Some of you may be rolling your eyes, but there are just some musicians who simply define a generation, and influence future generations of artists. In our opinion, Sting is one of those people. more ›

We've been following the Dead Prez/Evergreen State College story here, here, and definitely here in our search to understand what actually happened after that hip hop concert. It certainly was not the beginning of a revolution, as Evergreen students have been protesting anything and everything since time began; it also wasn't The Man reenacting Tien'anmen Square. more ›

Vancouver Police have arrested a 52-year-old man on suspicion of third-degree assault of an officer and malicious mischief, after he terrorized a neighborhood and led police on a slow speed chase on his lawn mower. A very slow speed chase, indeed. Police reported approximate speeds between 3 and 5 mph. more ›

The University District was plagued with violent assaults this weekend. Within a 36-hour period four students were assaulted in what were thought to be related attacks, a man was seriously injured in a stabbing, and another University of Washington student was robbed at gun point. more ›

Following the announcement that Seattle's crime rate is the lowest it's been in 40 years, Seattle Times columnist Nicole Brodeur has an article about how it doesn't feel that way, given the the shooting at the party downtown, the shooting of DéChé Morrison, the stabbing of Shannon Harps, the schoolteacher who got beat into the pavement on East Pine, and the woman hit in the head with a hammer.

I was glad to hear about the strides police have made on the streets of Seattle. But really, all it did was remind me there have been no arrests in the three recent murders, or in the two attacks. Police have a "person of interest" in the Harps case, but to be honest, the police sketch looked like every other 30-something white guy in Seattle: wool cap, beard, earring. I think I dated him last summer.

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Jack has already mentioned Stars at the Showbox, and Katelyn's put the word out about Grayskul and Hangar 18 at Chop Suey. That leaves us to mention M.I.A. and the Cool Kids at Showbox SoDo, or, if you like things a little more old-school, Mudhoney is at El Corazon. Here they are playing "Hate the Police" in Prague: more ›

Front-page screamer in the P-I today: School crimes under wraps. more ›

Seattlest watches as a S.L.U.T. is born and Seattle Flickr users go nuts over a local art installation. A restaurant critic demands a Diner's Bill of Rights over a gnat next to her drink, and, in lieu of a Portlandist, Seattlest debates with itself over the identity of the Northwest's crown jewel. Seattlest also joins the guys from Fantagraphics for an ill-fated gun party in the woods. more ›

Not to be outdone by his ex-wife’s recently rebounded career, Eddie Van Halen has reunited the band to hit the road again this fall in a joint effort remind everyone that they’re still alive. Forcing his kid to take sides in his battle for the spotlight, Eddie has appointed his sixteen-year old son, Wolfgang, to replace Michael Anthony on bass while David Lee Roth rejoins the new and improved band because it's Van Halen, not Van Hagar. more ›

The recent karaoke-based violence in Wallingford at first seems surprising. A "little hippy girl" freaked out on a guy who was attempting to sing Cold Play's Yellow and was so incensed that she went so far as to headbut arresting officers as they were restraining her on the pavement outside of Changes. However, Seattlest is surprised the guy wasn't bum rushed by the entire bar. Check out this video: see if you can last one minute without wanting to cold cock the guy. more ›

Meeting Jesca Hoop before a recent opening-slot gig at the Showbox, we weren't entirely sure what to make of her. With her debut LP not out for two months and only a few songs available streaming on the net, we labored--mistakenly--under the impression that this waifish Jack Mormon who'd spent several years homesteading was really just another singer-songwriter strumming an acoustic guitar. more ›

Last week we made it out to our first Duck Dodge sailboat race of the year -- there was no theme, but it was hot, the upper-80s, and there was a good breeze which made for an actual race as opposed to beer drinking and chip munching punctuated by the occasional slow-motion tack. Notes on the race from Duck Dodge HQ mention that "Shoot the Moon had a kayak that just couldn't stay away from them," which may explain their mid-race consultation with the Police Boat. We (the crew of the mighty Ig, a Cal 20) spent most of the race jockeying with a boat with a WSU logo on its stern. In Lake Union! By god, they come over here and try to steal our wind! more ›

Blatherwatch is reporting that the police are seeking a Person of Interest in the murder of Mike Webb. Ex-KIRO talker Webb was found dead in his home recently. more ›

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A decomposed body was found in the house of ex-radio guy Mike Webb. We heard that first on the television, but we've been reading about Webb on the excellent Blatherwatch blog for a while now--they've been following Webb's fall for months, even from way back in the days before they had a special category for "Mike Webb Missing" on the blog. more ›

Alright, it's probably time to start paying attention. This is the story of the guy in the wheel chair that the bicycle cops arrested on drug charges that you've probably seen on the news, or, if you haven't, you will soon. The arrest was videotaped and the tape fails to show the arrest as it was depicted by the officers in their report. You can watch it here, or if that doesn't work it's linked from the Times' website. A forensic video analyst has submitted a report on his examination of the video and the police report and he's calling bullshit on the SPD. Didn't happen like that, he says of the police report. The police report claims that a rock was found in his lap and that that's why they stopped him in the first place. The video analyst's report says they don't appear to have found anything in his lap and they roughed him up a bit with some unnecessary clamp holds. more ›

Seattlest got a Sony Walkman for our 15th birthday, and bought our first couple of cassette tapes with saved allowance: Dire Straits’ Brothers in Arms and Eazy-E’s Eazy-Duz-It. As any self-respecting male teen would be, we were offended thrilled by the latter’s raw language and humor. So within a few weeks, we’d procured N.W.A.’s tape, Straight Outta Compton. That’s how we knew what we were hearing Sunday night when we were put on hold after calling Mad Pizza: more ›

Holy smokes! Giant fish on the MTA, Paris Hilton in jail, then out, then in again, Al Gore, goatses, blumpkins, Matt Damon, and baby art critics! It's been a busy week across the Ist-A-Verse, and here's a smattering of what's been going on. more ›

Outside Key Arena last night, there were a few religious protesters with big signs urging passersby to repent of their evil ways, but inside the venue was a packed house eager to see The Police for their first tour in twenty years. The crowd definitely skewed older (and drunker), kinda like your parents at Oktoberfest, and the stage was sparsely set for the band's three solitary figures. As always, Sting was in one of his sleeveless t-shirts that rode up in the back, all the better to show off how well he's aged, thanks to approximately nine thousand hours of yoga a day. The show kicked off with "Message in a Bottle," complete with a greeting of "Hey Seattle, how ya doing?" to which the crowd, on its feet, responded enthusiastically: "OH MY GOD, STING IS TALKING TO ME AND HE KNOWS THE NAME OF THE CITY IN WHICH I LIVE!" more ›

Thirty years after the release of their first single (“Fall Out”), The Police are playing live again. And they’re still “unbelievably lame.” Hey, don’t get pissed at us—that’s 54 year-old drummer Stewart Copeland’s opinion. more ›

Slate.com put an article up yesterday suggesting GPS monitoring for abusive men who are under a restraining order. The batterer would wear a braclet or similar home arrest-type device and an alert would be sent to the police and/or the victim if he approached a home or office that was off limits to him. The example they use is Rebecca Griego who was killed by her ex Jonathan Rowan recently at the University of Washington's Gould Hall, arguing that Griego took all the standard evasive measures, but the situation still ended in tragedy. According to the article, Washington does have legislation in place that allows the use of electronic monitoring devices as a condition of a restraining order. Massachusetts recently passed a similar law that specifically mentions GPS. more ›

Reality show star gets arrested in Seattle over the weekend for allegedly acting like an asshole at a hotel and the P-I reports that he "spewed racial and sexual invective at a police officer." Surprise, surprise. Here's an imaginary Seattlest exclusive transcript from the future: more ›

It’s been over a week since the Viaduct vote, and we’ll admit it, we have no idea what the new plan is. There was some sort of announcement right after the vote that the state will spend some $950 million to spruce it up over the next few years. So, is that it? After years and years of debate, plans, and drawings of ethnically diverse group of people enjoying a better waterfront, was the solution simply to make the existing Viaduct stronger? What are we missing here? more ›

There's a Seattle Times editorial today that indicates that Mayor Nickels is going to deliver a State of the City speech that calls for additional police resources; 105 new cops over the next five years, which seems a little ridiculous in the World's Safest City. The editorial hints that it shares that viewpoint, but it's not enough to satisfy some who accuse the Times of supporting the mayor's new policing plan. more ›

Port of Seattle documents released Tuesday reveal a police chief fearful of a litigious union and overwhelmed by an e-mail scandal engulfing a third of his officers. more ›

Tickets for the Vancouver, BC reunion of The Police were sold out in under three minutes, sort of. Seeing them performing together again on the Grammy Awards show this month made us nostalgic for the soundtrack of our elementary school years. And now we learn that tickets for the June 6th show at Key Arena go on pre-sale tomorrow morning at 10 AM for members of The Police Tour Fan Club. more ›

--Isn't it a running theme of the first season of Reno 911 that officer short shorts constantly has his police bike stolen? And then that Seattle cop had his bike stolen yesterday from outside the police office at Seattle Center and he was probably standing there, with his mustache and his short shorts. And no bike. That's funny. Reno 911 is apparently doing some kind of roll your own episode contest to promote the movie. The above image is from a Seattle entry, but we put the embed below the fold because it's ten minutes long. Cuz we're always thinking of you, Valentine.
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Earlier today, one of you told us this: "Seattlest, you have a bit of the grumpy old man in you." Is it true, we wondered? So we asked Seattlest contributors if they've ever pulled that ultimate old man move: calling the cops. Turns out we are grumpy old men. And how! more ›

Just two weeks ago, Steve Huling announced that the family is selling their auto dealership, which they've owned for 60 years. more ›