, 10p @ Berbati's Pan

Having seen and heard a lot about these darlings since their 2009 blip on our Seattle radar, it's going to be quite a treat to catch them at a hometown show. Full of good ol' fashioned big-bodied electric sound and a pair of lungs that just won't quit, Sallie Ford and the Sound Outside are as swoon-tastic as it gets!

David Bazan + band / Joshua Morrison
Thursday, 9p @ the Doug Fir

Does this even need an explanation? Hot on the heels of two stellar performances at Bumbershoot, David Bazan (along with the current installment of his band) have fine tuned their sound to some true indie rock perfection. Achy and anthematic to the core, we're super-stoked to catch them at a venue like the 'Fir. Add in local favorite-home-safe Joshua Morrison, and you've got a night on your hands to remember.

The Thermals
Thursday, 10:30p @ the Crystal Ballroom

The Thermals killed Bumbershoot, the new album rules, and we'll be there with bells on. 'nuff said.

Okkervil River / Bobby Bare, Jr.
Friday, 10p @ the Crystal Ballroom

One of those lineups that makes you grateful that the bookers are playing close attention: a headlining set with OKR and a warmup by local favorite Bobby Bare, Jr. sounds like the next best thing since sliced bread. The boys of Okkervil have been hard at work, following up their last album with some amazing work next to the great Roky Erickson, and judging by the sound of the twitterverse, on to the next recording of something beautiful.

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They're playing our song / Can you see the lights? / Can you hear the hum? / Of our song / I hope they get it right...

Talk about shooting a big bag of sad bastard.

For a mere twelve dollars, you can shimmy your way in to Neumo's tonight for a PDX double-header -- and have your insides slayed by Blind Pilot, a band I've been in love with since I first heard Cheryl Waters spin them on KEXP's Midday show. I keep a running list radio-side to make sure I remember bands that catch my attention, to reference later through playlists and MySpaces and the good (or indifferent) word of friends and music enthusiasts alike. And in the course of that first week I heard Blind Pilot over the airwaves, I wrote them down three different times. Three. That hasn't happened since... maybe Luke Temple, or the first time I heard Devin Davis. Anyway -- one's enough to notice, and two times is a trump card... but three hits? That's a non-negotiable. That means immediate procurment of tickets, albums, and anything I can get my hands on.

The title track off of Three Rounds and a Sound is my hands-down my favorite, but here's another goodie that made the list that week:

And not to that the lovely Laura Veirs will be holding second slot at the show, which makes the whole thing worth it at twice the price.

Hope to see you there!

Saltbreakers is a pretty, middle-of-the-road-less-traveled album that never sends you soaring too high, or drags you down too low.

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It's New Release day tomorrow and although the list is short this week, there's a little something for everyone!

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See all the winners in the TIG Best Northwest Releases of 2005 Readers' Poll (see winners #40-31 here).

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The top Northwest releases of 2004 as voted on by you, our readers (see winners #50-41 here).

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