Music

Up & Coming

CLARENCE "GATEMOUTH" BROWN
(Jazz Alley) In 1947, young guitarist Gatemouth Brown was at a T-Bone Walker show when T-Bone suddenly took ill and left the stage in the middle of a song. Gatemouth jumped onstage, grabbed T-Bone's guitar, and started ripping a version of his own "Gatemouth Boogie." T-Bone was pissed, but the crowd loved it and reportedly threw $600 at the stage. Gatemouth was offered a permanent gig at the club and thus began a long life of festivals, Grammys, and all the bourbon one can drink. If you'd like to live that life, I suggest you wait for a slow moment in Gatemouth's show, then jump onstage, start playing a boogie named after you, and wait for the money to start flying. NATHAN THORNBURGH

CAT POWER
(Crocodile) I don't know who freaks me out more, Wesley Willis or Chan Marshall. Both are exploited for their mental illnesses, albeit one (Marshall) is far more talented and severely less ill. I wonder if Cat Power's largely male audiences would remain as goody-eyed and protective of Marshall's "shy brilliance" if she took to taking Paxil? KATHLEEN WILSON

A IS FOR ARSON
(Graceland) See Stranger Suggests.

NEKO CASE AND HER BOYFRIENDS
(Crocodile) Hot damn! Former local spitfire Neko Case returns to town to burn up the Crocodile with her spirited take on the alt-country aesthetic. What separates Neko from the rest of the pack is pure, unadulterated charisma on top of serious talent--and that old-school country music knack for turning raw emotion into damn fine songs. Highly recommended. BARBARA MITCHELL

LOUDERMILK
(Mural Amphitheater) There once was a time, many years ago, when this cute little band of teenage boys from the Tri-Cities used to call me all the time--just to chat, knock on my door for cookies and milk, and make me feel like a rock and roll big sister. NOW, they've grown up, signed to fancypants Rick Rubin's label American Records, and have spent the better part of the past year hanging out at the Viper Room and being massaged by gorgeous exotic dancers, I'll bet. But do they call or visit? NO! Boys: Where's the love? KATHLEEN WILSON

DAVE MATTHEWS BAND
(Gorge Amphitheatre) Dave's fans belong to two of the most easily mockable groups of all time: hippies and frat boys. But I refuse to take the bait. Condemn them, if you wish, for their poor fashion taste, their iffy conversational skills, their gawdawful Phish bootlegs; there are millions of them, and they cannot be denied. The DMB themselves appear to be talented musicians who play some pretty catchy, completely inoffensive melodies, and Dave seems like a genuinely nice guy, creating his own label in order to take on beleaguered solo artist Dave Gray, just because he liked Gray's work. So stop sneering and let them go in peace, will you? They're not killing kittens or dumping Hanford waste in your backyard--just making a lot of stoned, hemp-necklaced twirlers and 103.7 listeners very happy. LEAH GREENBLATT

WAR
(Pier 62/63) "Low... ri... duh...." That anthem of '70s cruising came from War, the large multi-piece group that fused funk, jazz, soul, and R&B into the prototype for modern hiphop. War had a string of successful albums through the '70s, originally starting out as the backup band for ex-Animal Eric Burdon, then moving on to craft a distinct SoCal sound. Their music remains groovy to this day, as evidenced by the successful re-release of their albums in the early '90s to an audience well acquainted with the hiphop sounds they had influenced. How original were they? Well, harmonica player Lee Oskar was slinging the mouth harp bandoleer when John Popper was still blowing on the tuba. KRIS ADAMS

SHEMEKIA COPELAND
(Jazz Alley) In an age when hiphop is the dominant form of black urban musical expression, Shemekia Copeland has turned to the blues for release. Her father may have been the prolific Texas guitarist Johnny Clyde Copeland, but the 21-year-old Shemekia was raised in Harlem, and she serves notice with songs like "Ghetto Child" that the inner city can still produce the next great blues singer. Not to diminish the talents of Jonny Lang and Shannon Curfman, both raised in North Dakota, but the blues may be coming home to a new generation of African Americans. NATHAN THORNBURGH

DEFTONES
(Kitsap County Fairgrounds) The Deftones rock, and they do so with a vengeance. If you're feeling fragile or twee, or if you're thinking of indulging your feminine side, this would be a good time to stay home, light some candles, and give yourself a pedicure. Because--as I believe I've mentioned--the Deftones rock. Dude, they're from Sacramento. They can't help it. You'd be pissed off, too, if you were from there. Really. New metal rulz. Pass the Häägen-Dazs. BARBARA MITCHELL

EL VEZ, DUSTY 45'S
(Stage2 at the Pier) The Pier seems like an ill-fitting place for El Vez, whose act is more geared toward a cabaret setting, where he can continuously change costumes, surround himself with the lovely El Vettes, and, of course, make lots of witty Chicano references. For over a decade now, El Vez has been writing brown versions of white popular music, resulting in songs like "Brown Christmas" and lyrics like "I've got my green card... I want my gold card." The act may get old for some, but there's still something refreshing about resurrecting America's favorite overweight Southerner-in-sequins as a radical Latino satirist. NATHAN THORNBURGH

DAVE MATTHEWS BAND
(Gorge Amphitheatre) Charlottesville, Virginia, 1991. A young man claiming South African ancestry is tending bar, serving frothy Budweisers to cookie-cutter college kids. Suddenly, a drunken male football cheerleader hurls a pint mug in anger after learning that his girlfriend has been seeing the mascot. The mug sails through the air, spilling beer over astonished and disgusted patrons of the bar. The bartender, hearing the commotion, looks up from the tap he's pouring from with wide eyes, just in time to see the mug close in on his forehead. In the next instant the bartender crumples to the floor, blood and glass disfiguring his face. When he comes to, he speaks. But what comes out is a series of peaks and valleys of sound, highs and lows with sporadic grunts and groans. Someone tells him he should sing. The bartender has gone from popular alcohol dude to popular warbling singer-songwriter in the blink of an eye. Stay tuned for Part II: Not Without My Pennyloafers! JUAN-CARLOS RODRIGUEZ

MXPX, DANDY WARHOLS, THIRD EYE BLIND
(KNDD Radio Show) Ouch. Thank goodness for the Dandy Warhols, who seem to be saving the End crowd from bland alterna-rock overload. (No offense to MxPx and their slightly more fun and spirited--or was that spiritual?--approach.) The Dandies are in town to promote a brand new album, Thirteen Tales from Urban Bohemia. At least I think that's the premise. No one's advertised a "battle of the cheekbones" contest between lead Dandy Courtney Taylor and 3EB's smugly self-satisfied (read: punchable) singer Stephen Jenkins--although in my opinion that kind of (pardon the pun) face-off might be far more enjoyable than sitting through a 3EB set. BARBARA MITCHELL

SUPERSUCKERS, UPPER CRUST, THE BRIEFS
(Crocodile) If you want flashy, entertaining rock, then this is your show, funnyboy. The Supersuckers--hot, sexy, and the hardest guitar players in town. The Upper Crust hail from somewhere in snooty New England and they dress like it, though perhaps in a fashion a few centuries ahead of preppy Fair Isle sweaters and Wellies. And the Briefs are all about suits and skinny ties and punk rock with a distinct '80s pop edge. Consider the whole evening as theater without having to make excuses to your date on the way home as to why you were snoring during the third act. KATHLEEN WILSON

ANDRE WILLIAMS, CHEATER SLICKS
(Graceland) Andre "Mr. Rhythm" Williams is back in town slinging an attitude that'll kick Shaft's ass. Williams hit the R&B charts in '57 with a single called "Bacon Fat," and followed that with his single "Jailbait," which was banned by DJs around the country. Williams became a cult hero and met Ike Turner; then he became a cocaine addict and lost 80 pounds. When Jon Spencer realized this man was homeless in Chicago, he provided Williams a stage from which to launch his renaissance, frightening and enthralling indie audiences everywhere with such tunes as "Pussy Stank." Tonight, with the recently released The Black Godfather, it becomes Williams' duty to please every booty in town. KREG HASEGAWA

FREESTYLE CANDELA
(Bohemian Cafe) A friend once called Leif Totusek the second-best guitarist in Seattle after Bill Frisell. Then he kicked Totusek out of the bar that he books for. Totusek, when he is on his game, is ethereal, beautiful, celestial, and makes tears puddle up in my eyes. Totusek's riffs hit those tender nerves in my body, the ones I pretend not to have most of the time. Tonight he appears with Freestyle Candela, an African rumba band with a Cuban/Congolese/Haitian mix and a Hendrix heart. KREG HASEGAWA

DAVE MATTHEWS BAND
(Gorge Amphitheatre) I don't know why, but I think I have a soft spot for Dave Matthews. Don't get me wrong--you're not gonna find me grooving to his albums, making a three-hour pilgrimage to see him play, joining the hacky sack circle, or anything like that. It's just that the guy seems so... likable. I blame that cover story in Rolling Stone or SPIN a while back--the one where he seemed like he'd be a great guy to have a beer with, kick back with, shoot the shit with? Plus, he seems to have good taste when it comes to other bands. So, um, yeah.... BARBARA MITCHELL

NORTH MISSISSIPPI ALLSTARS
(Crocodile) You think you can't be everything to everybody? Then you've never met the North Mississippi Allstars. References include everything from "country blues" à la R. L. Burnside to the Blues Explosion, G. Love and Special Sauce, Phish, Medeski, Martin & Wood, and Widespread Panic. Widespread Panic? And I thought I was the only one who was frightened by that combination.... BARBARA MITCHELL

FIGHTING MACHINISTS, THE FAKES, STEPROCKET
(Showbox) The trouble with going to most "cool" shows to see "hip" bands is that the burden of entertainment falls on the band itself. And if the band's boring or having an off night, you're screwed. With a band like the Fighting Machinists, some of the best entertainment is provided by their uninhibitedly enthusiastic fans--hooting, hollering, dancing, the whole nine yards. Oddly refreshing in a weird sort of way. I give it an "A" for effort. BARBARA MITCHELL

ASSIF TSAHAR
(On the Boards) Earshot Jazz's Voice and Vision series brings Israeli tenor saxophonist Assif Tsahar to Seattle from his current residence in NYC. Although tonight he will be appearing in one solo set, and in another set accompanied by some Seattle improv artists, he is better known for his trio, which features the badass percussionist Susie Ibarra (they're married) and William Parker on bass. The only bit of this I've been able to find is a 30-second clip, which was melodic the way Albert Ayler is melodic: abstract and thick, harmonic and heroic. That is, it was a great 30-second clip. KREG HASEGAWA

DIDO
(Showbox) There are three types of people who know about Dido: those who know her work with her brother Rollo's band Faithless, those who like the theme song from Roswell, and Slim Shady fans. She is 28, but she's been a musician since she was a little kid. Her main instrument was the recorder, until she discovered her voice. Her solo songs are electronic/acoustic mixes that have drawn comparisons to Portishead and Beth Orton. She drives a 1991 BMW convertible, hates rock music but loves Nirvana, and defends Eminem from his many critics. Her name means "virgin" in the Punic tongue, and in Latin mythology Dido was a Carthaginian warrior queen who killed herself. And boy, is she cute. JUAN-CARLOS RODRIGUEZ

THE GOLDEN TICKET
(Hi*Score Arcade) See Stranger Suggests.

KRS-ONE
(Showbox) See Stranger Suggests.

GONZALO RUBALCABA TRIO
(Jazz Alley) Congress be warned: There's a danger in loosening the tightly clenched Cuban embargo. The Baltimore Orioles learned about it when they ventured to Havana, and any American musician who's been there has seen it as well: Behind the walls of the embargo, Cubans have been practicing very hard for the day when they will meet Americans on a level field. They will then destroy the yanquis at everything from baseball to jazz. Gonzalo Rubalcaba is a perfect example of this. A decade ago he was in Havana and nobody had ever heard of him, but now he lives large in Miami, and he's quite simply the most brilliant and polished jazz pianist in the United States. You better watch your ass, America! NATHAN THORNBURGH

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