THURSDAY 11/3
THE VILLAGE GREEN, STARS OF TRACK AND FIELD
(War Room) See preview, page 35.
CERBERUS SHOAL, THE SEA DONKEYS, MICAH BLUE SMALDONE
(Sunset) Cerberus Shoal can stake legitimate claimâalong with the Tower Recordingsâto being forerunners to this decade's freak-folk renaissance. The Shoal recorded their latest album, The Land We All Believe In, at Scott Colburn's Bandsaw Studios in Seattle, and he casts the Maine ensemble's music in a natural light that emphasizes their queer-folk (queer as in eccentric) harmonies, bewitching atmospheres, and slanted/enchanted motion. The band's unpredictable stream-of-hyperconsciousness music often assumes a ritualistic air of wonder and menace. Animal Collective, among other weird-bearded flower munchers, owe Cerberus Shoal a serious debt. DAVE SEGAL See also preview, page 43.
THE EMERGENCY, USS HORSEWHIP, NEW FANGS, THE HOP SCOTCH BOYS
(Chop Suey) USS Horsewhip is the most qualified outfit to adopt Seattle's straight-up rock torch since the New Mexicans/Crutches met their demise. Think Rye Coalition circa On Top, only with a little more hard-rock (less-hardcore) edge. GRANT BRISSEY
NINA HAGEN, URSULA AND THE ANDROIDS, JACKIE AND THE CONTROL TOPS, PHO BANG DJ BABY J
(El CorazĂłn) Born in East Berlin in 1955, Nina Hagen is famous because counterculturists of the '80s found new expression through her new-wave/punk clothes, her electric hair, feral makeup, and bizarre voice. She wrote songs for the female punk band the Slits, had her own band, and possessed a predilection for raising hell wherever she appeared. The fall of the Berlin wall marked the fall of Hagen, but she still has her many admirers. CHARLES MUDEDE
ROMANCE, EXIT STORIES, MARTIAN MEMO TO GOD, JUHU BEACH
(High Dive) Juhu Beach (from right here in Seattle) sound like early Modest Mouse with less of the hour-long art jam aspect and more anger. Shoegazer guitars are juxtaposed with hoarse vocals that passionately spit out demands like "put your back into it!" and "don't give up!" while their turbulent melodies twist songs into complicated knots. MEGAN SELING
FRIDAY 11/4
MY MORNING JACKET, SAUL WILLIAMS
(Showbox) See preview, page 35.
BRIGHT EYES, SONS AND DAUGHTERS, WILLY MASON
(Moore) See preview, page 40.
WHY?, AQUEDUCT, MATTHEW SHAW
(Paradox) See Data Breaker, page 55.
JULIAN PRIESTER, CHUCK DEARDORF, JOVINO SANTOS NETO, GUESTS
(Benaroya) See Stranger Suggests, page 25.
FRONT 242, GUESTS
(Fenix) Every genre has its anthem, its defining song and moment. With industrial music that anthem is Front 242's "Headhunter." Activated in Belgium in 1981, Front 242's music is aggressive in nature, with heavy beats that are looped with industrial noise or politically charged samples. The best thing about Front 242 is that their music, however brutal or totalitarian or gothic, never neglects the groove imperatives of the dance floor. CHARLES MUDEDE
MINUS THE BEAR, THESE ARMS ARE SNAKES, HEADPHONES, HEATHER DUBY
(Neumo's) In case anyone is wondering just how Minus the Bear write such beautifully dynamic, coolly intense music (a talent so well displayed on their most recent release Menos el Oso) the band will happily tell you they simply take a long journey to a very special place. "The best songs on the record turned out from you and me being on Music Mountain," drummer Erin Tate said during an interview this past summer. For those not in on the joke, I'm pretty sure getting to Music Mountain has something to do with smoking some very "special tobacco." MEGAN SELING
THE BRAIN SURGEONS, 7 SCREAMING DIZ BUSTERS, JIMMY FLAME & THE SEXXY BOYS
(Sunset) Anyone who knows rock crit knows the formula: "Band X sounds like Stoner Dude A married Smoky Lady Bâin a windtunnel, backed by the Imposters on kazoo." The Brain Surgeons, named for a misheard Patti Smith lyric about Mongolian lilies, might be the only band whose reality fits the metaphor. In 1994, ex-Blue Oyster Cult drummer Albert Bouchard really did marry ex-rock critic/Flaming Youth drummer Deborah Frost. Soon, their band self-released its cheeky, quirk-punk debut, featuring electric mandolin and a grainy-yet-glowing cover of "Love Potion #9." If that's not royalty, then hand me that kazoo. MAIREAD CASE
SATURDAY 11/5
JACK ENDINO, DIRTY POWER, THE GRANNIES
(Funhouse) See CD Review, page 47.
FUCKING AWESOME: DJ FRANKI CHAN, RAZREZ, SUNDAY NIGHT BLACKOUT, DJS J CLARK, MAMMA CASSEROLE
(Chop Suey) See Stranger Suggests, page 25.
RED ELVISES, THE BLACK CRABS
(Tractor) See Border Radio, page 49.
JASON WEBLEY
(Catwalk) No one in this city is more passionate about presenting music as art than Jason Webley. He's so into it, in fact, that he dies for the cause each year by creating an elaborate rock show/death scene that in the past has involved live burial, body shaving, and puppets. And even crazier than Webley himself are his fans. Singing along with every word, Webley followers often turn his performances into raucous parties with everyone in the room wildly dancing around to his blend of drunken gypsy punk rock. You'll find no better spectacle than a Jason Webley show. MEGAN SELING
HYPATIA LAKE, JOY WANTS ETERNITY, HIGH VIOLETS
(High Dive) Hypatia Lake's pop lingers like a comforting dream from which you don't want to snap awake, melodies drifting slowly upward from hazy dreamscapes to stargazing post rock. Their new EP also utilizes bits of nocturnal conversations, drifting commands with trailing guitar melodies that feel as airless as the music's overall atmospheric aesthetic. This is the stuff it's easy to wander through with a silly grin on your face, lost in the transitions between speaker-blowing guitar distortion and delicate synthesizer arcs. JENNIFER MAERZ
THE RACHEL'S, TRISTEZA, INVERT
(Neumo's) Some people will never pay to see an instrumental band play live. Even those people should crack their wallets open for a Tristeza show, which can include anything from surprise raps from guest MCs to extended genre-crossing jams. Now minus Jimmy "Album Leaf" LaValle, Tristeza will warm you up with sexy, hypnotic grooves so you can go home afterwards, throw their new album A Colores on the hi-fi, and get to the tonsil hockying already. MAYA KROTH
THE SHRILLS, WHALEBONES, THE HONEY HUSH
(Comet) Ex-Midnight Thunder Express frontman Willie Crane is back behind the mic once again, this time giving the bluesy garage shuffle of the Honey Hush his Iggy Pop best (the vocals also reference a less intense Nebula at times). The bandâfeaturing Stacey Scarburgh, Ben Strehle, James Owsley, and Pete Capponiâwiggle around in the Stones' coveted catalog, showing much promise on their new Southern-fried demo. JENNIFER MAERZ
SUNDAY 11/6
EX MODELS, GUESTS
(Funhouse, Gallery 1412) See preview, page 43.
MONDAY 11/7
MAGIC NUMBERS, GUESTS
(Crocodile) The Magic Numbers are a double brother-sister four-piece who channel the Mamas and the Papas and Buffalo Springfield. The West London act create velveteen songs from a patchwork of acoustic and electric guitar, glockenspiel, melodica, and a rhythm section that can alternately keep a front-porch country rumble coming and settle to the back corners of a song. But the main focus here really is the intertwining of those coos and oohs, beautifully harmonic meldings that can singe your ticker even with such common admissions as "I would die for you." Tender songs trace the history of the Golden State with reverence, swaying and swooning in patterns that immerse the listener in lovelorn sentimentality. JENNIFER MAERZ
ELKLAND: PLEASURECRAFT, PANDA & ANGEL, THE ELEPHANTS
(Chop Suey) The Elephants are a charming local trio from Tacoma who make simple pop songs. Sometimes those tracks use bouncy keyboards, sometimes they're full of vocal harmonies, but they always display that classic lo-fi sound. The band cites everyone from the Velvet Underground to Stereolab to Pulp as influences, and you can actually hear the eclectic musical roots in their craft. MEGAN SELING
THE MOODY BLUES
(Paramount) Though this opinion will get me booted from the Association of Postmodern Critics Who Scorn Nostalgia, it must be said: Moody Blues are one of the greatest bands everâwhen they're on. From 1967's Days of Future Passed through 1971's Every Good Boy Deserves Favour, these pretentious Brits went on an elegant tear of heightened creativity, crafting six albums of exquisitely beautiful, ornate pop that made psychedelia and classical music conjugate like libertines. If these geezers focus on that era, no amount of middle-aged spread and millionaire laurel-resting will dim the golden glow of those songs. DAVE SEGAL
TUESDAY 11/8
ATMOSPHERE, BLUEPRINT, P.O.S.
(Showbox) See preview, page 39.
JACKIE-O MOTHERFUCKER, VOLCANO!, GUESTS
(Sunset) So, maverick experimental-electronic label Leaf finally succumbed: It signed a rock band, its first in 10 years of business. Chicago's volcano! (lowercase and exclamation mark? Bastards!) have the honor of issuing their debut album, Beautiful Seizure, on this esteemed UK imprint. The disc's tumultuous clangor and clatter careen in the same mosh pit as music by the Ex and three-quarters of the Load and 5 Rue Christine rosters. This is rock as ambitious art projectâoccasionally annoying as hell, sometimes dynamically and texturally inspirational. volcano! sporadically create sparks, but they haven't quite earned that exclamation pointâyet. DAVE SEGAL See also preview, page 45.
THE DETROIT COBRAS, REIGNING SOUND, THE COPS
(Chop Suey) Reigning Sound leader Greg Cartwright is one talented motherfucker. Between his work with the Compulsive Gamblers, the Oblivians, and his current dual role as guitarist for the Detroit Cobras and frontman for Reigning Sound, Cartwright has earned a cult-like following of garage rock fans who prefer their punk splashed with a healthy dose of soul. But even with those accolades in hand, I can't recommend the Reigning Sound's new record, Home for Orphans, which barely passes as a rarities compilation for diehard fans. The cobbled-together assortment of understandably unreleased tracks, random covers, and bloodless demos makes for a perplexing collection of throwaway material. Save your money for this show, as their live performances are notoriously spine-tingling. HANNAH LEVIN
BRENDAN BENSON, SILVERSUN PICKUPS
(Crocodile) While playing opening slots for the White Stripes and watching them cover his poptacular songs was nice exposure and all, it was clear Brendan Benson was headed for bigger and better. That Benson and Jack White (joined by the rhythm section from the Greenhornes) would slyly collaborate on a record as the Raconteurs was no one's guess. That album (rumored for a mid-'06 release) is undeniably bombastic and White and Benson pull no punches. The happy domino affect means that more people will now be aware of Benson's impeccable solo work. Beat the rush and catch Benson now. BEN BLACKWELL
DEF LEPPARD, BRYAN ADAMS
(Everett Events Center) Not all of the recordings by bands from the new wave of British heavy metal hold up to current scrutiny, but a select few still sound astonishingly vital. Case in point: Def Leppard's 1981 sophomore release, High 'n' Dry, a rock-hard testament to the simple pleasures of blue-collar metal. Prior to that infamous drummer appendage-loss, Def Leppard had an impressive knack for kicking out the jams with minimal flourish or fuss. The guitars on songs like "Let it Go" and "Hit and Run" still sound positively kick ass. Their live reputation remains untainted, and rumor has it they're sticking to their early catalog on this tour. I'm so there. HANNAH LEVIN
BURY YOUR DEAD, TERROR, SCARS OF TOMORROW, AUGUST BURNS RED, GUESTS
(Studio Seven) Just a few minutes into a gig at an Anaheim club, one of Bury Your Dead's guitarists executed a "reverse guitar throw" that inadvertently bludgeoned singer Mat Bruso. Although Bruso was gushing blood from two circular cuts and an immense gash, his rottweiler vocals never wavered as the band played 10 more high-velocity tracks. The recently released DualDisc Bury Your Dead Alive documents one of the most impressive performances in tough-guy-hardcore history, and it also contains the rare essential extra: postshow emergency-room footage that pairs Bruso's good-natured narration with gruesome suture scenes. ANDREW MILLER
HEARTLESS BASTARDS, DEADBOY & THE ELEPHANTMEN
(Tractor) The name of this Cincinnati, Ohio, trio is fairly ironic, since they're quite friendly folk actually. And that's where the irony ends. Led by singer Erika Wennerstrom's bellowing proclamations and reptilian riffage, their 2004 debut, Stairs and Elevators (Fat Possum), tramples out a gruff, mid-city boogie with deep-seated '70s arena melodies. Live, it's sometimes hard to discern the tunes from the trample, but drummer Kevin Vaughn usually slaps things to life. No trendy tresses or flares here, just sturdy rocking, with Wennerstrom's weary soul being the connection to the Fat Possum backwoods bluesmen heritage. ERIC DAVIDSON
WEDNESDAY 11/9
THE ORANGES BAND, THE 88, SHIM
(Crocodile) See CD Reviews, page 47.
STYROFOAM, ALIAS, VOYAGER ONE
(Chop Suey) See Stranger Suggests, page 25.
