Combining elements of jazz, R&B, and rock & roll -- all during the early stages of their development -- and fusing the results with a contemporary energy and swagger, Sallie Ford & the Sound Outside are a Portland, Oregon-based quartet who've earned an impressive following in their hometown and made some influential fans, including the Avett Brothers, who've championed them and taken them on the road. The band debuted in 2008 with Not an Animal, a self-released EP. Partisan Records subsequently struck a deal with the group. Dirty Radio, the first Sallie Ford & the Sound Outside album, was released in 2011. ~ Mark Deming