Four Excellent Things About Seattle…

1) The Blue Scholars
Friends of mine discovered this Seattle based DJ/MC duo at the Sasquatch Festival this past summer. My friends were so impressed by both their music and verse that they urged me to check out a show of theirs at the Doug Fir in Portland. The Blue Scholars’ act that evening surpassed the already high expectations that I form of any musical act that comes recommended by that strain of friends (i.e. Engel and company).

The Blue Scholars’ background beats and samples perfectly compliment their prose. I’m not a hip-hop enthusiast by any stretch… and it is probably their unapologetically intellectual style that I find so appealing and refreshing. So be it. Many of their jams address class disparities in our culture; an issue with which I have become increasingly obsessed in my adulthood [for good reason]. Also, their complete disdain for our great leader, commander in chief G.W. Bush, resonates strongly with me. There should be more protest music about the present state of our nation, both internally and abroad. I’m not sure why there isn’t, especially when I know that there are a great deal of people out there who feel as I do. These two guys have the sack to express the outrage that we, the fiscally and politically privated young, truly feel, but are too afraid, too apathetic, or too preoccupied to express for ourselves.

2) Mikeala’s Fiend
I hadn’t moshed in 10 years. I hadn’t had the urge. I, and a bunch of other aging rockers, could not restrain ourselves upon hearing the sonic chaos of this Seattle bred Drum-Guitar/Effects duo on one smoldering evening in July, in the basement of the rowdiest house party (that quickly grew into a block party) that think I’ve ever attended. Truth be told, the unharnessed energy of the 17 year-old hipster-kid drummer catalyzed the basement mayhem. The quality of his beats I cannot suitably capture with words, but I will say that they were as original as they were hypnotic… and that is to say, a great deal. As a drummer myself, I strongly suspect that this kid had had very little, if any, formal training, which is all the better for him/them. Their almost complete absence of conventional — and exhaustive incorporation of original — drumming techniques driving their music greatly contributed to their unique sound. Of course, I’m a drummer, so the rhythm is where I focus my attention in the appraisal of any band. Mikaela’s Fiend made me FEEL MUSIC the way one does when hearing a new genre for the first time.

3) Pleaseeasaur
This Seattle “band” Jane and I discovered opening for Pinback at the Aladdin a little while back. It’s simply one guy, spouting off the most lyrically random songs I’ve ever heard above a pre-recorded accompaniment, while wearing the most outlandish makeshift costumes I’ve ever seen. Mysterious out-of-view overhead projector operators put up transparencies illustrating events in the songs behind crowd facing backdrops. By random I mean: one song describes, in meticulous detail, the brown hue of his ’85 Chevette, another song, all 20 seconds of it, illustrates the difficulties of dog shit, and my personal favorite plays off of a popular gringo phrase: “If you got a problem and you need a limo… call no prob limo”. True musical genius! Even if you don’t have much patience for joke music acts, Pleaseeasaur will at least cultivate a few chuckles from you.

4) KEXP
An independent, “member-supported” radio station, in Seattle that somewhat reminds me of a smaller radio station, KDVS, that I listened to as an undergrad in Davis CA, but without the dead air, track misnomers and random transmitter blowouts. The DJ’s on KEXP actually know what they are doing and seem to be quite professional. During the course of just one afternoon’s listening, Jane and I discovered two local bands that we were compelled to further investigate.