Off to conquer Bumbershoot ::: Photo by Abbey Simmons

This is what our Bumbershoot schedule looks like, because we are insane. If you’d like to see what covering Bumbershoot looks like with a lens focused on local talent, follow our schedule. It usually means catching 15 minutes of sets here and 15 minutes of another set there. It always means running around Seattle Center like a marathoner.

If you’d like to actually take your time and enjoy full sets at Bumbershoot, follow the schedule below, but with just the bolded choices. Sometimes we bold events at the same time, even for you, because it is worth splitting your time between two acts. Spend Saturday finding the best short cut between stages and by Monday, you’ll be a pro. We’ll see you all over the Seattle Center grounds this weekend!

Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros::: Photo by Josh Lovseth

Saturday September 4th

12:15 - Grynch (Fisher Green)
1:15 - Star Anna & The Laughing Dogs (Starbucks Stage)
2:45 - Zoe Muth & Her Lost High Rollers (Northwest Court)
3:00 - The Maldives (Starbucks Stage)
3:45 - Wheedle’s Grove (Fisher Green)
4:30 to 6:00 - The Round (Northwest Court)
4:45 - Justin Townes Earle (Starbucks Stage)
5:30 - The Decemberists (Mainstage)
6:45 - See Me River (EMP Skychurch)
7:15 - Neko Case (Mainstage)
7:30 - Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeros (Broad Street)
8:15 - The Cute Lepers (EMP Skychurch)
9:00 - Bob Dylan (Mainstage)
9:45 - Visqueen (EMP Skychurch)

Hey Marseilles ::: Photo by Abbey Simmons

Sunday September 5th

12:30 - Unnatural Helpers (Broad Street Stage) or School of Rock All-Stars (EMP Skychurch)
1:15 - Horse Feathers (Starbucks Stage)
2:00 - The Lonely H (EMP Skychurch)
2:15 - Hey Marseilles (Broad Street) or Fresh Espresso (Fisher Green)
3:30 - The Redwood Plan (EMP Skychurch)
4:00 - Dave Bazan (Broad Street)
5:45 - Ra Ra Riot (Broad Street)
6:45 - Fences (EMP Skychurch)
7:30 - Delorean (Broad Street ) or for pure train wreck potential … Hole (Mainstage)
8:15 - The Physics (EMP Skychurch)
9:15 - Weezer (Mainstage)
9:30 - Fatal Lucciano (EMP Sky Church)

Japandroids ::: photo by Josh Lovseth

Monday September 6th

11:45 - Brent Amaker & The Rodeo (Starbucks Stage)
12:30 - Bobby Bare Jr. (Broad Street) or People Eating People (EMP Skychurch)
1:15 - JEFF The Brotherhood (Center Square)
2:45 - Chris Pureka (Northwest Court)
4:00 - Meat Puppets (Broad Street)
4:45 - THEESatisfaction (EMP Skychurch) or Baroness (Center Square)
5:00 - The Moondoggies (Starbucks Stage)
5:45 - Japandroids - (Broad Street)
6:30 - Anvil (Center Square)
6:45 - Jenny & Jonny (Starbucks Stage)
7:45 - Wild Orchid Children (EMP Sky Church)
8:00 - Laura Veirs & The Hall of Flames (Northwest Court)
9:00 - Mary J. Blige (Mainstage)
9:15 - The Thermals (Broad Street)

While it will be difficult to tell here on Sound on the Sound and most local music publications, there are other things happening in Seattle this coming weekend that aren’t Bumbershoot.

If you didn’t have the cash to shell out or you hate big crowds or you’re not into the headliners or whatever the case may be, but you still want to attend a kick-ass arts and music festival, you are in luck. Happening Saturday at the Underground Events Center in Belltown is Bumblefuck, the anti-Bumbershoot hosted by the fine folks at Bad Horses. Featuring 16 local bands and even more local artists, the event costs $5 to Bumbershoot’s economy option of $30 a day. If you don’t have $5 to spend, you can donate canned food, or bring supplies and make art and you’ll get in for free. The event also needs volunteers to work the door and sell merchandise, if you do volunteer, your time and efforts will be rewarded with free beer and band merchandise. You can email agtsk@hotmail.com if you’re interested.

The music starts at 3pm and goes until 2am with sets from folks like A Gun That Shoots Knives, Curious Mystery, Partman Parthorse and Spurm. If you’re not going to Bumbershoot, let this be your alternative … or if you are heading to Bumbershoot and you’re looking for a non-sanctioned after-party alternative, head underground in Belltown for Bumblefuck.

Neko Case ::: photo by Abbey Simmons

Oh, the cruel games we play.

Do you enjoy mind-stimulating activities such as Soduku, New York Times Crossword Puzzles and/or Apples to Apples? If so, then you deserve a pat on the back and possibly an invitation to tutor me in a few of those areas. Especially in regard to crossword puzzles, I’m so terrible I don’t ever see myself leaving the “word find” circuit.  Luckily for people like me, there is alternative mind-stimulating game that accurately judges the content of someone’s character in three simple words. Marry. Fuck. Kill. If you want to call into question a friend’s lack of taste in other human beings, flawed thought process or how well they react under pressure, you play this game.

If you’re not familiar, let me clue you in.  You are given three options and you select “marry, fuck, kill” depending on what fictional scenario you may or may not want to happen in reality. However, I’m going to change some of the terminology. America is founded on Puritan belief (and the decimation of native populations) and I feel like we all need to get back to our Puritan roots. In keeping with the Puritan tradition, I’m changing “fuck” to “copulate with genuine feelings of desire” and I’m changing “kill” to “feverishly ignore.” Puritans had no problems with the idea of marriage, so I’m going to leave that be. I know I should have created more of an accurate “Marry.Fuck.Kill.” scenario using spreadsheets with color coded cells to signify scheduling conflicts, but those plans didn’t fit in my budget. Below the musical acts are broken down into the following categories. Some acts will just be listed while others will have brief descriptions. Enjoy.

Bands you want to “Marry” - These are bands you’ve already loved (or should have loved) for a long time,  now you’re ready to make that everlasting commitment.  You have long ignored all the flaws and blemishes related to these acts due to your blinding love for them.  They might have disappointed you with a few bad songs, a bad album or a lackluster live performance, but you stand by them because you’re suffering from the most fortunate chemical imbalance there is, love.

Bands you want to “Copulate with Genuine Feelings of Desire” – These are the bands that you’re just killing time with. Maybe you’re waiting for a more desirable band to start their set or maybe you’ve had one too many PBR’s and suddenly that bassist with the nose ring is looking hot! Easy tiger, keep your cool. You don’t want to wake up in the morning with schwag from a band that you’re not sure you like.  I’m not saying these bands aren’t worth your undivided attention, I’m just not sure you’ll have a long-term relationship with them.  Make no mistake if you find love here, I’ll be happy for you.

Bands you want to “Feverishly Ignore” – I’m not saying these bands suck, but now might be the perfect time to pretend to be having a meaningful text message conversation far away from the stage.

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If the cornucopia of choices Bumbershoot gives you doesn’t satiate your taste for live music or if you just want to keep the party going longer, there are a couple recommended kick-off and after parties happening around Seattle.

Fellow local blogger and friend Travis Hay is hosting two official Bumbershoot parties. First up is a kick off show Friday night with a bevy of local talent, where with a five dollar raffle ticket you can enter to win a pair of tickets for each day of Bumbershoot, a Sub Pop Records prize pack, a EMP/SFM prize package and a pair of tickets to Bumbershoot for Sept. 5 that give the winner side stage access to the main stage to watch Rise Against, Hole and Weezer. Hell, I’m going to buy a ticket to see if I can watch Courtney Love from the side stage.

On Sunday Travis plays host again to two big name touring bands: Surfer Blood and Dead Confederate. (Plus another Athens’ SOTS favorite: Futurebirds.)

Drop your full name in the comments below and you’ll be eligible to win a guest list spot to Sunday’s after party courtesy of Hard Rock Cafe, Travis Hay and Sound on the Sound. We’ll choose a winner on Thursday at 12pm.

Saturday night the after party is at The Crocodile with a Bumbershoot artist taking the stage for the second time that day. In the name of community courtesy, we’re not going to come out and say who it is, but we did do the research for you.

Here are the specifics on all three nights of Bumbershoot parties:

Friday September 3rd

The High Dive - The FunOfficial Bumbershoot Kick Off Party with Kay Kay and His Weathered Underground, Thee Emergency, Curtains for You, and Sol - $10

Saturday September 4th

The Crocodile - A Warp Records Recording Artist and Fresh Espresso - $17

We did the internet research for you … there is only one Warp Records artist playing Bumbershoot.

Sunday September 5th

Hard Rock Cafe - Official Bumbershoot After Party with Dead Confederate, Surfer Blood and Future Birds - 10 adv/15$ night of show

It is hard to fathom that Bumbershoot is next weekend, but it is. Even if Seattle’s summer never fully got started, the event that signals its end is just around the corner. Despite boasting legends and international stars as headliners, one of the sets I’m most looking forward to is the homegrown Round. The Round is bringing its DIY ethos and celebration of Seattle’s rich artistic community to Bumbershoot on September 4th between 4:30-6pm.

Sharing the stage with Tomo Nakayma and Shenandoah Davis of Grand Hallway will be Tacoma’s sweetly earnest songbirds, Goldfinch. To celebrate and promote the Bumbershoot Round, the band made this stunning video at sunset, which also features a brand new Goldfinch song.

So, when you’re planning your Bumbershoot schedule, I highly recommend you take a break from the bustle and buzz and sit awhile with Goldfinch and the rest of the Round performers. It’s a single set that will encompass Bumbershoot’s multi-faceted celebration of the arts: music, poetry and art.

Edward Sharpe & the Magnetic Zeros ::: photo by Josh Lovseth

We might still be sore from Capitol Hill Block Party, but that doesn’t mean it’s not already time to start planning for Seattle’s other big music festival, Bumbershoot. The festival quietly released its full schedule and I took it upon myself to type out the entire music schedule for the festival’s 40th anniversary, just for you.

In doing so, I have to admit, I’ve gotten pretty excited for this year’s Bumbershoot. The festival is pulling out all the stops for its big 40 birthday and from my vantage point, it’s one of Bumbershoot’s most promising line-ups in recent memory. Every day looks solid, but I’m especially looking forward to Saturday, which features headlining performances by Bob Dylan, Neko Case and The Decemberists and supporting stages filled with Sound on the Sound favorites Justin Townes Earle, The Maldives, Zoe Muth and Her Lost High Rollers, Star Anna and the Laughing Dogs, See Me River and Atlas Sound.

Start planning your Bumbershoot schedule now and count down the days till the festivals big birthday with me … only 37 to go.

Saturday September 4th

11:45 - Becki Sue & her Rockin’ Daddies (Starbucks Stage)
12:15 - Grynch (Fisher Green)
12:30 - Great Waves (EMP Skychurch)
The Submarines (Broad Street)
1:00 - Caspar Babypants (Northwest Court)
1:15 - Star Anna & The Laughing Dogs (Starbucks Stage)
Idiot Piolot (Center Square Stage)
2:00 - Born Anchors (EMP Skychurch)
The Constellations (Fisher Green)
2:15 - Plants and Animals (Broad Street Stage)
2:45 - Zoe Muth & Her Lost High Rollers (Northwest Court)
3:00 - The Maldives (Starbucks Stage)
HEALTH (Center Square Stage)
3:30 - Parlour Steps (EMP Skychurch)
3:45 - Wheedle’s Grove (Fisher Green)
4:00 - Atlas Sound (Broad Street)
4:30 - The Round (Northwest Court)
4:45 - Justin Townes Earle (Starbucks Stage)
Civil Twilight (Center Square)
5:00 - Feral Children (EMP Skychurch)
5:30 - The Decemberists (Mainstage)
The Budos Band (Fisher Green)
5:45 - Jamie Lidell (Broad Street Stage)
6:30 - This Providence (Center Square Stage)
6:45 - See Me River (EMP Skychurch)
Pete Molinari (Northwest Court)
Bob Schneider (Starbucks Stage)
7:15 - Neko Case (Mainstage)
7:30 - Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeros (Broad Street)
Balkan Beat Box (Fisher Green)
8:15 - The Cute Lepers (EMP Skychurch)
8:30 - Shawn Lee’s Ping Pong Orchestra (Northwest Court)
8:45 - Solomon Burke (Starbucks Stage)
9:00 - Bob Dylan (Mainstage)
9:30 - Ozomatli (Fisher Green)
The Ravenoneets (Broad Street Stage)
9:45 - Visqueen (EMP Skychurch)

To see Sunday and Monday’s schedule, follow the jump:

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Bumbershoot ::: photo by Abbey Simmons

We’ve just returned from the first big Northwest summer music festival to arrive home to the line-up of Bumbershoot, the fest that marks the end of summer and the festival season. It’s Bumbershoot’s 40th Anniversary and they’re pulling out all the stops, booking big name headliners like Bob Dylan, Mary J. Blige, Neko Case and the return of Hole.

As exciting as Bob Dylan is, his shows are hit and miss. (I saw him about 10 years ago and couldn’t decipher “It’s All Over Now Baby Blue” until the third chorus) But the best thing about Bumbershoot is you could avoid the Mainstage all weekend and still see tons of great bands. I know, because that’s what I’ve done the past few festivals. Off the big stage there’s still plenty of talent to get excited about including: Justin Townes Earle, Dave Bazan, The Thermals, Japandroids, Edward Sharpe & the Magnetic Zeros, Atlas Sound and many more.

As usual, the festival has done a great job booking local bands as well. You can see a few Sound on the Sound favorites at the fest including: The Moondoggies, The Maldives, Hey Marseilles, People Eating People,  Zoe Muth and Her Lost High Rollers and Fresh Espresso.

Here’s the full line-up so far:

Headlining: Bob Dylan / Mary J. Blige / Weezer / Hole / Rise Against / Neko Case / The Decemberists / J. Cole

Also Playing (we’ve bolded the bands we’re most excited for):

LMFAO / Billy Bragg / Ozomatli / Angelique Kidjo / Solomon Burke / The Dandy Warhols / Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeros / Jenny and Johnny (featuring Jenny Lewis and Johnathan Rice) / Jamie Lidell / The Raveonettes / Balkan Beat Box / Motion City Soundtrack / The Thermals / Ra Ra Riot / The English Beat / Justin Townes Earle / Booker T. / Surfer Blood / The Bouncing Souls / Japandroids / Bob Schneider / Anvil / Bomba Estereo / Jay Electronica / Aterciopelados / Baroness / James Cotton “Superharp” Blues Band / David Bazan / Meat Puppets / Crash Kings / This Providence / Brian Auger’s Oblivion Express / The Moondoggies / The Whigs / Greg Laswell / Civil Twilight / Trampled By Turtles / The Clientele / Atlas Sound / Laura Veirs & The Hall of Flames / The Budos Band / Bobby Bare Jr. / Horse Feathers / Vienna Teng Trio / HEALTH / Plants and Animals / Georgia Anne Muldrow & Declaime / Wheedle’s Groove / Hey Marseilles / Kings Go Forth / Sweet Water / Delorean / JEFF the Brotherhood / Chris Pureka / Shawn Lee’s Ping Pong Orchestra / Garotas Suecas / The Maldives / The Constellations / Coryell, Auger, Sample Trio / Grynch / Visqueen / Victor Shade / Star Anna & The Laughing Dogs / Fresh Espresso / Pete Molinari / Sista Monica’s “Singin in the Spirit” / Lay Low / Unnatural Helpers / Idiot Pilot / The Round / Wild Orchid Children / The Cute Lepers / Feral Children / Fences / Caspar Babypants / The Tripwires / Fatal Lucciauno / Loch Lomond / The Physics / THEESatisfaction / School of Rock All Stars / See Me River / Zoe Muth and The Lost High Rollers / People Eating People / Eldridge Gravy & The Court Supreme / Brent Amaker & The Rodeo / Born Anchors / Slender Means / BOAT / McTuff Trio / Parlour Steps / The Redwood Plan / Helladope / Lisa Dank / Greta Matassa Quartet / The Lonely H / Matt Jorgensen Quintet / Becki Sue & Her Big Rockin’ Daddies! / Great Waves / Brian Vogan / Johnny Bregar with more to come, including comedy, performing arts, film, literary and visual arts!

You can check out the line-up by day HERE.

So we meet again Metric. [Insert sinister laugh here.]

The last time I saw Metric was at the last year’s Bumbershoot when they were headlining the Broad Street Stage on final night. As a few of you may remember, I gave them a scathing review. The write-up was so harsh that I’m surprised I can even show my face at the Showbox tomorrow night. I didn’t wake up on the wrong side of the bed that fateful morning, I swear. Metric were really awful and off on that particular night. The mercurial sound system of the Broad Street Stage did not do them any favors either.  This is their first performance in Seattle since last December when they played Deck the Hall Ball. I expect Metric’s performance to be more like the latter rather than the former. However, If I start to feel a little Bumbershoot deja vu, you can probably expect the most unflattering piece in the history of post-millennium blogdom! Oh, the amount of venom my Macbook occasionally contains…

Come on Emily Haines and company, don’t give me the opportunity to write about your guitar tech again.

Front Row in the Rain at Macklemore during Bumbershoot ::: Photo by Josh Lovseth

“I get on stage, style, share my whole life, try to reach ‘em at the bar where they’re drinkin’ Miller Light.
But the kids in the front, they bring out the passion, dude. Make noise throughout the show, and not only when we ask them to.
I watch the older cats, jaded in the back, hand clasped, forgot when they weren’t too cool to be a fan. Damn. Hatin’ at the concert, you don’t remember RCKCNDY, watching Hiero or wylin’ out to alcoholics.
I know, it’s not the same, it never will be. But hey, my, my, my, my city’s filthy.”

- by Macklemore from “The Town”

Thanks for sharing 2009 and the front row with us. Have a happy and safe New Year!
See you in the front row in 2010 Seattle!

The Ironclads’ Front Row ::: Photo by Abbey Simmons

Passion Pit’s Front Frow ::: Photo by Josh Lovseth

The Maldives Front Row at Doe Bay Festival ::: video by Abbey Simmons

Dead Confederate ::: Photo by Abbey Simmons

Day Three of Bumbershoot 2009 was characterized by rain. A whole lot of it. Macklemore’s first show of the day on the Fisher Green Stage met the brunt of it, yet a thick contingent of fans kept their hands raised and swaying, oblivious to the wet. Even with the weather, the enticement of Cold War Kids, Franz Ferdinand, Modest Mouse and Metric all in one day was enough for a healthy number of fans to still brave the festival. Those who did were treated to great sets from both the night’s mainstage acts (including supposedly one of Modest Mouse’s better sets in Seattle, ever).

Janelle Monae ::: Photo by Marcella Volpintesta for Sound on the Sound

An Adoring Crowd ::: Photo by Abbey Simmons

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