Portland’s living room, Pioneer Courthouse Square, hosts another PDX Live concert series

Published 12:15 am Sunday, August 6, 2023

Bright lights, great sounds, excited people, food carts and adult beverages and good vibes return to Pioneer Courthouse Square, smack in the middle of a city that could use a shot of positive fun.

PDX Live, the concert series, came off as a resounding success in its inaugural year at Pioneer Courthouse Square in 2022, and comes back with a lineup of shows in August. Some 3,000 people will show up for the evening concerts, which start Aug. 9 with The Mountain Goats and Blitzen Trapper — so, with 10 nights schedule, that’s about 30,000 people downtown taking in outdoor live music at night in the heart of the city.

True West again serves as the promoter.

“Overwhelming positive response,” said Theresa Vetsch-Sandoval, the square’s director of marketing, of the 2022 PDX Live. “The bands enjoy playing at the square, it’s not like any other venue they play at.

“True West did a really wonderful job of creating such a great lineup.”

Last year, the series encompassed parts of three summer months. This year, it was consolidated to just August, which seemed a good time for bands to swing through Portland for the outdoor shows.

There will be enhanced security for the fenced-in, gated and ticketed shows. Downtown Portland has suffered from its share of ugly incidents and scenery, but square personnel, True West and partners have worked to insulate concert-goers. There’ll be metal detectors at entry and only clear bags allowed.

“We’ve had communications all the way up the flag pole (meaning to the mayor’s office),” Vetsch-Sandoval said.

“We’re all just really excited for it to kick off and be a success like it was last year.”

There was originally 11 nights of shows, but The Descendents, which had been set to perform Aug. 12 along with Dillinger Four and Mean Jeans, had to back out — they’ve been rescheduled for 2024.

The 10 shows:

Aug. 9 — The Mountain Goats, Blitzen Trapper

Aug. 10— beabadoobee (sold out)

Aug. 11 — Explosions in the Sky (sold out)

Aug. 13 — Alex G, Black Belt Eagle Scout

Aug. 15 — Patti Smith and Her Band

Aug. 16 — Tegan and Sara, Mae Martin, Deep Sea Diver

Aug. 17 — Greensky Bluegrass, The Wood Brothers

Aug. 19 — Japanese Breakfast, Built to Spill (sold out)

Aug. 22 — The Flaming Lips (sold out)

Aug. 24 — Fleet Foxes, Uwade

Of note: Blitzen Trapper is a well-known local band; beabadoobee played as an opener for some Taylor Swift concerts; Patti Smith is a legend; Tegan and Sara are a top Canadian duo; Greensky Bluegrass is a star on the bluegrass circuit.

Trevor Solomon, a Portland resident, is the talent buyer for the True West-promoted series. He worked at MusicFest NW for years, when it staged events at Pioneer Courthouse Square.

He moved back from Boston to Portland in 2019, started working for TrueWest and came up with the idea for the outdoor venue.

“Seemed like the obvious idea,” he said. “It’s getting a nice reception from the Portland community.

“Downtown has had its struggles, and Portland, coming out of a pandemic, had it rough. But, the city has a lot of life to it, it’s why they call Pioneer Square the heart of the city. People like going down there, it’s special when the magic occurs.”

Acoutics are “natural” at Pioneer Courthouse Square, because of surrounding buildings, and it’s a nice aesthetic when the courthouse across the street has its lights on, he added.

As for just shows in August, Solomon said, “Logistically it’s easier to set up once and not have to tear it down each weekend. Weather-wise, knock on wood, we think we’re pretty good … people are still out of school, there’s a summer vibe for people coming out during the week and catching shows.”

More: pdx-live.com.