The Moondoggies :: at The Blue Moon :: June 19th, 2009
We’ve been saying it basically as long as we’ve been writing this blog, The Blue Moon is one of Seattle’s best and certainly it’s most under-appreciated venue. I say that fully believing that the most spot-on description you’ll likely ever see of the Blue Moon reads a little something like this:
That place is a real historic Seattle shit-kicker kind of place. You got the old timers and the hardcore drinkers. It’s one of those places where it feels they should have chicken wire onstage so people wouldn’t hit the musicians with bottles. When you walk in it just smells like old bar. … It was cool because there was nothing pretentious about that venue. You just have a lot of real people and then your friends. There would be people who would come there and just be like, ‘Ah, I can’t stand it—I have to leave!’ But it’s a very genuine good shit-kicker bar. It’s one of those places where you’ll be sitting there joking around and some crazy old drunk lady will just lie down on the floor next to you and start sleeping.
Kevin Murphy of The Moondoggies gave that description in a recent interview with LA Record, when he was asked about the band getting their start with a “residency” at The Blue Moon. Not many other (if any) Seattle venues are being called out by name by out-of-town interviewers. Even so, in Seattle-proper The Blue Moon often seems to be ignored as a legitimate music venue by both the press and regular concert go-ers. While it may very well be the least glamorous place in Seattle, you’ll rarely see a band at it’s more genuine bare than on the Blue Moon stage.
The Blue Moon has been our ‘home court’ for the past three years and it’s not uncommon for us to be there for a show a week. We were there as The Moondoggies got their start playing regularly at The Blue Moon, and we’ve been introduced to a number of our other favorite local acts from sets at The Moon. The Blue Moon is where local rock bands cut their teeth. And countless Seattle bands (both past and current) had their first gig at the venerable dive bar. Much like this blog, the Blue Moon is largely all about the locals. While there is an increasing number of touring bands on Blue Moon bills, we’d still say that 9 out of 10 bands you see at the Blue Moon hail from the Pacific Northwest.
We’ve spent the past few weekends being reminded just why we love The Blue Moon so much. On June 19th we saw The Moondoggies return to the Moon for a secret performance, and oh how the times have changed from those first sparsely attended late night sets. Even without being on the bill or the show being mentioned anywhere officially, the room was packed and buzzing for the Moondoggies. In spite of being on the verge of something much bigger, having been recently picked up by Red Light Management who manages acts like Dave Matthews Band, Ben Harper, and Phish — The Moondoggies looked perfectly at home on that shit-kicker stage. And the band played one of the strongest sets I’ve ever seen them perform, playing previously unheard songs among old favorites.
The Moondoggies ::: all photos by Abbey
Read about our next two weekends at The Blue Moon after the jump…
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