Chop Suey is taking you a journey to the motherland Saturday night with a show from three Balkan-inspired bands that will have you singing “Back in the U.S.S.R.” for the rest of the week. Headlining the show is Seattle band Kultur Shock. Their songs are striking, combining more classic elements of punk and metal songs with an Eastern European flavor that reflects the backgrounds of two of the band’s members—one from Bosnia, the other from Bulgaria.
Kultur Shock’s tracks tend to feature blatant social commentary, mostly about immigration. “Country Mohammed” is a song that incorporates metal-esque riffs with old-world violin and banjo straight out of Deliverance country. The song gives a first person account of a man, presumably of Eastern European origin, who moves to the U.S. and adopts all of the country’s backwards ideologies (and even picks up a southern accent) in order to be a ‘real American’.
Opening for Kultur Shock is Orkestar Zirkonium, a fourteen-member balkan-inspired band also hailing from Seattle. The excellently arranged drum-and-brass songs will charm you and likely keep your toes tappin’ for the entire set.
Make sure you head to the show early to see the very first act. Chervona is yet another Balkan-inspired band on tonight’s bill, but with an awesome, upbeat gypsy flair. Hailing from Portland, Chervona sound like they know how to get a party started—if anyone can make you dance the punk rock polka, it’s these fellas.
Seattle Show Gal has some tickets to give away to this rad show. If you’re interested, click HERE or email contests@seattleshowgal.com with subject line “Balkan or Bust!!!!” for a chance to win tickets for you and a pal!
The Kultur Shock video below is a music video that’s … a little on the nontraditional side. It cuts back and forth between a live performance and a short silent film of their own making (with the live performance serving as the soundtrack for said film). Enjoy!
Band Members: Lance Phelps- Drums
Sean Wood- Guitar
Erin Wood- Bass
If The Spits recommend that you take the next day off from work or what have you, then it’s probably in your best interest to do so. Having never seen one of their shows myself, I was amped to see them at Chop Suey, but for some reason wasn’t quite sure what was in store. After watching Personal and the Pizzas from Jersey (think men’s conglomerate out of the movie Grease), sing songs such as “Pizza Army” and “I Don’t Wanna Be No Personal Pizza” while combing their greasy hair and dodging Olympia beer cans, they set a raucous tone for the headliners, and the energy was building with every song piped into the room.
Finally, with thick blankets of fog rolling onto the stage and video images of the macabre film Faces of Death played on a large projector screen, The Spits came out with cymbals on fire (literally), and fire crackers exploding, as if to slap the crowd in the face with not only their punk prowess, but simply their arrival. It was as if they were egging the crowd on to see what they may have brought for the band, and in no time flat the crowd was starting to give The Spits as much of a show as the band had brought them, but without the fire (thank god, because the first thing that came to my mind was the infamous Great White show). The crowd was no place for the weary, and if you weren’t on alert you could easily be taken out with the flow of moving bodies or simply kicked in the face by one of the over-eager crowd surfers. All senses were in overload, and sometimes all survival instincts were necessary to take in the showmanship of the Seattle punk gods, and gods they are. The coolest kids at the table will tell you that The Spits are where it’s at, and their following is pretty rabid. I spoke to four different people who were there from not only L.A., but as far away as NYC, and Philly. Good raw punk is a dying art form, and I think more people will come to embrace it because of bands like The Spits.Balls to the walls music with no apologies is hard to come by, but this Seattle mainstay is guaranteed to be legendary and inspirational for the new punk generations to come. Next time you have the chance, go see them! I can’t wait for their next show.
Here is one live video of the opening, and the rest was mayhem!
It’s going to be a rainy, cold evening. How about some good old-fashion fun? Grudge Night, Jack Stratton’s game show event, is still at the Crocodile, styled as a music-based Family Feud with two bands; winner takes door money. You know the drill. Tonight it’s Punk vs. Pop. As always, The Cute Lepers are bringing the loud old-school energy that’s become their signature. Here were a few words that Nick Larzalere had to say on the cute Lepers when he reviewed them last year:
The Cute Lepers are a power-pop punk band, with strong influences from The Clash, and other 70s punk… The Cute Lepers have a few catchy songs, but one that stands out is their single “Terminal Boredom.” It had a bit of classic punk that everyone was dancing to. “Prove It” was also memorable; it’s a bit slower then “Terminal Boredom” with a more modern feel to it…Duffy and Priscilla had a special dance for almost every song; watching them move and Steve E. Nix play was not a bad experience… The Cute Lepers is a show that you should see if you love punk and cute girls with tambourines. They have catchy songs, and the girls provide the energy.
Or we have the sunny, indie sounds of the boys from The Quiet Ones, the Tennessee expats that have perfected layering melodies. Nikki Benson had a few thoughts about why checking this happy-makers is a good idea:
Check out this cool music video below. It looks like The Quiet Ones made their way over to The Holy Mountain/Black Lodge to make a video that embodies the party rock/retro goodness that they are. Seriously, who wouldn’t want to be party of that party? Not only do they get down with the vox, shred the guitar, groove with the bass, and get all psychedelic with the faders, but the bring out the glitter, confetti, and animal masks too. If they bring all that to The Crocodile tonight, it’s going to be c-r-a-z-y!!!
Regardless of whoever turns out to be the winner, I think it’s the perfectantidote for a chilly February night.
Don’t forget that the Cumulus Festival starts tonight. Get more information about that avant garde goodness here.
And as always, for more concert ideas, visit our friends over at ReignCity.com
Band Members
Benjamin Tyler - drums, vocals, mixing…EVERYTHING!
Stepkid is a one-man show, and by that, I don’t mean a guy with a microphone and an acoustic guitar or a DJ. Okay, maybe Stepkid is like a DJ in the sense that he certainly makes beats and dances like a one. But in addition to mixing his own sound clips and electronic beats, he does his own drumming and vocals and manages to put together a song that sounds like it has at least two other dedicated musicians in it. I immediately likened Stepkid’s sound to that of the band Holy F**k–a mix of electronica and experimental. As a plus, Stepkid adds in versatile vocals that can be smooth to match the beat of an ambient song, or almost screamo-like for an electro-rock song.
Stepkid was the first of three musical acts that played at the Josephine in Ballard for a crowd of not more than twenty folks, all of whom seemed to be either members or friends of the other bands playing that evening. The combination of the crowd and the venue, which featured as odd assortment of couches and an unmarked entrance, made me feel like I was hanging out in a garage waiting for my teenage brother’s band to play their first gig. The biggest annoyance for me was the extreme lack of stage lighting. The only light onstage for Stepkid was a dim light bulb that made it hard to see him and follow his constant movements; the artist was even stumbling around as he searched for his equipment. I think Stepkid’s stage presence during this performance was laidback and at times a bit sloppy, but I also think that these qualities went in hand with the informal venue he was playing in. At the same time, Stepkid seemed awkward as he transitioned between songs, and maybe he could use some bandmates to lighten his load and improve on his stage presence, but I also think that part of his appeal is the fact that he CAN do everything all by himself. Either way, this kid could use more experience playing at mainstream sites for larger audiences before he’s ready to successfully headline a major show.
There are a couple of recorded albums by Stepkid and he is currently in the midst of recording a new one now. If you want to know more about Stepkid, don’t try to Wikipedia him, because there’s not a whole lot of media on him yet, but SSG’s got you covered with the Internet’s very first interview with Stepkid, and a few clips from his live performance. Again, this kid’s still growing up, but do give his music a sampling and try to catch him live the next time he’s in town!
When A Wilhelm Scream takes the stage, they come with fire. This is a band that always gets the audience moving and singing along in no time. When they play fan-favorite The King is Dead, the audience always quiets down for the beginning and looks at each other in anticipation–they know what’s coming! Then, there’s an explosion of sound and movement. A Wilhelm Scream is a bombastic live band who play fast and noodly melodic punk/hardcore that would appeal to fans of both Lagwagon and abrasive hardcore bands.
Last year A Wilhelm Scream opened for The Unseen at El Corazon, and they nearly blew them off the stage. They simply must be a tough act to follow–the audience clamored for them to keep playing long after the end of their set. This time at Studio Seven, they’re the headliners. They’ll play a longer set and still leave the sweaty, excited audience begging for more.
Oct 10 2009 8:00P Studio Seven Seattle, Washington
Oct 11 2009 7:00P Satyricon Portland, Oregon
Oct 12 2009 8:00P Johnny B’s Medford, Oregon
Oct 12 2009 8:00P Johnny B’s (21+) Medford
Oct 13 2009 7:00P Thee Parkside San Frnacisco, California
Oct 16 2009 7:30P The Knitting Factory Hollywood, California
Oct 17 2009 8:00P Slidebar – FREE SHOW (21+) Fullerton, California
Oct 17 2009 8:00P Hurley HQ Live Session Webstream Hurley Headquarters, California
Oct 18 2009 8:00P The Radio Show (21+) San Diego, California
Oct 19 2009 8:00P Modified Arts Phoenix, Arizona
Oct 21 2009 7:00P Rock Bottom San Antonio, Texas
Oct 22 2009 7:00P Emo’s Austin, Texas
Oct 23 2009 7:00P The Prophet Bar Dallas, Texas
Oct 24 2009 7:00P The Meridian Houston, Texas
Oct 25 2009 7:00P Good Times Tavern Houma, Louisiana
Oct 26 2009 6:00P Gallery 13 Columbus, Georgia
Oct 28 2009 7:00P Backbooth Orlando, Florida
Oct 29 2009 7:00P Churchill’s Pub Miami, Florida
Oct 30 2009 7:00P THE FEST (Venue TBD) Gainesville, Florida
Nov 1 2009 7:00P Landshark Cafe’ Jacksonville Beach, Florida
Nov 3 2009 8:00P Regal Beagle Virginia Beach, Virginia
Nov 4 2009 8:00P Ottobar Baltimore, Maryland
Nov 5 2009 6:00P The Fire Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Nov 6 2009 8:00P The Knitting Factory Brooklyn, New York
Nov 7 2009 7:00P Jerky’s Providence, Rhode Island
Seattle Show Gal is in hot pursuit of undiscovered talent! How many great bands are out there that are slipping through the cracks? Seattle is saturated with so much music, it would be nearly impossible to sift through it all to find the good stuff. The Seattle Show Gal staff is not so proud to think that we can bring you all of it, but we are actively pursuing all different types of acts to give you a pulse on what is going on--right here in Seattle! (See more in "About")
