Author Archives: James Germain

If the grape vine hasn’t yet reached your garden, Saturday, April 16th, marks Record Store Day 2011. As the weekend approaches, consider the bands or albums that have been scratching at the back of your mind for months like a stray dog longing for a warm space in your apartment. There’s the local band that grabbed your attention on KEXP last week, the classic love you’ve yet to find in the used section, or even the old favorite that’s worn so badly it’d skip less on Lake Union than in your stereo (my copy of Ryan Adam’s “Heartbreaker” looks like I played street hockey with it).

Record Store Day is an opportune time to not only add to your record collection at a discounted rate, but a chance to show your loyalty to your favorite local record store while talking shop with others waiting in line to purchase limited edition releases only available at independent shops this weeked; anything from The Rolling Stones, to The Decemberists, to The Naked and Famous (download a complete list of RSD releases here, courtesy of recordstoreday.com).

Even if you’re not looking to shop there’s an abundance of free/all-ages in-store performances as well as artist signings going on in several neighborhoods of Seattle:

You can catch Duff McKagan (2:00 pm) and The Head and the Heart (7:00 pm) at the Queen Anne Easy Street Records. R.E.M.’s Peter Buck (12:00 pm) and Grieves & Budo (3:00 pm) will be signing schwag and meeting fans at the Queen Anne location as well.

The Head and the Heart are also playing at 3:00 pm at the Sonic Boom Records in Ballard. Sonic Boom in Capitol Hill is also hosting performances by the Moondoggies (1:00 pm) and Telekenisis (5:00 pm).

At the Silver Platters in Queen Anne, you can see local acts Massy Ferguson (2:00 pm), Zoe Muth (3:00), and The Tea Cozies (4:00 pm). Zoe Muth will also be selling her upcoming album “Starlight Hotel” before the street release date.

Watch for more TVD Seattle updates on how Seattle record stores will be spending the big day.

Capitol Hill’s the Highline, home to Tuesday night tantrum Cakearoke, is also on occasion home to the fuzziest show in town. Pretentious pet enthusiasts need not leave their sequined seats as the Highline typically hosts bands of a distorted rock nature (e.g. Thunder Buffalo, playing the Highline on March 9th for Seattle Weekly’s Happy Hour for Hope).

This Thurs, Feb 24th, Siegfried Vs. The Giant paint the stage with post-prog primer, grooming the Highline for a dangerously dancey bill of technicolor time signatures and undoubtedly minor keys. In other words, those still hanging out ‘at the drive in’ arguing the distance from Sparta to Mars will certainly want to cab it out on Thursday, and apart from the ambient vocals (circa Anthony Green) of front man James Weber, Siegfried Vs. The Giant begin to fill an empty grave left by the ‘pretty girls’ of Seattle.

Sharing the stage will also be Smooth Sailing, Noise-A-Tron, and Aurellian. Show starts at 8pm and is 21 and over with $5 admission.

Seattle songstress Helen Chance is releasing her debut album, Reservations, on Wed, Feb 9th at the Tractor Tavern in Downtown Ballard. Her effervescent piano melodies go well with a back of curacao, equally sweet as tastefully bitter, while lucidly baring the blues (think Regina Spektor and Fiona Apple with abundantly less glitter and goth). Sharing the stage will be also piano-driven rock quintet The Horde and the Harem, offering three and four part harmonies like choir boys who turn a deaf ear to shaving.

Their Harvest EP is available on itunes and at upcoming live performances like this one . The Exploding High Fives will also be a contributing kernel to a satiable evening of pop pleasure.

This show is 21+ and commences at 9 pm. Tickets are $6 and can be ‘reserved’ in advance online.

Seattle songwriter Christopher Mansfield, the visionary of modern folk project Fences, is currently on tour with Gainesville punk heroes Against Me! Both acts will be playing Neumo’s on Feb 4th along with Michigan power pop threesome Cheap Girls. Tickets are available online 0r at Moe Bar.

Fences released his anticipated self-titled debut with Onto Entertainment last year, earning a spot on many favorite album lists of 2010 (including KEXP, Sound on the Sound) and was tagged as one of SPIN magazine’s Best Albums You Might Have Missed This Year. Co-producing the ten song LP with Mansfield was Sara Quin of indie pop tag team Tegan and Sara, who expressed interest in working with Fences after hearing his original EP. Fences also recently appeared on a remix of “Otherside” for Macklemore and Ryan Lewis’ The VS EP.