Sunday 12/10 @ Neumo's Juno Ted Leo + the Pharmacists Junior Boys Cold War Kids SOLD OUT! Sunday was the much ballyhooed Part Two of the sold-out KEXP Yule Benefit. These are always great shows because the crowd is diverse and the mood is chill. The bands know they are playing for KEXP music afficionados like ourselves so they also tend to put on a slightly better show. Sunday was no exception. This odd......

Last night at Neumo's, the 4th annual KEXP Yule Benefit was chockablock with music. We missed out on local band The Hands and showed up mid-set for Annuals, for whom we saw enough of their Arcade Fire-meets-Neutral Milk Hotel-meets Animal Collective sound to know that we need to see them in their entirety whenever they come to town again. Next up was Junior Boys, who put on a solid set with their mixture of......

Tuesday, December 5 >>> Peter Walker at El Corazon. Not to be confused with Paul Walker or Peter Weller, Peter Walker's in town to support Young Gravity, his second album. We have read, though, that Walker evokes another Pete--Yorn. With maybe a bit more bite. 7pm doors; $10. All ages. With Division Day. Wednesday, December 6 >>> Victrola's own folk chanteuse Molly Rose headlines a singer/songwriter parade of not-yet stars at the Sunset Tavern.......

Okay, okay, we know that this year’s Bumbershoot lineup will leave you wondering what year it is, since we wouldn’t really call most of the acts especially current or relevant, but there are some things worth checking out. Friday, M. Ward is sure to rock (if you can call someone who mainly plays acoustic rocking). He is one heck of a guitar player and, oh boy, does he do a great cover of David Bowie’s......

When life gives you lemons, make lemonade. Or in Bumbershoot's case, when headliners Ani DiFranco and Devo both cancel, scramble like mad and book Iggy and The Stooges and Elvis Costello in their places. Whee! At least on the former; we're a mite wary of the latter. And as a bonus, the Stooges, short a bass player, are touring this summer with none other than Mike Watt. The lineup (as it stands now--who knows who......

Seattlest saw and loved Ted Leo + Pharmacists at Neumo's right after the election last fall. It made the bummer better. We have a theory that three-piece bands are the best: think the Jam, think Minutemen, think Husker Du, think Nirvana. Ted Leo makes a three-way marriage out of the angularity of the Jam and the olden days of the DC scene and the political stance of the Minutemen--this is a guy who has......