PORTLAND

GOP runners for federal office get squirrely; Dems and independents share answers
Dodge, duck, dip, dive, and dodge - BY JEFF INGLIS

Portland’s three Democratic state house primaries

The race to race again
Many Portland Democrats will have local legislative races to vote in during June 12's primary election, in addition to the top-billed US Senate races.

By: DEIRDRE FULTON | May 30, 2012

Meeting ‘Strangers’ at Fryeburg’s Pace Galleries

The facts of figures
Fittingly set in Fryeburg Academy's still relatively unknown Pace Galleries — a lovely showroom built on the annex of the school's Performing Arts Center in 2009 — "Strangers and Others" is a complex, mysterious, and densely packed assembly of figurative works.

By: NICHOLAS SCHROEDER | May 30, 2012

Dar Williams goes Greek

Modern mythology
Like the spinners of ancient myth, singer-songwriter Dar Williams has long used storytelling as a way to interpret the world around her.

By: DEIRDRE FULTON | May 30, 2012

The soothing sounds of I Am a Tidal Wave

Built to chill
You could infer a good bit of ego from a title like I Am a Tidal Wave , the debut release from Builder of the House. I am a force of nature. I am a really big deal. Pay attention!

By: SAM PFEIFLE | May 30, 2012

Over the hills and far away

Wax Tablet
Old pal MARIE MORESHEAD has since flown on to Los Angeles, but you can hear a five-track document of her travels in a new recording of gently melodic, modern folk-pop.

By: PORTLAND PHOENIX MUSIC STAFF | May 30, 2012

We see fish cakes in your future

A surprising prediction
We love our fish cakes in Maine. They're usually a mixture of breadcrumbs, egg, seafood, and parsley, formed into cylinders and deep-fried.

By: LINDSAY STERLING | May 30, 2012

Celestial Update

This brief transit
Back in the 18th century, observing the Transit of Venus took a ridiculous amount of effort, involving ships, draft animals, wagons with wooden wheels, and telescopes made by the best optics engineer in the world. Today — say it with me — there's an app for that.

By: JEFF INGLIS | May 30, 2012

Not your kind of people

Politics + Other Mistakes
If you're an independent, you know that one of the advantages of not belonging to a political party is that you don't have to help choose the US Senate nominees for the Republicans and Democrats from a list of retreads, reactionaries, rejects, and rectums.

By: AL DIAMON | May 30, 2012

In post-drinking death, is anyone responsible?

Summer in the City
Conflicting reports about why exactly Nathan Bihlmaier was asked to leave RiRa on the night of May 19 — whether he was drunk, whether he was behaving inappropriately toward another patron, or whether he stumbled over some musical equipment — leave questions about responsibility on nights out in the Old Port.

By: CHELSEA COOK AND JEFF INGLIS | May 30, 2012

Does saving bureaucracy equal saving the environment?

Letters to the Portland Phoenix editors, June 1, 2012
Lance Tapley's article, "Lawmakers Mostly Stand Up Against Environmental Assault" (May 25) claims that Natural Resources Committee (NRC) Chair, Senator Tom Saviello, may have saved Maine's environment this session.

By: PORTLAND PHOENIX LETTERS | May 30, 2012

Ask questions

Press Releases
Portland residents concerned about the drowning death of Nathan Bihlmaier saw the advantage of having competing news organizations last week, and may yet continue benefiting from this as the investigation continues.

By: JEFF INGLIS | May 30, 2012

Drone update!

Toontime
Get pumped.

By: MATT BORS | May 30, 2012

Review: Chernobyl Diaries

Tried and true formula
More akin to a meander through a haunted house than a fulfilling feature film, the latest work from Paranormal Activity auteur Oren Peli (he produces, Bradley Parker directs) relies on his tried-and-true formula of favoring atmospheric terror over visceral scares.

By: JAKE MULLIGAN | May 29, 2012

Pomegranates | Heaven

Modern Outsider
Although the songs on Heaven might not be uniformly good, the Cincinnati-based Pomegranates bring the charm via killer guitar sounds, creative keyboards, and the girlish vocals of twin tenors Isaac Karns and Joey Cook (whose lighter-than-air musings buoy this collection).

By: JONATHAN DONALDSON | May 29, 2012