Now that summer's officially 86'd, it's time for the inaugural (hereafter annual?) City Arts Fest, which takes over our fair city this upcoming Wednesday - Saturday {Oct. 20th - 23rd}. Laden with an impressive lineup at venues far and wide, CAF is catering to more of the mini-SXSW feel that makes these 'festivals' enjoyable -- think along the lines of MusicFest NW's style -- and for this, we applaud and squee! with joy. There's something about cramming too many people into too small of a space, even with a homerun lineup, that can make a gathering of the proverbial vibes inherently less fun.

And so -- with sneakers laced up and schedules in hand -- away we go with the music! Click the links below for more info on each particular show, including the where & what on how to get yourself some tickets:

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at Capitol Hill Block Party 2010

More photos from Saturday's Capitol Hill Block Party! This post is packed so tight with snaps there is really no room for words. So I'll leave it you to let us know what you saw and what rocked.

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This year may have been my favorite year ever for the Capitol Hill Block Party. With an up-to-date, enthusiastic focus on exciting developments in local hip-hop and rock, 2010 stands out as a year in which so many hot regional bands amped crowds and few out-of-region big name performers were as required. The presence of sponsors and participants like KEXP and The Stranger staff and other local writers among all the fans made it a San Diego Comic Con for local music culture.

From show to show you could hear people playing music, talking music, sharing music, and loving music. If you were able to make it to the Capitol Hill Block Party this year, what are your favorite bands performing you've seen so far? Here are mine:

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For their fifth full length for a band that has been around since 2000, Blitzen Trapper come on like a mighty gust of minty fresh barf. When I listen to Destroyer of the Void I am trainspotting back to the bedroom I shared with my brothers with scattered piles of gatefold LPs surrounding me, Roger Dean covers gleaming beneath the overhead, LA cowboy band member-photographed inner sleeves toss about, studying the thick lengths of tracks on vinyl containing arcane mixtures of big beat dinosaur stomp, keyboard sheen and swirl, folk-pop snappiness, misty roads into musical necropolis. These records are the cities of the dead now, buried by three chord punk and music videos and busted-bass mix tapes, and once piled up ubiquitously in record stores across the land to await some form of damnation have probably all ended up in Blitzen Trapper's Portland. There they and Colin Meloy and other fearlessly nostalgic musician dudes have probably emptied out the long platter bins to swipe riffs, bang the bong and blast the beer to, and reincarnate them in songs like the opening title track to Destroyer of the Void, which sounds nearly Wagnerian by way of Wings.

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Yes, we said free. No, there's no strings. What are you waiting for?

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Upset. The word of the our 2008 Best Northwest Releases of 2008 Readers' Poll is upset.

With the Fleet Foxes winning readers and critical polls alike, who would've thought they wouldn't get top honors in our humble little Northwest poll? But they didn't -- they placed a distant second to New Faces, another debut record from some very talented, very young Northwest fellas.

We had other surprises as well, with unsigned newcomers such as Hey Marseilles, the Kindness Kind, and Kaylee Cole cracking the top ten, beating out Northwest heavyweights such as Death Cab for Cutie. We did not expect that. And we love it when you surprise us, dear readers.

We imaginaries like to champion the up-and-comers from the Northwest, and our results indicate that you do as well. We think you all also have fabulous taste, as always. Thanks to everyone who participated in our poll. We couldn't be more proud or thrilled to present the top 50 winners on your behalf...

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Ramshackle rock rules with Blitzen Trapper.

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at Marymoor Park

They finally did get a little experimental-folky later in the set, busting out the maracas, cymbal-infused drums, and oh! cowbell! Lots of screamy, feedback-y organ too.

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But I know they usually wait till closer to the date to annouce the lucky local acts. So -- to that end, I propose a good ole fashioned imaginary rumor machine. Friends... Who have you heard is playing? Or who do you hope is playing?

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Sneak Peek @ SXSW Line-Up

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