Monday, September 2, 2013

This Month In Photos: August 2013

Soaking up the last real month of summer, when it's still warm enough to wear shorts and a t-shirt at night. That's what August is about for a lot of PNW folks. It also mean TONS of festivals, mega-shows, and concert series'! This month we headed out to see Chastity Belt and Deep Sea Diver at the KEXP Concerts at the Mural series, and saw the first show of Bummershoot, a DIY festival happening Labor Day weekend (though we didn't make it out to Bumbershoot, the city's signature festival). August was a sweet month for shows; I hope you took advantage!



My first show of the month was a beach-front benefit concert for Lha Charitable Trust. Here's Heels To The Hardwood. August 1.

Enjoying Fremont Art Walk at the new Atlas Space (in with Atlas Clothing and Beats Anne Bohos shop). This event featured Bardo:Basho. August 2.


The fun and FREE Concerts at the Mural series, sponsored by KEXP. Deep Sea Diver (above) and Chastity Belt (below). August 9.






Jet Man Jet Team Tour Kick-Off show at Chop Suey. August 11.
Soft Shadows opened.
Jet Man Jet Team put on a killer set.
Creative musical use of children's toys.


The ever-epic My Bloody Valentine played a sold-out Showbox SoDo August 21.
Best photos I could get after getting smacked for taking photos by staff. Shame, SoDo.



Super funny singer-songwriters Katrina Charles (left) and Debbie Miller (right). Conor Byrne. August 22. 


Mitts played an energetic set at the Blue Moon Tavern, August 23.




BUMMERSHOOT: Day 1. Hollow Earth Radio hosted the first epic night of three during the Bummershoot festival. Opening act was the excellent Briana Marela (above right), fresh off a tour and celebrating the funding of her Kickstarter trip to Iceland to record her album. She was followed by Try The Pie singer-songwriter Christine (bottom right), who also plays in Sourpatch and Salt Flat. The night also featured a performance art piece by Viviane James/White Boy Scream (very bottom left), and music by Pleasure Beauties, as well as The Webs.





*Updated 9/1* Upcoming Seattle Shows





Hey everyone. Lots of really good big name events going on this week, especially on Friday night: Youth Lagoon is coming to Neumos with local favorites Jetman Jet Team, Florida beat prodigy XXYYXX (aka Marcel Everett) is coming in support of Glasglow's Chvrches, and Philly's Bleeding Rainbow (formerly Reading Rainbow) are gonna be at Barboza with Bleached (the project of the Clavin sisters, formerly of Mika Miko). These are all good choices, but personally, we're pretty excited for the Tangerine release show that night with Land of Pines and Lures at the Comet. If "Radical Blossom" is even half as good as March's "Pale Summer" EP you can bet that you'll be hearing a lot more from this Seattle foursome. Other good shows include GSYBE with Total Life (aka Kevin Doria), post-punk legends The Psychedelic Furs, and Ty Segall with Mike Donovan, the former frontman of the recently defunct Sic Alps. Finally, Atlas Clothing in Fremont is celebrating yet another art walk with good local musicans including Weapons of Mass Destruction, Menami, and Karmedic; word on the FB is that this shop has a bright future in the works as a great local venue. We'll definitely be watching. More below. Have a great week. 

September
Music Fest NW, Portland (multiple venues), September 4-8
Rifflandia, Victoria, BC, September 12-15
Redhook Sausage Fest 2013, Redhook Brewery, Woodinville, WA, September 14
Decibel Festival, Seattle (multiple venues), September 25-29


2 Black Bananas, BrainDrain, Fuzzy Cloaks, and Conor Kiley’s Bad Blood at The Comet
3 Gold Fields, Rush Midnight, and Airport at Chop Suey
3 Mozes and The Firstborn, Chastity Belt, and Dude York at The Sunset
4 Titus Andronicus and Special Guests at the Vera Project
4 Austra with Diana at Neumos
4 Leatherdaddy, The Palisades, Winnebago and Koda Sequoia at Chop Suey
5 Godspeed You Black Emperor with Total Life at Showbox SoDo
5 The Psychedelic Furs at Showbox at the Market
6 Chvrches, and XXYYXX at Showbox at the Market
6 Bleeding Rainbow and Bleached at Barboza
6 Weapons of Mass Destruction, Menami, and Karmedic at Atlas Clothing
6 Sonny and The Sunsets, Love as Laughter, and Memories at The Tractor
6 Youth Lagoon with Jetman Jet Team at Neumos (Note Change)
6 Heavy Petting, Vapor Trails, Leatherdaddy at Blue Moon
6 Ire Adrift, Kohosh, Ubu Roi, and Wakes of Wrath at Black Lodge
6 Tangerine EP release, Land of Pines, and Lures at The Comet
7 Jetman Jet Team, Rainbow Wolves, and Silty Loam at Blue Moon
7 Muhammadali, Lindseys, Wasted USA, and Bad Future at Black Lodge
7 Bonnie “Prince” Billy, Mount Eerie at Neptune
7 Ty Segall with Mike Donovan (Sic Alps) at Neumos
9 WHY? with Lovers Without Borders at Neumos
9 High Wolf, Chicaloyoh and Wott at Electric Tea Garden
10 The Weeknd at Paramount
11 Heatwarmer album release show with Baby Gramps at Neumos
12 DJ Shadow All Basses Covered 2013 DJ Set at Neumos
12 Stickers, Twin Steps, and Ubu Roi at Heartland
13 Clear Black and Jetman Jet Team at The Josephine
13 Beat and Bohos Grand Opening featuring Ecstatic Cosmic Union at 7200 Greenwood Ave. N
14 James Murphy DJ set with Shit Robot at Neumos
14 Monogamy Party (record release), Gaytheist, and Haunted Horses at Chop Suey
15 Julia Holter at Barboza
17 Blondie at King County’s Marymoor Park
17 Woods with The Fresh and Onlys at Barboza
18 Neko Case at Paramount
18 Lake, Your Heart Breaks and Elissa Ball at 20/20 Cycle
19 Porcelain Raft at Barboza
19 Lori Goldston, Cock & Swan, Ionophore, and Corey Brewer at Heartland
19-20 The National at Paramount
20 Prissy Clerks, Woolen Men, Wimps, and Blooper at Heartland
20 Bugerama Caravan of Stars Tour: The Growlers, Cosmonauts, Gap Dream, Pangea, La Luz, The Memories, and Colleen Green at Neumos
21 The Vibrators, New Iron Front, and No Buffer at El Corazon
21 Augustus Blackheart, Basement Party, Pitschouse, and Lucarne at Cafe Racer
22 Youryoungbody with Kelli Frances Corrado, Golden Gardens and DJ Ea$y Iri$ at Barboza
23 Savages at Neumos
25 Dirty Beaches, SISU and Chasms at Barboza
25 Evian Christ, Vessel, and The Haxan Cloak at Chop Suey
25 Guttermouth, Agent Orange and more at El Corazon
26 Cold Fronts, Dude York, and Swamp Meat at Heartland
26 Teenage Bottlerocket, The Queers, and more at El Corazon
27 Little Boots with Light Asylum and Young Galaxy at Neumos
27 Neighbors, Koda Sequoia, and Pitschouse at Heartland
27 Ecstatic Cosmic Union with DJ El Hefe and Guests at Cafe Racer
28 Kinski, with Unnatural Helpers, Big Eyes, and Trash Fire at The Sunset Tavern
28 Gold Panda with ODesza and Abbott at Neumos
28 Db Festival 2013: Hush Hush Showcase with Cyril Hahn, Ryan Hemsworth, Kid Smpl, DJAO, and Domokos at The Crocodile


October
City Arts Fest, Seattle (multiple venues), October
Hypnotikon: Seattle Psych Fest, Triple Door, Seattle, October 11-12


2 Pet Shop Boys at Paramount
7 Christian Death with guests at El Corazon
9 Disclosure at Showbox Sodo
9 Delorean at Neumos
10 Godflesh with Prurient and Nails at Neumos
10 Fucked Up with Terror and more at El Corazon
10 Karl Blau at The Tractor
11 GWAR with Whitechapel, Iron Reagan, and A Band of Orcs at Showbox SoDo
11 Princess with Pipsisewah at Blue Moon
15 La Luz at Sonic Boom--Free
15 Holy Ghost! at Neumos
15 Crystal Stilts at Barboza
18 Hunx & His Punx, Wimps, and Coconut Coolouts at Chop Suey
23 Keep Shelly in Athens and Chad Valley at Barboza
23 Empire of the Sun at the Paramount
23 Braids with Hundred Waters and Special Guests at The Sunset
23 Widowspeak, and Pure Bathing Culture at Chop Suey
23 Haim at Neumos
23 Walk the Moon at Showbox SoDo
25 Cocorosie at Neumos


November
2 SoMo and special guests at Vera Project
6 Of Montreal at Neumos
11 White Lung, and Antwon at Barboza
12 Toro Y Moi and Classixx at Showbox at the Market
12 Crocodiles at Barboza
15 Jessie Ware at the Neptune
20 James Blake at Showbox at the Market
20 Vienna Teng at Neptune
20 Bill Callahan with Mick Turner at Neumos
21 The Meat Puppets with Bodega Bamz at The Crocodile
22 Blues Control at The Tractor
December
107.7 The End's Deck the Hall Ball, Seattle, December

Thursday, August 29, 2013

Bummershoot or Bumbershoot? A tale of two festivals


Everyone is familiar with Seattle's signature music and arts festival, Bumbershoot. This year, the city's DIY community is pulling together to put on their own concurrent festival, tongue-in-cheek titled "Bummershoot". The lineup is impressive - if you're new to the Seattle music community, this is an excellent place to get schooled. Not only are the bands great, but you get a preview of all these great venues! Hollow Earth Radio, Heartland, Black Lodge, and The Josephine.

Friday, August 30TH
HOLLOW EARTH RADIO--7 PM
Try The Pie (8pm)
Briana Marela (8:30)
Pleasure Beauties (9:00)
Viviane James/White Boy Scream performance piece (9:30)
The Webs (10:00)

Saturday, August 31ST
ACOUSTIC SHOW @ THE MEDIAN ON RAVENNA(Next to Trading Musician)--12 PM
Pitschouse (12pm)
Younger Shoulder (12:30)
Neighbors (1pm)
Waxing Hearts (1:30)

HEARTLAND--2 to 7 PM
Children Of Kids (2pm)
Shenandoah Davis (2:30)
Tummy (3pm)
Punishment (3:30)
Blooper (4pm)
Hibou (4:30)
RC Love and The Goodness Gracious (5pm)
Heavy Petting (5:30)
PLUS: Gold Van Records will be there to sell you records, and a Boating With Clyde episode screening

BLACK LODGE--9 to 1 AM
Mega Bog (9pm)
Thee Semidi (9:30)
Mines (10pm)
Dharma (10:30)
Dude York (11pm)
So Pitted (11:30)

Sunday, September 1ST
FREMONT BRIDGE--4 PM
Whitney Ballen
Slashed Tires

JOSEPHINE--7 PM
Shonny & The Bad Boy (7pm)
Craig Salt Peters (7:45)
Erin Tanner Performance (8:30)
Tweens (9:15)
Swamp Meat (10pm)
Chung Antique (10:45)
Iji (11:30)
Koda Sequoia (12:15)


And then there's Bumbershoot. I have so much love for that festival. Yes, it gets crazy busy. But for good reason! There is something for everyone, and every year I have gone I've discovered a new band that I absolutely loved. However, this year, you'll find us at Bummershoot half the time and the rest of the weekend we'll be out in nature on the peninsula. There are a lot of great Bumbershoot features this year, but I personally wasn't thrilled with any of the acts. Death Cab playing Transatlanticism might have drawn me in alone, but we were just lucky enough to see Ben Gibbard and the rest of Postal Service, so I'm good. However, if you are headed there yourself, here are my recommendations:

Saturday
2:45 - Diamond Rings
3:30 - Thao & The Get Down Stay Down
4:30 - Beat Connection
8:00 - Gary Numan
9:00 - Washed Out
10:00 - Crystal Castles

Sunday
11:45 - Kithkin
1:00 - The Mowgli's
1:45 - The Round (or Ramona Falls at the same time, or Tegan and Sara at 2:00)
3:30 - Midday Veil
4:30 - Katie Kate
5:00 - The Commettes
6:15 - Bob Mould
8:00 - The Breeders
9:45 - Death Cab plays Transatlanticism

Monday
11:45 - Hot Bodies In Motion
12:15 - Bellamaine
1:45 - The Men (or alt-J at 2:00)
3:30 - MGMT
7:00 - Superchunk
8:00 - Allen Stone
10:00 - The Joy Formidable

Plenty of other great stuff to fill in the gaps. I highly recommend catching a SIFF movie or two (the shorts are always really great). Plenty of comedy and interesting discussion/seminars, too. So long as it doesn't rain too hard, you can have a great time at Bumbershoot! Heck, even just laying out on the lawn, gazing up at the Space Needle, eating delicious food truck food...yeah. Find time to do that, too.