Three Imaginary Girls - Jen Wood

The likeable and funny Rosie Thomas at the Triple Door

ChrisB — Mon, 17 Dec 2007 03:59:49 +0000

13 Dec 2007

A lot of artists have two personalities, and either one is prone to showing up on any given night. Have you ever discussed seeing someone like, say, Ryan Adams (or maybe less controversially, Cat Power) and telling someone (or vice versa) that they were amazing one night –- playing for two hours and his voice sounded incredible and he was funny and down-to-earth -- and then have a friend tell you that they had caught a different show and had a completely different opinion? Maybe their voice didn’t sound as strong or played with their back to the crowd or maybe they were just drunk. It just happens with people – especially those with public personas.

For singer-songwriter Rosie Thomas, there are also two personalities at work and both are obvious during her live shows. There’s the sincere, angel-voiced singer who makes songs about love and longing and love and heartbreak. Then there’s the Rosie who is overtly silly and doesn’t take herself even the slightest bit seriously.

Thomas opened her set Thursday night at the Triple Door by appearing as her character Sheila Saputo in Santa Clause attire. With fake teeth, a neck brace, and horrible glasses, Saputo is a meant to be a pathetic spinster-ish old lady with lots of cats, but with Thomas’s likeable personality and good-natured humor, she is sympathetic – but more importantly, really, really funny. Thomas (via Saputo) told the crowd what Christmas means to her, with an acronym for St. Nick (the “K” stood for kitty litter).

The only downside to Saputo’s appearance is that it abbreviated the opening act, Seattle singer-songwriter Jen Wood, to a very-short 20 minute set. In the interest of full disclosure, I must concede that Wood and members of her band have been good friends for several years, so my objectivity on that matter is obviously subject to question.

Everything about the evening though was wonderful. My friend and I were seated in the front row of the Triple Door, the sound was, as is par for the course at this venue, pristine (the Triple Door is seriously the best place to view a live show in Seattle), another friend opened the show and played to almost a full room and Rosie Thomas was incredibly likeable and charming and funny. Have I mentioned yet that Rosie Thomas is really funny? If not, it’s a point I will make over and over again during this review. Really, I couldn’t have asked for anything more.

Even though I’ve admired her delicate voice and songwriting, Thomas found a permanent place in my heart last year when she started the rumor (which was picked up by Pitchfork and much of the music blogosphere ran with it) that she was knocked up by Sufjan Stevens.

If you have never seen Rosie Thomas live, it is jarring the moment she comes on stage. She speaks in a voice that sounds like Minnie Mouse on helium. To paraphrase Art Brut’s Eddie Argos, it is her speaking voice, it’s not irony. Yet, when she starts to sing, her voice is beautiful.

Thursday night, she sang several songs that spanned her catalogue, including several from her latest, These Friends of Mine, (“Kite Song”, with its fragile harmonies and light piano instrumentation was especially lovely) as well as a few holiday staples like “Silent Night” and “Baby, It’s Cold Outside” (which was a duet with her brother Brian, who played piano for several of her songs and made a good straight man to his zany sister by making jokes that she was adopted – and also has a nice baritone voice) and a cover of REM’s “The One I Love” (which she also performed at the 826 Seattle benefit last month).

I think my favorite part of the evening was the bit where Thomas read through the police blotter in the local newspaper from the small community her grandparents live in (I think it was somewhere in Kansas), which included stories of the Dairy Queen being robbed just for a cake and how the most recent Harry Potter books at their local library are now overdue. Or maybe my favorite part was where Thomas recounted her experience as an actress, appearing with Steve Zahn and she read her lines on stage with Jeff Shoop, her guitarist. Or maybe it was the time between the end of her set and the beginning of her encore was the shortest I can recall (basically it was enough time for Thomas and her band mates to walk off stage and run back to their positions. Or maybe it was the emotional harmony on “Much Farther to Go.” Forget it – there really can’t be any one favorite moment, not even the awkward, but cute, way she said “Merry Christmas” before every song during the first half of her set.

Simply put, this was altogether a remarkable and fun show orchestrated by one of the most unique and entertaining artists in the Northwest.

KEXP and TIG present an Audioasis showcase for the girls

imaginary dana — Tue, 31 Jul 2007 21:52:42 +0000

The show will take place this Saturday, August 4th at the High Dive in Fremont, and will be a night for the girls!

69 Love Songs Pre-Valentine's Day Bash!

three imaginary girls — Fri, 20 Jan 2006 08:00:00 +0000

Three Imaginary Girls, Barsuk Records, and 90.3 KEXP present the songs of The Magnetic Fields as interpreted by members of The Long Winters, Vendetta Red, Rocky Votolato, Visqueen, Tullycraft, Harvey Danger, Kane Hodder, Transmissionary Six, Saeta, and many more. Thursday night, February 9th, at the Crocodile Cafe in Seattle, WA

Seattle, WA, January 20, 2006 — "We're Absolutely Cuckoo" for The Magnetic Fields. That's why Three Imaginary Girls has decided to celebrate Valentine's Day this year with a 69 Love Songs Pre-Valentine's Day Bash, co-sponsored by the mighty 90.3 KEXP and the amazing Barsuk Records.

The event will take place at the Crocodile Café on Thursday night, February 9th, and will feature collaborations from tons of Northwest musicians performing their favorite tracks from the 1999 Magnetic Field's 3-disc opus, 69 Love Songs.

The long list of performers includes members of The Long Winters, Vendetta Red, Rocky Votolato, Visqueen, Tullycraft, Harvey Danger, Kane Hodder, and many more. In honor of Valentine's Day, the night will feature three great performance of love — of both the romantic and fraternal nature:

Lovebirds Eric Corson (The Long Winters) and Anna Lange (Dutch Elms) will debut their lo-fi side project, Fork and Spoon.
Newlyweds Andrew Moore (Kane Hodder) and Alissabeth Newton (ex-The Catch) will perform as their aptly named band, For Better Or For Awesome.
Rock and roll brothers Rocky Votolato (formerly of Waxwing) and Sonny Votolato (Slender Means) will dazzle the crowd with their amazingly talented genes.

The full roster of performers, with monikers, includes:

Barsuk Record's Rocky Votolato and Sonny Vototalo {Slender Means}
Fork and Spoon, featuring Eric Corson {of Barsuk Record's The Long Winters} and Anna Lange {The Dutch Elms}
Rachel Flotard {Visqueen}
Zach Davidson {Sony Records' Vendetta Red) and Sameer Shukla
Magic Marker Records' Tullycraft
Math and Physics Club
Breno Dakota {featuring members of Daylight Basement}
For Better Or For Awesome featuring Andrew Moore {Kane Hodder} and Alissabeth Newton {ex-The Catch}
Sean Nelson and His Mortal Enemies {Harvey Danger}
Piglét, France's greatest porcine illusionist (aka writer Kurt B. Reighley)
Just added! The Transmissionary Six
Just added! Saeta (featuring Lesli Wood of Ms. Led)

The outrageous Adrian Lefleur of Iron Composer fame (coming soon to the Game Show Network) will emcee the event and will raffle off a variety of fabulous indie-rock themed prize packs throughout the night.

"Since Stephin Merritt rarely tours, we figured the next best thing would be to have a bunch of our favorite bands cover the songs. I am giddy with anticipation," said Liz Riley, co-founder of Three Imaginary Girls.

Three Imaginary Girls will also run a "Tell Us Your 69 Love Songs Love Story" themed-contest. Readers can submit their stories of how 69 Love Songs impacted their love lives, and the best submission will receive a pair of free tickets to the show. The imaginary girls will read the best stories between sets throughout the night.

"The crazy thing about 69 Love Songs is that no matter where you are romantically, it's fitting," Dana Bos, also a co-founder. "You can rejoice, court, break-up, kiss, wed, laugh, fight, or drink with that album."

"I can't wait to hear who sings 'Underwear,'" said imaginary girl Char. "I hope he changes the lyrics to 'A pretty imaginary girl, in her underwear.'"

If there's anything better in this world — who cares?

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THE JUICY DETAILS
WHAT: Three Imaginary Girls 69 Love Songs Pre-Valentine's Day Bash. Co-sponsored by 90.3 KEXP and Barsuk Records.
WHERE: The Crocodile Café, 2200 2nd Avenue. Seattle, WA
WHEN: Thursday, February 9, 2006. Doors open 8p. 21+.
COST: $7. Advance tickets available through Ticketweb.

ABOUT THREE IMAGINARY GIRLS
ThreeImaginaryGirls.com is a Seattle-based website that showcases the great music of the Northwest to music lovers worldwide. During the past three+ years, the site has featured reviews of albums, live music, film, theater, interviews, political commentary, and even love advice, in Seattle and beyond. The girls also book music showcases, contribute to other music publications (including The Stranger, Tablet Magazine, and Music for America), and make guest radio appearances on 90.3 KEXP. The girls were voted "MVP of Seattle Music 2004" by readers of the Seattle Weekly, and were listed in Seattle Magazine's Most Influential People issue. Intrigued? For more information, contact: tig@threeimaginarygirls.com.

ABOUT KEXP 90.3 FM
KEXP 90.3 FM is a public radio station in Seattle with a mission to enrich people's lives with a unique wide and deep approach to music programming. Knowledgeable hosts hand-pick music including indie rock, world music, blues, jazz, hip hop and electronic from its collection of approximately 500,000 titles. The station also broadcasts more than 250 live performances each year. KEXP programming is also heard on the web at KEXP.org. KEXP 90.3 FM is governed by Friends of KEXP, an independent non-profit organization with an agreement to operate 90.3 FM on behalf of the University of Washington which holds the FCC license.

ABOUT BARSUK RECORDS
Founded in the late '90s by friends and band mates Josh Rosenfeld and Christopher Possanza as a way to put out music by their own band (This Busy Monster) and their friends' bands (including Death Cab for Cutie, Little Champions, Abigail Grush), Barsuk Records has grown and flourished over the years. Focused not on any specific genre, but simply on supporting quality songwriting and unique creativity, Barsuk has helped introduce the world to such phenomenally talented artists as The Long Winters, Jesse Sykes & The Sweet Hereafter, Aqueduct, John Vanderslice, Rilo Kiley, and Nada Surf. Barsuk Records continues to expand its roster into 2006 (with upcoming releases from Rocky Votolato, Mates of State, Starlight Mints and Viva Voce), and promises to be a bastion of quality music for years to come.

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Three Imaginary Girls, Barsuk Records, and 90.3 KEXP present the songs of The Magnetic Fields as interpreted by members of The Long Winters, Vendetta Red, Rocky Votolato, Visqueen, Tullycraft, Harvey Danger, Kane Hodder, Transmissionary Six, Saeta, and many more.