Posts by Gabriel Scheer

Folk-rockin’ singer-songwriter Matt Costa is one of those musicians who just seem like they should “make it” (and indeed, he already almost has – but in a different role, as a pro skateboarder).

On his fourth solo album, Put Your Ghost to Rest,  former Miracle of 86 front man Kevin Devine has done a good job of creating an album that is listenable, somehow familiar, yet creative enough to avoid being boring.

With her latest album, Another Kind of Fire, Edie Carey has created another completely listenable, imminently catchy album. Released in September, this is the perfect album for autumn: reflective, a bit overcast (but not so much as to be depressing), and, like the gorgeous dying leaves, completely enjoyable.

Somehow, whenever Edie Carey and Holly Figueroa get together for a show at Seattle’s Tractor Tavern, the weather seems incapable of cooperating. Such was the case for Monday’s show, during which Seattle got a wicked (to borrow from Carey’s Bostonian vocabulary) snow and ice storm, leaving the roads unto impassable.

Indie pop is amazing: it is an endless stream of music, all roughly built around the same instruments and musical structure, yet one can still find music that sounds refreshingly new, interesting, and listenable.

Comets on Fire updates the grind of the ‘70s with clean production and melodic piano noodling putting it in a context both timeless and contemporary. All this is accomplished within a framework that would please Iron Butterfly. Avatar is a great way to keep listening to old-school “hard rock” without being accused of being out of touch with the music of today.

On Skelliconnection, Chad VanGaalen offers up a wealth of musical influences, somehow crafted into a listenable, if not exactly earth-shattering, album. One hears, in his sound, hints of Joseph Arthur, Cloud Cult, and any number of Sub Pop artists. It is perhaps no surprise, then, that he is being touted as a combination of Iron & Wine, The Postal Service, and The Shins.

On their debut album No Midnight, Birdmonster has succeeded in producing a work that ought to please fans of generic indie rock – while not particularly challenging them.

If you are a fan of Citizen Cope’s music, and don’t require more than an artist to run flawlessly through their catalogue, Citizen Cope may be exactly the show for you. If you want to see an artist that will challenge, engage, or even simply entertain you, think about buying his admittedly good CDs.

To attend Bumbershoot, Seattle’s annual Labor Day orgy of the arts, is to understand all that is good about the Seattle music and cultural scene: the vivacity and seemingly boundless creative energy, the true breadth of artistic offerings, and the wide-ranging musical tastes of the audiences that support this incredible scene.

If you

Darker My Love

Senegalese native Maria de Barros is the kind of musician to whom one can’t help but surrender oneself. Full of the joie de vivre endemic to so many performers of African heritage; the music, dance moves, and smile of de Barros clearly captivated the Town Hall crowd. They displayed seemingly boundless enthusiasm, dancing and singing along with de Barros’ music, despite the almost unbearably high temperatures in the non-air conditioned building.

Stumbling into Syd Matters

It is a rare musical act that can get Seattle’s normally staid crowd not only moving, but enthusiastically dancing – particularly in a relatively small club packed to the gills with an animated crowd. Yet the story of the Refugee All Stars of Sierra Leone is nothing if not impressive, a story of triumph over challenges far more trying than mere listener boredom.

“Discovering

Fresh off the release of her third studio album, Springtime Can Kill You, Jolie Holland is on the road again, touring with a pair of back-ups, her fiddle, guitar, and piano. The former Be Good Tanyas singer recently put on a nearly flawless (musically) show at Seattle’s Triple Door, a vintage club which proved the perfect venue for her vintage-sounding voice.

With Modest Mouse and Death Cab for Cutie, Built to Spill arguably round out the current top three of hard-working, indie-pop, Northwest-based bands. Though hailing from Idaho, Built to Spill has long held the affections of the Seattle music scene firmly in its grasp. Unsurprisingly, the first night of their recent three night stand at The Showbox showed them to be in top form.

Touring in support of his recent album, The Animal Years, Josh Ritter easily packed two recent nights at Seattle’s Triple Door theatre – and he didn’t disappoint. Backed by a talented band, the Moscow, Idaho, native proved why he has such a large, faithful following, both in the US and abroad. His stage presence displayed a clear love for music and performing, his smile rarely leaving his face as he pleased fans with songs both new and old.

For those looking for a bit more David Gray, Matt White might fill a hole in your CD collection. Otherwise, despite its solid pop predilections, the weak lyrics and general lack of musical originality make the album unlikely to turn many heads.