We clued you in to this last October, but now it's official: Sub Pop Records is celebrating its 20-year existence with a three-day comedy and music festival July 11-13. And the (initial) lineup, though weighted more heavily in the hipster-ish now, features a few super acts from the label's big then. Per yesterday's press release: The SP20 activities will commence with a comedy show on July 11 at The Moore Theatre. Among the performing......

Try as they might Tuesday, Great Northern couldn't bring much levity to a heavy night at the Showbox. Their fuzzy, bordering-on-pop sound was like the prologue of a bad dream—when you know something bad's coming, but for the moment, things are truly swell. In this case, badness (in the coolest sense of the word) was the looming presence of Mark Lanegan and Greg Dulli: The Gutter Twins. While the place was still pretty well-lit, Rachel......

Musicians who remain active in the recording industry for over 20 years usually become internationally famous and aim to save the world, or quietly cultivate a devout fan base by emancipating humanity one pair of ears at a time. Mark Pickerel—drummer, vocalist, and Ellensburg native—has followed the latter career path. While in high school, Pickerel joined what would become one of the most notable—and yet most overlooked—bands of the grunge era. Seven years later,......

Sometimes we'd rather experience a new (or new-ish) band's sound in person, rather than be tipped off by their recorded work. So we haven't listened to Great Northern's streaming songs, played their (first) 2007 album, or let fly The Gutter Twins' online teaser. (We didn't even listen to that live Twins clip; sorry if the sound sucks.) Tomorrow night, when the former opens for the latter, we expect to experience true aural pleasure. Great......

Last week, Seattlest lamented the four-year absence of a live-in-person-on-a-Seattle-stage Mark Lanegan. Yesterday, we found new tour dates on the Gutter Twins’ (Lanegan’s latest project) Sub Pop page. And guess what? The Twins—Lanegan and Greg Dulli—will actually play Seattle during their "Maiden Voyage" tour. It'll be the Showbox (original)—site of Lanegan's last full-set appearance—on March 4, the date the duo's first album, Saturnalia, hits the bins. Score. Thanks for reading your record contract Seattlest,......

Has it really been over four years since you've taken a stage in Seattle, Mark? We could be wrong, but your late 2003 Showbox show—a great one, by the way—is the last we heard about. (QOTSA appearances don't count.) Assuming we're right, that's just silly. It's not like you haven't had albums to support. Your 2006 pairing with Isobel Campbell was a gorgeous, syrup-and-sour-mash treat—but did you two share any live love outside of Europe?......

So Krist Novoselic blogs for the Weekly now. Oooh. Courtney Love doesn’t need any stinking alt-paper to share her anarchic thoughts. She’s got authenticity. She’s got voice. She’s got MySpace. Love’s latest piece, a 3700-word manifesto—titled "oh shit the inspartion fairy sprinkeld her glitter"—speaks volumes about her character. its ironic cos its loose and sick and cool and beuatiful and Linda doesnthave time ever- wich is a shame as its our record mostly tho......

In a few seasons, Seattle indie stalwart Sub Pop will shed its adolescent husk and turn 20. Bruce Pavitt and Jonathan Poneman, the dudes who put Soundgarden and Nirvana in bins before major label reps stormed Seattle, will, according to this bio, celebrate "as conspicuously as they can manage." As well they should. They were the fuse to said bands’ (and others’) genre-birthing TNT, after all. And though maybe not as globally revered since the......

Nothing says 1993 like Mark Lanegan's hair flowing in the wind.......