Music

Up & Coming

LIVING DAYLIGHTS, BROUN FELLINIS
(I-Spy) Though the members of San Francisco's Broun Fellinis once modeled with Hollywood brat Drew Barrymore for a popular magazine, they have been never been popular or played pop music. They are (and have always been) underground musicians, whose sound exists somewhere between experimental jazz, abstract hiphop, and psychedelic funk. I watched them perform many years ago in a small club in San Francisco, and thought for sure they were going to become as famous as 24-7 Spyz (who had a modest hit at the time--a funk/punk cover of "Jungle Boogie") or Bad Brains. And they almost did. But somehow they missed the stars and returned back to the cold earth, where they now play their twisted funk/jazz/hiphop from the groove of the gutter. CHARLES MUDEDE

EDDY DAVIS & HIS NEW ORLEANS JAZZ BAND FEATURING WOODY ALLEN
(Jazz Alley) This show sold out in four minutes, folks, but I know what you're thinking: You want to see Woody anyway. You loved Mighty Aphrodite, and the way the old man's embouchure popped out like a bullfrog in Wild Man Blues, right? Perhaps you want to catch a tabloid glimpse of Soon-Yi? Sorry. Sarcastic remarks aside, it really is too bad these guys didn't get booked at a bigger venue. Besides having a strong grasp of self-deprecatory rhetoric, Woody Allen plays a damn good clarinet, perhaps with a touch too much self-conscious vibrato, but, hey, it is Woody Allen. Eddy Davis' band, though understandably overshadowed, is one of the few in the country devoted to the old jazz vernacular, albeit with a New York accent, and they do it well. Those who are going are in for a treat. KREG HASEGAWA

JELLO BIAFRA
(King Cat Theater) The astute Jello Biafra's political conscience is always conveyed with a sharp wit and dry charm that make his lectures both informative and entertaining. Biafra is biting, arrogant, and usually dead-on (at least from a street-level view)--and don't make the mistake of confusing the former Dead Kennedys frontman with that big, whiny, muscly ogre that used to front Black Flag. JEFF DeROCHE

URIAH HEEP
(Ballard Firehouse) I went to the website--and these guys are looking a bit like Crosby Stills & Nash to me these days. Guess I haven't seen them in quite some time. How exciting, then, that the band is putting on a show here in Seattle, right? Somehow the members of Uriah Heep, that progressive metal band that formed in London way back in 1970--despite dip upon dip upon dip in popularity--are still kicking after 30-plus years! Rock on! JEFF DeROCHE

YES
(Chateau Ste. Michelle) In addition to Jethro Tull's new "best of" record, further evidence of prog's imminent revival: King Crimson and Yes--the two Gods of Prog--are playing shows in the SAME WEEK! Complete with Jon Anderson, Steve Howe, Chris Squire, and Alan White, this "Yescapade" is like a beautiful dream for those of us who listen to Fragile every day of our lives and believe "Heart of the Sunrise" is the greatest epic song ever written (in any genre, including classical). Now, people have been fronting, saying that the boys in Yes are at least 85 years old at this point, and will probably stink. To that, I say "Pah!" For, unlike punk and rock and roll, prog's players actually get better with age, since prog relies more on musical skill than aggressive energy. In addition, the prog audience consists of a bunch of dorks who would rather watch Yes noodle into oblivion than watch Mick Jagger try to look hot while balancing his purple scarves with his colostomy bag. JULIANNE SHEPHERD

MOBY, NEW ORDER, OUTKAST, THE ROOTS, RINOCEROSE, PAUL OAKENFOLD, CARL COX, THE ORB, TIMO MAAS
(Gorge Amphitheatre) While ticket prices for this event are steep, the show should be well worth it. Moby's music and energy are beautiful to behold, and while all those ADD-afflicted electronica-heads of the world seem to have recanted their reverence for him (having moved on to blippier-bleepier technological landscapes), the man's compositional brilliance is undeniable. Then there's New Order, among the 20 best bands of the 1980s. While New Order hasn't done anything very interesting since 1989's clubby (and goofy) Technique, I'd go just to be in the same amphitheater as the folks who brought the world Low Life and Power, Corruption and Lies. I could go on--people love the Roots (I do not), and Paul Oakenfold (snore...), and the Orb (ehhhh...), but everyone has a favorite, and the point is, there will be plenty of dippy little drug-sucking geeks in attendance here, ripe for sexual manipulation, and that, my friends, is the real reason for attending the Area: One Festival. See preview and Stranger Suggests. JEFF DeROCHE

PATTI SMITH, SLEATER-KINNEY
(Pier 62/63) See preview and Stranger Suggests.

CHARLES FEELGOOD, DONALD GLAUDE
(Showbox) Glaude has been on the steady rise from Tacoma for a number of years, and the ascension is hitting a high point with this year's release of a live CD, recorded at the Buzz in Washington, D.C. His ability to pace beats and effects is so tasteful it seems that his set is in perpetual beginning. Many house DJs exhaust the tracks they play, but Glaude quits the sounds before they tire. The effect is that he is continually beginning another fantastic beat, which excites the crowd like you wouldn't believe. When Glaude takes it down, people don't sigh with relief at getting a break. They scream, because "taking it down" means beginning something fantastic, taking the set in a different direction. brian goedde

D.R.I., SWORN ENEMY, POSITIVELY NEGATIVE, SPITTING TEETH
(Graceland) One of the funnest shows I ever attended was Dirty Rotten Imbeciles playing Bremerton's Natacha's back in '87 or so. They had already begun their "crossover" from the hardcore to the metal, and the crowd reflected this transition, forming the best pit I've ever been part of--a swirling vortex of humanity that included everyone from the crustiest of punks to the stoniest of long-hairs to the preppiest of Bremerton Navy brats. This was the last great pit I've experienced, with the primal majesty of the circle soon to devolve into the aggro, meathead, football practice-mentality of the "mosh." There's nothing like being one of 100 kids stomping and strutting and lurching and weaving in a counterclockwise circle to make you feel at one with your fellow man. DAN PAULUS

RUBY, MISSKICK
(Crocodile) Ruby's Lesley Rankine is an enthralling frontwoman. Hers is a voice that resonates with a feral uncertainty, growly deep and forceful one moment, breathy and coy the next. Her songs, having evolved from the triphop of 1995's Salt Peter to the heavier electro-rock of Ruby's just-released Short Staffed at the Gene Pool, showcase her wildly inventive lyrical talents. KATHLEEN WILSON

JOURNEY, PETER FRAMPTON, JOHN WAITE
(Gorge Amphitheatre) AC/DC is the only band that can get away with replacing its frontman with a new guy who strains to sound the same as the first guy. Journey is in no such league, and the fact that the new singer is named STEVE Augeri (it rhymes!) makes it all the more pathetic. Peter Frampton played a harmless show at the Pier a few years back, and those who paid for tickets seemed to have a happy, nostalgic good time. On the subject of John Waite: His band the Babys produced one of the near-greatest pop songs ever with "Isn't It Time," and my vinyl copy of Broken Heart is a prized possession that has been brandished over my head at many a late-night listening party, much to the oohhhs and ahhhs of all pop/rock fans and historians in presence who demand, IMMEDIATELY, that "Isn't It Time" be played, NOW. Thanks for that one fine song, Mr. Waite. KATHLEEN WILSON

PEACHES, TAYLOR SAVVY
(Graceland) See preview.

BB KING, BUDDY GUY, JOHN HIATT & THE GONERS, TOMMY CASTRO
(Gorge Amphitheatre) I have nothing new or interesting to say about B.B. King, probably because there's nothing new or interesting to say about B.B. King. He's big; he's got a booming deep voice with which he thunders out the blues; he can't play chords (which is sort of strange, considering the number of years he's been wailing the blues out of his guitar); and you either love him or you don't. JEFF DeROCHE

Throw a private party and have your friend's lame-ass band play.

TRISTEZA, AVEO, HELMS
(Paradox) See preview.

TOOL, KING CRIMSON
(Paramount) Progressive rock music is about to explode. Guffaw if you must, my friends, but we'll just see who's scoffing when you're downloading MP3s from Yes' Fragile. Think about it: The math rockers (neo prog rockers) already primed us for prog's triumphant return way back in the '90s. Your favorite band right now is Tortoise (See: Progressive Easy Listening). And though Tool can be generously described as "Prog for the Lowest Common Denominator," they had enough good sense to round up King Motherfucking Crimson to open for them. KING CRIMSON! The band that made Red, the best album of the 20th century! The drummer from Mr. Mister is filling in for Bill Bruford, but you can bet your ass that Fripp, Belew, and Gunn are the first three horsemen of the Prog Revival Apocalypse. Yes, my friends, prog is back--you can tell by the sudden infrequency of Jean-Luc Ponty in the used record bins. JULIANNE SHEPHERD

COWBOY JUNKIES
(Benaroya Hall) I have never been to the South. But somehow, somewhere, at some point, I'm convinced I was a Southern--no, wait--a Suthun lady with a back porch and dusty Confederate flags in the attic, who loved the wrong men and rinsed heartache away with bourbon and crushed mint leaves. This must explain my love and loyalty for those Cowboy Junkies: the soft, sweltering 10-miles-an-hour band that beautifully evokes thoughts of lonely Airstreams, wilted railroad towns, and ex-homecoming queens with toddlers and broken dreams. Soft country, folk-pop, whatever you want to call it--lead singer Margo Timmins' voice stubbornly transcends categories. The group's hushed sweetness remains timeless and trendproof, and hearing them live will inspire either bittersweet tears or lopsided grins... depending on the day. MIN LIAO

FIREBRAT, KIM VIRANT
(Crocodile) All right, I admit it. I had no idea who Kim Virant was a week ago. I saw the cover of her latest CD, Stealing Days (out now on local label Good-Ink Records), and picked it up because I thought she looked foxy. Plus, I liked the green sequined top she was wearing on the CD cover. (That's really superficial. I know that. I'm sorry.) But I've been listening to Stealing Days nonstop for a week now, and my crush has fully blossomed. With her warm, powerhouse vocals that jump from twang to snarl to purr and a full, tight backup crew (Stealing Days features lots of strong local talent, including Hell's Belles guitar goddess Amy Stolzenbach--a total superstar in her own right), Virant will be sure to rock the Crocodile tonight with her charming presence and unabashedly catchy grown-up countryish pop--that "Ballard sound" if there ever was one. (And they say you can't judge a book by its cover.) MIN LIAO

DAVID FRIESEN
(New Orleans) This Tacoma-born, Seattle-raised Portland resident is making a solo stop in Pioneer Square on the night Floyd Standifer usually plays his weekly gig at this club. Like Standifer, Friesen is an unsung regional hero. As a youngster he played the Llahngaelhyn (the legendary 1960s jazz stop in the U District) and the Penthouse (where Miles brought his quartet featuring John Coltrane). He cut his hard-bop chops during a two-year stint with tenor saxophonist Joe Henderson, and soon began experimenting with New Agey, folky flavors. Recently his music has been in the bop vein, mixing moody, impressionistic ruminations with a keen sense of swing. Hopefully, Standifer, Julien Priester, or some of the other Seattle jazz luminaries will join in the fun. KREG HASEGAWA

DUTCH FLAT, THE LIGHTS, PLAINS OF ABRAHAM
(I Spy) Dutch Flat is one of those bands that comes on quietly--like when you walk into a club and see the name on a bill and have no idea who it is, but you decide to stick around anyway, and two songs into the set you're raving and screaming like a recharged, music-loving lunatic. It's smart, mathy in a good way, and explodes with potential. The Lights has a much more brittle sound, but lacks nothing in the urgency department. The year 1970 might very well come to mind when you hear them. Plains Of Abraham is another local band who'll kick this night off with an ominous-sounding (at times approaching Southern gothic) meandering rock that spins around and kicks ass at the most surprising moments. KATHLEEN WILSON

SQUAREPUSHER, PLAID, MIRA CALIX
(Showbox) See Stranger Suggests.

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