Recent Stories with tag kexp

KEXP's "Reykjavik Calling" showcase actually unites the talents of both Seattle and Icelandic musicians, but you scenesters are no doubt are familiar with Rachel Flotard and Rusty Willoughby, John Roderick, Jason Dodson, and Nathan Wade. (Really all we need is some more electronica and we have Iceland Airwaves South.)

But if you haven't been following the Icelandic Music Awards closely for the past few years, you may be wondering what's a Mugison? A Sin Fang Bous? A Lay Low? And who's this Pétur Ben character?

The beauty of this particular evening is that there's no barrier to simply showing up and finding out on your own--it's free. Doors open at 8 p.m., but depending upon how concerned you are with getting in, you may want to arrive early. (It's 21-and-over though, so don't show up earlier than your 21st birthday.)

Let's prep with a little tour down YouTube's Icelandic lane.... (more)

Every time you play the Hold Steady's "Gotta Stay Positive," I find myself reaching for the dial and turning this garbage off. I am getting sick and tired of this daily ritual, friends. Get it together and stop playing Hold Steady.

[Ed: Commenter "Steve Winwood" spends a good deal of time lambasting us in the comments section for failures of a startling range. So we're pleased to see he's using our U-post feature to branch out.]

 

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.

Thursday night at the Crocodile was a bit subdued, but all in all an evening of quality music. The lineup consisted of Friday Mile, Ritchie Young (lead singer of Portland's Loch Lomond) backed up by a string section, and the headliner Grand Hallway.

Friday Mile @ the Crocodile

The local group Friday Mile started the show off. They came together in 2005 and started touring up and down the West Coast. Most recently, they released Good Luck Studio with the help of well-known L.A. producer Dennis McKay.

As their website claims, "the new tracks showcase the band's keen sense of songwriting, lyrical imagery, and gratuitous use of melody and harmony." Friday Mile are a lot of fun to watch, and if the crowd was any indication, they already have quite the following.

Ritchie Young @ the Crocodile

This was Ritchie Young's second show at the Croc, as he sang with Loch Lomond in January, and made an impression. This time he was backed by a talented and well-dressed group of violin, viola, and cello players. His higher range makes for a haunting sound that seems to linger in the air after each verse. The strings fit right in with the soft melodic feel.

My favorite was his cover of the Bee Gees' song "Holiday." I'd remembered it from the January show and was excited he'd made it a regular part of his set.

Grand Hallway @ the Crocodile

Grand Hallway rounded out the show and then some. They're an eight-piece orchestral pop band that includes members from several other local favorites Voyager One, the Maldives, Sleepy Eyes of Death, Widower, and Shenandoah Davis.... (more)

Times are tough for everybody, especially in the arts.  Between the Northwest Film Forum's fundraising last summer to close a $70K budgetary gap and 4Culture's current funding strife--not to mention KEXP's pledge drive that ended earlier this month and KING FM's announcement that they are also shifting to a listener-supported model--it seems like every local business or organization at all affiliated with the arts has a cup out.  Well, add one more to that list: Columbia City Cinema.  Move over, Haiti:

For the last few months we have been in a state of undeclared Chapter 11 holding creditors and lenders at bay, trying to figure out solutions. We've danced our way of trouble and imminent closure several times but we're running out of options. Use any metaphor you want: We've hit the iceberg and we're going down. We've avoided checkmate a dozen times but we're running out of moves. We're almost out of gas. There are no more rabbits to pull out of the hat. You get the idea. We are in endgame unless something happens to turn the game around....

Send money. The good news is we don't need a lot. We just need a little from a lot of people. We believe in the power of many. We're trying to raise $20,000. That much will catch us up, pay the rent, keep the doors open and carry us through to the big summer movies that begin in May, when we can breathe again. The bad news is we need it now, today, from all of you or survival is iffy. We are the perfect poster child example of a neighborhood cinema in need.

Of course, big-hearted gift-givers will derive personal benefit from their donations.  Yes, you get to keep the theater in the neighborhood, for the good of the entire community, but there's also the promise of bogus stock options and a deed for virtual land--suitable for framing! The full text of owner Paul Doyle's plea after the jump.

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