THURSDAY 5/3
!!!, TELEPATHE
(Neumo's) See Stranger Suggests, page 23.
FIFTH ANNUAL SEATTLE LAPTOP BATTLE: TAAL MALA, DAVE LONDON, HIGHDROPOD, GUESTS
(Chop Suey) Geeky in both concept and execution, the laptop battles nonetheless operate as ego-boosting competition, as showcase for both established and rising talent, and as boozy night out. While there have never been genre constraints, recent battles have seen departures from the chaotic IDM that used to dominate, with techno, hiphop, and even house making appearances. This year's field consists of 16 Northwest producers, some out for redemption of past missteps, others out for their first time. Notably, both members of production duo Jacob London have entered the competition, setting the stage for intra-act battle. The laptop battles have always been a good primer for the electronic music scene, with the contestant pool filled with the area's best and brightest. DONTE PARKS See also Bug in the Bassbin, page 51.
ARCTIC MONKEYS
(Showbox) I don't get it. I know Arctic Monkeys are supposed to represent a new generation of British everyman (everylad?). And I understand that archetype is enjoying a certain popularity in the states presently (thanks perhaps to that adorable Tim from the BBC version of The Office). But I just don't get Arctic Monkeys at all. Their post-Franz romantic swagger and accelerated Jam riffs are full of teenage energy and rough charm, and their tales of pedestrian troubles are easy enough, but it just doesn't seem terribly interesting. Maybe the secret is their live show. Reportedly, their concerts back home have been insane, with fans screaming along to songs long before the band had even released a proper single. But does that translate here? I'm open to being won over, but I'm not expecting it. ERIC GRANDY
FRIDAY 5/4
THANKLESS DOGS, THE BUG NASTIES, APE CITY R&B, PURE COUNTRY GOLD
(Funhouse) See preview, page 35.
COCOROSIE, BUSDRIVER, TEZ
(Neumo's) In a harsh review of CocoRosie's just-released The Adventures of Ghosthorse and Stillborn, Pitchfork writer Marc Hogan compares listening to the album to hearing acquaintances describe their dreams. This Paris-based duo's recorded fantasias can seem frustratingly insular, all but demanding that fans access CocoRosie's alternate dimension to grasp the logic behind all the obtuse wordplay and frenetic genre hopping. However, when sisters Bianca and Sierra Casady perform live, they invite spectators into their kaleidoscopic imaginations, transforming surreal anecdotes into interactive experiences. Bianca raps in an excited whisper, like a child conspiratorially sharing a rebellious plot with a "cool" grown-up, and bangs on toy instruments. Sierra's harp strumming and rich operatic vocals give her an angelic allure. Both wear intriguingly askew costumes, supplying apt visual accompaniment for CocoRosie's freakish folk. ANDREW MILLER
THE DECEMBERISTS
(Paramount) The popularity of the Decemberists is such that we've come to accept tuneful songs about ravished brides, vengeful mariners, lovelorn military wives, and ragamuffins of all shapes and sizes as comfort food to get us through the long winter. But it's spring now, and what better way to celebrate than to emerge from that cave you call a home and make your way down to the Paramount to see Meloy & Co. live? The venue's a perfect stage for their tongue-in-cheek dramatics, and the latest album is their best yetâsmart, funny, catchy, and often moving. You may even get lucky and hear them play their shambling version of "Your Love" by underappreciated '80s band the Outfield. CHRIS McCANN
SATURDAY 5/5
MASTODON, CURSIVE, AGAINST ME!, PLANES MISTAKEN FOR STARS
(Fenix) See Underage, page 55.
TAPES 'N TAPES
(Neumo's) Dangerously hyped Minnesotan indie saviors Tapes 'n Tapes draw some understandably favorable comparisons to the much-beloved Pixies. Josh Grier's emotive yelps and detached talk bear a passing resemblance to some of Black Francis's own vocals. And the band employ a kind of ragged folky strum and deranged bar-band shamble that's at times reminiscent of Pixies circa Surfer Rosa. But Tapes 'n Tapes are hardly a one-note knockoffâthey just as often completely obscure their reference points within stirring, surprisingly tight songs. Live, the bandâespecially Grierâdisplay a certain pent-up energy, repeatedly cycling from stiff tension to twitchy outburst to slack exhaustion. ERIC GRANDY
ANDREW BIRD, APOSTLE OF HUSTLE
(Showbox) I know nobody listens to lyrics anymore, and they're usually not missing much, but in Andrew Bird's case it's a shame people don't pay more attention. Bird's a master of the lost art of weaving clever, deep thoughts into complex melodies and non-lame rhymes. Writing pop songs about the apocalypse and ancient Eurasian kingdoms takes brains, which Bird has in spades, as if that's not obvious from a guy who named his latest album Armchair Apocrypha and drops the words "machinations" and "palindromes" within a song's first verse ("Imitosis"). If fancy vocab doesn't ring your bell, Bird's got enough going on musically to sustain interest, from fairy-tale pizzicato violin plucks to glockenspiel to whistling. At his live shows, Bird's been known to play them all, while strumming a guitar, wrangling various loops and pedals, and, oh yeah, singing. MAYA KROTH See also album reviews, page 42, and Stranger Suggests, page 23.
SUNDAY 5/6
EXPLOSIONS IN THE SKY, ELUVIUM
(Neumo's) Explosions in the Sky build lofty instrumental cathedrals from the ordinary bricks and mortar of earthly rock 'n' rollâguitar, bass, and drums. Epic? Soaring? Anthemic? Yes, yes, and yesâExplosions in the Sky are all those clichĂ©s and more. Their slow-building, overwhelmingly climactic songs made them a natural choice as film-scorers for 2004's Friday Night Lightsâtheir songs could transform even a walk to the grocery store into a major motion-picture event. Their most recent album, 2007's All of a Sudden I Miss Everyone, doesn't radically depart from their well-established sound, but why would it? Some formulas just work. Instead, the album finds the band playing with yet more arcing crescendos, washes of distortion, and expansive melodies. ERIC GRANDY
THE CAVE SINGERS, FLEET FOXES
(Sunset) Close your eyes. Now picture yourself on a dilapidated front porch in Alabama or Louisiana. It's dusk, it's hot, it's humid, you're sitting on a swinging bench, and the pitcher of sweet tea resting on the table next to you is sweating. Its ice melted long ago. The bottle of JD is half-empty and fireflies are fucking everywhere. There are frogs croaking behind the house, there are bugs buzzing around the porch light, and you can hear some kids laughing and trying to catch the fireflies in jars not too far away. The breeze is cool, but still very warm, and it's causing the squeaky screen door to open and slam shut every minute or so. Now listen closely. That sound you hear, that music coming from the band who are playing down the street... that's the Cave Singers. MEGAN SELING
MORRISSEY
(Paramount) Like most people of my generation, I got my introduction to Morrissey via the Smiths' best-of and singles collections ("reissue, repackage, repackage") and the occasional post-Smiths flash of glory ("Suedehead," for instance). I later discovered that Morrissey still toured, and in fact was still making records. I haven't been to see him, but friends have described the experience as still nearly religious. After Kill Uncle and prior to You Are the Quarry I'm not sure I would've believed that, but Morrissey's past two records are both brilliant, and he apparently still plays the odd Smiths song. For a lot of people, Morrissey never left, for more fickle fans he may have just come back around, but either way the man is a still-vital legend. ERIC GRANDY
MONDAY 5/7
EXPLOSIONS IN THE SKY
(Neumo's) See Sunday's preview.
VELVET REVOLVER
(Showbox) I wouldn't recommend a Velvet Revolver show if I hadn't seen the band "for work" two years or so ago. The allure went beyond professional curiosity: Any self-respecting Guns N' Roses fan knows that the Scott Weilandâhelmed, Slash-and-Duff-studded mega-supergroup is the closest thing we're gonna get to mid-'80s high-school heshing abandon, since Axl and the tribute band that is his latest incarnation of GnR are far too neurotic to inspire Budweiser showers in the middle of the dance floor. Velvet Revolver is the full-blown hormonal spectacle we crave, shameless and preening and gargling with Jack Daniel's. They pulled out a bunch of GnR and STP classics that first time around, though apparently they're phasing those faves out of current set lists in favor of new material. I guess I can say I saw them when.... JONATHAN ZWICKEL
TUESDAY 5/8
ANATHALLO, GHOSTS & LIARS
(Atlas) See Stranger Suggests, page 23.
STRIKE ANYWHERE, THE LOVED ONES, KANE HODDER, ELPHABA
(Vera) Most song names on the Loved Ones' debut EP consisted of only one word. It's a telling fact that reflects how this Philadelphia pop-hardcore trio do things: short, tidy, and to the point. Take three-chord riffs, Bouncing Soulsâstyle hooks, unbridled energy, mix and repeat. When they fleshed out the titles on last year's Keep Your Heart to include multiple words and parenthetical asides, the songs themselves grew even tighterâsee the 1:13 bruiser "Over 50 Club." Instrumental economy is met with Dave Hause's swift vocal delivery that at once manages to be gruff and melodic. While the Loved Ones aren't breaking any new ground, when they're on, they're totally on. However, that's matched with an unfortunate corollary. Stabs at ĂŒber-harmonized mallrat punk ("100K") make you embarrassed for a band that, otherwise, has their shit together. JOHN VETTESE
WEDNESDAY 5/9
LIFESAVAS, STRANGE FRUIT PROJECT
(Chop Suey) See album review, page 42.
