Seattle Subsonic - March, 2009
U.S.E. @ The Crocodile
| Saturday, March 28, 2009 | ||
| 8:00 pm |
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Last summer I was thrilled when the United States of Electronica turned the streets of the Block Party into a sweaty dance party and I expect this Saturday night to be a fun mess too!
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U.S.E. just finished a new album, so expect new songs, new dances, and a stage full of colorful enthusiasm. The new floors of the Croc will be tested with the band’s blend of rock, pop, and disco. Think 80′s party music played with live instruments and with way more style.
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U.S.E.
w/ Velella Velella
Strength
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the Crocodile
$12 adv
8pm
21 & over
[audio:http://www.seattlesubsonic.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/03/02-emerald-city.mp3]
Battle of the Initialed: KHV v. PMPH
While the two bands could not be more different sounding, Katharine Hepburn’s Voice and PartMan PartHorse are, in fact, quite friendly with each other. They often tour together (such as their upcoming WA/OR/CA trip), and one can often find members of each cheering on the other during shows. So while there was no physical battle involved, their show at the Sunset this past Friday provided a battleground for the sonic senses, pitting PMPH’s well-documented sex-punk sideshow with KHV’s tender, lo-fi electro-ditties.
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Would the onstage flamboyance of Gary Smith, aka “The Most Nakedest Man In Seattle”, outshine the endearingly self-deprecating goofiness of KHV’s singer/keywoman Shannon Perry? Would “The Perfect Squall”—aka guitarist Marshall Nall (rhyme it)—wield his metallic axe more triumphantly than KHV’s minimalist drum-master Davidson W. Burnam? Would KHV’s understated funk-apprentice Eli Chuckovich bend his bass to the level of Rachel Ratner’s fractured, weirdo-grooves? All fair questions, I think.
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Perry was slightly hilarious in constantly referring to her “sweaty” and “gross” hands (“but that’s not the reason for all the mess ups”), and other comedic anecdotes I can’t remember. Smith, starting shows with less and less clothing these days, seemed a bit more tame than usual, but provided the accustomed spectacle nonetheless. When prodded to play his recent song mocking other Seattle bands, he respectfully declined. Nall, playing an unforeseen Hayman 2020, scratched and scathed with a higher dose of wizardry than normal. I was continually impressed with Burnam’s drumming, however, and his rhythmic, rapid fire tactics were fun to watch. In the “bass-player arena”, Chuckovich really pumped some life into KHV’s songs with a bevy of classic funkdafied rhythms. Ratner, as usual, excelled at permeating her band’s songs with irregular synth pulses and splintered measures.
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Well, they say “you have to lose the battle to win the war” (or thereabouts), but that doesn’t really apply here because I’d call this a push; I just had to work in that quote somehow. I’ve praised PMPH plenty in the past, but I really enjoyed KHV’s set. And although I focused on Perry’s comedic value above, her band’s intimate and unadorned tunes rest well on the ears. “Crushin’ Out”, for example, recalls a collaboration between Broadcast and Chan Marshall. Their new album Stand Up is now available for purchase, though I’m not sure where. Check your local record store, or else email ‘em.
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See lots more pics in our Subsonic Galleries.
Be Patient! You’ll Get Your Derby Fix Real Soon
First of all, excuse me while I brush the cobwebs off of my keyboard …dfjdkf;e934’sf#%$…. ok, all clear. So I got a shout out from one of our favorite Portland pop trios, Derby, mentioning that they’ll be in town on April 18th at the Comet if you’re needing a little indie pop music fix. I’m sure they’ll be playing our favorites from last year’s release Posters Fade and some new stuff too.
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In addition to Derby News, they’ve also launched a brand new blog chockfull of videos, photos of their smiling faces, demos, upcoming shows, band news and so much more. Be sure to check it out and/or check them out on the 18th at the Comet.
Viva la Crocodile!
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I instead marveled at the transformation of the place, at the smart layout, the use of huge steel girders to span the heightened and wide ceilings thus eliminating the dreaded “post” and at the smell of PINE.. and not pine spray mind you, but pine. When’s the last time you smelled ANYTHING fresh in a venue.. huh?
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When you enter the Croc next time (for the first time) you won’t recognize it except for the ramp in the floor that used to connect the front room to the back bar. That’s the new entrance for the venue. The old back bar is now the pizza joint and sealed off behind a wall. To enter you walk a hall along the Blanchard St wall, west towards 2nd, which opens into the main room. There’s a big bar right there in the back, supposedly made from the wood of the old ceiling. It’s about 20x the size of the old room’s taco stand of a bar , now with 2 (count’em, 2!) bartenders or MORE! The stage is now situated fully on the north wall instead of kitty cornered in the NW. It’s beautiful. Far too clean, but beautiful.
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They’ve even put in a mezzanine level to the right of the stage, sorta the opposite of what Neumos has, and with a bar oh-so-conveniently placed right up there there for you too. Someone likes us to drink!
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Now most importantly is that fact that, Seattle audio icon, Jim Anderson was still working the sound, and shit, if that man isn’t a genius. The sound was in the house was incredible. Everything spot on. My friends “The Chrises” and I smartly hung out right at the booth for most of the show and quickly chatted with Jim between sets. Jim had a heavy hand in the setup of the new sound system, tailoring it to the room and seemed more than happy about the sound booth being about 3 feet from it’s previous “tiki hut” location. I suppose after 16+ years in the same spot, you’d want to hold onto at least one thing from the “old ways”.
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The purpose of the night was to act as a sorta live sound check to help work out any bugs there might be in the new systems, but from what I could tell, there weren’t any. The only criticism I have on the whole night would be the lighting which is done with new LED spots. Now I’ll probably get organic compost flung at me for bashing green technology in Seattle, but screw LED lighting of any kind in a music venue! The constant flickering is just irritating, especially that surreal blue light. Someone’s bound to have an acid flashback in there eventually.
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Tonight, Friday, March 20th, there is another “Sound Check” featuring AKIMBO, Brothers of the Sonic Cloth and Patrol. Doors open at 8 p.m. The night is 21+, and goodness me…no cover. With these bands, I think they’re going to try to stress the system tonight…
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So, Belltown has live music again. We get a reason to wander into Shorties without a messenger bag, we get to grub on excellent Mexican food at Mamas before our shows and we get to pray our cars don’t get stolen while we’re there. Viva la Crocodile!!!
New Virtual 7″ From Atlas Sound
As 21st Century music fans, there are artists we come to follow incessantly and hope with clasped hands that some new output is just around the corner. When’s the new record gonna be out? When’s the next tour? When’s the next blog post? It’s all very fleeting and consumeristic at times, but the intoxication of new music from a favorite band is simply too much. Via Deerhunter and Atlas Sound, Bradford Cox has become one of those artists for me. I’m a disciple, and it’s only because I love the music he and his bandmates create. Nothing more, nothing less.
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To a certain extent, Cox has embraced this topsy-turvy world where bands are overexposed and the relationships with fans frighteningly intimate. He, too, uses a blog to communicate, mostly in the form of free music and videos (lately, anyway). It’s excellent and has tons of cool stuff. He regularly compiles ‘Micromixes’, which have exposed me to great new music and his own musical tastes—the 19th, and latest, one was particularly dreamy. He also pointed to a bootleg recording of an Atlas Sound show in Atlanta on New Year’s Eve.
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Today, he’s offered up a new Atlas Sound Virtual 7″ (his sixth), entitled Solo, Or ‘The Square’, and has spacey cut “Memorial Corridor” transmitting from the b-side. The title track is guitarless, like much of Atlas Sound’s catalogue, and utilizes a playful chime-beat to buoy Cox’s angelic appeals for the “right stuff”. “Memorial Corridor” transitions from an opening sequence of vintage satellite sounds and rhythmic synth pulses to distorted baptismal vocals and Cox’s classic strumming guitar layers.
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Apparently, there are plans for a new AS record, entitled Logos, to be released this year. Not sure when that’ll be, but hopefully these will keep you sleeping at night.
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Lyrics and gear for both after the jump.
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Alabaster @ The Mix (Grgtwn)
| Friday, April 10, 2009 | ||
| 8:00 pm |
This is a night of female fronted bands ranging from unapologetic pop-punk heavy on the hollering and “fuck yous” to funky electronica. Alabaster takes the stage with Furniture Girls at the Mix around 9pm so don’t be late and get a sweet spot up front.
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8:00 PM
at The Mix (georgetown 21+)
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HER Magma Fest Continues This Weekend!
On Friday, March 6th, I was lucky enough to attend the kickoff of the 2009 Magma Fest put on by Hollow Earth Radio. Held down at the Vera Project, the show had a diverse lineup of local acts, all of whom brought out a crowd. The night started off with Portland based Kusikia, who were just a drummer and a guitar player/singer (although she did switch to bass for one song). They were extremely experimental and varied from puk rock to progressive indie post-punk. Next on the stage were TacocaT, a Seattle based power pop band that falls somewhere between the Ramones and Sleater-Kinney. The colorful performance was great, and I was blown away that I had never seen them before!
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Next up were Post-Punk Noise band Triumph of Lethargy Skinned Alive to Death, featuring Spencer Moody and Dann Gallucci of the Murder City Devils, and Andrea Zollo from Pretty Girls Make Graves. As soon as they started playing, they took command of the crowd, who were mesmerized by the warbling keyboards, thrashing guitars, and epic drum beat. I had seen TOLSATD once before, but never in such great form. I was highly impressed.
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Finally, local indie rock favorites the Moondoggies played, and the room, which was already rather filled, become seriously packed. I had never seen the band before, and was impressed at the intricate guitar solos and harmony played on the organ and keyboard. Although very different from all of the other bands that played, the Moondoggies seemed to be a perfect end to the night, showing all the different genres of music that HER supports!
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For those of you not in the know about Hollow Earth Radio, it is a community run internet radio station that “presents a forum for music, sounds and perspectives commonly under-represented by the media.” They are a strong supporter of local music and work hard to get out there into the local music scene. The Magma Fest is just one example of that. There are two shows coming up this weekend so be sure to check them out:
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March 20: 20/20 Cycle:: 8:00pm All of Mellon Collie & The Infinite Saddness by the Smashing Pumpkins done by local Seattle bands. $6
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March 21: Holy Mountain:: 8:00pm Beep Repaired Family Tree – A ton of bands from the Beep Family Collective. $7
Opening Night @ the Croc
| Thursday, March 19, 2009 | ||
| 8:30 pm |
Wellie well kiddies, looks like the verdict is in on the show to reopen the Crocodile. The bad new is, we were all waaaaayyy off with our list of hopes and dreams. The GOOD news is this Mamma Jamma is FREE!!! Here’s the lineup:
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The Kindness Kind
Hypatia Lake
The Qu
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It’s more of dress rehersal than anything, though I have to say that this lineup is looking a lot better than the one that they have set for the original opening night. Hot Buttered Rum, anyone… anyone?
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Anyway, like I said, the show is free and it kicks off at 8:30.. conveniently right after our Happy Hour at Moe Bar Thurdsay night. See y’alls there.
Subsonic Happy Hour ft. Hollow Earth Radio @ Moe Bar
| Thursday, March 19, 2009 | ||
| 5:00 pm |
After a little hiatus, Subsonic is back off the wagon and ready to get our happy on with some beers and some good friends at our Happy Hour up at Moe bar this (the third) Thursday, March 19th from 5-8pm. Man…I HATE the wagon.
This month we’re inviting special guests Hollow Earth Radio out for the night.
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There will the prerequisite drink and food specials, we’ll have Hollow Earth Radio and other give-aways including CD’s T’s and tix, plus you can always count on a bunch of local music industry folk and friends to be mingling about.
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Head Like a Kite Celebrates New Crocodile and Debuts New Movie
| Friday, April 10, 2009 | ||
| 8:00 pm |
To celebrate the opening of the new Crocodile, HLAK are brewing up a special show Friday, April 10 with , The Wild Orchid Children and Partman Parthorse. They will be debuting the new feature film “We Were So Entangled” and projecting it behind the Head Like a Kite show as we bust out a frenzied soundtrack of beats and HLAK hits. Based on the song “We Were So Entangled” from Head Like a Kite’s most recent Mush Records full-length,”There Is Loud Laughter Everywhere,” the movie follows the steamy affair of two impassioned Barbie dolls hell bent on adventure. Sex, fire, Superman, Barbie dolls, and a car chase. Sound weird? Wait until the doll house burns down.
.Soundcheck! Opening Night at the Croc!!!
Wellie well kiddies, looks like the verdict is in on the show to reopen the Crocodile. The bad new is, we were all waaaaayyy off with our list of hopes and dreams. The GOOD news is this Mamma Jamma is FREE!!! Here’s the lineup:
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The Kindness Kind
Hypatia Lake
The Qu
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It’s more of dress rehersal than anything, though I have to say that this lineup is looking a lot better than the one that they have set for the original opening night. Hot Buttered Rum, anyone… anyone?
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Anyway, like I said, the show is free and it kicks off at 8:30.. conveniently right after our Happy Hour at Moe Bar Thurdsay night. See y’alls there.
HH 3-19 – Return of the Happy hour!!!
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After a little hiatus, Subsonic is back off the wagon and ready to get our happy on with some beers and some good friends at our Happy Hour up at Moe bar this (the third) Thursday, March 19th from 5-8pm. Man…I HATE the wagon.
This month we’re inviting special guests Hollow Earth Radio out for the night.
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There will the prerequisite drink and food specials, we’ll have Hollow Earth Radio and other give-aways including CD’s T’s and tix, plus you can always count on a bunch of local music industry folk and friends to be mingling about.
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HER is a community-run online radio station that presents a forum for music, sounds and perspectives commonly under-represented by the media. Have a listen the HER here! They support the local music community in the Pac NW by exposing works that have yet to be unearthed or have long been dormant. They acknowledge and celebrate raw talent, talk to the musicians, reveal the stories behind the artists, and learn about the actual people involved. As a nonprofit radio station, they also offer the local community access to training and knowledge on how to run an online radio station.
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Throughout March, Seattle’s musicians are joining forces with local DIY and underground outfits, like Beep Repaired, to put on the Magma Festival, a month long music benifit to help keep HER funded so they may continue promoting and backing Seattle’s Music. Magma Festival begins March 6 and ends March 28th.
