About
Hey there. Welcome to Is This Real? a newsletter covering the Portland music scene. Expect feature stories about the artists making noise today and those that have done so in the past, as well as reviews of new releases and live performances. The whole thing is overseen by myself, Robert Ham. I'm a arts/culture journalist and critic that has been working regularly as a freelancer for the better part of 20 years. You may have read my words in the pages of Rolling Stone, Pitchfork, SPIN, DownBeat, Variety, and many more publications. Here are some samples of my work:
Women's Beat League Wants to Close Electronic Music's Gender Gap, One Synth Class At a Time
Bauhaus Kick Off 2022 Tour in Portland With Chaotic, Thrilling Performance
The Resilience of Other Minds 25
Can the People Wanting to Bring Major League Baseball to Portland Succeed Where Others Have Failed?
A Vancouver Music Company Tried to Release New Music from Prince. It Didn’t Go So Good.
There will be absolutely no AI used in the production of this newsletter. I don't want it. You don't want it. We can all safely live without it.