ELECTRIC BIRDS, MODULE, CNSE
(Chop Suey) See preview, page 43.
ANTIQUARK, DISPLAY, MODELS OWN, RIZZUDO
(Crocodile) I know that this is probably going to come back to haunt me, but I have to admit, I wasn't really sold the first time I saw Models Own. All of the elements were there: two-piece (check), electronic drum kit (check), ovarian anger (check). This should have been right up my alley. And maybe that's why I was so tentative. But with all of the opportunities I've had in the past few months to see them (they've certainly had the benefit of good company), Models Own have warmed my frozen heart. This evening extends the trajectory of the ladies' fine affiliation, with the Europe-by-way-of-San Diego mechanics of AntiQuark (featuring representatives from the Peppermints), and the erection perfection of Everett's straight white hopes, Display. ZAC PENNINGTONFRIDAY 12/13
ANDY CALDWELL, KASKADE, QUAZAR, JEROMY NAIL
(Chop Suey) Andy Caldwell and Kaskade are both on San Francisco's Om Records. Caldwell is a Bay Area native, and Kaskade recently relocated there from Salt Lake City, where he owned a small record store and spun records at one of the only house nightclubs. Both are first-rate deep-house DJs; Caldwell's mixes and original work have a harder funk edge, while Kaskade's have an atmospheric and rather decadent sound. The recently released Om 100: A Celebration of the 100th Release of Om Records offers Kaskade's ripe and dreamy house track "What I Say," which is to reappear on his full-length CD It's You, It's Me in the spring of 2003. Like all great (if not real) house songs, "What I Say" has black male vocals--with house music, the moaning black men are infinitely better than the moaning black women--and glittery dub effects. The CD also has tracks from Caldwell ("I Can't Wait: Perpetual Bliss Mix"), Soulstice (a band Caldwell produces), and Mark Farina (who, though not part of this Chop Suey show, produces a series of marvelous mixes, titled Mushroom Jazz). Kaskade and Caldwell will most definitely house you. CHARLES MUDEDE
MS. LED, DORKWEED, TART, LILA, PRIS, STUDFINDER, ANDREA MAXAND, SILVER BELLES, MEMBERS OF PETER PARKER
(Café Venus) How in the world does Lesli Wood expect us to keep up with all her name-change tomfoolery? First, the Seattle singer/songwriter wrote kicky acoustic numbers under her own name; then, she turned up her amps, patched together a band and became Roxy, guitarist for grrrl-rock combo Lesliwood; now, the band's dropped her name altogether and taken up the name Ms. Led, which might be easier if Lesliwood's second album weren't also called Ms. Led. The band's third (or first, depending on how much leverage you're willing to give it) album, Afternoon in Central Park, is a ferocious litter of Sleater-Kinney-style tunes that scratch, bite, and holler their way into one's ear without remorse. Wood has a powerful voice that captures all the fury of Corin Tucker and presses it against softer singer/songwriter influences, and that will thankfully remain the same, whatever she might choose to write on her promo pack. TIZZY ASHER
SATURDAY 12/14
THE CRIPPLES, MEA CULPA, SICKO
(Vera Project) Hopefully you know by now that the Briefs--who, rumor has it, are on some kind of big stadium tour through Europe--are not on this bill. You'll still get a good dose of punk here, though, from Sicko's pop style to Mea Culpa's political vibe to the Cripples' keyboards and noise-damaged anthems. JENNIFER MAERZ
KULTUR SHOCK, SLEEPYTIME GORILLA MUSEUM, SKELETON KEY
(Crocodile) I can't resist throwing out the phrase "everything but the kitchen sink" in relation to this show--partly because it describes the polyethnic explosion that is Kultur Shock, partly because it fits Skeleton Key's monster groove machine, but mostly because I'm fairly certain that an ACTUAL kitchen sink might be part of SK's percussion arsenal. You'll have to fight me for space at the front of the stage to verify whether I'm right; figuring out exactly what the heck SK is using to make all that racket is more fun than betting on whose musical career Winona Ryder is going to destroy next, but it's still not as great as experiencing the band live (and since they don't come 'round so often, I'm not going to miss a second). One bonus of attending this show is that both bands' groove-centric performances are pretty much guaranteed to help you work off those holiday calories in advance. BARBARA MITCHELL
KINSKI, SWORDS PROJECT, PAIK
(Graceland) In terms of music that compels you to close your eyes and let your body's equilibrium sway, Kinski is right up there with Bardo Pond, Opal, Spiritualized (circa Pure Phase), and any psychedelic band--traditional or neo--for hypnotic denseness. Swords Project aims for a more melodic, histrionic kind of denseness that will please some and annoy others, depending on who has already shut their eyes in preparation for the headliners. KATHLEEN WILSON
GATSBY'S AMERICAN DREAM, TIME TO FLY, DOLOUR, THE DIVORCE
(Paradox) "Have you seen this man?" the poster on the Seattle Central Community College kiosk asks. Sure--who hasn't seen him? The sucked-in cheeks and unbearably model-esque eyes of Dolour's Shane Tutmarc seem to be staring out from every legal posting space in town--even the bathroom walls at my day job. Tutmarc has garnered heaps of praise for his latest album on Fugitive, Suburbiac, and for good reason. It's a charming set of pop sounds that draws as much from David Bowie as it does from Weezer. Guitars rub shoulders with cellos and theremins, while Tutmarc's crystalline voice flutters above. Openers the Divorce share a label with Dolour, as well as a fondness for well-crafted, if slightly more frenetic, pop tunes. But if nothing else, this is a chance to stand up while Dolour is playing and scream, "Yes! Yes! I've seen that man!" TIZZY ASHER
THE CATHETERS, THE HOLY GHOST REVIVAL, BROADCAST OBLIVION
(Sunset) Broadcast Oblivion are playing their first show, but they shy away from overexuberant hype like a rolled-up pill bug. That said, the band is fronted by Scared Of Chaka's Dave Hernandez, and includes ex-Murder City Devils drummer Coady Willis and Drew Church (of the Droo Church). Technically speaking, the Catheters still boast the cachet that comes with being one of Seattle's youngest bands, age-wise, but the Holy Ghost Revival's members are in knee pants, comparatively. Part circus craziness, part pop band, HGR is a new act to keep your eyes on. KATHLEEN WILSON
CANYON
(Paradox) Canyon is a fitting name for a band that could've been conceived by partnering a couple tabs of acid with a slow trip through a grand desert oasis. With Gram Parsons and Pink Floyd as their spiritual guides, the group blends sprawling, psychedelic post-rock ramblings with less bong-heavy Americana melodies. Although their second release, Empty Rooms, moves dangerously close to the overextended jam session, they pull back into gentle vocal harmonies and simpler psych-twang embellishments, keeping one foot of their sonic dreamscapes firmly planted on earth. Beachwood Sparks fans should rejoice, now that other talented musicians are taking up residence in the land of cosmic alt-country. JENNIFER MAERZ
SUNDAY 12/15
You better lose yourself in the music, the moment, you own it, you better never let it go. You only get one shot to not miss your chance to blow. This opportunity comes once in a lifetime, yo.
MONDAY 12/16
CHER, CYNDI LAUPER
(KeyArena) See Stranger Suggests, page 29.
THRONES, CRICTOR, DJS FRANKI CHAN, RED LEATHER CHAPSTICK
(Graceland) See preview, page 46.
XZIBIT, MASTER P, GUESTS
(Showbox) See preview, page 44.
TUESDAY 12/17
WHEN YOU WISH UPON A STAR
(Crocodile) See Stranger Suggests, page 29.
GERALD COLLIER, SEAN NELSON, JON AUER, MARK PICKEREL, MEMBERS OF PURTY MOUTH
(Sunset) This night should be called the night of the purty voices, given that each and every singer on the bill has golden pipes redolent of varying influences. Purty Mouth features Kurt B. Reighly, who can manage anything from opera to Freddie Mercury with aplomb. Mark Pickerel (formerly of Truly) and Harvey Danger/Long Winters' Sean Nelson each produce vocals that reach pop perfection. Jon Auer can sound like one of the Hollies or a folkster on his own. And Gerald Collier, current member of Deerwhistle and former member of Best Kissers in the World, is a man who can channel Hank, Willie, or Johnny into his own country-twang vocals, to thoughtful or rollicking effect. KATHLEEN WILSON
PETER GABRIEL, BLIND BOYS OF ALABAMA (FEATURING CLARENCE FOUNTAIN), HUKWE ZAWOSE
(KeyArena) Peter Gabriel has done many amazing things: he was a founding member of the '70s rock band Genesis; he ruled the '80s with Sting; and he convincingly fused traditional Arabic music with British pop on his ornate soundtrack for Martin Scorsese's 1988 film The Last Temptation of Christ. He also has had a rewarding artistic relationship with the Senegalese nobleman Youssou N'Dour, and established one of the first truly global record labels, Real World. But of his many amazing accomplishments, none is more impressive than the fact that he broke Sinéad O'Connor's heart, turning her into a complete nutter: "Thank you for breaking my heart/Thank you for tearing me apart," she screamed on the concluding track ("Thank You for Hearing Me") of her emotionally turbulent 1994 album, Universal Mother[fucker]. What in the world could outdo breaking Sinéad O'Connor's heart? CHARLES MUDEDE
JEN WOOD, DREW VICTOR, ASHANTI
(Showbox Greenroom) Drew Victor is your romantic worst nightmare. Blood-dampened sleeves trace his heart's nesting place, an overwrought mess of emotional conviction where every gasp for breath brings you just that much closer to a tearful goodbye. Now That I'm Through the Tunnel, Victor's latest record, drips with molasses consistency to the tune of lost loves, faded chances, and all of that other predictable crap that makes my chest strain in such weather. The difference, however, is that Through the Tunnel is full of grippingly intimate moments--the kind of embarrassingly affecting songs you'd never put on a mix tape, but that you'd listen to in secret on fog-soaked, earl-grey Sundays. "I've got a sad song to whisper in your ear...." ZAC PENNINGTON
