As Tuesday afternoon rolls around, we're trying to recall what we did last weekend and remember—hey yeah!—we hit two concerts: a five-band line-up at the Showbox on Friday, and Nine Inch Nails on Saturday. How could we have forgotten? Oh that's right, it was a boring-as-hell time. Friday night we headed down to the Showbox at the Market to catch Tea For Julie with Slowly We Survive and Shyforshy, all opening for Gin Betty! and......

"The Long Winters 01" by Flickr user Michael Alan Goldberg When John Roderick isn't writing hilarious lies about other musicians, he's fronting one of Seattle's best indie rock bands, The Long Winters. When last we saw The Long Winters, roughly one year ago, it was also at the Showbox and it was one of the best shows we've ever seen there. Roderick and company had just returned home from a lengthy tour and they seemed......

The amusing story of how we wound up at the Showbox Saturday night to see the Old 97s begins with a plan hatched amongst friends far too late at night (and after far too many drinks). And, what with the constant internet access you get with the iPhone, we wound up with tix to the show, while everyone else turned out to be spread between Las Vegas and Palm Springs last weekend. And thus......

Being a Chicago guy originally, this Seattlest is definitely a little biased towards this jamband from the windy city (via South Bend, IN). Umphrey's has managed to fill a little bit of the hole left in our musical soul when those four guys from Vermont decided to call it quits a few years ago. These guys can rock your ass off, pull out some sweet, tight jams and they work incredibly well together. In......

Despite what you may have heard the past few days--scuttlebutt about the sale of the Showbox Market and subsequent consolidation of venues at the SoDo location--it turns out that the original (and best) Showbox is staying right where it is, thankyouverymuch. Says Chad Queirolo, Talent Buyer/Manager for both Showboxes: It used to be once a year an especially virulent rumor that the Showbox lease would end in March. This has been happening for at......

There's nothing like the prospect of a smart hip-hop show to build up our anticipation on a Saturday night. One where we know that the act we're going to see can't fail to deliver, cranks that up a little higher than we can generally handle when we're forced to first stop by a friend's party before the show. To all those in Shoreline that we bored with excited chatter about Lyrics Born and Blackalicious......

There are a lot of synth-pop bands out there today -- too many perhaps -- so it can be an arduous task, to muck through it all and find the ones that actually have something more to say than, "Check out this keyboard my mom bought me!" See, we don't mind the synthesizers when they're used to good effect and without a shred of irony. Throw in pulse-pounding guitar rhythms and compelling lyrics sang by......

Kim is off to see Susan Werner at the Triple Door Sunday night. This weekend is a toss up for Matt between going down to Portland for the final days of the Body World 3 show at OMSI or heading out west to the The 26th Annual West Coast Oyster Shucking Championship and Washington State Seafood Festival. As previously noted, Seth is going to take The Grand Tour with George Jones at the Paramount. Friday,......

We've been anticipating this show for some time now and it's finally here. Tomorrow night at the Showbox, Brooklyn's The National bring their beautiful brand of brooding, soulful rock fronted by the man with the rich, deep voice, Matt Berninger. Whether you're a fan of their fantastic album, Alligator, or the new (also critically praised), Boxer, you're in for a treat Tuesday night as the band will no doubt draw heavily from both beloved albums.......

The number of rock clubs in Seattle isn't necessarily dwindling, but the number of rock club bookers is definitely trending down. First the staff at Neumos took over national booking at Chop Suey on the Hill, now the Fenix has gone away and their lease is being picked up by the Showbox. The new venue will be called the Showbox SoDo. The OG Showbox is changing it's name to "The Showbox at the Market." Little......

Do you need any other reason to go see Femi Kuti tomorrow at the Showbox? One of the most extraordinary world music artists/activists around these days, Femi Kuti aptly follows in the footsteps of his father, Fela Anikulapo Kuti. The senior Kuti was one of the great innovators of this type of music, and Junior's style and energy onstage are extraordinary. Did we mention the dancers? Get your Nigerian Afro-beat on, y'all. Tickets are......

The first time we saw The Polyphonic Spree was as the crazy band whose drummer had heart problems on Scrubs. A symphonic pop outfit formed in 2000 by the surviving members of Nineties power-pop outfit Tripping Daisy, the Polyphonic Spree was modeled after Seventies acts like the Electric Light Orchestra. Their new album The Fragile Army has been getting a lot of buzz with the first single "Running Away," which sounds like a mix......

It seems every blogger in the Pacific Northwest is singing the praises of the Seattle Art Museum after their reopening. It'd be fun to be the contrary voice that slams the whole affair but really, we don't have it in us - we loved the SAM this weekend as well, so chalk this one up in the "yay" column. As soon as we heard about the fact that SAM was staying open 24 hours, we......

Flickr photo by Anziano311 For the last few years Austin’s SXSW Music festival has brought Seattle their best European (mostly U.K.) bands; many of them making their first appearance here before heading back across the pond or whisking away to the many summer music festivals around the country. Seattle seems like a good enough launch pad though, and we’ve got a few beauties lined up. On Monday, May 5th two of the biggest bands......

This Saturday, Seattle's own The Long Winters will spread indie rock all over the spacious interior of our favorite venue, The Showbox. Reasons to attend this show: -- John Roderick's arrogance is matched only by his mastery of pop/rock hooks. -- Fabulous LA band The Broken West opens. Also in the house will be DorsiaFilms, shooting and recording the show on spiffy high-def equipment -- presumably to supplement the already fantastic material being edited for......

SNOW: Alpental got 4 inches at the base Saturday while we were up there, and the snow was light, with plenty of wind fill if you know how to seek out the good spots. We were jealous of our friends staying up in Lot 3, whose alarm clock this morning was the rumbling, gun-shot sounds of avalanche blasting. All day // Your favorite resort // It ain't cheap DANCE: The New York Times once......

MUSIC: Dancing on the Valentine features wall-to-wall Duran Duran songs covered by local bands, including Say Hi to Your Mom, Valu-Pak, Speaker Speaker, and Peter Parker, all to benefit the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. 8pm // The Crocodile, 2200 2nd Ave // $10 -- to fight disease! MOVIE: Age of Consent, a rare Michael Powell film featuring James Mason (Eddie Izzard's voice of God) slurring his lines and Helen Mirren as an incredible young hottie,......

COMEDY: Sarah Silverman is the reason we tell people to see "The Aristocrats" and now the woman has a TV show and a movie of her own, where she gets to say "I like to tell people that when God gives you AIDS (and God does give you AIDS, by the way), make...lemonaids." Two shows: 6pm/9pm // The Showbox // SOLD OUT, but... MUSIC: This is turning out to be the best Sunday ever. One......

BOOKS: Like mysteries? The 17th Annual Western Mystery Fan convention continues through the 4th. For a group focused on clues and figuring things out, they spell things out incredibly well on their website. Where's the fun in that? 9am-5pm // Renaissance Seattle Hotel, 515 Madison St // $60 (day pass) YO-YO: It's the annual Pacific Northwest Yo-Yo Championship. It sounds a little odd, and it is, but it's definitely a sight to behold, with people......

Tuesday, January 30 >>> Jacob London at Baltic Room. Jacob London is known most widely for their house music releases (they've put out material on the legendary Classic Music Company label), but tonight they'll be exploring their more techno-oriented output with a live set. We don't know if that makes it more or less likely that they'll bring their microphone monkey, but expect quality music with a lot of quirky turns. 10:00 pm //......

In which The Showbox gives the live music-going people of Seattle a belated lump of coal: The Showbox will officially become a Ticketmaster venue on January 1st, 2007. For all shows going on sale in 2007, tickets will be available exclusively through Ticketmaster. Shows that are currently on sale through our previous ticketing agency, TicketsWest, will remain on TicketsWest. To find out which agency is handling ticketing to a show you want to attend, please......

WEIRD SCIENCE: After we joked around about that Bodies show, we finally made it over there. Highlights: a body shape consisting of only the blood vessel system suspended in the air; diseased brains and lungs; a body stretched out Plastic Man style. Don't go if you have a weak stomach: we like to think we're made of pretty strong stuff but after almost an hour we saw one corpse cross-section too many (the meat......

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.......

Music: Cat Power, Chan (short for Charlyn) Marshall, brings her insanity-influenced act to our frozen burg. Right now she's walking around town, melting the ice with that impish smile of hers. 8pm // The Showbox // Tickets are $30 (Note: If you intend to scream Chan's name at the concert, or later, in the privacy of your bedroom, it's pronounced like "Shawn," just like the Angels' "Chone" Figgins. Go figure. And forget about the bedroom,......

Not a huge week in music, but hey, it's a holiday. Stay home and eat! Then put your sweatpants on! Tuesday 21st >>> +/- at the Croc. Fresh off their glowing review from Pitchfork, Plus/Minus brings their dynamic sensitive indie-pop to town. *mp3: Steal the Blueprints 9pm; $8. Wednesday 22nd >>> Blue Scholars at The Showbox. If you don't know who the Blue Scholars are and why you should see them live, get the......

Tuesday 7th >>> Foreigner at The Paramount. Be warned: whether you're cold as ice or hot-blooded, this is the kind of rock that leads to double-vision. *video: Urgent 8:00pm; $40-$150. The $150 includes a pre-show wine tasting and meet & greet. >>> Bonnie Prince Billy at The Tractor. Will Oldham has been keeping us at arm's length with the "Bonnie Prince Billy" moniker for years. We can pretend it isn't true, but it is.......

These cold nights we've been having really take us back to when we were kids and we had to ruin our awesome Halloween costumes with coats and bulky sweatpants to keep warm. The kids are out there working hard this Halloween night, so don't be an ass. Cough up the candy. Tuesday 31st, Halloween Night >>>"Devo Tribute Night" at Chop Suey. Teeth and Hair, The Pleasureboaters, The Torn ACLs, A Gun That Shoots Knives.........

Wednesday 25th >>> Cut Chemist and Lyrics Born at Neumo's. If Cut Chemist's contributions to Ozomatli are a highlight of your personal musical history, Seattlest will buy you a drink. We're just praying that Lyrics Born actually has some new material this time around, sheesh. 8pm; $18 adv/$20 door. Pigeon John opens and it's all ages, shorties. >>> Ziggy Marley at The Showbox. Bob's best-looking son does reggae just like daddy. 8pm; $30 adv/$32......

Tuesday 17th >>> Beirut at The Croc. This 20-year-old wunderkind from Albuquerque is the latest entrant into Who Wants To Be a Gypsy Rock Star Millionaire? 9pm;$10 >>> The Secret Machines at The Showbox. The sonically huge psych rockers will be performing tonight in the round, each member of the trio on an elevated platform on the venue floor. If nothing else, it's something different. 8pm doors; $14adv/$16dos. All ages Wednesday 18th >>> The......

Tuesday 10th >>> Clap Your Hands Say Yeah at The Showbox, with Architecture in Helsinki and Takka Takka. A KEXP benefit show, playing Tuesday and Wednesday. 8pm; All ages Tuesday, 21+ Wednesday; Sold Out! (Craig's List has some for sale or trade) >>> Chip Taylor & Carrie Rodriguez at The Tractor. alt.country would just be whiney cowboys without Chip Taylor, and the fiddle would just be a pansy cello without Carrie Rodriguez. 8pm; $12......