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There are moments that come to people in the artistic world when transition is imminent. This moment seems to have arrived for Scott Anderson and Noodlebird. After getting started in 2012 making music under the Noodlebird moniker, bandmates came in and out, with a permanent lineup
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Noodlebird might just be a first for one of my articles: by the time the show I'm writing up comes around, they may no longer be called Noodlebird. As I spoke with frontman Scott Anderson, he expressed that Noodlebird has just become sort of an all-encompassing moniker that he slaps
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Once bands became available to legitimate journalism - when writers were truly available to artists to find out what they were truly thinking - questions began to arise about the sincerity of the artists we knew and loved. Were the Beatles really inseparable friends? Was Prince this mystifying sex god?
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After more than 20 years of taking the punk ethos and bending it to the will of a clothes horse and a stylistic maverick, Ian Svenonius has arrived at Chain and the Gang, which similarly takes elements of early soul music and abstracts them to conform to a 2015 attitude.
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Portland-based experimental pop maestros Aan are making their return to Olympia for a show at Deadbeat Olympia, a record store that's quickly making a name for itself with exciting in-store shows. Although Aan opened for the Smashing Pumpkins, there's little of the Pumpkins' melodramatic posturing to be found in Aan's
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Mattress is a strange beast. The solo project of Portland musician Rex Marshall defies easy categorization. Commanded by Marshall's Calvin Johnson-esque deep, deep baritone, there's a languid sensuality to the music that somehow finds a middle ground between a lascivious crooner and the dirty, desolate electronics of Suicide. In terms
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I don't know what it is, but I've grown up with a particular love for doo-wop and '50s romantic music. Of course, a large part of it has to do with being raised on the defunct 97.3 KBSG, which truly did play oldies. The latest they would extend would be
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It is goddamn freezing outside! As I write this, pitiful snowflakes listlessly fall to the cold Tacoma ground, almost as if to whisper, "Get out while you still can." Winter has arrived, and with it comes the almost overpowering urge to stay inside and never, ever leave again. Fight it!
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The trio of Raven Marcus, hailing from San Francisco, consists of Natalia Montana Rose Miner (vocals and mandolin), Rob Johnson (drums and percussion) and Bronwyn Dexter on bass. They describe themselves as "cowboy glam rock," which does a nice job of describing their folky approach to pop songs. With a
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Lakefight are a concentrated blast of jittery energy. The amount of churning forward momentum produced by the trio is a bit bracing at times. Comprised of guitar, drums and keyboard, the sound maintains a spry lightness, even as it barrels ahead like a runaway train. Citing influences ranging from the
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"Fish Breath" may be one of the most off-putting word combinations in the English language. Something tells me that the San Francisco band Fish Breath wouldn't mind that observation one bit. This is a band that leans into the abrasive. Their recent, self-titled album opens innocently enough with the ramshackle
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In some ways, the Tacoma School of the Arts in particular, and Tacoma in general, have a tendency to function as a sort of musical farm league for the country. While this may be a fact shared by other smaller, quirky schools and cities in the U.S., my firsthand experience
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Befitting an album featuring Ben Roth's first major creative output, Bod's EP, Party Drug, feels like it's crammed with ideas and off-kilter detours. "Gigantor" kicks off the album in a haze, before '70s prog-indebted guitars charge in. Tricky time signatures abound, lending a stop-start dynamic that challenges without taking away
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After a couple years of being stranded in the wilderness of Alaska, Saucy Yoda is once again gracing the Pacific Northwest with her presence. For those who haven't had the pleasure of catching her live, Saucy Yoda is a whirling dervish of gonzo party energy. Combining a garage punk aesthetic
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Orden Mundial do not fuck around. The Spanish hardcore outfit lay everything out on the line in their recent LP, Obedienca Debida, with 10 tracks that almost never make it past a minute and a half. Still, within these unfathomably tight structures, Orden Mundial find compelling melodies and enough crunch
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In the late '70s, a record label was born in London called Stiff Records. Among the prominent voices in the label were the prolific and pop-minded likes of Nick Lowe, Elvis Costello and Wreckless Eric. What these artists had in common was a love for pop structure, albeit informed by
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Like Nick Lowe and Elvis Costello, Trees and Timber have a knack for writing perfect pop songs that don't get just get by on production sheen. There's a tactile feel to Trees and Timber that lends weight to songs that are otherwise light as a feather. On their new LP,
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The Fabulous Downey Brothers are aggressively, endearingly strange. Half performance art, half spiky art-rock, the Olympia band always bring a surging current of off-putting energy to their live performances. Calling on the daring New Wave of late '70s/early '80s groups like Talking Heads, Devo, and Adam Ant, the Fabulous Downey
