Soirée: Caitlin Jemma & the Goodness and The American West

Soirée: Caitlin Jemma & the Goodness and The American West

http://www.mcmenamins.com/events/146073-Caitlin-Jemma-The-Goodness

Caitlin Jemma is a small-town girl with a big country heart. Speaking to adventure, self-discovery, and ancestry, her songwriting reflects roots in the Sierra Nevada Mountains and the Pacific Northwest. Together as a five piece string band from Eugene, Oregon, Caitlin Jemma & The Goodness perform original tunes that are influenced by tradition and delivered with soul. With music that is sung from the heart, inspired by nature, and yearns for the simple life, Caitlin Jemma & The Goodness bring a wholesome and enlivened energy to the deep rooted traditions of storytelling folk.

Portland, Oregon's The American West is an upright bass and guitar duo, combining desert noir, folk, and indie-rock, birthing their self-described "post-americana," or as songwriter Matthew Zeltzer calls it, "Americana without the handclaps." Driven by his poignant lyrics and soul-wrenching voice, songwriter Matthew Zeltzer blends influences as diverse as John Steinbeck and Cormac McCarthy, as well as Neil Young and Wilco to build a sound that harkens back to early American music, while facing modernity square in the face.

Following the success of his 2011 EP, "Desert Tortoise," and a brief phone conversation with Hulk Hogan (true story), Zeltzer is currently self-producing a new EP with help from Drew Allsbrook (Ryan Adams, The Mars Volta). Zeltzer spent most of 2014 touring the west coast, highlighted by a residency at McMenamin's Al's Den in Portland, Or, and tours with LA songwriter Jaime Wyatt, the McCoy Tyler Band, and Frankie Boots and the County Line during their 2014 Megatour, and a stint as Fantastic Negrito's (NPR Tiny Desk Contest winner) lead guitarist.