Without Green River in 1984, there might be no Sub Pop Records today. Without Sub Pop in 1987, there might be no Mudhoney—or even Pearl Jam—in 2008. (Green River begat Mudhoney and Mother Love Bone; MLB begat PJ.) And without either in the 80s, there likely would have been no "Seattle Sound" explosion in the early 90s. more ›

The night's first piece paired the Northwest Symphony Orchestra with Michael Shrieve, a badass, Rock and Roll Hall of Fame drummer who played with Santana at Woodstock. The combination of heavy percussion and hearty strings and brass had our knees bouncing. Next up was Messina, a funny, chatty guy with endless reserves of enthusiasm for the cause his symphonies support. The tango "Dance of the Rain" featured Dance Contemporary performers and Andre Feriante on acoustic guitar. The orchestra's string section paid perfect compliment to Feriante's deft fretwork. more ›

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." more ›

Kevin Wood and his brother Andrew formed Malfunkshun, one of grunge's true ancestors, in 1980. The band (Kevin’s on the left in this 1983 photo) contributed two tracks to the legendary Deep Six album in 1986, then fizzled soon after. Andy moved on to the almost-famous Mother Love Bone, but became a statistic in 1990. For years, Kevin played in various bands with other guys who'd nearly become well known. more ›

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Chris Cornell formed Temple of the Dog along with Eddie Vedder, Stone Gossard, Jeff Ament and Mike McCready to perform a couple of tribute songs for Chris's roommate Andrew Wood who had ODed in 1990. A couple of those guys also played in Mother Love Bone with Wood, who was previously known as Landrew the Love Child. This is a letter from Wood explaining that his presence in the band Mother Love Bone doesn't mean that an earlier project, Malfunkshun, was over. more ›

Seventeen years ago yesterday, flamboyant Malfunkshun and Mother Love Bone singer Andrew Wood died of a heroin-overdose-induced brain hemorrhage. He’d be 41 this year, near the same age as the guys who, in ’91, got together as Temple of the Dog to commemorate his short life. (Ironically, those guys became some of rock’s biggest acts.) Had Andy kicked the habit, Seattle’s then-music-future might have been dramatically different. His glam personality and look likely would have influenced the grunge scene and in turn, the nation. more ›

Tuesday, February 6 more ›