Results tagged “sonicboom”

If the words Neutral Milk Hotel and free don’t relieve any autumnal sorrows you might be feeling, we’re afraid we probably won’t be able to help you.

STAND-UP FOR CHIMPS: Pioneer Square's Comedy Underground will be hosting a charity event for our rescued furry friends over at Cle Elum's Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest. Put on by Yoram Bauman a.k.a. "the stand-up economist" and founder of Non-Profit Comedy, the stand-up comedy also includes raffle tickets, a slide show, and merchandise for sale. All proceeds of Stand-up for Chimps! will go toward spring planting for the chimps' vegetable garden, and besides money, they will also be taking donations of seeds and seedlings.

So there we were, trudging down 15th Avenue East a little...not glumly, no, but resigned to the fact that we were walking down the street with two DiGiorno's for One--for One! like a knife slid under the ribs--in a plastic sack because we'd forgotten our canvas bag, along with a slice of double-chocolate cake because, well, we deserve it, and as we made our way past Sonic Boom we heard a voice carry out the open door and thought, Ha, that sounds like Lykke Li, upon which we recalled that Lykke Li was in town to sing at Neumo's tonight so we doubled back and peered inside and there she was, the magical little 22-year-old Swedish pop songstress, just starting "Little Bit," and dressed like a more sober-sided version of Avril Lavigne (i.e., less eyeshadow), then moving on to "I'm Good, I'm Gone"--"You can clap if you want," she said shyly, and so people did--before ducking off the little stage and disappearing, which freed us to continue on toward home and self-rising pizza, marveling over the wealth of experiences you can have any night of the week on 15th Avenue, some coming all the way from Stockholm.

Seattlest has always felt odd using the listening stations in music stores. We love 'em and--the purchased and downloaded ringtones of strangers on the bus not withstanding--still feel that they're the best way to check out new music. It's just kind of weird rocking out in a store with the cans on while other people around you browse the shelves, blissfully unaware of the epiphany you're having, or that in some small but significant way your life is changing. Good weird, but still weird.

Sometimes this Seattlest is a bit behind the news, so an e-mail we just got from a friend who works in Fremont let us in on the fact that the Fremont Sonic Boom is closing and selling its CDs. 30% off new ones and 50% off used.

We're as guilty as anyone else when it comes to not knowing that Nada Surf has been living a second life of sorts -- a new life, all their own, long after "Popular," the satirical high-school anthem that ruled MTV circa 1996.

The last time multi-culti multi-genre singer-songwriter Manu Chao hit the Seattle area was at Sasquatch this summer (see above). Singing in French, Spanish, Arabic, Galician, Catalan, English, Portuguese, Italian, and Wolof, Chao fuses a variety of styles, including rock, reggae, punk and ska. So this ain't your grandma's drum circle's world music. There's no word as to when he's headed back to the Northwest, but if you're looking to experience the Spanish political punk in your own home, Nacional Records just released a limited quantity of the double vinyl version of his latest album La Radiolina today, available at Sonic Boom, Easy Street, and Everyday Music.

This summer Manu Chao showed his love to Seattle (and the rest of Washington) with an explosive set at Sasquatch (above). The seriously broadly multilingual and multicultural songwriter—he's French-born and -raised of Galician-Basque origins and sings in French, Spanish, Arabic, Galician, Catalan, English, Portuguese, Italian, and Wolof, often mixing languages within the same song—Chao fuses a variety of styles, including rock, reggae, punk and ska. With his hodgepodge of genres and tongues, he crosses cultural boundaries and appeals to many listeners who don't typically dive into "world" music. No doubt that's part of the reason why he just won his first Latin Grammy. If you're looking to experience the true Spanish political punk in your own home, Nacional Records is releasing a limited quantity of the double vinyl version of his latest album La Radiolina tomorrow. It'll be available at Sonic Boom, Easy Street, and Everyday Music.

Six Organs of Admittance is one man--Ben Chasny--and whoever he gets to come along for the ride. Shelter From the Ash, Chasny's ninth album under the Six Organs name (out today), features contributions from his Comets on Fire bandmate Noel Harmonson, Elisa Ambrogio of Magik Markers, and Superwolf/Zwan's Matt Sweeney. The album is a freak-folk magnum opus, full of well-restrained improvisations and fluid ruminations, considered and varied instrumentation (electric, electro, and acoustic), hypnotic vocals, and genre-melding that runs the spectrum from slowcore to psych rock and everything in between. For the time being, Chasny's doing a series of solo Six Organs of Admittance in-store dates on the West Coast before touring all proper-like come early 2008. So expect less weirdo post-folk noise and more intensive finger-picking (see above). He hits Seattle on Thanksgiving Eve for a free in-store at Sonic Boom Capitol Hill. This is your only chance to see Chasny before (gulp) next year. Like you've got a reason to stay in on a four-day weekend.

Above is a clip of local band-made-good Schoolyard Heroes, from their video shoot for new single "Plastic Surgery Hall of Fame," the final product of which can be seen here. The song's off their new album Abominations, out this Tuesday.

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.

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:

Lovely and melancholy Twiggy lookalike El Perro Del Mar (née Sarah Assbring) sings about parties and candy like she's about to place a call to the suicide hotline. Alright, it's not quite that depressing, but she's able to make her 60s girl group harmonies and "shoo-bee-doos" sound downright despondent, and that takes a special Debbie Downer-ability. How very Swedish. Of course, we say all of the above in the nicest possible way. Her poppy sadness is really quite pleasant.

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.

MUSIC: In a case of perfect billing, Math and Physics Club are taking a break from puppy petting and hand-holding to sing some songs for the kids as part of Town Hall's Saturday morning concert series.

MUSIC: Ben Kweller's in town opening for Gomez at the Showbox, but the smart money is on going to see his in-store, since it's free. Go hear some great indie-pop to kick off your evening.

Wednesday, February 14

Steve Jobs announced yesterday that he'll advocate eliminating copy protection for downloaded songs, also known as DRM. We asked our various music dorks what they think.

Wednesday, January 17

MUSIC: Criminally underrated British singer-songwriter Jim Noir delivers his psych-pop twice tonight: first an acoustic set at Sonic Boom in Ballard, and then rocking out at the Croc as part of the Sub Pop/Barsuk Winter Celebration and Holiday Party Extravaganza.

Seattlest got paid today. What does that mean? Off to the record store we go.

Tuesday 31st, Halloween Night

After kicking our collective asses for four consecutive days, the heat is finally backing down. So pull yourself together. Go outside again -- especially to Capitol Hill this weekend.

We always try to listen to Don Slack's Swingin' Doors show on KEXP. If we aren't in the car when it's live (6-9pm on Thursdays), we catch the replay on KEXP's streaming archive.

Another week of Seattlest making all your plans for you. You don’t even have to think! Joy!

Call Rumsfeld! The United Kingdom is exporting weapons of mass distortion to the U.S.! [Insert laugh-track]

It's been over 24 hours since the new Neko Case album hit stores, and Seattlest still hasn't said anything about it? Unacceptable.

Oh how the tides will change…

Would you believe us, if we told you the little girl who gave Ben Seaver his first kiss on the lovable TV show “Growing Pains,” has an album on the Easy Street and Sonic Boom Top-Seller lists?

Over at the mass-market music stores like Sam Goody and FYE, the “Best-Seller” lists are occupied by those finger-puppets artists you’d expect to hear on KISS 106.1 or KUBE 93 (i.e. Black-Eyed Peas, Kelly Clarkson, Jamie Foxx).