FRIDAY 1/3


THE HUNCHES, LONESOME TEARDROPS, THE HOSPITALS
(Zak's) See preview, page 31.

EXBESTFRIENDS, NEW LUCK TOY, PATAHA
(Chop Suey) eXBeSTFRIeNDS' existence has been fitful, at best. However lauded the band's artful blend of metal and grunge, personnel changes and hiatuses have kept audiences asking (hoping) for more. The latest lineup includes a new drummer as well as ex-Watery Graves member Ian Valentine. Singer Ryan Davidson remains eXBeSTFRIeNDS' heart and soul, though, as it is his clever lyrics and fire-breathing shock tricks that keep audiences on their toes. More dependable but no less thrilling is New Luck Toy, a favorite among the Belltown and Pike/Pine corridor neighborhoods for its fun, bar-band blend of punk styles. KATHLEEN WILSON

VERONA
(Graceland) It's a hardened soul who doesn't experience Verona for the first time and not get taken aback by frontman Kyle Logge's beautiful voice and his ability to pen sweeping lyrics backed by churning guitars that never venture into soggy territory. This is a publicity-quiet band that should garner more attention for itself. Slowly but surely, word of mouth is traveling for the band, which is destined for more than what it's getting. It just might take a while till Verona gets its full due. KATHLEEN WILSON

PEDRO THE LION, HAVALINA RAIL CO., HIDARI MAE
(Paradox) Pedro the Lion frontman David Bazan's Christianity used to be the deal breaker for me in appreciating his music. I'm not proud to admit it, but it was the one thing that stuck out from his beautiful strumming and lovely voice. But with Pedro's last album, Control, I have become a true believer. The album is sonically harder and lyrically sharper than anything Bazan has previously done. With adultery, capitalism, and conspicuous consumption cycling through his narratives while the guitars wail, churn, and lumber along, the songs maintain a heft unlike anything he has attempted before. With Bazan's voice brimming with resignation and disappointment, Pedro live has always been a forceful presence, and with the new intense songs on Control, I imagine that will be the case now more than ever. NATE LIPPENS

SATURDAY 1/4


the whip, bangs, ruby doe
(I-Spy) See preview, page 32.

CHAMPION, PUNISHMENT, ONE UP, DAMAGE, NO RIGHTS
(Paradox) Some might argue that Champion is one of the most notable hardcore bands in this city right now. Quite impressive, since the band has yet to release anything but EPs or 7-inch records. I hear, though, that there's a full-length on the way, which will be released on Bridge Nine Records (recording should start in early 2003, if it hasn't already), and it's about time! The band has been around--on and off--since 1999. I think it's pretty safe to say the record will hold the same ferocity and aggressive (though positive) energy the band pours into every one of their live shows, and once it drops, it'll be hard to ignore. Go to this show to get a taste of what's to come, and since this looks like it might be the last time Champion plays at the Paradox (before the venue closes in a month), help 'em go out with a bang. MEGAN SELING

JESSE SYKES & THE SWEET HEREAFTER, THE SCHOLARS, STAGGER LEE

(Tractor) Fuck yeah, we Northwesterners love the buttrock, whether it's the kind you get stoned to and stay in for the day for or the kind for which you drag out the Levi's cords and ancient T-shirts--buttrock's version of the tuxedo--and head out to the clubs to witness a band like Stagger Lee. It's not rocket science, but it's not stupid either, and when it comes to a musical genre that reaches a further diversity through more generations than most others, buttrock has it hands down, and a bunch of sweaty guys and I would love to pound some sense into those who would beg to differ. KATHLEEN WILSON

the SWEET SCIENCE, HYPATIA LAKE
(Sit & Spin) Seattle's the Sweet Science is a very talented band. Though the trio won't flip your wig in a traditional rock sense--especially if you're of the impatient chat-and-swill-booze variety of showgoer--the band has musicianship to burn, and a few killer songs to boot. Well suited to perform with Hypatia Lake, the Sweet Science makes slow-cooking, mathy atmospherics on standup bass, drums, and guitar. Two of the players sing, and both have lovely voices. As with any rock band, there are also grand moments where the trio ratchets up the intensity and truly rocks out. But those moments are rare, and never cheap. Which is what you should expect from a group of musicians' musicians. JEFF DeROCHE

SLEEP CAPSULE, MICO DE NOCHE, AUDIO INFIDELS
(Zak's) On the three-song EP Mico de Noche sent in to The Stranger, words come few and far between as the band hammers through some dark, sludgy metal. A meeting of the Melvins and Men of Porn, the guitar/drum duo's songs rattle your lower latitudes with the strength of their balls-out noise. When lyrics do enter the picture, they're succinct and to the point: "My truck is higher/My tire's bigger than your head," are the only words disturbing "Puyallup," and on the not-so-subtle "White Lady," the drug references stagger through the slower melodies as the boys in the band call out for the lady of the evening to go swiftly up their nasal cavities, until a blood-curdling scream eggs on the guitars. Although I've yet to see these guys live, if you like your metal thicker than a London fog, this is a good bet for tonight. JENNIFER MAERZSUNDAY 1/5


THE PLAINS, JODIE HATES THE WORLD, LANGUAGE ARTS, PIPSQUEAK
(Graceland) Oh, lucky us. Right after our holiday stupor comes a show that will surely knock the stuffing right out of our bloated bellies. I've already talked about how great the Plains' debut CD, On Earth as It Is in Heaven, is; I am pleased to report that the live show is equally excellent, although in different ways: On the night of their CD release party, Aaron Semer (the man who taught John Darnielle how to emote) sang so hard he short-circuited his vocal cords--I'd be surprised if he wasn't supping Jell-O and whispering for the next week. Meanwhile, the rest of the band thrashed and danced with an intensity to match that of Semer's singing, and I found myself rediscovering songs I didn't know I had loved--like "El Borracho," a Calexico-style dueling-guitar number that has found a place on all of my most recent mix tapes. Do yourself a favor and trade the sweatpants in for some dancing shoes; the Plains will rock those holiday pounds right off of you. KATE PREUSSER

GUN STREET GIRLS
(Rendezvous) So the holidays are over, you got shit for Christmas, and the copy of Swank you picked up 'cause you didn't get any New Year's kisses is leaving you a bit flat. What's a kid gotta do for a bit of excitement these days? I'll tell you what--get your ass on down to the Rendezvous and check out the latest extravaganza from our very own Gun Street Girls burlesque troupe. For the uninitiated, the Gun Street Girls are Seattle's original gang of vicious vixens--mixing classic burlesque style with a snarly punk rock attitude. Miss Bella Beretta, Candy Whiplash, Dagger Lee, and the rest of the shady ladies (including two new Girls who are debuting tonight!) are throwing down a rock 'n' roll spectacle of DIY T 'n' A that'll tickle your groin while trampling your heart. Tonight's show promises a bit of "cultcher" as well, as the Girls are each interpreting, through the art of the dark dance, a different painting by different artists ranging from Klimt to Mucha to Ryden. But if this talk of "art" sounds a little too high-minded for you, don't despair. The Gun Street Girls are a carnal carnival of full-flavored female danger and desire that should keep your fires burning till the spring thaw. DAN PAULUS

MONDAY 1/6


AKIMBO, THE PLOT TO BLOW UP THE EIFFEL TOWER, TEEN CTHULHU
(2nd Avenue Pizza) See preview, page 29.

TUESDAY 1/7


SHEMEKIA COPELAND
(Jazz Alley) The last time I saw one of the strongest heirs apparent to the throne of reigning Chicago blues queen Koko Taylor perform in Seattle, it was at Parker's Casino. Shemekia Copeland, the daughter of Texas blues legend Johnny Copeland, gave a standout performance, made all the more impressive by her youth (at 23, she's won four W. C. Handy awards and received a Grammy nomination); too many young blues artists seem to labor under the mistaken impression that all they have to do is sound like Hendrix. With three excellent albums under her belt--the most recent of which, Talking to Strangers, was produced by Dr. John--Copeland has arrived on the national blues scene in a big way. That comparison to Taylor is quite deliberate; there's no one else I've heard out of the current generation of blues singers who is capable of delivering such raw, earthshaking power. In blues music, maturity is a plus; it's possibly one of the last places in the world where age is respected. The point being, if Copeland sounds this good at 23, just imagine what she'll do when she's 60. GENEVIEVE WILLIAMS

WEDNESDAY 1/8


THE DIGITAL LOUNGE FEATURING KEVIN SAWKA, WAYNE HORVITZ
(ToST) Jazz keyboardist Wayne Horvitz (of Zony Mash) performs with Kevin Sawka (of Siamese) on drums and PK (of Das Rut) on stand-up bass as part of the weekly Digital Lounge, which is hosted by Otha Major. Evidently, the Digital Lounge mixes musicians from different streams of music in the hopes of forming something new or unexpected. Though it's hard to say if this particular mix or experiment will work, Herbie Hancock's recent CD Future 2 Future has shown that when the kind of advanced jazz Wayne Horvitz plays is combined with the kind of drum 'n' bass Siamese produces, something close to bebop takes shape. The coupling of drum 'n' bass and advanced jazz is charged by the same exhilarating and dexterous energy that defined the dizzying peak of modern jazz (1945 to 1955). CHARLES MUDEDE

THE MIRRORS, BLANCHE DEVEREAUX, THE FLYING DUTCHMEN, DJ KEN DIRTNAP
(Zak's) Not to be confused with the mid-'70s Cleveland band whose members went on to be in the Electric Eels, Styrenes, and Pere Ubu, these Mirrors hail from Texas and are said to play an off-kilter brand of psych-punk garage. The Flying Dutchmen are composed of ex-members of the Zombie IV, the Amazing Spider-Men, and Ian and the Barnetts, and continue the aforementioned bands' tradition of garage/surf/frat trash, drawing inspiration from the San Francisco '90s triumvirate of the Mummies, Supercharger, and the Phantom Surfers. In fact, a recent SF Flying Dutchmen show so impressed the Surfers' Mike Lucas that he offered to release their upcoming LP. Their drunken antics offer something to amuse and/or offend everyone. HEATH HEEMSBERGEN