DEERHOOF, XIU XIU, EYES OF AUTUMN
(Chop Suey) See preview, page 33.
MARCELL MARIAS
(SAM) In conjunction with its Christian Marclay exhibit, tonight SAM offers a performance by visual/electronic music artist Marcell Marias. The Hungarian-born multimedia composer has worked with various acts in Germany and the U.S., and toured as the opening act for Meat Beat Manifesto back in 1996. As part of SAM's awesome After Hours series, tonight Marias will perform audio and visual work, with MIDI-controlled imagery and original electronic compositions. JENNIFER MAERZ
FRIDAY 2/27
QUASI, DUSTER, VIOLENT GREEN
(Chop Suey) See Stranger Suggests, page 23.
THE PLANET THE, POPULAR SHAPES, POINT LINE PLANE, SCIENCE VICTIM
(Fun House) See preview, page 35.
PRETTY GIRLS MAKE GRAVES, DJS ON STRIKE!, GRAYSKUL, YEAR FUTURE
(Neumo's, early) Sonny Kay is something of a hero of mine. The founder of the San Diego underground label Gold Standard Labs--current or one-time home to some of the best no wave/post hardcore acts around (!!!, Arab on Radar, 400 Blows, XBXRX)--also plays in a topnotch band called Year Future. Imagine a band channeling Joy Division through Drive Like Jehu, with breathless screams breaking into an abyss of sound effects and ramped-up guitars, and you get close to the mayhem Kay delivers. It's awesome. JENNIFER MAERZ
BRADEN BLAKE, GAVIN GUSS
(Sunset, early) Not that I should have expected it to be anything but good, given Braden Blake's obvious pop skills evident when he was heading up Super Deluxe, but I wasn't prepared for just how good his first solo album would be. With a title like A Year in Pajamas--a reference many of us living in this town can relate to--you can guess that the prevailing tone of the record is one of bemused harmony, with lots of acoustic guitar and songs about romantic luck and loss. All of the songs are easy to like, but the obvious highlight is the sleepy, glockenspiel- and string-laced "Peter Pan." Blake claims to have recorded his CD in his bedroom, in his pajamas, and I applaud anyone who manages to work similarly dressed. KATHLEEN WILSON
NEW MEXICANS, +/-, SMOKE AND SMOKE
(Sunset, late) Some of us have been waiting a very long time for godheadSilo's Mike Kunka and Dan Brubeck to team up again because I swear to god, there was never a more teeth-shattering, floor-rumbling bass and drum duo than those two, and their Skyward in Triumph works like Ritalin on a restless kid, providing an odd calmness through rushing velocity--however tongue-in-cheek it may be. Smoke and Smoke is their new collaboration, with the equally explosive Spencer Moody lending his distinctive vocal cords to what surely will be one of the most tsunami-like bands to ever rock the Northwest. Thank you, thank you, thank you. KATHLEEN WILSON
JOEY DeFRANCESCO
(Triple Door) I love my Hammond organ. Although I play an M-102 and not, alas, a classic B3, poking the drawbars during a chitlin' funk lick and hoofing a loping bass line on the pedals creates a physical pleasure that other electronic keyboards can't match. Sometimes I fantasize that I could be a passable jazz organist, until I hear the fleet-fingered Joey DeFrancesco, who ripples up and down the keys like smooth Scotch. You can bet every jazz organist in town plans to check out this fun and funky Hierophant of the Hammond. Also Sat Feb 28. CHRISTOPHER DeLAURENTI
50 FOOT WAVE, AUDIO LEARNING CENTER
(Tractor) As one of the lead singers for the much-loved, long-defunct Portland band Pond, Chris Brady was the more angsty-sounding of the group, making it so apropos that his current project, Audio Learning Center, is signed to Vagrant. In what must be a sly joke, the bio claims their debut, Cope Park, finds Brady exploring "quieted lyrics and an indie rock approach," but that's just not the case. My guess is this is what Brady would have done with his former band had Charlie Campbell and Dave Triebwasser not been there to say "tone it down a skosh on the passionate delivery, guy." However, given that the band packed Brady up and moved him from Alaska to Oregon because he was too young to play in his home state's bars, how can you blame him for wanting to finally break out? KATHLEEN WILSON
CLAMOR MAGAZINE FESTIVAL: SHOPLIFTING, SMOOSH, AXES OF EVIL, AL LARSEN, GUESTS
(Vera Project) The nationally distributed (and award-winning) Clamor Magazine really knows how to throw a party. Instead of hosting one big shindig to celebrate alternative media, it has organized a nationwide party with shows happening tonight in over 20 cities featuring 70 different bands. Seattle's contribution to the celebration is certainly no dud--starring the pop/indie rock stylings of the young Smoosh sisters, political art punk from Axes of Evil and Shoplifting, and Some Velvet Sidewalk's Al Larsen, it's sure to be a good time. And Clamor isn't being greedy with the money raised: It'll also be donating some of the profits to the Richard Hugo House's zine archives. MEGAN SELING
POINT LINE PLANE, PANTHER, ANNA OXYGEN
(Drone Hill) Basement shows are often cramped cages of rank hippie B.O., stark one-bulb lighting, and odds and ends of storables--all of which lend atmosphere to the hardcore/metal bands that usually play there. Drone Hill is aiming at something a little artier, and when I checked out their space a month ago, I left thoroughly impressed. The roomy lower level of the Beacon Hill home (2711 14th Ave S) has couches and chairs to sit on, magazines like the Wire to flip through, and it's been painted and lit with Christmas lights to help create a warm, comfortable atmosphere to lounge in between bands. Drone Hill's permanent resident, Craig Mueller, wants to fill his space with adventurous/experimental acts, and tonight's bill does just that. Portland's sexy synth punks Point Line Plane pair up with Panther (Charlie Salas, frontman for The Planet The, see page 35) and Anna Oxygen, a one-woman Erasure. It's loud as hell in there, but Drone Hill still is a house show, even if the house is a clean one. JENNIFER MAERZ SATURDAY 2/28
THE DILLINGER ESCAPE PLAN, THE LOCUST, YOUR ENEMIES FRIENDS, WRANGLER BRUTES
(Showbox) See Stranger Suggests, page 23.
SOUND OFF! 2004 BAND COMPETITION FINALS
(Sky Church at EMP) See Underage, page 51.
MINUS THE BEAR, THE GIRLS, THE MORE, THE SENATE ARCADE
(Chop Suey) Playing for a cause near and dear to its hearts, Minus the Bear headlines this lineup of local bands with proceeds going toward breast cancer research. There's an $8 donation fee at the door, but give as much as you can for what will surely be an emotionally brave but necessary set for the headliners--god bless them. KATHLEEN WILSON
DEK, THE ACCUSED, NOSIGNAL
(Ground Zero) Not only is this show a great opportunity for all you punk rock fans to get a fill of old (the Accused) and new school (DEK), but it's also a benefit show for Bellevue's Ground Zero Teen Center. In fact, the Accused and DEK have joined forces and are "touring" the Northwest, playing a bunch of shows through the month of March, with a couple of benefit shows for different all-ages venues (they'll also play February 26 at the Old Fire House). Both bands put on fun-as-hell performances, so it's sure to be a good time. MEGAN SELING
SUNDAY 2/29
MASTODON, RED TAPE, THREE INCHES OF BLOOD, WORMWOOD, HELL PROMISE
(Graceland) Relapse Records is consistently keeping metal (and this month's shows) interesting, with a roster that includes acts like Exhumed (who played here last week), the Dillinger Escape Plan (who play this week), and Mastodon, a band that speeds up sludge metal and caps it with a burly vocalist who conjures, with his gruff growl, images of gnarly bar fights and small-town meth labs. The Atlanta act drops grind and hardcore into their aesthetic, but they also know how to slow into more melodic instrumental territory without waffling in cheeseball balladry--probably because they like to punch out the end of their subdued songs with a couple of monster riffs just to remind you where their hearts lie. JENNIFER MAERZ
MICHAEL NICOLELLA
(Polestar) One of the few musicians who plays acoustic and electric guitar with equal panache, Nicolella serves up a solo recital of music by Argentine tango icon Astor Piazzolla, Steve Reich, flinty modernist Elliott Carter, and the obscure Leo Brouwer, who is probably the favorite composer of classical guitarists worldwide. A composer himself, Nicolella plays some of his own work as well as short pieces by locals Tom Baker (Eleven) and yours truly. Where else can you hear the Central African polyphony of Steve Reich's Electric Counterpoint for six bucks? CHRISTOPHER DeLAURENTI
MONDAY 3/1
LION FEVER, TOKYO SEX DESTRUCTION, BULLET TRAIN TO VEGAS
(Graceland) See Stranger Suggests, page 23.
DJ REKHA
(Baltic Room) DJ Rekha's performance at Chop Suey early last year has yet to be improved upon. Even RJD2's brilliant set in mid-2003 at the same venue didn't generate the volumes of energy that DJ Rekha's global imagination produced. Rekha, who is based in New York City, went from bhangra to dancehall to hiphop without creating a sense of gimmicky surprise. She isn't a stranger to any of these musical forms (American rap, Indian and European electronica, Jamaican digital) and so, under her direction, one type of dance music easily melts into or emerges from another. Don't miss this show. Rekha is your future. CHARLES MUDEDE
THE STILLS, GUESTS
(Neumo's) Coming from the sexiest city in North America, Montreal, the Stills released their debut last year, Logic Will Break Your Heart, on Vice Records. The Stills make pretty rock, influenced, like Interpol and so many other recent rock bands, by '80s British new wave, particularly Echo and the Bunnymen, New Order, and U2. Interpol are a bit more gloomy (Joy Division) than the Stills (hence, New Order), who are often seductive, or warmly erotic, with a track here and a track there expressing the emotions of a sensitive robot whose memories are borrowed and pleasantly incomplete. As one who is very familiar with the era and bands that inform the Stills' sound, pleasure is easily derived from their retrofitted rock. CHARLES MUDEDE
QUAKE
(Benaroya Hall) Considering the logistics of booking at Benaroya, I'm amazed that this chamber group managed to promptly reschedule its postponed February concert, originally a tie-in with John Adams' Seattle Symphony appearance. Quake augments its lineup to traverse California minimalist Paul Dresher's Channels Passing, John Adams' Road Movies, and John Luther Adams' Make Prayers to the Raven. Also, two world premieres: William O. Smith's Five Portraits, whose movements will be interspersed among the other pieces, and 11 Pieces by pianist Meade Crane. Quake always adds a lollipop; this time around it's an arrangement of "One Note Samba." CHRISTOPHER DeLAURENTI
TUESDAY 3/2
THE CRYSTAL METHOD, DJ HYPER
(Showbox) See Data Breaker, page 49.
STARS, THE DEARS, AQUEDUCT
(Crocodile) See preview, page 33.
SAGE FRANCIS & JOE BEATS, GRAND BUFFET, MAC LETHAL, THE GIMME FUND, MACROMATICS
(Chop Suey) See Data Breaker, page 49.
THE HIGH LLAMAS, JOANNA NEWSON, GUESTS
(Neumo's) Certainly one of the most intelligent-sounding pop bands in existence today, well versed in British Invasion/California pop sensibilities, the High Llamas explore a new sound on their latest disc. Beet, Maize & Corn, which came out last October, throws a just-heavy-enough amount of orchestral augmentation into their ever-evolving sound, making for a gorgeous collection of songs that any fan of chamber pop will find essential upon first listen. KATHLEEN WILSON
WEDNESDAY 3/3
AGAINST ME!, GRABASS CHARLESTONS, LUCERO, ROY
(Vera Project) See Stranger Suggests, page 23.
THE EVERYOTHERS, TRACTOR SEX FATALITY
(Crocodile) Imagine a singer who thinks he's David Bowie playing in a band that sounds like a glammed-up take on your basic radio-friendly alt-rock. That's the structure propping up New York's Everyothers, a slickly produced act that also dabbles in a bit of power pop. Even with all the attitude in frontman Owen McCarthy's voice, you can't help but feel like they're more Sunset Strip mediocre than the "New York cool" the press is making them out to be. JENNIFER MAERZ
