Portland singers descend on Spokane

What is it about Portland’s indie-folksters, rural retreats and marching bands?

A pair of distinctly experimental Portland singer-songwriter types head to town in the form of Laura Gibson and Robert Wynia this week.

Both are notable for their off-kilter indie projects. And both have new albums in tow that feature various instruments including, coincidentally, marching band percussion.

Both Gibson and Wynia arrive this weekend at The A Club, 416 W. Sprague Ave.

Laura Gibson with Vagabonds

When, where: Tonight at 7 at The A Club.

Tickets: $10, through www.aclubspokane.com

For Laura Gibson’s 2012 studio set, the Portland multi-instrumentalist and songstress sought the inspiration of the small town of La Grande, in the eastern corner of her home state of Oregon.

Taking self-exiled excursions to La Grande while writing the album, Gibson was so impressed by the transitory nature of the town – a sort of constant stream of people passing through, just like she had been – that themes of journeying to unfamiliar terrain seeped out into songs so much that it became the title of the record.

“La Grande,” is an extreme departure from Gibson’s 2009 set, “Beasts.” Where “Beasts” was saddled in tranquilizing meditations and subtle instrumental grace, “La Grande” finds Gibson exploring high contrast concepts with unabashed zeal.

In between getting grimy while turning a 1962 Shasta trailer into a makeshift studio/private writing space, Gibson took her first crack at steering the production on “La Grande,” layering as many as 15 vocal overdubs on one track.

Gibson also recruited the help of several of her collaborators to enhance the album’s cross-genre appeal, including producer Adam Seltzer (M Ward, Norfolk and Western), guitarist Joey Burns (Calexico), clarinetist Jilly Coykendall, drumming duo Rachel Blumberg and Matt Berger, along with members of The Decemberists.

But don’t let the list of guests give off the wrong idea. “La Grande” centers around Gibson, who picks up various instruments throughout the course of the record, including bass, guitar, piano, pump organ, vibraphone, synthesizer, marimba, even a marching drum.

And still, it’s Gibson’s signature voice that stands out in the midst of a swirling score of capricious melodies and whimsical rhythms.

Robert Wynia with Mark Shurtz and Tommy G

When, where: Saturday at The A Club.

Cost: $10

As the front man of Floater, Robert Wynia is well-known for hi-octane progressive rock that is equal parts intensity and complexity.

But Wynia is also making a name for himself as he indulges his mellower side as a solo acoustic act.

Although it’s a bit of a stretch to call Wynia a solo act as he, like Gibson, recruited enough guests to perform on his 2011 solo debut that “Iron By Water” sounds like it was made by a supergroup. The record contains a myriad of instruments, including brass and strings sections, keys, and guitars, but he one-ups Gibson by bringing in an entire marching band drum corps.

And while Gibson uses her voice to keep the massive instrumentation from stealing the show, Wynia’s hefty album production is grounded in the intimacy of lyrics that were inspired by trips to remote corners of Idaho.

In the end, both Wynia and Gibson managed to escape from Portland to small towns to make big sounds on their latest records, and somehow their separate journeys to rural America led them to the beat of a marching band.