According to a frequently reprinted ad for the Seattle Mayor’s
Office of Music, there are 238 music blogs in the city. That isn’t
quite right; in fact, it isn’t even a little right. For one thing, the
number comes from a search for the terms “Seattle, music” on
Technorati, an aggregator, and the number fluctuates wildly; a recent
search dug up 213 links. For another, most of these blogs aren’t really
dedicated music sites, and a lot aren’t located in Seattle.
Still, even if there are only, say, 75 local music blogs, that’s
plenty. No one could read them all even if they dedicated the majority
of their time to trying to keep up. That’s one reason behind this
thumbnail guide to some (not all) notable local music blogs. We’ve
steered clear of widely read long-runners like Three Imaginary Girls
and Seattle Powerpop, and we know we haven’t hit every one worth
mentioning. Think of this as a rough guide to the many ways Seattle
music lovers and professionals represent themselves on the web.
Raindrop Hustla
www.raindrophustla.blogspot.com
Proprietors: Larry Mizell, Andrew Matson, Marc
Matsui, DJ Nphared, Sam Chesneau, Sarah Walczyk, and others
MP3s? Sometimes
Average Posting Frequency: Several times a day.
Focus: Thanks to its wide roster of contributors,
Raindrop Hustla is more an online magazine than music blog. It’s
maintained by several of the city’s foremost hiphop artists (some of
whom wish to remain anonymous) and scholars—writers from the
Seattle Times, the Weekly, and The
Stranger. Subject matter is diverse, from long-form personal
essays to slang-laden track reviews to political commentary.
Typical Post: “Reasons I Been Blessed #6564: Once,
when I was I think no older than nine, and after a particularly
crackin’ dinner at Sizzler, Moms asked if I wanted to meet Stevie
Wonder. Let’s say I was into it.” [Posted by Lar August 9]
The Wisdom of the Illiterati
Proprietor: Robert Myers
MP3s? No
Average Posting Frequency: Weekly or more.
Focus: The pop charts. Myers, a former Eastside
Week writer, keeps close watch on the Billboard charts
(the Top Ten sub-blog features his reviews of each song in the current
Hot 100 Top 10) and opines everything from Sean Kingston to music-biz
ethics.
Typical Post: “With his announcement that he will
quit the business if his new album is outsold by Kanye West, 50 Cent
has achieved what no one else ever could: He has instantly cured me of
my lifelong habit of not saving my money for a rainy day. Come
September 11, I want to be able to buy as many Kanye West albums as I
possibly can. It’s the least I can do to ensure that my children
inherit a better world.” [Posted August 11]
A Guitar Teacher’s Lesson Notebook
www.heartwoodguitar.com/WordPressBlog
Proprietor: Rob Hampton
MP3s? No
Average Posting Frequency: Around once a week.
Focus: As you’d guess, Hampton is a guitar teacher
(mostly acoustic, from the looks of it), and his blog consists of
musings about playing, teaching, and the instrument itself.
Typical Post: “[At a campfire sing-along], the Look
is the universal signal for ‘I’m done with my solo’ and ‘This song’s
about to end.’ You’d think it’d be easy to give people an unambiguous
facial expression, but often people think they’re giving me the Look
when in fact they look like they’re really getting into their solo, or
they have gas. So how do you do it? Simple. Raise your eyebrows.”
[Posted August 10]
Fimoculous
Proprietor: Rex Sorgatz
MP3s? No
Average Posting Frequency: Sorgatz adds new links
and squibs of writing a few times per day.
Focus: Fimoculous is a very helpful and
well-constructed aggregator site. Sorgatz, who works at MSNBC, is a
pan-pop-culture geek with wide, diverse interests: TV, movies, books,
tech, and music. Fimoculous (the name of a microscopic parasite that
feeds on its own waste, which Sorgatz relates to the self-perpetuating
pop media landscape) compiles daily links to tons of online media;
musically, Sorgatz is drawn to indie rock, hipster-friendly pop,
hiphop, and dance. He also puts together an annual roundup of year-end
lists featuring every kind of retrospective you can think of: For 2006
alone he found 706 lists, 228 of them music-based.
Typical Post: “Apparently I never saw Thurston
Moore guest-hosting 120 Minutes with Beck in 1994, because I
would have remembered it. Mike D shows up later, talking about an
upcoming album that they ‘might call Ill Communication.'”
[Posted August 29]
American Athlete
www.americanathlete.blogspot.com
Proprietor: TJ Gorton
MP3s? Yes
Average Posting Frequency: About three times a
week.
Focus: Gorton, a local DJ, electronic-music
producer, and Line Out contributor, focuses on house, techno, and
classic disco, with lore about the artists written in enthusiastic (if
spotty) prose. And lots of remixes. It’s basically an MP3 blog, and
includes a track (or more) per post.
Typical Post: “Salsoul Presents: Disco Trance
& Cosmic Flavas is an amazing compilation that puts together
some hard-to-find dance mixes of some hard-to-find Salsoul classics.
With so many disco compilations out there, sometimes it’s hard to know
if they’re worth the money, this one definitely is.”
Log in, Turn On, Rock Out
If you’re looking for more conversation than observation, check into
these music message boards and listservs:
The Division List (www.lists.f4.ca/mailman/listinfo/division): Super-insidery, super-techy mailing list for Seattle’s electronic music
makers, DJs, and fans. Hourly e-mail bombardment about gear, events,
and scene politics; it’s almost too much info to digest.
Northwest Hardcore (www.nwhardcore.com): Online community
for the Northwest hardcore scene.
Mass Line Message Board (www.masslinemedia.com/smf): Local hiphop label Mass Line hosts an active message board moderated by
the likes of Geo of Blue Scholars and Gabe Teodros.
206 Proof (www.206proof.com): An upstart hiphop
message board that counters Mass Line’s hegemony. Even online, Seattle
heads like to take sides. [Posted August 28]
