Music

Up & Coming

THURSDAY MAY 6

JOLLYMON, GRACE, SALLY FIRECRACKER
(Crocodile) Despite the misleading moniker, Portland's Jollymon is not a reggae band, as I feared the first time I saw them at a Eugene, Oregon club in the early '90s. However, Jollymon is a product of the Hippie State, and along with their atmospheric rock you get a lot of acid-trip psychedelia and warped beats--and it's a safe bet that at least one band member will be sporting not only Polarflameseece, but Tevas as well. A bit of Northwest trivia: Everclear drummer Greg Eklund was a founding member of Jollymon.--Kathleen Wilson

MIRACLE BABY, KINSKI, NINETY-NINE
(Breakroom) Former Sleater-Kinney drummer Laura McFarlane is Ninety-Nine, a lo-fi pop outfit that's less Riot Grrrl and more '80s post-punk. This isn't flamesuffy stuff, however--McFarlane's inventive, structurally unsound songs are packed with plenty of energy and drama. You'll like it... I promise.--KW

PLANET V TOUR W/ JUMPIN' JACK FROST, BRYAN GEE, & MC MOOSE
(ARO.space) Last time he was in town, Jumpin' Jack Frost completely upstaged the headliners, who just happened to be the most celebrated jungle act of all time: Roni Size and his Reprazent crew. The show was pivotal in bringing his Bristol label, V Recordings, to the attention of our emergent jungle community. V, headed up by Frost and partner Bryan Gee, has done a lot to shape and test the boundaries of the drum and bass sound. If their night at London club, Movement, is any indication, plan on leaving this show sweaty, deaf, and exhilarated.--Courtney Reimer

ROD STEWART
(KeyArena) Which Rod d'ya reckon will be playing the Gorge tonight? The drop-dead cool God of "You Wear it Well" and "Gasoline Alley"--the Rod who for almost a decade was the living personification of sex, with his gorgeous rasp of a voice and devil-may-care swagger? Or the mullet-headed horror of "D'Ya Think I'm Sexy" and everything else from the past 20 years? I wonder... anyway, I've never quite forgiven him for saying that Tom Waits can't sing. --Everett True

FRIDAY MAY 7

BEBOP AND DESTRUCTION
(Art Bar) I went to the show thinking peaceful thoughts, but almost instantly the argument broke out again. I like the name "Bebop and Destruction"; my friend doesn't. In the end, after a lot of tough words and one and a half spilled drinks, we decided to compromise and agree that it's like the jazz fusion band named "Crack Sabbath"--a perfectly good name, but not at all suited to the kind of music being played. So it is with the talented cool jazzers Bebop and Destruction. The name suggests at least a smidgen of violence or rage, but these guys are playing jazz as straight and domesticated as you're going to get in this town. The fact that they are so young and so competent is what makes them worth seeing, but don't be fooled: they're all Bebop and no Destruction.--Nathan Thornburgh

WILL BERNARD QUARTET
(OK Hotel) I've heard you. You demand the best. The best music, the fruitiest beer, whatever. Well, here's your chance. The Will Bernard Quartet is the BEST groove band to come out of San Francisco in years. Will whacks the wah-wah as his organist flamesips tricks on the side, filling in and spilling over the groove with nothing but the best licks. These guys have won awards, for Chrissakes! And they're yours, for just seven dollars on a Friday night. No wonder they call it the OK Hotel.--NT

MOTORHEAD, HATEBREED, DROPKICK MURPHY
(Ballard Firehouse) See Calendar Box page 53.

THE PICKETTS, THE MINUS 5, THE PENNINGTONES
(Tractor Tavern) This show is a prime example of what makes the Tractor such a great place to hang out--it always feels like you've stumbled into somebody's family reunion, and shoot, there's plenty of potato salad and beans to go around. The husband-and-wife team of Christy McWilson and Scott McCaughey front the Picketts and the Minus 5, respectively, and both bands--one country-flamesavored and the other straight-up Northwest rock and roll--create an atmosphere of hootin', hollerin', back-slappin' fun.--KW

SATURDAY MAY 8

SYCOPHANT, SPECIAL K
(Sit & Spin) This show is a benefit for Keeping the Faith: The Prison Project, Pat Graney's intensive workshop of writing, movement, and performance which provides a creative, life-affirming program for inmates at the Washington Corrections Center for Women. What makes this program so vital is the fact that state regulations prohibit the inmates from communicating with friends or family within WCCW or in other state institutions; and a recent survey showed that, on average, the women receive one visit per year from someone outside the prison. Thus the importance of this interactive program, and why you should take your measly $8 and head to the Sit & Spin.--KW

SUNDAY MAY 9

CADILLAC TRAMPS, ALLEY BOYS, THE CUCKOOS
(Breakroom) After a five-year hiatus, Orange County's Cadillac Tramps have decided to take it back on the road, pulling into the Breakroom tonight with their own patented brand of punk, that's rooted in old-school blues as much as rock and roll. You or I may not have heard of the Alley Boys, but AC/DC liked them enough to take the quartet on the road, giving the San Franciscans an opening slot on their five-week, 20-state Ball Breaker tour. That's all I need to hear.--KW

MONDAY MAY 10

THE CREATURES
(Fenix) Unlike many of their peers, the Creatures are no nostalgia act. Now that the Banshees have officially called it quits, Siouxsie Sioux and Budgie have turned their former side project into a full-time operation. Their latest release, Anima Animus, is a bewitching blend of Siouxsie's unmistakable voice and Budgie's percussive madness that's just as hummable as it is danceable. If you want to consign these two visionaries to the goth ghetto, that's your loss--the rhythmic, hypnotic territory they've mined over the years paved the way for crossover acts like Garbage, and preceded the whole electronic movement by more than a decade.--Barbara Mitchell

ROB SCHEPS' MAGNETS!, TROY GRUGETT'S WILDERNESS
(Rainbow) Last in town with trombone giant Roswell Rudd, Portland-based saxophonist Rob Scheps is back--with a high-energy foursome prone to delivering dirty funk jams (à la James Brown) from a heady jazz perspective (à la Miles Davis). With Rob's absolutely killer East-Coast-bred chops and longtime Defunkt bassist (and current New Yorker) Kim Clarke's future-funk freneticisms at the forefront, Magnets! is built for excitement--as is local sax star Troy Grugett's (Thousand Pieces) daring new outfit, featuring the ubiquitous Geoff Harper (Bebop & Destruction) on bass, and Mike "Animal" Peterson (Sauce) on drums. When the smoke clears, don't be surprised if most of tonight's fearlessly improvised paths prove to be trails of discovery worth mapping and following.--James Kirchmer

SEATTLE INTERNATIONAL CHILDREN'S FESTIVAL
(Seattle Center, May 10-15) Having glanced over the various festivals and goings-on in and around our green city this summer, I regret to inform you that we are in for the dullest, most conservative line-up of entertainment and diversion imaginable. One exception will be the Seattle International Children's Festival. Though the fest is centered around children (most weekday performances happen before 5 pm), curious non-breeders will be amply rewarded: performers include Musafir, the gypsies of Rajastan, and the throat-singing Yat-Kha of Siberia. The festival also marks the premiere of the Cuban all-women troupe Las Perlas del Son. Complete line-up and ticketing info at www.seattleinternational.org. Non-breeders note: Yat-Kha and Las Perlas del Son will also appear at the Crocodile, Fri May 14.--Riz Rollins

FANTASTIC PLASTIC MACHINE
(ARO.space) I could lie to you. I could say Tokyo's Fantastic Plastic Machine sounds like nothing you've heard before--but when you hear their new album, Luxury, my cover will be blown. One can't help but compare FPM's sound to those of fellow Japanese-kitsch acts like Pizzicato Five, Cibo Matto, and Towa Tei. That's not to say FPM mastermind Tomoyuki Tanaka isn't good at what he does. On the contrary: his cartoony, '60s grocery-store music is a curious mix of the futuristic, the retro, the serious, and the frivolous. If this Japanese-bossa nova-French-pop fusion doesn't get you out of your chair, nothing will.--CR

TUESDAY MAY 11

TULLYCRAFT, DRESSING BESSY, KISSING BOOK
(Breakroom) More trivia: Dressing Bessy features members of Apples In Stereo--another one of the fine Elephant 6 bands--so check your math, go down to the Breakroom, and say hi to everyone you saw at the recent Olivia Tremor Control show.--KW

WEDNESDAY MAY 12

CADALLACA, PEDRO THE LION, FASTER TIGER
(Showbox) See Live Preview page.

JAD FAIR & KRAMER, MILKSOP HOLLY, ADULT RODEO
(Crocodile) My pal Stephen likes the following about Jad Fair: "his dignity, his compassion, his glasses. He's the friend of the emotionally challenged everywhere. And I love his eight-minute rambling track 'Always,' a song about love lost and betrayed." Thank you Stephen. Here's what I like about Jad: his dignity, his compassion. The way he writes only two sorts of songs--love songs and monster songs. His approach to guitar-playing--don't worry about tuning or strings even; all that matters is the rhythm. I particularly like his wired, fraught, expressive voice. And his intricate, delicately patterned paper cuts. Jad is one of my favorite three performers ever, no kidding. (The other two are Calvin Johnson and Nick Cave.) Go see him, and cheer for Kramer, too--the explosive, unpredictable genius behind NYC's Shimmydisc label.--ET

FLOYD STANDIFER
(New Orleans Cafe) Under absolutely no pressure from the Pioneer Square Business Association, I encourage all of you to give First Avenue another chance. I realize that over the winter, it was cooler to get your thrills at various off-First Ave locales, like the Last Supper Club or the très chic Habana's, but spring is back and it's time to return. The frozen puddles of urine have thawed and evaporated, the trees are leafier and less spooky, and the hot dogs have returned to the sidewalk in front of the Central. But quite possibly the best reason to go back is Floyd Standifer, who fronts a very, very smooth quartet at the New Orleans Restaurant on Wednesday nights. The band includes bassist Phil Sparks, who did some great work on local guitarist Hans Fahling's last album, and Standifer himself switches between trumpet, saxophone, vocals, and flamesawless nightclub banter. There's no cover, but get there early, as the show tends to end around 11.--NT

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