Having recovered their van and equipment after it was stolen earlier this year at Lollapalooza, Portugal. The Man was back on the road and making their way across the country for their 2011-2012 tour. On Wednesday night, hundreds of fans stood shoulder-to-shoulder on the main floor of the theater, cheering the arrival of Portugal. The Man. Over the course of the night, fans cheered, jumped, waved their lighters (actual lighters, not just cell phones), demanded an encore, and even had a couple brief stints of crowd surfing. Apparently Portugal. The Man hadn’t expected such a warm welcome. As vocalist John Gourley put it, looking out from the stage to the standing-room-only theater, “This is fucking crazy.”
Portugal. The Man, whose music has been described as “psychedelic rock alternative,” offered a never-ending stream of music, transitioning directly from one song into the next, only speaking to the crowd two or three times the entire performance. And their music speaks for itself. Known for their long musical interludes, sometimes playing a steady stream of lyric-free music for up to seven minutes, Portugal. The Man combined their sound with a fantastic light show and fog machines. The lights and the fog were fun, but PTM can stand on its own through pure talent and musicality. Rare among contemporary bands, PTM sounds better live than they do on CD and boasts a range of musical talent – from acoustics to powerful electric guitars and mellow vocals to heartfelt ballads. Innovative and fresh but with a distinctive Beatles influence, Portugal. The Man’s music is built on guitar, bass, drums, keyboards, and occasionally a tambourine, bongos, or even maracas.
Portugal. The Man performed songs from their new album In the Mountain in the Cloud, including “So American” and “Sleep Forever” as well as some favorites from previously released albums. “The Sun” and “People Say” from the 2009 album The Satanic Satanist, and “1989” and “Lay Me Back Down” from the 2008 release Censored Colors. Though they don’t claim to be a political band, many of their songs contain unmistakable social commentary. The song “People Say”, for example, has obvious cultural implications and, along with “The Sun,” received one of the best crowd responses at the Jefferson.
People Say:
Save me, I can’t be saved, I won’t.
I’m a president’s son, I don’t need no soul.
All the soldiers say
“It’ll be alright.
We may make it through the war
if we make it through the night.”
All the people, they say:
“What a lovely day, yeah, we won the war.
May have lost a million men but we got a million more.”
All the people, they say.
Portugal. The Man is based in Portland, Oregon and features John Gourley, Jason Sechrist, Ryan Neighbors, Zachary Carothers, and Noah Gersh. Gourley and Carothers were born and raised in Wasilla, Alaska (the same town Sarah Palin has made famous, though if there is any doubt about PTM’s political views, Gourley posted a blog in 2008 entitled “Palin, Because We Don’t Need It”). Founded by John Gourley and Zachary Carouthers, PTM has released its sixth album in July of this year, In the Mountains in the Clouds. The band recently made their national television debut on Conan O’Brien in September and are continuing their tour across the United States and Europe.
Alberta Cross opened the show with their own musical talents. The perfect group to complement Portugal. The Man, Alberta Cross is based in New York, though both founding members hail from Europe. They were energetic and electric, and played songs with titles like “Rise from the Shadows,” “Atx,” and “Money for the Weekend.” Alberta Cross was founded by Petter Ericson Stakee and Terry Wolfers, and recently released their third album in September of this year, The Rolling Thunder EP. They will continue on tour with Portugal. The Man.
