at The Comet

When it comes to music, when it comes to pretty much anything, I’ve always been a style over substance kind of guy. I think it’s great that KISS put so much work into their costumes and stage show, but I would have much preferred songs that I actually liked. Other than Bowie, in fact, I can’t think of too many artists I admire who have successfully married style and substance. Which is why it’s so refreshing that The Fabulous Downey Brothers seem intent on providing both.

This Olympia-based outfit played to an adoring and enthusiastic crowd at The Comet Tuesday night, supported by Lakefight and Sebastian Clark. Adorned in blue costumes with sizable headpieces, they could have just stood on stage and immediately been different than virtually any other local band. But merely stand on stage they did not. Conflating a cauldron of hardcore, synthpop and musical theater, FDB whipped through an intense set featuring short bursts of controlled chaos. At times it was as if I were watching They Might Be Giants performing under the influence of ridiculously potent amphetamines.

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Come one, come all! Throw Me The Statue and BOAT are playing at the Comet this Saturday, and you're not going to want to miss it -- it's like two great bands that taste great together. This is BOAT's first show back in town since they returned from their East Coast domination tour (hitting all points Brooklyn, NY, Milford, CT and Rock Island, IL) and very special guest (and original member) Z. Duffy will be joining them (Z. moved to Chicago a long time ago) for this one show. Z. was integral in BOAT's sloppy pop early days, and we know Saturday will be a reunited-and-it-feels-so-good lovefest.

And PS, longtime love of the imaginaries Throw Me The Statue will headline the night -- and we've been having dreams that they might debut a new song. Not sure if this is true, but we hope so!

With Boy Eats Drum Machine and Wonderful on the lineup, there's only one thing missing: and that's you! Which is why we have a hot pair of tickets to give away to one lucky reader (and their +1). Just send a note to tig {at} threeimaginarygirls {dot} com with the subject line, "YouReallyShouldBeSmiling" sometime before 3p on Friday, April 29th. We'll pick a winner at random and get your name on the guest list for Saturday night's show. Easy breezy!

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You should come to my (absolutely free, though 21+) live interview with Steve Ignorant tomorrow night (April 26) at The Comet starting at 6 pm - because Crass, the band he sang vocals for, sound better and truer and more meaningful than ever in these uber-apocalyptic times. Have a listen to their greatest non-hits collection Best Before 1984, and you will hear the voices and noises of women and men beating back the darkness as hard as they could. Whether that despair be political repression, male domination, religious hypocrisy, Crass sounded like the Sex Pistols and The Clash on overdrive, in song revolutions so real you could taste the tear gas and pints that fueled them.

As keenly described in his honest and humorous autobiography The Rest Is Propaganda (scribed with Steve Pottinger), which Ignorant will be signing copies of for sale at The Comet, he was a fun-loving teenager when he began hanging out at the Dial House, a hang-out for artists helmed by Crass co-founder Penny Rimbaud. Ignorant was kicked off the dole for a bad attitude, and didn't have much hope given him growing up in a poor, violent part of England. When he saw the near-30 year old book designer and vegetarian Rimbaud living life exactly the way he wanted to, he came along, in his own fashion. Wine-soaked nights ranting about the UK going right wing, along with seeing Rotten in the Pistols on TV and Simonon of The Clash commanding mod coolness live, put these two men into a spoken word/drums duo for rants like "Do They Owe Us a Living?" and "Reality Asylum."

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In the onslaught of "I think I can smell spring tour" shows that took over the city this weekend, we found ourselves front-and-center for some of the best sets we've seen yet this year.

Thursday night, John Vanderslice played to a mostly-attentive yet less-than-capacity crowd at the Crocodile. Despite some technical difficulties, he put on the kind of performance we've come to expect: both the physical set and the vibe of the night were warm, inviting, and mindbendingly good. A night with JV is about as close as you can get as a fan to a night where you're sharing the stage-time with an old friend -- the familiar selections he chose to play were as excellent and comforting as ever, and the newest songs were folded in perfectly, leaving us wanting more of both. Which is not the easy feat for an artist with a compelling back catalog, mind you. Add in three parts local notable / designstress / musician Dianna Potter on accompanying vocals and one part audience participation bit, and our swoon-meters were absolutely done for.

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Lovesick Empire is going to be second-slot at the Comet this Saturday, and we strongly suggest you get yourselves there. Stat.

LE, on top of being on the producer of one of our favorite-ist EPs last year (The Grind EP, which you can read all kinds of carryings-on about here) should be firmly planted on your radar. They do a recorded album good, they do a live performance even better, and if that's not enough to sell you, they'll be opening up for the Black Whales -- and from what we can gather, there's many folks out there are interested in catching those guys at a venue the size of an apartment.

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As many of you here in Seattle have heard, local favorite Drew Grow (of Drew Grow & the Pastor's Wives) was in quite a gnarly accident recently. Reports about surgeries and physical healing reports seem to be on the up-and-up, but unfortunately, that means a pile of medical bills -- and this is where the community at large as we know it has stepped up.

We'll be bringing you more information soon on the shows and goings on around the PNW to raise money for Drew -- most notably next month's benefit at Columbia City Theater -- but so far as tonight goes, you can mosey over to the Comet and do some good while you geek on rad tunes. Lemolo will be coming in to headline the night in Drew Grow's place, as he and his band were originally booked to play there this evening. Our new favorite two-woman combo will be sharing the stage with Big Sur and See Me River, and with a lineup like that, we can just about guarantee great tidings.

The show is 21+ / 9p / $8, with a generous portion of the proceeds going directly to cover Drew's bills. Be there!

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Are you looking for a righteous time, where the chances are quite high that you just may time travel through your third eye across the 8th dimension to a land where Bill Hicks is king? You are?! Fantastic. I have a show for you. Come December 31st (this Friday), you should take train/plane/tauntaun to the Comet Tavern for a real hum-dinger of a show.

Purple Rhinestone Eagle is a band name I've heard a lot lately, usually followed by high praise and excitement. I liked the name, so I checked out the band -- and holy shiz, ladies and gents. This band is grade-A, top shelf 'Sabbath-slaps-high-fives-with-Zeppelin-and-sacrifices-a-goat-to-a pagan-god' awesome. If someone were to tell me that the members of this band were descendants of Children of the Sixth Root Race, Jefferson Airplane, and a giant blunt, I would not be surprised at all. I like the song "Burn It Down" so much I may just skip everything else going on New Year's Eve and plant my bum front and center as soon as the Comet opens so I won't miss a minute of PRE's magic. Seriously. Anyone looking to watch music and have a transcendental experience should make plans to check this band out.

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Somehow, in the sea of amazing, mindbending, 40+ shows this past weekend, we managed to find ourselves front row for two of our favorite local acts, with camera in hand. Two great nights with two rad bands, at two perfectly-suited venues: John Roderick's solo show at the Triple Door on Thursday, and the Head and the Heart's late-night set at the Comet on Friday.

First up: picture one of your all-time all-star favorite musicians playing all of your favorite old songs, from the edge of a couch in your apartment. Now, give your apartment temperature control, a raging sound system, stellar lighting, room for all your friends, and a waiter who serves you lemon-infused sparkling water and endless range-free grass-fed chicken filled potstickers. (Right? Seriously.)

Such was our night.

Nothing could have prefunked a sun-filled weekend better than a night with John Roderick, who took the spotlight center-stage this past Thursday at one of the sweetest venues in town. After warmup sets from comedian Karen Korn and Jason Dodson, a two-hour set (!) of Long Winters favorites ensued, and we sat and soaked it all in from the darkened, cushy, air-conditioned seats of the Triple Door. The night consisted mainly of older songs, tracks off of most of the band's earliest releases like The Worst You Can Do Is Harm and When I Pretend to Fall, some pre-LW songs, and even some pre-Western State Hurricanes material. (!!!) Coupled with a smattering of more recently released selections (and the greatest stage banter this side of the Sound), it was everything a solo show at the Triple Door should be: totally deconstructed and intimate -- akin to spending an evening in a performer's living room / your apartment -- with a first-hand tangibility to the whole thing that knocked us right out of our chairs.

{Tons of photos after the jump!}

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OK, so it's Wednesday and I'm already dreaming of the weekend, which is normal. But, this time it's because I've been counting down to this weekend for months! One of my favorite bands, Casper & the Cookies (from Athens, GA) is coming back to Seattle! They haven't been here since the opened for the Apples In Stereo in 2007! Needless to say, I'm stoked for their show at the Comet this Sunday, May 2nd. Do some stretching before so you can properly shake your groove thing.

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at The Comet

I've been wondering whether the Parson Red Heads' (PRHs) Residency was going to work out. I mean playing weekly shows for four consecutive weeks, up and down the west coast, without losing the magic is a pretty tall order.

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