Seattle Subsonic - August, 2010
Emily Wells & Anomie Belle @ Triple Door
I can always get behind local artists playing at the Triple Door. Its a uniquely great venue; the acoustics and the vibe are inspiring. I’m excited to hear the wide range of Anomie Belle’s multi-layered music in this space. Should be epic!
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Anomie Belle shares the stage with experimental folk artist, Emily Wells.
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http://www.myspace.com/anomiebelle
http://www.myspace.com/emilywells
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Wednesday, August 25
Doors @ 530/ Show @ 7:30
All Ages – $12
Tallest Man on Earth Coming To Neumos
Holla! Tallest Man on Earth is playing Neumos in September. Anyone who has ever had an inkling of affection towards Bob Dylan will have a love affair with TMOE. Even I, an individual that appreciates Dylan but never was really all that devoted, has found a warm spot for TMOE. I am very excited to catch him live.
Who: Tallest Man on Earth
When: Thursday, September 9 @ 8pm
Where: Neumos
How: $15 adv, 21+
Why: Good music from a dreamy guy.
Drew Grow and The Pastors' Wives @ Columbia City Theater
This will be one of the best Album release shows you will go to this year. Drew Grow puts on one hell of a heart felt performance. You will sing along,dance, and be so happy you got your tickets early since this show will sell out. if you need more proof that this will be great check out these videos. http://vimeo.com/14279714
also you can Preorder the 12″ White vinyl which will be released on Sept 14th here.
get your tickets HERE!
September 11 – Drew Grow & The Pastors’ Wives (CD RELEASE SHOW),Pablo Trucker, Yuni in Taxco, Michael Vermillion
Doe Bay Fest Should Just Be Called Heaven
I was looking for adventure, and it came in the form of a last minute opportunity to go and volunteer at the 3rd annual Doe Bay Fest out on Orcas Island. For those not in the know about this festival, it is two full days of music and fun set to the back drop of the beautiful Doe Bay Resort & Retreat.
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Having been to many music festivals this summer and in the past, I was completely blown away by Doe Bay. While Capitol Hill Block Party was, well, just a big fucking party with terrible sound, Doe Bay had something like 700 people drinking, singing along and just enjoying themselves without being complete jackasses. It was refreshing. The sound from the main stage was just perfect. The stage sits in a natural amphitheater and the sound travels through the grounds so that you can hear the bands play perfectly from anywhere.
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Highlights from the main stage were, Hey Marseilles, The Maldives (who have played all three years), Drew Grow and The Pastors’ Wives, Grand Hallway, and the Portland Cello Project who did an amazing job on their own, but also accompaniment to most of the bands that played this year. Truly impressive.
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After the main stage shuts down for the evening, things go inside. There is a cafe and yoga studio at the resort where the after party shows start. The cafe is a great place to sit and listen to some of the performers play acoustic sets, while the yoga studio is a sweltering hot mess of bodies and dancing. At one point my camera fogged up from the steam in there.
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My two favorite acts and performances of the weekend were The Head and The Heart set and Drew Grow and the Pastors Wives with Kelli Schaefer in the yoga studio. This was really their fest this year. Both acts just blew everyone away with their fantastic music and just plain kindness. At Doe Bay everyone is just one big family.
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Sunday was the best day to have been there. Most of the crowds left to battle with the Ferries for a ride home, while the rest of us stayed and just relaxed. There was even a slip ‘n’ slide set up by Chris and Kenny of The Head and The Heart. It was the perfect way to cool down on a hot Doe Bay day.
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Sunday night was just a jam session by the remaining musicians. We were all hanging around the Sound on the Sound kids’ camp site playing music and singing along with Drew Grow and The Head and the Heart and Hey Marseilles. I even heard a rendition of “Somewhere Over the Rainbow” that Kelli Schaefer did acapella. It was the best evening I have had in a long, long time.
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Doe Bay, you have truly impressed me with the people I met, new friends I made, and beautiful music I heard. I will be going back for years to come.
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If you want to check it out next year, make sure to get your tickets early. It sold out in 10 days this year. I am sure it will take even less next year.
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A video from the Yoga studio
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Drew Grow and The Pastors’ Wives with Shenandoah Davis, and Kelli Schaefer from Dylan Priest on Vimeo.
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See more Videos here. http://vimeo.com/user4534866/videos
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See more Photos here. http://is.gd/enTfq
FYI: New Les Savy Fav Album Streaming On Spinner
Go here. I’m just listening to it for the first time, so I can’t tell you much about it. Buuuuuut, it IS Les Savy Fav, so chances are better than average that it will be awesome. The first two songs certainly are.
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It’s called Root For Ruin, and will be out on Frenchkiss Records (that of LSF bassist Syd Butler) September 14th. I think iTunes has it now.
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Quasi @ the KEXP BBQ
Here’s Portland alt-punk vets Quasi performing in front of some mural at the KEXP BBQ last Saturday. I went with LargeLarge. I didn’t see any of the other bands (OK, this was a blatant lie; I actually saw half of Brooklyn band Suckers’ set. They were pretty good, reminiscent of Isaac Brock fronting Les Savy Fav, with whom they share a label, incidentally).
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I think the band’s latest record, American Gong, has gotten better the more I listen to it (“with age”, as they say), as Sam Coomes’ bristly barroom stories are the perfect complement to the band’s grungy pop-punk. Similar to Pixies (my No. 1 Favorite Band), Quasi is kind of all over the map with their songs, but it’s apparent they all come from the same place. You know how they sound on record? That’s pretty much how they sound on stage. I especially enjoyed watching Janet Weiss up close on her Mod-style blue linoleum drum kit (it reminded me of my kitchen floor).
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I must say, for divorcee’s Coomes and Weiss, what an odd experience it must be to maintain a band together after all these years. They do it mostly with grit and guile and gumption, I think, and a playful, well-tread attitude with each other. Kudos to a post-marriage success story!
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P.S. I leave on a plane for Sweden tomorrow, so I won’t be around much the next two weeks. I’ll be sure to report back on any black metal, wooded folk, or disco pop dealings I come across. Vi ses!
22-20's @ Chop Suey
Now while the headliner,Canada’s Hot Hot Heat might light up the stage, I have a feeling that the grimey stylings of the 22-20′s might upstage them tonight. Could be a good night to catch the whole night.
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HOT HOT HEAT
22-20s
Hey Rosetta
$13adv/$15dos
8pm Doors / All Ages / Bar w/ID
Autolux Rocked Neumos Saturday
I caught Autolux at Neumos on Saturday with openers Mongrel Blood and This Will Destroy You. Mongrel Blood was up first and their set was… alright. They started out a little sloppy and… well, basically this seemed to be their style. I am not one to rag on a band or their live show, but Mongrel Blood just wasn’t my cup of tea. Here is how it goes: Mongrel Blood is Cameron Elliot, Eric Fisher, and Spencer Moody (of Murder City Devils fame). So they are just a couple of buds from Seattle out to make some messy music. And for that one and only promise they did great. They were just kinda up there making a party and having some fun. I wasn’t really feeling the feedback situation but I was feeling the guys thanking the crowd by saying “thanks for coming early to see a couple of assholes.” That was just a classic line. If you are a fan of the style of this band I would recommend you checking them out in action at the Carousel Festival on August 29.
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Next up was This Will Destroy You, and holding true to the name, they kinda did… destroy me, that is. I didn’t look into this band before rolling out to the show and I was pleasantly surprised by this Texas band’s ability to produce some stellar ambient music. It was a good mix of pretty rough rock and some super chill melodies. I liked the variety. There was not one word uttered by any of the band members until finally you hear a voice about 45 minutes into the set say that the next song would be their last. It was kind of like a no-bull situation, they were not on stage to make friends just music. They had a stellar sound and a light show that would give a small child a seizure. I was stoked on This Will Destroy You and will likely pick up some of their music.
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Then, about a half past eleven Autolux finally rolls on stage. My initial observation was that this was the smallest crowd I have yet to experience at Neumos, the whole mezzanine was closed. There was a perfect ratio of songs from both of their albums. The crowd seemed to really enjoy the songs from their first release Future Perfect more so than from their latest. It was easy to gauge this by the amount of smart phones lifted to record the earlier songs in particular. There was a lot of dead air, not so efficient instrument changes and moving around, basically just down time where the band was fussing on stage but not uttering a word to the crowd. I thought this was kind of clumsy but then remembered this is just how this band is. They have that awkward stage presence and they don’t really focus on the small talk. I really dug their set though, they did great as far as sound went. I especially appreciated when Carla Azar took to the vocals, her voice was just so enigmatic. The band finished well past the given time of 12:15 then came back on for the encore and played two more. Despite their relatively silent set, Autolux was amazing to catch live. I was glad to see this band early on in their stacked tour. They are due to be on the road roughly a month and are basically playing nightly, it looks like a rough set up.
Photos From Friday the 13th: Stephanie & YellowFever
Unfortunately, I had to jet before the band I wanted to see most, Flexions, took the “stage”. No matter, though, as both Stephanie and Austin band YellowFever put on distinctive sets in the back of Cairo‘s tiny little store. It was an anxious night for those who suffer from friggatriskaidekaphobia (yes, that’s a real word, I looked it up), and Stephanie’s vocalist made it no less easy with his freaky hooded skull mask. Along with their slightly spooked art-pop, it made Friday the 13th a little bit more festive. I thought that the quartet lived up to their promise and successfully one-upped their low-fidelity recordings.
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YellowFever also played a great set of sparse, rhythmic pop songs that clattered and bobbed with an unexpected grooviness. They had me dreaming of a comparison combo between the Intelligence and Micachu and the Shapes, what with the Jennifer Moore’s sleepy inflection and tight guitar. The drummer, Adam Jones, impressed with his dual drum and keyboard skills as he played some keys, looped it and then took his skins and cowbell on a jazzy journey. Really cool stuff and I’m glad I caught them on their way through town. Ok, it’s really nice out today, so I’m gonna take your advice and bail on this whole computer thing.
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View the entire gallery here.
Ha Ha Tonka's Spectacular Show
So I roll up to the Sunset Tavern right at the start of the Grandtours set. They are already pretty much rocking it hard and I was stoked to see that this Seattle band had some amazing style to back up their sound. The Grandtours set was really amazing, the sound was awesome, it worked really well with the venue. They had some great back and forth with one another as well as the sparse crowd, I think there was a joke made about how they reached the double-digits as far as crowd numbers went. My absolute favorite was that their last song happened to be a killer cover of Bill Withers’ “Ain’t No Sunshine” - blew my mind. Everything worked so well together. Mad props to this band, I checked out their scheduled events and they are playing at the High Dive on the 18th. I definitely recommend checking them out live.
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Next was Chris Mills. I liked Chris Mills, really, he seemed like a great guy that you want to be friends with. He had tons of witty banter with the crowd, talking about how much American Airlines sucked, and his song being used in the TV show Criminal Minds, and how that all goes. When he first rolled up on stage his first words were something cool like: “This is how is all started.” Great guy. It was just Chris and the drummer Gerald, and I have just one complaint about their set and that is that the drumming was just too much. There was only Chris’s guitar to match and it was usually drowned by Gerald’s fervent beating of the drums. From what I was able to catch that wasn’t drowned out by the drums was that Chris’s songs are usually about television shows or some other form of media, that is just classic. I really liked his style and felt a little bummed that I couldn’t focus on much else besides the pounding on my brain.
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Then there was Ha Ha Tonka… and oh man, they were spectacular. The energy, the mix, the vibe… no really, this band was off the chain- amazing. Everything about these guys worked so well. They would mix up the main vocals, sometimes it was Brian Roberts, sometimes it was Brett Anderson (who has the voice of an angel), sometimes it was all four with Lennon Bone getting off the drums to harmonize the situation. And no matter what you could always hear Lucas Long’s low baritone voice coming through- man if this guy could just sing me to sleep nightly, that would be stellar. Keeping true to their Southern style – Springfield, MO that is- these guys just screamed southern gentlemen. So gracious and appreciative of the crowd, Roberts kept thanking everyone- KEXP, the Sunset, the girl in the front whose birthday it was… And the energy was just mind-blowing for the band and the crowd. A regular dance hall erupted on the more upbeat numbers. The crowd and band got especially rowdy for the final song, which the band came back on and played after a particularly calm number, it was a cover of Ram Jam’s Black Betty, and it was perfect. Everyone just got crazy.
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According to Wikipedia, these guys have been playing together since roughly 2003 when they recruited Anderson. And it shows in their live show, they are perfect together, working off of one another with the harmonizing, the riffing, everything. This is definitely one of my favorite live shows thus far of 2010. I got all flustered when Roberts informed the crowd that Ha Ha Tonka would be touring with Rocky Votolato in the fall, the chances of them coming back through Seattle are high and if its true I am stoked-city, and already planning to be there. I would highly recommend catching these guys live.
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Again, my apologies- the pictures are crap, I know, the camera is crap.
