photo via trail of dead [myspace], who play tonight at neumo’s

• I confess that I didn’t follow Austin’s … And You Will Know Us By the Trail of Dead much beyond the temporal cocoon surrounding their near-perfect (or, according to pitchfork at the time, 10.0) early century Source Tags and Codes. In the intervening years, the guitar-swinging, piano trashing, soul-bearing art rockers have left both Texas and Interscope, funding this year’s The Century of Self on their own. Tonight, their tour brings them to town with Future of Left , born from two-thirds of the remains of mclusky. When they played at this summer’s block party, nearly everyone who saw them stumbled back onto the sidewalk beaming. Arrive early, Born Anchors open. $15, 8pm. [neumos]

hordes of hungry people descended on interbay for the mobile chowdown. danny ngan [flickr] captured some of the scenes and shared it via our group pool [#].

• Molly Moon is now a big enough enterprise to demand dairy that’s free of corn syrup. [wallyhood]
• Mountlake Terrace might be getting its own medical marijuana storefront. [mltnews]
• Now even the voters guide has an outtakes and deleted scenes reel. [times, via slog]
• there was an equality march on Sunday on Broadway [chs]; from apartments overlooking the parade, some nonrepresentative chants may have been misheard. [slog]
• Some people think we’re unattractive with good farmers’ markets but terrible Thanksgivings. [travel+leisure]
• Others, at least, appreciate our above normal intelligence. [dailybeast]

High-Fiving Panda by ~wesa~

Caught this guy walking around Pine in front of Nordstrom.

I’m off to Portland for an 8k race, but thought you should know that usually races cost you money to register. Some, like Amica’s Marathon can put you $75 in the hole.

That’s why I’m excited to tell you that Run Vera Run is absolutely FREE to register! And the word on the street is that the treats are worth the FREEness. Walk around Seward Park and when you’re done feast on free pizza and cupcakes. Of course, they are taking donations, but like I said the registration is FREE and that’s FREE enough for me.

starfucker, this summer.

• At this summer’s Capitol Hill Block Party it was difficult to find a crowd going more dance crazy than the pack crushed against the stage for Starfucker. In an effort to book more family friendly venues and tours, the band is retiring their name and replacing it with something generated from an online contest, hoping to attract fewer asterisks or “unpublishable” references in less liberal print outlets. Dance like crazy and give the great old name a proper send off. Friday, 7:30, $10. [veraproject]
• Japanese post-rock outfit MONO make the sort of music that could take down crumbling viaducts while keeping a smile on everyone’s melting faces. Friday, 8 pm, $13 [neumos]
• Watch your neighbors getting naked in the Stranger’s annual two-day festival of amateur pornography fleeting superstardom. Most shows sold out. On the Boards. Friday-Saturday. [hump]
• The slickest and besweatered sexy Canadian dance rock this side of the rockies. Junior Boys tour in support of their new album. 9pm, $15. [chop suey]
• Can’t make it to DC to march for equality? Have vigil, rally, and bar crawl in solidarity on our own Capitol Hill instead. With R-71 on the ballots, local efforts are every bit as important as the drama playing out on the national scene. Friday-Sunday [seattleoutprotest.org]
• Runners, walkers, and fans of music will converge in Seward Park on Sunday for a 5k run/walk to support The Vera Project. Those who find strenuous morning exercise less than thrilling may be goaded into participating not just for the great causes of local music and art, but also by the presence of live music, eighties dancers, food, and fundraising prizes. Sunday, 8:30am-3pm. Registration is free, suggested fundraising goal, $100. [runverarun.org]
• Passion Pit’s promotional materials call this year’s Manners a “a bird-flipping break from the blogosphere by a 21 year old with much more on his manic mind than girls, girls, girls.” I call it an album that I resisted initially yet found myself hopelessly addicted to in the middle of summer. Their live performances reportedly simmer until they drive audiences to hand waving wildery. Tickets are sold out; so try your chances or drop in at their a free in-store at Easy Street at 2 pm. 8pm, $20. [showbox] Both shows are cancelled due to illness in the band; at minimum, the Showbox event will be rescheduled and tickets for the original will be honored.

Successful crafter, photographer, blogger and writer Faythe Levine, co-founder of Flying Fish Gallery, adds filmmaker to her already extensive resume with Handmade Nation, her interesting and well-made documentary about the DIY indie craft movement. Crafting encompasses a wide variety of art forms with infinite potential for self-expression and Handmade Nation takes a loving look at many different people involved in various aspects of producing and distributing handmade works with a particular focus on what crafting means to them and what it can mean to others. Artisans of every stripe talk about how they got into making their works of art – subjects include Whitney Lee, who creates latch hook pin-ups and Jenny Hart, whose Sublime Stitching embroidery kits and patterns include pirates and zombies and tattoo style designs – and offer up their ideas on why the indie craft movement keeps growing in popularity. (One reason: people are burned out on the same old mass produced merchandise. Other reasons include sustainability and sticking it to the man.) Store and gallery owners, members of collectives and other key figures add additional insight. Levine’s film has the freewheeling do-it-yourself look and feel of the movement she portrays, effectively capturing its spirit and fun. Handmade Nation makes its Seattle premiere at NWFF on Saturday and Sunday at 1:00 and 4:00; Levine will join a group of local indie crafters for post-film discussions at both 1:00 showings.

Also at NWFF, the spirit of 69 continues with Salesman, a fascinating documentary by the Maysles brothers of four hyper-aggressive door-to-door salesmen who harass poor Catholic families into buying ornate bibles. The directors took a hands off approach to filming, allowing the events to unfold the natural way they would if they weren’t being observed. Critic Vincent Canby suggested that Salesman is so “fine” and “pure” that he couldn’t ever imagine it becoming irrelevant; although much has changed in the world of sales in the 40 years since its original release, many of the issues it raises are as immediately significant as ever.

Regular readers can’t have missed my great fondness for the films of Alfred Hitchcock since I promote them every time there’s an opportunity. With good reason – the master of suspense made films that are equally great upon repeated viewings as they are for the first time. SIFF Cinema pays homage to the legendary director with a series of Hitchcock double features screened to coincide with Seattle Rep’s presentation of a stage version of Hitchcock’s The 39 Steps. Saturday’s features are the excellent Rear Window and Vertigo. Sunday thrill to Dial M for Murder and Strangers on a Train. Monday it’s The 39 Steps and Hitchcock’s own favorite, Shadow of a Doubt.

Sure, it’s been a while since the Supersonics left town, but you don’t just wipe away 41 years of history overnight, particularly when that history includes a pitched battle in the courts of both law and public opinion. Even if you don’t care about the Sonics or even pro basketball in general, the Sonics saga was an interesting one. Sonicsgate is a new documentary film that tells the story of how Seattle lost the Sonics and it makes its world premier at SIFF Cinema Friday night, with an exclusive attendee afterparty at Spitfire. The screening is unsurprisingly sold out but in the spirit of the subject, you could always try hanging outside with a “need extra ticket” sign. Or you could try catching it at Pacific Place on Saturday at 8pm. (Tickets through Brown Paper Tickets.

Grand Illusion gives you a double dose of Deadites with Evil Dead II: Dead by Dawn and Army of Darkness, starring Bruce Campbell and a chainsaw. If these two films aren’t enough blood and guts for you, get your zombie fix on with Zombie, the 1979 Italian horrorfest late night Friday and Saturday.

Central Cinema screens a new indie film, Teenage Dirtbag, an “inspired by true events” drama about a popular high school cheerleader who develops a fragile bond with a delinquent “dirtbag” after they share a creative writing class.

Midnight at the Egyptian: Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice Beetlejuice.

Kind of a cool thing, support our local environmental groups!

Patagonia Seattle to Award $5,000 to Local Environmental Groups in 2nd Annual Community-Selected ‘Voice Your Choice’ Campaign Vote September 24-October 24 at Patagonia Store

SEATTLE, WA — Put Patagonia’s money where your mouth is! Cast your ballot in the outdoor clothing manufacturer’s second annual “Voice Your Choice” campaign to help Patagonia’s Seattle store decide how it should distribute $5,000 in grant money to three local environmental organizations. The top vote-getter will be awarded $2,500, with the second- and third-place organizations receiving $1,500 and $1,000 respectively.

Local groups nominated for the award are Sightline Institute, Woodland Park Zoo, and 21 Acres Center for Local Food and Sustainable Living. Votes will be accepted at the store at 2100 First Avenue from September 24 through October 24. Participants can cast one vote per store per visit. No purchase is necessary.

The candidates were selected by Patagonia store members based on their local focus and range of environmental concerns. Consumers can learn more about the groups by visiting their websites as well as attending “Table Day” presentations by each organization that will be hosted by the store over the next few weeks. Winners will be announced in early November.

Patagonia retail stores in 25 communities throughout the country will be participating in the Voice Your Choice campaign as part of the company’s well-known support for environmental causes, including a separate Environmental Grants Program that has generated more than $34 million in grants since 1985 by donating 1% of annual sales to environmental organizations worldwide.

“Every day, local environmental organizations make a difference in the community. Our Voice Your Choice program helps them continue their work as well as spreading the word about projects taking place in our backyard,” said store manager Nicole Mamola. “Seeking community input in how to distribute the funds is our way of raising public awareness about local environmental issues and hopefully getting more people involved in protecting the planet.”

“Last year’s Voice Your Choice program distributed $100,000 to local environmental groups and was very well-received in participating communities. People were eager for the opportunity to have a say in grant decisions that will directly affect their quality of life or that of their children,” said Vickie Achee, Head of Marketing for Patagonia’s North America Retail Division. “We’re repeating the program this year to extend that opportunity and enable other organizations to benefit from the funds.”

photo by ray tracing [flickr] via our group pool [#]

• Art walks in West Seattle [wsaw] and Capitol Hill [blitz] duke it out for your autumn evening attentions.
• In West Seattle, the opening party for an exhibition of photos by Chona Kasinger, who’s easily one of the best rock photographers in the city. Though she’s not yet allowed into 21+ shows, she’s nevertheless assembled a drool-worthy portfolio of just about every band who matters for just about every outlet that counts. Highlights are on display at Cupcake Royale.
• Richard Dawkins cheers up the evolutionists at Hec Ed. Arrive early and bring pom poms. [ubookstore]
• the Stranger gets happy at Pony with free books, a drawing for hard-to-come-by HUMP tickets, and happy hour specials. [slog]

One of the Bus Stop’s bartenders, Zack, has been hospitalized for Pancreatitis. He doesn’t have insurance, so his friends at the Bus Stop are helping him out with his bills on Sunday–from 4 – 8, the staff will be donating their time and tips, and the bar will be donating the money they would be paying the staff to work and all of the profits. DJ Valpack and special guests will be DJing/performing, and there will be an envelope at the bar for cash or check donations. They would appreciate it if you stopped by and had a drink.

The Bus Stop is located at 1552 East Olive Way.