Seattle’s all-ages concert guide You don’t need fake ID to have fun.

I did a lot of musical expansion this summer. Out of all my new favorite bands I’ve discovered, Sigur Rós was definitely one of my favorites of all these new favorites. With the recent release of their new album, Takk…, I’ve pretty much been in heaven. So of course, even though Sigur Rós were playing in Seattle on my very first day of college ever, and even though it had been an incredibly hectic week beforehand, I was incredibly excited to see them at the Paramount. It was definitely worth it.

Opening up for the Sigur Rós was the all-female band Amina, for whom my enjoyment was severely limited mostly by the fact that I had never listened to them before. Those who know me well (or have noticed a...

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Since the dawn of rock and roll, music has always been connected with time and place; e.g Detroit “Rock City” in the 60’s, Manchester in the mid 80’s and Seattle in the 90’s. Word has it these days that Montreal, Quebec is the new “hot spot” for indie rock. This night three talented acts from the city of Montreal would grace the fair stage of the Paramount.

The Bell Orchestre made what was one of the most subtle entrances I’ve ever seen any group make. The group made it seem as if their music was background music before the show started, when all of a sudden the lights turned off and there they all were on the stage. The Bell Orchestre consists of three members of The Arcade Fire, and two other founding members. The sound the group makes is almost indescribable, they gave off vibes of a classically trained gypsie dance group. The overall performance...

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There’s a rather brief list of venues that consistently put on all-ages shows. Not so brief as to leave me bored every night, but certainly still short enough for me to remember most of them off of the top of my head. So, when a brand new venue starts to put on all-ages shows, and not just a few shows, but several, it definitely deserves some attention.

Such is the case with Skate Barn West in Renton, who, with the help of Sk8core Records, have begun putting on all-ages concerts on select Saturdays, inviting skaters, bands, and listeners to congregate in their massive indoor park. For the performance, bands set up on top of one of the raised platforms in a corner, and the large area around it is blocked off from skating traffic. Meanwhile, those arriving to skate pay for wristband to skateboard as they listen, but are welcome to be part of the show, and those arriving just for the music pay a lesser...

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Another fabulous evening at the Vera! My ears are ringing and my feet hurt: painful now, but a sign of awesomeness but a few hours ago.

First up was a surprising delight, an all-female band all the way from Japan called Nisennenmondai (site also in English). I entered to hear recordings of what can be basically described as the sound of chipmunks on e, but the band of diminuative figures with hoods on finally climbed on stage to treat us to some exciting, quirky rock. They quickly removed the hoods to reveal white painted faces (like traditional Japanese dolls gone hardcore), and really got going. They played without a vocalist, except for one song with some staccatoed shrieks, but definitely maintained interest as they switched patterns and sounds, playing so intent on their instruments that they hardly looked up on the crowd. Their music was exciting in itself though, and I was quite...

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Talk about last minute. I found out about this show two hours before it happened, and found myself speeding back from Lake Stevens to get a good place in the crowd. The All-American Rejects are back, with a new album and tons of energy. Throwing a free show at the Everett Mall was just so very nice of them too. I showed up at around 3:45, expecting them to be on stage at 4. That didn’t happen. So I waited with the rest of the crowd as the sound crew kept checking…and re-checking all the equiptment. At 4:30 AAR ran onstage and broke us in with an “oldy”, ‘One More Sad Song’. The energy in the crowd was great, and the view, even as short as I am, was not that bad at all.

Before their next song, Tyson Ritter, Lead Singer and bassist, yelled out a hello to ‘Seattle’, and talked...

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The plan was (after our first all-staff real-life meeting last month) to start putting the announcements up at the beginning of the month. But so many exciting things keep happening (as always) that the monthly announcement gets pushed back and back. No more pushing! Here’s what’s happened, what’s in progress, and what will happen.

First of all, we survived all four days of Bumbershoot. We had a blast, reviewed some of the stuff we saw, and met some great people. Morgan, our now “official” photographer, got some great photos, so check out his Bumbershoot...

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At perhaps the most unique venue I’ve ever been to, the evening began with a mix of excitement and confusion. What the hell was the Divorce doing with Mon Frere at the Science Center? The same place I’d gone to learn about light and gravity and bugs was housing a local concert? Intrigued, I proceeded with caution. Haha, or at least curiosity. When we got inside the planetarium, there were a bunch of seats toward the back and a large open area in front of where the musicians were going to be. I planted myself dead center in the front row: where it’s at. Little did I know that the real action was going to be taking place on the ceiling.

When Mon Frere began, they hit things off on the right note, playing songs that were borderline hardcore, but still danceable. They played songs like “Clever...

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Bumbershoot is over?
Oh no!

The Cops [homepage] [interview 5/27]
Justine: our friends the Cops played what was the best performance I’ve seen from them. They were loud, they got a the crowd dancing and moshing, they played tons of new songs along with things from their EP, and they broke stuff (guitar strings, etc), while they were at it. They’re coming into a heavier sound, but it’s definitely a good one. If you haven’t caught on to their fabulous pop punk EP, their full length album comes out in November on Mt. Fuji Records.

Idiot Pilot [homepage]
Justine says: allow me to tell you the story of a converted soul, for all you wary of Idiot Pilot. When...

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Is it possible to get tired of Bumbershoot? Although we have sore feet and ringing ears, the answer is most definitely no.

Elvis Costello [homepage]
Justine remarks: when I was younger, my parents went to see Elton John and Billy Joel in concert, and dialed me on the phone so I could listen to some of my favorite songs. So of course, this time, I had to do the same in return for my parents. Elvis Costello was a classic, not to be missed! And so I found myself in a crowd of people I would identify as grownups (although I am rapidly approaching legal grownuphood myself), who were all singing along to their favorite songs, and not shoving towards the stage. How refreshing. Anyways, I comfortably held up a cell phone for my dad to listen in. And live, lucky me, I got to hear “Veronica” and other songs I remember singing along to in the backseat of my dad’s...

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Before we get going, the rumors are true. Death Cab for Cutie did make a surprise appearance at Bumbershoot. We were there. It was awesome. See reviews below.

826 Benefit [homepage, give them money!]

Alec says: The benefit was hilarious. The lead-up to Death Cab was good too. The show announcer, Daniel Handler (Lemony Snicket), told us early on that Death Cab was going to play. So as I floor it outside to go tell a couple of my friends and then floor it back as to not miss the benefit, the hype builds. As soon as I got there Ben Gibbard came out to play back-up music to Dave Eggers’ speech (which was from the point-of-view of a dog) about working together for education. Not only are the rumors true, but there is my musical idol on stage. I could not stop waiting for Death Cab.

After Dave Eggers was finished, Mike Doughty (ex-member of Soulcoughing) came out and...

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