Three Imaginary Girls - King Cobra

Last night ever at the King Cobra

imaginary liz — Fri, 27 Feb 2009 19:01:36 +0000

Among other things, today's column talks about the closing of the King Cobra and what those folks have put together for tonight.

Hello, economic crisis. Goodbye, King Cobra.

imaginary dana — Wed, 25 Feb 2009 20:25:51 +0000

No word yet on all the great shows they had on their calendar for March and beyond. If you have an update on any of them, please post below in the comments, and I will update this blog post accordingly.

Cumulus Festival will rock your brains out

Imaginary Shrie — Thu, 22 Jan 2009 16:55:24 +0000

Three days of electric fuzz and long-haired men - count me in!

Buy your own King Cobra

imaginary liz — Fri, 11 Jul 2008 17:18:43 +0000

Looks like another Seattle club is up on the for-sale block with a price tag inline with what the Comet Tavern and Crocodile are going for: $425,000.

Noise for the Needy 2008: New Faces, Kate Tucker, BOAT, Math & Physics Club

imaginary liz — Wed, 18 Jun 2008 05:05:52 +0000

13 Jun 2008

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I'm not going to rely on hyperbole to explain how fun Friday's Noise for the Needy benefit show at King Cobra was. It had been a crazy week, and it seemed like more than a coincidence that it was Friday the 13th. The show was just the elixir I needed to set things right.

New Faces, fresh from their EMP Sound Off 2008 win, put the audience under their spell. The Port Townsend trio was a wily bunch that mixed the richness of Interpol and the catchy rifts of Franz Ferdinand.

Kate Tucker & the Sons of Sweden were up next, and this is when the 'elixir' part of the evening took hold and things went up a notch. By the time my beloved BOAT came on, things were in high gear. Like a good imaginary girl, I had a notebook in hand and had every intention of taking notes about how tight they were and seamless their set was. I was going to namecheck the old and new songs they played and list off the ordering info for their brand new extremely limited 7" record (out on Magic Marker Records). But alas, a girl only has so many hands, and mine was holding a PBR (thanks Noise for the Needy sponsors!).

I was, ahem, over the moon elated with the Math and Physics Club set. They played their signature sweet, humble pop songs and even included my favorite of their covers, "Shaking Through" by REM. Bass player Ethan proved himself to be superstar of the group pulling off a better (and dare I say cuter and more stylish) Mike Mills than Mike himself.

I'm not exactly sure why, but by the time the 'secret' headliner (The Lashes) took the stage, my night had come to a close.

As my friend Lily Allen eloquently said, "Kids, drink responsibly or you'll end up looking like this, not pretty! Was quite fun though, from what I can remember."

(awesome photos by Nathan Howard)

I'm not going to rely on hyperbole to explain how fun Friday's Noise for the Needy benefit show at King Cobra was.

Candy Fest

imaginary dana — Mon, 09 Jun 2008 20:59:10 +0000

The whole event goes down on July 12, and is brought to us thanks to the fabulous bookers at the Comet Tavern and King Cobra.

A bit of a leak on the Noise for the Needy festival two surprise headliners

Chris Estey — Mon, 09 Jun 2008 17:13:46 +0000

Rumor mill: Noise for the Needy has some exciting new headliners for their festival, and they are...

Cancer Rising rose above

Chris Estey — Mon, 02 Jun 2008 03:59:21 +0000

30 May 2008

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Friday night's The Physics / Caves / Cancer Rising / Emeralds show was the first landmark show of my summer. The weather was perfect for a show last night, wasn't it (tell me more, tell me more)? A little on the cool side but it made Capitol Hill (where King Cobra is located) very peaceful. And speaking of King Cobra, man, Jason and Joel are booking some mighty cool shows at what I think is the sweetest new joint in town.

Caves are truly stylish, intricate, openly ambitious in their arrangements, and update some retro-indie sounds of the last few years with the energy and vivacity of the Blakes. Not a huge amount of originality but it hangs together beautifully. The Physics are very good, if not great, rhymers who drop a lot of 206 references (and unabashedly display their influences on their sleeve). Emeralds didn't work for me at all, but I am not a lover of neo-dinosaur rock.

So why was it all such a great show? Cancer Rising came out and got the booties moving of what seemed a mostly female crowd (!!!) with a ferocious energy and fan-love that must have been the reason they were reported to be on fire at Sasquatch. They have gotten so busy, so unifying, so captivating as a four-piece (fronted by Larry and Josh; DJ work by Tyler; hey what's the other rhymer's name? He was totally amped and super-fun to watch) that even after getting in at 5 AM I had to write this review up to share about the show by 10 AM the next day. The time has come for Cancer Rising: If you need a new (under)dog with the same deep joy for jamming and connecting, and the somewhat polemical dryness (on record, at least) and very-slick music of Blue Scholars doesn't pull you in, then go see Larry and his brothers for some gutbucket fist-pumping hip-hop,.

They have gotten so busy, so unifying, so captivating as a four-piece...

Cancer Rising's victorious return show (now with Caves added to the bill)

Chris Estey — Wed, 28 May 2008 00:22:54 +0000

What a weird line-up, but you can't want for variety...

H is for Hellgate announce tour, great promo photos

imaginary dana — Sat, 03 May 2008 00:15:40 +0000

Seattle indie/prog rock band H is for Hellgate not only have an exciting NW tour coming up Memorial Day weekend, but they've also taken some damn fine promo photos, courtesy of the lovely and talented Jenny Jimenez.

"I didn't mean to treat you oh, so bad"

elle — Wed, 23 Apr 2008 02:08:03 +0000

Apparently, Candlebox is still trucking away despite being reduced from arena shows to headlining at dance clubs turned rock clubs on Capitol Hill. But seriously, is there ever a point when a band realizes they should just throw in the towel?

Question: What makes us happier than a new Tennis Pro record?

imaginary dana — Wed, 26 Mar 2008 18:43:12 +0000

Not only do Seattle powerpop band Tennis Pro have a brand new record with a fabulous new title (Are You There God, It's Me, Tennis Pro), but they also have a fabulous CD release show this Saturday, March 29th.

Tonight's Visqueen show, welcome to King Cobra

imaginary dana — Mon, 03 Mar 2008 02:09:11 +0000

TIG has been remiss in welcoming King Cobra to the Seattle show venue 'hood.