First and foremost.. we have ourselves some shows on the ol' horizon...

Most of them are with our favorite band-of-the-moment.. the amazing PAPERCUTS.

if you haven't done so already.. you should go buy their amazing new album!!

For these shows.. we'll have a few new players with us for the first time.........

introducting>>>>>>

Tyson Vogel of TWO GALLANTS  on drums

AND

Gram Lebron of ROGUE WAVE on guitar and all sorts of other things.

Here are the links to order pre-sale tickets for some of the shows.. along with the flier

designed by our own Ryan Stively.  

Portland /// Seattle /// SF /// LA /// SLO ON THE RECORDING FRONT....
we are nearly done with our follow up to ALL WE COULD DO WAS SING.  we recorded some in sacramento, some in san francisco, and some in los angeles.  jason quever of aforementioned papercuts fame produced in sac and sf.. while aaron espinoza of earlimart produced in los angeles.. the record should be out this year.. in the fall.. everywhere!  we are beyond excited about it!!!!!!!!!! and can't wait for YOU to hear it!

love love love, van

heyoooooooo!

we are oh-so-pleased to announce our 5th trip to the great european continent.. its all going down in august.. there will still be a few dates scattered in.. but here's how its looking so far:

8/14 - haldern pop festival - HALDERN, GERMANY

8/16 - summer sundae weekender - LEICESTER, ENGLAND

8/18 - borderline - LONDON, ENGLAND

8/20 - pukkelpop festival - KIEWIT, BELGIUM w/ 50 cent!!! (and wilco) [seriously.]

8/21 - highfield festival - ERFURT, GERMANY w/ the offspring!!! (and wilco) [yep.]

8/22 - frequency festival - ST. POLTEN, AUSTRIA w/ AFI!!! (and radiohead, and m.i.a.) [roger, roger]

8/24 - noorderzon festival - GRONINGEN, HOLLAND

8/25 - tivoli - UTRECHT, HOLLAND

most of these are festivals.. but there are two headlining non-festival shows in there so far.. to buy tickets for those follow the links below:

Borderline, London

Tivoli, Utrecht

We are busy at work on our next full length album. The album is being recorded by Jason Quever. We are taking a brief break from playing shows, but we will be back on the road early this summer. Stay tuned for dates (coming soon!) and more album news! Love, us

Hey yo!!!

Our new recording "The Whiskey Song" is now up on the player.  It is one of the two new songs (along with "Is This Really What Its Come To?") that are on our new single.  The single is available on vinyl 7" (ltd edition colored vinyl!!!).. and digitally from iTunes and most other digital distributors.

Click HERE to buy it on iTunes for only $1.98!

Click HERE to order the vinyl directly from us.


In other news, our Noise Pop show this Friday is all sold out.. Thanks to all who've bought tickets.  A lot of folks have been writing about how to get in.. If you have a Noise Pop badge, you should certainly be able to get in.  There also may be a few tickets at the door.. so just come.. and I have a good feeling about you getting in.  You feel me?


Also.. we have our official mailing list up and raining.. to join.. do this old thing:
GIVE US YOUR EMAIL, YO.
....

Heyoooo!!!
Our new single Winter comes out today on iTunes and most other digital distributors.  Its the first in our series of season-themed singles this year.  It contains "The Whiskey Song" and "Is This Really What Its Come To?"  Go to the link below to buy it now.. for only $1.98!!!
http://www.itunes.com/portobrien/winter
We are in the studio right now.. working on our next full-length album.  Day #2 of work is today... Working at the Hangar in Sacramento with Jason Quever.
 
more soon..
love, van

We just got back from our first tour of Australia.. and it was so radical.  The crowds were amazing, the food was amazing, the animals were amazing.. Here are some pictures from our adventure....

Kanga jerky from a Fiji airport, anyone?



Airplane breakfast, anyone?



At our hotel in Brisbane, Ryan scanning the air for some creepy sounds on his short-wave radio...



The boys at the Dew Process office.



Graham, the Dude of Dew Process.



NO FURBIES ALLOWED!!!



The obligatory kangaroo photos:









We went to Phillip Island on our day off, and saw some amazing penguins.. Look at that little penguin!!!!!!!!!!!!  Don't you want to grab it?





We took 9 flights in 10 days.. We got tired of the process, for sure.



But, we did get to see this guy.  The worst (or, best) haircut ever.



Bananas!!!! HAHAHAHAHAHAH.



Ryan on the beach on West Coast.. Fremantle.. The Indian Ocean (!!!!).



We attempted to "body surf" in the warm water, bro.





The sand...



I'll have a Zeb on the rocks. HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH.



Band photo time!! OMG!!!!



The Australia Hero, Bon Scott of AC/DC.



Possibly the cutest photo of all time, Sadie the koala, kissing Cambria.



They sleep 20 hours a day!!!!!!!



They are everywhere!!!!!



The opposite of the koala photo above.  This is possibly the grossest photo ever taken:



Our tour manager and sound dude, the amazing Richie Robinson.



HUUUUGGGGEEEE fruit bats waiting to fly away at night.



The night before we left, Sydney.




we hope to get back there soon!
love, van

On Feb 17th, Port O'Brien will launch the first in a series of single releases that will coincide with each season. The first single, aptly titled "Winter", will be double A Sided with the following tracklisting

1. The Whiskey Song
2. Is This Really What Its Come To?

This is a new version of both songs, recorded with Jason Quever in San Francisco this past Fall.

A Pre-Order is coming soon. So check back often as it will be up anyday.

Although the seasons aren't very well defined on the coast of California, they have always greatly influenced our lives. The annual summer migration to Alaska in search of money, the readjusting months that Autumn become, the nostalgic nature of Winter, and the search for stability in the face of Spring. We decided to release a 7" single for each season of 2009 to document these different times. "The Whiskey Song" acts as a proper introduction to the project, but also fully embodies the spirit of Winter, a time for reflecting on the past year while pondering the implications of the next.

Look for More Tourdates coming soon.

Love,
POB

hey ooooooo...  we have a lot of exciting dates coming up.

we leave tomorrow to australia!  its our first time there.. and we are so excited!!

1. AUSTRALIA:
    We are only playing 7 shows over there.  5 of them are with the Laneway Festival.. to get tickets for the festival.. and all the info click here. 
We are also playing 2 headline shows.. and there are limited tickets still available for both..
Feb 3 - Melbourne @ the Northcote Social Club.. opening is Spiral Stairs (ex-Pavement!).. tickets here
Feb 4 - Sydney @ the Manning Bar - tickets here

2. M. WARD
We are playing 3 shows with M. Ward in early March.. some tickets are still available for 2 of the 3 shows...
March 6 - Seattle @ the Showbox.. tickets here
March 7 - Portland @ Alladin Theater.. SOLD OUT
March 8 - Portland @ Alladin Theater.. tickets here.

3. NOISE POP 2009:
We are headlining Cafe du Nord on February 27th in SF for Noise Pop 2009.. some tickets still available here.



Thanks yall! hope to see you soon..
love, van

Hello friends,

Its been a hard year for us so far. 

Cambria's little brother Darac was killed in a car accident on Sunday morning.  He was 17 years old, and was one of the best people I knew.  He was charming, hilarious, good-natured, and wise beyond his years.  Through the 7 years I knew him, he grew into an amazing man, and he will be missed so badly by everyone he knew.

His sisters Cambria and Cassandra, and his parents Dean and Christal are my second family.. and Darac will always be in our hearts. 

A memorial service will be held on Friday afternoon at 3:15 at Coast Union High School in Cambria, California on the football field.  Please send your prayers, energy, and best possible thoughts to Cambria and her family in this time of great need.

With love,
Van

Heyooooo!

Writing from a motel in Frankfurt, Germany right now.. Its freezing here!!!

Anyway.. iTunes has named "All We Could Do Was Sing" as one of the best "indie" albums of the year.. and has included it on the iTunes Best of Indie Spotlight 2008 playlist.  To celebrate the end of the year.. the album is ON SALE for 7.99!!!!  This is only for a very limited time.. so if you don't have the album.. go buy it now!  ya?  we would love your forever.

Click here to download that shit:

www.itunes.com/portobrien

 

Be on the lookout for more exciting news soon...

and if you are in germany, switzerland, or luxembourg.. maybe we will see you this week!

 

love, van