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Remember SP20? Now you can relive it with Sub Pop’s Record Store Day offerings

March 10th, 2010 by travis hay

Record Store Day, the annual event where indie record shops offer tons of exclusive goodies to music fans in celebration of independent record stores, will be here on April 17.

Last year Seattle’s own Sub Pop Records celebrated Record Store Day with the release of some limited-edition vinyl offerings from Bllitzen Trapper, Flight of the Conchords and more. This year Sub Pop stepped up its game a bit with some pretty cool releases including a benefit CD of live performances from 2008’s two-day SP 20 celebration (that’s the cover of the album over there on the left) and a limited-edition 7″ reissue of Soundgarden’s first Sub Pop single “Hunted Down” with “Nothing to Say” as the B-side. If you weren’t at SP 20 check out the review of Day 1 here and the review of Day 2 here.

Here are the details of the Soundgarden and SP 20 releases as well as the rest of Sub Pop’s Record Store Day offerings straight from the peeps at Sub Pop

MINUS THE BEAR: “MY TIME”

Tags: Sp 20, Sub Pop
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New free music from Brad, Minus the Bear & Drive-By Truckers

March 10th, 2010 by travis hay

Minus the Bear is gearing up to release its new album, Omni, on May 4. “My Time,” the lead single from the album, was released as a free download yesterday. You can listen to the track, which features heavy use of a Japanese Omnichord synthesizer, below and get your free download of the song by clicking here. Minus the Bear’s local tour stop supporting the album will be at this year’s Sasquatch! Music Festival, however, you can see the band prior to Memorial Day Weekend during an in-store performance at Sonic Boom Records on Record Store Day (April17). I’ll post more details (such as which Sonic Boom and the set time) as they are made available.

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Sunny Day Real Estate working on new album, set to step in the studio in May

March 9th, 2010 by travis hay

This just in from the awesome news department: Sunny Day Real Estate is entering the recording studio in May to record a new album

That’s what Marco Collins, former KNDD and current KEXP jock, reported on his Twitter account late Monday night. Collins wrote that he received an e-mail from SDRE/Foo Fighter member Nate Mendel stating the band would be recording in May.

The band, Jeremy Enigk, William Goldsmith, Dan Hoerner and Mendel, reunited last year and during the reunion tour SDRE performed a new song which was one of a few signs that the reunion was going well. You can read my review of the band’s homecoming stop on the tour here. Another sign things were working out during the reunion were the constant smiles on the faces of Enigk and the rest of the band during the show. Peep the photo proof of the smiles here.

The band’s 1994 debut album Diary along with its second record LP2, were reisuued by Sub Pop last year. No word on what label will release the new Sunny Day Real Estate album or when the record will be released.

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The video about the video for No-Fi Soul Rebellion’s “!”

March 9th, 2010 by travis hay

No-Fi Soul Rebellion is the husband-wife dance-rock duo of Mark and Andrea Heimer. Currently based out of Bellingham, the pair are known for putting on fun, energetic live shows that typically include the band setting up their gear in the crowd with Mark running all over the place with a 50-foot microphone cord as he sings, screams and dances. More on the No-Fi Soul Rebellion live experience later this week, but needless to say No-Fi show isn’t a spectator sport, which is why Ear Candy likes Mark and Andrea so much and is thrilled to have No-Fi headline Ear Candy’s Birthday Bash 2010 Sunday at Nectar Lounge ($6, 8 p.m.). The above video is the failed attempt to film a video for “!” off the group’s 2008 album Terrible Muscles. Mark calls it the worst music video ever, but I’ve seen worse.

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From Crosscut: EMPSFM’s Sound Off! proves the kids are alright

March 9th, 2010 by travis hay

I wrote the below post about Sound Off! 2010 for Crosscut.

Great Waves @ EMP|SFM's Sound Off! 2010 Finals 3.5.10 - 047 by EMP|SFM. The kids are alright.

Those words of Pete Townshend rang true during the finals of Experience Music Project’s Sound Off! competition, which showcased some of the brightest rising stars in Northwest music Saturday night (March 6).

The final round of the four-week, underage battle of the bands featured four groups that showed remarkable talent, musicianship, and poise, all delivered with the passion and vigor of youth.

Sound Off! is more than your typical battle of the bands. The contest focuses on young musicians who are 21 and younger, and at stake is more than just getting to be the cool kids in the cafeteria. The winner of Sound Off! gets a slot at Bumbershoot 2010 (although I suppose that might earn you popularity points in the lunchroom, too).

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VIDEO: Grunge on ice

March 9th, 2010 by travis hay

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A visually intriguing multimedia treat unlike anything happening in local music

March 9th, 2010 by travis hay

To call Queerbait!, a new project involving Gina Young (she of Team Gina fame), different would be an understatement.

The group is difficult to describe and they are not like any other acts gracing stages in Seattle, which is one of the many reasons I am thrilled to have them as part of Ear Candy’s Birthday Bash 2010 at Nectar Lounge

Queerbait! is really more of a performance art multimedia project than it is a band and its live shows look to be equally visually intriguing and musically entertaining (see videos below). The core lineup consists of two modern dancers (Meredith Meiko and Tova Eisner), a visual artist (Johanna Breiding) and a musician (Gina Young). Not much is more is known about Queerbait! because they have a limited web presence, no recorded material and the group has only performed one live show. But from the videos you get a glimpse of lots of interesting costumes, makeup and some rapping in German. While the project is in its infancy, I’ve been told the group intends future collaborations with musicians like Kamikavi and Radio Sloan, and queer theorists/academics like E.L. Hunter and Marisa Ragonese.

See, I told you they are unlike anything happening in Seattle.

Peep the videos below and come catch Queerbait! at Nectar Lounge March 14 when they open Ear Candy’s Birthday Bash 2010. Other performers slated for the show include Lisa Dank, Katie Kate and No-Fi Soul Rebellion. Doors at 8 p.m., show starts at 9 p.m. Tickets cost $6 at the door. Show is 21+

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From Crosscut: MTV’s $5 Cover gives Seattle’s music scene its closeup

March 9th, 2010 by travis hay

I wrote the below review for Crosscut. Expect to read more about MTV’s $5 Cover: Seattle when the series airs online in June.

Seattle’s music scene got its closeup Monday night (March 2) at SIFF Cinema during the world premiere of local director Lynn Shelton’s MTV’s “$5 Cover: Seattle.”

So how does the local music community look on the big screen? Like real people, not film characters.

The last time Seattle’s music scene was captured well on film was in “Singles,” Cameron Crowe’s 1992 tribute to the glory days of grunge. Shelton’s non-Hollywood production likely won’t get as much hype but it is far superior. The characters of her film aren’t really characters at all: They are genuine people playing their real-life roles on film. This should bode well for “$5 Cover: Seattle” in this era where musical tastes steer toward authenticity over mass-produced pop stars, and MTV’s music content is relegated to the Internet, not the television.

Set to be released on the Internet in June, Shelton’s film is a glowing love letter to Seattle’s music scene. The 60-minute movie follows 13 bands through a weekend in Seattle, via 12 episodic and scripted vignettes. Given that MTV has long lost its credibility with musicians, this project could’ve been a disaster. Thankfully Shelton, with her affection for local musicians, made sure this was a genuine and accurate representation of Seattle’s music community.
Read the rest of this entry »

*** SEACATS photo courtesy EMPSFM

Tags: $5 Cover, MTV
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SEACATS, Hooves & Beak, Great Waves & Candysound battle it out at EMPSFM’s Sound Off! Saturday

March 4th, 2010 by travis hay

You know how they say third times a charm? Well, it looks like the third round was a charm for a pair of bands that performed during Saturday’s final semifinal round.

Great Waves, from Sammamish, Wash. won Saturday’s Sound Off! competition and automatically earned a slot in the finals round this weekend. Runners-up from last weekend’s Sound Off!, SEACATS, from Kelso, Wash., won the wildcard bid to the finals round. SEACATS was chosen by EMP’s Youth Advisory board as the wild card winner. The band, which has a poppy, Weezer-meets-Tea Cozies sound, beat out melodic indie rockers Sea Fever from Seattle and Bellingham instrumental jazz group Pan Pan for the wildcard spot.

The band will compete against the charming indie rock of Bellingham duo Candysound, the beautiful harp and vocals of Hooves and Beak and the folk/rock hybrid of Great Waves The winner of Sound Off! gets studio time, a slot at this year’s Bumbershoot and many other great prizes.

I’m not going to write much about the bands that performed during the final semifinal round of Sound Off ! last weekend because I was a judge of the competition that week. However, expect to read some words here soon about my experience as a judge in the coming days. In short, it was a fun and challenging experience and I would do it again in a heartbeat if asked.

Tickets for the Sound Off! finals can be purchased at the EMP|SFM box office or by calling 206-770-2702. Tickets cost $10 for the general public, $7 for students or EMPSFM members. Doors are 7:00 pm, shows start at 8:00 pm.