Portland, Portland

Portland is the Belgian dream pop band around Jente Pironet, known for its melancholic beauty and lush soundscapes. After his breakthrough with the albums Your Colours Will Stain (2019) and Departures (2023) and various passages along, among others, Rock Werchter and Pukkelpop, Jente Pironet ended up in a turbulent period in the summer of 2023. He was forced to fight a fierce battle against the big C for half a year, which will be a lasting fight. 2024 began with renewed hope. Pironet was allowed to receive the MIA ‘Alternative’ and a triumphant return to sold-out halls followed. The new album Champain (2025) openly carries the scars of those difficult years, but at the same time expresses an indomitable zest for life. It reads like a completely honest travel diary of a wandering soul, from stage to hospital to writing desk and back. About falling—hard and deep—and getting back up. About hoping and stubbornly persevering. And you can hear that: Portland has never sounded as energetic, mature, and rich as on his new record. De Standaard: “Resilience is naturally a theme, the band sounds a lot more energetic than before as a result. It does Pironet credit that he voices the commuting between hope and despair so cautiously and at the same time devastatingly.” VRT NWS: “The more cheerful songs with prominent guitars and drums alternate nicely with subdued, classic Portland work.” OOR: “We hear festival anthems, but also fragile subdued pieces on piano or lo-fi with guitar.” Atwood Magazine: “Like the best of Arcade Fire, The Killers, or Broken Social Scene, Portland fuse grandeur with intimacy, turning personal catharsis into communal release. Their music invites us to dance and to feel, to sing and to heal.” Album: https://portland.ffm.to/champainalbum www.portlandofficial.com www.Instagram.com/portlandsounds www.linktr.ee/portlandsounds © photo Titus Simoens