The hardest working boy in indie rock speaks out

Woke Up Falling, Joe Davis (Pinehurst Kids,) Spyglass
The Ash Street Saloon.
Friday Nov, 16.

Gordon (Gordie) Muscutt is quite possibly the hardest working man in the world of Portland indie rock. Maybe you have heard of his former band Suplex? Currently, Muscutt is very hard at work promoting and hustling his new band Woke Up Falling.

The story begins in a small town in Oregon that is not exactly known as the land of opportunity for artists, called Lebanon. If it’s not death metal or country well then you’re not welcome. Gordon grew accustomed to beat downs aplenty from local yokels for his goofy looks and his big-minded ambition, not to mention a quick wit that doesn’t sit well with the small-town, methed-out bully faction. Rejection by the “yokels” and his daily punch to the gut has given this talented musician a tough skin, but interestingly enough, has not at all affected the little hope-filled boy that still lives in side.

This “tough skin” has given Muscutt the upper hand in the rejection-filled world of rock. Leaving the small-town mentality behind, Muscutt moved to Portland. With a renewed optimism Muscutt started his adventure as a multi-tasking rock version of Quincy Jones. Except Jones isn’t a white boy with thick glasses. Oh yeah, and Jones also doesn’t have an eighth grade beard. Then there is Jones’ pile of money that is presently absent from Muscutt’s account. OK, maybe they have no “real” similarities, but Muscutt is hard working and very talented, to say the least. He knows exactly what he wants and knows the path to get there.

“I just want to make something beautiful, that’s all,” said Muscutt about his new band. “I try looking in the mirror before each show and tell my self I am a genius, but I end up laughing at myself and then proceed to get drunk off a half bottle of Boones.” Woke Up Falling, for those who are not yet familiar, has a real knack for what they do.

What do they do, you ask? They play sparkling ballads of heartbreak and beauty; they tactfully ask the questions of life. The music, you might think, would be very quite and soft-handed. On the contrary my friends, Woke Up Falling is a wall of sound, a huge wall that makes you aware that you have internal organs that can be crushed by sound waves. With influences like Mineral, Christie Front Drive and Slowdive, you could say that Woke Up Falling falls into the genre of indie rock, but they take it to a new level. It’s beautiful music that hits you in the chest with all it’s got. Whether it’s 3 or 300 people at their live shows, Woke Up Falling lay their hearts out on the table for every one to see. This is most likely due to their attitude about what they do. “We put all our energy into the swim out, not thinking about the swim back,” Muscutt said.San Diego’s M Theory Records (Creeper Lagoon, Oranger and Mars Accelerator) saw this quality in Woke Up Falling and ran with it, releasing their debut opus Dividing Blue From Blue. Woke Up Falling toured the United States early this fall and has plans in the works to tour indefinitely later this year. “So tell me some crazy stories from the tour,” I eagerly asked Muscutt.

“Well we got to play with a whole bunch of cool bands in the Midwest like Planes Mistaken For Stars. Oh yeah, I have a real cool story for you. We were playing in Spokane, Wash. and the place was filled to capacity. The kids in Spokane go crazy for live music. After the show, as we were driving off, some crazy asshole drove me off the road. He runs up to me and I say ‘hey you’re from Portland, I know you!’ Right then, for no reason, he punched me in the face and broke my nose and glasses.”

“You’re a real magnet for bullies, aren’t you?” I asked. “Yeah I guess so.”

“The best part of the story is on the way back to Portland we found a dead coyote on the road and put it on top of the van. We found out where the guy lived, snuck into his bedroom and put the carcass in that bastard’s bed. Oh shit that felt good.”

Besides Muscutt’s occasional run in with bad luck, his band is doing very well for themselves. They have a label that believes in them, nationwide distribution, a somewhat reliable van and a band full of talented friends who also are ready to sacrifice the energy to “swim back.” To tell you the truth I would be very much surprised to see them fail. Failure would be for Woke Up Falling not to see how far they can take this adventure. They have no delusions of grandeur. Woke Up Falling loves the energy of the audience, that’s their pay off. “I love the energy of a small happy crowd! I love to be on the same level as the crowd. God I hate stages,” Muscutt said.

If you a fan of The Cure, Jimmy Eats World, Thirty Ought-Six or The Smiths you will be oh-so-pleasantly surprised by Woke Up Falling, and you too will fall in love with Woke Up Falling’s all out charm. Woke Up Falling plays the Ash Street Saloon this Friday.