Edward Juan is Rad

So I talk to the talented Edward Juan at Jared Mees & the Grown Children show this last week and he gave me some very interesting news. He's been in talks with Jared to direct and produce a music video for the band. Edward and a couple of his co-workers at Laika ( Coroline) will begin production as soon as May. The conception drawings are awesome and the premise just blew my mind. I am super excited about this project and with any luck I'll be able to contribute some of my own talents. You can kept update on the project here
and I for sure will be chronicling the process on this blog.


Jared Mees and the Grown Children show at Backspace photos here

It's been so long....

Hey everybody I'm so tired and crazy busy these days that I have neglected the blog. Enough excuses though. There is so much to update you on and need to just get to it!

TLE Valentines Cards
I know that its two days before good ol V Day and most of you got your honey bunches their mass produced and uninspired Hallmark cards, but consider the rad alternative you may be missing out on by not checking out the really cool designs made by creative minds such as: BT Livermore, {ad7m}, Edward Juan, Ashley Armbruster,Courtney Blazon, and Yours Truly:) You can get them online at TLE or at the TLE store on NW 18th and Lovejoy as well as local stores around Portland. You can check out the entire series here! Come on do it for the Gipper!

Crappy Indie Music the Blog and Boy Eats Drum Machine!!

So Goldie of the extremely rad music blog Crappy Indie Music contact the Mees' a while back that she wanted to feature TLE in a calendar the blog was putting out. Well after a couple of photo shoots and re-shoots our very own "Boy Eats Drum Machine" is featured not only in the calendar but is on the cover!!! ( and I took the pics!!!) Follow the link to purchase and its my understanding that the calendar will also be at the TLE store too! Check it out!!!

New Jared Mees and the Grown Children Photos!!

I had the pleasure of shooting "Jared Mess and the Grown Children" new band photos. Including their new drummer Aaron and the return of Sean on bass the group is quite an attractive assemble . It was a lot of fun and really cold. The new photos are for an upcoming tour the band will be embarking on in the upcoming months. Keep posted to the website for updates on the tour as well as a chance to see the new photos. Here is a taste:

Super XX man at Someday Lounge

Sorry kids,
I know that its been too long since I'v written but I promise more posts will be coming soon. In the mean time check out the picks from Super XX Man at Someday lounge on our flickr account

Welcome home to the Grown Children

Dear Jared and Grown Children,
How I missed you so. Yeah there are other bands out there that are just as good, but none of them capture the essence of me like you can. I am so happy for all of you and the many adventures you have had on your travels. I can't wait to hear what I am sure are many great stories of all the shinanigans you were apart of in all those other states. I have to admit I'm a little jealous I was unable to be apart of them. I hope my friend on the east coast welcomed you well and that CMJ was an event to remember. I also heard that some kids in Santa Barbara invited you to their sustainable green living boarding school where they sung along with every song you played. That is so rad. Even though I know that all the shows you've done throughout the last month will yield many wonderful fruits I have to admit I welled with pride as I watched my Grown Children make their way back up the 5 FWY, you were my kids and you were coming home. Thanks for playing a show your first night back, because I'm sure you were really tired. It was radtacular and I'm so impressd with how polished you sound ... you're sound has become more and more cohesive. So I guess I'll wrap this up, but I look forward to hanging out really soon.

Your Pal,
Portland

P.S. Here are some photos from the show at Ron Toms and there are more on Flickr.

Going A.P.E.

Oh my sweet Jesus... we had a crazy weekend. Me and fellow Bro Mountain alum Dave Nuss spent last weekend in rainy San Francisco at the ALternative Press Expo or A.P.E. We met a lot of cool people and we're super bummed that we missed talking with Jeffery Brown. We did however get to hang with our good buddy Rusty Jordan. Special thanks to Caitlyn's friend Jesse for hooking us up with a place to stay. You can check out many of the picks we took on our travels at the Flickr website.

Giant Robot is rad and it was cool that we were able to make a stop and have a look around.

Two Happy Customers!!

This guy was a Jack Chick Historian and way too into the series.... He even had a map of Chicks travels

To A.P.E!

Jared and Brianne Featured in Tuesdays Oregonian

Hi kids,
Jared and Bri, owners and operators of Tender Loving Empire and TLE home for wayward Hipsters, was approached about their position on the future of the arts and more importantly TLE in light of our current economic crisis. I got to say I was quite proud of the interview our fearless leaders gave. You can check out the article Here

Nice to Mees You

I know, I know the title is a terrible attempt at humor but what I was going for was something along the lines of Portland Mercury's "Mees so Happy" headline in last weeks issue. They were a staff pick for this weekend, and I think with good reason. Jared writes hooks...and good ones at that. None of this cookie cutter, formulated, we can sell this to tweens, kind of pop. This is the kind of music that gets stuck in your head and not in the way that makes you ashamed that you know every lyric until your falling over yourself drunk at a Karaoke bar. Rather its the kind that you remember while going through your day, the little tune that you hum to yourself while completing your mundane tasks at work and keeps a smile on your face while quenching any thoughts about "Burning this Mother to the Ground!" Jared writes in a manner that makes the ordinary seem extraordinary which in turn makes us "regular folk" bask in the glow of shooting skeet with a bottle of wild turkey, or throwing back a couple after work, or sharing a bottle of Sangria with friends. Basically doing a lot of drinking.
The Grown Children are not shabby in the least bit. The ever changing group of misfits and rabble-rousers are a cast of players well suited for their various roles. Most notable is longest running Grown Child Megan Spears. Her sultry voice and notable eye for style brings a much needed sound and sex appeal that would otherwise be dominated by the "Dude" factor that runs throughout the rest of the band. She definitely knows how to capture the crowd with her captivating stage presence that makes you feel like she is singing to you and only you. This also transfer to off stage where she makes friends with everyone that comes out to the show. The loss of Jordan Dykstra on Viola and temporarily Sean McCormick on bass have been hard to get over but I've been taking it one step at a time and with Jake Hershman (front man for "The Newspapers" ) and this guy who they tell me is named Sam have definitely stepped up to the plate and have more then filled the shoes left for them. Jakes has a great energy on stage and definitely adds some rock to Jared's roll. The CD release show was the first I have seen of Sam but I heard a lot abut him. He definitely lives up to the hype... I suppose there is room for one more Sam in the Empire, but don't get too comfortable buddy I got my eye on you. What can I say about Kevin that hasn't been said about him. As a drummer he is rad ... as a person he's awesome. nuff said.
Now that I've gushed over them the performance Saturday night was a great one and it was a lot of fun to photograph it. I only wish my damn flash didn't keep jamming. As always you can check out all the picks on our Flickr account. Check them out and pick up Jared Mess and the Grown Children's latest at our website or at our store in Nw Portland.
P.s. The Dirty Mittens played that night and I'm officially a fan!