The Local's Bin: A Central Oregon Music Playlist for Troubled Times

The music scene is hurting right now. For fans, sure. We aren't able to go out and see shows. But for artists, bands and venues, the struggle is much more acute. Touring and playing concerts are a giant part of a musician's livelihood, and right now that's not an option.


One thing listeners can do to help ease this period on artists is buy and stream their music. I say "buy first" because that is always the better option. But times are tough right now, and if you can't spare some bucks on buying a new album, we made a playlist of local artists so you can instead play their music for hours while you're practicing social distancing. (Editor's note: Artists will make a small sum from the streaming service. We've elected to create a playlist for local artists specifically because it's going to benefit them in some way. If the playlist didn't involve something going to artists—even if it's a small amount—we wouldn't be doing it.)

This playlist is something we plan to keep running continuously and will update as your favorite local bands release new music. Right now we have 20 featured songs from 20 different Central Oregon artists on the playlist as a start, so feel free to comment songs you'd like to see added on there.

However, if you can buy some tunes, I recommend doing so this Friday on Bandcamp. From midnight to midnight on March 20 the music hosting site and publication will waive its revenue shares. One whole day of full music sales can go a long way to artists as we proceed through this COVID-19 pandemic.

Check out the playlist below and please let us know what you'd like to see on here. For now, it's time to jam.



See all our Coronavirus coverage on our Coronavirus HQ page.