Blog Archives

October 20, 2010

City Arts Festival Preview: Night One

by

Blue Scholars ::: photo by Josh Lovseth

Yes it’s that time again boys and girls. It’s festival time! Time to put the face paint on, run the trusty silver flask through the dishwasher and go buy a bottle of aspirin. Not for you silly goose. The mild pain relief is for your checking account and not your own aches and pains. How do I know you’re poor? You read this blog. Rich people don’t read this blog. If you’re rich, may I suggest you buy advertising on this website. It’s almost 2011, you can never have enough self promotion.

City Arts Festival is brand spanking new. I mean that literally, this is the first year that it has taken place. The festival circuit is a dogfight for concert promoters. Scheduling the festival in itself is an almost impossible feat. Then you have you to get notable, diverse acts that will separate your festival the dozens of others that seem to pop up every year. We haven’t even gotten to the point of hiring vendors or working with local venues. I’m exhausted just thinking about it. I just woke up and I need a nap.

What I’m really trying to say is, this festival might be executed perfectly or it might go down in a blaze of infamy like the Hindenberg. While City Arts Festival features more than just musical performances at your disposal, here at Sound on the Sound music is all we care about.  Keeping with that theme and my complicated contractual obligations, music is the only thing my hands are at liberty to discuss with you. Without further adieu….

Tonight — Wednesday October 20th

I know I’m running late to the party but in the day and age of the “smartphone”, it’s never too late to write a preview. As per usual you’re about to bossed around by technology. Where do you want to be tonight? You’ve got options:

(more…)

August 6, 2010

Inaugural City Arts Festival Line-Up Announced … and Its Amazing

by

cityartsfestival

Earlier this week local arts magazine and champion City Arts announced that they’d be hosting the first ever City Arts festival this October at venues around Seattle. But don’t let the word “first” trick you into thinking this is some amateur event, for their inaugural festival City Arts has crafted a line-up filled with national, international and local talent that rivals established festivals like Bumbershoot and Capitol Hill Block Party.

Just take a peek at an abridged list of the line-up:

Belle and Sebastian / Blue Scholars / She and Him / Big Boi / Gogol Bordello / Blitzen Trapper / The Vaselines / Roky Erickson / Brother Ali / Foals / Dum Dum Girls / Macklemore with Ryan Lewis / The Weepies / Fresh Espresso / The Head and The Heart / The Maldives / Sera Cahoone / The Atomic Bombshells / Brent Amaker and The Rodeo / Tilson / Star Anna and Her Laughing Dogs / Head Like A Kite / And Many More …

I chatted with Leigh Sims from the Festival this week and she told me what initially was an idea for a singular event to celebrate the beginning of “the fall indoor arts season,” blossomed into a full-on festival because there were just so many great ideas flowing. Not only does the October date separate this from most of the summer-based Pacific Northwest music festivals, the spirit of collaboration and creating once-in-a-lifetime events is also distinctive. At the fest you’ll have a chance to see Belle & Sebastian at Beanroya Hall with strings, Head Like a Kite with The Atomic Bombshells and Brent Amaker & the Rodeo for a rowdy sexy night and an all-star local hip hop show featuring Blue Scholars, Macklemore, Mash Hall and Fresh Espresso, plus out-of-towner Brother Ali. And that’s just a few … you’ve also got The Weepies with The Head and the Heart, Roky Erickson with The Maldives and a promising event called “Poetry and Hip Hop Church.” Wrist bands go on sale tomorrow for the festival and I’d pay the $125 for VIP Access to guarantee entrance to the big events.