If you’re gonna make an album with orchestral arrangements care of living legend composer Van Dyke Parks, you’re gonna have to go all out to perform it right. That’s why the first half of super English major/elven queen Joanna Newsom’s grandiose show last night at Benaroya Hall featured the accompaniment of local 29-piece chamber orchestra the Northwest Sinfonia to cover her last full-length, the epic five-song masterpiece Ys ("ees"). It’s not hard to recreate......

(This fall we are combining our love of the football and our dream of learning to cook. On Sunday morning, following a trip to a local farmer’s market/major supermarket chain, we will be preparing a meal from the city of the Seahawks opponent. Then at halftime we will throw our badly burned hands in the air and make hot dogs.) Sunday's NFC West showdown in San Francisco leads to many culinary possibilities. The best burritos......

BOOKS: Suze Orman, Seattlest's unofficial accountant from television is at the Central Library tonight. Mrs. Seattlest refuses to acknowledge that her name is pronounced "Susy." 12:30pm (whoops, already missed this one // Microsoft Auditorium/Central Library // free MOVIES: Roll your own double feature at the Crest tonight. Blood Diamond and Casino Royale are both there, but don't do that thing where you pay for one show and watch like eight movies. Actually, you'll have to......

Joanna Newsom---child-voiced chanteuse/classically trained harpist/hyperliterate woodland nymph---took the stage at the Showbox last night looking just as we expected: with long, flowing hair and donning a red garment more nightgown than dress. Climbing behind her harp, she was totally Holly Hobbie at the renaissance faire. She kicked off her set solo by launching into "Bridges and Balloons" and "The Book of Right-On," both off her first album, before playing a traditional Scottish tune. Cradling......

This is the all-geek edition of Get Out. If you're a normal person with friends and fully-functional social skills you may want to stay in this first Monday in December. MUSIC: If you, like Seattlest, can't pry your earbuds out with a crobar when Joanna Newsom's Ys is playing you should probably check her show tonight. She sounds like Bjork and Kate Bush's lovechild and she looks like an elf. And she plays the harp.......

Seattlest got paid today. What does that mean? Off to the record store we go. On our list today: Sufjan Stevens: Songs For Christmas (for tolerable Christmas music at home this year), Built To Spill: You In Reverse (finally), Joanna Newsom: Ys (we just stumbled upon her online today), and The Shins: Phantom Limb EP (for the wife. She finds them just adorable). So what's the rest of Seattle listening to this week? Here are......

Here's to the ice melting away because there are some good shows this week. Tuesday 28th >>> Cat Power at the Showbox. Chan Marshall plays the piano and sings. Our heart breaks. That's just how it is. She's on NPR, too. *mp3: The Greatest 8pm doors; tickets $30 at the door. >>> The Lemonheads at The Crocodile. Evan Dando's spent the last few years focusing on drugs solo work, but now he's brought back......

The P-I is reporting that the fight after the fight for the trees at Pioneer Square is for the wood from the London planes that were removed. Apparently they won't go into the fireplace of the mayor's guest cottage as we'd originally suspected. A developer (Smith) wanted the wood for trim on the waterfront street car shed that we can't believe is still being built on the edge of Pioneer Square. Another guy (Newsom)......