Jake Xerxes Fussell

Jake Xerxes Fussell plays the Aladdin Theater on Thursday, November 5, starting at 7 PM. He's coming from Durham, North Carolina, and he's bringing Dougie Poole along for the night, so it's a two-person bill rather than a solo set.

If you're not familiar with him, Fussell is a singer-songwriter whose work pulls from a few different traditions at once. He describes his music as spanning indie, Americana, American Primitive, and folk, and that's a fair way to put it. The American Primitive side points toward the fingerstyle guitar tradition—think John Fahey or Leo Kottke—where the guitar does a lot of the heavy lifting, while the folk and Americana elements bring in the songwriting and singing. It's a sound that sits somewhere between a quiet living room and a small stage, and it's a good fit for a theater room.

Coming from Durham, he's playing in a city with its own deep roots in folk and Americana, so there's a certain kinship there. The set should draw from those same threads—the fingerpicking, the songwriting, and the blend of indie and traditional sounds. With Dougie Poole on the bill, it's a night of two performers rather than just one.

The show is at the Aladdin Theater, 3017 SE Milwaukie Ave, on Thursday, November 5, starting at 7 PM.