If It's Too Loud...

Poster by Daykamp Creative It takes a lot to get me to go out in Boston on St. Patrick's Day. Literally every stereotype about Boston becomes true that day, and I've made the extra drive to Providence for shows on work nights to avoid seeing a band play on St. Patrick's Day. However, there are exceptions to every rule, and I couldn't imagine that Sleater-Kinney fans would be a drunken, obnoxious crowd, especially at this point in all of our lives, so I headed out to the Paradise to finally see Sleater-Kinney for the first time. I was definitely right about the crowd. Out of a sold out crowd of about one thousand, I only spotted two people doing the funny green hat/green beads/green shirt thing, which is a near miracle in Boston. Nobody was there to party or booze it up. Everyone was there for Sleater-Kinney. Sleater-Kinney are at the point in the career where they can do virtually whatever they want, and Sunday night's show at the Paradise proved that. The setlist f...

Photo by Morningstar Angeline Black Belt Eagle Scout's new album is due out next week, but we don't have to wait to hear a new single from Katherine Paul's musical project. "Spaces" is a gorgeous song that blends folk, dream pop, and Paul's Swinomish heritage. It's a very quiet song that still keeps all of the power you associate with Black Belt Eagle Scout's music. The focus is Paul's vocals, with electric guitar and violin masterfully assisting the lush, dreamlike quality of the song. It also features guest vocals from her parents, with her father's traditional chants mixing with Paul and her mother's melody. Even though all of Black Belt Eagle Scout's songs feel special, this one feels a little more so. Katherine Paul says of her new single: “I wrote ‘Spaces’ for an audience as a way to sing melodies of healing and care for them. Since starting Black Belt Eagle Scout, I have moved through many spaces, playing shows for crowds of peop...

Photo by Nate Lemuel of Darlisted Photography With only two singles out so far, the upcoming album from Black Belt Eagle Scout is already shaping up to be a strong album of the year contender. Katherine Paul's latest single, "Nobody," is this gorgeous swirl that combines the best of folk and singer/songwriter music with indie rock. It has all the beauty and the organic feeling of Americana, the swirling fuzz of shoegaze, a beat that makes you want to dance, and this hypnotic mixture to it all that is sure to suck you in. It's also both uplifting while conveying a sense of sadness, which is even more engaging. If you haven't been paying attention to Black Belt Eagle Scout until now, you're going to want to jump on board with this one. Katherine Paul says of her new single: “When I was growing up, I didn’t have very many Native role models to look to on TV or the radio. It was within my own community that I found inspiring role models through our elders and our ...

Photo by Nate Lemuel of Darklisted Photography "My Blood Runs Through This Land" continues Black Belt Eagle Scout's (aka Katherine Paul) move towards a more indie rock sound. This song is just absolutely an epic. It only lasts five and a half minutes, but the song feels bigger than that. It's filled with a giant guitar solo along the lines of something from J Mascis along with Paul's intense vocalizations. This one is more along the lines of classic early 90's indie rock and grunge than the "shoegaze meets folk" that we are used to from Black Belt Eagle Scout. "My Blood Runs Through This Land" just keeps building and building with some of the most killer guitar shredding around. If you have yet to jump on the Black Belt Eagle Scout bandwagon, now you're chance. Katherine Paul says of her upcoming album: “I created  The Land, The Water, The Sky  to record and reflect upon my journey back to my homelands and the challenges and the happine...

Photo by Nate Lemuel of Darklisted Photography It's been three years since we last heard from Black Belt Eagle Scout, the musical project of Katherine Paul. Previously I've described her music as a folk version of shoegaze, and that sound is all over her latest single. "Don't Give Up" has all the beauty and organic feel of folk with only having the bare elements of folk music. "Don't Give Up" is more of an indie rock song. It's noisy and dissonant, but it's oddly not abrasive in its noise. Instead, the noise is where the beauty of the song lies. There's an unexpected softness to the edge of Black Belt Eagle Scout's music that keeps it having such a unique feel that is going to suck a lot of people in. Katherine Paul says of her new single: “Spending time with the land and on the water are ways that strengthen my connection to my ancestors and to my culture. It helps heal my spirit and is the form of self-care that helps me the most. T...

Photo by Sarah Cass As if it was made to make us even more obsessed with Black Belt Eagle Scout, Katherine Paul's musical project has a new single that may be impossible not to like. "My Heart Dreams" is a dreamy, slightly trippy, almost like a folk version of shoegaze song. It's mostly a ballad, but has its bouncy moments to keep you drawn in and cheerful, despite the song's subject matter about wanting to find new love while being brokenhearted. "My Heart Dreams" has just the slightest amount of noise Black Belt Eagle Scout shows in their live shows, instead keeping this song mostly melodic. You can watch the video for "My Heart Dreams," which was filmed at the Portland Pride parade. Paul says of the video: “ The idea behind this video was to do something fun while showing the resilience of the Indigenous people, particularly women and girls, which is why I chose to have the Black Belt Eagle Scout band be portrayed by young Indigenous...

Photo by Sarah Cass Portland, OR's Black Belt Eagle Scout are back with a new single from her follow up to 2018's Mother of My Children. "At the Party" is much more quiet and introspective than the majority of the previous album. There is still plenty of swirling guitars and effects on the new song, so it's far from your typical singer/songwriter fare. You get this lovely and intense (despite it's quiet) song. Katherine Paul (aka Black Belt Eagle Scout) explains her song:  “ Within my conscious self, there is always a sense of questioning the legitimacy of the world when you grow up on an Indian reservation .  We are all at the party (the world), trying to navigate ourselves within a good or bad situation. I happen to be at the party with my brown friends- Indigenous, Black, POC who always have my back while we walk throughout this event called life .” You can listen to "At the Party" below. At the Party With My Brown Friends, the new album f...

Photo by Eleanor Petry Black Belt Eagle Scout (aka Portland based artist Katherine Paul) has released a new single called "Loss & Relax." "Loss & Relax" was originally meant to be included on last year's album Mother of My Children  but was not on the album as it continued to evolve. The final version is a lush and exquisite folk song, at least at first. While it may start off as folk, the song slowly builds and progresses, reaching an almost hard rock crescendo.  Katherine Paul explains the song:  “ As I was writing the guitar line, I kept seeing the water of the Salish Sea and the local ferries drifting people in and out of place. Ferries are such a beautiful part of my childhood and served as a major form of transportation. Thinking about my home and how canoes have turned into ferries is a sad, but also beautiful thought. Nowadays with Canoe Journeys, canoes are alongside ferries, roaming our waters to lands, sharing customs and culture. That i...

Photo by Jason Quigley Black Belt Eagle Scout is the stage name of Portland based Katherine Paul. According to the press release, she is an indigenous queer musician, which definitely flavors her music. "Soft Stud," the first single from her debut album, combines elements you don't normally pair together. It starts off with this crunching guitar riff normally associated with some form of guitar rock. But when Paul's voice kicks in with her light and melodic feel, you know the song won't be what you thought it was going to be. The explosion that was promised at the beginning never comes, and instead you get a lovely mid-tempo song complete with harmony and keys that's more Colleen Green than The Hives. You can listen to "Soft Stud" below. Mother of My Children , the debut album from Black Belt Eagle Scout, will be released on September 14 via Saddle Creek. The album can be pre-ordered here . For more on Black Belt Eagle Scout, check her website ...