Mark Lanegan
@
Experience Music Project
October 13, 2000
Seattle, WA

Links:
One Whiskey

However, none of that was enough to stifle an amazing performance by Lanegan, whose voice, health and spirit was in top form. Backed by Seattle native and former Guns 'n' Roses bassist Duff McKagan (who opened up the night with Dave Dederer as The Gentlemen), Ben Shepherd, and Lanegan's brother-in-arms Mike Johnson (who, as well, played an earlier set), Lanegan and company strummed through an acoustic set that spanned eleven years and four solo albums--in the process bringing some much needed warmth and intimacy back into the venue. Gracing the audience with the likes of "River Rise," "Ba Dee Da," "On Jesus' Program," "Bell Black Ocean" and "The Winding Sheet" (which slid into "Because of This"), Lanegan could have been reciting an eye chart and it still would have sounded incredible. He apologized for the lack of intimacy in the venue and for the short notice with which his backing band had come together and practiced for this, but it made no difference. Where they occasionally slipped, Lanegan's affecting voice drew them tight.

Brushing by an hour, the quartet halted to go outside for a smoke, with Lanegan and Johnson returning to encore with "Mockingbirds" and a simply beautiful version of "Last One in the World." But before the stage even had time to cool after his performance, EMP rudely fired up the video screen and began booming house music at twice and again the volume of Lanegan's set. Uh...thanks.

Mark, Mike and Ben would go on to play a similar set the following night at the Baltic Room as The Jelly Doughnuts, where the music would not be overshadowed by the venue. The Northwest Passage Series lineup and the desire to showcase local musicians, whose art has been influential both near and far, is a great thing and should be praised. Nonetheless, Friday's performance left me wondering if the cold circuitry of EMP is the place for it to be celebrated.

-Craig Young
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Links:
The The

With that said, and given the floor-to-table ratio when I arrived in time to catch the last few songs of opener P.J. Olsson, it was obvious to me he was very well received. Sure enough, it wasn't long before his unique rock-techno-folk blend grabbed my attention, and perfectly set the tone for the evening ahead. With about 30 minutes to kill after P.J. Olsson, it was a simple decision to make a beeline for the bar, order a martini, and observe the surroundings.

The milling concertgoers were a good mixture of college kids, alterna-yuppies, and grown-up The The fans from the '80s. In general, a stylistic, nice-looking bunch, but seemingly conservative, which can be good or bad depending on the bodily intensity you're into during a live show (although I've never found it a tough chore at The Showbox to reach the front row for excitement if it's otherwise lacking among peers).

As it turned out, the tremendous level of collective enthusiasm for Matt Johnson and The The, from the moment they hit the stage to the last highly demanded encore song, was enough to maturely satisfy the needs of even the most crazed crowd participant. The only visuals provided were the only ones necessary--Matt Johnson, dressed unassumingly in black, cast with his bandmates in a reddish-orange hue by a few single light bulbs hanging from above, singing and playing his heart out to a house packed with appreciative fans. After witnessing just the first few songs, including the amazing "Boiling Point" from NakedSelf, it was easy for me to understand why Matt Johnson has appealed to so many people for so long--he's a brilliant singer, musician, and poetic genius with an eloquently sexy English accent. Seeing him perform live will only confirm what any fan of The The has known all along--there's no room for improvement because he's already the best.

-Tricia Haber
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Links:
Turnpike

Turnpike is an all original music Orlando band with mostly middle-aged members. Why say that? Because that's their crowd. They attract the late 30s to early 50s age group that is too much into rock to fall into the adult contemporary scene, and the last commercial bands that appealed to most of the audience were Candlebox and Sister Hazel. Honestly, you know this isn't my music, but they had a good-sized contingent of fans that were nuts over them.

I wished some of the local metal bands could use their soundman; he was fantastic. Nice light show as well. Oddly enough, for the ladies who like a man in uniform, I think most are law enforcement officers of one type or another. That may have made up a large percentage of the audience as well. Turnpike's singer was very capable and sounded like a cross of Bruce Springsteen and the guy from Sister Hazel. Jason says he sounded exactly like the singer for Seven Mary Three. Either way, he was very professional and accomplished. They have a keen sense of melody and are technically sound and proficient. Lee, the guitarist, is extraordinary--ripping off flamenco licks like an expert. I sense that he's had experience as a jazz guitarist because a lot of his style and sound is derived from the smooth jazz scene like Spyro Gyra and Kenny G. They don't really have a strong stage presence--of course, I'm looking for a maniac running about the stage. But Lee definitely is a graduate of the John Entwistle School of Creating a Pole of Attraction by Standing Still. There was a fair amount of presence from the singer as the show wore on. Jason and I thought they performed excellently for the pop rock genre.

Any available 30-50 year old men in the area should be scouting the audience. If you haven't heard a band that played your music in a long time and would fit in well with this friendly crowd, please check out their website for show info. Labels really should start filling this musical void for all these baby boomers.

-Sabrina Haines
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U.K. Subs
@
Catwalk Club
October 5, 2000
Seattle, WA

Links:
U.K. Subs

So what the fuck? When I saw them last a few years back at the RKCNDY (R.I.P.) it was crammed wall-to-wall. Tonight it felt like it was just the walls. Maybe it's because the aforementioned RKCNDY show was all ages and this night's was at the Catwalk, a twenty-one and over venue. So what then has become of all Seattle's aging punkers? Have you all been swallowed up into a brain-dead existence centered around the soulless blip of the current IKEA catalog? Too busy at home on the couch with a bag of chips watching Evening Magazine to show some respect? Maybe you're just getting too old for punk rock then, eh?

Well, try telling that to the Subs. Charlie "Gramps" Harper has got a generation, two grandkids and several bypass surgeries on most of you, and that didn't stop him from jumping up and down like a human pogo stick. The fact that two young vixens hung on his every smile should say a thing or two as well. And watching Nicky jump back and forth and back and forth off the monitors like some crazed aerobics instructor ("okay, one and two and one and two and..."), fire off windmills on his guitar that would put Pete Townsend to shame and then do the splits should prove once and for all the fact that punk is a state of mind, not a state of fashion.

The Subs paid no mind whether there were twenty or twenty-hundred people, they came on and gave it their all. Still working towards a goal of recording an album for every letter of the alphabet (their last was Sub Mission) they had plenty to choose from. "Police State," "Riot," "Another Cuba," "DF 118"--all represented in fine style and in top form. The only part of the night to be upset about was the overfed skinhead and his redneck sidekick who probably thought it was pretty funny acting like belligerent, violent assholes to anyone who came near them...if they could think at all, that is. The Subs closed off their set with a blistering version of Thee Headcoats' "Punk Rock ist Nicht Tot," the perfect endcap to their ongoing campaign.

Punk rock is not dead--and this aging punker, for one, is looking forward to being reminded of that through Subs' albums "T," "U," "V," "W," "X," "Y" and "Z." And next time, I expect to see all of you there.

-Craig Young
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