Again, I'm catching up on my concert reviews, so here's a quick summary of June.

I've already posted before about seeing The Juan MacLean and The Field on Monday June 8 at Nectar Lounge; that review was written for the KEXP Blog and can still be read there. However, let me give a couple excerpts:

Last Monday night when I went to Nectar Lounge to see The Juan MacLean and The Field, I didn’t know that I’d be at the hottest show in town. These two groups played sizzling sets of electronica to a packed and enthusiastic crowd. DJ Nordic Soul warmed up the club with a solid mix of dance music.
[...]
The Field’s music is very cool stuff, and I could easily listen for a few hours; it seems tailor-made for airplane flights, and I’ll have to pick up the aptly-named album From Here We Go Sublime before my next trip.
[...]
While The Field kept the club simmering for an hour, The Juan MacLean brought it up to a full boil with their high-energy synth rock. ... They built up to a stunning conclusion with “Happy House”, extended to over 20 minutes and climaxing several times, and then cooled things down in the encore with the mellow and dreamy “Tonight”.

Also, I was right next to the stage for The Juan Maclean's set, so I was able to get some pretty good photos, including John MacLean in action rocking the theremin. See the whole set here in Flickr.

I went to two other shows that week: KJ Sawka at Nectar Lounge on Friday June 12, and Hotels at the High Dive on Saturday June 13. I had already decided I wasn't going to blog about those shows, so I didn't take any notes. However, I can tell you that Sawka's show was to promote the release of his DrumBanger app for the iPhone (read more about it in this post on Line Out, The Stranger's music blog), and that while I still enjoy his music, I found that I'm getting a little tired of hearing the work from his two recent albums and would like to see him pursue a new direction. Oh I forgot that opening for Sawka was first DJ NoiseMaker, who I can't recall anything about, but then DJ Crime, billed as "Las Vegas's #1 VJ"—he mixed videos, using both music videos and other footage, which was fun to watch as well as hear.

As for the other show, Hotels played third in a set including Anomie Belle, Born Anchors, and (ostensible) headliners Furniture Girls. I reviewed Anomie Belle for the KEXP Blog when she opened for Tricky back in March, and I don't really have anything to add to that: she's got talent and potential, but despite her use of live violin loops, her music currently is kind of bland soulful trip-hop. I can't remember anything about Born Anchors, which suggests I didn't find them that interesting, but I know I didn't dislike them and really I'd have to hear them again to give any kind of review. Hotels were awesome of course and I danced like crazy through their set; I've really just about run out of things to say about them until they release some more new music, which is why I had decided I wouldn't blog about this show, but here I am. Finally, my opinion also hasn't changed much on Furniture Girls: they're fun, the band is really solid, but they just don't quite win me over somehow. However, they did have a strong-voiced guest backup singer for most of the set, which made a real difference as the original Furniture Girls synth-player/backing vocalist doesn't have a voice strong enough to match the lead singer (that original member hasn't been replaced, just moved back to focus more on the synths).

The other two shows were good overall, but I do have to say The Juan MacLean and The Field were a phenomenal bill, definitely one of the best shows of the year.

Two Saturdays ago, on April 5, I went to the High Dive for a concert and live broadcast of KEXP's local music show Audioasis. KEXP has been doing these broadcasts at the High Dive on the first Saturday of each month for just over a year now, and the proceeds of each show are donated to a local charity, in this case the Seattle Public Library Foundation. The performances of two bands are broadcast live on the air during the normal hours (6-9 PM PST) of Audioasis, and then a few bands perform after the broadcast. For this show, Mono In VCF and The Dimes were featured on the air, followed by The Transmissionary Six, A Gun That Shoots Knives, Cancer Rising, and finally an encore performance by Mono In VCF.

Since first seeing Mono In VCF live at the Triple Door in February, I had been wondering how the band would sound in a small club, and whether they would use the full seven-member lineup or just the core quartet. The answers in short are, they did use the full septet, and they sounded almost as gorgeous as before. Some nuances were lost occasionally in the general volume even in the early set, before the levels were turned up for the later acts, but still it seemed fairly well-balanced for a large band in a small club. One detail I noticed in this performance, one of the guitarists actually used the head of his guitar to play a keyboard part simultaneously during the song "Spider Rotation", which I thought was pretty neat.

The Dimes played a mix of upbeat indie-pop and slower folky songs. They sounded something like early R.E.M. or perhaps The Decemberists, mixing in some mandolin and melodica to their basic lineup of three guitars, bass, and drums. I half-jokingly remarked to a friend at the show, "they sound like a Portland band," as indeed they are from Portland. They decorated the stage some, adding in an old TV and floor lamp and many candles, creating a living-room feel for their set. Although the band were all decent players and the music was appealing, they didn't really catch on with me, but I can see them getting popular.

The Transmissionary Six, belying their name, appeared as a quintet at this show, including lead singer Terri Moeller and musicians on bass and backing vocals, guitar/pedal steel guitar/backing vocals, guitar, and drums. (Their MySpace page suggests up to nine people are regular band members, with a bunch more occasional members.) They had an even stronger folk element to their sound than The Dimes, almost being country-rock. They reminded me of the Cowboy Junkies, and Moeller has a similar nice low voice. Their songs were more on the midtempo moody side than rocking out.
They had a good sound, and although I wasn't compelled to seek out a CD, I'd like to hear them again and they may grow on me.

As A Gun That Shoots Knives were setting up the stage for their set, something told me I'd better put in my earplugs. Perhaps it was the wacky costumes they wore, or the large gong they set up, but I guessed that this was not to be another moody folk-rock band. Sure enough, the quartet (vocals/keyboard/gong, guitar/backing vocals, bass/backing vocals, drums) seemed to be a noisy punk band at first, but proved to be something more. Their songs were more melodic than the typical fierce-young-guy punk band, with vocals that were (more or less) sung rather than growled or hoarsely screamed. The music had an early eighties vibe to it, hinting at the reggae-influenced punk of The Clash and The Police, and varied from upbeat to fast and thrashing. Their song topics included literacy (apropos for the benefit), karate dojo, sushi, birthdays, an exhortation to "stay in school motherfucker", and a faux-metal tribute to the Balrog of Moria (yes, really - and it was AWESOME). The lead singer was very engaging, at one point asking the audience proudly, "Do you like the gong? We rented it for the weekend!" A Gun That Shoots Knives was highly entertaining both to watch and to hear, and I'll be looking for them in the future.

Cancer Rising, in short, were not my thing. A hiphop trio including two rappers and a turntablist, they seemed to me the most out of place in the evening's lineup, although in fairness the whole lineup was pretty disparate and A Gun That Shoots Knives was just as strong a contrast to the previous bands. I did recognize at least one song that I knew from KEXP airplay and found it reasonably enjoyable, though unfortunately I don't now remember what it was. I thought the DJ made good use of the Yeah Yeah Yeahs' "Phenomena" for one rap, but otherwise I didn't notice anything remarkable (which I think says more about my listening than his actual skills). For the most part though, I found them abrasive and didn't care for the set.

Finally, Mono In VCF closed the evening with a second set, featuring a different order and more songs. Both of their sets included a new song, which was great to hear. In this set they had a weird break in middle, that seemed like it might be technical difficulties. Then they began an instrumental, and then to my surprise brought out Cancer Rising to rap over it. I didn't think that blended well at all, but I have to give both groups props for giving it a try. There seemed to be a lot more people talking rather than listening during this set, but it was the end of the evening, and perhaps the juxtaposition of Cancer Rising and Mono In VCF made for a weird mix in the audience. In the early set, the band had an almost Cocteau Twins sound for the song "Chanteuse"; for the late set's last song, "Cinch Ring" (if I recall correctly), the higher volume levels produced a lot of shoegazer-style feedback. It was totally worthwhile to stay through the whole evening - including Cancer Rising's set that I didn't care for - to hear Mono In VCF twice, and I can only see my love for the band growing.

I ended up not getting many good photos, as for the most part I was not near the stage. I did upload 11 photos, starting here.

I should probably add a disclaimer: although I am a volunteer at KEXP, the opinions expressed in this review (and all others on my blog, for that matter) are solely my own and do not represent or reflect the views of KEXP.

Monday night I went to High Dive to see Airiel, a band I'd been hearing on KEXP 90.3 FM and was curious about. Also on the bill were The Jake Shaw Trio headlining, and White Helicopters opening, two bands I knew nothing about. As it happened, the show was part of NadaMucho.com's "New Music Monday" series, so it was appropriate all the bands were new to me.

White Helicopter are a quintet, with a female singer, two guitars, bass, and drums. I arrived late and missed some of their set, but I heard enough to form a good opinion of them. Their style was modern rock, but they had some interesting touches. In one song they made a weird shift into a country-pop style for the chorus, which clashed a bit with the moodiness of the rest of the song although the transition between styles was smooth. In another song, "King of the Robots," the lead guitarist delivered spoken-word vocals, while for the final song he traded his guitar for a bouzouki (which the singer identified for the audience, saying "don't call it a mandolin, he hates that"). The lead singer had a good voice and the group played well together; I'd like to see them again.

Airiel are a quartet, the standard two guitars, bass, and drums, with one guitarist handling main vocals and the bassist being the primary backup vocalist. They are firmly in the shoegazer/dreampop genre and played a solid set full of swirling guitars, crooning vocals, and feedback. To complete the mood, trippy computer-generated video was projected over the band onto a screen behind them, giving them a space-rock feel. The first half of their set was continuous, with indistinct transitions between songs, while in the second half they had clear breaks between each song. They didn't seem to have anything new to bring to the genre, no distinct sound to make them stand out from other such bands, which left me feeling a bit flat. But still, they're very good at what they do and I enjoy a good shoegaze band, so I expect to pick up their album The Battle of Sealand.

The Jake Shaw Trio features its namesake on electric organ and vocals, Dave Gagnon on bass, and Grant Schroff on drums. They were quite a surprise after the shoegazer drone of Airiel, as they played groovy soul, jazz, and funk. Unlike Airiel's sonic wash and distortion, the Jake Shaw Trio was all about hearing the interplay of the distinct parts, and virtuoso solo turns for each instrument. All three musicians were clearly highly talented and gave great performances throughout their set. The whole club felt transformed into a hip lounge; as with FCS North at the show earlier this month, I could easily imagine spending an evening at a club with this trio performing a few sets. For the first part of their encore, they accepted the request of some random guy to get up on stage and sing with them, and he turned out to be quite good and deserving of the hearty applause. I really enjoyed their whole set, and I'd like to get some friends who don't usually go out to shows to come see them.

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Next month Sky Cries Mary are playing Neumos on the 11th, I might try to catch them this time. And Freezepop are definitely in town and supposedly playing Chop Suey on the 23rd, although Chop Suey still isn't listing a show that night - maybe they're still trying to line up other bands. They're also playing Ground Kontrol Classic Arcade in Portland on the 25th, and if I have to, I'll drive down there to see them. In fact, I just might do it anyhow.

Last Saturday was the long-awaited CD release party for Beehive's new album, Pretty Little Thieves. The show, at High Dive, included Theory in Motion as the opening act and The Fading Collection as the closing act, and also Dezignated Pete as the between-set DJ. I don't usually review between-set DJs, but it's worth noting he spun an enjoyable set of music with some really interesting live mixing of well-known electronic music; he'd be worth going to hear as a featured artist in his own right.

Theory in Motion are an electronic duo, featuring turntable, synth drum, computer, keyboard, and more electronics. Both members also provided vocals, the main vocalist tending to rap while the other usually sang. Their continuous set varied in style from hard-edged techno to groovy dance music, with beats that begged for dancing but a complex sound that rewarded simply listening as well. As the opening act this night, they suffered the smallest audience with just a few people standing toward the front to listen, but on another night they could easily fill the floor with dancing bodies, I'm sure. I'll be keeping an eye out for them in the concert calendar.

Beehive are the duo of Alethea Eichhorn (aka Butterfly Beats) on laptop, keyboards, and vocals, and David Miller on electric and slide guitars, bass, and vocals. Together they make a heady mix of rock and breakbeat electronica. I'd been anticipating this show since their short set in January, and I was not disappointed. I discovered at this show just how strongly their music stays with me: it wasn't until I saw the track listing of their new album that I realized I didn't yet actually own some of the songs I recognized at the show as "old favorites," including "Small Face" and "Better Than Lies." Other songs in the set included "Outta Here One Day," previously released on last year's EP Operation Artichoke, and "Fear" and "Joseph and Mary" from their first release, Cycle A. As in previous shows, Beehive's delight in music shone through their performance, and their infectious enthusiasm got the crowd bopping along and inspired some amazing dancing. I'm almost sad to think that it'll be a while before they start introducing new songs again, but for now I'll take joy in the great music they're already playing.

The Fading Collection are Sarah McCulloch on vocals and guitar and Matt Frickelton on bass and programming, with Jeremy Hill on drums and samples and Tavia Wormstedt on backing vocals. I first saw them last year at the same show when I first saw Beehive - and incidentally the first show I attended at High Dive. At the time I described their goth/industrial-influenced electronic rock as "more for listening than dancing," and although I still would not describe their music as dance music, there was plenty of dancing going on at this show. Despite the late hour, most of the evening's small crowd stayed through the set and called for the band to continue even when they seemed ready to finish. In fact, the band seemed a little unprepared to play as long as they did, which made for a slightly awkward end to the evening rather than an exciting climax. I enjoyed their set even more than I did last time, and yet I still feel like they could set the place on fire, but don't quite. I hope to be there when they do.

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I listed several possible shows for June at the end of my previous review, including The Fading Collection opening for Sky Cries Mary at Neumos on the 15th. I still haven't decided whether to try catching that as well as Kinski's live accompaniement to the 1927 film Berlin: Symphony of a City at the Triple Door the same night, or just picking one show. I haven't seen Kinski in almost a year, and it'll be cool to hear what they do in a film score context, but I've never seen Sky Cries Mary and I'd like to. Meanwhile, I found out today that Tara Jane ONeil is playing Sunday June 17 at Gallery 1412, with Jana Hunter. TJO shows are obligatory, so whatever else I might see in June, I'll certainly be there.

Last night I went to High Dive to see Emilia and Miss Solar System, along with Missing Players. I had overlooked this show in the listings earlier in the month, and I was pleased when I learned of it, as it gave me a chance to re-assess both Emilia and Miss Solar System.

As happens fairly regularly, the band I knew nothing about turned out to be the highlight of the evening. Missing Players are a trio on bass/lead vocals, drums, and keyboard/flute/harmonica/vocals. Additionally, they had a guitarist/sax player throughout their set, and two more musicians on baritone sax and trumpet for most of the set (these additional musicians are all members of The Panda Conspiracy). As you might guess from the lineup, their music was eclectic. Early in the set, just as I was thinking they sounded like early '90s grunge rock, I realized they were playing a cover of "Rooster" by Alice in Chains. Later, they were at their bluesiest when covering "French Fries with Pepper" by Morphine. Most of their music though was original, ranging between those styles and touching on art/prog-rock as well, including a long instrumental featuring the flute and the horn section. I enjoyed the variety of the sound as well as the obvious talent of the musicians, and I'll be interested to see how they develop.

Just last month when I was looking for a show to attend in February, I learned about vocalist Emilia, and her backing band including Michael Queyrouze on guitar, Kent Halvorsen on keyboard, and KJ Sawka on drums and electronics. Sawka's involvement was how I learned of that show, as I'm a fan of his earlier project Siamese and his current solo work. At the time I thought the group sounded pretty good, but they didn't really grab me. This time, Emilia opened her set with a pair of backup dancers for the first song, which struck me as a mere gimmick rather than a serious artistic decision. There's no denying the musical ability of her backup musicians, nor her own fine voice, and most of the audience seemed very enthusiastic, with a lot of dancing in the crowd. However, as her set continued, I did not find myself warming up to her performance, and eventually I simply grew bored. I talked with an audience member near the end of her set, and we agreed that Emilia's act seemed too calculated, substituting the pretense of being a rockstar for true passion in the music. That's not to say that Emilia doesn't actually care about her music, but her performance felt a bit hollow to me. I won't be deliberately avoiding her shows in the future, but I won't make a point of attending, either.

Like Emilia, I had seen Miss Solar System once before, in January. That show had only instrumentalists Daniel H (synths and live guitar) and Rob Anonymous (programming, samples, and synths), as their vocalist Miranda Rose was ill. My reaction at the time was that they lacked something to make them stand out, and the lacking element was probably their missing vocalist. This show proved me at least partly correct. Rose's soaring, soulful vocals did provide a nice contrast to the electronic beats, beeps, and swirls, complementing their sound well. At the same time, although I did enjoy their music, I still felt less enthusiastic than I'd expected. Unlike with Emilia, I can't attribute it to a perceived flaw on the band's part; they simply didn't find their way deep inside me and pull out the urge to dance. I ended the evening pleased to have seen them; although I'm not particularly eager to do so again, they're still a selling point for potential future shows, again unlike Emilia.

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Next month I have something of a dilemma. Annuals are back in town on the 21st, opening for Blonde Redhead at The Showbox. I really enjoyed the Annuals when I saw them last month, and Blonde Redhead is one of those bands I neither know nor remember as well as I think I should. However, Beehive are playing a show the same night in the Lower Level of the Capitol Hill Arts Center, and I definitely want to continue supporting them by attending their shows. Hmm, on their website they're promising a long set with lots of new material. Decisions, decisions...

Last Friday morning on my way to work, I heard a band called The Airborne Toxic Event playing live on KEXP. I'd never heard of them before, but they sounded pretty good, and they were pretty entertaining while talking to the DJ. They were playing that night at High Dive with three other bands I didn't know: The Heavy Hearts, PartMan PartHorse, and Nazca Lines. After the Sing-Sing debacle made my prospects for a February show look dim, I had been thinking that I should just pick a show that weekend and take my chances, so I decided to go through with it and attend this one. I ended up quite pleased with my decision.

I arrived partway through the opening set by Nazca Lines. The band consists of five young guys on vocals, two guitars, bass, and drums. Like many of these bands I've seen, Nazca Lines seemed to be about making some noise and raising some hell. The vocals ran the gamut from shouting to screaming, while the music thrashed about without a lot of structure. This is not necessarily a bad thing; there's certainly a place for angry young punk-ish rock, it's just not something that generally appeals to me, and that was the case here. The band didn't sound much different from others of their type that I've heard, and I was thinking that I wouldn't have anything to say about them. But then their vocalist introduced their last song by saying it was based on a book by Gabriel Garcia Márquez, which made me reassess them a bit; clearly there was more going on than I was hearing. However, with the shouty vocals, I just couldn't care to pay attention enough to figure out what the song was about. So, they're not my style, but they may yet develop into something interesting.

The evening started looking up for me with PartMan PartHorse, a quartet including vocals, guitar, bass, and drums, with the vocalist and the bassist each playing keyboard on some songs. The vocals were still more shouted than sung, but the songs were more melodic and structured, easier to bop along to. Much of the lyrics seemed to be about sex and relationships, but at least one song that might've been their theme involved shouted declarations of being an equestrian and a horse. The band also showed an edge of social concern: Camel cigarettes were obviously sponsoring the evening, and had a rep wandering through the crowd; in reaction, the vocalist removed his shirt and wrote "Camel Sucks" across his torso. (Their MySpace page currently features an anti-smoking screed for their bio.) Overall, the band sounded tighter than Nazca Lines and I found them more enjoyable.

The Heavy Hearts are another quartet of two guitars, bass, and drums, with lead vocals from the male guitarist and backing vocals from the female guitarist, who also switched instruments with the bassist for a few songs. The Heavy Hearts continued the two progressing traits of the evening: their vocalist sang more than he shouted, and the songs were more melodic and traditionally structured than the previous two bands. However, they also lived up to the first part of their name, having the heaviest, densest sound of the night. They weren't heavy metal though, just full-tilt full-volume rock, and they sounded great. I'd had a long and somewhat annoying day at work, and this was just the right kind of aggressive rock that I could get into and work out my frustration.

The Airborne Toxic Event are a new quintet, formed by singer/guitarist Mikel Jollett and drummer Daren Taylor, with Noah Harmon on bass, Steven Chen on guitar, and Anna Bulbrook on viola, keyboard and tambourine. The 'Event were unlike the other bands that evening; they looked rather like European hipsters, dressed all in black, but their sound was pure American pop rock. This band had a lead singer, not just a vocalist, and their sound was engaging rather than aggressive. As much as I'd enjoyed the stomping sound of The Heavy Hearts, I found myself truly delighted with the upbeat bop of the 'Event. While the previous band let me turn frustration into fun, this band reminded me to let go and enjoy life. For a band that's only been together a few months at this point, they were very professional and very, well, together. I picked up their three-song self-titled EP; it's not much to go on, but I'll be looking forward to hearing a lot more from them.

Yesterday while getting my hair cut, I talked with my hairdresser about the shows I'd been to recently, and mentioned that I hadn't yet decided on a show for March and needed to look over the listings again. We also discussed how things were going with my new condo, which led into talking about Fremont, and she asked whether I'd been to the High Dive yet; I said I hadn't but was looking forward to checking it out some time soon as it looked cool.

When I got home, I decided I might as well check the concert listings right then, although I wasn't expecting to go out that night. I immediately changed my mind about going out when I discovered that The Fading Collection were playing at the High Dive, with Tekgnosis opening and Beehive headlining. I'd been meaning to check out The Fading Collection for a while now (even longer than those entries indicate, as I picked up their first album back in 2003), and I remembered that Beehive had played a show with Library Science but I'd left before they came on, so I was curious to check them out this time. So after a quick dinner, off I went. On my way over, Amy called; she and John P were in Belltown looking for something to do, and they agreed to join me at the show.

The show was an interesting balance: a straight-up techno set, followed by electronica-influenced rock, concluding with a blend of the two. Opening act Tekgnosis were a couple guys on laptops, with a keyboard and drum machine, playing a continuous stream of pure dance techno. My sister will tell you that all music is about changes in sound over time, but the stripped-down rhythmic loops of techno really bring that home - that is, if you can pay attention. That's not to say that Tekgnosis were boring, just that the music rewards dancing more than sitting in the back of the bar and listening, and we ended up talking through most of the set. Would I recommend going to hear them? Yes, particularly if there's a dance floor. Can I give a better description of their music to entice you? No.

The Fading Collection are also a duo, Sarah McCulloch on vocals and Matt Frickelton on bass and programming, but they're joined in concert (and in some tracks on their latest album, Supertron) by Jeremy Hill on drums and samples and Tavia Wormstedt on backing vocals. They're self-described as electronic artists and there's no doubt they use electronics to create and play their music, but their style is more goth/industrial-tinged rock than anything else; unlike Tekgnosis, this is much more for listening than dancing. They sound something like Evanescence, except where I found Evanescence to be derivative and dull, I think The Fading Collection is fresh and interesting. (In fairness parkbenchzine no doubt would say the reverse.) I do have to say that although I did enjoy their live set, I expected to be overwhelmed and I wasn't. I can't point to anything specific, I just thought their performace was adequate rather than amazing. Also, their set revealed that the High Dive may have some sound issues, as the vocals were indistinct while we were at the back of the room; they were fine when I moved up to the front, after the tired John and Amy decided to leave.

Finally, Beehive were yet another duo, Alethea Eichhorn (aka Butterfly Beats) on laptop, keyboard and vocals, and David Miller on guitar, steel guitar, bass and vocals. Their website declares, "Rock & Roll meets Breakbeat and Electronica," which aptly describes their sound. The guitar and vocals bring the rock, while the laptop beats and keyboard riffs bring the breakbeat; together this makes for great groovy dance music. Beehive were clearly having a great time playing - Alethea often looked like she was about to burst out laughing for sheer pleasure - and the audience went right along with them. (Actually, all the acts were having a good time that night, but I noticed it most with Beehive.) They made me unhappy that the weather is still wintry and cold, because I had my heavy long coat to hold and so couldn't really dance as much as I wanted to. This show was a CD release party for their new EP, Operation Artichoke, which I bought along with their full-length Cycle A (and The Fading Collection's latest as well); I expect these CDs will be taking up long-term residence on my iPod.

I'll just add that DJ Greg Jaspian of KEXP was the house DJ for the evening, and played some cool music; I'd like to catch him another time, maybe one of the nights he's at the Triple Door's Musicquarium lounge. Also, I'm looking forward to going to the High Dive more often, both for shows and just to hang out, it's a pretty cool place.

Today was also my fourth anniversary arriving in Seattle, but I'll have to write about that tomorrow, as it's now quite late and I have to get to bed.