Seattle producer Ephraim Alexander (AKA Terso, Techne, and Porceline [the latter with vocalist Heather Elsa/Lady K]) passed away July 21 from diabetes complications. One of this city’s staunchest supporters of electronic music (and a wicked dancer, too), Alexander was also making extraordinary strides with his own techno and drum ‘n’ bass productions. Alexander described his music thus: “I like to dance, so a lot of the tunes are dance oriented. I enjoy Cinema, so some of the music is cinematic. I like booty, so all the tunes are booty.”�

His good friend Zach Smith recorded Alexander’s February 7 set opening for Safety Scissors at Oscillate; you can hear it here. Check it out: it’s a mighty impressive epitaph.

An endless source of positive energy and one of the nicest individuals in Seattle’s thriving electronic-music scene, Alexander touched many people with his generous spirit and musical talent. He will be intensely missed.

The above image is the entry graphic from the Decibelio Festival, which heralds itself as an experimental music festival, not unlike our own Decibel Festival, although in Madrid as opposed to Seattle and free as compared to…not free. The site was put up to advertise the festival’s second edition, held last month. The lineup featured Pan Sonic, Jason Forrest aka Donna Summer, Herbert, Funkstorung and a slew of Spanish talent to go along with the visuals and live graffiti. From the pictures it looks like they had themselves a wonderful time. From the early buzz of our own Decibel, seems like we’ll be able to say the same in just a few months.

First they came for Iggy, and I was silent, for I still had my own lust for life.

Then they came for the Smiths, and I was silent, because I figured, “eh—how soon is NEVER?”

Then they came for the Buzzcocks, and I was silent, because, well, that’s what you get.

Then they came for the Go-Go’s, and I was silent…primarily because changing “We Got the Beat” into “We Got the Meat” is too idiotic to get worked up over.

But now they’ve come for Roky Erickson (13th Floor Elevators) and I want to scream. And yes, I am going to miss him:

There’s no one left to speak out but you, dear Line Out readers. Sometimes it’s a good leg up for young bands (and I support it in that context); sometimes it’s just amusing—but when they go after the old-school classics, it feels just creepy to me. Which of your favorite songs have been pimped to poor effect by corporate America?

With Rama’s move to NYC impending, he’s closing down his always lively Lo-fi ragga-jungle monthly (which explored some of the world’s grimiest beats outside of jungle as well). If you’ve been, you know that the music is always top-notch, so time to send the night off into the sunset in true raggamuffin style.

Outside of Bashment, Rama (aka KRNL Panic) is doing alright for himself, getting a play on the BBC, where electronic music gets more than lip service (sorry, had to make that dig). First earplug, now the BBC. NYC better watch out. (BBC info. via Mike Lakeman)

Here are the details on tonight’s final edition of Bashment by way of Rama:

TONIGHT// The Last Bashment @ Lo-Fi 429 Eastlake // doors @ 10pm
-Ragga Jungle / Dancehall / Dubstep-

As Malia and I prepare for our BIG move to the BIG apple we gotta start
tying things up. Tonight is the end of our Ragga Jungle/Dancehall monthly in
seattle. come out, knock back some redstripes and get down to the robot
mutant island sounds.

The original power trio is re-united:
NECRON99/AZ-1/RAMA B2B in the main room.

opening warm up Dubstep set provided by: LOKI

frontroom dancehall vibrations courtesy: ALIBI + ELEMENT

I’m finishing up the Up & Coming section of next week’s paper while listening to this record:

Hell, fuck the Eagles, but early Joe Walsh is the shit.

Amy, enough is enough. To end the present conflict, I have no other choice but to gonuclear.

The term “yarling” seems to be the high point of my anti Pearl Jam screed if early response from friends is any indication. Let it be known that I claim no responsibility for coining this term. That high honor belongs to none other than local producer Jack Endino.

Jack Endino: Explaining The Verb “To Yarl”

Speedy J

The Decibel festival’s lineup is coming into focus.

Db 2005 was so exceptional, it seems like it will be hard to top, but Sean Horton & Co. have worked diligently to book what looks like a consistently strong schedule of elite performers. They appear to have struck a nice balance between the cerebral and the hedonistic—and artists who simultaneously embody both traits (and more). I think it’s safe to predict that Db 2006 has potential to match last year’s world-class event.

Decibel showcases listed after the jump”¦

Continue reading "Decibel Lineup Update V.2" »

Reading through the voluminous comments on today’s Greg Jaspan fracas, I’ve seen more than a few bitchy references to KEXP’s daytime programming of “mainstream” electronic music. What’s with the haterade pouring all over my beloved Basement Jaxx?

My defense after the cut…

Continue reading "Basement Jaxx" »

In the aftermath of the dismissal of Greg Jaspan [see post below] and his claim that his playlists fell afoul with the station’s managers, associate program director/popular morning DJ John Richards explains KEXP’s ethos:

As one of the most eclectic stations on this or any other dial I would argue we have far from a narrow playlist. You only have to spend a few minutes with any other station to hear what a narrow playlist sounds like. We also allow our DJ’s to program their own show and the only parameters that are in place are the same ones we have had for decades and the ones in place when any of our DJ’s were hired. We only require a DJ to mix both new and old stuff in a show and ask for at least one local song an hour. Our new music “rotation” is made up of just about everything that we think needs to be heard and think or listeners will love. The DJ’s pick every song and artist and that only makes up about half of the variety show. Everything from rock to hip hop to country to electronic to blues and so on. It gives enough “structure” to a station as ours as possible without sounding stale or playing singles only or anything like that.

The station’s core programming has always been rock, but from that we branch out to electronica, hip hop, country, reggae, and dozens of other styles (which are then represented on our specialty shows). I can understand and appreciate a fan of just one genre being frustrated that the core isn’t their particular genre of choice, but at the same time we hear from tons of listeners that they appreciate the fact that we play so many different types of music.

Unlike most DJs on the dial, KEXP DJs can play what they want when they want to. I think the only “pressure” we really put on a DJ is to make sure that our listeners are what a DJ is thinking about first when they program and not just themselves and/or their own agenda. We’re here to serve the public and not our own interests. We have an incredible on-air staff that do this with their own taste and style and are able to both program for the public and use their own knowledge and taste to achieve that.

I received word from KEXP DJ Greg Jaspan that the Seattle radio station fired the late-night Variety host Wednesday July 19. Along with Expansions hosts Riz, Masa, and Kid Hops, Jaspan was KEXP’s strongest advocate for non-mainstream electronic music.

Jaspan says that KEXP upper management found fault with his shows’ emphasis on electronic music at the expense of rock selections. He also cited a dispute about who would be hosting the electronic-oriented version of Audioasis in September as another reason for his dismissal. Stay tuned for more details.

Mastodon: Making mountains of blood!

Your Neighborhood Record Store: Another casualty of the digital download age.

Thom Yorke: Doing just fine on his own, thank-you very much.

Grunge: Currently being (re)processed by the tireless VH1 nostalgia machine.

Ozzfest: Not a good time for everyone.

Graham Coxon: Wielding sharp words for mainstream audiences.

Paris Hilton: Appreciated by some critics. And yes, it hurt to write that.

Rising Seattle alt-country artist Sera Cahoone and I just conducted a lovely interview over coffee for an upcoming No Depression profile. Apropos of her slot at the Block Party on the Neumo’s Stage at 5:15 on Saturday afternoon, she says she’s “very excited” about the gig. Any surprises in store? Yes. At least one new song besides selections found on her self-titled debut CD. “And maybe a cover.” Of? Give us a hint. “Um… R.E.O. Speedwagon.” When pressed for details (i.e. “which one?”), Ms. Cahoone squirmed, but said it would all get ironed out at band practice tonight. “I haven’t mentioned it to them yet.” Requests, anybody?

Scott Blonde of Oakland band, The Lovemakers says LA is a butthole. He’s not shy about it. But now that the Interscope Records Lovemakers have had KROQ smile upon them, he says LA is not so bad. He’s even starting to think it might not be such a butthole.

“Playing for 2000 people is not bad,”� Blonde says laughingly. “Down there, we’ve kinda hit, and it’s nice.”� “KROQ definitely helps to reach the California masses.”� “In Seattle, and the Northwest, we’re still converting people.”� He says, “We love it up here and we’ll be back as often as we can.”�

The Tuesday night show at Chop Suey was not 2000 people, but it was a lively jumping bunch. “˜Shake That Ass’ had the disco ball grinding.

“You can have my love, if you shake that ass for me.”

Singer, bassist, Lisa Light, poured a bottle of water on herself and danced. It was so hot. Waterfall style, and she slithered underneath, in glitter eyed, low end lockdown.

Blonde & Light went at it, with a very sexy and long kiss in the middle of a Blonde solo. To play like that, and kiss like that, at the same time, sums up The Lovemakers as genuine sexiness. Someone said they sound like Led Zeppelin playing Prince songs, but I heard a little more Duran Duran’s “˜Hungry Like the Wolf.’

Blonde said The Lovemakers get to open for James Brown soon. “I mean, it’s James Brown!”� He said.

** Attn all musicians: Pouring water on yourself while you play greatly enhances the stage show. But be careful not to electrocute.

Trent - out.

Fourcolorzack, pointing

Last night at Havana (located at 1010 E Pike St in Capitol Hill, not in Cuba), DJ Fourcolorzack—with admirable smoothness—laid down this sequence tracks, which I found remarkable enough to write down in my notebook: Talking Heads’ “Crosseyed and Painless”� into Marvin Gaye’s “Got to Give It Up”� into Stealers Wheel’s “Stuck in the Middle with You”� into Doobie Brothers’ “Taking It to the Streets.”�

Later in the night, I heard “What a Fool Believes”� dropped by headliners Devlin & Darko. As I can only tolerate two Doobie Brothers tracks in one night, I exited the club shortly thereafter. A man’s gotta know his limits.

I’m willing to surmise that the used bin at record stores is less revealing than it used to be, thanks to the advent of the iPod. I’ve been selling off many discs I love because I no longer need their digital carcasses (I figure my money and energy is much better spent nurturing my beloved vinyl collection). That said, the used bin has been a source of fascination for this paper as far back as 1999. Former staff writer Rick Levin had a short-lived column that focused on this phenomenon. He called it Reject Roundup and it was pretty entertaining while it lasted.

Runaways drummer Sandy West is dealing with both lung cancer and a brain tumor. The word from her close associates is that she’s in extremely bad shape. Please send a good thought her way.

Sunday, as with almost every Sunday since I moved to the city I headed to Rebar for Flammable. Despite coming almost directly from the airport, I made it down in time to hear the last minutes of an opening set from DJ Garth, a Flammable favorite. His spot on the stage was taken over by fellow LineOutter Matt Corwine (aka Mister Leisure), who was celebrating his birthday by providing a musical gift for all in attendance. Playing the first live PA in over five years, Corwine’s booking marked a slight departure for Flammable, which will hopefully see the evening’s success as a reason to reach out a bit more (Seriously, between Corwine’s set and the ri-goddamn-diculously hyped response to Derrick May’s blistering set last year, it’s not as if the crowd can’t handle it). He managed to live up to all the praise that Dave offered a few months ago, playing house obvious enough to not alienate the Rebar crowd, which is used to a certain formula, and yet interesting enough to entertain a more techno-oriented listener. Even Garth, surely tired after a full weekend in town, managed to find his way to the dancefloor. The night closed with a still busy club calling out for more, myself included. You would do well to keep an eye on the comings and goings of Mister Corwine. I predict Big Things.

Want to hear what all the fuss is about? Here’s the recording from the evening.

Matt’s post yesterday got me thinking about my own record store experiences, specifically the times I’ve felt like a peon for being on the purchasing side of the almighty front counter. While I’ve certainly felt some unwarranted elitist snobbery at Platinum in the past, I think the “Best/Worst Record Store Clerk” I’ve ever dealt with is without a doubt Judd at Olympia’s Phantom City Records.

He chided me for liking “christian rock bullshit” upon purchasing a Death Cab For Cutie record one time (and this was before The OC), and in general he’ll just always be disappointed that you’re not buying something by GG Allin.

(Judd also works at the Old School Pizzeria and if you think he won’t flip you ‘tude there too, you are sorely mistaken.)

He wins my award for “Best/Worst Record Store Clerk”, who wins yours?

Addendum:

This post was intended as friendly ribbing. I actually quite enjoy Judd’s lovably grumpy rapport with the customers, and he’s a good guy.

More importantly, Phantom City Records is a great independent record store and it deserves support. Don’t let Judd scare you. Go buy records.

Read Dave’s post on Girl Talk’s insane new mix, Night Ripper. Go download the mix somewhere. Froth at the mouth over dude’s cheeky splicing of Smashing Pumpkins and Young MC and Laid Back and Three 6 Mafia and and and…

Then let’s take a step back and discuss.

Continue reading "Everything All The Time" »

During my last trip to Everyday Music (one of the few area record stores that’s expanding), I asked manager Tony what titles keep showing up in EM’s used-CD bins like turds from a malfunctioning toilet. Here’s what he spit out with disdain and exasperation:

Cranberries, No Need to Argue
Counting Crows, August and Everything After
Pearl Jam, Ten
Melissa Etheridge, every damned album
REM, Monster

Jeez, these are the same godforsaken albums that haunted me during my 15-month tenure at EM (2003-2004; tough times, brothers and sisters). I also recall seeing tons of Moby’s Play, Santana’s Supernatural, and a surprising quantity of Nirvana’s Nevermind.

The lesson here is that many of yesterday’s platinum-selling stars are today’s sonic pariahs. Or that many people are really fickle. Or both.

Let me know if there’s anything else I can do to depress you further.

New Yorker music critic Sasha Frere-Jones rarely comments on the issues of the day, preferring to stick to posting abstract photographs and brief, cryptic references in his blog. But when he does have something to say, damn does he say it. Yesterday he had this on his mind re: certain aspects of the music retail business. I present, without commentary, the nut grafs:

[F]or many, many people, record stores are the worst thing that ever happened to music. The people who work in them, give or take an educating angel, are terrifying. Even if you spend most of your waking hours hanging around and bonding with asshole clerks, your reward for this investment of time is receiving a treatment only slightly less hideous than that given to every other customer, all of them impossibly stupid and retrograde in the eyes of the employees. Working at a record store turns perfectly lovely people into misanthropic turds.

[…]

I have had several service sector jobs: waiter, counter-person, telemarketing phoning person, messenger, pizza-making sub-person, a couple of others (one involving the killing of weeds with a fluorescent yellow liquid). Though these jobs often made me, and the people I worked with, tired and angry, none of them made us want to ritually humiliate our customers for trying to buy what we sold.

OK, I guess I do have commentary. In terms of the stores around Seattle, I disagree — we’re lucky to have some great record shops in this town, interesting and well-stocked but also homey and welcoming. (Zion’s Gate and Wall of Sound come immediately to mind, although naturally there are more.)

But then again, I’m writing from the inside of this nasty little business, and some of my best friends are misanthropic turds. Maybe I just lack the perspective of a casual music buyer.

So I’ll ask you, Line Out reader who casually goes to record stores and buys music based on our thoughtful, loving recommendations. Is Sasha Frere-Jones full of shit?

Photo from urb.com

Seattle’s most assiduous beat-centric trend-sniffers will be gathering at Havana’s Sing Sing shindig tonight to check out Spank Rock decknicians Devlin & Darko. These guys are sure to give you exceptional bang for your buck (and your booty). D&D combine the sounds of the Dirty South with the gritty Lower East Side, make London pirate radio congruently collide with sound systems in Brazil’s favelas, and will probably throw in Talking Heads’ “Sugar on My Tongue”� just for the hell of it. And, of course, much more. Act like you know.

Here’s a Darko mix to whet your appetite.

Finally, here’s what Death of the Party honcho Clayton Vomero has to say, from the trenches:

You’ll hear everything that runs the gamut of the party rocking catalogue; from Bmore club music to dirty south strip-club jams to Paul Simon to CAN; all rocked on a four-turntable set up. But don’t get it confused, THIS IS A PARTY, not a turntable convention.

This year the Block Party doesn’t end when the headlining band loads out—it just moves to Neumo’s. Starting at 11 pm on Friday, Big Business (pictured in all their Glamour Shots glory, above) will perform, and DJs Franki Chan and Fourcolorzack will get the dance party going.

Saturday night is all about the official Murder City Devils’ afterparty, with a set from the Little Ones, and DJ stylings from Spencer Moody and DJ Merchbot 2000.

The best part? Both parties are free as long as you show your Block Party wristband ($5 without).

The 2006 nominees for the most prestigious music award in the UK, the Mercury Music Prize, were announced this morning:

Arctic Monkeys, Whatever People Say I Am, That’s What I’m Not
Isobel Campbell & Mark Lanegan, Ballad Of The Broken Seas
Editors, The Back Room
Guillemots, Through The Windowpane
Richard Hawley, Coles Corner
Hot Chip, The Warning
Muse, Black Holes And Revelations
Zoe Rahman, Melting Pot
Lou Rhodes, Beloved One
Scritti Politti, White Bread, Black Beer
Sway, This Is My Demo
Thom Yorke, The Eraser

The prize will be doled out at a ceremony on Sept. 5. Last year, British-born (but U.S. reared) Antony Hegarty aka Antony + The Johnsons won for I Am A Bird Now.

Right now, British odds-makers are saying Arctic Monkeys and Yorke are the favorites. I’m okay with possibility the former winning: They’re young, energetic, and bursting with ideas. I also wouldn’t cringe if Hot Chip or Richard Hawley got it. The Hot Chip boys have shown a strong streak of vibrant creativity thus far, while Hawley has matured into one of the UK’s best songwriters.

But my personal pick? I’d love to see the 2006 Mercury go to Scritti Politti. White Bread, Black Beer is probably the best album of Green Gartside’s eccentric, erratic career (check out my four-star CD review in the paper later this week), and if the Mercury Music Prize is really about giving kudos to the best music the British Isles has to offer, they should recognize that Green is, like Kate Bush, one of their most genuinely original artists—and one with proven longevity.

What say you, gentle (and not-so) readers: Who do you want to see win, and why? Anybody who you can’t believe got nominated? Dish, people, dish…

“Mogwai on Miami Vice Soundtrack” .

This is rivaled only by this press release for the Snakes on a Plane soundtrack, which just landed in my in-box:

Of course, what’s a catchy single without compelling visuals? Cue the “Snakes On A Plane (Bring It)”� music video, directed by Lex Halaby (Hoobastank, Atmosphere, Killswitch Engage). The clip, already a YouTube sensation with over 125,000 plays to its name, features Saporta, Ivarsson, Beckett and McCoy, plus cameos from Fall Out Boy’s Pete Wentz (who owns Decaydance, the label co-releasing SOAP’s soundtrack) as well as the man himself, Samuel L. Jackson. “We filmed at a huge sound stage in Burbank that was basically an airplane hangar,”� says Saporta. “There was an entire plane inside the studio, and everything else you would find in an airport. You’re not supposed to drink during a shoot, but we snuck in a bottle of vodka and got smashed in the cockpit.”�

“But by far the best part about the day was meeting Samuel L Jackson,”� he continues. “He had limited time to spare, so when he was on his way, the relaxed atmosphere of the shoot suddenly got very tense. But after our first take with him, I headed straight for Sam and gave him a big ol’ hug! I mean the man was wearing a Snakes On A Plane T-shirt, for Christ’s sake! You don’t get cooler than that.”�

.

The Digable Planet show is now no more. Set for two nights (July 20 and July 21) at Neumos, the show failed to generate enough ticket sales—only 179. This is sad news.

A routine phone call to Rachel Flotard of Visqueen, to ask about the band’s Block Party plans, instantly turned into a quarter hour of gut-busting hilarity—plus some scathing observations about the state of rock music. Let’s just say that Point A was “Is there a finite amount of spiritual energy in the universe” (and, if so, does that mean each person has a little less “soul” as the population grows?), and Point B found Flotard yakking about guitar amps with a fervor that left me strangely aroused. In between, she also shared the following observations. Decide for yourself which are True or False - then check out their gig at the Block Party to learn the answers!

1. In a bid for commercial acceptance, several band members are undergoing plastic surgery. Drummer Ben Hooker is getting breast implants, while Rachel plans to replace her nipples with guitar knobs.

2. They are currently in the studio, recording new material for a five-song EP, due out in Europe come October. Their third full-length will drop domestically in early 2007, probably late January or early February.

3. Their Block Party set will consist entirely of Murder City Devils covers.

4. If Rachel is ever completely paralyzed, but retains brain function, she could “watch the Ashlee Simpson fuck-up on Saturday Night Live on repeat over and over for the rest of my life… God help me.”

5. The new songs the band is recording feature “some different tempos,” and are “a little swingy,” but are definitely still “sing-along style” rock numbers.

6. Visqueen’s next full-length will come out a Houston, TX jazz label with a back and current catalog that includes titles by Willie Nelson, London’s Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, and Pope John Paul II.

7. The band has yet another bass player. This one is allegedly named Bill Coury. Rachel didn’t provide any more details, which leads one to suspect that she and Ben have finally perfected that android they were building in the kitchen for so long.

In case you’re looking for something a little different to do on Monday nights, the Baltic Room has a new weekly featuring primarily reggae. I talked with Lawrence (aka DJ Collage) about the night, and he told me that one of the goals for the night is to ensure that it stays diverse and open to all types, since a lot of reggae-themed nights tend to end up a bit intimidating for newcomers. Since it’s opening night it’s free, so you can see what the organizers have up their sleeves at no cost. The details follow.

Monday Night Jam Jam Reggae returns to the Baltic Room!

Reggae/Dancehall/Reggaeton/Hip-Hop remixes
Every Monday starting July 17th Opening Night FREE!!!
Hosted by Element (Zion’s Gate Sound)
w/DJ Collage aka “Da Bigg Mon”
$3 cover charge, ladies free before 11
The Baltic Room/1207 Pine St/Seattle, WA 9pm-2am
“so mek it a date and don’t be late”

Girl Talk (Gregg Gillis)

Girl Talk’s Night Ripper (a nice pun on Dr. John’s Night Tripper persona or a description of the artist’s habit of duping tracks off CDs after the sun goes down?) is destined to be one of those era-defining albums. Its mercurial, decade”“jumbling mashups play to the ’00s trend of minuscule-attention-spanned party people who can’t nostalgicize and giggle over a song fast enough. Pitchfork granted Night Ripper an 8.4 rating today (I reviewed it here June 29), so now expect Girl Talk’s label, Illegal Art, to fend off the RIAA and dozens of lawyers representing the labels from whose catalogs he “pilfered.”� Pitchfork’s Sean Fennessey sums up the situation below:

Due to its overwhelming number of unlicensed sources, Night Ripper is practically begging for court drama. In the event of litigation, Gillis’ label has armed themselves with a Fair Use argument, citing artists’ rights to liberally sample in the creation of new works. Whether that’ll hold any water in a courtroom remains to be seen, but for listeners it’s an afterthought.

You may want to buy/download Night Ripper ASAP, before the suits force it to be yanked off the market/deleted from the interweb.

Religious services are typically not my bag, but I cannot deny some inherent compelling power in ancient ritual. Tonight I went to Saint Mark’s Cathedral on Capitol Hill to hear the Office of Compline, the last church service of the day. It was astonishingly lovely. Following its monastic tradition, Compline is sung entirely by The Compline Choir, a dozen or so men singing a cappella, filling the dark nave with just their voices, rich harmonies. There was a “Glory Be” that made my skin tingle and minor chords held for what felt like measures and measures.

If you are looking for good “local music” and a chance for some single-minded reflection, do yourself a favor and go. Compline is performed every Sunday in the nave at Saint Mark’s at 9:30 pm. There are typically several hundred people at the service, many of them in their teens or twenties, many lying on their backs on the floor, utterly silent. While Compline sounds unmistakably traditional, no active participation is required (really, you just sit there and listen), and the service feels informal. If you would prefer to lie on your back on your living room floor, Compline is also broadcast live every week on KING FM 98.1