Culture Fiend

Poll: What Concerts Do You Want to See at Waterfront Park this Summer?

The City of Seattle is looking for ideas.

Posted by: Laura Dannen on Feb 17, 2012 at 11:00AM 16 Comments

This is Waterfront Park. Now imagine the Head and the Heart playing on a floating barge…

As part of the grand plan to revitalize Seattle’s central waterfront, the city is considering a summer concert or event series at Waterfront Park in 2012. That lonely pier between Miner’s Landing and Seattle Aquarium hosts a handful of free Out to Lunch concerts each year—a crowd of about 40 (happily) stood in the rain to watch Star Anna and the Laughing Dogs in July —but the new proposal is bigger, better. It involves a barge.

Waterfront Seattle tweeted a request yesterday for ideas —they’re looking at you, Seattle bands/dancers/theaters/artists. One suggestion, for a concert series, would stage shows on a floating barge parked just off the pier. The audience would hang out on said pier, possibly with a beer in hand (alcohol is permitted in certain parts of the park). So… Concerts at the Mural on Fridays, and Concerts at the Barge on Thursdays? I could get into that.

What shows would you want to see at Waterfront Park this summer?

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Tags: Waterfront, Outdoor Concert, Seattle Summer Events Guide

Portland Cello Project Plays a Free Out to Lunch Set

Concert starts at noon.

Posted by: Laura Dannen on Aug 24, 2011 at 10:00AM 0 Comments

From the Seattle Summer Events Guide:

Ask the classically trained, hard-rocking cellists of Portland Cello Project to play their cover of Kanye West’s “All of the Lights” at Two Union Square during this Out to Lunch set. You won’t regret it.

The outdoor concert starts at noon and goes till 1, 1:30.

Updated 10:30am. If you like what you see this afternoon, Portland Cello Project is also playing the Triple Door with Scott MacIntyre (American Idol, Season 8) on August 29. Tickets ($20-$25) are available at thetripledoor.net.

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Tags: Free Music, Outdoor Concert, Sun's Out, Get Out, Seattle Summer Events Guide

10 Outdoor Movies, Concerts, and Parties This Weekend

From Remix to Inception at the Mural, it’s a good time to get outside.

Posted by: Laura Dannen on Aug 11, 2011 at 10:00AM 0 Comments

SAM Remix returns to Olympic Sculpture Park on Aug 12.

From the Seattle Summer Events Guide:

THURSDAY
While you’re on the Blitz Capitol Hill Arts Walk, keep an eye out for the ongoing street art project at the site of Capitol Hill’s new Sound Transit station. It’s the aptly named Capitol Hill Wall Project.

FRIDAY
Hazy pop band Seapony joins Gold Leaves and Math and Physics Club for another (free!) Concert at the Mural, starting at 6 at Seattle Center’s Mural Amphitheatre.

More free fun: Start early at SLUBP (our fun new acronym for the South Lake Union Block Party). The neighborhood bash runs from noon till 11pm and features wine tastings, a beer garden, and noshes from local eateries (fingers crossed that includes pretzels from Brave Horse Tavern). Michael Cera flick Scott Pilgrim vs. the World screens at dusk.

Just down the street at Olympic Sculpture Park, SAM’s late-night art party Remix kicks off at 8 with music by local DJs, dancing, cocktails, and artist talks. First 50 people wearing gingham get in free.

SATURDAY
Swoon to singer-songwriter Amos Lee at Chateau Ste. Michelle; California alt-country band Calexico joins.

Or you could enter a dream within a dream within a dream when Inception screens at dusk at Mural Amphitheatre.

Get your Jeff Bridges fix at Fremont Outdoor Movies’s Tron-a-thon. The Tron double header starts with the 1982 original, where the Dude plays a brilliant young software engineer, and closes with Tron Legacy (2010), where he plays…a brilliant old software engineer. Doors open at 7; film starts at 9.

SUNDAY
Tis a cultural event when the Boston Red Sox visit Safeco play the Mariners. We learn how to swear in a different language. Those dirty water lovers are in town Friday through Sunday.

Nibble your way down 12th Avenue on Capitol Hill during the 12th Avenue Neighborhood Festival. Bars and restaurants along the block—including Skillet, the Local Vine, Barrio, La Spiga, and High 5 Pie—offer up cheap bites and drink deals.

All the Go-Go’s—Belinda Carlisle, Charlotte Caffey, Gina Schock, Jane Wielden, and Kathy Valentine—are back together for a 30th anniversary Go-Go Ladies Gone Wild Tour and they’re stopping by Woodland Park for a BECU ZooTunes show. Lock up your children.

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Tags: Party, Outdoor Concert, Sun's Out, Get Out, Seattle Summer Events Guide, Outdoor Movies

Pearl Django Plays a Free Show at Two Union Square Right Now

Time to take your lunch break.

Posted by: Laura Dannen on Aug 10, 2011 at 12:00PM 0 Comments

From the Seattle Summer Events Guide:

Gypsy jazz act Pearl Django and vocalist Greta Matassa liven up the Two Union Square business center with a free Out to Lunch concert from noon-1:30pm today. Go go go.

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Tags: Free Show, Free Music, Outdoor Concert, Sun's Out, Get Out, Seattle Summer Events Guide

Concerts at the Mural Kick Off this Friday

Free outdoor shows + great local acts + beer garden = yes.

Posted by: Laura Dannen on Aug 03, 2011 at 10:55AM 0 Comments

Concerts at the Mural return August 5.

From the Seattle Summer Events Guide:

Concerts at the Mural, the annual Friday-night summer series at Seattle Center’s Mural Amphitheatre, opens August 5 with a fury: alt-country band the Maldives and chamber pop crew Hey Marseilles and the tambourine-lovin’ Black Whales split the bill. We’d pay to see just one of those local acts onstage—and luckily, we don’t have to drop a dime for any of these concerts. Admission is free, but you’ll have to pay a little at the beer/wine garden and for Skillet Street Food. Doors open at 5 and shows start at 6, except for this Saturday’s BBQ, which kicks off at 2.

Here’s the full lineup:

Aug 5 Featuring the Maldives, Hey Marseilles, and Black Whales.
Aug 6 KEXP BBQ featuring Fool’s Gold, Capsula, Virgin Islands, and Mad Rad.
Aug 12 Featuring Seapony, Gold Leaves, and Math and Physics Club.
Aug 19 Featuring Black Mountain, My Goodness, and Whalebones.
Aug 26 Pickwick, Drew Grow & the Pastors’ Wives, and Ravenna Woods.

CONTEST Seattle Center is also sponsoring a Concerts at the Mural contest to win seats in the designated VIP area for you and five friends, six food tickets, and six drink tickets for the beer garden. Enter to win at thenextfifty.org.

Concerts at the Mural are on Fridays, Aug 5-26, and Saturday, Aug 6, at Seattle Center’s Mural Amphitheatre. Admission is free. If it looks like rain, call Seattle Center Customer Service at 684-7200 or go to seattlecenter.com after 2pm for updates.

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Tags: Seattle Center, Outdoor Concert, Sun's Out, Get Out, Seattle Summer Events Guide

Today’s Summer Guide Pick: Concert at the Zoo

Indigo Girls are back (again), but we’re more pumped for their opening act.

Posted by: Seattle Met staff on Jul 21, 2011 at 10:00AM 0 Comments

From the Seattle Summer Events Guide:

Yes, the Indigo Girls are playing a BECU ZooTunes show—again—but this time they’re joined by fresh-faced Americana act Mount Moriah for two nights at Woodland Park Zoo (July 21 & 22). Not your scene? Consider checking out the rest of the ZooTunes lineup. Concerts on the lawn sell out quickly (if they haven’t already), so if you see a show you like, book now at zoo.org/zootunes.

July 29 Brandi Carlile (sold out)
Aug 10 K.D. Lang and the Siss Boom Band (sold out)
Aug 14 The Go-Go’s Ladies Gone Wild Tour (sold out)
Aug 17 Carolina Chocolate Drops and the Be Good Tanyas
Aug 21 Aimee Mann with the Weepies (MET PICK)
Aug 24 Brandi Carlile (sold out)

Doors open at 5. Music starts at 6 and shows end around 8:30.

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Tags: Outdoor Concert, Seattle Summer Events Guide, Woodland Park Zoo, ZooTunes

Today’s Summer Guide Pick: Kirkland Uncorked

After you’ve stuffed yourself at Bite of Seattle, head Eastside for something to wash it all down.

Posted by: Laura Dannen on Jul 15, 2011 at 10:00AM 0 Comments

Kirkland Uncorked runs July 15-17.

From the Seattle Summer Events Guide:

Kirkland Uncorked, the annual lakeside bacchanale (a white-collar bacchanale), boasts three days of wine tastings, grilling demonstrations by local chefs, and more than 40 artist booths sponsored by Kirkland Arts Center. You’ll find a lot of pretty people swirling vino from 20 Washington wineries against a backdrop of Lake Washington, which is littered with yachts from the boat show. There’s Pyramid beer for the hopheads, and a dog modeling contest for… I don’t know, whoever likes dog modeling contests. But the setting couldn’t be better.

General admission is $25 advance, $30 at the door, which includes a commemorative glass and 10 tasting tokens (most wines cost 1-2 tokens). Non-tasting admission is $15. A portion of proceeds supports the Hope Heart Institute.

Kirkland Uncorked runs July 15-17 at Marina Park (25 Lakeshore Plaza, Kirkland). Tasting gardens are open Fri 5-10pm, Sat 1-10pm, Sun 1-6pm. For the full schedule, visit kirklanduncorked.com.

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Tags: Wine Tastings, Food Events and Festivals, Sun's Out, Get Out, Seattle Summer Events Guide

Today’s Summer Guide Pick: Picnic in the Park at Olympic Sculpture Park

Posted by: Laura Dannen on Jul 14, 2011 at 11:00AM 0 Comments

Enjoy a taco under Alexander Calder’s Eagle at Olympic Sculpture Park.

From the Seattle Summer Events Guide:

Does Anita’s Crepes have a food truck? We hope one turns up in honor of Bastille Day at SAM’s Picnic at the Park in Olympic Sculpture Park tonight. As Chris Werner reported on Nosh Pit, this is a new weekly outdoor fete, hosted by Seattle Art Museum and boasting multiple food trucks, wines from Taste, and live music every Thursday night through mid-September. Fun starts at 5:30 and goes until 8; bring an appetite.

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Tags: Seattle Art Museum, Summer Eating, Sun's Out, Get Out, Seattle Summer Events Guide, Seattle Summer Events Guide, Olympic Sculpture Park

Today’s Summer Guide Pick: Star Anna Plays a Free Show at Waterfront Park

Posted by: Laura Dannen on Jul 13, 2011 at 11:00AM 0 Comments

Don’t mess with a Star.

From the Seattle Summer Events Guide:

I don’t care if it’s raining, hailing, or chunks of the viaduct are falling from the sky this afternoon—get over to Waterfront Park at noon to hear Ellensburg alt-country band Star Anna and the Laughing Dogs play a free Out to Lunch set. Music writers are always touting the “next big thing” with the hopes that they’ll actually get one right—and with the release of their new album Alone in this Together yesterday, SA&TLD is breaking out in a big way—but I doubt Star Anna would give a damn what anyone has to say about her. She’d just level that steely gaze and unleash another round of aching vocals. Point made.

I’ve been listening to Star Anna and the Laughing Dogs for about a year now—seeking rock solace from all the indie pop—but this is no new act. Star Anna (her given name) was discovered busking outside an Ellensburg cafe at age 16, and the 25-year-old counts Pearl Jam’s Mike McCready and Guns N’ Roses’s Duff McKagan as fans and collaborators. With her band the Laughing Dogs, she’s been a regular at Tractor Tavern for the last few years, but this week feels like a coming-out party anyway. They have a new PR machine, a new label (Local 638 Records, the imprint of another Seattle rocker you’d feel cooler just knowing, Visqueen’s Rachel Flotard), and an exhaustive live schedule. There was last night’s record release party at Easy Street Records, today’s Out to Lunch show, and upcoming appearances at Teatro ZinZanni, University Village, and Kirkland’s Summer Concert Series before the big ticket: playing the Pearl Jam 20th anniversary show in Wisconsin.

Before they get too big to play free shows, see them at:

Waterfront Park, Seattle, noon, July 13
Teatro ZinZanni, 11pm, guest appearance, July 16
University Village Concert Series, 7:30pm, July 20
Kirkland Summer Concert Series, 7pm, July 21

New singles off Alone in this Together:

For When I Go
Alone in this Together

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Tags: Waterfront, Outdoor Concert, Seattle Summer Events Guide

Weekend Summer Guide Picks: GreenNote and Seattle Outdoor Theater Festival

Posted by: Laura Dannen on Jul 09, 2011 at 09:00AM 0 Comments

Photo courtesy John Ulman.

Macbeth (Reggie Jackson) and his lady (Tracy Hyland) come to Volunteer Park for the Seattle Outdoor Theater Festival.

Your weekend outdoor activities, courtesy of the Seattle Summer Events Guide:

GreenStage hosts its annual Seattle Outdoor Theater Festival in Volunteer Park, with two full days of tempests, comedies of error, and family fare (such as the sure-to-be-classic Arrh! A Dinosaur Ate My Spaceship). Eight local theater companies take part—here’s the full schedule:

Saturday, July 9
Noon As You Like It (Last Leaf Productions)
2pm Macbeth (Seattle Shakespeare Company’s Wooden O)
In the Enchanted Forest (Open Circle Theater)
4pm The Merchant of Venice (Last Leaf Productions)
5pm Arrh! A Dinosaur Ate My Spaceship (Theater Schmeater)
7pm The Tempest (GreenStage)
The Lost Folio (Wing-It Productions)

Sunday, July 10
2pm Antony and Cleopatra (GreenStage)
In the Enchanted Forest (Open Circle Theater)
4pm King of the Playground (Balagan Theatre)
5pm Arrh! A Dinosaur Ate My Spaceship (Theater Schmeater)
7pm The Comedy of Errors (Seattle Shakespeare Company’s Wooden O)
The Lost Folio (Wing-It Productions)

Also July 9 and 10
All-acoustic, eco-friendly GreenNote music fest is back for its second year, with singer-songwriter Matt Nathanson headlining at Seattle Center’s Mural Amphitheatre on Saturday, and Five for Fighting teaming up with Jon McLaughlin on piano on Sunday. Gates open at 5pm both nights; opening acts start at 6; and tickets are $22–$30. Read about GreenNote’s origins in our July 2010 article Smells Like Green Spirit.

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Tags: Theater, Outdoor Concert, Sun's Out, Get Out, Seattle Summer Events Guide

Today’s Summer Guide Pick: Alison Krauss and Union Station at Marymoor Park

Tickets are still available.

Posted by: Laura Dannen on Jul 08, 2011 at 10:30AM 0 Comments

From the Seattle Summer Events Guide:

July 8: Alison Krauss and Union Station featuring Jerry Douglass at Marymoor Park

Admittedly, I was drawn to Alison Krauss because of the company she kept—the same probably holds true for thousands of Led Zeppelin fans who picked up Robert Plant’s new album in 2007 and went “who’s that chick?” when they saw its cover. Their Grammy-winning collaboration had the benefit of T. Bone Burnett’s production savvy—he handpicked what’s been called an eclectic collection of covers for the odd couple’s duets; in doing so, he introduced a legion of rockers to a bluegrass beauty.

After her mega success with Plant, Krauss, who turns 40 this month, has returned to her roots—recording and touring again with Union Station, her backing band since the late ‘80s. She’s a little more country on new album Paper Airplane, but those vocals are still worthy of a rock god.

Krauss and Union Station are joined by guitarist Jerry Douglas tonight at 7 at Marymoor Park. Tickets ($58) are still available.

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Tags: Concert, Marymoor Park, Outdoor Concert, Sun's Out, Get Out, Seattle Summer Events Guide

Today’s Summer Guide Pick: First Thursday

Museums are free, galleries stay open late. Where to head this month?

Posted by: Laura Dannen on Jul 07, 2011 at 10:00AM 0 Comments

Image: courtesy Greg Kucera Gallery.

Deborah Butterfield, MADROÑO, 2009, unique cast bronze with patina, 86 × 117 × 26 inches.

From the Seattle Summer Events Guide:

July 7
Hit the streets of Pioneer Square for the monthly First Thursday Art Walk. Museums are free and open late; galleries pour wine and showcase new work.

If it stays overcast like it is now, it’s a good day to wander the neighborhood and duck into Greg Kucera Gallery, where internationally acclaimed artist Deborah Butterfield is showing new sculptures: free-standing horses that appear to be made of wood, but are actually fashioned from twisted bronze and scrap metal. The process is pretty incredible: Butterfield starts by making a frame out of sticks, branches, logs, and other slabs of wood, then covers the wood with a heat-resistant plaster. She fires the horse in a furnace and burns away the wood so only the mold remains, then pours molten bronze into the mold. After chipping away the plaster, what’s left is a metal stallion that looks eerily fragile—like the poor beast was forgotten outside of a saloon in a Wild West town and only its skeleton remains. See Butterfield’s work through July 30.

Exhibits opening this weekend:

Debra Baxter: Wanting Is Easier Than Having at Platform Gallery (opens July 7)
The Digital Eye: Photographic Art in the Electronic Age at Henry Art Gallery (opens July 9)
Gabriel von Max: Be-tailed Cousins and Phantasms of the Soul at the Frye (opens July 9)

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Tags: Visual Art, First Thursday, Seattle Summer Events Guide