Your roundup of this week’s most widely-read, shared, and discussed stories.
• “The Audition” was our most widely read story this week. The piece, written by Sydney Brownstone, tells a story of multiple women who allege that a Seattle man posed as a porn recruiter to lure them into his apartment for sex. In some states, this kind of trickery could be considered illegal. In Washington, not necessarily.
• The Stranger obtained text messages sent from Mayor Ed Murray to city council member Sally Bagshaw, threatening to “pull police off enforcement” if she introduced a competing encampment-clearing plan for the Jungle. Turns out, that wasn’t the first time he’s made such threats, either. On Blabbermouth, our week-in-review podcast, we interviewed Bagshaw about the angry text messages. Subscribe to Blabbermouth here.
• Jen Graves reviewed Tariqa Waters’s show 100% Kanekalon at the Northwest African American Museum. Waters brings the Black South to an increasingly white Seattle with her exhibit, which feels “loud from a distance and quiet up close.” Like Beyoncé’s Lemonade, the show feels like the swinging of a baseball bat. Unlike Lemonade, there’s no happy ending.
• Speaking of art, why are Seattle’s art galleries getting no foot traffic? There’s a common misconception that galleries are elitist spaces. But—believe it or not—they don’t actually care if you buy anything. They just want you to see art. Consider going to one before they close, as four Seattle galleries will this summer.
• Still speaking of art, this week’s copy of The Stranger includes our quarterly guide to Seattle arts. Grab one and prepare yourself for a summer of performance, literature, film, music, and festivals.
• A box set of the composer Henri Dutilleux’s work drops this August. Maybe you’ve heard his compositions, which have “an intangible quality, one that doesn’t dictate the way you should be thinking but rather suggests a world full of possible thought.” But did you know: The late, great French composer had a surprising Seattle connection—a long-time bromance with Seattle Symphony music director Ludovic Morlot.
• “Most side-project albums by major-label rock musicians come off as curios at best and vain indulgences unworthy of a second listen at worst,” Dave Segal writes. “Then there’s Hater.” In advance of Hater’s vinyl re-issue, we interviewed Soundgarden and Hater bassist Ben Shepherd. He talked about the upcoming re-issue of that lost classic album, covering Cat Stevens, and who he would kill.
• The Seattle International Film Festival closes this weekend. Here are the 11 best films you should see before it goes. And if none of those tempt you, then one of these 12 non-SIFF ones should—with everything from 1996 classic “Space Jam”to “Viktoria”, a poetic dark comedy about socialism.
• For the rest of the weekend, check out our Cheap & Easy listings, and start buying your tickets to one of next week’s best concerts.
Enjoy the rain this weekend.