Three Imaginary Girls - Moore Theater

Weekend roundup: Feist, The Young Evils

imaginary victoria — Mon, 21 Nov 2011 18:05:55 +0000

The weekend kicked off early with a spectacular, layered performance by Feist at the Moore Theater this past Thursday night. Taking the stage after a perfect warm up set of equal parts smartypants literary comedy and ivory-tickling brilliance by Chilly Gonzales, Leslie Feist and her accomplices proved worthy of every last penny of her ticket price. The show combined elements of well-worn comfort food-esque "classic" Feist songs, an almost... dare we say, modern new-age vibeyness, which alternately clashed and blended with an homage to one element of the guts of full-frontal big-room performance: a sometimes kaleidoscopic, sometimes trippy-traily lipstick camera-run backdrop of the band behind the band a la Jefferson Airplane. While it was a lot to unpack at times, for the most part the pieces of the show fused together beautifuly, mostly due to the backbone of Feist's unashamed full-lunged vocals -- which would have been worth all those pennies without a solitary stitch of the performance-fanfare that accompanied her.

Chilly Gonzales:

Rockvember continues! Recommended show + free tickets: Feist at the Moore {11/17}

imaginary victoria — Thu, 10 Nov 2011 16:51:46 +0000

Is it just us, or is this just what Feist songs feel like sometimes? A little cold, a little desolate, a lot beautiful, a touch of sun -- Feist can be all of these things depending on the track, but the common thread in all of her output is simple: talent. From Metals to those gorgeous bedroom recordings -- please tell us you've heard that deconstructed version of "Intuition"?? -- to catchy numbers like "1234" and "Mushaboom," everything Feist does is brilliantly gorgeous. She's sunny and hopeful sometimes, desolate and yearning sometimes, and always right on the money.

So, we're particularly excited to be gearing up for her upcoming show at the Moore next Thursday {November 17th}. And we've even got a pair of tickets to give away to a lucky winner! The competition for this one is sure to be fierce, so make sure you take the time to tell us why we should choose little ol' you over everyone else. Ready?

Fleet Foxes + Cave Singers = a mindbendingly beautiful night at the Moore

imaginary victoria — Wed, 04 May 2011 15:34:22 +0000

There's one word that comes to mind above all others in regards to Monday night's Fleet Foxes / Cave Singers show at the Moore -- and that word is simply stunning. The impeccable sound, lighting, and setup of the Moore made for a veritable breeding ground of amazing, as two of the Pacific Northwest's best alt.beardcore bands brought their respective brands of greatness to the stage. The Cave Singers let loose with a tight, polished, best-of catalog-spanning set that washed over us like the force of nature they are -- followed by this imaginary's inaugural live Fleet Foxes set.

Double-dip with The Head and the Heart this week!

imaginary victoria — Wed, 27 Apr 2011 18:14:18 +0000

If you were lucky enough to catch The Head and the Heart's sold-out show at Neumos a few months back, you know just how excited we are about this Friday.

Back in January, THatH took the stage at Neumos with Lemolo and Curtains For You, one of the first shows they played where we stood with fellow "I saw the Sonic Boom set last summer" fans and realized we didn't know most of the people in the room. Well, as the nation's well aware (yes, the nation, not just the Pacific Northwest anymore), this band has been going onward and upward on a steady pace since -- up to and including the current west coast tour that has them playing two nights in Seattle this weekend. On Friday, April 29th, THatH will be playing to a sold out Showbox with Lemolo and the The Devil Whale, and the next night finds them at the Moore (yep, that's sold out too) with Grand Hallway and Ivan & Alyosha. Both nights are sure to make the mark, but we're definitely excited that we've got tickets in our hot little hands for the Showbox version of this latest breeze-through-town installment from one of our new favorite hometown bands.

Recommended show: Seattle Rock Orchestra does Radiohead at the Moore {2/19}

imaginary victoria — Fri, 18 Feb 2011 21:11:34 +0000

Okay. We know Saturday's Seattle Rock Orchestra show isn't just about Rachel Flotard, but she's just so damn fantastic (as this picture by the amazing Christopher Nelson shows) that we can't ever resist a chance to mention her.

The lovely Ms. Flotard, along with The Seattle Rock Orchestra, Jon Auer, Joshua Morrison, Kaylee Cole, and a veritable star-studded cast of local musicians will be performing a tribute-y evening around Radiohead's The Bends and OK Computer this weekend. The show takes place Saturday (February 19th) at the Moore Theater, and if you're not swooning the night away out at Columbia City Theater, you'd best come and get yourself a seat.

That's about all we need to say about it, n'est ce pas? We'll see you there.

Recommended Weekend Event: Local Sightings Film Festival @NWFF {10/1-10/6}

Imaginary Amie — Fri, 01 Oct 2010 19:59:08 +0000

Once again, the Northwest Film Forum is bringing us the Local Sightings Film Festival. Now in its 13th year, 2010's program includes the Northwest premiere of six feature films, and the world premiere of the documentary Citizen Mayor. Seventy-five short films (!!!) will be screened, as well as the historic film Darkness Rising.

It's all kicking off this Friday (October 1st) with the opening night film, Bummer Summer at 7pm, followed by the opening night party at 9pm, entitled "Party like it's 1995" - which is also celebrating the 15th Anniversary of the NWFF itself. There will be cupcakes! And waffles! And drinks! And a DJ spinning 90s tunes!

The opening night film Bummer Summer will follow the party. Closing night (Wednesday, October 6) features a new documentary about poet Jesse Bernstein, I am Secretly an Important Man, at the Moore Theatre. And in-between: tons of great NW Indie Film goodness in the form of features and shorts, including (listen up TIG readers!) LOTS of music videos, including stuff by Grand Hallway, The Vaselines, and Fleet Foxes.

You can view the full schedule and purchase tickets online here.

Win tickets to see our new BFF Janeane Garofalo at the Moore Theatre on May 8

imaginary liz — Fri, 30 Apr 2010 13:41:15 +0000

One of the things that binds us all as card-carrying Seattle swanksters is that we all want to be best friends with Janeane Garofalo. You *know* that we'd all get along famously, making our way through the hipster jungle texting escape plans to meet up at the nearest Tea Express to split pot of earl gray and review the evening's near hits and misses. We'd sarcastically laugh under our breath up until the tearistas kicked us out and we'd quote the Old 97s on our way out the door. Or something low key and outrageously fun like that.

Next Saturday our almost-BFF will be in Seattle to film her next live DVD release over the course of two shows (7p and 9.30p) on Saturday, May 8 at the Moore Theatre. That's how much she loves us! She wants *us/Seattle* to be a part of her next DVD!

Three Imaginary Girls would like to help bring us all together by offering you a couple seats to one of her May 8 shows. To enter to win a pair of tickets email us at tig @ threeimaginarygirls.com with a subject line letting us know which timeslot you'd like to go like so: "BFF@7p" or "BFF@930p" (you can enter to win tickets to both time slots). The deadline to enter is 9a May 4, 2010.

Imaginary Interview: Todd Barry talks about "Defriending Cancer"

ChrisB — Thu, 11 Feb 2010 17:02:41 +0000

“Defriending Cancer” is not just a good idea but an excellent comedy and music benefit coming up. The night is hosted by comedian Todd Barry and features some of his funniest colleagues, like Neil Hamburger, Eugene Mirman, Tig Notaro, Natasha Leggero and Tim Heidecker (of “Tim and Eric” fame). It also features music from James Mercer of The Shins and Isaac Brock of Modest Mouse. The event takes place Thursday, February 11 at the Moore and the money raised benefits the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. Tickets can be obtained here.

The host, Todd Barry, is one of the funniest comedians I’ve ever seen perform. His rare intelligence and droll delivery always make for a hilarious time. He's also a great actor, appearing in films like the critics' favorite, The Wrestler. I spoke with him by phone about the event, what we can expect next Thursday night and about his experiences as a comedian opening for a loved rock band.

What are you looking forward to for this benefit?

I picked all of the comics, so I just want it to be one big, fun night to raise money for a good cause. That’s what I always want that in a show; I just want people to not feel like they’ve been ripped off when they leave. I’m really thrilled that everyone (booked) agreed to do it.

I’ve also done a few shows at the Moore before and it’s a really great old theater.

I’ve seen you perform a few times before and those shows mostly seem to be benefits that mixes music and comedy. There was one where you were in Tinkle with David Cross and Todd Benjamin that was at the Showbox and you were with the New Pornographers and then more recently was a benefit for 826 Seattle at Town Hall called "People Talking and Singing".

I have done a few benefits in Seattle. I like Seattle. It’s probably one of the cities I perform in the most.

Is there anything about Seattle that keeps you coming back?

I don’t know; I’ve done Bumbershoot and some other shows like the Sub Pop twentieth anniversary show at the Moore. I don’t know the crowds but are always good and they’re always really polite.

Was there someone who approached you about putting this together?

No, actually Megan (Jasper of Sub Pop) and I both lost people to leukemia, I lost my mother and she lost a good friend. We talked about it and thought it would be easy enough to organize, and it would be fun as well.

What was it about these particular comedians that made you want to book them?

I’ve been friends with a lot of comedians over the past twenty-two years and they’re friends of mine and they’re all really good. Also, each one is different from each other, so it’s a variety of styles. There’s something for everyone.

That’s one of the things I really like about this lineup: no one is really similar to the one before or after.

Nah, we have some extremes with some really good joke-writers and some more unusual acts. Take Neil Hamburger, there’s no one else like Neil Hamburger and Tim Heidecker has something really cool lined up. Natasha (Leggero) is great, actually everyone involved is really great.

How did you end up getting into comedy? Were you always funny?

I don’t know. I guess I always tried to be funny, but at some point I was watching comedians on TV and decided to give it a whirl. I didn’t know what I was doing, I was in my early twenties, but I just stuck to it for whatever reason. It’s like everything else, you just feel drawn to it and you give it a whirl and it worked out; it’s like any career.

The benefits that I’ve seen you perform at were with musical and comedic acts. I think you’ve also toured with bands like Yo La Tengo. Is that something you enjoy because it seems like the comedy and music crowds could be quite different?

It can be a rough thing, but I try to do it only when I think it’s going to be a good match and the crowds will be able to focus on both types of entertainment, if that makes sense.

I think this show is being billed as a comedy and music event and it’s in a theater, so I don’t think it’s going to be like it’s in a noisy club where people are going to be shitty.

I think (in this case) people will be really excited about the musical acts, so it should be fun.

Have any musical acts audiences been better or worse towards you?

Like I said, I’ve been pretty lucky in that I’ve picked people where I think I think it’s going to work out. When I open for a band, I usually have them introduce me so that they know I’m not someone who was thrown up randomly, just like it wasn’t that they grabbed a comedian and threw him up on stage. “He’s a friend of ours and listen to him.”

I remember seeing a video on YouTube where you read a hilarious letter from a Yo La Tengo fan who said that they’d give anyone who got their endorsement a chance.

Yeah, and people know with them they have comedy on their shows pretty often.

Is there anything else people should know about this benefit that we haven’t talked about yet?

I don’t think so. With comedy shows, as long as people know it’s happening, there’s not really a sales pitch I can give for it. If you know some of these people and you know these musicians, it kind of speaks for itself. The money goes to a good cause and it’s not too expensive. It goes to the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society.

One of my very best friends is putting on another benefit for them two nights later at the Crocodile. It’ll be a good weekend for raising money to fight leukemia that weekend!

I hope she does well and I hope we both do well.

What else are you working on right now?

I’m just doing shows across the country right now. I don’t really have any acting roles coming up. I did do a show called “Delocated” that will be in Adult Swim on the Cartoon Network and that will be out sometime in the summer. I’m mostly just booking shows right now.

Ed note: We're reposting this to remind all you sweethearts the big comedy / music fest is TONIGHT! If you can't make it (there *are* other great shows tonight), make sure to check out the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society website to find out more about this worthy cause.

Recommended show: Alt + twangy benefit for Haiti this Thursday {1/28}

imaginary liz — Wed, 27 Jan 2010 17:08:41 +0000

This Thursday's benefit show for Haiti at the Moore Theatre is chock full of twangy and alt goodness to the highest degree and features a slew of thoughtful bands set to take the stage: The Maldives, The Classic Crime, Memphis Radio Kings, Mike Herrera (MxPx), and Vince Mira. Rumor has it there will also be an auction!

If that's not your style, get on your cell phone and text 'Haiti' to 90999, and then head over to one (or more if you've got the bus pass) of these fine shows. There's more than one tempting me:

Devo: still spinning minds 29 years later

Imaginary Amie — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 16:05:23 +0000

9 Nov 2009

I’ve always been wary of this whole “bands reliving their former glory by hitting the stage again 20 years later” fad, because I feel like I saw all the people I wanted to then, and I don’t need to see them again now, when they could potentially destroy my fond, nostalgic memories of some awesome show I saw when I was 16 and totally in the moment.

However, when Devo’s Freedom of Choice album came out in 1980, I was only 9 – just a wee bit too young to have seen them live, and since TIG was lucky enough to be able to attend both shows (ChrisB was at Sunday night’s Q: Are We Not Men? A: We are Devo!) I thought it would be fun to see them play FoC in its entirety now. Thankfully, I was right.

Look, there’s no denying that the original members of Devo ARE old. But god bless ‘em, those guys still put on one hellova rockin’ show, full of spectacularly defining 80s synth-pop “new wave” sound, lots of signature choreography, and of course, some amazing keys and guitars.

The show started with a few well-worn videos: the purple-accented, screaming-fan-filled "Girl U Want" (my favorite Devo song), the weird Western-themed-stripper-fantasy "Whip It" and the alien-masked, chocolate donut-eating trippy "Freedom of Choice". All welcome blasts from the past (hey guys, MTV played videos! All day! All the time!), although I did hear one person voice concern that they had paid $40 to see some crappy videos.

After the vids, Mark Mothersbaugh, Bob Mothersbaugh, Gerald Casale, and Bob Casale joined by drummer Josh Freese (taking the place of member Alan Meyers, who played on both Q: Are We Not Men? A: We are Devo! and Freedom of Choice) entered the stage in a version of their classic matching jumpsuits: khaki with a red belt and horizontal stripe, and of course, their recognizable energy dome hats – which half the audience had on too.

Fan anticipation was adrenaline-charged, and by the time their pet “Spud” ran across the stage with the first Track 1 sign, the fans were already out of their seats preparing to dance and shout out lyrics. And dance they did, all the way through Freedom of Choice’s 12 tracks, and right on through the encore – a rarity for Seattle audiences (behold: the power of the 80s!). Watching the enthusiasm of the crowd, especially when Mark yelled; “Who knows what track 3 is?” (the iconic "Whip It"), took me back to a time when I was too young to care about anything but having fun.

They definitely proved they can still move a crowd and perform their songs in beloved, nostalgic clarity. In short: Devo rocked it…and managed to change my mind a bit about seeing bands now that I loved in my teens. Viva le Devo!

Set list:
Girl U Want
It’s Not Right
Whip It
Snowball
Ton o’Luv
Freedom of Choice
Gates of Steel
Cold War
Don’t You Know
That’s Pep
Mr. B’s Ballroom
Planet Earth

Encore:
Be Stiff (from the Be Stiff EP)
Beautiful World (from New Traditionalists)

{Writer’s note: I left before Beautiful World was over because I was feelin’ not-so-hot, so I confess: I have no idea if they played more after those 2 songs…}

Devo rhetorically asks: Are We Not Men?

ChrisB — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 15:18:52 +0000

8 Nov 2009

Q-Are_we_A-We_are_-_Devo.jpg

The question of the night was obvious: Are we not men?

Of course the answer was: We are Devo.

Sunday night at the Moore Theater was packed for Devo, the remarkably-influential new wave band from Akron, Ohio who was playing their debut album from 1978: Q: Are We Not Men? A: We Are Devo from beginning to end. The following night they are playing their album Freedom of Choice in its entirety.

When my friend and I had gotten to the Moore, the place was packed and full of people anxious to see the band. A very large number of people were wearing the trademark “energy dome” hats (which were sold at the merch table for $30 and I bet they sold a ton, including one to my friend; $17.99 on Amazon). Strangers were approaching one another and asking “are we not men?” and I (over)heard more than a few people boast of dressing as Devo for Halloween the previous weekend. This was a crowd very excited to see this band.

The show was delayed a bit and roadies were in the middle of the sound check when we found our seats. Devo wouldn’t come on until about 9:15. When they did, they opened their set with some music videos, one was to their cover of the hit “Secret Agent Man” and the second was of “Jocko Homo”, the track from Are We Not Men? That rhetorically asks and answers that very question.

When the five members of Devo arrived on stage (which was covered with a green tarp), they were in their custom, somewhat tear-away, Devo hazmat suits and brought a lot of enthusiasm that continued throughout the set. The lineup of Mark Mothersbaugh, Bob Mothersbaugh, Gerald Casale, Bob Casale and Josh Freese, if you imagined them outside of the bright yellow hazmat suits, would look like a group of bankers: older, balding or graying and white, but they still brought a lot of energy to the night. My friend whispered to me a few minutes into the first song (“Uncontrollable Urge”) that “they look really old but can still rock”. Of course it was true (they were playing an album released a year before I was born), but without allowing any curve, they played remarkably. When they stripped off the hazmat suits, it did seem to be a bit of a struggle but it fit with the awkward dances they performed most of the night.

The highlights included the weird cover of The Rolling Stones’ “Satisfaction” and the even weirder (in a good way) “Space Junk” which Mark Mothersbaugh said was “ripped straight from the headlines” and paused to fill in “in the Akron Beacon Journal” and then paused again before adding “in 1975.” The crowd was excited throughout the night, give and take an hour before and after Devo’s set, but they were positively electric for “Jocko Homo”.

The finished their set with “Shrivel Up” (it was the last song on Are We Not Men?) and then returned for their encore to finish with “Smart Patrol/Mr. DNA” and curiously a song from Freedom of Choice, “Gates of Steel.”

When we were exiting the Moore, we ran into several friends and everyone was buzzing with how enjoyable the show was. No one really wanted to go home; several people wanted to get their picture taken in my friend’s energy dome.

The following night, Devo is playing Freedom of Choice (which includes their most well-known hit, “Whip It”) and I left the show more, not less, jealous of the people who would be at the second show.

Setlist:

1. Uncontrollable Urge
2. Satisfaction (Rolling Stones cover)
3. Praying Hands
4. Space Junk
5. Mongoloid
6. Jocko Homo
7. Too Much Paranoias
8. Gut Feeling
9. Come Back Jonee
10. Sloppy (I Saw My Baby Gettin’)
11. Shrivel Up

1. Smart Patrol/Mr. DNA
2. Gates of Steel

The question of the night was obvious: Are we not men?

Of course the answer was: We are Devo.

Grizzly Bear at the Moore

heather b — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 00:23:37 +0000

16 Oct 2009

Imaginary Victoria: "Girl, if it says doors are at 8, that means Grizzly Bear goes on at 8."

Imaginary Heather: "Naw, there's an opening band and all the shows I've seen at the Moore lately have started at like 930...We don't gotta be there until 9."

Imaginary Victoria: "I dunno girl, <Someone> says that shows always start on time there. I'd hate to be late for that show. I'm just sayin'..."

Imaginary Heather: "Ok, ok, I don't want to miss anything either. I'll pick you up at 730."

Cut to me giving Victoria a VERY pointed look as we killed an hour and a half in the underground bar at the Moore on Friday night, just prior to the highly anticipated show. Heh. No bother, it gave us time to get a drink or three and people watch before the show. Lots of local musicians in the house. The doormen were playing Hipster Bingo, and Victoria and I both got a square for him: her for her star tattoos, me for my Parliaments. I think he won. We felt lame.

Grizzly Bear had what appeared to be a very subtle stage setup. About 50 glass bottles hung suspended from T-poles, a few were also scattered across the front of the stage. Very Tennessee Williams. Members of the band ambled on and offstage without a care in the world as the audience found their seats in the very crowded Moore theater. The room was so abuzz with anticipation, it was as if Sunny Day Real Estate wasn't playing across town or something. A drugged out dude danced up and down the aisles. Just prior to the start, Victoria leaned into me and said "This is gonna be awesome!".

And indeed it was. Dan Rossen's amazing and eerie voice filled the room on the first notes of "Southern Point" as the stage lights segued from red to yellow to purple. Big jangle on the guitar, although the sound was a bit muffled at first. Four-part harmonizing flawless, nice distortion on guitar, great buildup and sustain on drums. Rossen's voice rose pure and perfect over it all. The tension-filled song was a great way to begin Grizzly Bear's flawless set. Oh! All the little jars burst into light on the final note.

This was followed by the sultry "Cheerleader," beautifullly sung by Ed Droste. I love the modern-day Doo Wop style on this song, and Droste's androgynous voice has such a wounded elegance. Closely following was one of my favorites to hear live, "Lullabye". The orchestrations between flute, voice, xylophone and zither were simply unreal. Harmonies between Droste and Rossen were completely crystalline. Seriously, the whole group singing together was indescribable, especially on the refrain: "Chin Up Cheer Up". That whole song really gets to me and played live it's just beautiful mayhem. The stage was stark in a foreboding white light that lent an eerie, cultish feel to the ensemble, however as we were brought back down, warm light began tracking through the glass jars in time to the music. Nice.

Continuing, we got the Rossen-sung "Little Brother" containing some pretty fantastic guitar work, felt by every member of the audience on the deep, booming bridge. The live version contained a light touch on the percussion and that awesome guitar picking part was played to perfection. Nice additional vocals were provided by Droste and once again utterly perfect harmonies lent by all members of the band. Very swoony. These boys really have their shit together. To be honest, it's almost TOO perfect, if there could be such a thing. I guess I didn't see a lot of joy in their playing, or a lot of variation on any of the songs. But still, this may have been the venue as it's difficult to be as blown away at the Moore as you could be at a more intimate venue. I'm not complaining because the show was fucking impeccable. I'm not even going to get into "Knife" except to acknowledge that I wrote down "Vocals by Taylor: CHECK + + + +".

Even yet still more unfathomable beauty played out on "Fine For Now", with a great crash of guitar and drums and deep throbbing bass. The heart-swelling vocal combinations by Ed & Dan had me reeling. It ended with a nice wail and got quite rock n' roll at the close. But seriously? When I heard the opening keyboards to "Two Weeks," I squealed like a child: "OOOH! This one's mine!" I'd been waiting for...well, weeks to hear "Two Weeks" live, it's my favorite off of Veckatimest. Ed absolutely sighed his way through the whole song and it was marvelous, like hearing in slow motion. Great analog guitar and staccato keys punctuated the song to the abrupt end. And the crowd went wi-i-i-ld. Wow, we're not even halfway through the set.

The audience was thoroughly entranced by a very stripped down version of "Colorado" which could not have been more gorgeous. "Colorado" is always spellbinding but this was something else. The whole band busied themselves: Rossen singing and effecting the hell out of his guitar, Seattle's Chris Taylor on flute and clarinet, Droste providing echoey vocals and messing with a small synth. Drummer Chris Bear was actually providing the whistling effect when not adding percussive elements. At times I felt like I was underwater, then later it switched to a kind of subterranean funereal feel. Taylor was definitely the one to watch, as he switched from flute to clarinet to guitar and back to clarinet again. Again, I did wish that we were in a smaller venue, it's cuts like "Colorado" that really provide shock and awe in that setting. I guess the highly technical, theatrical element to the band and the music does translate somewhat in a setting like The Moore.

Following THAT, Droste "dedicated [this song] to Seattle" as Rossen on acoustic guitar gave us one of his solo works, the very simple "Deep Blue Sea". Rossen's voice just kills me, I've said it before but it has this fairy-tale quality that isn't altogether benign. It's hypnotic and other-worldly without being creepy, but you aren't exactly safe being alone with it either...it might make you do something illegal.

Further tracks in the set were the urgent and animated "Ready, Able" followed by "I Live With You" which I'm sure was written right after someone got back from a tour. Both were beautiful in tone and contained rich, swelling combinations and vocals. And oh, then "Foreground." Honestly, I don't want to use the phrase "trapped in a dream" but fuck it. We were trapped in a dream. How about I use the term "ethereal" somewhere too? The crowd went nuts, Imaginaries included. Finally nearing a close, we heard the album-quality "While You Wait for the Others", full of fat bass lines and great Crash! Boom! bits. The jarred lights were timed perfectly to illuminate off and on with the music, which must have really taken some serious skill to set up. Lastly and a little unexpectedly, the band finished with "On a Neck, On a Spit" which I love for all it's swooshy and crashy parts and that complete 180 the song takes in the middle. Bear was rocking the hell out of the drums with some seriously jaw-dropping rolls. Holy crap.

A well deserved standing ovation was offered as the band took a short break, before returning to perform the classic torch song "He Hit Me." Droste really stretched out the vocals on this one and that characteristic bass line was just wrenching. The whole band put everything into this one, with great bigness on the harmonies. I think one of the things that makes Grizzly Bear truly great is that as individuals, each member is tremendously talented in their own right and the focus isn't ever on any one member over another. When they come together as a group it's like some kind of massive musical explosion happens, even if it doesn't really create much of a mess.

1) Southern Point (Veckatimest)
2) Cheerleader (Veckatimest)
3) Lullabye (Yellow House)
4) Little Brother (Yellow House)
5) Knife (Yellow House)
6) Fine for Now (Veckatimest)
7) Two Weeks (Veckatimest)
8) Colorado (Yellow House)
9) Deep Blue Sea (Rossen Solo)
10) Ready, Able (Veckatimest)
11) I Live With You (Veckatimest)
12) Foreground (Veckatimest)
13) While You Wait for the Others (Veckatimest)
14) On a Neck, On a Spit (Yellow House)

E1) He Hit Me (Friend)

Win tickets to see Devo at the Moore

ChrisB — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 17:08:00 +0000

We love it when bands play their biggest, most influential or most popular album from beginning to end, of course, but what about the bands that have recorded more than one? If you're Devo, maybe you'd play one influential album, say Q: Are We Not Men? A: We Are Devo on one night (maybe November 8) and the other, say, Freedom of Choice (maybe November 9), with both at the Moore. Sounds reasonable enough to me.

We have pairs of tickets to each show to give away to lucky TIG readers. All you need to do is mail us at tig@threeimaginarygirls.com before 9am on Tuesday, October 27 with "AreWeNotMen?" or "FreedomOfChoice" in the subject line (you can enter for both shows but please send separate e-mails and no spaces, either, please) and include your mailing address in the body of the e-mail so we know where to mail the tickets. Optional (but it won't improve your odds): include alternate answers to the question "are we not men?" in the body of the e-mail. The winners (one pair per show) will be notified shortly thereafter and have the tickets mailed to them.

Monsters of Folk: not just another bunch of dudes with beards.

imaginary victoria — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 07:36:50 +0000

15 Oct 2009

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If this is what the kids are calling folk these days, I'll take it.

It's been a little bit of a rough go for me, as it has with many people, to get past the band name "Monsters of Folk." Really. Partially because it's just bonkers, and partially because the "folk" part conjures up old James Taylor reels and campfire sing-a-longs. And beards. But the roster has been the trump card thus far, boasting members of Bright Eyes, My Morning Jacket, and the gorgeous, prolific stylings of M. Ward himself. Take him, Conor Oberst, Jim James, and Mike Mogis, add two parts swooping red velvet curtains and one part spectacular sound system, stir, and you've got a band that's so good -- well, they could call themselves "Banana Eating Spaceships" for all anyone cares. This particular combination of frontmen from a cross-section of such notable indie bands does indeed a blissful sound make, strangely named or not.

To take it a step further, these guys pack a live performance that will blow you right out of your seat. No mild, hokey row of stools; no singing in the round, no speeches about human rights and no Joni Mitchell covers. Save for some slowed-down plugged-in acoustic numbers, this was a full frontal rock show, trading off collaborative songs, hits and B-sides of each other's repertoires with skill and ease. Jim James let his vocals ring out across the seats of the Paramount, bathing us in echo and bouncing off the ceiling and the walls. Conor Oberst's quivery, earnest, from-the-gut lyrics (and their delivery) translated perfectly from the stage, both on solo and accompanied songs. And M. Ward -- well, M. Ward is just unreal. He's definitely a favorite of mine and for sure the catalyst that got me to the show. He ranges from bellow to whisper, single-string strum to full ecstatic chord stylings and back, painting pictures and conducting symphonies that fill up the whole room and snap back to silence -- all in the space of about a minute and a half. It was definitely a sight to see (and hear).

All in all, the show was painfully stellar and the Paramount was the perfect venue to showcase the total bliss that ensued. And we've got the photos to prove it:

Recommended Show: Grizzly Bear at the Moore 10/16

heather b — Tue, 13 Oct 2009 00:47:16 +0000

16 Oct 2009

veckatimest.jpg

So...Grizzly Bear...Are you going? You bet your ass I am! Count this as one of my most highly recommended shows this fall. I have been waiting for months for this Friday's show and am quite literally bouncing in my seat in anticipation. I've seen Grizzly Bear play live several times and each show has been nothing short of staggering. Each and every band member is so full of talent and heart, and every show I've seen has contained one or more jaw-dropping elements in which I couldn't believe what I was hearing.

I wonder, are Grizzly Bear just a bunch of singularly spectacular musicians who happened to find each other, or are they all so good together as an ensemble? I'm tempted to believe the former, as each members solo work has been immensely successful as well. Either way, the music community is profoundly lucky that Grizzly Bear are together to make such beautiful, detailed compositions.

This tour is in support of the new album, Veckatimest. It contains heart-wrenching multi-part harmonies and a genuinely unreal approach to orchestration. I liken Grizzly Bear to modern day doo-wop mixed with a bit of torch thrown in for good measure. The vocal stylings are arresting, whether a song is being sung by Ed Drost, Dan Rossen or Chris Taylor. Their music is vastly different to anything else being produced these days, yet is still so very accessible and appealing. Quality-wise, they're on top both recorded and live. If you have a chance to make it out to Friday's show, don't hesitate. You won't be disappointed!

Win tickets to see Mika

ChrisB — Tue, 13 Oct 2009 00:38:25 +0000

I like Mika. He's puts heavy emphasis on both the "glam" and "pop" in glampop. I do have to admit that I was a little jealous last year when my very smart friend Deborah Barnard reviewed his sold the hell out Valentine's Day show at the Showbox Sodo and wrote:

While the performance plowed through most (if not all) of the songs off his debut album, Mika's vocals were impeccable — despite a sheepish apology mid-show for having a cold. With the way his voice clearly hit the high, soaring notes that were scattered throughout the song list for the night, though, you wouldn't have noticed otherwise...

For the finale, despite being sick, Mika bounded back on stage. We just didn't know it at the time. The first song was done behind a large white scrim to the tune "Teddy Bear's Picnic" and had band members frolicking into a wolf-induced orgy by the end of it; Mika emerged at the end, tearing off his wolf-head. The final song of the night, "Lollipop," involved girls in Alice in Wonderland dresses dancing with suckers bigger than they were; at the end of the song, confetti and balloons streamed down on the audience like a New Years Eve countdown.

Keane {Keane! Keane! Keane!}

heather b — Tue, 22 Sep 2009 14:31:56 +0000

10 Sep 2009

As we located our seats at the beautiful Moore Theater Thursday night, my friend turned to me and said "If anyone starts chanting 'Keane! Keane! Keane! Keane!' I'm totally leaving. I'll bet we're in for at least one session of overhand clapping in unison too." It's easy to be cynical about Keane at this point in their career, as they're not revered in indie rock circles as much more than Coldplay-lite (and Coldplay is pretty damned "lite" already, right?). But you know what? I think Hopes & Fears was a damned fine record and I don't care who knows it.

I like several tracks off both Under the Iron Sea and Perfect Symmetry also, so I was happy to settle in and enjoy at least a smattering of tunes from Hopes & Fears and hear the newer stuff too. Settling in wasn't in the cards though, as the very VERY enthusiastic Moore crowd leapt to it's feet as soon as Keane took to the stage and remained standing throughout the entire performance. With no fanfare, Keane burst into song; Tom Chaplin looked good in a simple blazer and yellow t-shirt, playing guitar in front of a backdrop of the new album cover. Warmup over, he greeted the screaming crowd by referring to Seattle as "America's greatest music town" and told us to enjoy ourselves and "just let go."

The set proceeded with a fairly even mix of songs from all three albums, albeit a little heavier on the Hopes and Fears tracks, but just by a smidge. Keane knows what their audience wants to hear, after all. The majority of the show turned into one big Keane singalong, at times the lead vocals were completely drowned out by the bellowing crowd on old favorite "Everybody's Changing", new track "Spiralling" and the instantly recognizable "Somewhere Only We Know". Our Tom didn't even bother trying to sing that one, instead turning the mic to the audience and conducting from atop an amp.

Chaplin certainly loves his fans, and definitely did not disappoint on Thursday night. While not the world's most dynamic dancer, Keane's frontman still kept the adoring crowd's attention with his high energy stage moves, working all sides of the room and keeping up the between-song banter with a lot of positive chatter. His characteristic style is to sing with one arm raised, marching in place, occasionally doing a full wind-up and punching the air for punctuation. He reminded me a lot of an early 80's Paul Young.

Owing to the new album's heavily synthed 80's pop style, the majority of the night was fairly upbeat and rock infused, however they did break it down for us once or twice. "We Might As Well Be Strangers" began with just a voice and piano (although you could hardly hear the kid over the audience singing along); drums kicked in after the first verse and Tom gave us a full, gutsy howl on "...be straaaangeee-eeers" which I found quite satisfying. The most beautiful song of the night (for me) was a totally scaled back, acoustic version of "Eyes Open". I didn't even take notes, I just stood rapt with the rest of the crowd and swooned a little bit. This was followed by the equally beautiful, slow and yearning "Try Again". Against the simple orchestration, Tom's voice really carried. It was one of the only times the entire evening where the audience was perfectly still.

Still overall, most of the set was pretty rockin'. They really tore up the stage with big, rock loudness on Iron Sea's main single "Is it Any Wonder?". It was crunchier than the album cut and once again, the audience took the lead on vocals. Between songs, the crowd screamed requests and Tom finally relented with one of his favorites, "A Bad Dream" in which he finally took to the piano. Following that track, a very sweaty boy informed us that Keane were about to perform their best song written to date: "...a song for our time, we've learned so much yet we insist on killing each other...a cry for help." They then launched into the desperately hopeful "Perfect Symmetry", a fairly classic Keane song, yet anthemic just the same. Check it out.

The final song of the set was the ebullient "Crystal Ball" which indeed featured the most massive overhand-clap session of the night (of which there were many). It was madness both on and off stage, and a completely drenched and grateful band acknowledged the crowd briefly before heading offstage for a short break. Only then did the audience bust into "Keane! Keane! Keane! Keane!" The band returned quickly and gave us a slightly sinister "Atlantic" before totally blowing the crowd away with a near-perfect rendition of "Under Pressure". Dude, Tom Chaplin can really work the Mercury and I think Freddie would have been proud. Finally, after vigorously and sincerely thanking their opening acts, the audience and whatnot, Keane finished the night with my all time favorite song of theirs, "Bedshaped." Who knew it was everyone else's favorite too? I was really happy to hear it, Chaplin's voice clear and pure and the stage alternately flooded with yellow light on the lyric "with the sun in your eyes" and then blinding white on "in white light, I don't think so..." <sigh>. Good show, y'all.

Win tickets to see Patton Oswalt at the Moore

ChrisB — Tue, 08 Sep 2009 20:19:12 +0000

One thing I heard quite a bit over the weekend at Bumbershoot was "I really want to see one of the big comedy shows but couldn't stand in line for as long as it needed" and the two comedians most people were mentioning to me were David Cross and Patton Oswalt.

Fortunately, Patton Oswalt is coming back to Seattle on Friday, September 18 with a show at the Moore. Even more fortunate is that we have a pair of tickets to give away to lucky winner. All you need to do is send an e-mail to tig@threeimaginarygirls.com with "Patton" in the subject line sometime between now and Tuesday, September 15 at 9am. Winner will be notified shortly thereafter.

Here's what you can expect:

PJ Harvey and John Parish at the Moore

KLinder — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 17:22:25 +0000

16 Jun 2009

While few major artists would dare even attempt to play a concert that included none of the songs that made them famous, PJ Harvey overwhelmed a Seattle crowd by doing just that on June 16th at the Moore. With John Parish handling lead guitar, Harvey unapologetically blasted through a set limited to material from their two collaborative albums, the recently released A Man A Woman Walked By and the 1996 Dance Hall At Louse Point.

Appearing barefoot, in a loose black shift, red lipstick punctuating her chalk-white face, Harvey was at turns innocent, unhinged and oracular. One moment a demure young waif in an English garden, skipping across the stage waving a mid-thigh handful of her dress, another deranged and scornful, shrieking “just stick it up your fucking ass” to a man with “chicken liver balls” during the song “A Woman A Man Walked By/The Crow Knows Where All The Little Children Go,” Harvey, as always, confounded easy categorization.

Harvey, Parish and their fedora-wearing bandmates opened the show with a blistering one-two combination, “Black Hearted Love” and “Sixteen, Fifteen, Fourteen,” from A Man A Woman Walked By, the startled crowd responding with a rousing, prolonged ovation.

Always unsparing in her depictions of bleakness and despair, Harvey gave no succor to those who may have come seeking uplift or comfort this night. Religious sentiment, for example, found expression only in notes of hypocrisy and disappointment. Harvey fell to her knees pleading “Jesus save me” in the voice of Billy, the fornicating evangelical boyfriend of “Taut,” only later to warn God “you’d better not let me down this time,” while bathed in blue and white shafts of light during the unutterably beautiful “Cracks In The Canvas.” “I’m looking for an answer,” she entreated. “Me and a million others.”

For her encore, Harvey surprised with a John Parish solo song, the beautiful “False Fire.” She then sent the crowd out into the unusually pleasant June night with the melancholy “April,” whose closing line “your rain overcomes me” was a fitting reminder to Seattleites that these summer days are like glimmers of hope or joy in a Harvey song: ephemeral, slated for imminent demise.

While few major artists would dare even attempt to play a concert that included none of the songs that made them famous, PJ Harvey overwhelmed a Seattle crowd by doing just that on June 16th at the Moore. With John Parish handling lead guitar, Harvey unapologetically blasted through a set limited to material from their two collaborative albums, the recently released A Man A Woman Walked By and the 1996 Dance Hall At Louse Point.

Win tickets to see Pet Shop Boys

ChrisB — Tue, 30 Jun 2009 15:54:13 +0000

Usually when I post a ticket giveaway on here, I try to add a few sentences as to why I'd want to win tickets to the show we have tickets for. In this instance, I feel like I'm just wasting everyone's time explaining why the influential duo of Neil Tennant and Chris Lowe matter.

Yes, we have a pair of tickets to give away to one lucky fan for Pet Shop Boys' Pandemonium tour, which hits the Moore on Sunday, September 20. If you want to go (and trust me, you do) and would like the chance to go for free, send an e-mail to tig@threeimaginarygirls.com sometime between now and 9am on Monday, August 17 with PSB in the subject line.

Here's a medley they made of some of their biggest hits (which is even enhanced by appearances from Brandon Flowers and Lady Gaga) at the BRIT Awards earlier this year.