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Santee makes scratchy, lovesick, indie folk-pop. The band has a way of tentatively coming around to these walloping choruses and emotionally resonant refrains. Over the years, what began as the bedroom folk duo of Heather Loepp and Josh Vega has grown and developed into a larger, fuller band with a
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There is a certain segment of the population that is way too into eight-bit video games - specifically, the way those games sounded. These weirdoes have banded together to utilize those primitive sounds in the creation of new music. Their bands are chiptune bands; their members have seemingly uncovered brand
Arts
Oh, hello. Sorry, I didn't see you over there, surreptitiously gazing at me with your weird little bedroom eyes. Something you are no doubt asking yourself is, "Who is that oddly alluring man? What is his secret? Why am I so inconceivably drawn to him?" Firstly, I commend you on your
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The music of San Francisco's Zodiac Death Valley straddles the line between psych-rock, pulsing new wave, freak-folk, and the sun-beaten pop of Dire Straits. It's an infectious combination, aided largely by impeccable songwriting. The band's music is nothing if not filled with memorable hooks and substantial
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I've tried to make it a point, when writing about local music, to avoid talking about the ages of the members of the bands I highlight. But I must impress upon you how young the members that make up Gig Harbor garage two-piece Trasholes are, if only
Nightlife It List
Beginning at 9 p.m. and going until last call, the real appeal of Puget Sound Pizza's karaoke is its inimitable host, the Reverend Colin. A tall, bearded man who always sports a utilikilt, Rev. Colin possesses a wealth of oddball musical knowledge and a
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For the past few years - and working from an unusually strong starting point - Ben Union has been working to hone his sound to a fine point. After emerging on the scene with a potent live show and an even more precise debut LP, The Light, Union and his
Music
There are some people who work and work at perfecting a craft. As opposed to genre chameleons who tirelessly experiment with sounds and voices, these people find their sound early and competently, and work to refine it. They want to become experts at sounding like themselves. Somewhere around the edges
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A streak of romanticism is splashed broadly across the music of Jeremy Jay. Though largely influenced by the suave synth-pop of acts like Spandau Ballet, Jay's music is far from the detached cool that has come to be associated with the genre. Rather, Jay seems to care deeply about matters
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On the opening track of Trees Without Leaves' album, Don't Say Uh Uh!, a master of ceremonies comes on to announce the band, in grand fashion, before they come barreling out in full, goofy force. The over-the-top blues rock of Trees Without Leaves is indebted to the similarly winking tradition
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I know very little about Dandy - except that the band's name is derived from combining the names of the two guys involved, Dan Brownawell and Andy Childs. I also know Dandy makes dance music. The band is dedicated to the task of enabling people to put one foot to
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It's hard to separate the music of Halcion Halo from the commanding voice that presides over it. Lead singer Jenson Charnell's voice can sometimes resemble the more mumbling, beat-poet-aspirations of Lou Reed - he never provides any release for the plodding, heavy alt-rock guitars, just ever-rising tension and downtrodden declarations.
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So the band's called Pukesnake, and they craft songs with names like "Bird Funeral" and "Rainbow in the Toilet." I wish I could just give you that information and let you disseminate it however you wish, but I'm required to tell you a little bit more. Pukesnake is some kind
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"We all are in our thirties and grew up on Soundgarden, Stone Temple Pilots, Pearl Jam, Drive-By Truckers and all that stuff," says John Beidel, guitarist and vocalist for the Vile Red Falcons. "We got together and I think the first few practices we just played crappy Pearl Jam covers.
Music
It's sometimes said about artists like comedians, writers and musicians that they often start out co-opting someone else's voice or style - someone they look up to, artistically - before eventually chipping away the derivative qualities, and hopefully arriving at their own thing. The Rolling Stones and the Beatles, of
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How absurdly catchy is Big Eyes? Thanks for asking. VERY. The band is VERY catchy. Something about the driving guitars and the rough female vocals make Big Eyes something more than just a run of the mill, good garage rock act. Elements of the Breeders and even the Ramones run
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Dick Dale created the surf guitar sound. This is a statement that is irrefutable (a rare commodity in music). As it's been documented and retold, Dick Dale began by playing the drums and then transferred this percussive quality to the electric guitar - the result being the breakneck strumming and
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A Leaf is one of the first bands I ever wrote about. Now, two and a half years later, I find myself returning to the band's music with fresh ears and a newfound admiration for the velvety smooth sounds they create. Drawing inspiration from the British folk-rock of the '60s
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The name Corin Tucker holds a lot of sway in Olympia. For the unfamiliar few, Corin Tucker is the shrieking voice that fronted the iconic, riot grrrl-defining Sleater-Kinney. Since the dissolution of the band, the members of Sleater-Kinney have gone on to form Wild Flag, while Tucker has struck out
Music
To credit an individual with the creation of a genre - beyond that, the creation of a sound - is typically a murky endeavor. Saying the Mekons created alt-country with the album Fear and Whiskey, for instance, is a statement that can be disputed and enthusiastically argued over by music