Welcome to Portland, Oregon

Music Fans

Seattle's Nada Personal, a Soda Stereo tribute band

Music

Another huge mark in the PLUS column, Portland boasts a phenomenal music scene, along with plenty of arts, theater, and public performances. The opportunities to see original live music are many.

“[The Portland] metro area’s population may rank only 25th in the U.S., but it claims at least 1,100 music businesses, around 2,000 performing acts, nearly 300 live venues and 200-plus promoted concerts a week — putting it near the top of any of these categories on a per-capita basis.”
— Oregon Business Magazine

Every night of the week there is music, everything from experimental noise to bluegrass, string quartet to hip hop.

  • The brilliant NearHear website and app (iOS only) provide a dead simple means of previewing artists' music and finding local shows.
  • There are numerous open mics, and a monthly event dedicated to showcasing new and established singer-songwriters, the Songwriter Soirée.
  • In House Jazz brings together excellent musicians from the Portland area and the coast for intimate in home and backyard concerts.
NearHear.app

PDX Presents offers live concert photography, music playlists, artist and venue features, and information about the explosive Portland Music Scene.

Independent radio

Portland is blessed with several great indie radio stations. Through X-Ray FM alone, I've discovered several great artists: Failure, Zoe's Shanghai, Juanita Euka.