Apparently there have been a few artists coming out of Colorado, which is in my neck of the woods, that have had had some measure of popularity.  One Republic, The Fray, The Lumineers, and Nathaniel Rateliff and the Night Sweats.
 
Thing is, I don't like any of these guys. They all just bore me to tears.
 
I was wondering, who else lives somewhere where the hometown heroes are kind of weak?

Portland is notorious for hometown heroes, experts at playing crazy eights. We all know pop music is a game of poke-her...no? :D:D  We've had:  Quarterflash, New SHooz,  The Decembrists, and who can forget Pink Martini.    What I can't stand  is the notion that all creativity is created equal...that all music is good music, all expression is worth doing.  Most of the time I'm thinkin *why'd they even bother?*.  We have some awesome chamber groups, and some amateur symphonies that I like better than the oregon symphony (mostly because their repertoire is more interesting to me).  The Portland Baroque Orchestra is berry, berry nice.  I guess in order to refine the gold you have to siphon off the dross.  Portland has an awful lot of dross.  That's not true in the recording world though, there's some incredible recording engineers that live here.  
 
 
* Those who lavish gold from the purse And weigh silver on the scale Hire a goldsmith, and he makes it into a god; They bow down, indeed they worship it.*<isaiah>
 
Until recently, the classical guitar scene here was awful.  There's been some recent arrivals and some recent departures.  *It's all good, right on, all right*

This place is awash with dull tones.
Acoustic guitars and socialism.
 
Makes for slam hits today.
 
 

The town where I currently live is the birth place of Ronnie James Dio. Locally, he's known for screwing over a local music store for thousands before leaving for California.
 
Next up would be probably be Dave "Rock" Fienstien of the Rods. I played golf with him last week. A nice humble guy.

Going back away we had Wishbone Ash, and they were pretty good!!!

These days Muse is the only (almost) local band in the big time I am afraid I just can't get into them.

eph221
Portland is notorious for hometown heroes, experts at playing crazy eights. We all know pop music is a game of poke-her...no? :
...
 

I had a conversation once with one of the folks at the Symphony in Portland and he was complaining about the lack of attendance to the shows. I told him to get someone that is bold and not afraid to do serious music, and stop using cardboard versions of the same thing, with Fink Lardini as some idea of "fun" and "classic" music. I even suggested they try some Frank Zappa, to which he immediately replied ... "That is not music. That is crap."
 
I immediately told him that he would never get a new audience with that attitude. They still do not sell out, and continue hurting for funding! I think we need to have a few of those old farts dismissed from their jobs. They think they are "American TV" and that they have the right to choose what you hear and MUST listen to and see, to show that they know "culture" and "music" and all of us don't.
 
The same happened at the Mt Hood jazz festival that has some nice folks, but in general, they are all "traditionalists" in the jazz form. So 20 years ago, I said, why don't they try to bring in some REAL ECM folks? Five years ago, they brought one or two of them, and I had never heard them before, and did not know who they were, and promptly missed them, only to find out a year later where they came from.
 
Portland is not a "music" town. Portland is a "hit" town. And my favorite take, about how hip this town is, is very simple ... it's so hip and with it, that "Return to Forever" (with Jean Luc Ponty on top of it!) played in Eugene, not in Portland. That ought to tell you how stupid and controlled the arts are in Portland, and how so far out of date they are. Ohhh, let's do a Kingsmen benefit Zink Darlini!
 
That's culture.
 
But the baratas come out once in a while, even though they are always hidden. The first MAGMA show here was a sell out, and the 2nd was apparently just as big, but I could not make it, as I was not feeling well.
 
Go figure!
 
Steven Wilson always stops here. I'm told is the micro brews that he stops for, not the shows!

Moshkito
Portland is a "hit" town. 

Looks like you've got one letter off there Pedro!

Coincidentally, just this last Wednesday I found out a) who The Fray are and b) that they are from Colorado.
 
This information came to me via the Colorado Department of Tourism, in a promotional film shown at the Red Rocks visitor center. Tellingly, the propaganda piece bragged about restaurants, breweries and fossil beds but did not even hint that there might be any venues for live music other than the famous amphitheater. 
 
I did not find any live music while I was in town. I did pick up some cool fossils, however.
 
 

Moshkito

eph221
Portland is notorious for hometown heroes, experts at playing crazy eights. We all know pop music is a game of poke-her...no? :
...
 

I had a conversation once with one of the folks at the Symphony in Portland and he was complaining about the lack of attendance to the shows. I told him to get someone that is bold and not afraid to do serious music, and stop using cardboard versions of the same thing, with Fink Lardini as some idea of "fun" and "classic" music. I even suggested they try some Frank Zappa, to which he immediately replied ... "That is not music. That is crap."
 
I immediately told him that he would never get a new audience with that attitude. They still do not sell out, and continue hurting for funding! I think we need to have a few of those old farts dismissed from their jobs. They think they are "American TV" and that they have the right to choose what you hear and MUST listen to and see, to show that they know "culture" and "music" and all of us don't.
 
The same happened at the Mt Hood jazz festival that has some nice folks, but in general, they are all "traditionalists" in the jazz form. So 20 years ago, I said, why don't they try to bring in some REAL ECM folks? Five years ago, they brought one or two of them, and I had never heard them before, and did not know who they were, and promptly missed them, only to find out a year later where they came from.
 
Portland is not a "music" town. Portland is a "hit" town. And my favorite take, about how hip this town is, is very simple ... it's so hip and with it, that "Return to Forever" (with Jean Luc Ponty on top of it!) played in Eugene, not in Portland. That ought to tell you how stupid and controlled the arts are in Portland, and how so far out of date they are. Ohhh, let's do a Kingsmen benefit Zink Darlini!
 
That's culture.
 
But the baratas come out once in a while, even though they are always hidden. The first MAGMA show here was a sell out, and the 2nd was apparently just as big, but I could not make it, as I was not feeling well.
 
Go figure!
 
Steven Wilson always stops here. I'm told is the micro brews that he stops for, not the shows!

Pedro,
 
That's a really interesting distinction:  hits versus music proper.  Can I borrow that sometime?!:D:D  The distinction I make is entertainment verus...something more, I guess.  I'm hardly a snob, and I love to be entertained now and then.  I love it when they have to hop instead of me.  I've often looked at most of the quadrivium as *entertainment* much to the disgust of the others at school.  :D:D  Everything's math to me...Craig's right.

Mosh is still working on the third part of the trivium, don't confuse him!