Magic over logic: Ned and Wendy the Band
Glam-folk concert scheduled for Saturday at Washington Park
To bring people together in a joyful, whimsical way. That’s the goal of the people behind a glam-folk concert planned for Saturday at Washington Park Amphitheater. Called Garden Party, the event is produced by Northwest Portland musicians Lindsey and Jordan Plotner (Ned and Wendy the Band) and producer/musician Christopher Jack. Garden Party dress is encouraged.
The three friends make up the concert’s core performances, but assorted musicians and artists will lend voices and instruments.
Ned and Wendy the Band recently played the Easy Folk Fest at Portland Playhouse and are regular performers at Grandma’s Secret, a speakeasy under the restaurant Lela’s Bistro. They’re also happy to simply play their music on street corners.
The trio met at Dragonfly Coffee Shop recently to talk about Saturday’s show.
“This is the antithesis of AI,” said Jack, of the group’s approach to the event and their music, which is all original and played by unsigned musicians. “We’re anti-scene,” he stated. While they said they are aware Portland’s eastside is considered cooler with better restaurants, they couldn’t care less.
“There’s something magical in this city and it’s happening here right now,” said Jordan, who is married to Lindsey.
Ned and Wendy are the names the couple gave their cars when they lived in L.A. In Portland, the musical collaborators walk most places because fortuitous things happen that way. As they hung Garden Party posters recently, they met a woman who bought a ticket on the spot. Talking to strangers is part of the band’s poetic kind of vision, which leans toward the metaphysical.
“The concert is about music, and encouraging people to show up. I think of it less as an escape and more as an arrival. It’s absurd and playful, and there will be a tea service on stage,” Lindsey said. Chaise lounges, feinting couches and picnic blankets will fill out the stage. Special tickets are needed for the onstage seats and tea service, but there are also reduced price Oregon Trail tickets.
The three artists met at The Old Portland, the NW wine bar where Christopher works. “We talked about music, and then I went to see them play at Kelly’s Olympian,” he said. “I had to tell people to shut up so I could listen.”
When asked when he knew music would be his life’s main focus, Jordan said his father read song lyrics to him instead of bedtime stories. “I always knew there was this other language,” he said.
Just then a young man at the next table said, “I’ll listen to your music, man!” and typed it into his laptop. Before leaving, Christopher gave him a discount code for the concert.
It may be easier for musicians to practice radical kindness and empathy than others, Jordan said, since it breaks down barriers. Quoting Pete Seeger, he asked, “What good is music if you can’t be in it together?’”
Last Thursday, the band was called to step in at a free concert thrown by Friends of Couch Park. Lindsey was in the Rose Garden with friends when her phone rang and she learned that a musician scheduled to play had cut her hand and had to go to the ER. With only two hours notice, she and Jordan stepped up and saved the day.
“We used to live on 21st and Everett, and our first day in town we made our way over and found the park. It ended up being a beautiful show. So many friendly faces, a giant bubble wand, the wind was blowing just perfectly.”
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