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12/31/2006 Taking stock of 2006: AlbumsAs must be obvious to you, I enjoy making pretentious lists at the end of the year. Note, of course, this list only reflects what I liked from among the albums we bought this year - a tiny fraction of what was released in the genres we like, and a considerably tinier fraction of what was released in all genres. Anyway here's what I've liked best that was released in 2006: Top 5 (in order)
Honorable Mention (no particular order)
Here are the year-end lists of KEXP's djs. Yeah, you can tell that it's pretty much the only station I listen to. 12/29/2006 Taking stock of 2006: Live MusicWe saw lots of great shows this year, it's been fun looking back over my reviews. Let's get right to the top 5:
Honorable mentions:
12/18/2006 Rockstar karaoke @ the CrocodileSince the Three Imaginary Girls' Valentine's Day tribute show was so great, I talked theCultFigure into seeing the Holiday Karaoke Party on Friday night (Dec 8th). The Valentine's Day show was better, but this was fun too. Some bands had clearly made a plan:
Many other performances were good but not stunning, and others were somewhat uneven. However, a good time was clearly had by all, and TIG Dana and her flamboyant co-host "Adrian LaFleur" kept things moving between songs with a lighthearted, goofy touch. What I like about these TIG parties is the sense of fun and community that's created by bringing together lots of local bands to blow off steam and make funny music together. Oh, see Seattest review which has a photo of Head Like a Kite. 12/11/2006 The Hidden Cameras @ The Triple DoorLast Saturday we were able to go to this KEXP 500 club concert. We weren't actually sure we knew this band, but it's rare that we can fit these concerts into our schedule because they take place in the afternoons and are held downtown. Plus it's fun to check out a band and see if you do like them. Well, I think we do like The Hidden Cameras. I didn't think they were outstanding, but they were plenty fun and charming. They have a few more band members than your typical indie-pop outfit - a couple of trumpet players, plus xylophone in addition to your regular guitars, bass, drums and keyboard. It all adds up to a cheerful, pretty sound overall. I'd be willing to hear more from them and see if there's a "there there". All in all, a cute mid-day diversion. 11/28/2006 The Black Angels @ Neumo's (and KMFDM, and Band of Horses, and the Hold Steady)Wow, I'm like, over a month behind writing about shows.
On the "plus" side, I can dispense with writing about the KMFDM show on Halloween by noting that I got sick that day and had to skip it - though theCultFigure reported that it was a very fun show. Oh, and we went to L.A. (Lower Alabama) to visit theCultFigure's grandmother during the first weekend of November, and very sadly had to skip the Band of Horses show. And as for seeing The Hold Steady last week in Philly? Uh, I neglected to order the tickets and the show was sold out. Whoops. I'm sure they would have ROCKED MY FACE OFF as usual though. The local paper wrote up that show; you can read that instead :-)
I don't remember specifics about the Black Angels show anymore, but a few impressions definitely stayed with me.
11/8/2006 Commies!I don't often listen to The Roadhouse on KEXP, but I'm still at work and am still streaming. Tonight's theme seems to be labor unions and related protest songs. It is AWESOME.
10/30/2006 The Hold Steady @ the Crocodile
Once again, The Hold Steady rocked my FACE OFF! Saturday's show was the first time I saw them headlining... we saw them open for U.S.E. last June, and my brother and I saw them open for a punk band (whose name escapes me because we didn't stay for them) in Philadelphia last November. Headlining gave them just that much more freedom to jam and get sloshed. Their set was well constructed, their playing was tight, and their performance was happy and energetic. The crowd, at least down front, was way into it. There was considerable moshing by Seattle standards. They played a strong mix of songs from this year's Boys and Girls in America and last year's Separation Sunday -- which was tied for my favorite album of 2005. They only played two songs, I think, from their debut Almost Killed Me, including closing the night with "Killer Parties". I'm starting to think it's their best song. Their joyful performance was in stark contrast to that of the opening bands. The first band, Neutral Boy, took us in a time machine straight back to 1982, sez theCultFigure, for some excellently executed frozen-in-time punk rock. I got the sense that they wrote a song about anything that ever crossed their minds. And I think they may have played every song they knew in 45 minutes, despite having been a band for ~12 years I think they said? They were pretty good actually, for what they were. Way more irritating was the second band, Sean Na-Na, who seemed to be a bunch of at-best moderately talented dickheads. I really don't appreciate being repeatedly ordered to clap, e.g., "Did you write that song? No, I wrote that song! Give it up for me!" That is pretty much verbatim. And this went on throughout the whole set. Also, their keyboard player looked like he had bird flu or something. He did not look healthy. I'm thrilled to discover that The Hold Steady will again be playing in Philly while we're visiting my mom for Thanksgiving. That's two years in a row! So, yeah, I'm totally going to go get my FACE ROCKED OFF again next month! Sweeeet. 10/15/2006 October 21 dilemma - solved!We bought tickets to see The Black Angels pretty soon after they went on sale. Later, I learned that The Hold Steady would be playing that same night at the Crocodile. Gaaaah! GAAAAH! Luckily, they had to add a second Black Angels show on the 23rd. So we sold off our tickets for the 21st, bought Hold Steady tickets, and then bought Black Angels tickets for the 23rd. Yeah!
Why is a Hold Steady show worth this fuss? You could read my post on the show I saw last year or you could read what the lead singer has to say:
9/8/2006 Bumbershoot: Cloud Cult @ EMPLooks like I'm a bit behind in documenting my Bumbershooting, not that there's that much more to share :-) As I mentioned earlier, Bumberbout was awfully compelling and I was waffling big time about whether we should go to Cloud Cult as was my original plan. Having seen them in May, I knew it would be a good show, so we did leave at halftime in the roller derby championship bout. Our experience with shows at EMP's SkyChurch is that they are VERY LOUD. Happily, this show wasn't as loud as I feared it would be. The sound was actually very good. As with last time, they had two artists with them, painting on either side of the stage. It was the same two painters as last time, as a matter of fact, and I later learned from the band's web site, one of them is the lead singer's wife. I felt oddly comforted to learn that they have reunited. I'm very glad we decided to head over to see them. It didn't take too long to get in, and was very worth it. I don't know why I find their sound so difficult to describe - a friend asked "What are they like" and it just struck me silent. Blessing in disguise? ha ha. Well, they can rock pretty ferociously, and also pretty tenderly, and they have a cello in the band, and it's sometimes got a bit of electronic stuff incorporated, and the songs are moody, and brilliant, and cute, and moving, and... they just aren't easily pigeonholed. They closed the show with two knockout songs: "Transistor Radio" from their most recent release, and like last time they ended with a cheerful celebratory song for the lead singer's deceased baby. I don't think it's been recorded, and perhaps shouldn't be. In either case, both songs made me a little teary-eyed. Good stuff. 9/4/2006 Bumbershoot: The Gossip @ Memorial StadiumYes, we had previously declared our intention to never again bother with Bumbershoot. The crowds... the lines... But it drew us back in, using the dastardly tactic of hosting an all-day roller derby extravaganza on Saturday that featured teams from around the country. Before plopping ourselves in the Key Arena for hours on end, we went to the mainstage to hear The Gossip.
You can hardly swing a dead cat these days without smacking someone who's swooning over them. And rightfully so. Seriously, though, while we're on the subject, put down that dead cat. It's embarrassing.
The Gossip's sexy, funky, disco diva vibe is just awesome. The sound in the outdoor stadium was surprisingly good, and Beth Ditto is a great performer with a powerful voice. She just owns the stage. The one weird part of their set was when they covered an Aaliyah (sp?) song. It was such a noticeably inferior song and had such totally crappy lyrics. Two days later and we're still giggling about it: "you think I'm goody-goody / but I'm naughty-naughty" or some such drivel.
But no matter. The Gossip f'n ruled up there. Great music, great show. Right on!
9/3/2006 October 21 can BITE MEHow in the hell is a gal supposed to choose among
and
SON. OF. A. BITCH!!!! 8/22/2006 KEXP BBQ @ South Lake Union Discovery CenterThis year's BBQ was great, but I think not quite as good as last year's, musically speaking. I guess I prefer the upbeat stylings of The Go! Team and U.S.E. However the venue was more spacious and more comfortable by far. Thumbs up on the move out of the station parking lot. KEXP's got pictures of the show up on their blog.
theCultFigure totally nailed who the "secret guests" would be. We got there too late to see Thee Emergency, so no opinion on those kids.
 Devotchka went on second, which surprised me - i thought they'd be headlining, and they totally brought it again. Instead of using red christmas lights, like the previous night at Neumo's, the tuba player decorated her tuba with stretchy gold mesh fabric with a sparkly purple script "D" on it. They were so good, our friends ran over to the merch table and bought CDs. I bought their new EP. They are a great live band.  Ghostland Observatory was next. I was surprised to learn that it's just two dudes making all that ruckus. Wow! I was amazed by the lead singer's rubbery body. His hips swiveled like nothing I'd ever seen before. Austin, TX, represent :-) I liked their set and it was very energizing. But, that much shrieking gets a bit repetitive for me, so I didn't enjoy it as much as I enjoyed Devotchka.  Then, The Long Winters took the stage for the final set. I definitely enjoy their stuff, but on the whole, the usual formulation of 2 guitars + electric bass + drums + cute indie lyrics is a bit boring for me right now. I think my tastes are leaning towards stuff that's more distinctive and unusual. Like Devotchka, with their rock and roll tuba and accordian. Or Calexico, with their Southwest sound (which I hope they aren't ditching). Still, The Long Winters' were pretty ok. I really like the song they ended with - "Medicine Cabinet Pirate". The crowd definitely thinned during their set, unlike last year when The Go! Team had everyone enthralled. So all in all it was a fun afternoon. Short-ish sets from several good bands is a very good thing. Devotchka was the highlight for me. 8/16/2006 DeVotchKa @ Neumo'sFor some reason, I went into the DeVotchKa show not knowing if their music would translate well into a live show. I shouldn't have given it a second's thought. They were confident, stylish, and sly, yet all the time wearing their hearts on their sleeves. It's hard to resist the charms of their darkly joyful Mexican polka sound. If that seems like a contradictory description I guess DeVotchKa just creates a delightfully contradictory response in me. The sold-out crowd was clearly made up of devoted and appreciative fans. Nice touch - the tuba player's tuba was covered in red Christmas lights. Very festive.
However, that appreciative sold-out crowd was a bit overwhelming. The music is romantic at times, sure, but did the couple next to us have to hump each other constantly? My arm got a bit chafed from all their writhing. For a while, I was sure she was going to start fellating him at any moment, which thankfully didn't happen. And theCultFigure nearly lost it because people just kept touching him. As soon as the last gleeful notes of "Such a Lovely Thing" ended, he declared he couldn't take it anymore so we left. 8/4/2006 Robbie Fulks @ Tractor TavernA friend suggested that we go see Robbie Fulks on Monday night. theCultFigure was familiar with Fulks, though I wasn't, so I was pleasantly surprised by what a great time we had.
A midsummer Monday night at the Tractor turns out to be a somewhat lonely place! I estimate there were maybe 100-150 people there, although I am not noted for my ability to estimate crowd sizes. Oddly enough, I am noted for my ability to estimate volume when deciding which sizes and how many containers of tupperware are needed to pack away leftovers. But I digress.
There was no opening act. Around 9:15, Robbie just wandered through the crowd, saying hi to a few fans, and he and the band took the stage shortly thereafter. And they rocked it for a good 2 hours. I'm not an expert on genre, but the music seemed a mix of alt-country and rockabilly. A few songs reminded me of the Cherry Poppin' Daddies style, for example. And some songs' lyrics mined familiar territory: I'm falling in love with gal, or I'm fighting with a gal, or I'm sad about my gal, etc. Oh, and I've imprisoned and raped orphan twins and it is awesome -- not literally of course. That one was actually called "Common Law Cabin" and sugarcoated the situation, for what that's worth... <eyeroll> I have to admit it was actually kind of a cute song, if slightly horrifying when you actually thought about it.
But this was one of those live shows that just ruled. Fulks is a totally relaxed and confident performer with a great sense of humor and a knack for storytelling. At one point, he was telling us that they'll be recording a live album soon, and also trying out some mellower numbers as well. He didn't want applause in reaction to the announcement of the new CD; he has made so many CDs "it's practically littering". I guess you had to be there - typing up someone's jokes just never works.
In their encore, they played an absolutely blistering cover of "Help Me Mary". I miss that Liz Phair. What a great f'n song. I'm digressing again. In any case, I'd definitely go see Robbie Fulks again. 7/18/2006 Smart man, my husband!As of today, KEXP has still only announced Ghostland Observatory and no other bands for their BBQ next month. But theCultFigure, nothing gets past him. Tonight, he observed:
Hmm! Indeed! Very suspicious! And by bringing this up, he made me notice that our Devotchka tickets are for "Saturday August 11". Which is an impossibility. At least in 2006.
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UPDATE (7/19): dude's on FIRE! Today he noticed the following:
The plot, she does thicken! 7/10/2006 Neko Case @ The Moore TheaterWe went to see Neko Case with a couple of friends. When we all met up at the theater, none of us had eaten any dinner and the opening act had already started. The Moore really gets things underway early. Stupid Moore. So we found a convenience store and scarfed down some snacks and chugged some water and headed back up to the theater and were seated - SEATED - for the last song of the opening act.
Yes, they made us sit in CHAIRS. In CHAIRS, people! That is the huge downside of seeing a show at the Moore. I can only imagine how absurd it was the previous night for the Sonic Youth show. But the upside of seeing a show at the Moore is that the sound is really good.
The set seemed split generously between songs from the latest album and earlier material like "Favorite" (yesss!). I liked the balance. Neko Case is just f'n awesome. But you know that. She breezed on stage in a sweet little black dress and I swear 5" heels. Which she joked about off and on throughout the night. We'd heard rumors that Rachel from Visqueen was doing backing vocals on this tour, but sadly not that night. She had Kelly Hogan with her, and they exchanged cute faux-insults about their "slut shoes". They did give a shout-out to Rachel. Still, given how beautiful, clear, and powerful Neko's voice is I had to wonder: what was the point of having a backup singer for harmonies here and there? Yes, it lent emphasis or whatever. But for my money, I just want Neko up there wailing away and kicking everyone's ass.
Random thought. I wonder, would people have been screaming "I LOVE YOU" from the rafters all night if Neko sounded the same but wasn't tall and beautiful with lush long hair?
Recommended! Duh. If Neko's headed your way, good LORD, drop everything and go see her.
7/6/2006 Daylight Basement @ the CrocodileOn a semi-last minute decision we decided to head to the Croc on Friday to catch Daylight Basement, over whom I began swooning after seeing them open for Cloud Cult in May. Everybody and their sister must have been over at the Sonic Youth show, because there couldn't really have been more than 60-75 people at the Croc. It's nice sometimes to be at a show that's not packed.
For some reason the sound wasn't great that night and their set felt a little messy - and not just because one of her shirts kept falling half-off... Usually the Crocodile has got the best sound of all the smaller venues in town. Still, it didn't interfere too much with my enjoyment. After all, it's hard not to feel all happy listening to their cheerful, plinky keyboards and Bre Loughlin's breathy belting, writhing, and energetic fist pumping. It was her birthday, evidently, and she got overwrought during one of the more heartfelt songs.
I'm still in awe of her on-stage charisma - she projects power and vulnerability, poutiness and ass-kicking. And control. On a superficial note, we weren't sure why she dyed her hair dark brown and cut it in a kind of 80's punk style. The platinum look was so chic and so well suited to the musical stylings. Eh, musicians :-) 6/28/2006 Calexico @ the ShowboxI was really impressed by Calexico - they are incredibly talented musicians and deftly showcased the full range of their sound in front of a very appreciative audience. Some (newer) songs rocked pretty hard, with the horn players exchanging their trumpets for guitars or keyboards. Slightly older material featured the mariachi/southwest flair that really caught my attention a couple of years ago. I'm guessing I'm not the only one, if the roar of approval when the opening notes of "Alone Again Or" began is any indication!
So the band sounded terrfic and they clearly knew it. They seemed genuinely joyful on stage, like they were having the time of their lives up there. Their delight was palpable and (here I digress) for some reason I'm reminded now, as I continue to think about the book Soul of a Chef, of the descriptions of some of Keller's most talented sous chefs. Top performances... hmm...
Anyway, some random details:
If Calexico is coming to a town near you, by all means, GO! [update 6/29: added photos] 6/20/2006 The Black Angels @ The Triple DoorToday was another KEXP 500 Club event at the Triple Door. We haven't been to one in a while but figured The Black Angels were worth rearranging our schedules to accomodate. We worked from home, skipped out to see the show mid-day, and worked late. Pretty sweet.
This time there was a surprise: an opening act! Swedish singer-songwriter Jose Gonzales played for ~20 minutes before The Black Angels. Several folks I like and trust seem to be super excited about Gonzales but, honestly? I can't see what the fuss is about after having seen him. He just kind of mumbled and moaned over some lackluster acoustic guitar playing. Once in a while he enunciated, and once in a while there was an interesting chord or two, but on the whole it was boring. He does have a nice warm tone to his voice. On the radio, I've occasionally heard his stuff remixed into electronica, and I guess I like the remixes a hell of a lot better than the original stuff.
Enough about him though. The Black Angels were really great. I think theCultFigure got a wee crush on their drummer who was really thrashing it :-) How to describe them? Lots of thoughts washed through my mind during the performance: atmospheric... ominous... Jim Morrison... foreboding... rich... intense... No, they didn't sound like The Doors, but the lead singer somehow reminded me of Jim Morrison's dark intonation. It was the oddest thought that flitted through my head as I soaked it all in.
Your mileage may vary, but I really enjoyed their the low, throbbing beats and fuzzy, distorted guitars. It wasn't clear what the keyboardist was adding; perhaps she was the near-invisible mortar holding the wall of sound together. The most outstanding tracks were those that required the drummer to take up some weapons and really pound (what theCultFigure told me was) the floor tom. Seriously, for some songs she had normal drum sticks, but for others, she busted out what appeared to be mini-baseball bats.
The Black Angels are returning to Seattle later this summer for the Capitol Hill Block Party. We may be out of town that weekend, but if we aren't, I think I'll be lobbying hard to see them again :-) 6/13/2006 The Mountain Goats @ Neumo'sOur vacation last week prevented us from seeing two shows we'd have liked to go to: The Eels (with Smoosh), and The Streets. I was very glad that our vacation didn't also interfere with The Mountain Goats.
We didn't meet up with Wendy until after the first opening act; sounds like we missed a decent performance. Up second was a German woman, Barbara Morganstern, who played energetic keyboards and accompanied herself on laptop for other, um, musical sounds. I'm not sure I fully appreciate this type of electronic music - some of it I enjoyed, and some of it I found kind of monotonous. Before she took the stage, theCultFigure was chatting with Peter Hughes (Mountain Goats' bassist) who mentioned that John Darnielle is a big fan of hers, and they brought her over from Germany specifically to tour with them. Hmm. That's a strong recommendation.
In any case, The Mountain Goats were amazing. This is my #1 show for this year, in the absence of any U.S.E. shows so far of course... There's not much I can say about The Mountain Goats that I'm sure hasn't been said 1000 times already - they combine extraordinary lyrics with a relentless delivery that ranges over a full gamut of emotions, played over bare instrumentation. In the case of this live performance, it was just acoustic guitar and bass. I got shivers... twice! Darnielle has an effortless engaging manner and comes off as a smart-alecky observant storyteller you would totally want to be friends with. After telling us all about a boxer named Pinterton Thomas, I was thinking, "Man, I gotta see some boxing!" And I don't have any interest in boxing.
To my complete delight, they played "No Children" during the encore. I gotta say, singing along with a crowded room full of people to such lyrics as "I hope you die... I hope we both die" was really touching. It was a misanthropy love-in. |
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