The 16th annual St. Johns Bizarre returns May 10, smashing more records: 200+ vendors, 4 stages of music and new partnerships! It’s our biggest bash yet!
Portland (April 23, 2025) — Sorry, Portland. It looks like last year’s bigger-than-ever St. Johns Bizarre wasn’t quite big enough.
Because when our FREE street fair returns for its 16th year on May 10 — unofficially kicking off Portland’s summer festival season — we’re stepping things up one more time with our biggest event yet!
Our craft fair is growing again — to a record 200 local craft vendors, plus food carts and community groups — up from 180 last year. Our footprint is growing again, too, with an expanded street closure that brings in our friends at Two Rivers Books & Weird Sisters Yarn, Havalina, Bees and Beans and Wonderwood Springs, offering even more family-friendly activities and our third and fourth stages for music.
And, in another first, while you’re standing front row at the Plaza Stage, your friend who couldn’t get off work that day can tune in to XRAY.fm and listen live on the go!
Some things, of course, won’t change at all.
The St. Johns Bizarre will still take place from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m., we’ll be right in the heart of downtown St. Johns (centered around the plaza in N. Lombard and Philadelphia). The music will still be entirely free — with offerings for families and a commitment to diversity that straddles genres from hiphop to electronica to rock to punk to jazz.
And, as always, the Bizarre will wrap around the historic and beloved St. Johns Parade — another Portland favorite that’s roared back to life since the pandemic. Both the Parade and the Bizarre are all-volunteer efforts that serve to showcase the St. Johns community and business district by bringing people from all around the city to dance, shop for art, eat food and more.
This year’s musical lineup: Four stages!
Plaza Stage
Black Belt Eagle Scout, featuring Lori Goldston — 6-7 p.m.
Shabazz Palaces — 5-5:45 p.m.
Federale — 4-4:45 p.m.
Rhododendron — 3-3:45 p.m.
Family Worship Center — 2-2:45 p.m.
DJ Dirtynick (during the St. Johns Parade) — noon-2 p.m.
Family fun showcase:
Ants Ants Ants — 11 a.m.-noon
KCPuppetree — 10:45-11 a.m.
Mr. Ben — 10-10:45 a.m.
Chicago Avenue Stage
Farnell Newton & Tyrone Hendrix Project — 4:30 p.m.
Pete Krebs’ Catnip Brothers — 2 p.m.
John Street Stage
Club Deluxe — 5-6 p.m.
Jakki and the Pink Smudge — 4-4:45 pm
@tlas — 3-3:45 p.m.Twingle — 2-2:45 p.m.
DJ TBA (during the St. Johns Parade) — noon-2 p.m.
Megalith showcase:
William DeLee — 11 a.m.-noon
Patrick McCulley/Grant Pierce Duo — 10-10:45 a.m.
Wonderwood Stage
Mo Phillips — 5 p.m.
Opera on Tap — 3 p.m.
This year, we’re thrilled to announce that the incomparable Black Belt Eagle Scout — led by singer-songwriter Katherine Paul — will headline the Bizarre! The Bizarre marks Paul’s first show in Portland since experiencing serious health issues last summer and taking a hiatus from performing. We’re thrilled to host what promises to be a very special performance as she returns to the Portland stage.
She’ll be joined by a special collaborator, cellist Lori Goldston, an accomplished musician who has toured the world over a 40-year career, released 16 solo and ensemble albums, and shared the stage with many greats — including as a touring member of Nirvana. You can see and hear Goldston during their MTV Unplugged in New York performance.
It’s difficult to do justice to the lush, mesmerizing wonder of Black Belt Eagle Scout, but we really appreciated what She Shreds Magazine had to say:
“If you can imagine all of the best things that the Pacific Northwest has brought us — Mount Eerie, Grunge, Sleater-Kinney, The Girls Rock Camp, and lush mountain ranges — reimagined and told through the perspective of an Indigenous Swinomish and Iñupiaq woman; if you can imagine the magic that would bring to your life then you can imagine Black Belt Eagle Scout.”
They’ll be joined by Northwest hip-hop royalty Shabazz Palaces (Ishmael Reginald Butler, a founder of Digable Planets, in collaboration Tendai “Baba” Maraire), traveling down Interstate 5 from Seattle to bring their visionary power and mixtape sensibility to the Plaza Stage.
Portland-based ensemble Federale (led by longtime Brian Jonestown Massacre bassist Collin Hegna) will also appear, serving up their romantic brand of mid-century “spaghetti western” sauce. Check out Rhododendron, also Portland-based, and their old-school math rock and post-hardcore sounds. And we’ll all gather, appropriately, for Family Worship Center, a 12-piece powerhouse full of horns and strings.
But that’s not all — we’ll have a bevy of other local acts playing all through the day, including rowdy rock three-piece Club Deluxe, the endlessly inventive Jakki and the Pink Smudge, the mellifluously hazy sounds of @tlas, and St. Johns’ very own art-rock stalwarts Twingle.
As part of our expanded offerings this year, our friends at Havalina will host Northwest rock legend Pete Krebs and jazz icon Farnell Newton up on the north end of our street closure.
In addition, local promoters Megalith will kick off the day on our John Street Stage with a special showcase featuring acoustic guitarist William DeLee (listed among Willamette Week’s local artists to watch in 2025) and Patrick McCulley, a saxophonist and composer who pushes the boundaries of his instrument, joined by drummer Grant Pierce.
For more information about the bands, and to hear samples of their music, go to stjohnsbizarre.com.
Partnerships with local businesses help grow our footprint!
This year’s Bizarre will sprawl across parts of 15 blocks in downtown St. Johns — stretching along N. Lombard from N. Charleston all the way to N. Chicago, and then up and down various sidestreets.
With vendors added to N. Alta Street this year, and a new partnership with Two Rivers Books & Weird Sisters Yarn, Havalina, Bees and Beans and Wonderwood Springs, the Bizarre will have more activity and offerings than ever as we spread the love to the north end of our business district.
Our craft fair will now feature a record 200 local vendors selling an impressive array of handmade art and craft items, joining the many eclectic shops who help make downtown St. Johns one of Portland’s largest clusters of independent small businesses.
Many of our vendors are Bizarre institutions themselves, coming back year after year and having some of their best sales days of the year!
And with Mother’s Day literally the very next day, Sunday, May 11, you’ve got no excuse this year if you can’t find the perfect gift for the mothers in your life (or, heck, for yourself, if you’d like)!
Family-friendly entertainment and activities
Come for the music and shopping, but don’t miss out on all the fun activities for kids and families.
Early in the day, local musicians Ants Ants Ants and Mr. Ben (both returning for another year) will hold down the Plaza Stage with their family-friendly songs. Up at Wonderwood Springs, in the afternoon, families can check out the famous Mo Phillips.
Don’t miss nationally recognized puppeteer KCPuppetree, whose “trash” puppets not only delight with wacky characters but also show the power of reusing and recycling materials.
And all throughout the day, St. Johns Swapnplay will bring the vibe that powers their community-minded playspace and sharing ethos to their own little corner of the Bizarre.
Find even more family-friendly options once the party starts May 10.
Drink local beer while watching the bands (but still no single-use plastic!)
The Occidental Beer Garden, just off the Plaza Stage, will be back this year, once again sponsored by St. Johns’ very own Occidental Brewing Co. We’ll also be pouring cider, provided by 45th Parallel, as a delicious gluten-free option, plus non-alcoholic beer from new sponsor Best Day Brewing.
Down the way, StormBreaker Brewing Co. will serve beer and other wares, sponsoring our John Street Stage — back for a third year. Havalina will also host its own “Yovu Beer Garden at Havalina” this year.
As always, the Bizarre will continue to showcase our deep commitment to protecting our planet by once again forgoing the use of single-use plastic cups in the Occidental Beer Garden!
Instead we’ll offer our durable — and highly collectible! — pint cups, emblazoned with beautiful artwork by Anisa Makhoul! This year’s cups — powder-coated steel — come courtesy of a new partnership with Earthwell, which Northwest music fans may recognize from their work with Pickathon.
Anisa’s art will also grace this year’s collectible tote bags and T-shirts (past years’ shirts will be for sale, too!) and a limited run of signed and numbered posters. They’ll all be for sale on Bizarre Day!
The 16th annual St. Johns Bizarre returns May 10, smashing more records: 200+ vendors, 4 stages of music and new partnerships! It’s our biggest bash yet!
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Last Updated: May 5, 2025 by Denis Theriault
Portland (April 23, 2025) — Sorry, Portland. It looks like last year’s bigger-than-ever St. Johns Bizarre wasn’t quite big enough.
Because when our FREE street fair returns for its 16th year on May 10 — unofficially kicking off Portland’s summer festival season — we’re stepping things up one more time with our biggest event yet!
Our craft fair is growing again — to a record 200 local craft vendors, plus food carts and community groups — up from 180 last year. Our footprint is growing again, too, with an expanded street closure that brings in our friends at Two Rivers Books & Weird Sisters Yarn, Havalina, Bees and Beans and Wonderwood Springs, offering even more family-friendly activities and our third and fourth stages for music.
And, in another first, while you’re standing front row at the Plaza Stage, your friend who couldn’t get off work that day can tune in to XRAY.fm and listen live on the go!
Some things, of course, won’t change at all.
The St. Johns Bizarre will still take place from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m., we’ll be right in the heart of downtown St. Johns (centered around the plaza in N. Lombard and Philadelphia). The music will still be entirely free — with offerings for families and a commitment to diversity that straddles genres from hiphop to electronica to rock to punk to jazz.
And, as always, the Bizarre will wrap around the historic and beloved St. Johns Parade — another Portland favorite that’s roared back to life since the pandemic. Both the Parade and the Bizarre are all-volunteer efforts that serve to showcase the St. Johns community and business district by bringing people from all around the city to dance, shop for art, eat food and more.
This year’s musical lineup: Four stages!
Black Belt Eagle Scout, featuring
Lori Goldston — 6-7 p.m.
Shabazz Palaces — 5-5:45 p.m.
Federale — 4-4:45 p.m.
Rhododendron — 3-3:45 p.m.
Family Worship Center — 2-2:45 p.m.
DJ Dirtynick (during the St. Johns Parade) — noon-2 p.m.
Family fun showcase:
Ants Ants Ants — 11 a.m.-noon
KCPuppetree — 10:45-11 a.m.
Mr. Ben — 10-10:45 a.m.
Chicago Avenue Stage
Farnell Newton & Tyrone Hendrix Project — 4:30 p.m.
Pete Krebs’ Catnip Brothers — 2 p.m.
Club Deluxe — 5-6 p.m.
Jakki and the Pink Smudge — 4-4:45 pm
@tlas — 3-3:45 p.m.Twingle — 2-2:45 p.m.
DJ TBA (during the St. Johns Parade) — noon-2 p.m.
Megalith showcase:
William DeLee — 11 a.m.-noon
Patrick McCulley/Grant Pierce Duo — 10-10:45 a.m.
Wonderwood Stage
Mo Phillips — 5 p.m.
Opera on Tap — 3 p.m.
This year, we’re thrilled to announce that the incomparable Black Belt Eagle Scout — led by singer-songwriter Katherine Paul — will headline the Bizarre! The Bizarre marks Paul’s first show in Portland since experiencing serious health issues last summer and taking a hiatus from performing. We’re thrilled to host what promises to be a very special performance as she returns to the Portland stage.
She’ll be joined by a special collaborator, cellist Lori Goldston, an accomplished musician who has toured the world over a 40-year career, released 16 solo and ensemble albums, and shared the stage with many greats — including as a touring member of Nirvana. You can see and hear Goldston during their MTV Unplugged in New York performance.
It’s difficult to do justice to the lush, mesmerizing wonder of Black Belt Eagle Scout, but we really appreciated what She Shreds Magazine had to say:
“If you can imagine all of the best things that the Pacific Northwest has brought us — Mount Eerie, Grunge, Sleater-Kinney, The Girls Rock Camp, and lush mountain ranges — reimagined and told through the perspective of an Indigenous Swinomish and Iñupiaq woman; if you can imagine the magic that would bring to your life then you can imagine Black Belt Eagle Scout.”
They’ll be joined by Northwest hip-hop royalty Shabazz Palaces (Ishmael Reginald Butler, a founder of Digable Planets, in collaboration Tendai “Baba” Maraire), traveling down Interstate 5 from Seattle to bring their visionary power and mixtape sensibility to the Plaza Stage.
Portland-based ensemble Federale (led by longtime Brian Jonestown Massacre bassist Collin Hegna) will also appear, serving up their romantic brand of mid-century “spaghetti western” sauce. Check out Rhododendron, also Portland-based, and their old-school math rock and post-hardcore sounds. And we’ll all gather, appropriately, for Family Worship Center, a 12-piece powerhouse full of horns and strings.
But that’s not all — we’ll have a bevy of other local acts playing all through the day, including rowdy rock three-piece Club Deluxe, the endlessly inventive Jakki and the Pink Smudge, the mellifluously hazy sounds of @tlas, and St. Johns’ very own art-rock stalwarts Twingle.
As part of our expanded offerings this year, our friends at Havalina will host Northwest rock legend Pete Krebs and jazz icon Farnell Newton up on the north end of our street closure.
In addition, local promoters Megalith will kick off the day on our John Street Stage with a special showcase featuring acoustic guitarist William DeLee (listed among Willamette Week’s local artists to watch in 2025) and Patrick McCulley, a saxophonist and composer who pushes the boundaries of his instrument, joined by drummer Grant Pierce.
For more information about the bands, and to hear samples of their music, go to stjohnsbizarre.com.
Partnerships with local businesses help grow our footprint!
This year’s Bizarre will sprawl across parts of 15 blocks in downtown St. Johns — stretching along N. Lombard from N. Charleston all the way to N. Chicago, and then up and down various sidestreets.
With vendors added to N. Alta Street this year, and a new partnership with Two Rivers Books & Weird Sisters Yarn, Havalina, Bees and Beans and Wonderwood Springs, the Bizarre will have more activity and offerings than ever as we spread the love to the north end of our business district.
Our craft fair will now feature a record 200 local vendors selling an impressive array of handmade art and craft items, joining the many eclectic shops who help make downtown St. Johns one of Portland’s largest clusters of independent small businesses.
Many of our vendors are Bizarre institutions themselves, coming back year after year and having some of their best sales days of the year!
And with Mother’s Day literally the very next day, Sunday, May 11, you’ve got no excuse this year if you can’t find the perfect gift for the mothers in your life (or, heck, for yourself, if you’d like)!
Family-friendly entertainment and activities
Come for the music and shopping, but don’t miss out on all the fun activities for kids and families.
Early in the day, local musicians Ants Ants Ants and Mr. Ben (both returning for another year) will hold down the Plaza Stage with their family-friendly songs. Up at Wonderwood Springs, in the afternoon, families can check out the famous Mo Phillips.
Don’t miss nationally recognized puppeteer KCPuppetree, whose “trash” puppets not only delight with wacky characters but also show the power of reusing and recycling materials.
And all throughout the day, St. Johns Swapnplay will bring the vibe that powers their community-minded playspace and sharing ethos to their own little corner of the Bizarre.
Find even more family-friendly options once the party starts May 10.
Drink local beer while watching the bands (but still no single-use plastic!)
The Occidental Beer Garden, just off the Plaza Stage, will be back this year, once again sponsored by St. Johns’ very own Occidental Brewing Co. We’ll also be pouring cider, provided by 45th Parallel, as a delicious gluten-free option, plus non-alcoholic beer from new sponsor Best Day Brewing.
Down the way, StormBreaker Brewing Co. will serve beer and other wares, sponsoring our John Street Stage — back for a third year. Havalina will also host its own “Yovu Beer Garden at Havalina” this year.
As always, the Bizarre will continue to showcase our deep commitment to protecting our planet by once again forgoing the use of single-use plastic cups in the Occidental Beer Garden!
Instead we’ll offer our durable — and highly collectible! — pint cups, emblazoned with beautiful artwork by Anisa Makhoul! This year’s cups — powder-coated steel — come courtesy of a new partnership with Earthwell, which Northwest music fans may recognize from their work with Pickathon.
Anisa’s art will also grace this year’s collectible tote bags and T-shirts (past years’ shirts will be for sale, too!) and a limited run of signed and numbered posters. They’ll all be for sale on Bizarre Day!
2025 poster designed by Anisa Makhoul | downloadable link here
Band photos, event photos (credit: Jason Quigley): photo download link
Category: featured, photos, Uncategorized