Each week the Seattle Office of Film + Music compiles its rankings of the top 10 Pacific Northwest albums of the week. The numbers are based on sales figures at Sonic Boom and Easy Street locations throughout Seattle. Here are the results for the week of August 3-10: more ›

There's one reason you can't miss Seattle Shakespeare's generally fine production of The Tempest, and her name is Hana Lass. Following a turn as one of the three cast members of the Intiman's lauded production of Crime and Punishment, Lass takes a fine turn as the "airy spirit" Ariel in Shakespeare's final masterpiece. Lass switches up Ariel from a dour male character to a sexy sprite in a black veil. The character doesn't have a lot of line, but Lass still owns the stage when she's speaking, and employed as a plot device to carry along an episodic work, she's just stunning. more ›

Usually being the biggest of anything is a worthy distinction in its own right, but Bop Street Records’ appeal exceeds the sheer volume of its massive collection of music. more ›

Tonight, everybody's favorite local chanteuse Jesse Sykes plays a free KEXP show at Seattle Center's Mural Ampitheater, featuring music from her new EP Gentleness of Nothing. (Tomorrow night, Rocky Votolato plays the Mural.) more ›

Road trip! The seventh annual What the Heck Fest is taking place all weekend at venues in Anacortes. Mt. Eerie is but one of the many bands set to perform. more ›

We've already mentioned the lovely and talented Jesse Sykes appearing tonight at the Tractor with bandmate Phil Wandscher. Also tonight (and also in Ballard) is San Francisco's Citay at the Sunset. Think Sabbath and Zep meets the light pop touches of Big Star. Here's some footage of them from a previous visit to Seattle: more ›

Jesse Sykes is playing at the Tractor Tavern this Friday and we couldn't be happier about it. Along with Neko Case, we can't think of a local-grown voice that we like better than Jesse's. What makes it even better is that she's billing it as "a special last-minute acoustic show" according to her MySpace page. more ›

Audrey pretty much summed it up yesterday, but to paraphrase: Rocky Votolato and Jesse Sykes are a miraculous match made in Americana heaven. more ›

Some things go together so naturally that you wonder how they ever existed apart from each other. Peanut butter and jelly, Spencer and Heidi, the gays and Halloween. And now a musical double-header that seems to be a match made in heaven: Rocky Votolato and Jesse Sykes (and the Sweet Hereafter). Thanks to Barsuk (their shared record label), the two singer-songwriters are on the road together, and their joint appearances promise to be something special. more ›

Saturday we were at Smith with friend Wade just before heading down to the Triple Door to hear Jesse Sykes and the Sweet Hereafter [MySpace], and we were saying that while we liked the band we didn't get the goosebumps some people do and were curious to hear her live to see if maybe that would give us religion. It was warm and humid and the rain was coming down harder, and we finished up the sweet potato fries and went to go see what would happen. more ›

As usual, this weekend offers approximately nine million live music options. more ›

Last night at the Crocodile was one of those evenings you stumble on where things just keep getting better and better. We went down to see headliners Sea Wolf [MySpace] after hearing them do an in-studio bit at KEXP (not posted yet). About two songs in, the indie-folk melodies and lead singer's baritone duets with cello swept us and Shelves of Vinyl off our feet. more ›

While Neumo's hosts SIFF's second Face the Music Rock Party, featuring the dreamy pop of Viva Voce, the fragile and spooky soul of Jesse Sykes, and the swoon-worthy indie rock of Siberian, local cutie pie sister act Smoosh opens for sassy Brit girl-group throwback The Pipettes tonight. Here's a video of Smoosh's cover of Bloc Party's "This Modern Love" from a show earlier this week: more ›

Sniff sniff, single tear. It's the last full week of SIFF, so you're well approaching your last chance till next year to take in some of that sweet filmy goodness. SIFF's not just movies; this week offers both the Opticlash 2 VJ battle at the CHAC and the Face the Music party at Neumo's, the latter of which includes performances by Viva Voce, Jesse Sykes, and Siberian. Tickets for both are going fast! more ›

We’ve all heard it. Many of us have even said it. A “religious experience.” As in, “Seeing Tool at the Paramount was just amazing – like a religious experience.” It’s different for everyone. For some, it’s all about the environment of the show – the venue, the crowd, maybe the mushrooms you ate about an hour before the lights went down. For others, it’s all about the band. Maybe it’s Tool at the Paramount. Maybe it’s Phish’s 2004 final show in Vermont. more ›

When Seattlest first got word that we could interview Jesse Sykes we got really excited. Then we got nervous. You see, she kind of intimidates us. She's deep. She's beautiful. And that voice. Oh, that voice. But you know what? We really had nothing to worry about. What began as an interview became more of a conversation. One of the best conversations about music we've had in awhile. This is about half of that conversation. more ›

There' a constant ebb and flow when it comes to the music we love. Sometimes it seems like there's just nothing interesting out there. Nothing to light us up when we listen at home, in our car or on the bus, eyes closed. And then sometimes we find ourselves hauling fist-fulls of new music to the counter of our favorite record store. more ›

Last year's Sasquatch line up was good, but not good enough to get us to spend three days at the Gorge. We still prefer the festival in its one-day, all-in-one-fell-swoop form, but with the lineup that's been announced for this year's two-day fest, we may just have to make the trip. Out of the two days, it was Saturday that really made us coo. Bjork *and* Arcade Fire? Consider us sold. There are still bands to be announced, but here's how things stand as of right now: more ›

MUSIC: Dancing on the Valentine features wall-to-wall Duran Duran songs covered by local bands, including Say Hi to Your Mom, Valu-Pak, Speaker Speaker, and Peter Parker, all to benefit the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. more ›

Wednesday, February 14 more ›

It looks like a couple of the kids will be getting together this weekend at Linda's to raise money for Teen Dance Ordinance foe and friend of the music scene, City Council member Richard Conlin. Check it out; it's a Rock Star Bake Sale. more ›

The bane of musicians and artists around the country--the lack of adequate health insurance-- has compounded Suval's bad situation, and the 'Seattle Music Cares' benefits are an attempt to help her out. Tomorrow's show at Neumos will feature Jesse Sykes and Phil Wandscher, Matt Brooke and Jen Ghetto, Faith & Disease, Rocky Votolato and Black Nite Crash. Special guests will include Suval herself, who may even attempt to sing. more ›