Recent Stories with tag brad

If 2009 was an unusually nostalgic year in local music for certain wistful Seattle Gen-Xers, 2010 was the opening cymbal crash of an encore. Defunct old favorites reunited. Extant old favorites continued to soar. A tight-knit community that first rocked the world a quarter-century ago grew ever closer, through remembrance of lost friends and the sharing of new music. Here are five 2010 music-related events that tickled those Seattleites who’ve been listening all these years. (Part one here.)

 

5. Cameron Crowe Shoots Pearl Jam Film

Director Cameron Crowe’s relationship with Pearl Jam goes all the way back to 1991, when he shot Singles in town, casting Stone Gossard, Jeff Ament, and Eddie Vedder as members of local rock band Citizen Dick (wink, wink). In 2010, Crowe was shooting the band again, this time to commemorate its 20th anniversary. (He also directed the video for Backspacer single "The Fixer.") As reported in June, Crowe and crew were spotted in Madrona and Capitol Hill, presumably recapturing important locales from the band's past. Details on the film, Pearl Jam Twenty, are hazy, but it will see some sort of release this year. (Just in: said film will be accompanied by a soundtrack and book.) Stay tuned.

4. Pigeonhed Brings Back the Funk

 

So there's your taste of how the new Brad record, Best Friends?, sounds and what the band thinks about it, courtesy of shaggy guitarist Stone Gossard, drummer Regan Hagar, and frontman Shawn Smith. It drops on Pearl Jam's Monkeywrench label, half a dozen years after it was recorded, on August 10. (Yes, it was worth the wait.)

More welcome news from the on-again, off-again band: A High Dive record release show on the day it's issued, and an in-store gig at Queen Anne's Easy Street Records two days later. And, for an appetizer, why not tune in to KEXP on August 4 (at noon) to hear a live studio performance?

There's no telling how long Brad will keep the live shows going—due partially to PJ's success, Brad has never been a full-time gig—so catch them while you can. And pick up the new record to show Shawn, Regan, and Stone you want them to continue making time to make new music.

Malfunkshun's Hard Rock gig poster

Some 30 years ago, brothers Kevin and Andrew Wood and Regan Hagar formed the "love rock"-pioneering band Malfunkshun. Thanks to Kevin's scorching guitar, Regan's thunderous drums, and Andy's songwriting and charisma, the trio's music was one of the few things born in the '80s that didn't suck. (The face paint and stage antics, I think, sucked by design.)

That's why a resurrected Malfunkshun, and a forthcoming documentary about Andy and the band, aren't simply artifacts of nostalgia.

No, there's much more significance and depth to Malfunkshun the band, Malfunkshun: The Andrew Wood Story, and all that's come between and since. Andy passed away in early 1990, just as his next band, Mother Love Bone, was on the brink of serious success. His void and the local music community's celebration of his short, bright life before it, you could argue, changed the world.

Kevin and Regan have continued making music in other bands, and at times with each other—even to play Malfunkshun songs with Shawn Smith at the mic (as From the North and All Hail the Crown). Kevin set up his own independent label, Wammybox, to distribute Malfunkshun-related music. And the film, which debuted at 2005 film festivals (including a Neptune Theatre-hosted SIFF sellout) and then disappeared as quickly as its subject, is finally getting a release.

Next Friday's Malfunkshun event at the Hard Rock Cafe brings the film and the band—with a "surprise" vocalist singing Andy's original lyrics—back to the spotlight. (Tickets are available for both the music half and film screening/music whole.) I recently checked in with Kevin about this special evening and what will follow.

What’s going on with Wammybox? Looks like you’ve been busy.

Yeah, I got some distribution. The From the North Monument CD will be released commercially in August and be available in retail, iTunes, etc., and online at wammybox. I'm ready to support it as well in the flesh. I'm working with a cat in L.A. who is helping open some doors. I'm putting out All Hail in October, and have plans to release my brother Brian's CD in early 2011. [It is] co-produced by Stone Gossard. I'm also working on a solo Andy limited-edition vinyl LP.... (more)

The announcement of Soundgarden's glorious return via Chicago's Lollapalooza stage didn't come as much of a surprise. By contrast, rumors of a super-duper-secret-friends-only Soundgarden show at the OG Showbox tomorrow night are raising local fans' eyebrows. Here’s an already-outdated summary of the sudden digital whispers.

Given last night's amazing Satchel/Brad/Malfunkshun/Mother Love Bone marathon at the same venue, it's possible an attending Soundgarden insider spilled the beans. (With all the legendary musicians on stage, you have to believe there were fellow musicians and friends behind the curtain.) But it's just as likely that some opportunist is chuckling as the fruits of his/her hot-aired labor spread across the interwebs.

What do you think? What do you know?

Axeman Kevin Wood told me several years ago that if his Mother Love Bone-fronting brother Andrew was still alive, he’d probably be a "talk show host or a reality series panel judge." Even if he were a living TV personality, I suspect Andy would be appearing at the (original) Showbox on Wednesday, when the reunited Brad and Satchel, along with the remaining members of MLB, will take fans back two decades.

News of Satchel's return (including a new record) hit late last year, and after much local grassroots hype, the reunited trio rocked the Croc February 18. Though dissolved for 13 years between gigs, Shawn Smith, Regan Hagar, and John Hoag sounded sharp—and heavy.

A sardine-packed thirty- and forty-something crowd was all smiles and shouts throughout the night. Stuck On A Bus, a seriously talented School of Rock quintet featuring Hagar's daughter on vocals, induced the giddiness with Led Zeppelin ("Whole Lotta Love," "Kashmir") and Black Sabbath ("War Pigs") covers, among others. (The kids, who'll rock the High Dive on Friday, effortlessly outshined sandwich act With Friends Like These.)

And then came Satchel and its effects pedals. You haven't heard a true "wall of sound" until you've heard Smith and Hoag's axes duel. That and Hagar's pounding kit (and guest bassist Jeremy Lightfoot's groove) had everyone stomping. The band killed tracks from their 90s albums EDC and The Family, barely pulling punches for the latter's softer songs. (Smith did settle behind the keys and croon unaccompanied through several songs) At least half the nearly two-hour set featured heavy new tunes, presumably off Satchel's new record, Heartache and Honey. They've since played the Sunset, and will follow Wednesday's show with an April 30 High Dive gig.... (more)