The end of another year approaches and what have we learned? We’ve learned that Kanye West has really cracked it and that Dolly Parton’s still got it (P.R.E.A.M.).
2019 was full of excellent music, both live and recorded, and not all is lost. We’ve got a few more gigs for you to check out before the ball drops on these last 365.
Quick aside: I’m launching a radio show on SPACE 101.1 FM this month! Love Potion no. 69 is its name and punk, garage, surf, post-punk, kraut, twist – and the like is its game. Keep an eye and an ear out and I’ll see you on the Seattle dial!
Satan’s Pilgrims // The Delstroyers // 1uppers // The 427’s
December 6th
Darrell’s Tavern
Satan’s Pilgrims, introduced to me in a trailer park on Washington’s southern coast, has been a Seattle surf institution since the 90’s and they’re showing no signs of slowing down. Those towering surf riffs, chunky bass lines and Hawaii Five-0 drums just won’t leave your hips alone. You’ll be twistin’ the night away feelin’ like it’s mid-August. Joining the Pilgrims are the lean, mean reverb machines – the Delstroyers. Don’t forget the hot hot 1uppers and The 427’s. This is a party of Seattle surf royalty and you better bet that Darrell’s is gonna be jumpin’!
FFO Dick Dale, The 5678’s, Man Or Astro-Man?
Wayne Newton
December 6th – 7th
Skagit Casino-Resort
You know… it’s the Holiday season and one of the most beloved crooners of the Christmas classics is Wayne Newton. I don’t care what you say, Wayne’s “Cowboy’s Christmas” is foreboding as fuck and should be a part of every childhood holiday. Also, “Danke Schön” is a karaoke standby and should never be forsaken. Not often seen outside of Las Vegas, he’s got two shows booked at Skagit Casino-Resort to make him feel more at home.
FFO Chestnuts roasting on an open fire, rockin’ around the clock, making the Yuletide gay
DIIV // Froth // Storefront Church
December 10th
The Crocodile
Not the most reliable band to buy tickets to see, DIIV has had to cancel numerous dates due to drug abuse and relapse. But these days it’s looking good for Zachary Cole Smith, the band’s creative nucleus, and we’re hoping he stays straight and keeps on churning out the indie world’s favorite summer fuzz: a feeling and a music Seattle could use right now. The California shoegazers, Froth, mix things up with their lo-fi antics along with Storefront Church that at once recall early Tame Impala and reject late Tame Impala.
FFO Deerhunter, Sugar Candy Mountain, Ariel Pink
Kenny G with The Seattle Symphony
December 10th
Benaroya Hall
My first concert ever was Kenny G opening for Toni Braxton on her Secrets Tour supporting the release of her album of the same name. This was at The Key Arena in Seattle in 1996. Thank you, mom, you changed me forever that day. Since then I have spent many sleepless nights thinking about how Braxton pulled Kenny G back on stage to play sax on “Un-Break My Heart”. This show probably won’t be quite that emotional but is sure to pull a few drops from those dried out glands of yours. He’ll be at Seattle’s famed Benaroya Hall leading the Seattle Symphony. The 90s are very en vogue at the moment and the only thing that would make this more 90s era Seattle is if Sub Pop was sponsoring the event and Krist Novoselic was the opener.
FFO Adult-Contemporary Jazz stations the nation over
Dâm-Funk // Nosaj Thing // Machinedrum
December 27th
The Crocodile
Nosaj Thing grafts, with great care and result, a collage of genres from hip-hop, soul, jazz, to dream pop, etc. to craft quietly complex portraits of an individual person’s mind. Danceable drone-scapes have been a major theme in Nosaj Thing’s more recent endeavors and it will be interesting to see and feel how he translates that to a live setting. Dâm–Funk, the G-Funk revivalist, is a grove-forward crossover artist who recently collaborated with Ariel Pink to cover Donny & Joe Emmerson’s bedroom masterpiece, “Baby” for Seattle’s own Light in the Attic Records. Setting the night and the dance floor off is Machinedrum with his breakneck beats.
FFO Mount Kimbie, Onra, Madlib
See something? Say something! If you think we’ve missed a show or you want to get something featured in the Roundup, just reach out and touch faith.
