After much speculation, it was just announced that the original incarnation of local emo legends Sunny Day Real Estate (Nate Mendel, William Goldsmith, Dan Hoerner, and Jeremy Enigk) will reunited for a 20-date US tour starting September 17th. Additionally, Sub Pop is reissuing remastered versions of the band's first two albums, with bonus tracks (ooooh) and new liner notes (ahhhhh). The tour kicks off in Vancouver and ends--home again, home again, jiggity jig--at the Paramount on October 16th. Tix will be $28 and go on sale sometime next week. Full list of tour dates here.
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MIDDLE EASTERN EXPOSURE: All the way from Kabul, ladies and gentlemen, Tamim Ansary! He's in town to talk about his book Destiny Disrupted, which is like his World According to the...well, Islamic World. Spanning the time from Mohammed to the fall of the Ottoman Empire and more, he tells a counter-narrative of cultural progress in which the rise of the West kinda, you know, sucks. The San Francisco Chronicle calls the book “an indispensable guide," while the Oregonian says it is "vivid, often wrenching." more ›

Every Seattle musician or music appreciator respects the work of Jeremy Enigk. The erstwhile lead singer of seminal (and possibly reuniting?) emo band Sunny Day Real Estate and The Fire Theft, Jeremy has since released four solo albums (five, if you count The End Sessions, which we don't). Thursday's the CD release show at Neumo's for his latest album OK Bear, which just came out two days ago. All the press materials on the new album mention that it's "less orchestral" than previous efforts, which makes it extra-ironical that he's playing with the Seattle Rock Orchestra, a full-fledged thirteen-piece orchestra (hence the name, duh), with instrumentation like that found on his first solo album, everyone's precious Return of the Frog Queen. So this is your chance to hear those songs live in their original lush form, as well as the new stuff getting the same grandiose treatment. For a taste, check out the Monday afternoon KEXP session Thursday morning at 8 a.m. (and if it's after 8, hit up the archive). more ›

Lordy, we are getting old. Midway through day 2 of Bumbershoot, we were dragging hardcore. The crowds, the drunk white guys, the terrible fashion---it was all getting to be too much. But then we nutted up and carried on with our high-octane music intake. more ›

We hate to sound cynical and old, but my god! Day two at Bumbershoot felt a lot like a tenth grade field trip to white people's rock and roll camp. We ain't dissing the kiddies, but when we head to the overcrowded, sweat-drenched beer gardens just to be amongst people our age, it's worth mentioning. more ›

Decisions, decisions. This member of Seattlest will have a good friend in town for the duration of Bumbershoot weekend, so most of our scheduling will depend on him. Good thing our friends tend to have taste. Present company excluded. more ›

Love Bumbershoot, but wish it were more elitist? You're in luck. more ›

Last night at a half-full Neumo's, former Sunny Day Real Estate frontman Jeremy Enigk played a solo set to a crowd of reverent dudes and the women they had dragged there with them. Seriously, as we looked around the audience, there were a bunch of guys all into it, and a smattering of women bored out of their minds. Two girls in front of us (there with different dudes) spent most of the show answering phone calls and texting, obviously eager to get the hell out of there. We saw a grand total of one girl singing along with Enigk. more ›

Bumbershoot sent out an email this morning announcing a bunch of acts for this year's Smaller, Better Festival. There's even more hiphop on the bill with the addition of local act Blue Scholars and Common Market and Brit chick Lady Sovereign (who we're looking forward to seeing with The Streets soon). Area indie rockers Crystal Skulls and Rocky Votolato will be there and to continue the trend of one Brit band for every couple of local acts Badly Drawn Boy is now scheduled. more ›