© 2024 | Jefferson Public Radio
Southern Oregon University
1250 Siskiyou Blvd.
Ashland, OR 97520
541.552.6301 | 800.782.6191
Listen | Discover | Engage a service of Southern Oregon University
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

The Softies on their latest record, 'The Bed I Made'

Sometimes you just need a hug, and that's exactly what The Softies' music feels like.

Rose Melberg and Jen Sbragia formed the band in the mid-'90s in Portland, Ore., and they released an EP and three albums of warm, cozy songs about love, crushes and heartbreak before taking a pause at the turn of the millennium.

But their friendship was always the basis of the band, and it kept going strong as their lives changed, relationships began and ended, and even when they moved to different cities.

Now, The Softies have returned with their first album in 24 years, called The Bed I Made, and listening to it is a lot like picking up with an old friend exactly where you left off, like no time has passed.

In this session, Rose and Jen talk about why it was time to make a new record, what's been happening in their lives, and what it felt like to come back to songwriting, as a duo. They also talk about their early days in Portland, the Riot grrrl movement, and their friendship with Elliott Smith.

This episode of World Cafe was produced and edited by Miguel Perez. Our senior producer is Kimberly Junod and our engineer is Chris Williams. Our programming and booking coordinator is Chelsea Johnson and our line producer is Will Loftus.

Copyright 2024 XPN

Raina Douris
Raina Douris, an award-winning radio personality from Toronto, Ontario, comes to World Cafe from the CBC (Canadian Broadcasting Corporation), where she was host and writer for the daily live, national morning program Mornings on CBC Music. She is also involved with Canada's highest music honors: Since 2017, she has hosted the Polaris Music Prize Gala, for which she is also a jury member, and she has also been a jury member for the Juno Awards. Douris has also served as guest host and interviewer for various CBC Music and CBC Radio programs, and red carpet host and interviewer for the Juno Awards and Canadian Country Music Association Awards, as well as a panelist for such renowned CBC programs as Metro Morning, q and CBC News.
Miguel Perez
Miguel Perez is a radio producer for NPR's World Cafe, based out of WXPN in Philadelphia. Before that, he covered arts, music and culture for KERA in Dallas. He reported on everything from the rise of NFTs in the music industry to the enduring significance of gay and lesbian bars to the LGBTQ community in North Texas.