Seattle Subsonic

Author Archive

Grand Hallway @ the tractor tavern

I just happened to go catch Grand Hallway at the Tractor last night. Tagging along with a friend for his birthday. I had no idea that i was about to see one amazing show. The place was completely packed. The show had sold out before the first band had finished playing.  I had heard some G.H. before but was about to witness my first live show. Comprised of 8 ( yeah 8!) member’s G.H is able to pack an array of sound into their songs. i heard one enthusiastic fan remark that if you combine Ben folds with Arcade Fire you get Grand Hallway.  I am kind of amazed that their 2009 album “Promenade” didn’t make anyone’s list of best albums list.  Though i have a feeling that it will become much more appreciated in the coming year. Check out “Blessed be Honey bee” soaring violin’s, piano,  pedal steel and some stellar vocals performed live its amazingly beautiful. If you can you must catch these guys live. check out the video below of Grand Hallway and the Seattle Rock Orchestra perform “Raindrops”.

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Grand Hallway site

Mt. St. Helens Vitnam band Christmas Spectacular

The stage was set up to be a winter wonderland. Fake snow? Check. Drums and Amps wrapped up like presents? Check. A fake holiday fire place? of course! can’t have a Christmas rock show without a fake fire!
MSHVNB played an amazing show this past weekend at the crocodile. Even being a member down. Their sound and stage presence was good as always. So much energy that this group puts out. Layers of sound to fill your ears. And tennis balls being bounced off a tom drum to keep you on your feet and paying attention.

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The opening bands were something to check out. Having never heard of “Left” i was enjoying their sound. Was not enjoying their Heckler though. Is there some kind of requirement to get into the crocodile that you already have to be drunk, loud, and  obnoxious? I love the venue but the last few shows i been too seem to attract some really drunk people who feel the need to share with the band.

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but i guess its close to the Holidays. Everyone is a bit drunk and crazy.

This was a fantastic Holiday show.

David Bazan

This very Saturday (Nov 7th) @ Neumos David Bazan and his band will be playing songs from his new Album “Curse your Branches” It’ his first full-length he’s released under his name. On it Bazan describes his recent struggles with faith and addiction in language that makes it clear how far he’s traveled since dissolving Pedro the Lion in 2005. If ever there was a spokesman for those suffering from the God-sick blues, David Bazan is it. Since the demise of Pedro the Lion, Bazan has been touring as just a man and a guitar, but for this record he took the initiative to record all the instruments himself, adding an unexpected layer of emotional complexity to a collection of songs that are already strikingly autobiographical and frank.
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For this tour His new band is a northwest supergroup of sorts with Eric Elbogen of Say Hi (also playing), Andy Fitts of Aqueduct, Casey Foubert, and Blake Wescott.
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After breaking in a new band, first at a couple of Edmonds house shows, then the following weekend up at Doe Bay Music Festival on Orcas Island, and touring over the last few weeks.  I am sure that they will be ready to play a sort of home coming show for Seattle.
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Get your tickets soon. There is a very good chance that this show will sell out.

Neumos Presents: David Bazan, Say Hi, The Sea Navy :: Doors at 8pm :: $13 ADV

http://www.davidbazan.com/

Noah and the Whale @ the crocodile

NOAH AND THE WHALEEEEE!!!!!!!  NOAH AND THE WHALEEEEE!!!!!!!

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This was the chant heard over and over throughout the night. Screamed by what would appear to be NATW’s biggest fan.. and I do mean biggest. For a folk show their was plenty of drunk “fans” screaming and starting fights within the crowd. Something you would expect more from a rock show. At one point Charlie (lead singer and guitar) was asking fans to get in between a couple of girls about to throw punches in the middle of their set… when did folk music get so hard core?
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Other than those few crazy people the show was great. NATW set was fantastic. I was really hoping that they would be showing their new film “the first days of spring” since it is accompaniment to their second album. That would have been amazing to have a live score to the film… Next time.
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Hear more Noah and The Whale @ their Myspace here

Blue Scholars “OOF!” EP Release party

Blue Scholars’ “OOF!” EP release party at 10 p.m. Tuesday (that’s tonight!!) at ‘Ohana Restaurant & Sushi Bar in Belltown, 2207 First Ave., Seattle; $5 (206-956-9329).

Coffee, sushi, and hiphop: What’s weird about that?

Listen to the tracks below!

OOF! EP

Brand New!

Brand New has released the cover art and track listing for their new album “Daisy”. Daisy,  will be the fourth studio album from the Long Island-based rockers. It will hit stores on Sept. 22.
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You can hear the first single ” at the bottom” on their myspace page here.
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This album will hopefully continue the greatness that was “the devil and god are raging inside me” . Listening to “at the bottom” really gives hope that it will not disappoint.  They will also be doing a headlining tour this fall with ” Manchester Orchestra” but they will not becoming to Seattle. If you want to make the drive to Portland you can catch them at the Roseland Theater on OCT 13th. OR if you wanna go see them in September.. catch them at the Puyallup Fair on the 16th.

anyway here is the track listing..
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1. Vices
2. Bed
3. At the Bottom
4. Gasoline
5. You Stole
6. Be Gone
7. Sink
8. Bought a Bride
9. Daisy
10. In a Jar
11. Noro

Rx Bandits – steal your FACE!

My dear music lovers. If you have not heard or seen the Rx Bandits before now. this is the time to do so. They have just released their new album “Mandala” which is nothing short of EPIC. They have always recorded their albums “live” with very little over dubbing. So seeing them perform live is fucking amazing. They run all their songs into each other making the show a amazing long jam session. full of energy. I would say this article pulled from the “Dallas Observer”  describes their live show the best…..
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“They look unwashed, unshaven, lazy and listless. They’re wearing what looks like the same clothes they pulled on days ago. They resemble Austin street-hippy people.
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If you’re looking to get your money’s worth out of a 20+ dollar ticket, you can get discouraged pretty quickly, watching California’s RX Bandits walk onstage.

If it’s your first time
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‘Cause then the band starts to play. Picture the Red Hot Chili Peppers before commercial fame tainted their concentrated, sweaty, songwriting intensity. The Rx Bandits, however, are much more progressive, creative, and cerebral than the guys who wrote “True Men Dont Kill Coyotes” ever were. And last night’s Dallas audience couldn’t stand still when the Bandits ignited their Bloc Party-ish riffs, and raw kinetic energy. To describe the room as vibrant is an impotent and underrated attempt; rather, the room jumps like drops of water added to a red hot pancake griddle. The melodies reach and explore far beyond the ska-pigeonhole the band was quickly stamped with four LPs ago, and the members reach for bending, twisted notes that only a skilled artist could pull off without sounding atrociously under-qualified.
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At times (despite their scratchy bird-nest beards, dirty thrift store fashions, and generally unenthusiastic first impression appearance), the Rx Bandits literally seemed to be trying to jump out of their skin when they played. It helped that they were hammering, warping, and mangling a ton of onstage percussion instruments. And that they break things down into long, freeform progressive jams highlighted by guitarist Steve Choi’s exceptional electric piano skills, racing turbo-tiptoe fingers up the scale and back again, accented with rhythm section sonic-booms, and crashes you can feel under your ribcage.

Unsurprisingly, they were consistently met with roars of approval loud enough to drown out any mundane, mouth-to-ear conversation.

This is not a band to be digested light-heartedly, or washed down with a fucking Fiji water. This is a band with an undefinable genre, and a force of prog rock chemistry to be reckoned with. You cant help but but drink something stronger, and shout out in between songs. Most importantly, you cant help but pay attention.
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Essentially: The RX Bandits soared…
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Go to this show. You will not regret it.
Fri.Aug.14.09 @ Neumos
Infinite Presents: RX Bandits, Dredg, As Tall As Lions

Rx Bandits : Mandala Preview

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:: Doors at 7 pm :: $15 adv :: Advance tickets on sale now

Exhibitchin’ at the EMP/SFM

Experience Jim Henson’s Fantastic World at EMP|SFM’s Late Night Exhibitchin’, Saturday, August 1 from 9:00 pm – 1:00 am. EMP|SFM’s new afterhours dance party will feature live music, cheap drinks and super surprises throughout the evening and into the morning.
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Start the night out right, and get your inner-Muppet on for an Animal drumming competition! Drums and sticks will be provided, animalistic tendencies—that’s all you, baby. Dance to music by local rap-pop-rock legends The Saturday Knights, the deliciously funky Eldridge Gravy & the Court Supreme and wunderkind spin master DJ Electro Wolf. Enjoy $3 beers and other drink specials throughout the night. Oh, and did we mention surprises? What’s a bitchin’ event without a little spectacle here and there?
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Prizes for most-spazzy and most-snazzy Animal impersonations will be awarded. Save a place in the competition, send an e-mail to animalrocks@empsfm.org and get the low-down.
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Harvey Danger: Last Shows

Its been 11 years since Seattle’s own Harvey Danger released “Flagpole Sitta” the song that launched them into radios all over America. Since then they have put out a few other records. I hadn’t really listened to anything after that amazing cd “Where Have All the Merrymakers Gone?”. I was and still am in love with that album. I have no idea why i never picked up their next few releases. Maybe it was that cd held such a high standard for me that nothing they could do would be as good as that. So today i headed to their site http://www.harveydanger.com/ to see what i had been missing. (and also to find out when the last shows where.) You can download their last album “Little By Little…” for free or if you are so inclined you can donate. Having listened to “little” they have come a long way from “merrymakers” still recognizable but new and different. I like it.
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It seems i always comes to appreciate bands once they are calling it quits. Lucky for me I have a chance to see Harvey Danger two more times before they are done and so do you. They will be playing their finial shows here in Seattle the first will be
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Vera Project – Seattle, WA
ALL AGES! $13. More details to come…
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and the last and final show will be

The Crocodile – Seattle, WA
Don’t miss it! Our actual last show ever! Special guests TBA. 21+
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tickets are on sale for both shows. I would recommend making it out to both. enjoy them one last time before all you have is a mp3 on your ipod.

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photo by Ryan Schierling

Lo-Tek Resistance

Crunchy Co records is becoming one of my favorite D.I.Y labels out there. Run by the Masterminds behind the insanely fun to watch live ‘Kids get hit by Buses’ (KGHB). They “specialize in music of the electronica/chiptune variety” but there is so much more to be found over at their site Crunchyco.com. Things like comics,Films,Games, and other various forms of art. All if most done by independent artists off all ages.  “CrunchyCo began long ago when co-founders Gabe Hayward and Aaron Campion just felt like they needed something creative to do with their lives. They began creating their own comic books, movies, and music, labeling it under the same Crunchy name. CrunchyCo the website started crudely in 2001, and got serious in 2006.” I have met the Gabe and Aaron a few times and they are truly some of the nicest hardest working guys out there.  Their band (KGHB) even had a spot in this years Sound Off!  There are a bunch of other fantastic artists on their Label some of my favorites are Fighter X, Circles,  and Leeni. Just recently KGHB and Fighter X played during Folk Life to a packed Vera Project. The crowded Vera was turned in to the biggest dance party I have seen in my short time here in Seattle.

There is A ton to check out over at CrunchyCo.com. OH! and did i mention there is a ton of free music to be had? You can get KGHB’s whole performance at folk life and all of their older music right now. You can also hear tracks from all the other artists on the label.

So Check these guys out. The sounds of Video games you grew up with in a new danceable form.

enjoy

myspace links with more music!

http://www.myspace.com/circlesarerad

http://www.myspace.com/fighterxtreme

http://www.myspace.com/kidsgethitbybuses

http://www.myspace.com/crunchycodotcom

MAE experience

So its been a week now since i saw MAE at Neumos. I think it really took me this long to let it sink in how amazing the show was. Ever had a multi sensory experience? I sure did. With a fantastic visual projection going on during the whole set which even included two songs in 3D! If you managed to get some of the 3D glasses before the set started. When was the last time you got a 3D experience at a concert that’s wasn’t Laser Floyd? Next up on the trip was a scratch and sniff insert in their tour EP “(m)orning”. During the song “Ocean” the audience was instructed to smell said insert which in fact smelled like the Ocean! Brilliant! Now to cap off this whole show was the best performance I have seen from MAE. They turned up all their songs and rocked Neumos. I was truly blown away. I was a huge fan a few years ago but had sort of moved on from their sound. They found a way to bring me back though. This show was how to do it.
Also they are currently working on a project call “12 songs, 12 months, 1 goal”
the mission is as follows..
” *  Each month during 2009, we will be bringing you a new Mae song.
* When you visit whatismae.com, you will be able to hear the music for free.
* Every song will be available as a digital download for a min. donation of $1.
our current cause building Rhonda’s house in conjunction with Habitat For Humanity Penisula”

they have raised $39,689.33 since 1/1/09 with a goal of $65,000

Head over to their site www.whatismae.com to check out the songs and learn more about their cause. and if you get the chance i would go see them live.

Person L

Person L is the brainchild of the incomparable, Kenneth Vasoli. Vasoli, 23, has spent the better part of the past decade building quite a name for himself as the singer and songwriter of the Starting Line. But Vasoli was simply not fulfilled in the melodic punk world that the band helped establish. He became enthralled by different musical genres, building an eclectic horizon that slowly brought him to the realization that it was time for him to leave all he had known and make a change.

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Drawing inspiration from artists such as Drive like Jehu, Animal Collective, James Brown, and Radiohead, Person L was formed in the winter of 2006. He recruited a band with the utmost premier players from the area, including members of The Minor Times, Inkling, The Prize Fight and The Suicide Pact. Vasoli had finally found his vessel for musical escape…and a newfound passion for writing songs that pushed the envelope. Initial, the band’s debut, is the record that not only pushes that envelope – it licks and seals it. It charters new territory for both Vasoli and listeners alike, and is the evolution of a songwriter who continues to raise the bar with each song he writes. ”

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check them out here : http://www.purevolume.com/personl

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Also playing that night will be

Mae, Barcelona, sirens sister :: Doors at 6:30 :: $15 adv ::

With Mae Head lining