I keep noticing that a lot of my favorite records coming out have the name Graig Markel associated with them -- production for and playing on Barton Carroll's melancholy new album Together You And I and the dark, dazzling debut of Terri Tarantula. Markel has his own milieu, comprised of cobwebby but vivid Americana or noir electronic pop, or often even blending the two. A great example of that would be the latest release with his own band, Animals At Night, which has a cool track, "We Are Lights On The Way Out," that was a KEXP Song Of the Day last week.

This Friday night at the Comet Animals At Night have prepared a deluxe live set with the band being joined by all sorts of special guests on stage, featuring material from the vinyl-and-download new album, Cut to Chase Chorus and Fade. Also on the bill are CMYK (ex-Long Ranger / ex Velella Velella), Mayors and Warriors (New York's John Bosch joined by Head Like a Kite's Trent Moorman), and NRDLNGR starting out the night.

"The official release was at the Crocodile on November 21st," Markel says. "It was a great show with Head Like a Kite and Foscil. It was nuts. But this one is going to trump it." Below are some more questions I asked him about the record, the show, and the carnival of excitement that apparently is Markel's daily creative life.

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