I don’t know about you, but a street fair just seems like a good time.  How often do you get to run around and play in the street?  It reminds me of the days when me and my friends would play street hockey, except there are less people with sticks trying to hit you, and there’s alcohol, and lots of vendors, and I guess the only similarities are that you get to be in the street.  That’s the main point I’m trying to stress here, there’s a certain off limits feeling to the street, and when one can be taken over by pedestrians, it’s like we won.  A street fair is what victory tastes like, and it usually comes flame broiled and on a stick!  Which is why I couldn’t resist the Mississippi Avenue street fair, great food, great bands, and plenty of other things to keep you occupied between tear down and set up.   

The street was already crowded, by the time I got there, at noon.  The sun beating over head, and the wonderful aroma of barbeque invading my olfactory senses saying, “No need to go up the street, I’m right here, tasty and delicious, come here and eat me.”.  I tried to walk north, but it was of no use, the cunningness of the ribs finally took over as they sprawled out like sun-kissed models on a beach, glistening in the heat, it was just too much.   Off to the Blue Ribbon BBQ cart, where they could have lathered that sauce on a park bench and I would have eaten every last splinter.  With my craving satiated for a bit I charged north, searching for the meaning of what Mississippi Avenue was all about.   

I dodged hordes of people, some shopping, some getting information, others just mingling and meandering.  There was no one booth or theme to anything, it was just everything thrown in together, all types of food from ribs to vegan, but everyone was there together, supporting one another drinking and basically just having fun.  There was music going on wherever you looked, people playing on stages, people playing in the street, performance artists that ranged from stuffing themselves through a toilet seat to depicting water in the desert, though interpretive dance.  There was always something to see, or something to put in your mouth, but I was there specifically for two reasons, The Dimes and The Shaky Hands, two of Portland’s best sounding bands.   

The Dimes seem to take a folk singers approach to song writing, were everything is a story, and that’s just really refreshing.  The song, “Paul Kern Can’t Sleep”, is a great example of this type of writing, which not a lot of people practice anymore.  A wonderful narrative, which sheds some light on a character, in history, not many people still remember.  “Charles Street”, was another song that had an interesting story built around it, about a street back in Boston. Something I feel that The Dimes do very well is how they can take something dark, leave it in context and make it sound hopeful and bright.  If you’d like to know more about The Dimes, check out their website at, www.thedimes.com, where you can listen to several tracks off the album, The Silent Generation, and they’ll be playing, Noon Tunes, at Pioneer Courthouse Square, on the 31^st of July. 

A delightful Widmer hefewiesen to help take the edge off the heat, and The Shaky Hands are set up and ready to entertain.  This is another band that has been playing together for a few years, and it really shows in how they work the stage, and the crowd.  I started to hear about this band about a year or so ago, and haven’t been able to see them live, until now.  I’m always worried how a band that sounds great on an album will sound live, but The Shaky Hands didn’t disappoint.  A touch of Brit pop, a touch of indie rock a little more energy, and a drummer that is the sheer definition of intensity, I felt that if he stopped playing he may explode, and his only way to save Portland was to play more drums.  The Shaky Hands were a really fun band to watch and to listen too, and anytime someone bows an electric guitar, I feel a bit more at peace with the world, definitely a band to check out.  Their website should be up and running soon, but look for them on myspace for now, where you can also order their self titled album.   

After spending hours in the sun feeding and focusing on all the things and people there, I still don’t understand it all, but I don’t know if it’s something to understand, it’s just kind of a feeling.  Maybe we should just have street fairs all the time, not just on Mississippi, but everywhere, from here to the antipodes.  Just think, this is how peace could be attained; music, food, fun and games, Summer packaged into a single day.  I had a lot of fun, and can’t wait to see how things will go for next year, a big thanks to all the people who helped put this on, livemusicpdx.com would love to buy you a shot, but since you’re not here, I’ll just drink one for all of you.  I’m now going to soak my incredibly sun burnt body in a nice big bath of ice cream.  Ahhhh…