THE GOURDS at The Tractor

Wed, Feb. 13 & Thurs, Feb. 14
THE GOURDS
TBA
9:00 $15 @ Tractor
Sloppy hilltop Austin stomp. Always a knee slappin good time. See one show or both. Just make sure you scream for them to play Gin and Juice.

Widower – The Moondoggies at High Dive

Tues Feb 12
Widower
The Moondoggies
8:00 FREE! @ High Dive
Another great lineup of alt country at the High Dive. A rare chance to see a great band at the greatest price $Free.99. Widower has that laid back classic slide-guitar sound that’ll make those PBR’s slip right down.

The Coup at Nectar

Fri Feb 8
The Coup
w/ Special Guests
9:00 $12 @ Nectar
Fantastic Hip Hop. What else can I say.

Talkdemonic at High Dive

Thurs Feb 7
Talkdemonic
The Animals at Night,
Diegos Umbrella
9:00 $8 @ High Dive
Leaning toward the acoustic side of the electroacoustic medium, Talkdemonic is just one more amazing band from Portland certainly worth checking out. A controlled and calculated assortment of music ranging from hip hop beats, to banjo and flute.

Cops – Kinski – Tacocat at Neumos

Tues Feb 5
THE COPS
KINSKI
TACOCAT
8:00 $8 (-$1 if you wear Democrat gear) Neumos
Classic Seattle Rock. Kinski and the Cops are both local favorites of mine. From what I’ve heard, I even think Tacocat is going to be worth showing up early for.

Voyager One at High Dive

KEXP AUDIOSIS
Voyager One
Daniel G Harmann
VERY SECRET GUEST TO BE ANNOUNCE DAY OF SHOW!
6:00 and 9:00 sets $7 @ High Dive
I’m only recommending this (besides the fact that it’s a good cause and KEXP rarely disappoints) is to see if anyone can fnind out who the secret guest is. Let me know if you have a clue. Shows benefit Amnesty International Film Festival.

The Heavy Hearts – The Whoremoans, et al at Fusion Cafe

The Fusion Cafe is sort of an anomaly (albeit an expanding one) in Seattle’s music scene. It’s a non-club venue affiliated with the YMCA which aims to shower today’s yutes with great local music. They host 2 or 3 weekend shows a month, and the first one of February is a doozy.

The Heavy Hearts, who’ve I’ve blurbed about here quite a bit but have never given them a proper write up, are the best band on the bill (and I’ve only heard 2 of the 4 bands playing–yikes!). The Whore Moans, Black Eyes & Neckties, and the Mission Orange round out the rest of the groups.

Located at 4th & Marion downtown.

Northwest Music Blog: Recommended Seattle Shows for Feb

Thank God Feb only has 29 Days. There is so much going on this month, I almost ran out of space trying to list it all. Some of my personal highlights to check out are Vince Mira, the young Johnny Cash (really!) at the Triple door on the 26th and Monotonix and the Valley at the Comet on Feb 22nd. They might as well burn down the Comet and rebuild after this night show. It’s gunna get destroyed. Valentines Day is also stacked with some huge shows in Fremont both at the High Dive and Nectar. If I’ve missed anything big, feel free to let me know in the comments below. I seriously felt like I just couldn’t keep up with all the going-ons. Most recommended bands have links to samples of their music, check them out before you spend your precious duckets.

Finally… something to like about Mudhoney

now I know in the past I’ve gotten down on Mudhoney, but I was scanning along the Seattle blogosphere today when I came across this heartwarming explanation of where Mudhoney got their name. It was posted about a week ago on Bring the Noise. I’d like to thank them for this moment of enlightenment. I may have to rethink my entire opinion of the “hun” now.
For a taste of evil… see Mudhoney!!!

Molly Shannon Molly Shannon at Skylark Cafe FREE!

MSMS will be playing a FREE show on January 27th, 2008 at the
SKYLARK Cafe & Club in West Seattle
with Seattle bands KEEPERS and KRISTINA SPEED

Molly Shannon Molly Shannon tend to defy all explanation and description. You’ll most certainly find something in their music to latch on to and followed by something curious to confuse you.  Have a listen here and be sure to click on the track names to cue up a new song.. otherwise … well you’ll see.

Summer Concert Guide

Summer is coming to Seattle. Well, if not what most people would consider summer, at least the chance of a few rain free days in succession are headed our way. And with the summer come the music fests, street fairs, block parties and so on. Personally, I’m not a huge fan of outdoor stages. I prefer my live music without the sunburns and baby strollers. I feel if rock was meant to be played outside, guitar amps would plug into trees.

I feel if rock was meant to be played outside, guitar amps would plug into trees.

Rock is born in dark basements and in bedrooms late at night. Music sounds best, to me, when it entirely fills a small, awkward space. But I know most people enjoy huge outdoor concerts. And here in Seattle, we put on some pretty great music festivals. And while, it isn’t my favorite way to see bands, I still go. I get pretty excited when the line-up announcements start coming in. So here are the some highlights of this year’s festival season…

Sasquatch: When: May 26-27 Where: the Gorge Amphitheatre Line-up Highlights: The Beastie Boys, Arcade Fire, Bjork, Bad Brains, Neko Case, Visqueen, the Black Angels, Viva Voce, and many more. My thoughts: I haven’t been to the Gorge in years, and I’ve never been to Sasquatch. I know for many people, this is the most anticipated festival of the year. And it definitely has more big names than any of the other festivals. There are bands I’d love to see, just not enough to drive out there and camp. More info: http://www.sasquatchfestival.com/

Georgetown Music Fest: When: June 2-3 Where: Georgetown neighborhood Line-up Highlights: Earlimart, the Supersuckers, Idiot Pilot, Voyager One, With Friends Like This, Iceage Cobra, the Hands, Skullbot, Spook the Horse, Tiny Vipers My thoughts: The Georgetown Music Fest has expanded to two days this year and has assembled a killer line-up of mostly northwest bands. $12.50 per day in advance, $15 per day at the door, or two day passes for $25 More info: http://www.georgetownmusicfest.com/index.php

Noise for the Needy: When: June 6-10 Where: Various clubs around town Line-up Highlights: Okkervil River, Sera Cahoone, Das Llamas, The Lights, The Cops, and more. My thoughts: Not really a festival, but a series of shows around town to benefit a good cause. Because of other shows happening this week, the only Noise for the Needy show I plan on attending is the Okkervil River/Sera Cahoone show at Neumos on the 10th. More info: http://www.noisefortheneedy.org/

Fremont Fair: When: June 16-17 Where: Fremont neighborhood Line-up Highlights: Peter Parker, Carrie Akre, Gerald Collier, and more My thoughts: Always a very eclectic line-up More info: http://www.fremontfair.com/music.php

West Seattle Summer Fest: When: July 13-15 Where: West Seattle along California Ave Line-up Highlights: Nothing has been announced yet. Last year featured a very eclectic line-up including some big names like John Doe and 50 Foot Wave. My thoughts: If there is someone I want to see, I’ll make the trip across the West Seattle bridge. More info: http://www.westseattlefestival.com/

Capitol Hill Block Party: When: July 27-28 Where: Capitol Hill Line-up Highlights: Silversun Pickups, Blue Scholars, the Blood Brothers, Cave Singers, Grand Archives, Spoon, the Blakes, plus more to be announced. My thoughts: Last year the CHBP moved a block South and went to a Friday/Saturday schedule (as opposed to the Saturday/Sunday schedule it had been in the past). Both of these changes improved an always great festival. This was by far my favorite festival last year and it will be hard to top last year’s line-up featuring Big Business, Pretty Girls Make Graves, the Black Angels, Band of Horses, and the reunited Murder City Devils. More info: http://www.thestranger.com/blockparty

KEXP BBQ: When: Sometime in August, probably on a Sunday. Where: It was held in the KEXP parking lot, but last year was moved to South Lake Union Discovery Park. Line-up Highlights: Nothing has been announced. Last year featured Ghostland Observatory and Thee Emergency. My thoughts: This will be the 5th year of the BBQ. The first one featured the Divorce playing on a flat bed truck. They ran out of food. They had plenty of beer kegs, but only 2 taps. A warehouse two blocks away caught fire and sent up a huge pillar of smoke. But lots of fun. More info: http://www.kexp.org/events/events.asp

Endfest: When: ??? Where: White River Amphitheatre (?) Line-up Highlights: Nothing has been announced My thoughts: KNDD has almost become a talk radio station. The local show on Sunday nights is just about the only time I listen to The End anymore. More info: http://www.1077theend.com/pages/255890.php

Bumbershoot: When: September 1-3 Where: Seattle Center Line-up Highlights: The Shins, Wu-Tang Clan, more to be announced (I hope when more bands are announced there will be more I want to see) My thoughts: Last year Bumbershoot changed from a four day format to a three day format. Last year was also the first time I was disappointed in Bumbershoot. I paid more than ever, and got less than I ever had. I hope this year will be better. More info: http://bumbershoot.org/

Other: Decibel Festival, the electronic music festival, happens in September. http://www.dbfestival.com/. Gay Pride Weekend is June 23-24. http://www.seattlepride.org/. Hempfest, August 18-19, http://hempfest.org/drupal/. The Vans Warped Tour hits the Gorge on August 18, http://www.warpedtour.com/warpedtour/index.asp. Something called the Download Festival is at the Gorge on August 25, http://www.downloadfestival.com/

There you go. Information on all the major Seattle area festivals all in one place. If I’ve left out any other music festival (or festival featuring music), please add it in the comments. Wear sunscreen, be wary if the food vendors, and have a merry festival season.

by Matt Koroulis

Roll Over Mr. Cash, Your Tribute Has Arrived

Last night (Tues, Jan 22) the Can Can hosted what may become a legendary event… Legendary in the vein that 20 years from now, people will be saying “Remember when…” But before I get to the juicy middle, let me start at the beginning.
Seattle Sound Magazine, in the glowing morning of their existence, has been getting behind a ton of local music. Seems everywhere I go these days they are sponsoring the show. Not only are they getting their name out there, they have good damn taste and last night was no exception. They teamed up with Redhook , who brought a ton of free beer to fuel the fires (THANK YOU REDHOOK!) for what seemed to be a pretty standard, self promoting, yeah thanks for the free drinks, sort of gig.
Things began a little peculiar as I walked into the Can Can and got a KOMO news camera poked in my face (look for my mug on the news.. I’m famous!) It seemed strange, but.. I’d never been here before and maybe this was standard procedure. The Can Can itself is a dark harem looking place complete with red stage lights and lots of fabric hanging from the walls that certainly lend it to the vaudeville and burlesque it’s widely known for.
So a couple free beers later the show starts.
Lonesome Rhodes took the stage armed with a poorly mic-ed acoustic guitar and a chair. It was run of the mill singer-songwriter stuff. Nothing to write home about or write you about, so I’ll move on.
By now the KOMO camera was set up stage right, a microphone was centered in the room and the “face” for the news was feverishly jotting down the happenings.

The Roy Kay Trio came on next. Now things were starting to pick up. Roy Kay is a Rock-A_Billy threesome in the classic config of rhythm, and lead guitars with a stand up bass. They are a local Seattle group have been together since 2001, putting out a couple albums and playing a steady stream of shows all over the NW. They picked and grinned (and BOY do they grin) their way a full set that was great, but still nothing seemed to warrant the buzz in this place.
Next there was a lot of to-do from the MC thanking everyone and their mom (really, he thanked Vince’s Mom.. but you’ll understand that later) and even Ellen Degenerate. (sic)
That’s when the bedazzled Vince Mira took the stage. Here was a 15 year old kid, standing all of 5 foot nothin’. His hair was loaded with palmade and coiffed to look a whole bunch like a young Ritchie Valens (a REAL young Ritchie Valens), a guitar hung from his shoulder and the squeeky voice you’d pretty much expect from such a person peeped out as he took a minute to thank everyone for coming out. He explains that he’s going to be playing a few Johnny Cash songs, cues up the band (Roy Kay Trio were backing) and that’s when 200 jaws hit the floor.
From the depths of this kid’s soul came a voice like a distant thunder. It was like a Wizard of OZ moment, as if a 25 year old Johnny Cash were standing behind the screen singing whatever Vince Mira mouthed. The tone, perfect. The inflections, spot on. The song was Johnny’s Blistered and that’s what everyone’s eyeballs were becoming from being propped open like saucers-never blinking. Vince Mira… nay.. MISTER Vince Mira was amazing. Johnny Cash was rolling over in his grave-but only to get a better look.
The set continued with and what became very obvious was that Vince was incredibly thankful for being where he was, for having the talents that he has. He brought up friend and family to the scene. Everyone that helped him get to be who he was played along with him and shared the lime-light. He played a couple songs with his friend Michael Vermillian -Cold Hearted Woman and Since You’ve Been Gone -that they had co-wrote. The songs had the sadness and torment that perfectly complimented his low and lingering voice. Then Alex the Lion joined him for a couple verses of Folsom Prison Blues. The Lion, you see, is his 4 year old nephew. Well on his way as well. This was followed by Walk the Line which shamed Joaquin Phoenix’s version down-down-down into the ground. Then Vince’s brother in law, Daniel Rodrigez joined Vince for a span-glish version of Ring of Fire-Fuego del Amour. Daniel had taught him how to play and was honored by Vince for having done so.
Now a little history about Vince Mira. Vince had been a busker in Pike Place Market, playing his Cash cover songs for…well, cash. The Market Association liked him enough to invite him for the big centennial celebration where all the market icons came to play. Now one local Seattle music icon, Stone Gossard had heard Vince’s set at the Market Anniversary-from his car apparently. Three days later, he called Vince to ask him to be a part of the Hank Williams tribute album he was putting together. Vince told us this story and was so humbled by the fact that Stone Gossard’s caller ID came up on his phone… “I was pretty nervous. I mean Stone Gossard was calling my house” he says “what would YOU do?” So to complete the circle, Vince and The Roy Kay Trio did Hank the honor of covering Your Cheatin Heart. Again, done so well it was as if Mr Williams was there in the room himself.
To finish off the set, Vince invited his friend, 14 yr old Hannah Weeks to perform one of her songs , which was breathtaking in an of it’s own self, and then they sang a couple duets. One by Brandie Carlile, The Story Duet and then the classic Jackson.
Vince once again paid tribute to his roots by having the Can Can dance duo, the Castaways, perform their interpretation of his closing song Closer as he played. The Castaways had helped Vince get his start by having him play for them at the Can Can in the very dawning of his “career”. What was he… 12?!?
We left the Can Can during the encore… simply because we have full intentions of seeing Vince Mira play again and wanted to save something for round 2.
Now not only has Vince gotten the attention of Pikes, Stone, Seattle Sound Mag and the Can Can. He has gotten the attention of John Carter Cash, Johnny’s and June’s only son. They have collaborated on an album together which was recorded at Cash Cabin (built by Johnny) and is coming out soon titled, what else, Cash Cabin Sessions. Vince is also apparently going to perform at THE Folsom Prison in the near future further following the footsteps of his hero.
So, there you have the “legendary” portion of this story. If you want to check out the show for yourselves, Vince Mira will be playing the Triple Door on the 26th of February. There are 2 shows, 7:00 and 9:30. I suggest catching them both. The show is a CD Release party as well so you can get your hot little hands on a copy of Cash Cabin Sessions.
Rock ON Mr. Mira.

My 2 Favorite Duos — Back to Back

Hey there NW Blogosphere,

Just heard that the presale for Ghostland Observatory is happening right now for shows at the Showbox (Market version) on 4/4 (all ages) & 4/5 (21+). Code word is “showbox” if you want to head over to ticketmaster.com (be advised they’ll probably charge more than half the cost of the ticket in service fees)…

But more exciting to note is that you can rock out 2 nights in a row with 2 of the best kick ass duos around:

4/4 with ghostland 0.

4/5 the black keys.

Get to it!

xoxo,

jules

Thank you, Cops, for the Sunday Night Blackout

Much gratitude for the night off to get into a gen-you-wine rock and roll this weekend at High Dive. The Cops were in top form, and holy-crap-where-did-these-guys-come-from The Sunday Night Blackout. Much praise has been heaped on the beloved Cops, so let’s take this instant to gush about the Blackout.
I give you these ingredients: long hair, a flying V guitar, the totally mad woman, Miss Simona, channeling the very best of double-bass-pedal’d-Iron Maiden, a hai! karate headband and an AC/DC belt buckle that was just as over the top as the mic shenanigans of the frontman, Neil Of Steel. Mix this up with the amps turned up to fucking eleven and the $2.50 Pabst in your hand, and you have yourself a rock show.

Bang Your Head the Black Rock

A little bird told me about the imminent arrival of the Black Lips at Neumo’s and was kind enough to let me a get a test drive of their new record, Good Bad Not Evil. You’ve likely heard Veni Vidi Vici on 90.3. A lite-hearted little song:
Mirror mirror/ on the wall/ who’s the greatest/ of them all? / My man Mohammed? / Or Jesus too?/ Whose Messiah / Is good for you?” If you don’t have The Kent 3, The Dirtbombs, Mudhoney, (gasp!) or Let It Bleed by the Stones in your collection, this is new noise for you.

Black Mountain’s In the Future also appeared here in the mailbox at NWMBWHQ (That’s our World Headquarters.) By chance, my music player first shuffled to track 4, Wucan, and before the song was over, I had removed the t-tops from my Screaming Chicken-bedazzled Pontiac and was out doing brodies in the parking lot at Eckstein Middle School. (This posting is being made from King County Jail. Incarcerated, but I have free wi-fi! -ed.) This track is definitely a standout but like What Ever Happened to my Rock and Roll? from Black Rebel Motorcycle Club’s first effort, not representative of the sound of the entire record. This afternoon KEXP played Black Mountain’s Evil Ways which could easily be an outtake from Wolfmother’s catalog what with its call and response between the organ and the fuzzed-out guitar. This album is not for acousticophobes.

To round out the theme here, those that have been asleep at the wheel will want to snatch up some Black Keys tickets ASAP. Though you’ll save $6.10 (!!!) per ticket by going to the Showbox Market ticket window with cash money. As of 6:30pm today, (Jan 21) they are still available.

Men on Hiphop: A Co-Authored Review

A few words about the Cancer Rising/Saturday Knights/Dyme Def show at the High Dive; these three acts each appeared recently in support of the Blue Scholars’ five-night stand at Neumo’s:

From Kevin: I personally think Cancer Rising performance was a let down. After listening to their studio work, they just fell miles short of their potential talents. So much yelly yelly not enough rappy rappy. Picking out lines in their songs and shouting them at each others face as if they were excited to have remembered the lyrics. Plus, in their defense, the sound was way off at High Dive. Treble and vocals (screaming) were all there was to hear in the front of the venue with a slightly more balanced sound in the back of the room – tho pretty muffled as we ARE talking about the backity-back, right near the door. On a positive, there was a lot of momentum being drummed up DJ TilesOne on each song, drum sticks being busted over the cow bell, tambourines gettin slapped (not in a Joni Mitchell way either)… Just gotta dial back that hollering fellas.

The Saturday Knights followed and I thought they killed. They were throwin’ in samples from Chicago and Band of Horses, getting the crowd all kinda of lathered up. The sound-thankfully- had gotten back on track for the beginning of this set. Tilison and Barfly were cool and collected even with the layers of doo rags and knit caps and huge jackets with “patches on the elbows”/ They play so well off of each other’s complicated styles while never stepping on each other’s toes. They thoroughly engage with the crowd and ruled it right up until their last song “45″ where again… they just got too effin screamy and spat all over it. I could have gone home happy if they ended a song before that. Overall though, the show did not leave us wanting.
As a side commentary… what is it at hip hop shows that makes so many artists think that yelling is the proper way to perform their songs? Being that good hip hop is all about the inflections and rhythms, slight variances in tonality and seeing that it is most usually without melody – some would call that singing- why the fuck would they want to go and curb all that by getting all excited and screaming their way through their songs. C’mon people. Relax. Perform. We have stacks and stacks of amps to cover the volume.
OK, that’s out of the way…
Dyme Def, well, I had to head out before getting much into that show. 6:00 am for snowboarding comes quick early these days…

From Misterlevitan:
I am in concurrence with the synopsis of the Cancer Rising and the Saturday Knights’ sets, and I DID stick around for the anticipated appearance of Dyme Def.
I’m not very familiar with Cancer Rising’s songs, and the shouting and the poor sound mix made them even harder to get into. (Maybe the sound was worse for them on stage and they shouted as a result? Give me a mic and I’ll go find out…) I thought this way during their appearance at The Program last month–”Whoop dee doo.”I feel obligated to check out their studio recordings, so I can get a fairer test drive. So far, though, they are oh-for-two in Da (all-important) Club. In regards to the yelly-yelly, I also agree. It’s not for me. There is too much talent out there confidently laying down smooth and melodic numbers to keep me from wasting my time at a mediocre show.
The Saturday Knights have a big rep about town and an even bigger following. Therefore I thought they’d be at the top of the bill. (I stil can’t figure out how they are continually overshadowed by the omnipresent Blue Scholars.) I grabbed their “45″ right after I first heard it and think this single’s the jam. Good thing they built up to tonight’s performance of “45″ with a full set of crowd pleasers. I was stoked: Someone must have slipped the sound guy a message, because it definitely improved in their act.
Now how was the headliner going to improve on this act?
Well, Dyme Def came out swinging. They had an energized audience and (largely) fulfilled our expectation of them. Surprising, because their album, “Space Music” sounds a bit amateur, heavily seasoned with the kind of brag-rap that leaves me feeling on the defensive as an audience member. Their Southern-influenced beats are also a hard sell. However, their sound is thick and has been successfully road-tested. Their single “Clap Clap” is a smash in my book, and they performed it with the kind of enthusiasm that is essential in winning over new fans.
Chicken or the Egg: Were SEV, Fearce and Brainstorm feeding power to the crowd – givin’ us what we came for, or we were throwing the energy their way. No matter, overall it was a great night for local MCs, beats and their makers.

Fleet Foxes sign to Pus Bop–er, Sub Pop

Following lock-and-step with their recent trend of delivering folk-and-harmony inspired pop-rock (see the Shins, Band of Horses, Grand Archives, Tiny Vipers, Blitzen Trapper, etc.), Seattle label (in case you forgot where it was) has signed the much-coveted local outfit Fleet Foxes to a lucrative deal worth tens of millions of dollars. Actually, I’ve no idea what the terms are, but I DO know, however, that they plan to release both a 5-song EP and an 11-song LP in the near future. The tracks on both will be mutually exclusive of each other. The EP, entitled Sun Giant, is currently featured over on their myspace page and looks to be released in the next few weeks. The self-titled LP—which at one point was named Ragged Wood—should be out in the springtime. Labels do funny (read: stupid) things with release dates, so don’t quote me on those.

Led by the 21-year-old Kirklandite Robin Pecknold, Fleet Foxes have capitalized on a growing infatuation here in the NW with baroque and mellifluous folk music, and with those who cite Crosby, Stills, & Nash, Neil Young, Fleetwood Mac, Bread and the like as their influences. As for what the sound is, let us turn to Mr. Pecknold himself:

If we had to define the music I guess we are trying to be traditional with instrumentation and unconventional with song structure and vocals. Few songs have lead vocals, most are fully harmonized. There are baroque pop elements and some folk elements, though there’re no Country or Americana elements. We found inspiration from Trees, Judee Sill, Fairport Convention, Fleetwood Mac, hymns, the Beach Boys, and CSN. [myspace]

Fair enough. But, you ask, is it good? After seeing them play around town a few different times, and giving the digital tunes quite a few spins, I can confidently say YES. Course, if none of the aforementioned influences are really to your taste, then chances are the Foxes won’t be your thing either. I will say, however, that the first time I saw them, opening for the sublimely excellent Malajube—from Montreal—I initially was not affected by their music. In fact, I passed it off rather flippantly as too derivative. However, as their set continued, the songs progressed in such a way that I was a bonafide fan at the end. Pecknold’s voice is spellbinding, and the rest of the band (whose names I obviously don’t know that well) focuses on cascading waves of diverse arrangement and vocal synergy. Yowza!

So, coupled with their upcoming tour supporting Portland’s (!) Blitzen Trapper, and a spot at SXSW in March, I’d say these dudes are pretty stoked. You should be, too—if you’re into it, that is. You can help send them on their way at the Vera Project 2/15 with the Pharmacy.

North Twin-Riffbrokers and Dirty Birds at Sunset EARLY

Sunday 01/27/08 North Twin will be at The Sunset Tavern with The
Riffbrokers and The Dirtybirds.

It’s an early show, the first band is
on at 4pm, we go on at 6. Thanks to some fancy footwork from their good
friend Jenny at The Sunset, this show lands smack dab on Tony Fulgham’s  birthday. (North Twin singer) So we are having a rock show/birthday shindig. Maybe once the rock is
done we’ll go hit the lanes at Sunset Bowl. Who knows? Don’t bring
any presents, just show up thirsty.
Hope to see ya down there.