Let me start off by saying that it is really hard to write a preview of a band that refuses to be categorized let alone two of them. Lord. It is also hard when you realize that neither of a band’s two shows with “a string quartet, woodwinds, trumpets, and a harpist” will be taking place in your town because, quite frankly, I love that kind of stuff.

That said though, tonight’s Clinic w/ Shearwater show (Neumo’s), while hard to pigeonhole, seems to me to be the perfect kind of music to listen to after two days of frolicking in the sun. I thought about describing that in more detail, but you know what? Have a listen and let me know if you agree with me:

Clinic – Free Not Free
Shearwater – Rooks [mp3]

Okay now that you’re back, here are things you should know: Both bands are touring in support of their new albums Clinic’s recently released Do It and Shearwater’s upcoming Rook (June 08). Shearwater is a spin-off of Okkervil River. And in regards to Clinic, Pitchfork says, “it’s still inexplicable for a band this savvy about groove-minded freakouts that they’ve never recorded a song longer than four and a half minutes.” [pf] I don’t know about you, but this might be the strongest argument to love a band that I’ve ever heard. Immune to jammy-noodling? Sign me up!

Doors at 8, $13adv, 21+
img from Clinic’s press page.

Ra Ra Riot @ Chop Suey - May 12, 2008

I will always remember that concert I went to when my friend turned to me and remarked, “The opening band has killed my buzz.” It was a life lesson that everyone has to learn on their own regarding the delicate live music arrival formula. You know, time of doors + ( number of bands x average venue lateness) plus the square root of 42. However, sometimes, yes, sometimes, it pays to get that formula wrong and find yourself walking into a mostly empty club waiting for everything to begin. Kind of like last night.

First of all, when there’s no one but you and your plus one (Beth), the bar is wonderfully clear for you to consider the best option to go with your pre-loaded gin drink, quaffed moments before boarding the bus. Secondly, one gets to be an old fogey and pick out the best seats to be hoarded for the evening. And finally, and the most important reason, you get to hear ridiculously cute and fantastic bands from Iceland who aren’t even on the bill that you’ll never get to see again because you couldn’t understand their name. I mean, seriously I couldn’t understand their name. They were halfway through their first poppy song when I realized they weren’t singing in English. They apologized for not being at their best since one of their singers went home to be with his newborn, but they were still pretty great. As Beth quite handily sums up, “Their music was catchy, even if it was in a different language and they kind of totally stole the show. Also, they were tall.”

I also liked Panda and Angel quite a bit. I think I might have been the last person in Seattle to have heard of this local band [tig], since they have quite a (deserved, I think) following, which is of course another consequence of trying to show up when the headliners go on. Their upbeat tempos yet croony-style vocals were the perfect bridge between Iceland and Syracuse. Also, I’m always amazed at bands that are able to switch instruments around all willy-nilly like and yet still sound fairly tight. They’ll be playing later on this month (5/30) at Neumo’s – highly recommend. All in all, we totally lucked out, but I suppose that’s to be expected in this city.

As for the band we were there to see? Not Little Ones, but Ra Ra Riot, up-and-coming band from Syracuse, NY. Beth and I (and the Icelandic band) all concurred that the sound was perhaps past 11. Oh yeah, too loud. I was suddenly convinced that I needed to start wearing ear plugs to shows. But aside from that, they were pretty great. Beth, “did enjoy the string instruments, and the collaboration, and particularly the instruments themselves, which rather than your typical violin or cello were simply metal or plastic outlines of the instruments with strings in the proper places. It certainly looked cool.” Yep. Yep. And yep. The strings were well-integrated into their high-energy show. I am also now in love with the violinist. More importantly, if I remember correctly, they plan to swing back through Seattle in September. I think that means Bumbershoot and I hope so. I think this band might be perfect for listening to outside under a lovely Seattle September’s evening.

Videos and downloads:
Panda and Angel [myspace]
Ra Ra Riot [#, myspace]

This past Saturday NOFX stopped off at the Showbox Sodo for their second to last show on the second leg of their 2008 tour. It’s nice to see NOFX doing some club type shows instead of big Warped Tour festivals like they normally do these days.

The doors opened at 8:30pm, and we showed up sometime after 10pm. Were able to catch No Use For A Name, however we missed the opening band American Steel. I’ve seen NUFAN a number of times and they’re not a bad band, however I’m not a fan. There’s just nothing about them that jumps out at me. The crowd was into them and they played their “hit” ‘Justified Black Eye’ that was on one of those Fat Wreck Chords compilations.

NOFX came on stage shortly after 11:30pm to the song ‘Welcome to Jamrock’ by Damian Marley. They opened with ‘Dinosaurs Will Die’, which was a bit of a surprise, but a good one for sure. Their set was a nice mix of old and new songs. They’ve been a band for over 20 years, so they have a lot of material. They also played my favorite cover of ‘Radio’ by Rancid ever. In fact, I have to say I like their cover version more than the original. It’s just a lot more fun. There was the typical NOFX chatter between every single song. Fat Mike spent a lot of time talking about his disdain for children, religion and the state of politics these days. They played ‘Murder The Government’ but not ‘Idiot Son of an Asshole’ (a song about our current president). They also dedicated ‘Whoops I OD’d’ to a local kid who was a big fan of theirs who died of an overdose. I saw one of the kid’s friends there holding up a memorial t-shirt during the song. It was pretty cool. They were only supposed to play until 1am, but ended up going over that by a bit and ended closer to 1:30.

All in all the show was great. NOFX had an insane amount of energy, even though Fat Mike kept going on about how drunk he was and how he felt like he was cheating the audience because he couldn’t play so well. The only thing is, I don’t like Showbox Sodo very much. The place was packed and when there are hundreds of people jammed in there it gets really gross as the night goes on. For a rather large, open space it gets really hot and damp and at the end of the night the floor is all wet and there is condensation dripping from the pipes in the ceiling. Not to mention, if you’re on the shorter side, it’s hard to find a good vantage point to watch the show.

*Special thanks to Shawn for the crappy camera phone picture.

Billboard says that their inclusion of Prince and Rage Against the Machine as Bumbershoot headliners [mb] was an error. Their guide to summer music festivals [billboard] has been corrected. Carry on.

If you’re old enough to remember swing dancing in the late ’90s, you’ll remember the Cherry Poppin’ Daddies, whose “Zoot Suit Riot” was a kind of anthem for that short-lived revival. After 19 years together, and a foray into molecular biology, the band will be swinging through Seattle this Friday for two shows.

Their new album Susquehanna is an oddly cohesive mix of ska, swing, reggae and Latin music, in part because the lyrics flow together well- it’s been compared to a rock opera, or alternately, chapters of modernist novel, according to frontman Steve Perry. (#).

Of course, Friday’s shows promise to be interesting- in their early days, the band got themselves into a bit of a pickle back in Oregon due to Perry’s phallic gyrations involving… a pickle. (#) The Triple Door will have a dance floor available- whether Perry will be there with a pickle is still up in the air.

The Cherry Poppin’ Daddies will be at the Triple Door for two shows Friday at 7:30 and 10:30. Tickets can be bought through their website, here. And in case you’d like to get “Zoot Suit Riot” stuck in your head, here’s the video- you can thank me later:

I doubt this just about as hard as I can, but maybe Prince and Rage Against the Machine are part of the Bumbershoot lineup? Via rumor-loving Ear Candy [#], this blurb from Billboard’s guide to summer music:

BUMBERSHOOT
August 30 - September 1
Seattle Center, Seattle
Lineup Includes: Prince, Beck, Stone Temple Pilots, Rage Against the Machine, Neko Case, Lucinda Williams
Festival Web Site: www.bumbershoot.org

Originally beginning as The Seattle Arts Festival in 1971, Bumbershoot consists of a variety of art, including music, film, comedy, theater, spoken word, dance, visual, performance, and literary arts. The festival takes place at the Seattle Center, a 74-acre park with over 20 indoor/outdoor venues and independent vendors located throughout the area. Headliners aside, other must see artists include !!!, Ingrid Michaelson, M. ward, and Del tha Funkee Homosapien.
[billboard]

Prince’s long jam, variety show, “Creep”-covering set at Coachella last month was something to behold [mb], but it reportedly cost Goldenvoice somewhere in the neighborhood above four million dollars to pull it off for a festival with daily admission tickets hovering close to a hundred dollars. Does Onereel really have that kind of cash on hand?

From Pinkpop in June, to Lollapalooza, Reading and Leeds in August, Rage Against the Machine have headlining spots for a slew of ever-multiplying summer festivals, but nothing on their calendar after 23 August. When I saw them a couple years ago (right after they reunited), the crowd was intense and huge. It would certainly change the scene at Seattle Center if their hardcore fans parachuted in for a Battle of Bumbershoot.

I dashed off a note to Onereel to see if there’s any merit to Billboard’s story and will let you know when I hear more. Thoughts?

update: Billboard regrets the error. [mb]

I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but some of us around here are fans of Grand Archives. Some of us stayed up past our bedtime on April 30th to watch them on the Craig Ferguson show, which we have never seen before, while sitting at the Redwood. If you missed it, that’s cool, because You Tube knows everything.

You’ll be able to see them next in person at Sasquatch, before they head off on another tour.

I had the joy of attending the Progressive Nation Tour last night at the WaMu Theater, featuring the likes of Three, Between the Buried and Me, Opeth and Dream Theater.

Since I just had a rather long and detailed post eaten alive by Firefox, I’ll just say this -

The four bands on this tour are relentlessly talented and amazing performers, especially Dream Theater. Some may relegate the band to the likes of elitist prog-metal for 30-year-old geeks who still play Dungeons & Dragons, but they’re arguably the most talented act in the business today.

And after 20+ years of writing music, last night’s show was more than proof that they’re still capable of making my jaw hit the floor 12 times in one night. (Did I mention this was my 10th time seeing them live?)

Incredible show for those who had the good fortune of catching it, and for those who didn’t, there’s a crappy-quality cellphone picture for you to look at. No picture would’ve done any of it justice anyway.

If you ever find yourself asking yourself what could possibly be better than an outdoor concert during the summer months, let me tell you that the answer is an outdoor concert during the summer months at the Woodland Park Zoo.

Every summer the lovely and spacious North Meadow at the zoo is transformed into a fun and inviting outdoor concert venue as part of their annual ZooTunes music series.  The family-friendly festival allows concert-goers to bring for free one 12 years old and under child with them (your Little Brother or Sister, perhaps?) per paid ticket.  Ticket prices vary per show but generally run between $18 and $28 and are available in advance at the Zoo’s gates or at local Metropolitan Markets with a small service fee.  Additionally, a small amount of tickets will be available on TicketWeb on May 5.  These tickets will go fast, so if you want to go, you’d better get to buying.

This year’s line-up: 

• June 24: Keb’ Mo’ / Taj Mahal - $28
• June 25: Keb’ Mo’/Taj Mahal - $28
• June 29: Indigo Girls with special guests- $24
• July 16: Marc Cohn / Aimee Mann - $22
• July 23 - Andrew Bird $17
                   Josh Ritter
• July 24 - Emmylou Harris $29.50
                   Jimmy Gaudreau and Moondi Klein
• July 27: Sharon Jones and the Dap-Kings - $19
                             Marc Broussard
• August 13: Boz Scaggs with special guests - $24
• August 21: Amos Lee with special guests - $18
• August 27 – The Avett Brothers $18
                                Shawn Mullins

hot chip / the showbox / 22 april 2008; A photoset is up now [flickr], more text later.

Before the show, we went to the Green Room for drinks (shorter lines) and returned to the all ages area wonering what sort of crowd this would be. Everyone was there for Hot Chip — the bouncers at the door made sure of that in repeated shouts on the way in, perhaps as a way of alleviating confusion between SoDo and “at the Market” versions of the Showbox — but it was a weeknight, all ages, and the drinking section hovers above; so you can never really tell. Would they be crazy dancers or polite toe tappers? Would the floor turn into a seething mass or remain divided? These are important questions when you’re thinking about getting into the heart of the crowd from the periphery.

It turns out that it was somewhere in between. Hot Chip arrive to their own theme song and meet their gear on a stage set with the album art from Made in the Dark as a backdrop. Passage to and from the restroom was blockaded to allow the band maxium efficiency in their rush from backstage to onstage. I have no idea what they opened with because I was taking pictures, and the listening comprehension part of my brain shuts off when I’m looking through a viewfinder and navigating the crowd. Weird, I know. But it did sound great: the combination of blaring synthetic, live acoustic, and real percussion accents is a winning one. Mix it up with some spotlights, a springy floor, and a devoted audience and you’ve got the makings of a dance party.

Onstage, the band is funny if not a bit mumbly from time to time. The lead singer kneels for particularly sensitive bits. “Wrestlers” is more comedic and less poignant live, but the rap bits (including the backwards part) is funnier and more endearing in person. Al Doyle provides bits of witty banter. Everyone has fun throughout, but the biggest wave of infectious pogoing hits when they dip back into the Warning for “Over and Over”. Among all of the songs in the set, it is the one that comes closest to uniting the crowd. It spreads from stage’s edge back to the chandelier in pulses, and, for a few moments, the room is consumed with one big singular bouncing organism.

They save breakout hits “Ready for the Floor” for last; bringing out slower come-down songs for the encore. There’s no champagne snowball slow dance for “Made in the Dark” even though it feels like it was within the realm of possibility for a few moments. The close out the set with a cover of “Nothing Compares (2 U)” that slips and slides into “In the Privacy of Our Love”. There’s no starlight from the disco ball, but the crowd’s sense of camaraderie is re-ignited seconds after the last notes are played. When “Time After Time” hits the PAs as exit music, everyone sings along. It’s surprisingly magical, especially when the music cuts out and all of our voices fill the gaps.