By the by, former BUFFY co-star (and Tim Duncan’s teammate at Wake Forest, before that!) Marc Blucas’ mondo-gorgeous wife, Ryan Haddon, used to be married to Christian Slater, and I have an issue of the ritzy TOWN AND COUNTRY magazine in which there is a “mansion porn” article spotlighting their (then seemingly) idyllic life! Hope things are …
Are you an aspiring songwriter? If you’ve ever listened to a song and thought, “I can do that,” Seattle pop-punk band Quickie is ready to give you the chance. The trio wants to collaborate with you (and you, and YOU!) on a new song titled “Weapons of Mass Distraction”. “We’re looking for a phrase, a …
The true thoughts of sad dogs…
When worlds collide, we often get comedy. A story on National Public Radio this morning showed how this can happen even in the most traumatic situations. Apparently, kidnapping is a booming business in Latin America. The Morning Edition host, Steve Inskeep, interviewed a woman in Venezuela whose adult daughter had been kidnapped. While negotiating with …
Ah, a prime piece of bubblegum. That’s Ron Dante in the video, lead vocalist on the record. Not only did Dante (born Carmine Granito) sing lead on this, the number 1 song of 1969, but he also sang lead and backgrounds on “Tracy,” a number 9 hit by the Cufflinks. Has any other singer had …
The prospect of making money always attracted the Chess brothers’ interest, and the same may be said of their star performer, Chuck Berry. In 1956 Berry’s music was still stigmatized as “race music,” not to be played on white rock and roll stations. But a novelty tune might just scrape through, and why not hop …
http://youtu.be/2mkr3GureeA
Saturday night May 25th I headed to Seattle’s University District to a very cozy little place called Kraken Lounge. On the bill were two of my favorite Seattle bands — Poorsport and Angie and the Car Wrecks. Poorsport finished out the night and unfortunately many had left by the time they came on. I don’t …
There is a mistaken sense of security that comes with driving on rural roads, and that can actually be considered a large part of their danger. You might think traveling on roads with much less traffic is safer, but in reality, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration estimates that twice as many accidents happen in …
http://www.mstarz.com/articles/12655/20130510/jimi-hendrix-miles-davis-collaboration-included-paul-mccartney-memo-requesting.htm Would’ve made an interesting rip in the Rock/Time Continuum, needless to say! If only Mark Shipper had known about this…. Imagine The Seventies if….Jimi, Paul, Miles, and Tony HAD formed "Sky Church" in late-1969 and (inevitably) sold MILLIONS of records— 1. The Beatles might not have had to break up permanently, thereby stanching the FLOOD of questionable “solo” product …
I actually kinda/sorta liked this song during its year of what seemed like hourly airplay on Seattle’s KCMU/KEXP (it’s right on the cusp o’ that local re-branding shift, so I don’t recall which call letter era it falls into, specifically), and at the very least it has stuck wit’ me all these years, but I greatly disliked them and all they represented and …
An impromptu night out Saturday May 18th landed me south of downtown Seattle at Slim’s Last Chance. This was my first time in this now legendary club. It think it’s even cozier than Darrel’s Tavern that’s about as far north as Slim’s is south to downtown Seattle. Slim’s is cozy, intimate and very friendly. I …
I’m not going to do a post on Ray Manzarek. I met him once. He was a good guy. I was part of a group of students that brought him and the poet Michael McClure to Washington State University for a standing room only performance. Ray was a perfect gentleman, a seasoned entertainer, and he …
Video premiere: Sara Jackson-Holman’s ‘Freight Train’ in USA Today – http://www.usatoday.com/story/life/music/2013/05/16/freight-train-sara-jackson-holman-video-greys-anatomy/2173893/ For someone untrained in the sweet science, Portland’s Sara Jackson-Holman sure knows how to land a one-two punch. Thursday morning, USA Today‘s website debuted the video for Jackson-Holman’s breathtaking new single, “Freight Train;” that evening, the song was featured in Grey’s Anatomy’s season finale. …
If you’re one of the “Sexy People” you’ve danced and sweated to “Erotic City” and to Sheila E. “Erotic City,” written by Prince, has one of the most recognizable dance grooves on this planet if you’re not compelled to hit the dance floor in the first 4 bars you’re dead. On a side note, Sheila …
I’ve long abandoned most modern and pop music labels, thinking of them as nothing more than marketing teams testing clever ways to sell products to people with little understanding musical evolution. In the broadest sense, general terms like Indie Rock are perfectly acceptable provided that critics don’t simply slather additional meaningless labels on top of …
Here is a revised version of David Bowie’s “Space Oddity”– a song originally recorded on earth and released June 11, 1969 to coincide with the Apollo 11 moon landing– which was recently covered by Canadian Astronaut, Commander Chris Hadfield, while on board the International Space Station. Someone had to do this eventually– cover the “Major …
Rancid will be performing July 11 and 12 at the Showbox SoDo in Seattle with Transplants and Noise on the 11th and Transplants and The Interrupters on the 12th. Rancid’s now classic album And Out Come the Wolves was first played in Seattle around 1997 by KNDD (a station that used to play punk but …
As of this writing, the Golden State Warriors are tied at two wins apiece with the San Antonio Spurs in the NBA Western Conference semifinals. This is their best showing in the playoffs since the 1970s, when Rick Barry was setting records for free throws with his trademark granny shot. Fans of NBA basketball north …
How did I miss this guy? Talk about a guy overcoming his disabilities. This poor kid, Michel Petrucciani died at 36 years old but lived to be one of the best Jazz pianists of his generation. He’s off the charts amazing at piano and you’d assume at first glance that his size would limit his …
Have you ever jumped on the bandwagon of the latest exercise fad? Maybe you thought you’d get a beach body in 90 days or tried to whittle your thighs into submission with the thigh master. If you can count yourself among the millions that have fallen for one of the latest exercise crazes, this is …
Much is made over famous entrepreneurs. Steve Jobs was practically immortalized, for example. But an important concept to keep in mind is that entrepreneurs rarely make it to the top alone. Successful companies have a team of successful employees who work together to make the entrepreneur’s ideas materialize. Not only is it crucial to hire …
“Whiskey princess, drink me under, pull me in…” This is a catchy little tune from All Time Low and the vid is salted with some funny scenes. Generally I’ve been done with pop punk since London Calling, and certainly since Rancid’s And Out Come the Wolves, but the chorus of this power-sweetened tune is stuck …
In a recent article on Slate.com, Amazon has been compared to a charitable organization. Despite sales in the billions, Amazon’s profits tumbled by 45 percent. How in the world does this happen and why aren’t investors up in arms? The answer may lie in the fact that Jeff Bezos is looking at the big picture, …
Your new job will be in Washington, D.C., and you have visions of the Potomac, the Smithsonian and the National Gallery dancing in your head. But DC is a little more complicated when it comes to real estate. In fact, most people who work in DC live either in Maryland or Virginia. As you start …
After the San Francisco Giants won their championship in 2010, I wish that I had attended Opening Day the next season. Until then, I had thought of Opening Day as one game out of one hundred and sixty-two, and having just paid more than I wanted to go to the National League Championship Series, I …
From The Johnny Cash Show:
At nine in the morning on Friday, my wife called me at my office. “It’s Metallica Night at AT&T Park,” she said. “I think you should go.” That sounded a lot better than working, so after lunch I took off and drove down to Concord, where I took a BART train into San Francisco. It …
This Swedish band, Goat, is from Korpilombolo. There were in Chicago two days ago. I should have gone. Drat! Sweden produces great music these days… Opeth and Meshuggah are very different from Goat. – Mark Erickson
Just because it’s a Tuesday night doesn’t mean Seattle’s night life slows down. The last day of April and Neumos on Seattle’s eclectic Capitol Hill is hosting London punks Killing Joke. Front man Jeremy (Jaz) Coleman came out looking like a cross between Iggy Pop and Alice Cooper with heavy black eyeliner, thick black hair …