Check out some new Summer music

I looked up this interesting U.K. Festival over the weekend; (Ben & Jerry’s Sundae on the Common), not sure what grabbed my attention other than the fact that it involved Ice cream and one of my favorite U.K. Bands The Answering Machine. Other bands include:

Red Light Company – London, UK

Camera Obscura – Glasgow, Scotland

Telegraphs – London, UK

*None of which I’m particularly excited about

I thought this was a pretty cool Black Cab Session with London star - VV Brown – Check it out HERE. – Again, the ones who are passionate just can’t hide it!

- I’m also a fan of this one from Fanfarlo (HERE)

Here are some U.K. Bands on the bleeding edge, my new picks of the Spring/Summer crop – give them all a listen:

I’ll start with a few distinctive bands just getting their feet wet:

Love Ends Disaster - London

Action Force – London

Death of London – UK (City of leiCester)

I can always tell bands I really like when I bookmark them twice; when I do that I know I’m really making sure that I’ve got them saved. Here’s that list:

Local Natives – SIlverlake, US

Standard Fare – Sheffield, UK – I really like this actually. Criminal underplay of this…

Three Vicars – Bury St Edmunds, UK – Real garage sounding and good…I’d love to see these guys in Seattle

The XX - London, UK – Very fresh sound from this young band, I picked this up the single “Crystalised” on vinyl and it’s amazing!

Swimming – Nottingham, UK – They’ve got a little hype behind them already, not bad.

Forest Fire – Brooklyn, NY – Different, but good enough to take a listen

I also want to pass some love to a fantastic Music Blog I find myself going back to over and over, the Blog is called Yes, Yes, Yall and it’s probably tipped more on the Electronica, DJ/Hip-Hop, Dance scene; but I find myself going there for inspiration more and more lately. Our palette’s are completely different, but I like his style. This is a guy who know his craft. Check out his fantastic Blog when you get a chance! (HERE)

Without him, we wouldn’t know about Bands like Yypah – Moderat – Jamie Vexd –  and Dert, just to name a few…

In other news, getting excited for some of the Summer shows like the Capitol Hill Block Party, The KEXP BBQ (FREE at the Mural this year!) and in addition to a bunch of bands I’ve already heard (and can’t discuss!), there will be some big headliners too. That’s the word on the street anyway – I can only begin to imagine who it could be!

P.S. You can follow me on Twitter @ www.twitter.com/clickdagger  - I’ve enjoyed connecting with people here and introducing them to new music!

Enjoy the Summer! Lot’s more to come

Must see bands at Sasquatch

Here are the bands you shouldn’t miss at this year’s Sasquatch Music festival. I think they’ve put together a fantastic line-up. If you’ve never been to a show at The Gorge, you’re in for a real treat. Truly one of the most beautiful outdoor venues in the country and the weather this weekend is going to be absolutely epic. If you need help deciding which great bands to see, here are the ones I wouldn’t miss each day. Of course, adjust your own tastes accordingly:

Saturday, May 23rd

Kings of Leon (Um, Duh!)

Yeah Yeah Yeah’s (their new album is hot hot hot!, another must-see)

Animal Collective (How will Merriweather Post Pavilions sound live? I just love their new album)

Passion Pit (A great Boston band that’s blowing up right now)

Crystal Castles (if you like the dancy-synth stuff; and I do)

Sunday, May 24th

Jane’s Addiction (I’ve been a big fan since the very beginning, one of my more memorable live shows as a teen)

Nine Inch Nails (Impressive live show, this will be an Audio/Visual treat at The Gorge)

TV On The Radio (Fantastic live band, their new album was absolutely amazing)

M83 (Had the pleasure of seeing them live @kexp and it forever changed my view of this band.)

Monday, May 25th

Silversun Pickups (Phenomenal live band, great new album. Definite must-see.)

Fleet Foxes (How can you not watch these guys? Seattle represent.)

Grizzly Bear (Easily one of the best bands at the festival; these guys are fantastic. Brand spanking new album, be one of the very first to hear it all live since Letterman blew them off)

Blitzen Trapper (Fleet Foxes version 2.0… Seriously though, great band. They have their own sound but run in the same circles)

Monotonix (At The Gorge no less? They could end up setting the whole damn place on fire. Don’t miss these guys!)

P.S. Pasty white Hipsters; please remember to bring your sunscreen….

I went to see Wild Light play and a Killers show broke out…

Ah, my first encounter with Superstardom and the lovely Wamu Theater. What was supposed to be a cool night out at a sold out show in the big city, turned out to be something else entirely…

The night started with the usual rigamarole at the ticket office. It seems the bigger the Venue, the bigger the hassles. “Uh, we don’t know about any Guest List”, Um, OK dude. I then talk to someone else and finally get handed the magic envelope with tickets and press pass courtesy of opening band “Wild Light” (Thanks!).  Rock Star photog Alex was there as my guest to handle the picture taking duties for the night and I gladly handed over the photo pass so he could do his thing. Despite our relatively lofty credentials, we endured the incredibly long line to the front, only to discover another possible security situation at the door. Alex has his backpack and a big camera in it, and apparently that was a problem. You’d think we were holding a fucking Improvised Explosive Device the way we were questioned about this. Again, not sure where the dis-connect is, we flash the PHOTO PASS and explain to them that this sort of thing is pretty standard. After a flurry of walkie-talkie discussions, we are now told to wait off to the side until we can get an escort inside. An escort? Really? After a few minutes more we are then whisked away to the front of the stage area by yet another security representative and introduced to the stage control folks. Finally! We get to where we need to be next to the photo pit entrance by the stage. As expected, Security was pretty thick down here with a few of the main security guys hanging out and a couple obvious supervisors running the whole show. Everything up until this point is going fantastic. We are making friends and joking with the Security guys, doing some networking with a couple industry peeps, and basically just chill out waiting for the opening band to go on. The place is definitely filling up at this point and security informs us the event is Sold Out to capacity at 7,500. They go over the rules that we will be allowed to shoot the first 2 songs of the opener and then they ask that photogs leave the pit area. It was nice to finally be treated like professionals and the staff was actually great during the entire evening. Here are some of the great photos of the opening band that Alex was able to take during the first 2 songs: 

Photo by Alex Crick

 

Photo by Alex Crick

 You can view the entire slideshow HERE.

After a great set from Wild Light, Security does mention that we will not be able to shoot photos from inside the photo pit area for The Killers. Surprise! And there we have it. Of course we had already heard the band was finicky with photos, we just weren’t prepared for the extent they would go to protect that. The Killers are one of only 2 bands I’ve ever heard of that actually go to these lengths to restrict photos being taken of them. Who is the other Artist you ask? None other than Sir Paul McCartney. Bet you didn’t know that little tidbit about your favorite bands eh? Did we push the envelope a little bit with the telephoto lens and big camera just to get some rare shots of The Killers? Maybe, but with the Photo Pass and credentials, plus the fact we weren’t shooting from the pit, we had no idea it would become the issue it did. What a huge ego these guys must have. Can I ask why you wouldn’t want someone with any type of skill taking your photo?

Now mind you, up until this point we still had absolutely no problems. In fact, we had a perfect little niche carved out in the shorter crowd ahead of us that was going to allow us to get some good shots of the band from the side. It was going to be snippity snap, grab a few photos and we were out of there. Boy were we wrong. Right before the end of the 1st song (one of their crappy new singles…), I see out of the corner of my eye Alex being pulled backwards by either the shirt collar or backpack handle, and hard! I figure this could be either one of 2 things; a pissed of drunk fan behind him angry about the camera, or security yanking him out of the crowd for taking pictures of the Killers. As I turn around, Alex is literally being dragged backwards by what looks to be a large Security guy and all the sudden he dissapears backstage and completely out of sight! Now mind you, he has the photo pass, I have nothing. I have a free General Admission ticket stub and that’s it. Certainly not access to the backstage area I saw Alex being dragged back to. What do I do? I follow him as close as I can and then just walk right past security to the backstage area. The large black Supervisor we befriended earlier gave me a nod like “Go ahead” so I thought going back there may help de-conflict the situation. I assumed they just had no idea he was a GUEST of the opening band and actually wearing a Photo Pass. So I get behind the curtain and we are right to the side of the stage now, fully backstage and I can tell one guy in particular is pissed. Alex is almost fully encircled with Security and the only thing I hear is “So you lied to me?” Wow! So now I’m just thinking to myself, how did we get to this point so quickly and why is this guy so hot-headed? To make matters worse (and the story funnier), not only is this guy “with” the Killers, I think this guy IS the Killers. He was like the big-wig Manager guy who runs the entire operation. As I tell him what’s going on and that we didn’t know it was a problem, he snaps back with “Oh, it’s a huge problem!” and proceeds to march Alex back to another area even further behind the stage as he clearly wants to see what photos Alex took. Again, I try to keep up and again walk past a security checkpoint asking for my pass. I point to the man leading us and keep moving. The Tour Manager then proceeds to tell Alex to delete all the Killers photos he took and sat and watched while he sifted thru every single shot. This guy may have been doing what he thought was his job, but he was rude and a complete jerk about the whole thing. Is it really that big of a deal? One of the things I find most ironic about the whole situation is that the Photo Pass actually said The Killers and had a huge picture of the band on it. How would a person know they couldn’t shoot the Killers from outside the photo Pit with that in the first place? One bright spot is that Alex is now in possession of 1 of only 2 Killers Seattle photo passes in existence.  Hey geniuses, if you’re that worked up over it why not just issue a separate photo pass?

So after the photo deletion bitch out session, we agreed to just leave the Venue which he seemed to be just fine with. He did allow us to keep a single photo of the Killers that sums up the evening perfectly. It also happened to be one of the most beautiful shots of the set, so take that Killers! Think of what we could have done if you weren’t such assholes about the whole thing:

Photo by Alex Crick

 So, I guess The Killers have taught us some valuable lessons about stardom – don’t forget the “little people”. In the corporate machine that is The Killers, my word probably doesn’t mean a whole hell of a lot but it seems like just yesterday I was watching them at a Deck the Hall Ball as one of the opening bands. They had the red velvet suits going, it was a fun and energetic show. What happened to that spirit guys? Now you’re so big nobody can even take your photo? Get over yourselves (p.s. you haven’t put out a decent album since Hot Fuss).  And while I’m obviously bagging on the band here I’ll just throw this out too. Their twitter profile shows almost 10,000 follwers, yet guess how many people they are following back? I’ll give you a clue, it’s less than 1. That’s right 0! Talk about full of themselves, that might be some sort of Twitter record. It’s at the very least a big Social Media no-no!

If I could sum up how the evening felt in a story, it might be this one: Remember the scene in the Movie “Casino” where Pacino catches the guy cheating at Blackjack and then has the Security goons take him to a back room where they crush his hand with a ball-peen hammer? It was kinda like that, except no ball-peen hammer.

Fucking Rockstars……….

The year down under and 16 New bands ready to take over 2009

I’ve been reading a lot of the post-SXSW show reviews and have been listening to a lot of the new U.K./International acts to pick out the gems – the new crop of “must see” anticipated bands of 2009. Of course this is all subjective and just my opinion.  Adjust your own tastes accordingly; I’ll give you all the tools you need to explore.

The 1st thing I want to address is Australia. 2008 was all about Scotland, this year it may be all about the land down under. Here are some Aussie bands making huge waves this year:

 

The Temper Trap – Probably the one with the biggest footprint right now. I love this band and their new album is fantastic. This is a band going places.

Empire of the Sun: Funky, Danceable, and the lead singer is out of his flipping mind. So of course, they will be huge.

The Grates: Punk Pop goodness. Female vocals.

Tame Impala: Real throwback psychedelic sound; I’m hearing a lot of people talking about this band. Well, all the “right”people anyway…

 

NOW FOR THOSE 16 NEW BANDS I PROMISED………………..

As far as new Bands that are perking my interest lately, here’s what I’ve been listening to lately:

American Fangs – Houston Texas bringing the Rock.

Local Natives – They kinda want to be Vampire Weekend.

Teenage Cool Kids – The kids are allright.

Sky Larkin – The best U.K. find I’ve had in a while. HOT new Leeds band. Heard they killed SXSW; I believe it. They play in Seattle on April 10th – I plan on finding out myself.

Motel Motel – Brooklyn Band, file under Cold War Kids.

Standard Fare - I really like this Sheffield Band. Fresh new sound. Makes me want to hear more.

Wake the President – Love the band name. Glasgow in the house.

Vivian Girls – Love the retro sound. I think a lot of people will like this.

The Invisible – U.K. Dance. London girl…. Meh.

The Courteeners – Manchester band blowing up at just the right time. My verdict isn’t out yet on this one.

Women – In actuality, 3 dudes from Canada who want to sound like the Beatles.

Let’s Wrestle – London band I kinda like. Check em out.

Post War Years – Another amazing London band I want to hear more of. Ambient at it’s absolute finest. Listen to this.

Screaming Tea Party. I’d scream too if I had to drink Tea. Oh these British bands…

Past Lives – Seattle. Represent.

Your Twenties – My Thirties. Let’s not talk about it. London Pop.

15 Bleeding-Edge U.K. Bands and fresh New Music

I’ve been listening to a lot of great music in 2009 already. Yeah the Economy sucks and things couldn’t look bleaker; but new music couldn’t sound better. Can’t we be positive about something? Plus, isn’t all good music made during wars or when other bad shit is going on anyway? If you were having trouble finding new tunes on your own, you’ve come to the right place. Hopefully I’ve got something in here for you. I’ve mostly been listening to the British artists going to SXSW and picking out more of my favorites, but also some really good Australian bands and other stuff that’s caught my attention. I’ll share that all here:

I’ve been raving over Bon Iver for a while now, but this is something pretty cool (and related) also from Wisconsin. Take a listen:

The Daredevil Christopher Wright – Clouds (MP3) (props to Said the Gramophone for the link)

Another band I’ve been jamming heavily lately. These are some of those Australian gents I mentioned:

The Temper Trap – Hearts (MP3) Cool new band and a great new song.

 

Cut Off Your Hands @ Neumo's - My awesome photog PUJA

* Above photo is just a mere sample of the awesomeness of: PUJA - Hopefully you’ll be seeing more of her work soon!

 

A few new U.K. Bands I’ve been taking an early listen to. The NEXT wave of talent (*click on the MYSPACE link to hear samples):

The Chapman Family (MYSPACE)

Friends Electric (Myspace) – Scorching Hot Dance, very good.

Let’s Wrestle (MYSPACE)

Little Comets (MYSPACE)

Elfred and the Uber Peas (MYSPACE)

Animal Kingdom (MYSPACE) – Listen to TIN MAN (demo) – I like this.

Sound of Guns (MYSPACE)

La Roux (MYSPACE) – For those of you not paying attention. Yep, she’s blowing up now.

Decimals (MYSPACE) – This is good, need more please.

Twisted Wheel (MYSPACE) – This is another good find.

The Federals (Myspace)

Theoretical Girl (MYSPACE)

fiN (MYSPACE) – Another one I really like.

Come On Gang (MYSPACE) Poppy and good.

Pictish Trail (MYSPACE) – Folk. Everyone’s doing it now. Listen to Words Fail Me Now for a good sample of their talent.

 

Some random SONGS OF THE DAY that I was really into lately (please subscribe to these FREE on KEXP) – If you didn’t know already, I write these every Tuesday for the KEXP Blog:

Private Dancer – She’s a Company Man (MP3) Sorta reminded me of Swervedriver…

Late of the Pier – Space & The Woods (MP3)

Japandroids – Young Heart Sparks Fire (MP3)

Threatmantics – Big Man (MP3)

Across the Pond: 29 New UK Bands ready to take over SXSW

Every year about this time we start getting geared up for the Spring and Summer festivals (i.e. SXSW, Bonnaroo, Coachella) and see the mass import of the years latest new UK “Bands of the moment” crashing our shores. Other than SXSW; New York gets the benefit of a lot of the quick british tours because of it’s geographic proximity (and availability of T.V. Talk Show exposure), but Seattle is also a great testing ground for a lot of bands; pre or post SXSW especially. The hotter the band, the more likely they are to make a few stops on West Coast as well. This is still a proving grounds, but luckily Seattle translates well for a lot of UK Bands and still has a unique mystique to it that makes it attractive for musicians abroad. We love our Foreign bands out here. Just ran into a good friend over the weekend who said “Yeah, I’m always looking for good U.K. Bands” Hmm, I said……

Anyway, as part of my new Across the Pond series; I’ve scoured all sorts of different places to bring you the best of the U.K. acts that are playing at SXSW this year. Some of them I’ve commented on, some not so much. There are 4 bands in particular that will dominate most of the week – at least from the U.K. contingent, and should be a few of the highlights of SXSW. It’s no surprise that 3 of them are from Scotland. My people:

 

White Lies in Tokyo. That's Japan Bitches....

White Lies – This band is a band that is straight exploding right now. Those of you paying attention have seen me mention them a few times before. Can’t wait until their Seattle show with Friendly Fires – also from the U.K. They both play at Neumo’s on April 7th. 

Glasvegas – Glasgow representing in a big way. A late addition but a solid add to SXSW. LOved them here in Seattle, they will be great in Austin. Way to go chaps!  - Catch them at Neumo’s on April 13th.

Dananananaykroyd - Another amazing Glasgow band. If the sound translates live, they could easily steal “Best of Show”. I’ve been watching these guys for a while now. Anxious to hear what people think.

The Whip – Electro-Dance-Mania from Manchester. Again, for those of you paying attention, not a new find, but blowing up at the right time… Playing a sweet show at Chop Suey on April 14th. Not from Glasgow…

And because I’m all about helping YOU discover what YOU like, I give you 25 more of the bleeding-edge, greatest of the latest, best of the rest, hot new U.K. acts performing at this years SXSW. I am still sifting thru more on the list, but there’s enough here to keep you busy:

Bearsuit – Another hot Dance/Pop band from Norwich. These guys could be a real sleeper.

The Officers – Hard-tinged Electro-Rock. Listen to “Afraid of Your Love” 1st to get a good sense.

We Have Band – I really like this actually. Really good Pop/Dance from London.

To The Bones – Bringing the Rock, old-school style.

Screaming Tea Party – Some cool sounding surf punk, without the screaming… 

The Blue Aeroplanes – Meh…

Delphic – Very cool. Very very good actually, just took a 2nd listen. Investigate. More please?

Ebony Bones – This is pretty cool, but really different. Take a listen. Jungle dance maybe?

The Egg – Your band better kick ass if it’s named The Egg. They ain’t too shabby. Experimental Electronics.

The Chap – Interesting…

The Gin Riots – Listen to “I didn’t mean it”. Danceable.

In Case of Fire – Look out american teens, these british kids have pretty much caught on. They will eat their U.S. equivalents.   

Late of the Pier – More dance/Pop stuff. Unique. Sensing a trend?

Our Lunar Activities – For the kids. Still good.

The Cocknbullkid – Pop Pop Pop. I like.

Wave Machines – This is really hot, I like this for some reason. Very catchy.

You Me At Six – Back the fuck up Jonas Brothers. We plan on taking assimilating the american teenagers.

Flood Of Red – Screamo Rock. This time Glasgow giving it their go.

Slaves To Gravity – Bringing the Rock. 

Fighting With Wire – More great Rock.

The Hours – Pop/Rock. This is something else I liked. Start by listening to “All in the Jungle”.

We Were Promised Jetpacks – These guys are from Glasgow, also playing John’s event in New York on March 13th at the Bowery Ballroom.

Twin Atantic – Glasgow representing again. Powerpop at it’s guiltiest, just add Scottish accent. Very good actually.

Goldielocks – Dance. Very good.

Baddies – Pop/Punk. Devo-ish.

Enjoy and let me know which ones you like. Should be a little bit for just about anybody!

Just a typical night in Glasgow

Thanks to my friend from Across The Pond: Glasgowgirl for the photo and news about the bands playing in her hometown. It’s truly cool to have a connection with music like that. I shared my experience with Glasvegas while they were in Seattle and she tells me about their shows in Scotland. Very cool indeed…

 

NME Awards Tour Set Lists

Why White Lies will be absolutely huge

 

 

 

White Lies @ Underage Christmas

Despite their excellent delivery on the title track “To Lose Your Life” (which I happen to love); I was skeptical of WHITE LIES. I first wrote about them months ago, but even I couldn’t foresee the stratospheric heights this London band is reaching so quickly. I mean, just who the hell do these guys think they are? Brit Awards, NME accolades; another prime example of a band exploding before they’ve even had a chance to breath yet (all with a little help from NME of course…). I guess it’s the curse of having a great new album out on a cool U.K Label(Fiction Records) and being the next “it” band of the minute. For once, all the hype might actually be deserving. One thing I know for sure is that the other Bands playing on this big NME Awards Tour better watch out, they’ll probably end up opening for these guys in the near future. I’d have to see their live show up close to know for sure, but their sound is pretty easy to fall in love with and I’ve read some great reviews of their shows. These guys definitely have the whole Joy Division/New Order thing down to a science, but this is a bit something special and different. White Lies seem to do a lot of things well. I love how right after the amazingly catchy title track, they come at you immediately with “A Place to Hide” – one of those great 5-minute songs that has like every great rock song element possible: Amazing hooks (”I need a place to hide before the storm begins…”), amazing bass riffs, vocals, these guys have it clicking on all cylinders. And that’s just the 1st couple songs, the hits just keep coming and the entire album is really solid. A really great “total album”, when there aren’t a lot of good “albums” being made anymore.

 

These guys blast threw a slew of SOLD OUT European shows until Mid-March. They’ve got the right vibe, they’ve got the right sound, and their from London. What else do you need really? Let’s hope for a Seattle appearance after SXSW.

A day with Glasvegas

 

Glasvegas @ KEXP Studio

 

It’s not often I get the chance at a “Musical Trifecta”, but last Saturday may have been one of my early highlights of 2009. After hearing a few songs from their EP and wanting to hear more, Glasvegas was a band I had circled on my Calendar for quite some time. With my connections at KEXP (and some great help from SONY/BMG) I was able spend most of the day with James and Rab at the station. I’ve been to tons of these over the years; however, because it was on a Saturday and it was this band – things were a bit different. While waiting, we all talked about how bands show up at the last minute for these In-Studios, often with a full band, and expect everything to sound great with no set-up. Despite their current hype level, the boys from Glasvegas (and quite a few “handlers”) showed up plenty early to get things tuned perfectly and the vocal chords warmed up. They both looked pretty rough (life on the road as a Rockstar), but I like bands that actually give a shit about what they’re going to sound like in there. These guys were true professionals. In a small space like that playing live with everyone listening, it’s important to get it right and we arguably have some of the best sound engineers in the country working that board. 

As things got closer (they were scheduled for 3:00 PM) I could almost sense that James was starting to get a bit nervous about the sound room filling up with people. Between Publicists, Photographers, Sound Engineers, Managers, and some of the staff that came in just for this, the small booth was now full with all eyes on James and Rab. That type of excitement only happens for a band like Glasvegas. They poked fun at themselves and joked with our lovely photographer about Seattle bands and grunge. Seems no matter what we do, we can’t shake that label!  Anyway, their performance was a simple stripped down set of 3 songs and a few questions thrown in the middle from one of my favorite DJ’s at the Station: Jack Waters. I thought they sounded great and I was surprised to hear everything turned down with James’ voice on display. He may not be the most gifted singer in the world, but his passion is unmistakeable and he sings every verse like it’s his last. You just can’t fake that and it’s something I look for in every band (**Insider Tip**).

With all the buzz, all the people vying for their attention, the Manager, the handlers – it was tough to get away and talk to them after the performance, but I did have an opportunity to ask them some questions and joke around a bit afterwards. I’ve talked to a lot of musicians before, but I was honestly a little nervous about talking to these guys for some reason. Maybe it was my own expectations or whatever. Ever since I saw them on Letterman the other night I was quite honestly worried that they would be jerks. Huge Egos the size of the door and no personalities. Boy was I wrong! In fact, you could say it was almost the exact opposite of that. And despite us shoving CD’s, Posters, and other things in front of them to sign (Shannon is great at this), they were more than gracious and signed everything laughing and with a smile on their face. Was it the trappings that made them more comfortable or the fact we were all super jazzed to see them too? I think they picked up on the fact that we hear and play a lot of good music at the Station and we were all there just to see them. True fans in every sense. James was happy to hear that myself and a lot of the staff there that day were also going to the show later that night at Chop Suey. I was really proud to be part of the KEXP family.

 

Chilling in the KEXP Parking lot with James and Rab

 

Now I’ve attempted to transcribe some of my audio for the sake of clarity but have given up after a few days now. I only had the chance at a few questions and if you haven’t noticed yet, these boys have a bit of an accent going. I never knew Scottish was such a foreign language but these guys lost all of us. You can almost make out about every 3rd word, but it was enough to know these guys are some jokesters. You wouldn’t know it from the pictures but these guys had me rolling.

For instance, instead of deflecting when I asked about their drummer, they strangely replied with: “We have to shave her face.”  They also joke about her eating al the time, but it’s all in good fun. I’m not actually sure they wanted all that shared, but oh well!

On the subject of the album, I brought up the point that it played was almost like a novel (which they confirmed!). I asked what the creative process was like?  (James) “There were some highs and some real real lows. Every good rock album has to have a little drama behind it” James also said he finds time to listen to Elvis’ debut album everyday “because it makes me happy”.

When I asked how the U.S. reception has been so far they had nothing but good things to say. (James): “It’s amazing for us to come all the way from Scotland and see everyone singing all the words to our songs!”

We then headed out to the parking lot to BS while they waited for burned copies of their In Studio performance. We talked about the rest of their schedule and if they heard about the action at Chop Suey last weekend? (James): “Yeah. We were looking for some good action, but not that kind!” He then mumbled something about Dublin and I told him we were going to have some KEXP branded Kevlar vests waiting for them at the Venue.

James replied with “It’s not my chest I’m worried about, it’s my nuts”. Rab and I laughed for a bit and before I knew it the guys were hopping in the van to go do their soundcheck at the Venue.

You can read more about their Chop Suey performance later that night HERE.

Glasvegas crash American shores and begin their assimilation

Glasvegas live in Boston

So I stayed up late to watch the U.S. Television debut of Glasvegas on the Letterman show last night. As expected, they played their hit single “Geraldine” and I thought they came across sounding great. One things for sure, their show in Seattle this weekend is going to be loud inside little old Chop Suey; this is a stadium band playing in a small venue. Always my favorite scenario. From all accounts their first Sold Out shows in Boston went well and following Letterman yesterday, they had another busy day with another performance at the Virgin Mega Store in Union Square and a Sold Out Bowery Ballroom show tonight. In case you hadn’t noticed, the hype surrounding this band has been immense, I just hope they can live up to everyone’s lofty expectations (and manage to sound like early U2). I’m looking forward to their visit in Seattle.

Here are the rest of their U.S. Dates:

San Francisco, CA Popscene – Jan 8th
Seattle, WA Chop Suey - Jan 10th
Vancouver, British Columbia Richards on Richards – Jan 11th
Portland, OR Doug Fir Lounge – Jan 12th
Los Angeles, CA Troubador – Jan 14th