The X-Ray Cafe was a small music venue in

Portland Portland most commonly refers to: *Portland, Oregon, the most populous city in the U.S. state of Oregon *Portland, Maine, the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maine *Isle of Portland, a tied island in the English Channel Portland may also r ...

Oregon Oregon ( , ) is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is a part of the Western U.S., with the Columbia River delineating much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while t ...

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

from 1990 to 1994. An all-ages and community-oriented club, the X-Ray played a "heavyweight role in shaping Portland's

underground culture Underground culture, or simply underground, is a term to describe various alternative cultures which either consider themselves different from the mainstream of society and culture, or are considered so by others. The word "underground" is used ...

", fostering such musical acts as

The Dandy Warhols The Dandy Warhols are an American psychedelic rock, psychedelic/ band, formed in Portland, Oregon, Portland, Oregon, in 1994 by singer-guitarist Courtney Taylor-Taylor and guitarist Peter Holmström. They were later joined by keyboardist Zia Mc ...

Dead Moon Dead Moon was an American rock band formed in 1987 in Portland, Oregon. The band consisted of singer/guitarist Fred Cole, singer/bassist Toody Cole and drummer Andrew Loomis. Dead Moon initially disbanded in 2006, before reuniting in 2014 and ...

Elliott Smith Steven Paul Smith (August 6, 1969 – October 21, 2003), known as Elliott Smith, was an American musician and singer-songwriter. He was born in Omaha, Nebraska, raised primarily in Texas, and lived much of his life in Portland, Oregon, whe ...

Team Dresch Team Dresch is an American punk rock band originally formed in 1993 in Olympia, Washington. History In 1993, Donna Dresch formed Team Dresch with herself playing guitar and bass, Jody Bleyle on guitar and vocals, Kaia Wilson on guitar and voc ...

, and

Quasi ''Quasi'' may refer to: *Quasi (band), American indie rock band * ''Quasi'' (film), 2023 American film *Quasi, a musical term meaning "almost" * ''Quasi'' (fly), a genus of insect * ''Quasi'' (sculpture), an artwork in Wellington, New Zealand *"Q ...

, and hosted national acts like Bikini Kill and Green Day and was described by '' Details'' as one of the best

rock and roll Rock and roll (often written as rock & roll, rock-n-roll, and rock 'n' roll) is a Genre (music), genre of popular music that evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s. It Origins of rock and roll, originated from African ...

clubs in the country. Located at 214 W. Burnside St., it was characterized by a surreal environment and performers; owners Tres Shannon and Benjamin Arthur Ellis, who took over the U.F.O Cafe to establish the X-Ray and were in the band The Kurtz Project, encouraged acts that featured instruments that aren't typically associated with rock music, like Big Daddy Meatstraw, who performed on stage in clown costumes. As

grunge Grunge (sometimes referred to as the Seattle sound) is an alternative rock Music genre, genre and subculture that emerged during the in the U.S. state of Washington (state), Washington, particularly in Seattle and Music of Olympia, Washington, O ...

and

alternative music Alternative music may refer to the following types of music: *Independent music *Alternative rock *Alternative pop *Alternative R&B *Neo soul, sometimes known as alternative soul *Alternative reggaeton *Alternative hip hop *Alternative dance *Alter ...

were emerging in Portland and Seattle under a national spotlight, the X-Ray served as an important stage for smaller acts in the genre, and along with nearby Satyricon nightclub, established Portland as an important regional performing destination for touring bands. The X-Ray was in operation from 1990 to 1994. An archival recording of the

concert on X-Ray's closing night, August 16, 1994, was released by Voodoo Doughnut Recordings. A few songs into an already cathartic set, marked by the themes of an ending epoch and an inevitable changing-of-the-guards, singer and bassist Toody Cole remarks to the crowd, "What a way to see the old girl go!" The old girl is both the venue–the widely venerated, black velvet painting-decorated X-Ray Cafe and the community it created. The club is the subject of a 2000 documentary, "X-Ray Visions," directed by former owner Ellis. Owner Richard "Tres" Shannon III has remained a prominent figure in Portland. He booked music for neighboring club Berbati's Pan, and later opened

Voodoo Doughnut Voodoo Doughnut is an American doughnut company established in 2003 in Portland, Oregon with various chain store locations around the United States. History Voodoo Doughnut was founded in May 2003 by Kenneth "Cat Daddy" Pogson and Richard "T ...

. He has also run for

Mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a Municipal corporation, municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilitie ...

of Portland and

City Council A municipal council is the legislative body of a municipality or local government area. Depending on the location and classification of the municipality it may be known as a city council, town council, town board, community council, borough counc ...

, and founded the innovative

karaoke is a type of interactive entertainment system usually offered in nightclubs and bars, where people sing along to pre-recorded accompaniment using a microphone. Its musical content is an instrumental rendition of a well-known popular song. I ...

band Karaoke from Hell. The X-Ray Cafe was the site of a small but controversial riot in 1993.

References

External links

* Oregon Encyclopedia article: http://www.oregonencyclopedia.org/articles/x_ray_cafe/ {{Old Town Chinatown, Portland, Oregon 1990 establishments in Oregon 1994 disestablishments in Oregon Defunct music venues in Portland, Oregon Defunct nightclubs in Portland, Oregon Old Town Chinatown Southwest Portland, Oregon

See also

References

External links