Friday, October 27, 2017
It's nice that some things in life never change too much, and so it goes with the Jesus and Mary Chain and the band's Scottish brothers out front, Jim and William Reid.
Actually, "out front" is exactly accurate, as guitarist William prefers to lurk in back, surrounded by his amps, while he churns out buzzing parts that touch on everything from surf-rock riffs to garage-rock feedback to the droning, Wall of Sound, shoegaze-y noise this band helped pioneer in the '80s.
Out front is brother Jim, handling lead vocals on songs new and old while contorting his body into various states of what looks like painful Pilates poses while singing about being "a rock and roll amputation" (show-opener "Amputation" from the band's 2017 release Damage and Joy) or letting the audience know he wants to die like Jesus Christ and JFK ("Reverence," the last song of the main set before the band returned for two encores).
Tags: Music , the Jesus and Mary Chain , Jim Reid , William Reid , Scottish , Spokane , Bing Crosby Theater , The Bing , Psychocandy , Darklands , Damage and Joy , Image
Wednesday, October 25, 2017
Spokane singer-songwriter Chris Molitor is releasing his first full-length album at the Bartlett on Friday, and the Inlander has an early exclusive of the record, titled Coming Home.
Molitor, originally from Michigan, moved to Spokane from Los Angeles last year with his wife, whose family has lived here for years. At the time of the move, his band the Wilder Society was coming to an end, and Molitor says he was looking for a change of pace.
"When we came up here, we weren't sure if we were going to stay in Spokane. Obviously, we're still here," Molitor told the Inlander last week. "A lot of people are probably searching for that, the place where they just fit. And I think we've found it."
The new album itself echoes Molitor's own experiences in the past few years. It's shot through with themes of traveling, soul-searching and homesickness; true to its title, it's about feeling lost before finding your way again. It opens on a hopeful note with the upbeat "Across the Room," grows more melancholy and dark as it unfolds, then comes around to a newfound sense of optimism by its closing title track, which Molitor says is about his mom.
Molitor recorded Coming Home mostly by himself last winter, setting up a makeshift studio at his in-laws' lake house in Newport. He says most of the songs on the album had been sitting around for awhile, and he tracked the entire record in about three weeks on his own.
He typically plays solo in live settings, too — he sees a lot of value, he says, in "the raw nature of a person and one instrument and their voice" — but he’ll have a backing band at Friday night’s show. After spending a few years entrenched in L.A.'s music scene, Molitor says the warm, collaborative nature of Spokane's music community has been a pleasant change of pace.
"I'm excited to continue becoming a part of this creative community," Molitor says. "My experience of Spokane's music scene has been such a welcome environment. People aren't out for blood here. It's almost like everyone is trying to help everyone else out, which is so refreshing coming from a more cutthroat environment."
Chris Molitor performs with Mama Doll at the Bartlett (228 W. Sprague) on Fri, Oct. 27 at 8 pm. Tickets are $8 here, and $10 at the door.
Listen to Coming Home here:
Tags: Chris Molitor , Coming Home , album release , The Bartlett , Mama Doll , Music , Image
Friday, October 13, 2017
Parody artist and accordionist extraordinaire "Weird Al" Yankovic is hitting the road next year, and his tour will bring him to the Fox Theater on May 27. Yankovic last performed in the Inland Northwest in 2015; cult comedian Emo Philips is slated to open for him.
Billed as "The Ridiculously Self-Indulgent, Ill-Advised Vanity Tour," these upcoming shows will apparently be more intimate and scaled-down than Yankovic's typical shows — basically, don't expect him to bust out the latex suit from the "Fat" video. Interestingly, the set lists will apparently focus mostly on Yankovic's original compositions, which are often hilarious in their own right (check out "Midnight Star," "Albuquerque" or his Devo pastiche "Dare to Be Stupid," if you haven't already).
In the pantheon of parody musicians, Yankovic certainly reigns supreme. First gaining prominence through L.A. radio personality Dr. Demento, Yankovic became an unexpected superstar in the early years of MTV, with the videos for "Like a Surgeon" and "Eat It" in heavy rotation. He's maintained his presence in the cultural zeitgeist since the '80s, parodying everyone from Coolio to Nirvana to Lady Gaga; his most recent album, 2014's Mandatory Fun, was his first to hit No. 1 on the Billboard charts.
Tickets for the Spokane show go on sale next Friday, Oct. 20 at noon, through the Fox's box office and all TicketsWest outlets.
Tags: Weird Al Yankovic , Spokane , concert announcement , Fox Theater , Emo Phillips , TicketsWest , Music , Image
Friday, October 6, 2017
Tickets for Garth Brooks' Nov. 11 Spokane Arena show went on sale this morning, but the country music megastar has already added three concerts to his upcoming Spokane tour stop — on Friday, Nov. 10 at 7 pm; another Saturday show at 3 pm; and on Sunday, Nov. 12 at 7:30 pm. This is common practice for Brooks, who since re-emerging from a retirement in 2009 has clearly relished getting back into performing again.
The Friday night, Saturday afternoon and Sunday night shows will also run you $74.98; tickets are on sale now through TicketsWest. Platinum-selling country star Trisha Yearwood (who also happens to be Brooks' wife) will open all four shows.
UPDATE: A fifth show, at 3 pm on Sunday, Nov. 12, has been announced. If this trend continues, Garth Brooks may just end up moving here.
UPDATE: And now a sixth show — on Thursday, Nov. 9 at 7:30 pm — has been added.
UPDATE: We're up to seven total shows now. Tuesday, Nov. 14 has been added to Brooks' roster; he'll hit the stage at 7:30 pm.
Tags: Garth Brooks , Spokane Arena , Trisha Yearwood , five shows , Music , Image
Tuesday, October 3, 2017
Even growing up in the '80s and '90s with the omnipresence of Tom Petty's music on the radio and MTV, I never became a true fan until I saw Petty and his band the Heartbreakers live, on stage, showcasing an almost extrasensory connection between musicians who were also lifelong friends.
The first time was in 2002 in a Utah hockey arena. And the last time was 10 days ago at the Hollywood Bowl, in what would turn out to be the second-to-last show of his life. Petty, as you undoubtedly now know, died Monday in Los Angeles.
Petty and his band had the ability to turn seemingly simple songs into something altogether more thrilling. His tales of hard-luck rebels and never-give-up strivers, as well as darker songs of struggle and romantic pain, had the kind of universal appeal that it's easy now — in retrospect — to understand how at different points of his career, Petty was considered a punk rocker, a pop star, a hard rocker and, ultimately, an American classic.
Tags: Music , Tom Petty , Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers , American classic , Image , Video
Monday, October 2, 2017
Adjectives to describe Sarah Jarosz come easily while watching the 26-year-old, Grammy-winning songwriter perform live.
"Beguiling" is a good one. "Talented" — obvious, yes. "Charming," indeed. She's all those things and then some on stage, leading her small band that also includes upright-bass player Jeff Picker and animated guitarist Anthony da Costa.
At Jarosz's sold-out show Saturday night at the Bartlett, part of her final road trip in support of her 2016 album Undercurrent, Jarosz was all smiles as she led the trio through songs pulled from throughout her career. She was quick-witted with her between-song banter, and complimented the enthusiastic crowd on its ability to clap along in proper time. There were some serious bluegrass and acoustic fiends in the crowd, hooting repeatedly at stellar instrumental passages — and there were a lot of them thanks to Jarosz's own abilities on mandolin, banjo and guitar, as well as the skills of her fellow musicians on stage.
Undercurrent received the lion's share of attention, naturally, and deservedly so — the album won Jarosz this year's Best Folk Album Grammy award. "House of Mercy" (Grammy winner for Best Americana Roots Performance) was a highlight, as was "Comin' Undone," a swanky slice of country-soul co-written by Parker Millsap. "Take Another Turn," "Lost Dog" and "Jacqueline," a song inspired by runs around the Jackie Onassis reservoir in Jarosz's adopted hometown of New York City, all received excellent performances.
Tags: Music , Sarah Jarosz , folk , Spokane , The Bartlett , Grammy-winning , Best Folk Album , Undercurrent , Best Americana Roots Performance , Song Up in Her Head , Image
Four men dressed to the nines in pirate gear and sparkling with varying degrees of sequins marched onto the stage at the Coeur d'Alene Casino and Resort. Each was in lockstep with the funky beat propelling them toward their mics.
Welcome to the original Lakeside show. They played alongside another '60s- and '70s-era funk and R&B band, the Bar-Kays, Saturday night in Worley, Idaho.
The nine-piece group kicked off the show with fan favorite "Raid" before lead singer Eddie Guyton asked the crowd which Lakeside song was the first to bring the Dayton, Ohio, band national and international attention.
The obvious answer — "Fantastic Voyage" — is apparently wrong, Guyton told the crowd before the band launched into "It's All the Way Live," a 1978 Lakeside track repurposed by rapper Coolio in 1996. Perhaps that's what Guyton was referring to.
Throughout the hour-plus set, the band took it easy on the ballads and leaned heavy on the boogie. By the time they played "Fantastic Voyage," which hit No. 1 on the R&B charts in 1980, only about a handful of squares were still sitting in their seats — the place was jumpin'.
Next up were the Bar-Kays, playing as part of their 50th anniversary tour. Although they were missing pirate hats, they didn't hold back on the sequins and glitter.
Bassist James Alexander — the only remaining original member of group, who originally were Stax Records studio musicians and soul legend Otis Redding's backup band — was joined by eight others as the Bar-Kays ran through "Sexomatic," "Let's Have Some Fun," "Shake Your Rump to the Funk," and "Too Hot to Stop."
Tags: Music , Lakeside , Bar-Kays , funk , Stax Records , Memphis , Coeur d'Alene Casino and Resort , Image
Saturday, September 30, 2017
With more than 85 years of touring and recording experience at the Spokane Arena Friday night between the respective careers of the Scorpions and Megadeth, one could be forgiven for thinking the guys on stage wouldn't be able to deliver the same kind of show that made them arena-filling rock stars.
Instead, both bands exceeded expectations. They might rely a little more on killer graphics flying across massive video screens than their own ability to scamper all over the huge stage, but the sound remains the same for both, whether you're talking about the pop-tinged hard rock of the Scorpions or the intricate thrash riffs of Megadeth.
The Scorpions headlined the festivities, and rather than simply churn out a greatest-hits set, the German crew that originally formed in 1965 joyfully delved into some deep corners of their catalog, like a medley of pre-American-fame '70s tunes ("Top of the Bill/Steamrock Fever/Speedy's Coming/Catch Your Train") illustrated with an explosively trippy, colorful set of visuals that captured the tinges of prog-rock peeking through the music.
They played three songs from their 2015 release Return to Forever (show opener "Going Out With a Bang," "Rock n Roll Band," "We Built This House") and of course hammered the show home with a barrage of their biggest hits from the MTV era; the set-closing "Blackout" and "Big City Nights" led to an encore of "No One Like You," "Still Loving You" and "Rock You Like a Hurricane."
Tags: Music , Scorpions , Megadeth , Spokane Arena , Image
Wednesday, September 27, 2017
A couple of new concert announcements came down the pike that should please fans of '80s/'90s-era rock and country.
Garth Brooks, one of the biggest names in the country game during his commercial heyday, is playing Spokane Arena on Nov. 11. Tickets go on sale Friday, Oct. 6, and they are ONLY available by visiting this website or by calling 844-442-7842. Tickets will NOT be for sale at the arena box office, fans can only buy eight tickets at a time, and ALL tickets, no matter the location in the arena, will cost $74.98 — and that includes all the fees and service charges. Trisha Yearwood will open the show.
How big was Brooks in the '90s? According to the Recording Industry Association of America, he's the best-selling solo artist of all time in the United States, having sold more than 148 million albums. He essentially retired from recording and touring in 2001 to focus on his family, but he's been a best-selling touring act since hitting the road again in 2009 — first for a lengthy residency in Las Vegas, and then back on tour in 2014. This will be his first Spokane concert since 1998.
Night Ranger blew up from FM radio staples to MTV mainstays thanks to "Sister Christian" and a slew of follow-up hits, and they'll be headlining the Northern Quest Resort & Casino pavilion stage on Jan. 18, 2018.
Tickets for Night Ranger are $35, $45 and $65 and go on sale this Saturday, Sept. 30, at 8:30 am via the Northern Quest website, at the casino box office or by calling 509-481-2800.
Tags: Garth Brooks , Spokane Arena , Night Ranger , Northern Quest Resort & Casino , Music , Image
Monday, September 25, 2017
Back in high school, I had a homemade cassette with the Shins' 2001 debut album Oh, Inverted World on one side and their second LP, 2003's Chutes Too Narrow, on the other. It didn't leave the tape deck of my dearly departed Buick Park Avenue for what seemed like forever, and those quirky, articulate pop songs still have the ability to transport me back to that specific summer when I had a fresh learner's permit and a lot of afternoons with nothing to do but drive around with all the windows down.
So when James Mercer and his five-piece backing band walked out onto the Knitting Factory stage last night and ripped right into "Caring Is Creepy," the opening track from Inverted, it came with it a tidal wave of nostalgia. There's a reason, I think, that the Shins were pegged as the band that could change your life in the 2004 indie comedy Garden State: Despite the eye-rolling earnestness of that statement, Mercer's ability to marry melodic simplicity with lyrical specificity taps into a kind of wet-eyed adolescent longing that we're all a bit too cool to admit we identify with.
Mercer and company's Spokane show boasted a comprehensive setlist that covered all the bases — they busted out crowd favorites like "Australia," "Phantom Limb" and "Kissing the Lipless," and you can bet everyone (myself included) was singing along to every heartfelt word of his hipster rallying cry "New Slang."
They dipped into each of the Shins' five albums throughout the evening, and I was especially pleased to see a strong representation from Chutes Too Narrow, my favorite of their records: Not only "Lipless," but "Saint Simon" and "Mine's Not a High Horse," both wonderfully twisty mid-tempo tunes, and a beautiful version of the steel-guitar-tinged, outlaw-country pastiche "Gone for Good." Other highlights included a rousing rendition of the 2012 single "Simple Song," and a low-key performance of "The Fear," which utilized a trio of violins.
Tags: The Shins , concert review , Knitting Factory , James Mercer , Music , Image
Moonshine: Artisan Night Market & Moonlit Movie @ Commellini Estate
Wednesdays, 5:30-10 p.m. Continues through Aug. 27
