THURSDAY 9/13
INSTITUBES PARIS TERROR CLUB TOUR: PARA ONE, SURKIN,
ORGASMIC, CURSES!
(Chop Suey) See Stranger Suggests, page 43.
THE MALDIVES, KEVIN BARRANS, THE CURIOUS MYSTERY
(Crocodile) Seattle is a hotbed for kick-ass alt-country, and the
Maldives (pronounced MALL-deeves; it’s an island chain in the Indian
Ocean) are at the head of the pack. Well balanced between hard-rocking
Drive-By Truckers grit, waltzing Band-ish traditionalism, and Neil
Young–style folk, theirs is a nuanced sound provided by fiddle,
weepy steel and gentle acoustic and scruffy electric guitars, rich
organ, plus a smart, subtle rhythm section. Singer Jason
Dodson—looking like the mustachioed Jason Lee from My Name Is
Earl—has a voice as striking, clear, and bright as a full
moon on a hot August night. He belts and croons, singing of undying
affection, misplaced dreams, family ties, and sailboats. Dodson’s
banjo-twanging, accordion-squeezing foil in the Maldives, the hobo-chic
Kevin Barrans, also plays with his own band tonight. JONATHAN
ZWICKEL
FRIDAY 9/14
THE NEW PORNOGRAPHERS, LAVENDER DIAMOND, FANCEY
(Showbox at the Market) See preview, page 67.
THE STRANGER GENIUS AWARDS: THE BLOW, VELELLA VELELLA, DJ
NORDIC SOUL
(Central Library) See preview, page 65, and Stranger Suggests,
page 43.
MEDESKI, SCOFIELD, MARTIN & WOOD
(Moore) While I’d always take MMW as a trio, the addition of
guitarist John Scofield makes a compelling case for adding another
letter to the mix. Scofield—who recorded with Mingus and Miles
30-some years ago—fronted the avant-jazz trio back in ’98 for
A Go Go, a sugary-sweet jazz-jam album that introduced Scofield
to MMW’s new jazz audience. Last year’s Out Louder found all
four far more enmeshed in each other’s ginormous chops and launching
into darker, edgier sonic territory. MMW are currently at the peak of
their powers, and Scofield seems to only get more flexible with age.
For fans of groove-based virtuosity, their collaboration is a dream
come true. JONATHAN ZWICKEL
NO. 13 BABY, SPEAKER SPEAKER
(Crocodile) Here’s a true rock ‘n’ roll reach-around: the reunion of
a cover band that broke up after the band they covered reunited. It’s a
freakin’ meta-reunion! In the early ’00s, No. 13 Baby played a zillion
shows around the Pacific Northwest, an all-star band playing faithful
Pixies covers to crowds desperate to headbang to “Wave of Mutilation”
while commiserating with other fans who missed out on the real thing.
Then the damn Pixies got back together in 2004, milking the cash cow
and rendering No. 13 Baby pretty much irrelevant. After all the reunion
hoopla, and with Pixies’ future uncertain, maybe now’s the time for a
No. 13 comeback. A cover-band comeback—what the fuck? JONATHAN
ZWICKEL
RIVERBOAT GAMBLERS, VALIENT THORR, TOTIMOSHI, KANDI
CODED
(El Corazón) I first heard about Valient Thorr last year from
Scott Avett of the Avett Brothers. Avett’s a huge fan of the
garage-metal five-piece from Chapel Hill, North Carolina; the two bands
have toured together in the past. Crunchy and aggressive, Valient Thorr
sound something like a less hardcore Rollins Band, had Rollins’s rants
veered from street-corner politics into wacko eye-in-the-pyramid
conspiracy theory. They’ve released a couple records, the last one on
the Volcom label (who knew? Warped Tour, I guess, where there’s a
Volcom side stage that Valient Thorr have played coast to coast two
years running), and are rumored to put on a guitar-tastic stage show.
Also, they claim they’re from Venus. JONATHAN ZWICKEL
ANIMAL COLLECTIVE, WIZARD PRISON, ERIC COPELAND
(Neumo’s) I’ll admit that I didn’t immediately warm to Animal
Collective. Upon first hearing 2003’s Here Comes the Indian and
2004’s Sung Tongs, I was impressed and intrigued, but not wholly
won over. All that changed upon seeing the band perform live with Black
Dice (awesome bill) in August of ’04. While both bands played intricate
sets of escalating noise and transparent layers of sound, only Animal
Collective’s haze of reverb, delays, and effects occasionally gave way
to moments of pure, cosmic pop bliss. The band would begin a song with
nothing more than an acoustic guitar or vocal loop, then add and
multiply sounds around it to build soft, warm walls and dense swarms of
noise. Then, all that would melt away in a moment to reveal manic
choruses and playground chants. I’m still wrapping my head around the
band’s new, synthetically sweetened Strawberry Jam, but I’m sure
tonight’s show will make everything clear. ERIC GRANDY See also
Album Reviews, page 75.
SATURDAY 9/15
THE NEW PORNOGRAPHERS, LAVENDER DIAMOND, FANCEY
(Showbox at the Market) See preview, page 67.
PLANES MISTAKEN FOR STARS, ROY, SIRENS SISTER, KINGDOM OF
MAGIC
(El Corazón) See Underage, page 91.
YO MAJESTY, NRDLNGR, THE NACHOS, AMATEUR YOUTH, DJ PRETTY
TITTY
(Chop Suey) At this year’s SXSW, Tampa’s Yo Majesty interrogated
their Beauty Bar audience, taunting that we weren’t nearly as ready as
we claimed we were. They demanded their DJ strip down before starting,
then tore into their own brand of electro-rap, a crunk, butch trio in
the tradition of JJ Fad or Salt-N-Pepa. It was a few songs into the set
and the crowd was already a sweaty mess when one of the MCs ripped off
her wife-beater, leaving her titties a-flailing as she continued to
perform. The energy level leaped from 11 to 15 as everyone
understandably lost their damn minds. With surprises like that, only
one thing is certain about this show—y’all ain’t ready. DONTE
PARKS
JENNIFER GENTLE, LLAMA, PAUL LYNDE FAN CLUB
(Sunset) Italian psych-poppers Jennifer Gentle take their name and
musical cues from acid-damaged auteur Syd Barrett. The band spin
fractured, insomnia-maniacal songs full of sneaking guitars,
dark-circus sway, and spirited vocals. Their latest album for Sub Pop,
The Midnight Room, is their most poppy and concertedly bizarre
yet, and it’s a winning combination. The album was recorded alone by
main singer-songwriter Marco Fasolo in a more or less haunted house,
and if there aren’t real ghosts on these songs, there’s at least some
stoned paranoia and Dario Argento–worthy dread. Live, Fasolo
performs with a full band to flesh out his isolated recordings. ERIC
GRANDY
SUNDAY 9/16
Spend some time with your pets.
MONDAY 9/17
(Sonic Boom Records, Ballard) See preview, page 61, and Stranger
Suggests, page 43.
TUESDAY 9/18
MELVINS, BIG BUSINESS
(Showbox at the Market) It’s like there’s a giant roller rink and
two generations of musicians are standing on either side. On the far
end you’ve got the pioneers of ’90s rock—the influential, aging
pre–Generation Xers still plugging away. On the near side,
there’s the newly anointed rock VIPs, the guys who’ve paid their dues
in bands for the last decade and are starting to reap the rewards. For
the most part, they just cautiously eye each other; no one’s really
communicating. Then the light hits the disco ball… oh shit, it’s time
for a free skate. Who’s that coming around? Is Johnny Marr skating with
Modest Mouse? Weird. No way—Big Business is double-dating with
the Melvins! I never would’ve guessed, but they make such a great
couple! Jared and King Buzzo are totally going to win Homecoming
royalty! JEFF KIRBY
WEDNESDAY 9/19
TWO GALLANTS, BLITZEN TRAPPER, SONGS FOR MOMS
(Crocodile) See Stranger Suggests, page 43.
JULIE OLSON, DARRIUS WILLRICH, EVAN FLORY-BARNES, D’VONNE
LEWIS
(Egan’s Jam House) D’vonne Lewis is the most talented drummer I’ve
seen in Seattle. In a city with a history of monster stickmen, its own
professional drum school, and a drummer website listing almost 150
drummers, this guy’s the truth. I’ve witnessed nu-bop trio Industrial
Revelation, Paul Rucker’s improv big band, and a slew of Skerik’s
far-flung projects all shine brighter when the kid’s behind the kit.
Most rock drummers will give it up to their jazz counterparts, and
Lewis is exactly the reason why. Relaxed, unfettered, beyond the pocket
(he IS the pocket, and the needlepoint stitching around it, and the
blue fuzzy stuff at the bottom), Lewis plays with the skill and ease of
an old pro—and he’s just turned 24. JONATHAN ZWICKEL
LOW
(Triple Door) It wasn’t until I heard their Christmas song, “Just
Like Christmas,” that I really appreciated Low’s emotional and
experimental indie rock. Until that fateful holiday season, I lived
under the assumption that Low were an uninteresting, utterly depressing
Bright Eyes wannabe, mostly because their name made me think so. I was
wrong. After a short obsession, I found out that Low have been around
since Conor Oberst was prepubescent (1993), the band features married
couple Alan Sparhawk and Mimi Parker, and the trio (rounded out by Matt
Livingston on bass and co-vocals) has a huge catalog of reliable
albums. Their most recent, Drums and Guns, was released on Sub
Pop this year, and I can’t stop listening to the album’s haunting and
captivating song “Murderer,” which showcases a slow, deep bass, and the
constant twitter of what sounds like a guitar that’s shorting out. It
builds up, but never to a complete climax, which only adds to the
frustrated lyrics “you must have more important things to do.” MEGAN
SELING