The Oregon Coast is a beautiful place, with an enjoyably somber air to it for majority of the year. Now that summer is coming to an end, there's one more opportunity to enjoy the coast at its brightest. 

In its inaugural year, StackStock Music Festival takes some of the most popular and pleasant artists coming out of the Pacific Northwest and stages them in Cannon Beach, backdropped by rolling ocean waves at the Haystack Gardens.

Coming from hospitality company owner Ryan Snyder, StackStock's sole purpose is to "bring rock to the town with the rock" and that, he's done well. In collaboration with Live Wire! Radio's Kate Sokoloff and local booker Alicia J. Rose, the trio nabbed some in town favorites like the choral pop of Ages and Ages, harmonic folk from duo Wonderly and some latin-influenced guitar sounds from the Edna Vazquez Acoustic Trio. A dream pop flare will come from Pure Bathing Culture along with some pretty rocking folk ballads from a solo headlining set from Colin Meloy, the lead singer of The Decemberists. An interactive pop set from the OK Chorale PDX will get the festival crowd going as well.

"The North Coast of Oregon is not really on the tour schedule for big name touring acts like Colin Meloy or Pure Bathing Culture," says Snyder. "STACKSTOCK is my way of sharing this incredibly unique music with the community here and our visitors alike."

Saturday's StackStock runs from 1-9pm. Advance sale tickets are $40 and $50 the day of. For directions, ticket purchasing and more information, head to www.STACKSTOCKFEST.com.

*photo by Reed Ricker

Conceptually speaking, the basis of Barra Brown's Poem Project is something to pay much attention to. Coming out on Cavity Search next month, Poem Project takes Barra Brown's single "Poem" and sees it interpreted by eight different musicians from across the country. From members of groups like Ages and Ages, The Shins and Radiation City among others, Poem Project's participating artists breathe new life into an already amazing song.

Under a set of specific parameters, each artist was allowed to play with the original structure of the song while providing their own lyrics as part of the transformation. The one of particular focus today is from Los Angeles folk musician Gregory Uhlmann, who produced the softly intimate folk of "Poem No. 8: The Thread." Uhlmann's orchestration has made for a beautifully minimal track, led by rich vocals and slow, warm instrumentation.

Listen to "Poem No. 8: The Thread" below and be on the lookout for Poem Project's release April 7.