The Maldives and Moondoggies Sing-Along ::: photo by Abbey Simmons

2009 was an inspiring year for live music locally. My favorite shows ranged from intimate living room gatherings to huge festivals. They spanned genres from horror punk to hip hop to Ballard Avenue twang. They were almost all exclusively local, though I’ve seen a number of great touring bands in 2009. My hometown is where my heart is musically. Lucky for me (us all really) it was a banner year for local music, with a new found energy in the air and coming off the stages of Seattle. 

Seeing that we have a couple weeeks left in 2009, I’m hopeful there’s still another show in my near future that will be worthy of being dubbed a favorite. Considering how great 2009 has been, it would surprise me more if that didn’t happen. While this list isn’t ennumerated, it is in a hierachal order of most cherished towards the top.

David Bazan in an Edmonds, WA Living Room

Bon Iver at Sasquatch

Black Eyes & Neckties Final Show - Halloween in Bellingham

Doe Bay Music Festival

Nurses in a South Seattle Living Room

The Moondoggies at The Blue Moon

 The Maldives Three Night Stand at The Tractor

The Lonely Forest, Telekinesis, and The Globes at the Showbox

 Blue Moon’s 75th Anniversary Shows

The Rural Alberta Advantage at The Sunset

 The Ironclads Final Show Before Hiatus

Widower with Pearly Gate Music at the Sunset

 Fresh Espresso at Seattle Weekly’s Reverb Festival

Hey Marseilles and all of the Bean Room Shows at Cafe Vita During Capitol Hill Block Party

J. Tillman and Pearly Gate Music at The Sunset

A Gun That Shoots Knives and Doctor Doctor at Neumos

Mad Rad at Sasquatch

The Ironclads CD Release Show with The Whore Hands and What What Now at Holy Mountain

D. Black CD Release Show at The Crocodile

The Lonely Forest at Bumbershoot

Though I don’t have a photo to include with the list Regina Spektor’s sold out show at the Paramount is also one of my very favorite concerts  of 2009.

Murder City Devils at Sasquatch! ::: photo by Josh Lovseth

Spencer Moody provided some of our most memorable moments of 2009, even if he may not remember all of them. Sources tell us this first photographic moment and the Murder City Devils’ ranting Sasquatch set came courtesy of a backstage bottle of pear brandy. We watched the set like a car wreck. Grotesquely enthralled by the carnage, adrenaline pumping through our veins from what we were witnessing.

On the opposite end of the Spencer-spectrum is our final photo, of the MCD frontman in the VERA Project dunk tank at Capitol Hill Block Party. This was, without question, the best thing we accidentally stumbled on all year and we loved seeing the fierce front man smiling as he donated his dignity and dryness for a project near and dear to all of us.

The dichotomies of Spencer Moody, the sweet and savage, is a big part of what makes him so compelling to watch. We feel lucky to have witnessed and captured both sides this year.  

Murder City Devils at Showbox Feb 2009 ::: photo by Josh Lovseth

Spencer Moody in the dunk tank at Capitol Hill Block Party ::: photo by Abbey Simmons

Spencer Moody at the Vera Project Dunk Tank ::: all photos by Abbey Simmons

The best thing I accidentally stumbled on all weekend was Murder City Devils front man, Spencer Moody volunteering his time at the VERA Project Dunk Tank. For a mere 5$ people had three chances to dunk the Murder City frontman, 20$ to just walk up and dunk him.

Spencer did the entire thing donning his signature glasses, cap, argyle socks and shoes. It was awesome to see one of rock’s fiercest front men allow for some comedy at his exepense and to benefit a great cause. And he did so with obvious enjoyment, dare I say, glee. You’ve never seen Spencer Moody smile so much! Though, he did bring a bit of his trademark heckling to the event, when there was a dunk dry streak, the front man stood up on the plank and did a dance to taunt his would be dunkers.

See more of Spencer Moody at the VERA dunk tank, below the jump!

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Here’s just a  quick photo tease of some of today’s (okay yesterday, it’s 2:30 am) Capitol Hill Block party festivities.

Hey Marseilles play a secret KEXP/Cafe Vita Set ::: all photos by Abbey Simmons

Deerhunter joined by Black Lips

Built to Spill

Jesus Lizard Return to Seattle

There are a few more up on our Flickr, so check ‘em out. There’ll be lots more soon. 

The Black Lips ::: photo by Josh Lovseth

Nothing like writing out your schedule for a festival to get you excited. I’m certainly wishing I could fast forward through the rest of the work week and get right to Friday afternoon and the Capitol Hill Block Party.  There’s so much to look forward to:  from an audience chosen Built to Spill set to Jesus Lizard’s long anticipated return to the city that banned them to seeing a number of my favorite local bands take the big stages they so richly deserve.

Here’s what my Capitol Hill Block Party weekend is looking like. Hope to see you there!

4:30 - The Dutchess and The Duke (Main Stage)
6:30 - The Black Lips (Main Stage)
7:45 -Deerhunter (Main Stage)
equally tempting: Sleepy Eyes of Death (Neumo’s)
9:00 - Starfucker (VERA stage)  - catching 15 minutes before running off to…
9:15 - Built to Spill (Main Stage)
10:30 - They Live (Neumo’s) — TIME CHANGED BACK
10:45 - Jesus Lizard (Main Stage)

The Wild Orchid Children::: photo by Abbey Simmons

Saturday July 25th

2:00 - Wild Orchid Children (Vera Stage)
equally tempting - Hey Marseilles (Main Stage)
2:30 - Pica Beats (Vera Stage)
3:15 - The Moondoggies (Main Stage)
4:45 - The New Faces (Vera Stage)
6:30 - The Maldives (Neumos)
7:15 - The Lonely Forest (Vera Stage)
7:30 - The Thermals (Main Stage)
10:30 - Sonic Youth
equally tempting: Sportin’ Life Showcase featuring Fatal Luciano, D. Black, & Spaceman (Neumo’s)
11: 00  The Japandroids (Vera Stage) - TIME CHANGE

You have to keep your Saturday Night going with one of two highly recommended after-parties:

Curious Mystery at The Comet
Mad Rad, Macklemore at Chop Suey