popwreckoning

The Mountain Goats’ fan base is made up largely of nerds. Don’t deny it. That’s probably the reason that they didn’t sell out the Showbox – because nerds generally don’t like leaving the house and being in large groups. But the crowd was surprisingly large, considering.

Arriving in just the nick of time, I walked into the Showbox, with people sitting on the floor waiting for the opening act, Midtown Dickens. Clearly, people were taking ownership of their rightful places in the crowd. So naturally, I sat down because everyone else was.

Once the members of the openers, Midtown Dickens, took the stage, people instantly stood up. The North Carolina natives put on a fantastic energetic show, considering the fact that vocalist Kym had just arrived to Seattle 20 minutes before they went on stage. Her guitar wasn’t even tuned when she got on stage, so they filled up that awkward time with some of the wittiest storytelling I’ve heard in a long time.

Midtown Dickens had a great stage presence, what they call on their Facebook page “post-folk punk grass,” preempting several songs with the story of their origin. It was the perfect precursor to the Mountain Goats, with the largely narrative songwriting.

After the highly entertaining set that Midtown Dickens put on, the Mountain Goats had one of the weirdest introductions I’ve ever heard. As they took to the stage, very excruciating indistinguishable death metal played over the loud speakers (emphasis on the ‘loud’). I couldn’t help but laugh, because of the sheer irony of the death metal juxtaposed to John Darnielle in his suit, tie, and nerdy glasses taking the stage. It was perfect.

This was the point when I realized that this crowd was full of nerds – because a.) most people danced like dorks, and b.) personal space was honored more than usual. People were spread out, which made the venue much more comfortable for the night.

While I love the Mountain Goats music, I just love listening to Darnielle speak. He’s incredibly eloquent and quite funny. At one point, bassist Peter Hughes brought up the idea of narrating the set like a DJ would on the radio. “That was ‘You Were Cool’vby the Mountain Goats, and here’s another one from the Mountain Goats,” Darnielle said aloud with the quintessential radio voice.

Speaking of “You Were Cool,” that song really needs to be on an album, like legitimately recorded. Mainly because I feel like it is the perfect theme song for, well, life.

Seeing that Darnielle is one of the most prolific songwriters of our time, I had no clue which songs we were going to get. It’s definitely a different experience than seeing an emerging band with only enough songs to play a full set. While a lot of songwriters try and hide the muddle the meaning of a song with metaphors and vague references, Darnielle’s songs are painfully honest and easy to relate to – especially us nerds.

To end out the set, the Mountain Goats played my favourite song of theirs, “This Year.”

“If the members of Midtown Dickens are still in the building, would they please join us on stage?” Darnielle shouted to the audience. So Midtown Dickens quickly made it to the stage, and “This Year” turned into a joyous, triumphant dance party. Again, it was perfect.

But it wasn’t over yet, because we got not one, but two encores. Heck, there are enough Mountain Goats songs to fill almost an entire 24-hour day, so two encores wasn’t surprising.

In fact, I would like to see 24-hour Mountain Goats marathon. I’d be all over that.

Even though I’m a relatively young person, sometimes I do feel quite old. When I went to go see Matt & Kim on Tuesday, I felt old.

Why?

Well, there was no way I could match the energy of the couple duo, and the constant pushing by the teenagers behind me could not have annoyed me more. It was like we were at a Jay-Z show.

The odd, but intriguing lineup started with one of Seattle’s best hip-hop acts Champagne Champagne. Matt actually proclaimed that Champagne Champagne was his “favorite Seattle band, even more than Nirvana!”

I don’t know if I’d go as far as saying that, but Champagne Champagne are surely one of the best Seattle has to currently offer.

Mixing hip-hop and electro, Champagne Champagne is what Seattle is all about these days, and the sweaters also add to the local vibe. Quite literally, the band shed a total of 5 layers of clothing, and 3 of which were Pearl Dragon’s denim jacket, his sweater, and button-up shirt. Underneath all those layers actually, he was sporting his own band merchandise.

As the trio rhymed their way through an enjoyable setlist, they engaged the crowd with their familiar two-way chant.

“Champagne Champagne!” The guys would shout.

And the crowd would reply wildly, “Champagne Champagne!”

After Champagne Champagne finished their set, the positively unstoppable math rock band Fang Island took the stage, adorned with a plethora of Halloween paraphernalia, even though it was over a month early for the holiday decor.

Fang Island played through most of the songs off their critically-acclaimed debut, but honestly it seemed to drag on, as the crowd was waiting (not-so-patiently) for Matt & Kim. And most of Fang Island’s songs contain little lyrics and were at least 5 minutes long of pure, loud jamming.

Fang Island’s raw energy made for a really good live set, they just didn’t have a lot of range within the songs.

With one more intermission to go, the roadies came out and literally took everything off the stage. All the amps and mics and guitar stands – gone. Instead they wheeled out a platform with Kim Schifino’s drumkit stocked with an arsenal of drum sticks and Matt Johnson’s keyboard and microphone.

With such an easy set-up, Matt & Kim stepped out on stage frantically, both giving rounds of high-fives to people in the front row. Starting off with the ecstatic “I Wanna” off their second album Grand, Matt & Kim put on a fantastic show – one that seriously made Tuesday not seem like a Tuesday.

Matt & Kim’s happiness and energy was infectious, and it was impossible not to smile a long with Kim’s constant megawatt grin.

She was so excited that she was breaking drum sticks at an alarming rate. She beat the symbols so hard that you could see the bits of wood flying off them before she’d toss the broken stick behind her and grab another one from the bag hanging off her floor tom.

“Lessons Learned” was one of my favorite moments of the night, when the band first instructed the crowd, “you just have to sing da da da da. That’s it!”

“Ladies, you never want to see your ass bouncing from behind,” Kim advised us all, in reference to the music video for “Lessons Learned,” where the two of them walked through Time Square and stripped down to their skivvies. And then, because he’s a guy, Matt said guys, we always want to see their ass bouncing from behind, or something like that.

Along with the broken drum sticks, as I stood off to the side, I could see the speakers stacked adjacent to the stage shaking back and forth, and the floor had easily turned into something close to a trampoline.

“Okay, so I want all of you to take these balloons and blow them up. Then throw them way into the air, along with your dignity!” Matt shouted as Kim tossed balloons around the full room. Later on, since so many of the balloons ended up on Kim’s drums, Matt instructed us to pop the balloons. It was like a giant firecracker exploded by dozens of people.

The set was half songs off Grand, half songs off their self-titled debut, a couple of covers (I’ll get to that in a minute), and the nice addition of “Silver Tiles” off the upcoming Sidewalks out November 2. In fact, right when the doors opened, we got to hear the entirety of Sidewalks over the loudspeaker as part of the tour-long listening party.

The pre-show listening party definitely added to the whole experience, seeing that people obviously wanted to hear a lot of their old favorites, like “Good Ol’ Fashioned Nightmare,” “Cinders” and of course “Daylight” as the closing song.

Now about those covers. When I saw Matt & Kim play just over a year ago, I remember them playing a cover of “Just A Friend” by Biz Markie, and sure enough they played it again as a hilarious sing-along. Even though I’m pretty sure a lot of the room wasn’t nearly old enough to know the original song. What was even funnier still, we got a cover of “Better Off Alone” by Dutch dance pop group Alice Deejay (now that I looked up the song again, I realize that it’s only about 12 years old, but still), and again I’m almost positive all the people in the bar were the ones who sang along to that one.

Way to get the crowd going, Matt & Kim – pull out some obscure 90s Europop song! I’m not being facetious, because only a band with as much blistering excitement on stage as Matt & Kim could pull that off.

Surely I will be hard up to have a more fun Tuesday night for awhile.

Local Natives made their way up to Seattle on Friday for a sold-out gig at the Showbox at the Market with North Carolina’s The Love Language and The Union Line hailing from California.

The show brought out a crowd so large that the line curled around the block past the iconic Pike Place Market sign, but it was also a Friday night.

The Union Line played a great set of their sunny Southern California indie rock with just enough soul to get your feet moving. “Pearls” was a pretty good tune, and this is definitely a band worth watching out for. With their brand of indie rock, you could hear their stuff on college radio in no time. I was surrounded by anxious teenagers waiting to see Local Natives, but the fans were very positive and perceptive toward The Union Line, with multiple guys around me shouting to the band as they were clearing out their gear, “you guys kicked ass!”

The Love Language was up next, after what seemed to be an excruciatingly long intermission. I’m pretty sure the band was up there for at least 20 minutes trying to get things set up, testing the mics, making random conversation with the people in the front row. But at least they didn’t get frustrated with the technical difficulties, and played an awesome and energetic set.

You don’t normally hear of a lot of bands that come from Raleigh, North Carolina. But The Love Language is North Carolina without the cheesy twang. However, I did hear lead singer Stuart McLamb say y’all at least a couple times.

The Love Language were quite charming on stage, dancing around with each other to their retro blues psychedelia. Keyboardist Missy Thangs not only pounded the keys, but swung around the stage crashing a tambourine ebulliently against her thigh as McLamb’s bangs became soaked in sweat.

After another tediously long waiting period, the band we all came to see stepped on stage and the crowd went wild. And when guitarist Taylor Rice professed his love for Seattle as their favorite tour destination, we returned the love quite loudly as they jumped right into a fantastic and powerful version of “Camera Talk.”

And apparently Paseo is their favorite tour food. Are they sure they aren’t local?

Needless to say, the enthusiastic crowd made them feel at home at the Showbox.

Obviously with having released just their first album Gorilla Manor, there wasn’t a large cataloge to play from, but that meant that everyone in the venue knew all the words to all the songs. It was interesting, because I’m not used to hearing all the songs off one album, but I’m looking forward to many more albums from this band. If Gorilla Manor doesn’t land on all the “best of 2010″ list, I’ll be upset. Seriously, that album is so good.

So naturally, the show was good.

I had caught half of Local Natives’ set back in May at the Sasquatch Festival, but playing to the small Showbox, it was a much more intimate experience with their powerful harmonies ringing along the rounded walls.

It was when the band broke into the melancholy, yet upbeat “Airplanes” that you could almost imagine the people walking along 1st St. being able to hear the echo of “I want you back, back, you back!” reverberating from the Green Tortoise Hostel on the corner of 1st and Pike to the gum wall below the Market.

A few of my favorites from the night were “Wide Eyes,” “Shape Shifter,” and of course “Who Knows Who Cares.” The last of which was their “last” song of the night, with Rice’s strong and earnest vocals accompanied by keyboardist Kelcey Ayer and guitarist Ryan Hahn, and it was so beautiful.

But because there were two songs clearly missing from the set, the band came out once again after the crowd had started chanting “SUN HANDS” for the encore. Well, they didn’t get to that quite yet. “Cubism Dream” was the first song of the encore. It was nice, but it paled in comparison to the last song – the glorious and dynamic “Sun Hands” – which started out with a drawn-out intro with the quick beat from drummer Matt Frazier. Then after the haunting  choruses of “ahhh ahhh ahhhhhhhhh,” everyone in the crowd threw up their hands and sang along to “and when I can’t feel with my sun hands, I promise not to lose her again!” And then the band extended the bridge into this rocking break-down where the floor of the Showbox almost felt like the bouncy floor at the Crystal Ballroom in Portland.

It was so much fun.

Set list:
Camera Talk
World News
Warning Sign
Cards & Quarters
Sticky Thread
Wide Eyes
Shape Shifter
Stranger Things
Airplanes
Who Knows Who Cares

Encore:
Cubism Dream
Sun Hands

As I’m nearing my 21^st birthday, the ever-present anxiety surrounding who’s playing all ages shows has gone out the door. However, the last all-ages show I will see as a 20-year-old human being (well, except for Sasquatch this weekend) turned out to be Broken Bells and The Morning Benders at the Showbox this week.

This is the first time I’ve seen a band since…February… that I was almost more excited to see the opening band than the actual headliners. Nothing against Broken Bells – their debut album is fantastic, but having seen The Morning Benders two times prior, first with We Are Scientists in 2008 and then with Grizzly Bear last October, I was really looking forward to seeing them for a third time.

The Showbox was packed. Packed tight light a space bag, but instead of blankets and pillows, it was full of people. Starting at about 9, the Berkeley natives stepped out on stage – Chris Chu on lead vocals, Tim Orr on bass, John Chu on guitar and keyboards, and Julian Harmon on drums. The one thing that I always loved about seeing these guys live is how humble they are. Each time they thank the headliners multiple times and thank the crowd for “coming early to see us.” I may have said this before, but I didn’t go early, I went on time! It was also nice to see that Chris’ brother John, who joined the band last year, was sporting the same Telecaster that Chris used two years ago, with the familiar “Britney Spears” label, even if it was quasi-covered in duct tape.

They started with “Stitches,” an achingly beautiful ballad that builds to an ending no less than epic with the lyric “you don’t know me by name” repeated over and over; and it was also my second-favorite song off their phenomenal second album Big Echo. The guys were much more at ease on stage than when I saw them in October, when prior to the show someone broke into their van and stole a bunch of their equipment. At this gig, they were fully equipped with not only their instruments, but so many of the great songs off Big Echo, including the slower “Wet Cement” and “Mason Jar,” along with more upbeat tracks like “Promises,” “All Day All Night” and the short ditty “Cold War (Nice Clean Fight).”

Throughout their performance I glanced around where I was standing, and I was the only person singing along to virtually every song. No, really. Thankfully they closed with “Excuses,” as people had been shouting it various times up until then, so people had to sing along. Chris put down his guitar and grabbed the mic off the stand, and came to find that it was going to cut in and out, so he scrapped his mic and grabbed John’s from atop his keyboard. In the absence of the strings, John played the chords on his keyboard while Chris meandered around the stage from the right side to the left, singing the lovely song directly to the audience. I swear, when I heard “Excuses” for the first time, I thought I’m playing this song at my wedding, whenever it may be. It’s that adorable, but somehow not saccharine. At this point I urged everyone around me to sing along to the “da dum, da dum, la da da dum,” and I finally wasn’t the only one joining in the song.

After a half-hour intermission, Broken Bells, led by James Mercer, stepped out on stage to an ecstatic crowd. I mean, the crowd had to be ecstatic – the show sold out in a matter of days when the tickets went on sale a couple of months ago. Before jumping right into “Vaporize,” James Mercer declared to the audience, “you’re too good to me, Seattle.” To tell you the truth, we’re pretty good to most people.

Broken Bells played through the light and fun songs off their self-titled debut, as well as a cover of Tommy James and the Shondells’ “Crimson & Clover” that was pretty ace. I’d have to say that their set wasn’t quite as dynamic as the Morning Benders, but it was far from boring. I like Broken Bells music because you can dance to it, but it’s so slow that it turns into a slow dance and it’s not so fast that you get tired when you’re dancing for almost an hour.

I especially liked when Brian Burton (better known as Danger Mouse) got up from the drums and sat at the keyboard in the middle of the stage, which was otherwise vacant without Burton playing. I never really knew how multi-talented he is. Burton surely has an impressive resume.

The only thing that spoiled my night was the fact that halfway through Broken Bells’ set this guy who was obviously high on something (something that apparently makes you a total and complete butthead) came and stood right next to me and started thrusting himself around obnoxiously like he was in a mosh pit. Okay, so Broken Bells isn’t mellow, but they aren’t necessarily mosh-able. He even suggested at one point while he was filming the show with his phone that he was going to crowd surf, before the guy standing behind him told him off. Honestly if that guy had crowd-surfed, I would have let him drop. I know personal space technically goes out the window when you’re at a show, but when no one else around you is gnashing against one another, you should take a hint that you need to chill.

Trying to ignore the annoying dude standing next to me, I joined in the crowd’s massive sing-along to “Crimson & Clover,” which would have been a nice surprise if I hadn’t taken a picture of the set list before Broken Bells came onstage. It was still quite nice, though.

After their first “last” song, Mercer and Burton played a charming version of “Insane Lullaby,” from Danger Mouse and Sparklehorse’s 2009 album Dark Night of the Soul. You don’t normally expect two covers in one show, and this was pretty cool. It was just Mercer on acoustic guitar and Burton on keyboards, and it worked really well. They finished out the night with my favorite song from the album, “October,” which instantly made the crowd sway to-and-fro to the easy beat, and the dude standing next to me finally calmed down.

Broken Bells Set List:

1. Vaporize
2. Sailing to Nowhere
3. Trap Doors
4. Citizen
5. High Road
6. Your Head is On Fire
7. The Ghost Inside
8. Crimson & Clover
9. Mongrel Heart
10. The Mall and the Misery

Encore

1. Insane Lullaby
2. Hold On
3. October

It’s just another gorgeous spring day, meaning rainy and a little colder than we would like, in Seattle and last night was the ‘Bout Damn Time Tour featuring He is We, The Bigger Lights, The Audition and This Providence (locals from our great Emerald City, no less!). Kicking off the great month of May and concluding the end of the cross country tour, the line was already around the corner and halfway down the block with two hours until doors. Keeping with general Seattle tradition, by the time the doors opened, the iconic venue was fairly packed with all ages concert goers and the fun began promptly at 7:30 when He is We took the stage.

Hailing from our neighboring metropolis, Tacoma, He is We honestly took me by surprise. Coming out and working the crowd was Rachel Taylor, the frontwoman and co-founder of the band. I have to admit, this girl can sing. Belting it out, she held the crowd entranced for the better part of their half hour allotted time slot. They transitioned from a full band into some scaled down acoustic songs and upon the return of the rest of the band, they continued to keep the crowd incredibly satiated. Since they are local, there were more than a few sets of lips singing along, adding the mounting energy of the night. They played  songs such as “Love-y love,” a slightly squishy and romantic little acoustic blurb, and “Happily Ever After,” a single that would make an amazing debut single. Mixing up a little bit of Paramore’s lyrics and a tiny bit of Fireflight’s sound with a dash of Halestorm’s tenacity and you get the brilliant and wonderful set of lungs that is Rachel Taylor. Upon the conclusion of their set, the venue was buzzing about their band and their upcoming CD release in June. According to Rachel, it will have “between 8 and 10 tracks. Apparently we don’t know for sure yet.” Judging from the atmosphere, I don’t think we are done hearing from these splendid locals anytime soon.

Gracing the stage next was The Bigger Lights from Fairfax, Virginia who many of you have probably seen touring with This Providence over that past couple of years. Channeling their newly released self titled album, they came on and rocked the crowd and served up another helping of the power pop quintent. They have grown remarkably better as a band, but the feel was frankly a little too pop-y for my taste. The crowd enjoyed their crazy antics and their almost Cartel sound (who are coincidentally previous tour mates), pumping their fists and singing along, making the floor of the venue move for the first time all evening. Playing an uneventful set, the band managed to stay on stage despite many hands trying to pull them off and into the crowd. They left with farewells and leaving the multitudes wanting more.

Third up was the last, but certainly not least, opener, The Audition. I have seen them a few times, and all I have to say is WOW. The Chicago natives just keep getting better and better and better. They rocked their way through the entire set while promoting their newly released album Great Danger and favorites off of their The Audition. Some of the highlights included “My Temptures Rising” and “The Art of Living.” Singer Danny Stevens’ voice is the kind that belongs to any mainstream pop punk band, but the Audition has managed to keep their off-the-wall energy going and are still indie enough to bring their own unique sound into play. His vocal talent was clearly some of the best of the night and he belted out lyrics gracefully enough while still managing to work the stage and have a lot of fun, something harder than it usually looks. They stood out on this lineup and made this show an incredible treat for a lot of the audience and my fellow photographers, playing a fun set and readying the crowd for the main attraction.

Seattle houses some of the best hometown shows and This Providence was no exception. With a two hour set, they successfully managed to blow away their previous shows and leave a very satiated crowd eagerly awaiting their next album. Amongst playing every song from their Who Are You Now album, they also handpicked favorites from their previous albums. Before the show, a roadie walked through the line and took votes, culminating in one of the best set lists I have seen from the band in years. Lead singer Dan Young has an insane amount of charisma and band mate David Blaise (bass) is certainly a favorite with the ladies in the crowd. Gavin plays a mean guitar and one unnamed musician (whom I cannot find a name for but looks ODDLY familiar) plays one heck of a keyboard and successfully mixes his keyboarding with guitar strumming and singing, and drummer Andy Horst is an incredible drummer who serves as a good solid background for the band’s wandering tones. With the dulcet melodies and mellow tunes came the juxtaposition of other more upbeat tracks that had the crowd (and every photographer t­­here) singing and dancing, clapping along and thoroughly enjoying yet another hometown show from This Providence. From the comments after the show, I know I am not the only one looking forward to their next album.

Florence Welch confounds me. No really, she does. I went and saw Florence and the Machine at the Showbox on Thursday, not knowing at all what to expect. I stood in line with everyone who bought their tickets before the intimate club at Pike’s Place Market sold out. To sell out on a Thursday is pretty impressive. But I guess it’s an attest to the magnificence of Florence and the Machine’s debut album, last year’s Lungs, which topped the British charts, but didn’t get quite the following on this side of the pond.

New York natives Holy Hail opened the show, just slightly after 9 p.m., with a keen and enjoyable set. It was clear that everyone was there to see Florence, so the crowd’s response to Holy Hail wasn’t the most enthusiastic, but they were good warm up. The band, fronted by Cat Hartwell, held their own for the anxious crowd, playing songs off their 2008 album Independent Pleasure Club, and their other various EPs, as well as some new ones. “Riverine” stuck out to me, like a truly New Yorkian indie record, but with a hint of old west swagger. They graciously thanked the crowd for coming out that night, and Florence for taking them on tour, and stepped off stage at about 9:30. But that’s just a guess-timation.

After nearly an hour-long wait of reggae and old jazz playing on the loudspeakers, The Machine took the stage to some intense mood lighting, making way for Florence Welch’s grand entrance, starting off with a wicked version of “Howl.” She swayed around the stage, dressed in a lace afghan and blouse to match. Her blazing red hair glowed beneath the blue and yellow lights of the Showbox, and the crowd sang along right with her.

Why does Florence Welch confound me? Her performance persona is big and loud and powerful and grandiose, but her personality between songs could be described as nothing less than adorable. After a couple songs, she decided to go barefoot. She slipped off her heels and hopped around the stage before stepping back up to the mic. At that point the microphone sat right about at her eye level, and Florence declared, “I’m tiny.” To avoid sounding incredibly cliché, I’ll just let the irony of that statement sink in for now.

After singing her face off with “Between Two Lungs,” she grabbed a red plastic cup and straw and sipped it politely. Then she proceeded to explain that every time she gets one of those plastic cups, she gets, dare I say, a little tipsy. And then she giggled and said a quiet “Thank you, Seattle,” and introduced the next song. All the songs Florence played that night were off of Lungs, but “Hardest of Hearts” was the only one off the deluxe edition of the album. I happen to own the deluxe edition, so I was completely familiar with all the songs played that night. Evidently, everyone else knew the songs as well, because you couldn’t look around at any point and not see someone singing along with Florence

Seeing these songs live deepened my love for them, especially “Drumming Song” and “Cosmic Love,” where Florence beat on her own floor tom along with her band and let out this not-so-tiny (there’s the irony!) voice. Then in a haunting version of “Blinding,” one light backlit Florence while she wrapped herself up in the afghan like a child pretending to be ghost, and just like the song, Florence’s performance escalated into a powerful spectacle of awesome proportions.

Florence’s attitude while singing juxtaposed with her sweet disposition made the show all that more entertaining, because it proves how talented she really is. Her songs are epic and sexy, but she’s not a pretentious diva at all. She repeatedly thanked Seattle in her charming London accent and paused between songs to give her keyboard player a big hug. I couldn’t help but love her. I kind of wanted to be her best friend at that point.

The last song before the encore was – of course – “Dog Days are Over,” where everyone on the club instantly started dancing and singing along. I honestly feared for the life of my camera for a bit there, but it was so much fun. This one guy standing in front of me – who was about 5 inches taller than me – was absolutely nuts about Florence, as he started the clap-along before the encore at just about 11:30. A few minutes of badly timed “Florence! Florence! Florence!” later, Florence and her Machine walked back on stage. Acknowledged the energy of the crowd, she asked us – on this next song – to jump even more than we had been.

As I expected, they went right into “Kiss With a Fist,” which again sent the crowd into frenzy. We calmed down just a little after the short and energetic “Kiss With a Fist,” and Florence made one last request of us for “Rabbit Heart (Raise It Up).” “When I do this,” and she shot her fist up in the air, “then you shout ‘raise it up!’” It was kind of magical how well it worked, because just like she asked, everyone not only shouted “raise it up,” but also shot their fists up in the air along with her.

Florence graciously bowed and thanked Seattle one last time before she and her band left the stage, and told everyone, “I’d love to come back if you’d have me.” The guy in front of me shouted, “We’d love to have you back!”

After that show, I was not opposed to the idea.

Set List:
1.   Howl
2.   My Boy Builds Coffins
3.   Hurricane Drunk
4.   Between Two Lungs
5.   Hardest Of Hearts
6.   Drumming Song
7.   Cosmic Love
8.   I’m Not Calling You A Liar
9.   Blinding
10.   You’ve Got the Love
11.   Dog Days Are Over

Encore
12.   Kiss With a Fist
13.   Rabbit Heart (Raise It Up)

Have you ever been to show that drastically changed the way you listen to a band? Well, last Friday I went and saw Editors (no ‘the’) and it’s almost like they’re a completely new band to me. Seriously.

Starting the tour supporting their third studio album In This Light and On This Evening, Editors brought along openers Black Nite Crash and Princeton for their Seattle and Vancouver shows. The former was a local Seattle band, one of which I’d put in the “fuzz rock” genre. Some call it “shoegaze,” which to me has a negative connotation of apathetic non-stage presence, so I prefer “fuzz rock.” They weren’t bad, but as a stark contrast to anything Editors did, it was an odd fit. If I had to compare their sound, it was like early Pixies but with a dose of cool Seattle confidence.

Between acts, the front area of the Showbox floor got strangely scarce, or at least until you looked down. Obnoxious teenagers decided to plant their behinds on the floor, tricking those further back that they might get a spot closer. To make the situation even more inconvenient, I almost tripped numerous times on these squatters.

No matter, because as soon as the next band, Los Angeles’ Princeton got on stage, people stood up to enjoy their low-key SoCal indie rock. I was standing right next to their personal band photographer before Princeton’s set started, and she tried to illustrate their sound to me, “kind of like Beach House?” Again, they were an interesting fit on Editors’ bill, but I quite liked them. At one point lead vocalist Jesse Kivel said after they kept switching around instruments, “I never realized how many bass players we have.” Three out of four the band members played bass during Princeton’s half-hour set. They played a concise set list from their debut studio album Cocoon of Love, out last September, all of which was scribbled on a sheet of paper under their feet. There were a few that I remembered having clever titles like “Calypso Love” and “I Left My Love In Nagasaki.” I liked those ones.

I feel like it would both suck and rock to be an opening band for a band as big as Editors. You get the pleasure of touring with and getting exposed to fans of that huge band, but during shows you don’t get as much love because people are there most of the time for the headliners. Jesse Kivel said it best – “thanks guys for coming out early.” When I see a “doors open at” time, that’s when I get there. If I pay for tickets, I want to see as much music as possible. I didn’t come early. I came on time. Everyone else came late.

At that, I was very glad because the Showbox didn’t get really crowded until right before Tom Smith, Chris Urbanowicz, Ed Lay and Russell Leech came out on stage and broke into the strong synthesizer and the lyrics, “I swear to god, I heard the earth inhale, moments before it spat its rain down on me” from the title track of their newest album. That’s when people went nuts.

Back to what I was saying earlier about hearing a band completely differently – when you first hear Editors, you’d never expect the lead singer to be winding around the stage, teetering on his stylish shoes and randomly jumping on the piano. But now that I’ve seen Editors live, I think of Tom’s antics when I hear “Papillon,” “Lights” or “Smokers Outside the Hospital Door” – all of which they played, by the way.  Tom Smith’s almost creepy charisma is perfect for the generally dark nature of their music; he was phenomenal at building momentum through a song without being cheesy, switching between three microphones, a keyboard and a piano. There was just a way that he grabbed at the microphone in almost a longing way, while stomping at the pedals below him.

Chris, sporting his familiar black and white Rickenbacker guitar, got to show his synthesizer skills last night, too. However, because his synth set was right up against Tom’s piano, Chris was completely isolated on the left side of the stage. But even with the separation on stage, everyone sounded so together and harmonious.

Honestly, when I first heard the last album I was kind of underwhelmed after how amazing An End Has A Start was, but after seeing it live, the songs off of In This Light and On This Evening make for a more dynamic live experience with all the elements included. Editors have surely utilized electronic sounds on this record, and it makes so much more sense to me now. I even forgive them for recording a song for the New Moon Soundtrack.

Throughout the 90-minute set, Editors played all but one track off of In This Light and On This Evening (that title is a lengthy one to type out, I must say), half of An End Has A Start, and even a few from 2005’s The Back Room, including “Camera” and “Bullets.”

After they finished up “Brick and Mortar” and left the stage. These girls standing behind me were saying, “There’s gotta be an encore. They haven’t played ‘Munich’ yet.”

“There’s a three-song encore coming up, I caught a glimpse of the set list on the stage,” I turned around and told them.

“Fingers crossed for ‘Munich!’” They squealed.

The girls soon got their wish when Tom, Chris, Russell and Ed got back up on stage and broke into the opening riffs of “Munich.”

I don’t know if they were especially great and energetic because this was the first show of the tour, but this will surely not be the last time I see Editors. Heck, I would have driven down to Portland to see them if they’d stopped there. It was that awesome.

Set List:
1. In This Light And On This Evening
2. Lights
3. An End Has A Start
4. You Don’t Know Love
5. Bones
6. The Boxer
7. The Big Exit
8. Blood
9. Eat Raw Meat = Blood Drool
10. The Racing Rats
11. Like Treasure
12. Camera
13. Bullets
14. Smokers Outside The Hospital Doors
15. Bricks And Mortar
Encore:
16. Munich
17. Papillon
18. Fingers In The Factories

Making the familiar trek to my favorite venue in Seattle, the Showbox at the Market, there was one thing in my mind that I couldn’t help but giggle gleefully.

I’m seeing Johnny Marr tonight.

Well, The Cribs, but the recent addition of ex-Smiths guitarist Marr to the formerly all-brother lineup surely upped the cool factor of The Cribs. And on this night, the crowd the Yorkshire band brought out was quite the assortment. Standing in line outside the Showbox, I struck up a conversation with a few high school students who – serendipitously – lived in the same town as I, an hour south of Seattle.  They’d come out, seemingly just to see a band, as they asked me what The Cribs sounded like. I tried to think of something that they might know. Unaware at that point that they were a few years younger than I expected, I mentioned the Libertines. They stared blankly.

“Like the Arctic Monkeys?”

“Kinda, like earlier Arctic Monkeys?” I replied, in an effort to give them some description. They made me feel old.

Once the show got started, I still felt kind of old. Former Be Your Own Pet frontwoman Jemina Pearl opened the show, donning a walking brace on her right foot, but still managing to thrash around the stage like she didn’t have a bum foot. Accompanied by her pubescent-looking band, Miss Pearl evoked a punk much older than she looked and sounded. Now to my knowledge, she’s had some legendary recognition of her own – featuring Iggy Pop on her obnoxiously titled “I Hate People” on her debut, Break It Up. She played through most of the songs off Break It Up in this 45-minute slot, holding the equally youthful room with suc

h tunes like “Looking For Trouble,” “D Is For Danger” and “Band on the Run.” I quite enjoyed her sound; it was like the not-quite-as-angry Be Your Own Pet, but much tougher and dirtier than a certain band fronted by a young flame-trussed female getting loads of airplay right now.

At this point, the floor was still relatively vacant, but the bar had filled up a lot since I’d last looked. This is when I started to realize the ratio of actual Cribs fans to Johnny Marr fans, about 2 to 1. There were those crazy teenagers flogging around right in front of the stage and those over 35 that bobbed their heads in the back, reminiscing about when they saw The Smiths for the first time.

Right on time, at 10:15, brothers Gary, Ryan and Ross Jarman, along with Johnny Marr took the stage to loads of applause and opened with the highly-sing-alongable “We Were Aborted.” The rest of the set included some cuts from 2009’s Ignore the Ignorant, like “Cheat on Me,” “We Share the Same Skies” and “City of Bugs”; as well as some older hits like “Hey Scenesters,” “Men’s Needs,” and a unexpected version of “Be Safe” with a giant pull-down screen of Lee Ranaldo of Sonic Youth fame reciting the backing monologue for the track. I especially liked that one and “Hari Kari,” highlighting how complex yet easy the songs are.

At this point, I noticed the 40-something-year-old guy standing next to me, mouthing along to all the words, dancing all twitchy-like.

In terms of cohesiveness, The Cribs show truly how a band consisting of brothers works. They all live in different places – Manchester and Yorkshire, UK, and Portland, OR.  And honestly the only thing that would cue that twins Ryan and Gary live in different cities, different countries really, is the complete contrasting personal style. Gary sported a sweater and a sideswept ‘do and Ryan was rocking a black leather jacket and harsh fringe bangs. And they all meshed together to create a sound worth listening to for hours, and a truly English one at that. I heard in an interview that what brought the Jarmans together with Marr as a band in the first place was that they all “got on as friends.” That’s it – the original Cribs’ superb songwriting mixed with Marr’s seasoned and sexy guitar riffs – it’s what makes them great. The Cribs use such a simple formula, but with high-quality ingredients.

Ignore The Ignorant was on my list of the top 20 albums of last year, and rightfully so. I mean, The Cribs were already a great band, but back in 2008 when Marr joined the band full-time, they became even greater – in their sound and their fan base.

As I left, I forgot to find the teens I spoke with while waiting in line to ask them how they liked the show and to tell them to look up our site in the next couple days, but that was alright. They had to like the show. How could they not?

After seeing a half-hour Phoenix set last month, it left me wanting so much more. Thankfully, that “more” came just five weeks later – this last Saturday the 23rd at the Showbox SoDo, literally right down the street from where I saw them last month.

The Soft Pack served as the opening course for the night, and with how ridiculously packed this venue was, they held their own pretty well. I was virtually unfamiliar with the Soft Pack, but now I can say that I was pleased I saw them. With the quick and punky “C’Mon” and “Pull Out,” they got the crowd dancing like it was the year 2000. Seriously, they felt like a nice throwback to the garage rock of the beginning of the decade – like early Strokes with less swagger and more gusto. They played through their strong set list that included other standouts, “Extinction,” “Brightside” and “Parasites,” all scribbled down on a ripped napkin that lay on the floor. The understated frontman-ness of Matt Lamkin met with the raw energy of lead guitarist Matty McLoughlin made for a great synergy on stage. They felt very current, yet seasoned. I totally dug it. Be sure to keep your ears peeled for these guys in 2010.

After their 40-minute set, the Soft Pack exited the stage to make way for Phoenix’s gear, front and center. Thankfully I found myself in front of the guy with an obscene amount of frizzy hair, who was originally standing in front of me. But he did provide one especially random moment of the night – as Phoenix was just about to step on stage he shouted, “Come on guys, allons-y!” “Allons-y,” meaning “let’s go” in French isn’t just a culturally relevant phrase to shout to a band that hails from France, but for me it was a hilarious reference to the BBC sci-fi show “Doctor Who.” But that could be just me.

Opening with “Lisztomania,” the French foursome started out their just-under-90-minute set just as strong as I remembered from last month. But on this night, we had three times as many songs from them, which made the show exponentially better. Paired with trippy strobe lights half the night, I can say that this was the craziest dance party I’ve been to… possibly ever. The one negative I could bring up was how full the Showbox SoDo decided to book for this show. Even when I tried to duck out of the crowd directly in front of the stage during the encore, I could barely find a clear spot against the wall. Definitely a claustrophobic’s nightmare.

But Phoenix surely did not disappoint – playing almost all the songs off last year’s “Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix,” as well as some old tunes. Including – “Consolation Prizes,” “Rally,” “Long Distance Call” and “Napoleon Says” off It’s Never Been Like That, an extra slow and groovy version of “Everything is Everything” from Alphabetical, and even the epically heavy “Funky Squaredance” and the light and dancey “If I Ever Feel Better” and “Too Young” off their 2000 debut United. Those were especially nice surprises after someone shouted from the audience, “Lost in Translation soundtrack, yeah!” Some people say the darndest things.

Even Thomas Mars does. At one point, I can’t remember when, he declared that he wanted to thank the people of Federal Way – a small suburb of Seattle, about 20 minutes out of town. I never figured out why, but it could have been the first town they saw when they got off the plane. Who knows?

Throughout the night, Phoenix moved through the best of their catalogue, transitioning dynamically from an energetic dance number like “Lasso” to an extended haunting electronic track like “Love Like A Sunset.” It all led up to the extremely lengthy encore, which is was all right by me. Mars took a nice little trip out into the audience, crowd-surfing as far as the microphone cord would let him, while Deck D’Arcy, Laurent Brancowitz and Christian Mazzalai stayed up on stage and jammed for a good solid five minutes with the same trippy strobes lighting up the room. After introducing their “farewell song,” they played three more – which included the huge hit, “1901,” and a giant dance party where everyone within leaping distance jumped up on stage to close the set. At that point, I wasn’t in leaping distance, but I did get a picture of those who were.

Even with how unpleasant SoDo was, I left very pleased with my second Phoenix show, and in fact, my first show of the new decade. Thank you, Phoenix, for starting out this decade wonderfully. Seattle will be glad to have you back many more times.

Set List:
Lisztomania
Long Distance Call
Lasso
Rally
Fences
Girlfriend
Armistice
Love Like A Sunset
Napoleon Says
Too Young
Consolation Prizes
Rome
Funky Squaredance
ENCORE:
Everything is Everything
If I Ever Feel Better
1901

When I heard that The Classic Crime was playing their annual holiday show at the Showbox @ the Market, I was ecstatic that they were continuing this local tradition. With a great lineup at a legendary venue, the show promised to be just the thing to start off my holiday week the right way- a good dose of local talent mixed with just the right amount of fun and excitement.

Having been to the Showbox @ the Market enough times to find good parking during rush hour traffic, I got there early enough to stand in line and wait for doors. At seven o’clock sharp, the doors opened to a crowd of slightly damp but thoroughly excited Seattlites waiting to start the evening’s festivities. The venue had been decorated with Christmas trees and holiday lights to set the mood and the hum of an almost sold out show continued to mount as fans continued to pour in for the next half hour. At 7:30, the energy in the room was almost palpable as the first act took the stage.

First up was local band Katie Lavoie and the Verdict. I have to admit, I was a little hesitant about them being on the line up since it was their first show, but I was immediately proved wrong. The sultry sound of Katie’s voice mixed with a strong background of brass, sweet guitar riffs, and a talented drummer brought back memories of big band holiday music and old school jazz. It became quickly apparent that they were full of good old fashioned local talent and would definitely be a band to keep an eye out for on future line-ups. With a quick twenty minute set, they didn’t have much time to interact with the audience but set the stage for the next local opener.

Moneta is a long time local favorite with a history of rocking the Showbox pretty well. Having opened for The Classic Crime many times before, this was only their second show since the recent member shake up. Opening with “No Surrender” off their second album Heroes, they rocked the crowd from the very beginning, showing off their new, edgier sound. Front man Jeremiah Kansky (Jerry to his fans) was his usual self, finding the diehard fans in the crowd and grabbing hands, singing in their faces, and generally working the stage and showing what the band is really about: the fans. The crowd started moshing along during other favorites like “A Better Defense,” “The Getaway” and “Letters,” showing their obvious pleasure at the band’s addictive lyrics and insatiable guitar riffs. Promoting their upcoming album release of Villians, the free downloadable single “Last Transmission” helped steal the crowd when Classic Crime front man Matt McDonald came out to help with belting the last half of the song. Finishing this amazing set was “We Fall As One” with the crowd singing at the top of their lungs and the entire band playing to their full potential- making the floor of the venue shake as fans pumped their fists in the air along with Jerry.

Third on the bill was Endeverance, hailing from neighboring town Tacoma and bringing a more mellow popish sound to the stage. Opening with “City Lights” off of their sophomore album Avenues, front man Seth brought a new kind of energy that kept the crowd going through “Masquerade” and into an acoustic ballad that had the crowd swaying back and forth. The band kept the holiday spirit alive with an acoustic rendition of “O Holy Night” before rocking the stage with the crowd favorite “Time and Time Again” complete with tambourine and Seth walking the barrier to rock out with the front of the pit. Included in this fantastic set was a slightly random show of talent with Moneta drummer Leo Martin hoping up on stage with a few floor toms and rocking out with the members of Endeverance. The crowd loved the almost Drum Corps worthy performance and Endeverance took it in stride and continued on. Polishing off this fantastic set was a long time favorite of mine, “Searching for a Call,” bringing to light the tremendous range of talent the entire band has, from ballads to rockesque hits. Since their CD release show for Avenues, it looks like they have formed a more cohesive group and have tightened up their sound a little, working out all of the kinks and putting on one heck of a good show before calling it a night and handing the stage over.

Continuing the night’s mellow tone was Kent’s very own Daphne Loves Derby, another local favorite of mine and a definite crowd favorite. This was the first show since the end of their recent headlining tour and they played a disappointingly short set of a handful of songs. After opening with “Cue the Sun” they switched it up by playing “Nouveau” and “Bedroom.” Next up was their smash single “Cute As Ever” in which front man Stu Clay invited brother Steven Clay onstage to add a touch of harmonica, making the crowd sway. During the set, it became apparent that Stu was going to switch guitars between EVERY song, but even though they were close at hand and it was a quick switch each time, it was also a little distracting and detracted overall from their set. With no mention of another album, the set was slightly bland and not up to their usual standards. Even so, D<3D played a cover of Third Eye Blind’s smash hit “Jumper” that had every person in the place singing at the top of their lungs- including the lighting tech and bartenders- and closed their set on a high note and just in time for the headlining band.

After an annoying, but necessary interlude from 104.9 The Funky Monkey’s promoters, a goosebump inducing recording of “Carol of the Bells” announced the arrival of our favorite Christmas act, The Classic Crime. Now avid fans will tell you that there is nothing like a hometown Classic Crime show and their holiday shows are even better. Busting out with the ever popular “The Way That You Are,” you could tell that Matt McDonald wasn’t quite warmed up yet, but by the time they started “Just a Man” off of their second full length album The Silver Cord, the floor was shaking and the crowd was almost as loud as the band themselves. The fun continued as “Say The Word” and a new single from their upcoming CD release (April 6th, 2010) blew everyone away. In hometown style, McDonald flirted with the crowd, saying hello to both new and old fans, and joked about Santa saying that he wouldn’t have time to deliver everyone’s presents this year. When McDonald asked Santa why he wouldn’t be able to, they launched into their addictive “Abracadavers” saying “It’s like I never have time…” Even though everyone was having a blast, it was time to tune it down a bit with mellow singles such as “Who Needs Air,” “Seattle” and “Headlights,” singles that span their first two albums Albatross and Seattle Sessions. After playing the ground shaking “The Coldest Heart” off of their debut album, they debuted a new single called “Solar Powered Life” that has been taking local radio stations by storm, and concluded with a winteresque song entitled “Salt in the Snow.” After the band waltzed off the stage to return with some holiday spirit- Santa hats for all, an acoustic version of “Silent Night” rocked the house before my all time favorite “The Fight” had everyone- even in the bar- singing at the top of their lungs. Finishing the set with a Merry Christmas, they left the stage and were done for the night.

I have to admit that being a huge Classic Crime fan, I knew the set was going to be great. But Friday night’s show was phenomenal, better than they have ever been. With two CD releases under my belt, more shows than I can count on my fingers and toes, and a few acoustic shows, that is saying a lot. Nothing but good things were said by the crowd as the venue emptied. Everyone is completely excited for the new album in April and the accompanying CD release show. Will it be any better than Friday? I think we will have to wait and see, but frankly, I can’t wait.

Photos and writing by Annastasia Gallaher