A second contender for Bumbershoot magic is Mark Pickerel from The Screaming Trees joining Mono in VCF for a Lee Hazelwood cover under a lackluster EMP light show. (He’ll be playing on Monday with his own band.) I hope that all of Bumbershoot magic entrants don’t come from folks doing covers, but there is a certain something special about good covers in general and about the collaborative feel of a live cover at a big festival.

My dream for the last few years has been to play the tambourine in a band, but Nada Surf has showed me an even better dream–playing a box with a tambourine on my foot. I hope that you caught that KEXP broadcast, because live it sounded swell.

Man Man probably wins today’s prize for being the band that frustrated the stage staff the most, showing up 10 minutes late and running onstage to immediately start playing, practically trampling the woman who was supposed to be announcing them/thanking the sponsors. Man Man is like carnies gone bad, and they careened all over the Broad Street stage knocking gear over right and left.

How did these cars come to their sad fate?

A) Dinner reservation-having people trying to plow through a Critical Mass ride.
B) 20 cent bag tax-induced rage.
C) Free valet service at Bumbershoot did seem a little suspect.
D) Add your take to the comments:

img src=”http://img.metblogs.com/seattle/files/2008/08/lucinda-1-300×199.jpg” alt=”lucinda williams” width=”300″ height=”199″ class=”size-medium wp-image-6623″ />[/caption]
The line to get into the KEXP Music Lounge is as long as any others even though it requires a ticket (obtainable from the KEXP booth near the Fountain) or a pass to get in. It was totally worth waiting to see Nada Surf. Their harmonious melodies were perfectly captured in the small, intimate space. And by “intimate” I mean “you’d better really like the people next to you because they really pack you in. The band used the venue’s size to their advantage by engaging everyone in a sing along that was surprisingly sweet.

Lucinda Williams played at an entirely different venue–outdoors in the sun at Memorial Stadium, which at first I thought was kind of weird because she’s the kind of artist I always find most fun to watch at a small, intimate venue but her charisma and her sweet, soulful voice made for a great show despite the bleachers and the astroturf.

Hello from Seattle Center! However much I wish that Neko Case was playing right at sunset, her voice soared out through the mainstage area and in the early afternoon, under a light cloud cover, she sounded just right. All festival experiences should start with Neko, I think.

The Girls aren’t dressed as Team Zissou today, but most of them are wearing entertaining airbrushed t-shirts, and they all funny walked onstage and, as always, charmed me. I am easily charmed. Their dance-punk sound fit nicely in the EMP, drowning out even the people talking closest to me, and the crazy light show reminded me of that ride at Univrsal Studios called “Body Wars.” Made me a little queasy, but now I’m super excited to hear their new album.

An early contender for Bumbershoot magic is when Barcelona started a “One is the Loneliest Number” cover, although the very young crowd didn’t seem to know what they were hearing. It’s awfully crowded in Seattle Center today, even more than I expected, and it looks like there are bicycles on the skate ramp thing.

Even with long lines and crowded hallways, PAX attendees didn’t have to wait terribly long to play games on the exhibition floor on Friday. There’s a solid showing of recently released and upcoming games for the Xbox 360, PS3, and Nintendo Wii. Perhaps the biggest draw are the music games, which have a large presence on the show floor this year. Guitar Hero World Tour, Singstar, Wii Music, Rhythm Heaven, and Rockband 2 were all playable, with Rockband 2 consistently drawing the biggest crowds.

Some of the more creative booth displays included this take on the “nuclear family” for Fallout 3:

At the booth for World War II shooter Brothers in Arms, Hell’s Highway, attendees could get a military buzz cut:

When the exhibition floor closed at 7:00, the crowds leaked out on to Pike Street, where several artists blasted chiptunes on the sidewalk. Check out the video below for a sampling from artists Circles and Fighter X.

Later that night, PAX held a showing of the film “Bip Festival: Reformat the Planet,” a documentary on the chiptune scene. You can watch the film online at Pitchfork TV this week only.

My first night at PAX was full of surprises, not the least of which was getting to meet the brilliant Jonathan Coulton while having dinner at Six Arms. I made an idiot of myself, of course, but that didn’t negate the fact that I actually got to shake hands with the man responsible for the Portal theme song that never fails to get stuck in my head. Of course, his brilliant “Code Monkey” song is great, too (#).

Beyond that, and the shock at finding a 30,000 person convention where there was no line at the women’s restroom, I was also surprised by Ken Levine’s keynote speech. I’m not sure what I was expecting, but Levine started by describing his descent into comics (a “geeky gateway drug”) during his childhood, and subsequent involvement in D&D.

(more…)

So, PAX 2008 is already upon us. I’m getting texts from friends in line, who are writing haikus and getting early concert wristbands down at the Convention Center.

I’ve never been to PAX before, but I like Penny Arcade and enjoy a good video game, and scads of my friends are going, so I thought I’d join them this year, particularly after finding out Wil Wheaton was coming again. I loved Stand By Me, what can I say?

Anyway, because I’ve never been before, and I’m a little freaked out by the thought of doing PAX for the whole geekend, I was hoping you Metblogs readers could help a girl out with some tips and tricks of your own for enjoying myself. I’ll be sure to report back on how things go!

the merce cunningham duo, last year.

We’ve already told you what to see [sat :: sun ::mon ]; so now it’s time to haul out the advice that we post every year . We like to think of it as a classic, just revised with slightly-new content and under the assumption that surely we must have picked up a few new readers and Bumbershoot must have enticed a few first-time visitors since last time. But not a lot changes about Bumbershoot from year to year; so why not re-recycle? It’s good for the environment and for preserving our fingers for typing fresh stuff later. So, in the spirit of eco-friendliness and with thanks to everyone who ever contributed, here’s the revised and updated guide for 2008.

After the jump, our hints. Any of your own to add?

(more…)

- Benjamin Disraeli, Lothair

Most of our local literary arts venues chose not to schedule readings and signings during Bumbershoot, but those of us starving for words and too poor to pay One Reel’s cover charge can throw our own personal music & arts festivals. Spend your money on your beverage of choice, check out a work by the following Bumbershoot-featured artists from our handy-dandy public library, and thumb your nose at the crowds, bad food, long lines, and grotty toilets.

Saturday:
• Saul Williams has published several books of hip-hop poetry. The most recent, The Dead Emcee Scrolls, received a starred review from Publisher Weekly, particularly for the opening poem “NGH WHT”. Also well worth checking out is the DVD Russell Simmons presents: Def Poetry, Season 3, which features Mos Def, Jill Scott, Common, Kanye West, and Lou Reed, in addition to Mr. Williams.

• Seattle author Sherman Alexie made quite a splash this year with The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, but you’ll be waiting weeks for a copy to become available through SPL. Check out Ten Little Indians, a collection of 11 compassionate, wry, and revelatory stories, instead. The collection is outstanding, alternately poignant and hilarious, and often both at once. Another good choice is his 2000 collection of nine stories, The Toughest Indian in the World.

• Christa Bell doesn’t have a book out, but she does have a website and a MySpace page, so you can watch and listen to her rant, rave, and revelate about the power of CoochiMagick in the comfort of your own home. No lines, no waiting, plenty of comfortable seating.
http://www.christabellonline.com/
http://www.myspace.com/christabellonmyspace
(more…)

Going to the grocery store is getting interesting. Starting on October 1, 2008, a number of local grocery stores will be piloting a new program to allow wine and beer tastings on-site. A grand total of 30 stores were selected to participate in this program. Full listing of the stores and more details on the program after the jump.
(more…)