Tonight in Seattle:  
back next

New Releases

Sharon Van Etten + Shearwater = best thing on the internet today

We know you know, dear readers, that here at TIG we are not ones to cut-and-paste every press release and email that we receive in our imaginary inboxes -- however, we got one a half-hour ago that's so rad, we literally couldn't wait to share it:

As part of specials being offered for next month's Record Store Day {taking place this year on April 20th} celebraish, Sub Pop will be releasing a limited edition 7" single of Sharon Van Etten and Shearwater doing a cover of 1981's Stevie Nicks / Tom Petty gem, "Stop Draggin' My Heart Around" (!!!!!). You can see the live cut above from their A.V. Club session, and keep an eye on our site as RSD2013 gets closer for more information on what's being released and where to get your hot little hands on it.

{For more information on all things Record Store Day 2013, pop on over here.}

Thursday, March 21, 2013
by three imaginary...
2 comments

Latest comment by: Imaginary Amie: "Instant hashtag, V! :) "

Beard Alert | Northwest Bands

Idaho's Josh Ritter has the beat

Josh Ritter / photo: Laura Wilson{Josh Ritter plays the Neptune Theater Saturday, March 23}

Simple thing: Josh Ritter’s Beast in its Tracks is to today what Paul Simon’s Still Crazy After All These Years was to 1975. Yes, Ritter’s album comes in the wake of a divorce, and Still Crazy came after Simon's divorce, with his biggest hit, “Fifty Ways to Leave Your Lover.” Lest the eyes roll at the mention of Simon, remember: In the last 30 years, he’s proved a durable quantity at least three times: with Graceland, with the Lemonheads’ cover of “Mrs. Robinson,” and with “The Only Living Boy in New York” making a new, melancholic splash on the Garden State soundtrack.

more...

Thursday, March 21, 2013
by Andrew Bartlett
add a comment
Film

Imaginary Watch This: Dirty Girls

Thanks to Metafilter, I found this cool short documentary shot in 1996 by Michael Lucid about a group of 13-year-old Riot Grrls trying to spread the message that society's expectations of the way women should act, dress, and groom themselves is Bullshit -- and sexism, racism, and homophobia are not okay, on any level. Because of their self-expression,  they earned the nickname "Dirty Girls" and the neverending scorn of most of their classmates ("That's the girl who didn't take a shower since Kurt Cobain died."), especially when they published their first zine. 

It's a really fascinating peek into the world of teenage girls, and I recommend you watch it. Props to the one guy at the end who actually stands up for these girls by saying their zine is a brilliant, Marxist critque of the world -- even though his friends are yelling at him that it's not. So great.

"The reason why people put so much negative energy towards us is to make themselves feel higher. And I totally believe that, because a lot of people -- if they're popular or not popular -- it doesn't matter. The reason why they put people down is to make themselves feel higher and give themselves more self-esteem, more self-power, more self-confidence. And that's SO dumb. To change somebody else, to make yourself different. The only way to change yourself is to change yourself." 

I'd LOVE to see an update on these ladies now. 

And VICE posted one a few days ago! YAY! 

more...

Monday, March 18, 2013
by Imaginary Amie
2 comments

Latest comment by: Imaginary Amie: "YAY! That is so rad, V. Thank you for finding and sharing! xoxo "

Record review | New Releases | Northwest Bands

Solvents — Ghetto Moon

This is Solvents' least stylistically ambitious release -- and that is a very good thing. The band hasn't gone purely minimalistic in working with Karl Blau for one day in his Anacortes studio; the absolutely luscious violin of Emily Madden honey-drips upon her husband Jarrod Bramson's salty sighed-vocals in a way that could never be described as overly restrained. But the duo are sounding gingerly tight and scrupulously aware of their best qualities in the seven songs that make up Ghetto Moon, and every song could be a gentle giant hit. They've left the cut-and-paste scruff of oblique fanzine rock for cafe troubadour waltz, august vocal melodies partnered with bardic elucidation. And yet not without coy humor ("I'm so obscure, and bitter cool, and long to come undone"). 

The Port Townsend, WA creator-couple have released, over time, a flurry of diverse-sounding cassettes and CDs and Internet-mixes, and their last planned full-length, the appreciated forgive yr. blood, showed they could be a lo-fi Basement Tapes jukebox of styles. Ghetto Moon is much different: it's all stately-gorgeous, if denuded to Jarrod's mellifluous lead vocals and Emily's complimentary harmonies, truly deeply sung melodies that are going to stick with you as much as her lovely fiddling.

more...

Friday, March 15, 2013
by Chris Estey
2 comments

Latest comment by: Zarni de Wet: "Thanks for sharing! This is just beautiful "

Interviews

Imaginary Interview: The Redwood Plan

The Redwood Plan celebrated the release of their second album, Green Light Go, at Neumos on February 15. Adding electronic elements to their dance-punk sound, Green Light Go is more textured, more dynamic, and if it’s even possible, more energetic and fun than their debut Racing Toward the Heartbreak. We were lucky enough to chat with their powerhouse front-woman Lesli Wood before the band took off on a Midwestern tour to support the new album.

TIG: How was the CD release show at Neumos?

Lesli: It was a little overly ambitious to try to have our CD release show there, but we worked really hard, and of course having Head Like a Kite on the bill made a big difference because they’re a headlining band. Everything just came together really well, and everyone was super responsive. I spent the weekend completely elated.

TIG: Do you DIY everything?

Lesli: I brought on Riot Act Media for publicity on this album. It gave me a chance to focus more on tour booking. Otherwise, everything is completely “do it myself.”

TIG: Beside the electronic element, was there anything else you approached differently on the new album?

Lesli: With the first album we didn’t really know what our sound was going to be. Over the years, everyone created their own distinct voice in the band. Syd, the guitarist, has a very distinct guitar style, and Betty is a machine on the drums, and Larry is this amazing Mike Watt-style bassist. Incorporating all the electronics, I was writing a lot of parts on my own and hadn’t really left a lot of room for individual voices. That was something for me to learn, not just psychologically giving everyone space, but actually making room within the song for another bass line. The songs ended up really showcasing everyone’s individual sounds to create what is now the Redwood Plan.

more...

Wednesday, March 13, 2013
by Imaginary Gemma
add a comment
check out the TIG flickr pool