Line Out | Seattle Music & the City at Night Blog | The Stranger, Seattle's Only Newspaper

Win It! Win Tickets to the Coup at the Croc!

Posted by Megan Seling on Mon, Feb 13, 2012 at 12:35 PM

The Coup are playing the Crocodile this Friday with Theoretics and DJ Funk Scribe. Want to go for free? Sure you do!

Just e-mail your first and last name to freetickets@thestranger.com with the Coup in the subject line.

Tickets are also still available for $13 here.

Good luck!

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Album / Song "Exorcismic Breeding Knife": of Montreal Get WEIRD

Posted by Dave Segal on Mon, Feb 13, 2012 at 11:41 AM

of Montreal’s new album, Paralytic Stalks (out Feb. 7 on Polyvinyl), is primarily a garrulous, complexly melodic record that’s in debt to Todd Rundgren and Sparks’ flamboyant stadium pop. But on the penultimate song, “Exorcismic Breeding Knife,” of Montreal break from the somewhat conventional, if bombastic, songcraft for a tangent that’s practically “Revolution 9”-like in its WTF?-ness. A Ligeti-esque spectral vocal drone hovers over surprising spurts of chamber-music dissonance and enigmatic sound events, all of which are stitched into a nightmarish collage not dissimilar to some of former Elephant 6 mates Olivia Tremor Control's most outré moments. Bold move! Gold star to any DJ who plays this track on the radio or in the club.

of Montreal play Showbox at the Market with Deerhoof and Kishi Bashi Sat. March 24.

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News Today's Music News: Reactions to Reactions to the Grammys

Posted by Jackson Hathorn on Mon, Feb 13, 2012 at 11:33 AM

Reactions to Reactions to the Grammys: I worked most of last night, and the bar I went to after work had its three TVs devoted to The Walking Dead, so I missed the Grammys, which saw its largest television audience since 1984 (most likely due to people tuning in to see a Whitney Houston memorial. RIP Whitney). Here are my reactions to reactions to the Grammys:

Reading Tweets (Really Bums Me Out): Echoing last year's "Who the fuck are the Suburbs?" after Arcade Fire won Album of the Year, many people took to Twitter to ask "Who the fuck is Bonny Bear"? Clearly not everyone is familiar with Bon Iver (who took home Best New Artist, after refusing to perform at the ceremony with the Beach Boys, but remains totally fine with being in Bushmills ads. I never thought I could get annoyed with someone who makes his type of benign music, but Justin Vernon's acceptance speech "It's also hard to accept because you know, when I started to make songs I did it for the inherent reward of making songs" really irritated me. Just say "fuck the world" like Fiona Apple and get on with your life). And I hate to break it to you if you hadn't already lost faith in my generation, but apparently lots of young dolts have no idea who Paul McCartney is either. In even worse news, as Kelly O already pointed out, BuzzFeed complied a list of 25 women who said they would let Chris Brown beat them up.

Longer Than 140 Characters: If you'd like a longer read, there's already a write up on Line Out by Christopher Frizzelle, and another good one comes from New Yorker critic Sasha Frere-Jones, who calls Chris Brown a "woman-beating rage-broccoli."

Non-Grammy News: St. Vincent will be on a very special episode of Gossip Girl tonight! Stream new albums by Perfume Genius and Damien Jurado! Jay-Z and Kanye West (who won every rap category at the Grammys, but likely didn't attend the awards because My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy was snubbed in Album of the Year category) have a video for Watch the Throne that could give you seizures. Finally, have you been listening to Cloud Nothings? Here's the video to my favorite song from the new album (with production from Steve Albini) that's been my most-played of 2012, and watch out for a March 6th date at the Crocodile.

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Death RIP Whitney Houston, Long Live Capitalism

Posted by Mike Nipper on Mon, Feb 13, 2012 at 11:26 AM

Nice one Sony...Houston's catalog, within hours of her death, just got a leetle more expensive.

...Sony Music increased the price of "The Ultimate Collection" at about 4 a.m. Sunday, not even 12 hours after news broke of Houston's death. Fans were quick to point fingers at Apple for the anti-sale, but it turned out that when Sony bumped up the wholesale price of "The Ultimate Collection," iTunes and other retailers automatically upped their pricing.

Read all about it right HERE! Gross, Sony...just gross.

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Song Killer Mike - "Big Beast (f/ Bun B, T.I. & Trouble)" (prod. El-P)

Posted by Larry Mizell, Jr. on Mon, Feb 13, 2012 at 11:11 AM

I don't know about you, but I've been waiting to hear the fruits of this much-tweeted about collaboration for a minute. Not only did El-P take it to the South (is there a slight old-school Cash Money thing going on here?), he put his '86 rusty-chainlink wasteland-bboy vibe to good use behind some of the best in the south, including Bun B, T.I., and my favorite new face in the A, Trouble. Killer Mike drops a reference to other ATL posse cut, "Welcome To Atlanta", that's true to his name: "these monkey niggas lookin' for some Luda and Jermaine/ and all that nigga found was some Ruger and some pain."

Killer Mike - "Big Beast (f/ Bun B, T.I. & Trouble)" (prod. El-P)

Off of Killer Mike's upcoming R.A.P. Music (that stands for Rebellious African People, btw, and that's wassup) LP, entirely produced by El-P. This is on the heels of El's recent announcement that he's done with his next solo, uh, album. So far, 2012 is off to a perfectly appropriate start.

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The Stranger Suggests

DANCE/FILM

‘Pina’

If you do one thing today, DO THIS.

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News Congratulations to the Deep Wake!

Posted by Megan Seling on Mon, Feb 13, 2012 at 10:52 AM

Folk rock duo the Deep Wake from Bainbridge Island are the first of four bands to move on to the Sound Off! 2012 finals. They now have a shot at winning a heap of awesome prizes including new gear, studio time, an a performance at Bumbershoot 2012.

Seattle's own Sam Lachow came in second place, which means they still have a chance at making the finals by way of wild card vote—the EMP's Youth Advisory Board will choose one second place band to move forward to the finals later this month.

Sound Off's second round of semi-finals are this Saturday with Brothers From Another, Honora, Nude, and Ulrich. Buy your tickets here.

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Film Marian Anderson's Last Fast Ride

Posted by Kathy Fennessy on Mon, Feb 13, 2012 at 10:52 AM

Two New Punk Docs Ponder Authority, Part Two:
Last Fast Ride: The Life, Love and Death of a Punk Goddess

Virgil Films

Lilly Scourtis Ayers makes her feature film debut with Last Fast Ride, just as Andrea Blaugrund Nevins made hers with The Other F Word. The former, however, is a scrappier, more downbeat affair. Depending on your perspective, that makes it even more punk, both in terms of content and presentation, though three of the same bands have connections to the two (and I don’t mean "scrappy" as in amateurish; it's just less polished, in keeping with the brash subject matter).

In this case, Scourtis Ayers turns to Rancid's Tim Armstrong for commentary and Black Flag's Henry Rollins for narration, while the other film featured Rancid's Lars Frederiksen and Black Flag's Ron Reyes. The Other F Word also features U.S. Bombs' Duane Peters. Though he doesn’t appear in Last Fast Ride, he released a collection of Anderson's work with Bay Area band the Insaints.

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Album Stream Damien Jurado's New Album, Maraqopa

Posted by Megan Seling on Mon, Feb 13, 2012 at 10:45 AM

The A.V. Club is making your Monday a little less awful with an exclusive stream of Damien Jurado's tenth (!) studio album, Maraqopa, which'll be released on February 21st.

Jurado will be playing an album release show this Friday at the Neptune, and tickets are on sale here. There's also still time to win them.

(Also: I love the song "Museum of Flight," but am I the only person who hears a tinge of Coldplay's "Yellow" in the chorus? Just a little bit? I still like it! Just, you know... Coldplay.)

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#1 Fan Jimi Hendrix Fans

Posted by Jen Graves on Mon, Feb 13, 2012 at 10:35 AM

FROM MALI TO SEATTLE, WITH LOVE This photograph of three hardcore Jimi Hendrix fans in Bamako is the latest addition to the Malick Sidibe exhibition at MIA Gallery downtown. Sidibe took the picture in the 1970s.

Courtesy MIA Gallery
FROM MALI TO SEATTLE, WITH LOVE This photograph of three hardcore Jimi Hendrix fans in Bamako is the latest addition to the Malick Sidibe exhibition at MIA Gallery downtown. Sidibe took the picture in the 1970s.

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I'm Still a Virgin Yvonne Baker's Spy Theme

Posted by Mike Nipper on Mon, Feb 13, 2012 at 10:30 AM

A solid Northern soul classic from Ms. Yvonne Baker. Right, well that is obvious, BUT...could it wind up the James Bond theme with shades of Shirely Bassey's singing the Goldfinger intro any better?

Suddenly my Monday has meaning. Jeepers, that's a great track. Now, to find a copy...

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??!! "I'd Let Chris Brown Punch Me In The Face"

Posted by Kelly O on Mon, Feb 13, 2012 at 10:01 AM

What the fuck is wrong with people?!? These women on Twitter make me want to stick a red hot fork in each eye. The world is going to end in 2012, and these women are to blame.

READ AND WEEP.

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Booze Morningtime at Tales of the Cocktail Vancouver

Posted by Bethany Jean Clement on Mon, Feb 13, 2012 at 9:52 AM

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This is what I'm missing right this very minute at this here cocktail convention:

9:00 AM to 10:30 AM
Coffee Bar
Star Sapphire Foyer, Fairmont Pacific Rim Hotel
Presented by Amarula Cream, Frangelico, Irish Mist and Tullamore Dew

What is even better than starting your day with a freshly brewed cup of coffee? Well, at Tales of the Cocktail it’s starting your day at the Coffee Bar. Hosted by Frangelico, Amarula, Tullamore Dew and Irish Mist, these are morning coffees (cocktails!) that you don’t want to miss. From the classics to the nouveau, these will be sure to get you primed and recharged to start another exciting day at Tales!!

There are 97 more liquor tastings today here in Vancouver, and even armed with information on "How to Drink All Day at Tales Without Getting Too Drunk" (summary: eat, sleep, drink water, take vitamins, don't drink too much)... well, I'm eating a banana and having a cup of uncorrected coffee. I apologize for failing to live the dream.

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Fashion What You're Not Wearing: WHATEVER I WANT Edition!!

Posted by Timothy Rysdyke on Mon, Feb 13, 2012 at 9:48 AM

These cats:

These sweatpants:

This denim:

This animal:

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Lists / Shit Talk / History Bah Humbucker: The 100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time*

Posted by Dave Segal on Mon, Feb 13, 2012 at 8:45 AM

*As not recognized by Rolling Stone.

This is somewhat old news, but I just recently came across the Dec. 8, 2011 Rolling Stone in The Stranger’s editorial bathroom (the place where mainstream publications go to die inglorious deaths). This issue contains a list of what that venerable magazine thinks are the 100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time. As a repository for conventional wisdom, the list is archetypal Jann Wennerite orthodoxy.

The top 10 might as well be carved into Mount Rushmore, so sure are the mag’s contributors to the list—dozens of guitarists, band managers, and RS writers, most of whom are older than you—that this is THEE TRUTH, a truth set in (Rolling) stone since, oh, 1979. Those 10? Jimi Hendrix, Eric Clapton, Jimmy Page, Keith Richards, Jeff Beck, B.B. King, Chuck Berry, Eddie Van Halen, Duane Allman, Pete Townshend. Yes, yes, these guys all rule in some way, but this litany is about as surprising as finding out a strident homophobe is a closet case. Next thing Rolling Stone is going to tell us (again) is that Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band is the greatest album of all time. Roll over, Ben Fong-Torres, and tell Greil Marcus the news.

The overall thrust of this top 100 is conservative, with blues and blues-based rock guitarists from the US and UK dominating things. (Tangential thought: Was Ted Nugent excluded because of his ultra-right-wing political views? I’m thinking yes.) Of course, most of these musicians are indisputably crucial, but the panel’s experts totally short-change prog, jazz, and fusion’s six-string stars. I appreciate appearances by Frank Zappa (#22), Robert Fripp (#62), and John McLaughlin (#68), but there are a plethora of guitarists in those realms who also deserve recognition.

While about 67 percent of the musicians included in this survey surely are important and worthy, some crucial innovators and distinctive masters were left out. Some of the omissions are downright shocking. Of course, all such lists are subjective, but an established musical source such as RS carries a lot of weight, flaws and all. I would like to take this opportunity to counter its received opinions with an alternate viewpoint.

In response to Rolling Stone’s canonization exercise, my sonic soul mate Explorateur and I brainstormed our own top 100 (and then some). The boldfaced names are those who we think really got shafted. Surely we forgot some key players, and surely you’ll tell us about your picks in comments, but this is our attempt to present a list that can stand headstock to headstock with ol’ Rolling Stone’s. (Note: The order’s kind of random after #30.] Deep breath…

01 Kevin Shields [My Bloody Valentine]
02 Sonny Sharrock
03 Helios Creed [Chrome]
04 Dennis Coffey
05 Pete Cosey [Miles Davis, Cadet Records session player]
06 Manuel Göttsching [Ash Ra Tempel]
07 Michael Rother [Neu!, Harmonia]
08 Phil Manzanera [Roxy Music, 801]
09 Jimmy Nolen [James Brown]
10 Andy Gill [Gang of Four]
11 Michael Karoli [Can]
12 Larry Coryell
13 Sigi Schwab [Et Cetera]
14 Terje Rypdal
15 Sir Richard Bishop [Sun City Girls, Rangda]
16 Phil Upchurch [Cadet Records session player]
17 Yamamoto Seiichi [Boredoms]
18 Campbell 2000 [aka Ryan Shinn, Hovercraft]
19 Brad Laner [Medicine]
20 Curt Kirkwood [Meat Puppets]

Pete Cosey with Miles Davis

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Tonight Tonight in Music: Gary Clark Jr., White Dress

Posted by Mike Ramos on Mon, Feb 13, 2012 at 8:16 AM

Gary Clark Jr., White Dress

(Crocodile, Sold Out) If you ignore his duet with Alicia Keys (and you should ignore the "While My Guitar Gently Weeps" cover currently making the rounds on the information superhighway), you'll notice that Gary Clark Jr. plays some mean blues guitar, as evidenced on his debut EP, Bright Lights (for some annoying reason, iTunes calls it the Bright Lights Bootleg EP. I blame the marketing department). Add to that singing chops and the fact that he's a handsome young man, and you've got a record contract with Warner Bros. Either way, "I Don't Owe You a Thang" is a fucking jam, and this dude is going places. Opening are White Dress, whose experimental punk blues is scary and interesting. Download their EP for zero dollars at arumrae.blogspot.com. GRANT BRISSEY

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Booze Live(ish) From Tales of the Cocktail Vancouver

Posted by Bethany Jean Clement on Mon, Feb 13, 2012 at 12:40 AM

Tales of the Cocktail is a cocktail conference (yes, such a thing exists) that takes place annually in New Orleans, and, beginning last year, also in Vancouver, B.C.

There are drinks, and tastings-of-liquors ("Hendrick's Gin Tasting Emporium," "150 Years of Bacardi," "Havana Cultura"), and more drinks, and a Spirited Dinner Series (dinners-with-drinks at Vancouver's fancy restaurants), and conference sessions ("Rum for All Face Off" [!?], "Punch and Beyond: Colonial American Drinks," "Less Is More—Alcoholic Dilution" with the awesome Harold McGee and Audrey Sanders), and more drinks.

I have only been here for six hours and I already fell down a wide, lovely marble stairway (at the opening party at the swell, elegant Rosewood Hotel Georgia—IT WAS THE FAULT OF MY SHOES and I am uninjured, if you care).

Here are some people met so far:

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DAVID BAIN, bar manager, Uva Wine Bar, Vancouver, BC

David thinks of Tales Vancouver as a "coastal exchange" of cocktailness. He somehow became the wine director at a place called Fiction (now closed; the poetry!) at the age of 21, which he describes as a crash course in figuring out the whole alcohol thing.

He had his first drink ever at the finish line of a vintage car race his father was competing in—his dad was driving a Triumph TR6 from Vancouver to Portland, and he and his mom were the pit crew. During the closing ceremonies, he snuck off and pilfered a bottle of crappy chardonnay champagne, almost put his eye out opening it, and shared it with the other kids who were around. He was eight.

MORE...

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Zzzzzzzzzzzzz The Grammys Happened and They Were as Bad as They Always Are

Posted by Christopher Frizzelle on Mon, Feb 13, 2012 at 12:07 AM

Adele by Helga Esteb/SHUTTERSTOCK
Mass props and no more polyps.

But there was the chill of death in the air, which makes bad things more interesting. Whitney Houston's limp body might have been in an examiner's building blocks away, but that didn't stop Bruce Springsteen from starting off the night by saying: "America, are you alive out there?" (Maybe he hadn't heard?) LL Cool J recovered with, "There is no way around this: We've had a death in our family." Bonnie Raitt mentioned "the other great lady we lost this year, the one and only Etta James." Chris Brown thanked God. Adele did not thank God but she did thank her doctors, and then won a second, third, fourth, fifth, and sixth award, none of which she thanked God for. (Thank God!) Foo Fighters played three separate times for absolutely no reason. (Whitney Houston died—cut some shit, guys!) Paul McCartney played twice. (Whatever Paul wants.) Alicia Keys and Bruno Mars have the same hair. Some bad things seem to have happened to Katy Perry recently. Jennifer Hudson looked freakily like Whitney Houston (hair silhouette) and looked moved (fighting tears). There should be an award for the jowls on those Beach Boys. A presenter was probably trying to praise Gil Scot Heron when she said, idiotically, "Thanks to poets like Gil Scott-Heron, the revolution IS being televised."

Rest in peace, Whitney Houston and Adele's polyp.

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