I have listened to this song a LOT of times and every time it just HITS a piece of pain inside of me that I still cannot articulate.  When I eventually move out of this apartment I will probably be brought back to this tiny room every time I hear this song.  That’s a whole lot of power… the power of a song to not only access feelings you can’t quite undertand but also lodge the accessing of those feelings within a particular time and space.  Take a listen to the song, follow along with the lyrics, and see if it has the same effect on you.

The Lumineers are set to release their first full length album on April 3 and hit the road a bit before on March 21.  No Chicago date, but instead a show in my hometown suburb of Evanston, IL at SPACE.   Their Seattle date sold out the Tractor, was moved to Neumos, and sold that out too.  If you go into Sonic Boom in Ballard, however, and preorder the record you get guaranteed access for their in-store performance on release day.

SLOW IT DOWN

I feel her filth in my bones
Wash off my hands till it’s gone
Your walls they’re closing in
With velvet curtains

Some love was made for the lights
Some kiss your cheek and goodnight
Lift up a red high heel
Lock up your doors with steel

You’re making noise in my street
My blinds are drawn, I can’t see
Smashed in my car window
Didn’t touch the stereo

Slow it down, Angie come back to bed
Rest your arms and rest your legs

Act like you’ve been here before
Smile less and dress up some more
Tie up your scarf real tight
These boys are out for blood tonight

Slow it down, Angie come back to bed
Rest your arms and rest your legs

And when she stood she stood tall
She’ll make a fool of you all
Don’t ask for cigarettes
She ain’t got nothing left for you

I never, she never, we never look back
That wasn’t what we were good at
And when it came to love
We were not good enough

Slow it down, Angie come back to bed
Rest your arms and rest your legs
Don’t you frown when you’re feeling like that
Only love can dig you out of this

So the logical thing would be for this to be a final, retirement post.  ”Thanks for reading, but I don’t need to write this anymore.” But that doesn’t feel right to me.  I miss writing here, even if I haven’t prioritized it.  But more so, I think I am finding new reasons that writing here is important for me:

When I moved to Seattle and started this blog I was the most open I’ve ever been; open to meeting new people, getting excited about new bands, experiencing as much live music as I could.  Open to being moved.  That openness was so refreshing to me, especially the way it could manifest into pure excitement about the new music around me and the success of Seattle bands.  I was approaching the world as a novice, eager to learn and make connections.

Now I am more comfortable. I am no longer the new guy in town and my band has established itself.   Seattle is home now, but I feel much more closed off.  I feel far less open to meeting new people, making new friends and actively supporting others.   Part of that is simple fatigue after a year of meeting new people and going out all the time.  Adjusting to big changes and challenges in my personal life has surely played a role as well. Plus it’s discouraging when I don’t remember someone’s name and feel like a huge asshole.  I fear my brain may be at name/face capacity, but that’s another story entirely…

But I think it’s more than that.  Some common but ugly demons of competition, jealousy, and entitlement have started to rear their heads.

When I got here I entered the community as an eager novice with a commitment to ideals of community and a more holistic way of doing the indie band rat race.  Namely, that it didn’t have to be a rat race.  In my heart I believe that art, including pop music, is not a zero sum game.  With talent, patience, persistance, and diligence, opportunities will come and the success or merits of any other bands are irrelevant.  While of course everyone has their own opinion, bickering, talking shit, and publicly critiquing each other doesn’t really help anybody.  It isolates and divides us.  It sours us.  It’s poison.

It was much easier to keep those ideals close back then – I wasn’t emotionally invested in anyone or any projects yet.  I was just as driven and ambitious as I am now, but I knew the long term goals were pretty far away and I was achieving my short term goals and enjoying the process.  I was inspired by what was happening around me (the great music being made and the rapid visibility of the Seattle indie-folk scene) and excited about becoming a part of it.  In the future.

That future is now, and those long term goals are becoming short term goals.  I want to be in the studio or on the road more days than I’m home.  I want the countless hours of work I do on music to be self-sustaining as opposed to a second, poorly paying job.  I’ve wanted these things for 10 years but it’s only with some success, with tastes of that life, that it becomes so tantalizing and destructively frustrating.  If it were just fuel for the fire, great.  Ambitious people need fuel.  But the collatoral damage is really troubling to me.  That combo of frustration and ambition lead to really shitty consequences, such as:

- A sense of entitlement to (and an emotional requirement for) attention, praise, and status.

- Anger and cynicism toward bands and artists doing the things I want to do and living the life I want to live.

- Perpetual doubt and insecurity about being inherently good enough or talented enough to succeed.

- Getting worse, not better, at dealing with rejection. 

and here’s the WORST one:

- The inability to listen to any new music, especially highly-recommended or buzzy music, without judging my own music against it.

HOW FUCKED IS THAT?!?  Working as hard as I can to make a life for myself creating original music shouldn’t make me bad at listening to music.

If KEXP latches on to a new band and as a result they start to take off THAT HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH ME.  Do I want them to latch on to MY band?  Of course.  Does their latching on to another band make that less likely?  No.  Should it have any affect on my notions of KEXP as an important, unique, and vital organization?  No.  If I like the music I will hopefully be inspired by it and if I don’t I can change the channel.  But debates about WHY a band is gaining success, and especially debates about whether they SHOULD gain that success is a waste of my damn time.  It has nothing to do with me or the music I make.

I can (and do) tell myself this all the time, whenever that cynicism or jealousy starts to crop up.  But the general closed-off-ness has still been a result of all the mess above and I want to untangle myself from it.  I think that getting back into writing here on MidByNorthwest (oh yeah, that’s what this post was about…) – specifically writing about new and old music that I’m really digging – may be a way to help get myself out of that hole.

I now have so much invested here in Seattle, in every way, and I’m no longer an outsider.  I’m a participant the music scene here.  I’m a peer.  But I can and should remain a novice – open-minded and moveable.  So that’s what I’m going to do.  I may never be as good at it as someone like Adam Sharp who writes about a song that is moving him every single day, but hopefully you’ll see more content here.  More personal, less about previews or reviews, more about me and how certain bands or songs are affecting me.  It might be really boring for you, but I think it could be really great for me and the person, musician, and community member I want to be.

Come see it all happen at the wonderfully intimate Egan’s Ballard Jam House from 7-9pm this Friday, September 30.  Fittingly, this show is presented by the wonderful folks at Seattle Living Room Shows and so is sure to have that same magical vibe.  Cover is $7 and the show is 21+.

I’m not much of a Matt Nathanson fan, but I’m a big fan of Matt Ryd’s multi-layered all-inclusive YouTube videos, and this should be a good preview of the kinds of collaboration we can expect from the “XoeAndMatt” tour:

My girlfriend and I both fell in love with the record – which was a bit strange as thematically it’s one of the most crushing break-up records in recent memory – and every month or so I had a new favorite track. The songwriting and lyrics are so poignant and gripping throughout its entirety, but even more striking are the arrangements.  Frightened Rabbit completely broke down my conceptions of what lyrical music could sound like.  Complex kick-drum rhythms and soaring organ pads that, unlike most modern indie rock bands, never got in the way of the vocal or masked any lyrics or meaning.  The result is an album with both emotional and musical dynamics that interplay in an extraordinary way.  Most songs and records that you listen to incessantly put you back in that same place/time/relationship when you listen years later.  For me, Frightened Rabbit’s music cuts so deeply into pure emotions that it takes me back beyond my circumstances at the time.  It brings me into those universal emotions directly, but with a joy and energy that only Rock & Roll can provide.

Needless today I was somewhat giddy to interview Frightened Rabbit frontman Scott Hutchinson this past spring as he opened for another of my favorite songwriters in the world, Josh Ritter.  Frightened Rabbit is also the first and only non-American band I’ve interviewed which put a very interesting spin on my questions around community and transitions.  Thanks so much to Scott and Grant for being so darn nice and accommodating to a huge fanboy trying to keep it professional.  Enjoy these text excerpts and mp3 clips below, or download one big mp3/podcast of the entire Frightened Rabbit interview by clicking here. (14.09 MB)

“When we first started playing we really felt we were against the tide a bit because there wasn’t much interest in our music – and maybe we were still a bit shit but I still thought the songs were worth listening to.  But the whole atmosphere in Glasgow wasn’t geared towards us – more gallery parties and a punk-disco scene – it wasn’t appropriate for us.  So then we met The Twilight Sad . . . and I heard the music and said “Hey! Fuck! Someone else is doing something that isn’t that!”  And we clung to each other for a little while because we felt a bit alone next to all of that.” – Scott Hutchinson, Frightened Rabbit

“I like the way that I used to write music, but I can’t ever get that back.  Whereby I was writing my first songs in my bedroom and such a romantic ideal attached to that, and the process is quite different now and that changes the songs.  But I’m going to accept those changing conditions as natural things and allow them to actually direct the songs as well, and that can be exciting as well as frustrating . . . but what happened is it went from a hobby to a profession.  It has changed and been a source of inspiration and frustrating, but I try to just run with it.” – Scott Hutchinson, Frightened Rabbit

MH: “What is the origin story of Frightened Rabbit and what was it like starting off in Glasgow, Scotland at that time?”

[Audio clip: view full post to listen]

MH: “Was there a community in Glasgow that was important to the beginnings of your band?”

[Audio clip: view full post to listen]

MH: “How has your understanding of building community around music changed from a local to international level?”

[Audio clip: view full post to listen]

MH: “In your experience, what are some inhibitors to building good community around music?”

[Audio clip: view full post to listen]

MH: “Your surroundings have changed so drastically since you first started writing.  From an artistic standpoint, how has that shift affected you and your writing?”

[Audio clip: view full post to listen]

MH: “What did the jump from Glasgow to the next level look like?”

[Audio clip: view full post to listen]

MH: “What advice would you give a fledgling band?”

[Audio clip: view full post to listen]

Scott and the rest of Frightened Rabbit are entertaining on both Twitter and Facebook – I highly recommend connecting with them and buying their music pronto.

Photos by Jason Tang and Natalie Kardos

Last year I bought my 3-day pass the day they became available without any idea who I would go with or what bands I would see. I just figured I should be there. The end of July rolled around and the few friends I had made thus far were all out of town, so I strolled down to the festival solo. I saw some great bands, including Yeasayer, Fruit Bats, Blitzen Trapper, !!!, The Drowning Men, The Young Evils, and The Dead Weather. But as I look back on last year’s schedule I’m blown away by the bands I MISSED, especially locals, who I can no longer imagine my musical life without. How would my summer 2010 have changed if I knew to catch The Head and the Heart, Ravenna Woods, Macklemore, Fences, and Grand Hallway? Within a few months I was thoroughly versed in these wonderful local talents but it’s a trip that I was so-close-yet-so-far at the time. Ultimately the weekend was a huge catalyst for me in ways separate from the bands playing.  I met several awesome people there who have become some of my best friends in Seattle and inspired me to keep my head up at a really challenging time in my life.  Good music brings good people together – something I am now reminded of on the regular.

But [BLAH BLAH BLAH] this weekend is Block Party 2011! And this year I have a press pass! Although I’m delightfully exhausted, just getting home from from my band’s first West Coast tour (again, what a difference a year makes), I’m very excited to see some fantastic bands this weekend and doubtlessly miss out on even more that I will fall in love with 2-3 months down the road.  The more things change, the more I learn, the more I remember that I don’t know jack.  But, in any case, here are some bands I’m especially pumped to see – many for the first time:

FRIDAY:  Yarn Owl, The Head and the Heart, Yuck

SATURDAY:  The Lumineers, Seapony, Ravenna Woods, Beat Connection, The Young Evils, TV on the Radio

SUNDAY: Land of Pines, My Goodness, Virgin Islands, Campfire OK, The Cave Singers

Sound awesome right!? Tickets for the festival are still available – click here!

The music of Motopony – thanks to the principal collaboration between frontman Daniel Blue and producer/ keyboardist Buddy Ross – expands the possibilities of the singer/songwriter genre in a unique way reminiscent of The Postal Service and Frightened Rabbit. Simple, lyrically driven songs like “King of Diamonds,” “June,” and “God Damn Girl” propel forward with rich, creative backbeats and overdubs, resulting in some striking juxtapositions.  Most of these layers are in warm tones, percussion fills, or even the sound of popping bubble-wrap, which create a classic-yet-modern soundscape more interesting than the currently overused reliance on big synth sounds. The pacing of the record keeps you guessing as well – breaking up beautiful sad songs with groove-based rockers like “Seer.” In the live setting, Daniel Blue is an intriguing figure, demanding full attention with the almost possessed way he sings and moves on stage.

It was a pleasure to sit down with frontman Daniel Blue to learn more about the history of Motopony in the context of my favorite themes – beginnings, transition, and community.  Enjoy these text excerpts and the full interview below, or download one big mp3/podcast of the entire Motopony interview by clicking here. (31.64 MB).

“I left a lot of my life and stepped into a position where there wasn’t anything else [but music].  I did that because I believed, but I didn’t have [my past projects], I didn’t have a community of people who were interested in my artwork any more . . . I didn’t have anything when I was here.  It was either it had to happen or literally I was lost.  I think those kinds of leaps… I think putting yourself in that position prevents you from sabotaging it in a lot of ways.” – Daniel Blue, Motopony

“This album is an interesting testament to something that is not very indie and not very a punk: a good partnership with businessmen. There’s a myth that you’re not supposed to do it that way, but I think my mind has changed in a lot of different ways – whether it’s artwork and dealing with people who have marketing degrees who work at the label who see your art in a totally different lens and forcing yourself to open your mind to the fact that there might be another reality outside of what you knew in Tacoma three years ago. It’s been a journey and it took a lot of time, and a lot of wresting with those kind of questions: ‘what is selling out? What is success? What’s the best thing for my artwork?’ We are the only people who can answer that.” – Daniel Blue, Motopony

MH: “What is the origin story of Motopony?”

[Audio clip: view full post to listen]
MH: “What did the arc between the beginnings of Motopony and getting signed look like?”

[Audio clip: view full post to listen]

MH: “How would you characterize the Tacoma and Seattle music scenes?”

[Audio clip: view full post to listen]

MH: “What are your experiences in building community around music?”

[Audio clip: view full post to listen]

MH: “What are some inhibitors to building good community around music?”

[Audio clip: view full post to listen]

MH: “When we met a few months ago, Motopony had just signed to tinyOGRE and all traces of your album were stripped from the internet to prepare for the re-release. This period of time strikes me as a very bizarre time to be in a band – suddenly without a CD to sell but preparing and biding your time.  What has that experience been like?”

[Audio clip: view full post to listen]

MH: “What advice would you give a fledgling band in a brand new city?”

[Audio clip: view full post to listen]

Motopony’s re-worked debut album releases today on CD and Vinyl. Purchase it at your local record store, on Amazon, or on iTunes. Currently on a west coast tour, they will be back in Seattle on June 9 at the Tractor Tavern.

Up first will be Lowlands in full-band glory.  As a duo, Tom Rorum and Joel Schuman have been one of my favorite acts at Conor Byrne.  Like much of the talent that graces the stage every Sunday night, Lowlands features thoughtful lyrics and memorable melodies.  It’s their full bodied energy and barely-controlled-raucousness, however, that makes Lowlands such a striking crowd-pleaser. I am convinced that one day Tom Rorum will stomp his flip-flop-clad foot right through that stage.  Watch this video and share in my delight/concern.

Next, The Gloria Darlings – Pandi, Rachel, and Rebecca – will celebrate their album release.  The Gloria Darlings inhabit many worlds as youthful torchbearers for traditional American Folk melodies and instrumentation.  Not “folk” as in “umbrella term for acoustic, lyrical singer/songwriters.”  Nope, we’re talking real Folk with mountain dulcimers, autoharps, classic harmonies, and instant sing-alongs.  Throw in a splash of Adora-core and a penchant for defying the assumptions that come upon an all-female string band, and you get The Gloria Darlings.  Already embraced by the vibrant Northwest Folklife community and recently selected as finalists for Northwest String Summit, this release and the months to come are sure to be very exciting and fun to watch.

It’s also worth mentioning that the headliner tonight, Portland’s Water Tower Bucket Boys, are a big hit themselves.  They’ve been getting love from Greg Vandy on KEXP’s The Roadhouse, which makes me think this show would be worth getting to early to ensure you get a ticket.

Doors open at 8:30pm, $6 at the door.

I had the pleasure of sitting down with Kris Orlowski (and Andrew Joslyn via phone) to discuss the project within the context of my favorite themes: beginnings, transitions, and community. Enjoy the full interview in short mp3 clips below, or download one big mp3/podcast of the entire Kris Orlowski interview by clicking here. (31.75 MB).

“A shift has happened [for me] in the last year, year and a half.  It definitely centered around what everyone else is talking about: community.  Around support.  There was this revelation, almost, where I realized that it’s all about supporting music in general.  It’s not just about trying to make it as a musician – that’s really nice – but it’s also about, ‘Hey, how can I learn from other people?  How can I support what Hot Bodies in Motion is doing, or Allen Stone?”  It’s all about supporting what other people are doing because that just makes you better.  When you’re helping them, you’re like “Wow, this is really cool,” and you cherish what you are doing more.” – Kris Orlowski

“When you get started as a musician, get comfortable with the word ‘free.’  Nowadays, people are used to easy access to music, to anything, be comfortable with giving stuff away for free, and in large quantities.  For the first couple months to a year or so, your money is going to be fans.  Genuine fans . . .  people who are always hitting you up, calling you, who really wanting to know what your songs’ lyrics are about – those are the people you really need to cultivate.  The thing that’s scary – we’ve all been there – I’ll get into a band and then you’re like, ‘eh, I’m kinda over them.’  People are fickle, especially with new music, so you have to give something more for people to really connect with.” – Andrew Joslyn

MH: “What is the origin story of Kris Orlowski as a music act?”
[Audio clip: view full post to listen]
MH: “What did your first 4 years in Seattle, before I met you, look like?”[Audio clip: view full post to listen]
MH: “How did the Passenger String Quartet collaboration come about?”[Audio clip: view full post to listen]
MH: “How would you characterize the Seattle music scene?”[Audio clip: view full post to listen]
MH: “What are some inhibitors to building good community around music, and how have you seen those inhibitors overcome?”[Audio clip: view full post to listen]
MH: “What has it been like touring regularly in the Northwest and West Coast?[Audio clip: view full post to listen]
MH: “What advice would you give a fledgling band in a brand new city?”[Audio clip: view full post to listen]

Photos by Rachel K. Sumner, Album Art by Moorea Ashley Seal

Kris Orlowski will celebrate the EP’s release with a big show at the intimately-majestic Columbia City Theater:

Kris Orlowski & the Passenger String Quartet
EP Release Party
with The Merry Way, Alesandra Rose
Thursday, May 12
Columbia City Theater
9pm · $10 · 21+
A few tickets still available here

Be sure to visit his website for a preview of the EP (free download of “Your Move” with email list sign-up), as well as connect with him on Facebook and Twitter.

This weekend, one of Seattle’s busiest artists – Shenandoah Davis – will be gracing Chicago with her presence. Davis is a beautiful singer/songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and a prolific collaborator (see Grand Hallway, Seattle Rock Orchestra, to name two). She has been one of those people I see at every show I attend – she tends to be on stage. Enjoy this fun, quirky music video, connect with her on Facebook and Twitter, and most of all tell your friends in Chicago to check her out April 16 @ The Observatory Loft and April 20 @ The Whistler!

Photo by Jennifer Lynne Sweeny

In most cases, that support was more than a glowing write-up about the latest single.  One of the most challenging aspects of being in a band is creating new, exciting, and professional content in the months and years between album releases.  While the community of photographers, videographers, sound engineers, bloggers, and other artists is profoundly connected to the music scene in Seattle, Sound on the Sound is at the forefront of bringing all those skills and resources together to create extraordinary “Like-You-Were-There” moments that bands could not have achieved on their own.  Whether capturing the majesty of Doe Bay, creating a party in a practice space, or stripping down a rock band to a songwriter on a porch, the Sound on the Sound team is providing a unique and beautiful meeting point between bands and fans and expanding the narrative of everyone involved.

It was an absolute pleasure to sit down with Abbey and Josh a few weeks ago and discuss my usual themes of community, beginnings, and transition as they related to a blog as opposed to a band.  What I found is that they were essentially the same – at least the way Abbey and Josh do it.  They talk about their blog the way I talk about my band, with the same passion, love, and mile-high standards that come from hours and hours of unpaid work.  Enjoy the interview in short mp3 clips below, or you may download one big mp3 (Podcast) of the entire SOTS interview by clicking here. (36.96 MB)

“We always set out to offer a narrative and to tell more than just ‘Here’s someone’s tour dates,’ or ‘Here’s their next show’ or ‘Here’s their new single.’  I think that people see it as both a strength and a weakness of Sound on the Sound.  People will say, ‘You write about the same bands over and over again.’ Well, that was kind of always our intent because once we start to support a band we do want to follow their career and offer a narrative and a context.” –Abbey Simmons, Sound on the Sound

“We don’t claim to be experts about music, or even the local scene.  Initially is was [about] “Wow all this great stuff is going on, why isn’t anyone talking about it?” . . . Initially that was our goal, to make sure Seattle was being represented online.  Seattle – everyone talks about it being a vibrant rock town, but how is that manifest?  Online it wasn’t manifest at all.” –Josh Lovseth, Sound on the Sound

Photo by Dylan Priest

MH: “What is the origin story of Sound on the Sound and what was it like in the beginning?”

[Audio clip: view full post to listen]

MH: “How would you characterize the Seattle music scene when you first started writing about it in 2006?”

[Audio clip: view full post to listen]

MH: “What do you see as your role in all of this, and how has that changed over time?”

[Audio clip: view full post to listen]

MH: “Are there any particular narratives or themes that you like writing about the most?”

[Audio clip: view full post to listen]

MH: “Many people have talked about the Seattle music scene transitioning into true community.  Why here, and why now?  What are some of the factors that have contributed to that shift?”

[Audio clip: view full post to listen]

MH: “What advice would you give a fledgling band in Seattle?”

[Audio clip: view full post to listen]

Sound on the Sound’s latest video creation is a “Porch Session” with The Lonely Forest frontman John van Deusen, filmed by Tyler Kalberg.

The next Sound on the Sound Presents show will be May 6th at Columbia City Theater, featuring Ravenna Woods (CD Release), Weinland, and Fort Union.  Click here for more information.

I also recommend following them on Twitter and Facebook.