I wrote a story for last Friday’s paper regarding Club Friday reopening and the controversy surrounding a homicide that took place near the Brick City Club, where the group hosts weekly hip-hop events. (Click here if you’re lost.) And I thought I’d follow up by posting some clips from my interview with Club Friday director Deanna Neidlinger, who talked about her group’s image and changes that have been made since last summer.
 Allen Leon Neal/AFP/Getty Images |
My attempt to interview rising British pop star Lily Allen, who will perform Monday in Seattle, went something like this:
Me: Hi, Lily. Where are you right now?
Lily: (faint but with the charming accent still audible) Hello? Hello? Are you there?
Me: Uh, yeah. Can you hear me?
Lily: Oh yeah. I can hear you now.
Me: So let me ask you
…The Music for the Mountain festival will feature Randy Oxford, Nicole Fournier, Geoffrey Castle and 20 other bands today through Sunday at the Mineral Lake Event Center in Mineral. It’s a benefit for Mt. Rainier National Park, the Mt. Rainier Gatweay Initiative and the Ashford Community Park and Performing Arts Center. Find ticket info and a schedule of performers here.
Just got back from the big Eric Clapton show at KeyArena where, aside from catching a spectacular two-hour set that was heavy on Derek & the Dominos stuff, I had my best random local celebrity concert sighting since I chatted up Dale Chihuly for a sec at Elton John a few months back. I’m 99.9 percent sure that was conservative pundit Michael Medved that I spied at the end of aisle 21 when all the Baby Boomers sprung to their feet “Layla.” Couldn’t miss that ‘stache – one of the greatest since Burt Reynolds, circa “Cannonball Run” – even from
…Of late, I’ve been dividing most of my time pretty evenly between new grooves and classics from the ’60s, ’70s and ’80s. And here are just a few selections I’ve had in heavy rotation:
 Winehouse at The BRIT Awards 2007 Dave Hogan/Getty Images |
New school
"Rehab" Amy Winehouse: I was intrigued enough download this British soul vixen’s album "Back to Black" last week after I saw the video
…Talk about a flurry of Modest Mouse activity! I checked out their Portland show last week under the mistaken assumption that the band might take a minute to get back to its old stomping grounds in Seattle. (Plus, Portland is rad, and it was as good a reason as any for a road trip.) But not only have they announced a surprise show for tomorrow night in Seattle (click here for details.) Another announcement just arrived in my inbox from Live Nation, announcing an April 15 date at the Paramount Theatre, with Love as Laughter again opening. Tickets go
…As promised, our Web guy, Aaron, got all the Guitar God voting fraud sorted out, eliminating extra votes by everyone who wanted to vote twice – or 10 times. Next up, he’s working on reforming the U.S. presidential election before ’08. Wish him luck.
Meanwhile, here are the top 20 vote getters. Well, actually a lot more than 20 since, as you can see, lots of ties were involved. It seems that most of you agreed on big shots like Hendrix, Clapton and Page. But it came down to just a few votes toward the lower end of
… Modest Mouse’s Isaac Brock, still sporting his lucky hat, at Portland’s Crystal Ballroom. AUGUSTUS JASMIN |
I got a wild hair Thursday and went to Portland to catch Modest Mouse on their home turf at the Crystal Ballroom. (This was before Friday’s announcement of a last second tour add at the South Lake Union Naval Reserve. Tickets go on sale Monday morning. Click here.)
But I wondered which version of the notoriously unpredictable
…Some of the margins were super close in the first ever Bring the Noise Guitar God survey. And Aaron, our tech guy, is going through and checking for voter fraud. But here’s who you guys liked best, pending the recount, for the Bring the Noise Guitar God survey.
Guitar God projections:
1. Jimi Hendrix
2. Eric Clapton
3. Jimmy Page
4. Carlos Santana
5. B.B. King
What’s up with all these drummers getting hurt of late? I’d just recently talked to Snow Patrol beatmeister Jonny Quinn about returning to the stage after breaking his arm while snowboarding. And my conversation with Bloc Party’s Matt Tong – in anticipation of his band’s gig Sunday (March 11) at the Paramount – started with the health issues that caused his band to drop out of a tour with Panic at the Disco a while back.
But besides that we mostly focused on his band’s growing fame and its excellent sophomore release
…