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Seattle Sound

Album of the Month: Impossible Bird’s Self-Titled Debut EP

We highlight an April album that belongs in heavy rotation.

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There’s no denying this duo’s debut effort.

We all have our musical blind spots. Even the most ardent music lovers struggle to appreciate certain styles outside their wheelhouse. But every now and then, a band or artist turns out an album that’s so well executed, there’s no denying its merits, even if it’s not a genre one would normally dig. This is exactly how I’d categorize the debut EP by Seattle alt-folk duo Impossible Bird. It was April’s pleasant surprise. The five-song album is a mix of fiddle and falsetto, backed by incredible talent: Canadian Tyler Carson mans the fiddle and Stroh violin—a violin that uses a metal horn instead of a wooden body to resonate sound—and brings each song to life with energetic lead lines that rip away any notions of the folk blahs. Vocalist-guitarist Nick Drummond, formerly of local acoustic rock band the Senate, churns out propulsive guitar lines that keep the acoustic two-piece from sounding small. The instrumental arrangements are reminiscent of Dave Matthews Band, but Drummond’s clear vocals give Impossible Bird a sound that’s refreshing and entirely its own.

Opening track “Here I Am” showcases the duo at its most playful and anthemic; it’s not hard to imagine a summer festival crowd clapping along. (Perhaps at the Northwest Folklife Festival? Impossible Bird will be playing there on May 28.) The EP isn’t a one-trick pony, though; “Overture” is darker, like its set in an old Southern Gothic mansion with creaking floorboards and door hinges, thanks to Carson’s fiddle work and the clever use of clanking chains as percussion.

Lyrics aren’t Impossible Bird’s forte, but the track about a marriage proposal—“Bottle of Wine”—is genuinely sweet with lines like, “A ring’s like a watch that shows no time.” While Drummond has a tendency to excessively repeat his refrains (most songs have about a minute and a half worth of lyrics stretched into four-and-a-half-minute songs), it’s forgivable since the core of Impossible Bird is melodic instrumentation, not poetry.

Acoustic duos simply aren’t supposed to have this big a sound. It’s really only a matter of time before Impossible Bird has an equally large audience.

Impossible Bird
May 28 at 4, Northwest Folklife Festival, Fisher Green Stage.

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Tags: Seattle Music, Album Review, Seattle Sound

Local Talent

A Fiendish Conversation with Kenny G

We chat with the smoothest of sax men before his string of Jazz Alley shows.

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It’s a rare thing to hear a multiplatinum musician play an intimate club show—then again, Kenny G’s career has been anything but typical. The man brought smooth jazz to the masses and became an indelible (and recognizable, thanks to his curly ‘do) pop culture figure. He even popped up playing with Foster the People on Saturday Night Live last year. Thirty years and 23 albums into his solo career, the Seattle native remains driven (despite some vocal critics.) He still practices saxophone three hours a day to hone his craft and he’ll put that practice to use this week when he comes home to play eight shows over four nights at Jazz Alley.

For our latest Fiendish Conversation we chatted with the contemporary sax man about his continued passion for music, being a punch line, and (of course) golf.

After all your success, what about playing a smaller venue like Jazz Alley appeals to you?

We just got through doing [clubs shows at] Blue Note in New York in November and it was really fun, so that’s kind of opened up the door to doing more. And Seattle’s my hometown, so why not? You feel that connection between people that like your music and yourself, and that’s really important. That’s how it started.

Do you have any preshow routine?

No, not really. If I’ve got friends there, I probably end up hanging out with them. If I’ve got no friends there, I probably practice more. Neither one of those situations necessarily lends itself to a better show. It’s so organic. It’s like a professional golfer; you know you’re good, you know you can do it, but you’re not necessarily going to hit all the good shots that night. You never know.

If you weren’t a musician, what would you do?

If I was good enough in golf, I would’ve loved to be a professional golfer. [Kenny G is a scratch golfer.] That’s pretty much the thing that gets me excited. I like flying. I’m a pilot, so maybe some sort of a job as a pilot might be fun, too. I like building things. Maybe I would build furniture, houses, or something like that.

At times, especially in the ’90s, you were often used as a pop culture punchline. Did that ever get under your skin?

You gotta look at the big picture. What you said is true, but how many people actually wrote or said things like that? Could it be handful? And then how many people like my music and went to my concerts? When you look at the difference between a handful to millions—it’s absolutely meaningless. So that’s how you have to look at it. Unfortunately, a lot of artists get too bent out of shape if they read something in the paper that’s not complimentary.

How has Seattle impacted and shaped your sound and career?

In the ‘70s when I was in high school [at and doing my thing, we had a big R&B/funk scene in Seattle. Everybody was gigging and there were clubs all over the place. It was a very vibrant scene. At a time when Earth, Wind, and Fire was the band to be like, there were plenty of gigs for sax players and horn players. There was a lot of action. It really got me excited and motivated and got me on my way to be playing music all the time. If that wasn’t the case, I don’t know what would’ve happened. I would’ve been in high school, playing in the high school band, and that would’ve been it. But I was out there playing shows, and playing in bands, and playing clubs. It was a huge, huge plus. It launched me.

How does it feel to still be in the mainstream consciousness after all these years?

I’m grateful that I’ve managed to stay current enough to still be doing what I’m doing after [all these] years; where people haven’t gotten sick of me, or my music, or my sound, or whatever else. Maybe they’re sick of my hair.

Kenny G
Apr 26–29, Jazz Alley, $55

Note: Video contains mild profanity.

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Tags: Jazz Alley, Seattle Music, Fiendish Conversation

Free Music

Give It a Spin: Saturday Is Record Store Day

Which means limited-run releases and free in-store concerts.

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Country megastar Dierks Bentley will play Easy Street Records (Queen Anne) on Record Store Day.

Though Cassette Day may never catch on, Record Store Day returns this Saturday for another round of vinyl-clutching music appreciation. Seattle-area record stores will offer a variety of exclusive limited-run releases, ranging from the usual suspects (a new 12-inch collection of Miles Davis performances) to the slightly bizarre (a collaboration by the Flaming Lips featuring Ke$ha), to the so-bizarre-it’s-amazing (the “Feistodon” 7-inch split with indie rocker Feist and metal band Mastodon covering each other’s tunes).

Record Store Day also means that local shops will host free in-store concerts all day. This year’s lineup features a pretty impressive collection of artists—including buzzworthy Seattle songwriter Perfume Genius (whom Spin recently compared to Elliott Smith), and country superstar Dierks Bentley (seriously though, this guy headlines arenas). Here’s a rundown of the Record Store Day in-stores.

Easy Street Records (Queen Anne)

1pm – Dierks Bentley (VIP entrance wristband available with purchase of Bentley’s new CD Home.)
4pm – Brad

Easy Street Records (West Seattle)

7:30pm – The Young Evils
9pm – Reignwolf

Everyday Music (Capitol Hill)

10am – Bryan John Appleby
11am – Dr Troy
1pm – DJ El Toro (KEXP)
2pm – DJ Ya Sure Shot
3pm – Naomi Punk
4pm – DJ Veins
5pm – Seapony
6pm – Hotels
7pm – Tacocat
8pm – The Horde and the Harem
9pm – DJ CanAfrica

Silver Platters (Queen Anne)

Noon – Will Hoge
1pm – Gravel Road
2pm – Dar Williams
3:30pm – Caveman
5pm – Perfume Genius

Sonic Boom Records

4pm – Star Anna

Record Store Day
Apr 21 at various venues, free

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Tags: Music, Music News, Free Music, Seattle Music, Easy Street Records

Seattle Music News

New Concert Venue Barboza to Open Under Neumos

Smaller space will cater to up-and-coming and local acts.

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Underground artists, meet your new underground venue. After years of planning, the people behind Capitol Hill music institution Neumos are ready to open a second venue in the building’s basement. Barboza will be a 200-capacity club catering to bands that need a proper venue but aren’t quite big enough to fill a place like Neumos or the Crocodile yet.

“Barboza is a little more about artist development,” said Neumos and Barboza talent buyer Eli Anderson. “You can do a show down there that’s a new artist, someone sort of up-and-coming on their first time through, or just local artists. You could do a show that draws 100 people and it’s not a total loss. You do a show with 100 at Neumos—that looks really bad. The artist isn’t going to have a good time and it’s not good for us. A hundred people in a 700-person room looks really awkward. Barboza has a little more flexibility in that way.”

Because of a delay in completing the venue, Wednesday’s would-be opening show by blues-rock duo My Goodness has been rescheduled for June 16 at Neumos. Instead, the venue will be christened by the pitch-perfect folk harmonies of Portland’s Horse Feathers this Friday. Anderson said the venue will bring in a wide variety of artists and genres and hopes to be running seven nights a week. In addition to regular concerts, Barboza will also feature weekly DJ sets by Tigerbeat: Monday night’s “Turnt Up” and Friday’s “Hollyhood.”

Anderson stresses that while Barboza is a subterranean space, people shouldn’t expect low-rent productions. “People keep asking me, ‘Do you guys have a PA? Are there lights down there?’ I think it’s because it’s in the lower level, in the basement, people go like, ‘Oh, it’s a basement space.’ No. We’re spending hundreds thousands of dollars on the space. It’s a really nice, proper 200 capacity club.”

UPDATE 4/20/12 It turns out the construction delays were worse than expected. The Horse Feathers show has been postponed until June 6 and other shows on Barboza’s calendar have been either moved, canceled, or rescheduled. On the plus side, Caveman’s Sunday show has been moved to Auto Battery and will now be a free BBQ.

From Barboza (via The Stranger):

Owing to unexpected construction delays, the first week’s shows at BARBOZA will not be happening as scheduled.

Friday April 20th Horse Feathers has been postponed until June 9th at BARBOZA. All tickets will be honored and refunds are available at point of purchase.

Saturday April 21st Caveman has morphed into a BARBOZA-Q and moved to Auto Battery at 1009 East Union St on Capitol Hill. All tickets will be refunded as this show is now FREE! Doors are at 8pm and come early as space will fill up fast!

Sunday April 22nd Main Attrakionz has unfortunately been cancelled and will not be rescheduled.

Tuesday April 24th Tanlines has been moved upstairs to Neumos. All tickets will be honored.

Wednesday April 25th Frankie Rose has been moved upstairs to Neumos. All tickets will be honored.

We apologize for any inconvenience or disappointment this may cause but are looking forward to seeing you at the BARBOZA-Q and introducing you to our new room next week!

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Tags: Concert, Neumos, Seattle Music

Seattle Sound

Album of the Month: Eighteen Individual Eyes’ Unnovae Nights

We highlight another new local album that belongs in heavy rotation.

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Crepuscular rock reigns on Eighteen Individual Eyes’ Unnovae Nights.

As March rolled in and slowly began granting Seattle more hours of sunshine, Eighteen Individual Eyes made sure the city still had a tantalizing taste of darkness. The Seattle quartet’s new album Unnovae Nights sounds like Wild Flag-meets-atmospheric art rock with a dash of nightmarish imagery.

Something sinister seems to be lurking around every corner of Unnovae Nights, but front woman Irene Barber’s alluringly smooth vocals help soothe the potential in a way that harkens to St. Vincent. While the album is packed with song titles like “Octogirl” and lines like “Love for fate. The place and time of death addressed and kept away,” the album avoids being dark in a cheesy way. This isn’t horror punk hokeyness. The interaction between Barber and guitarist Jamie Aaron gives the album a real identity. The coy interplay between their guitar lines on songs like “Tree Farm in the Darkness” builds each song’s tension, and Aaron also provides spot-on background harmonies.

Famed Seattleite producer Matt Bayles has his fingerprints all over Unnovae Nights. He knows how to make a rhythm section (drummer Andy King and bassist Samantha Wood) pop without burying the guitars in the mix (see: Mastadon, Minus the Bear, et al.). Some of the ripping lead guitar tones Eighteen Individual Eyes employ are also instantly familiar for fans of Bayles’s production. While tracks often show glances of math rock influence, they’re never tied down in technicality. These songs have solid cores that would still sound full even stripped down to Barber’s vocals and a single acoustic guitar.

Unnovae Nights is, appropriately, one of those albums that one can hardly imagine listening to in the day. Eighteen Individual Eyes are here to satisfy our nocturnal listening needs. Maybe those extra hours of daylight weren’t so great after all.

UPDATED 4/25/12. Eighteen Individual Eyes will play Neumos on April 26, and has joined the Capitol Hill Block Party lineup.

Eighteen Individual Eyes
Apr 26, doors at 8, Neumos, $8

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Tags: Seattle Music, Album Review, Seattle Sound

Local Talent

A Fiendish Conversation with Kaylee Cole

In our new Q&A series, we chat with local artists and performers about their craft. Up next: a Seattle songwriter who loves to hug.

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Image courtesy Ben Blood.

Since moving across the state from Spokane in September 2009, Kaylee Cole has become a fixture in the Seattle music scene with her powerful voice and piano skills. When she’s not working on her second LP with TV on the Radio’s guitarist/producer Dave Sitek—a three-year project that may (finally) see the light of day—she pops up everywhere. This Friday, she’ll play the late-night art party at Bellevue Arts Museum, and on March 29, she joins the Bushwick Book Club Seattle for its homage to graphic novel Watchmen. And once a month, she mans the grand piano in the back corner of Vito’s on First Hill, playing Tom Waits covers and trying out new material. People aren’t coming for the cannelloni those nights; they’re there to see Kaylee Cole.

For our latest Fiendish Conversation, we chatted with the singer-songwriter, who apologized for being a bit out of sorts because she hadn’t had her coffee yet… at 1:30 pm. (Insert jealousy of musician lifestyle here.)

You’re playing in really diverse settings of late. Is there a reason for that?

I’ve been playing with the same setup for the last four years. Playing shows like Vito’s, or playing a museum or with the Seattle Rock Orchestra, it’s more for me and the people that keep coming back to see me—so things don’t get stale. And I’m waiting on this record I’ve been working on to get done. The record is so dynamic and spacey with so many sounds—bass, drum, all that stuff I’ve never had in my music before—so until the record is done and I can begin to play those kind of shows, I’m kind of open to anything that is a non-traditional space.

What’s the status on the new record?

We’re, like, 95.7 percent finished. It’s just in the process of being mixed and mastered. Ideally, I’d like it to be out for the world by fall, before 2012 is over, because the world is going to end and CD record sales are going to go down once it’s all over.

What would you do if you weren’t a musician?

I would probably go to school to become an esthetician, which is a person that gives other people facials. I also want to learn how to be a doula, which is like a midwife but not. You don’t deliver the baby, but you’re pretty much like a midwife. I’d like to be a doula regardless of whether or not music is my job for the rest of my life, but I’d want to have kids first before I coached somebody on how to give birth to one.

What’s your preshow routine?

I always have to take a shower. I usually drink a glass of red wine. Always warm up my voice in the bathroom or greenroom beforehand. I usually keep a couple of crystals or gemstones that I like nearby and I always smudge before the show. Smudging is what Native American shamans do; it’s burning sage. ‘Cause I am one of those girls that are into that ’Shit New Age Girls Say’ phase.

How do you unwind after a show?

I hug a lot of people. I am open for compliments.

Kaylee Cole
Mar 9 after 8, BAMignite, Bellevue Arts Museum
Mar 20 & Apr 12 @ 9, Vito’s
Mar 29 with Bushwick Book Club @ 8, Chop Suey

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Tags: Bellevue Arts Museum, Seattle Music, Vito's, Fiendish Conversation

Music We Love

Seattle Sound: Deep Sea Diver’s History Speaks

In our new monthly feature, we highlight a local album that belongs in heavy rotation.

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Deep Sea Diver debuts with History Speaks.

March is a big month for Seattleite Jessica Dobson. She’s the new guitarist for the Shins and hype abounds for the band’s first release since 2007, Port of Morrow, which drops at the end of the month. But Port of Morrow is going to have a hard time measuring up to History Speaks, the first LP by Dobson’s band Deep Sea Diver, just released last Friday.

This isn’t the type of indie rock that’s littered with frivolous guitar bends or buried in reverb. Everything is tight, purposeful—a pop-rock Hemingway story. There’s a precision to the production that ties together an otherwise diverse sound. “Ships” kicks off the album with a coy burst of nautical-themed rock, touching on love lost with metaphors of ships adrift at sea. The playful “You Go Running” calls to mind calypso grooves and ‘80s Latin pop (complete with maracas). “Tracks of the Green Line” is the type of piano ballad some down-on-her-luck crooner would play in a near-empty lounge in a lonely desert town.

Though Dobson is anything but down on her luck right now, her ethereal vocals lend a sad, whiskey-soaked sadness to the ballads. While she stars both on guitar and piano, the rhythm section of Peter Mansen (drums) and John Raines (bass) isn’t shabby either, providing punch on the up-tempo tracks.

While the world waits for that other Dobson album, we can’t wait to see what’s next for the quickly ascending Deep Sea Diver. Until then we’ll just have to keep History Speaks on repeat.

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Tags: Seattle Music, Album Review, Seattle Sound

Seattle Music News

Nirvana Auction to Benefit Susie Tennant

Sale of rock paraphernalia supports the family of a beloved Seattle music veteran.

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Auction item: two framed archival photos of Kurt Cobain.

As Seattle Weekly reported late last week, there’s a great collection of rock memorabilia being auctioned on eBay right now to support local music industry veteran Susie Tennant, who’s been battling ovarian cancer since last spring. Susie started out as a rep for Geffen Records in the ‘90s and was Nirvana’s onetime publicist, but she’s long been a champion of local music (and a friend to many). Family and friends organized a Nevermind benefit concert at EMP on her behalf in September, and they’re rallying again now.

Spread the word: Auction items include framed Nirvana photos by Charles Peterson, archival Pearl Jam images, Soundgarden screenprint tour posters, signed Ozzy Osbourne and Strokes posters, and Sasquatch! tickets.

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Tags: Benefit, Nirvana, Seattle Music

Local Talent

A Fiendish Conversation with Damien Jurado

In our new Q&A series, we chat with local artists and performers about their craft. Up next: Seattle’s “folk-boom godfather.”

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Damien Jurado moves into psychedelic territory with new album Maraqopa.

In many ways, Seattle’s indie folk boom started with Damien Jurado. Since the mid-’90s, he’s been turning out record after record of delicate, understated folk ballads. But he’s done with that sonic realm now. His latest album, Maraqopa, acts both as a farewell to his singer-songwriter past and a step toward psychedelic fare and a fuller rock sound.

We talked to Jurado as he prepares for the Maraqopa record release show on Friday at the Neptune Theatre.

Maraqopa’s opening track (“Nothing is the News”) has such a massive sound—with psychedelic guitar reminiscent of Pink Floyd—compared to your typical work. Where did it come from?
I think the new record is progression. The first song definitely makes that known. It’s sort of a signal for a new direction I’ll be taking from here on out. I think side B is my goodbye to the whole singer-songwriter genre. I’m done with it now… [I’m] never looking back.

For years I was being lumped in with so many other singer-songwriter types. I don’t even listen to that kind of music, so why in the hell am I making records like that? It’s not that those records weren’t heartfelt, it just wasn’t really who I was. There’s no telling what kind of record I’ll make next; I think it will just surprise people. I think it’s gonna surprise me.

What’s the significance behind the album title?
Maraqopa is the name of a fictional town. I had a dream where I was seeing someone else who came upon a town in the middle of nowhere; the terrain looked like anywhere between northern Arizona and Wyoming. It’s a fictitious setting.

Do you have any pre-show routines?
The only routine I really have is to find my wife, give her a kiss, take two deep breaths and I walk on stage. Anything else would just be overthinking.

Are there any up-and-coming Seattle musicians you’re taking note of?
Bryan John Appleby, who is opening up the show for me, is a great songwriter and multi-instrumentalist. Pickwick is a great band I think you’re gonna hear a lot from this year. Obviously the Head and the Heart. Kaylee Cole is another really talented songwriter. Kevin Long, he writes these lyrics that I feel are just like hurled daggers being shoved into your chest.

That’s kind of what I mean when I say I’m over the whole singer-songwriter thing. In some ways I feel like I’m passing the torch. If anything, I want to set an example. It’s not money or fame, but having a chance to inspire somebody—that’s priceless.

Damien Jurado’s Album Release Show
Special guests Gold Leaves and Bryan John Appleby
Feb 17 @ 9pm, Neptune Theatre, $15

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Tags: Concert, Neptune Theatre, Seattle Music, Fiendish Conversation

Local Music

Minus the Bear, 10 Years Later

Bassist Cory Murchy talks about their early years and boys becoming men.

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Minus the Bear

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Minus the Bear

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Minus the Bear

Ten years ago, Minus the Bear was just a fledgling Seattle indie band. Or, more specifically, five dudes who hung out in a bar all the time, trying to crack an inundated local music scene with prog-rock songs about sex and booze. Their beards were shorter; their song titles sillier (“Monkey!!! Knife!!! Fight!!!”) But they had talent, no doubt. Their debut album Highly Refined Pirates—a party in a CD case—came out at the hands of legendary producer Steve Fisk, who also worked with Nirvana, Soundgarden, and the Posies.

A lot can happen in a decade. Four albums. A new keyboardist. A chance to open for Soundgarden. Headlining tours. Marriage. Babies. It’s enough to make a man reflect. Before the band wraps up its 10-year-anniversary tour at Showbox at the Market on Friday—where they’ll play Highly Refined Pirates in its entirety—bassist Cory Murchy chatted with us about “five boys turning into men.”

How has Seattle changed since you guys started?

When we first started out our shows were at the Paradox [an all-ages club that’s since closed]. Luckily the Vera Project still does all-ages shows. It’s kind of neat, though: It’s a lot of the same characters and a lot of the same players from 10, 15, 20 years ago. There’s a thread of continuity.

Do you think your music has changed drastically?

Hopefully it just shows progression, growth—you know, five boys turning into men, learning how to live together and make the tour happen. This is our livelihood, our business, and it’s also our art and our life.

What would you call what you’re playing now?

Classic rock for the future. You want to listen to it now, and hopefully you want to listen to it 20 years from now.

What’s the biggest highlight of your career so far?

The fact that we can do this 10 years on is our biggest achievement. It took us a while to gain some respect in Seattle. There were other bands that came out at the same time that got a lot of attention, and got really big, and a lot of those bands are gone. I’m proud to say that 10 years on, we’re still chugging at it and there’s really no end in sight. It’s awesome to see Seattle finally come around and realize we’re not just another local band.

Minus the Bear plays Showbox at the Market on Nov 11 at 9. The Velvet Teen opens.

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Tags: Concert, Interview, Seattle Music, Minus the Bear

Concert

Plan Ahead: The Long Winters’ Only Seattle Show of 2011

It’s October 20 at the Showbox, and we hear it’s going to be “special.”

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Thanks to Jess Voelker (over at Sauced) for this update: The Long Winters front man John Roderick (@johnroderick) tweeted last night that his Seattle-based indie band is playing “our only show of 2011 in Seattle at the Showbox Oct 20. It will be a special show. Get your tickets.”

Technically, the band’s been seen around town lately: playing short sets at Bumbershoot, and covering “Something in the Way” at the EMP Nevermind concert last night. But you heard the man. Tickets ($20–$23) are on sale now at showboxonline.com.

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Tags: Concert, Showbox, Ticket Alerts, Seattle Music

Local Music

New Song from Macklemore and Ryan Lewis: “Can’t Hold Us”

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Livin’ large (From left) DJ Ryan Lewis and Macklemore

Well, this is different—in a good way. The latest from Seattle rapper Macklemore and DJ-producer Ryan Lewis is more of a party track than earnest hip hop, featuring Seattle gospel singer Ray Dalton on the chorus. It’s 11:30am and I feel like clubbing…and I don’t even like clubbing.

Want to see these guys live? They open for rapper Wiz Khalifa at the KeyArena mainstage of Bumbershoot on Sunday, Sept 4, at 8pm.

Macklemore X Ryan Lewis – Can’t Hold Us Feat. Ray Dalton by Macklemore & Ryan Lewis

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Tags: Concert, KeyArena, Macklemore, Bumbershoot 2011, Seattle Music

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