Last week Hardly Art quietly posted to Amazon a sampler of 17 of the year’s more notable tracks from artists such as Le Loup, the Moondoggies and the Dutchess & The Duke, including a few special tracks that haven’t appeared anywhere else. Lucky us, they are offering it for free to the world.

It’s all here: a Dutchess & the Duke demo, an acoustic mix from the Pica Beats, and to my delight, as the final track, a song representing the fruits of the Arthur & Yu and Moondoggies live collaboration this summer. They chose to feature “Magic Mtn,” the B-side track from Arthur & Yu’s their 2009 Record Store Day EP Don’t Piss into the Fire, a track which garnered many repeated listens on my part. That being said, it’s also a track which I’ll admit I’ve relished even more as a live song with the backing of our fearless flannel fashionistas, The Moondoggies.

In short: 17 free tracks from one of Seattle’s best houses of musical talent. You know what to do.

Happy Monday.

Announced at last night’s Seattle City of Music Awards is an exciting new project, GIVE Seattle. GIVE has brought together 25 of Seattle’s best bands, local businesses, government, and non-profits to create a downloadable compilation CD in support of Art Corps and neighborhood Food Banks. The compilation will feature original tracks and 10 videos from 25  Seattle bands and will be available November 17th at area businesses with 100% of the proceeds will be donated to Art Corps and local food banks.

Beyond the good causes the 7$ you spend on the download will help, you my friend, are going to gets some absolutely great music. Featuring a mix of Seattle’s biggest bands and some up and coming Sound on the Sound favorites, I suspect it will be in heavy rotation as soon as it’s been purchased. While a full track list isn’t available yet, I got a little scoop on the compilation last week. The list of participating artists reads like a who’s who of local bands. You can expect exclusive tracks from Ben Gibbard, Dave Bazan,  the Dutchess and the Duke, The Whore Moans, Fresh Espresso, the Lonely Forest, Moondoggies, Maldives, and more.  I’m especially looking forward to Gibbard’s contribution, a cover of one of my favorite Neil Young songs, “Harvest Moon.”

There are plans for a concert to celebrate GIVE’s mission and to make more money for the great local non-profits, though a date and line-up has not been set. Hopefully we can also look forward to this giving becoming a regular thing, there are already hopes and plans for a second complilation next year.

1 Compilation. 7 Dollars. 25 Awesome Local Bands. A Great Cause. Sounds good to me.

Pick up GIVE at local businesses and stores starting November 17th.

People of New York City! Music bloggers who are lucky enough to be going to NYC for CMJ! Bookending this years CMJ festivities are two showcases featuring the talented bands and local labels of the Pacific Northwest, and we assure you, they are very worthy of your time. The Maldives, who tour minimally outside of Seattle are coming special for the Mt. Fuji showcase, so please don’t miss your chance to see them. And I think you’ve probably heard of a little Seattle label called Sub Pop and it’s offshoot Hardly Art…

October 20th at Bruar Falls, 245 Grand St.
Mt Fuji CMJ Showcase featuring
10.15pm Whore Moans
11pm Maldives
11.45pm Black Whales
(See the poster above)

October 24th at the Mercury Lounge
The Sub Pop/Hardly Art CMJ Showcase featuring
7pm Unnatural Helpers
8pm Dum Dum Girls
9pm Moondoggies
10pm The Dutchess & The Duke
11pm Golden Triangle
12am Pissed Jeans
1am Obits
2am Male Bonding

KEXP will be there broadcasting live performances every day and hosting a film festival. Locals the Blakes and the Moondoggies will both be stopping by to get in a session, in addition to bands like the XX. It’s actually a pretty wide ranging lineup, very much in the spirit of the fest.

There are a few other showcases which will will be featuring other Seattle area bands including:

October 20th at the Santos House Party Basement
10.30 Flexions
11.30 Unnatural Helpers

October 20th at the Suffolk
9.00 Tennis Pro

October 21st at Wicked Willies
9.00pm The Purrs

October 22nd at Googies Lounge
8.00pm Kasey Anderson

October 22nd at Union Hall
11.00pm Army Navy

October 23rd at Googies Lounge
7.30pm Kate Tucker

October 23rd at Crash Mansion (Downstairs)
9.15pm The Blakes
10.45pm Army Navy

October 24th at Union Pool
7.40pm Flexions

October 24th at the Gramercy Theater
10.10pm Blue Scholars

October 24th at the Suffolk
10pm D. Black
11.00 Champagne Champagne

This is your chance NYC to see a number of bands we’ve helped to get you to know and there’s plenty of talent to chew on from those listings alone.  Of course there is an insane number of other non-Seattle bands playing CMJ, you can find the complete schedule for the festival online.

Holy Fuck ::: Photo by Abbey Simmons

If the first day of Bumbershoot reminded me of a renaissance festival, then the second day reminded me of last-minute shopping at your local mall. The day felt a bit odd because there was noticeably less people than on Saturday, but somehow it felt more crowded. Blame it on the rain that came down so aggressively, but at one point I felt like I was back in the southeast. I was in a state of befuddlement. The press room conjured up memories of freshman year in high school, as I paced the carpeted corridor trying my best not to make a fool of myself. Barely seen, definitely not heard. Just give me a plate of pita chips, a cup of coffee and a quiet corner and I’m good. It was funny seeing people with Rolling Stone and Spin press passes. They reminded me of sailors who were getting ready to board the Titanic, I didn’t have the heart to tell them their ship was going to sink. Worst part is, at least in the two aforementioned cases, they were boarding ships that sank more than a decade ago. Tragedy.

For the record, concert goers look at people with press passes like vestibules to the rockstars. Whenever I journeyed beyond the guardrail, I saw many eyes that said “How come you get to do that?” like some small child feeling injustice for the very first time. It was a weird dynamic that I’d never experienced before. When asked I would tell them the truth, only the self-involved can hang with the like. They understood.

Despite the afternoon torrential downpours and the bitter winds that came in the evening, the spirit of the music didn’t suffer one bit. I missed Cold War Kids for the umpteenth billionth time but didn’t really care. I missed the Yeah Yeah Yeah’s in favor of Mt. St. Helen’s Vietnam Band, which may or may not have been a mistake. I’ve heard mixed reviews on the Yeah Yeah Yeah’s set on Sunday, but when I saw them a couple of years ago they were majestic. Mt. St. Helen’s Vietnam Band have become local darlings since their cryptic YouTube videos debuted a while back. I’d never seen them before but after Sunday, I’ll keep one eye on them, the other eye closed.

After years of being a fan, I finally got to see the transcontinental jam connection that is Extra Golden on the Fisher Green Stage. They were astonishingly crisp and tight. From now on, every LP they release should be a live recording. I know I’m not the only one who feels this way but the Fisher Green Stage was easily the best stage the entire weekend. Dyme Def and Common Market were great on that stage. Every live set I witnessed seemed to be energetic with good crowd participation. Maybe the Vivian Girls would’ve been better served if they moved their set from the Broad Street Stage to Fisher Green. Then again, probably not. I must say that the Vivian Girls are the most boring and rehashed group to ever play music. Ever. Yes, I said ever. While I enjoyed their voices, I think they need to put down their instruments immediately. Shame on any media heads that have given kudos to this band. You’re inexplicably boring or you’re being paid off, you’re definitely a dick that’s for sure. Cut it out. Seriously.

Sleepy Eyes of Death are sonically the completely opposite of Vivian Girls and they put an impressive show at the Sky Church. Sleepy Eyes’ intro was crazy, it sounded like cicada’s with synth strings serving as their marionette had suddenly entered the room. Lights became the curtain and photographers bloomed in the press pit. Big rock n’ roll. I could see them scoring computer generated scenes from “human body” specials on the Discovery Channel for sure.

Holy Fuck lived up to their name. They were magical, my favorite set of the weekend. I was happily convulsing on the side of the stage. It was weird because I felt the Broad Street Stage had some sound issues during Mt. St. Helen’s and U.S.E. The sound, accompanied by the outdoor setting kind of fucked up U.S.E’s enjoyable set. But Holy Fuck sounded immaculate, I wonder what happened? They had me, as well as everyone else, moving like snakes being charmed. By the time they were done, I was done as well. I decided to be that guy and rock a track jacket and a trucker hat instead of a nice warm hoodie. The cold turns me into a coward. Never again will I accidentally trade fashion sense for comfort. Knowing what I know now, I should’ve stayed for Raphael Saadiq, I heard his set was really good.

Bumbershoot 2009 ::: Photo by Marcella Volpintesta for Sound on the Sound

The Dutchess and the Duke ::: Photo by Abbey Simmons

Read the rest of this entry »

The Return of Jesus Lizard ::: Photo by Abbey Simmons

Day One of Capitol Hill Block Party was a massive whirlwind of activity for us. Between taking pictures of the first three songs at the main stage, properly meeting a few of our local music writing and music photography brethren, and attending everything we wanted to see while staying hydrated and not getting burnt out on the crowds, it’s a wonder we managed to stay on schedule at all. But we did! Sweet, sweet audial victory!

Capitol Hill’s own Dutchess and the Duke started the festival off on the main stage by introducing a new bassist and announcing they’ll have a new album out titled Sunset/Sunrise in October via Hardly Art. After taking in their set, bulging with enjoyable new songs; we stumbled upon Caffe Vita’s Bean Room, where KEXP and the Seattle Times’ Andrew Matson were hosting intimate acoustic sessions. Surrounded by bags of coffee beans stacked to the ceiling, Hey Marseilles brought the whole band in and impressed with a short four song set fit for a gloriously sunny Seattle afternoon.

Deerhunter’s set was a highlight of the day, despite a few early sound issues. I’m steadily being seduced by their music the more I listen to it. Throughout the set the band was slowly (and not-so-slowly) draining a bottle of Maker’s Mark. Black Lips guitarist Cole Alexander picked up the slack though for the one song he jumped stage for, taking moments to tilt steeply and chug between bouts of drunkened dancing in a green trench-coat and singing a lyric or two, leaving the bottle on stage with half the amount it had just minutes prior.

Built to Spill returned to Seattle on the CHBP main stage with a veritable “Best Of” set as voted on by the fans. With fans being involved, the set had a lot of conversation value, fans consulting one another as to their choice while declaring their own choice as the best Built to Spill song ever. “Car,” “Big Dipper,” “You Were Right” all happily made appearances. Given the festival setting though the band stuck to the script and played as many songs as possible with the time they had. Thus, rambling guitar solos were at a minimum and “Cortez the Killer” was not to be, no matter how much both Branford Cox from Deerhunter and I wanted it.

Jesus Lizard’s David Yow wasted no time in showing Seattle he hasn’t changed a bit in the 13 years since Jesus Lizard had been banned from the city. Within the first song, after a running start he had flown over the pit into crowd and spent the last half of the song floating on top of the crush. The songs he wasn’t in the crowd for, new crowd surfers sprouted with abandon. Yow himself menaced the stage, his body language doing as much growling as his lyrics. If I saw this dude looking like this on the corner I was about the cross over to on, I would probably decide cross the street on the other side.

After surviving the harrowing pit and crowd of Jesus Lizard we retreated to the back smaller stage to see if Starfucker had started the oh-so-difficult Seattle dance party. Not unexpectedly, the Portland foursome had riled up the kids, though with the crowd of this magnitude, it was fast becoming an uncontrolled bouncing and pushing frenzy that threatened to knock over the speaker stacks. By the last few songs, security had become a bit rough with the young crowd and brusquely pushed them back a safe distance so the stage would not in their words “tip over.” But by that point the party was already on and the kids were stopping for no one, no how.

As we hoofed it home after midnight we reflected on how nice it is to have the festival in our own neighborhood, what a mad man David Yow is, and how glad we were that Starfucker started a dance party that threatened to take down the stage. This weekend at least, it seemed Seattle was prepared to allow itself have fun with abandon.

The Dutchess and The Duke (now four members!) ::: Photo by Abbey Simmons

The Dutchess and The Duke’s new bassist ::: Photo by Abbey Simmons

The Best View on the Block? ::: Photo by Abbey Simmons

Read the rest of this entry »

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

The Dutchess and the Duke ::: Photo by Abbey

I’ve got a strange obsession with hair and rock n’ roll or maybe just more generally hair and popular music. I’m currently testing the theory that by growing longer hair I may in fact also be increasing my aptitude for rocking. Looking through history one finds the association of long hair and rocking hard is strong, though I’ve yet to come to a firm conclusion based on my own short experience.

Up here in the Northwest it seems we may have also taken that theory a whole ‘nother step by deciding to now bundle our mana in our beards, or at the very least our facial hair. (It’s just that much closer to our hearts I guess.) Among the latest crop of musicians who are easily identifiable with the new popular Seattle sound are beard supporters aplenty. Band of Horses and Grand Archives practically started this whole beard rock thing. Common Market. The Maldives. The Moondoggies. Fleet Foxes. The Dutchess and the Duke. The Cave Singers. Aqueduct. Throw Me the Statue. David Bazan. The list goes on. And the baby-facers? We’ll the ladies I suppose, but even the Sera Cahoone band has it’s own beardo and fair share of legit mustaches.

To drive my point home I thought I’d evaluate a few short match-ups of artists appearing at Sasquatch in this column to determine: Is Seattle the beardiest of them all? In my quest to weigh each band equally I’ll be asking myself primarily this question: which band most embodies the spirit of beardedness? Diversity, quantity (how many members), size and overall aesthetic are all factors that go into determining a winner.

To set the stage a little bit more, let’s delve a little deeper into just how serious we take our beards up here in the northwest. Before Sasquatch was to even happen, two local party loving hip hop groups Mad Rad and Champagne Champagne, who each sport a notably bearded member agreed to a one on one basketball challenge where the loser would have to lose the beard before their Sasquatch appearance. I checked in with Mad Rad’s Terry Radjaw today to learn the results, and they’ve decided to make more of an event out of it, moving the showdown to later in the summer, to happen at the Funhouse on July 24. To get warmed up, let’s start with their virtual beard-off…

Real Life Local Beard Off
Champagne Champagne (SEA) | myspace |
Noon Saturday May 23 at the Yeti Stage
vs.
Mad Rad (SEA) | myspace |
Noon Sunday May 24 at the Yeti Stage

Winner: Champagne Champagne.
While we won’t venture a guess as to the eventual winner of the basketball challenge, we’ve got to say as far as beardedness goes, Thomas of Champagne Champagne is the clear winner. Thickness, face coverage and the fact that his beard’s style is unified with his hair style make him a model member of the beard brigade. Terry Radjaw gets props for overall commitment, but let’s be real here: a beard without a properly developed upper lip is hardly a beard at all.

For the other festival match-ups I’ve tried to match similarly constructed bands into various logical categories:

Main Stage Veterans
Murder City Devils (SEA) | myspace |
5:20pm on Sunday May 24 at the Main Stage
vs.
TV On the Radio (NY) | myspace |
6:35pm on Sunday May 24 at the Main Stage

Winner: Murder City Devils.
These two heavyweights play the mainstage one right after another, so you’ll easily be able to judge for yourself who the winner is of this one. We will always give props where they are due: Kipp Malone’s beard is impressive. Very impressive. But the Murder City Devils aren’t exactly slouches either. You’ve got a Spencer Moody’s “backwoods crazy” beard counterpointed by bassist (and Cave Singer) Derek Fudesco’s typical well groomed Seattle style. It’s a one-two high-low punch combo that’s stood the test of time. What really put this band over the top though is their roadie Gabe. Have you seen his beard lately? He could practically win this competition single-handed. (Or maybe single-bearded?)

–

Fleet Foxes ::: Photo by Josh

Expansive Melodies and Harmonies
Fleet Foxes (SEA) | myspace |
4:45pm Monday May 25 at the Main Stage
vs.
Other Lives (TN) | myspace |
12:35pm Monday May 25 at the Wookie Stage

Winner: Fleet Foxes.
Other Lives singer Jesse Tabish leads an impressive enough band that they’ve been asked to open for the Decemberists for a few Oregon stops in the coming days, and his beard is no minor effort let me tell you. Yet Seattle’s Fleet Foxes sport two of Seattle’s most notable and bushy beards in Robin Pecknold and drummer Josh Tillman, while the whole band at times supports a total of four beards on stage at once. Even if Fleet Foxes wasn’t the biggest band in the world right now, in this competition what band could compete with that?

–

Northwest Head To Head
The Dutchess and the Duke (SEA) | myspace |
4:20pm Monday May 25 at the Yeti Stage
vs.
Horse Feathers (PDX) | myspace |
2:10pm Monday May 25 at the Yeti Stage

Winner: The Dutchess and the Duke.
I thought this match-up was a very good one and a hard one to tease out a winner. Neither band uses a drum, both are pretty acoustic, and both have a primary female member. Both also have front-men with beards. We had to include another beard from the Northwest to properly be able to judge if Seattle was really the place, or if it was just Northwest thing in general. You might call Horse Feathers’ Justin Ringle the model Portlandian Beardo: sensitive, acoustic, and thoughtful. D&D are those things too. What puts the The Dutchess and the Duke on top in this is the overall sense of unreserved fun. A happy beard always wins over a frowny beard in my book.

–

Conclusion
After laying it out like this, it seems pretty clear that Seattle is the beardedest of them all. Though I suppose luckily for our locals God wasn’t a player in any of these head-to-heads. If Matisyahu had been attending Sasquatch, things might look much different…

Unnatural Helpers ::: Photo by Josh

The news today is that local label Hardly Art has has signed local noise rockers Unnatural Helpers to their roster. Kimberly Morrison of Hardly Art band The Dutchess and the Duke plays bass in this band. Most of their frenetic song-thoughts clock-in at under two minutes.

 
Here it is folks, the end all and be all…our Top 25 Northwest Albums of 2008. While numbers 6 through 25 were highly contentious, there was unanimity as to the Top 5 Northwest Albums of 2008 and their order. There’s no doubt in our minds, that no band deserves the accolades more than The Moondoggies. Their album Don’t Be A Stranger is an instant classic in the vein of Music from Big Pink. We expect 2009 to be even bigger than 2008 for The Moondoggies, and we can’t wait to see what comes next from them, as well as the other great bands that made this years list.

1. The Moondoggies - Don’t Be A Stranger |myspace|
2. J. Tillman - Vacilando Territory Blues |myspace|
3. Wild Orchid Children - S/T EP |myspace|
4. The Dutchess and The Duke - She’s The Dutchess, He’s The Duke |myspace|
5. Kay Kay and His Weathered Underground - S/T LP  |myspace|
6. Fleet Foxes - S/T LP |myspace|
7. See Me River - Time Machine |myspace|
8. Whore Moans - Hello From the Radio Wasteland |myspace|
9. Starfucker - S/T LP |myspace|
10. Jake One - White Van Music |myspace|
11. Blind Pilot  - 3 Rounds and a Sound |myspace|
12. Thee Emergency - SOLID |myspace|
12. Sera Cahoone - Only As The Day Is Long |myspace| 
13. Horse Feathers - House with No Home |myspace|
14. The Pica Beats  - Bring Back the Claws |myspace|
15. Throw Me the Statue - Moonbeams |myspace|
16. Das Llamas - Class Wars: K-12 |myspace|
17. The Builders and The Butchers - S/T LP (re-released nationally 7/08) |myspace|
18. Saturday Knights - Mingle |myspace|
19. The New Faces - S/T LP |myspace|
20. Damien Jurado - Caught In Trees |myspace|
21. Bark Hide and Horn - National Road |myspace|
22. Grand Archives - S/T LP |myspace|
23. Hey Marseilles - To Travels & Trunks |myspace|
24. The Hands - S/T LP  |myspace|
25. A Gun That Shoots Knives - Future of Love  |myspace|

Here is my list of what I consider to the be the “best” releases I’ve heard this year, full albums and EP’s, local and not, self-released or with a label. Regular readers probably won’t find too much surprising but there are a few that we may have not featured very much, probably because I just didn’t have too much to add to the already existing narrative. Most notable among that list is my number one choice From Emma, Forever Ago, by Bon Iver, AKA Justin Vernon. Each listen of this debut LP proffers a new detail to my ear and generates a renewed catharsis within my soul.

Before I start opining any further and get out of control (we’re saving that for next week’s official Northwest-themed lists), here are my favorites from the past year…

Josh’s Top 25 Releases of 2008

1. Bon Iver - From Emma, Forever Ago |myspace|
2. Dead Confederate - Wrecking Ball |myspace|
3. The Moondoggies - Don’t Be A Stranger |myspace|
4. J Tillman - Vacilando Territory Blues (Digital Release Only) |myspace|
5. The Whigs - Mission Control |myspace|
6. The Dutchess and the Duke - She’s the Dutchess, He’s the Duke |myspace|
7. Wild Orchid Children - S/T EP |myspace|
8. Kay Kay And His Weathered Underground - S/T LP |myspace|
9. Starfucker - S/T LP |myspace|
10. Cut Copy - In Ghost Colours |myspace|
11. The Notwist - Devil, You + Me |myspace|
12. Noah and the Whale - Peaceful, The World Lays Me Down |myspace|
13. Land of Talk - Some Are Lakes |myspace|
14. Fleet Foxes - S/T LP |myspace|
15. The Dodos - Visiter |myspace|
16 See Me River - Time Machine |myspace|
17. Jake One - White Van Music |myspace|
18. Whore Moans - Hello From the Radio Wasteland |myspace|
19. The Pica Beats - Bring Back the Claws … |myspace|
20. Thee Emergency - SOLID |myspace|
21. Lightspeed Champion - Falling Off the Lavender Bridge |myspace|
22. The Saturday Knights - Mingle |myspace|
23. Army Navy - S/T LP |myspace|
24. Horse Feathers - House with No Home |myspace|
25. Crystal Stilts - Alight of Night |myspace |

The album I listened to the most that was actually from last year but didn’t discover until this year…

The Avett Brothers - Emotionalism |myspace|

You’ll notice TV on the Radio, Of Montreal, Portishead, and Deerhunter aren’t in there. Nor Lil Wayne. I’m sorry (but not that sorry) to say I’ve listened to all of these records and they just didn’t do it for me. Dear, Science is certainly an innovative record, but I didn’t connect enough to warrant the repeated listens of those listed above. Vampire Weekend’s record is another that fits that profile, a well realized album that unfortunately for me is without any lasting impact. And I’ve diligently searched for the quality in the Deerhunter album that has everyone shouting, but I’m just completely missing it.

Today you can buy the MP3 album of Bon Iver’s For Emma, Forever Ago from Amazon for 5 bucks. After my ringing endorsement, and at that price, you have no good reason not to go get it.