Having had Snoop Dogg present for almost the entirety of my pop-culture awareness, I was stoked to go to his show and see what Tha Doggfather had to offer in terms of a live show. The bass from Mash Hall’s opening set was audible from blocks away. When I made it past the rigorous search for weapons at the door, I hit the wall of weed smoke one would be disappointed not to find at a Snoop Dogg show.
The crowd was the most diverse I have ever seen at a Seattle show. There was no age level, race, or social group that was not represented in this Snoop Dogg crowd. Mash Hall was halfway through their set when I got in, and though they were giving it their all, the crowd was just not having it. Everyone was standing still, there were boos and big thumbs downs—the audience seemed more interested in Ludacris’ “Move B*tch” (the first track played between sets) than they were in anything Mash Hall had to say. This is surprising, since a lot of the things Mash Hall has to say … are about weed. What does a Snoop Dogg crowd love more than weed?
For second act Step Cousins, a local hip-hop super-duo feat. Xperience and Macklemore, it was an entirely different story. Xperience hit the stage first, accompanied by DJ/producer Ryan Lewis. Lewis was spinning some mad beats with some mad bass, and I had to bust out my earplugs for the first time in months. Lewis and Xperience got the crowd pumped before bringing out Macklemore, arguably one of Seattle’s favorite MC’s. Macklemore gets away with doing pretty much whatever the hell he wants: getting the crowd to repeat ridiculous noises, making a Snoop Dogg audience go crazy for a dark track warning about overdosing on drugs, performing a ballad for Irish folk, and even donning a wig, a fur coat, and bringing out back up dancers for his crazy closing track, “And We Danced” … though I’m not so sure the crowd got the joke on that last one.
Finally, after an hour long set change, most of which contained chants for “SNOOOPP DOOOGGGGGG,” a video popped up on the screen. The crowd roared with excitement, and from what I could see, the video mashed up clips of Snoop and weed, gunfights, pimp cups and 70’s era pimps, among other things.
Snoop finally came out in all of his ‘blazing’ glory (with a heavily blinged out microphone, of course), he launched straight into“Next Episode.” The crowd was singing along, and by his second song, clouds of weed smoke were so thick I could have cut them with a knife. Snoop Dogg played a lot of classics at this show, including “Gin & Juice,” “P.I.M.P.,” “Jump Around,” and crowd favorite “Drop It Like It’s Hot.” Snoop Dogg even busted out a little Marvin Gaye, singing “Sexual Healing” before launching into his own “Sensual Seduction.”
Snoop was digging the love from the crowd, and repeatedly thanked his fans for all of their support over the years. He finished his hour long set with “What’s My Name,” leaving the crowd begging for more. There was no encore, and the mostly inebriated crowd poured out of the venue, buzzing about the show. Though some parts of Snoop Dogg’s set felt a little forced and lackluster, I had a pretty great time overall. There’s nothing quite like spending your Saturday night with a hip-hop legend.
Since no video was allowed at this particular show, I bring you Snoop Dogg’s most recent TV appearance–a performance of new track “I Wanna Rock” and 90’s classic “Insane in the Brain” with special guests Cypress Hill.
Alright, I’m a bit excited to be giving these tickets away. I mean, come on! Tha Doggfather? Snoop Dogg could arguably be called the modern day King of Swag. I remember back in 1996 when I got Tha Doggfather on cassette tape behind my mothers back. Long walks home from school listening to “Sixx Minutes” felt so gangster with Snoop Dogg in my ear. March 5th and 6th will be a celebration of two things extremely dear to me: Snoop Dogg and the Seattle music scene.
On the menu with Snoop Dogg will be Step Cousins(featuring Xperience and Macklemore), and I might have heard a rumor about Mash Hall joining the bill; no official word yet. We all have our own stories about how Snoop Dogg is the man, and what his music means to us individually, so this preview is going to skip past all the hype talk about how missing Snoop Dogg in Seattle on this leg of his tour is indefensible. Instead, send your best “I Remember When: Snoop Dogg” story regarding your love for the hip-hop Don Corleone to contests@seattleshowgal.com for your chance to win a pair of free tickets! We will be choosing the winner on or before March 6th at 3pm. Don’t wait until then to buy tickets though! Day one is already sold out!!! Guarantee your spot at the March 6th show by purchasing your ticket now, and sell it at the door after you’ve won your tickets from SSG.
Here are some choice vids! “Sixx Minutes” still stands as my favorite rap song of all time. What’s yours? This show is going to be filthy…
If you’re going to Neumos tonight, get there early. Not only is the place going to fill up fast, but there is some AWESOME entertainment starting the show. DJ Darwin is going to be getting the party started, then BREAKFAST MOUNTAIN is going to be turning it up a notch. His music is fiery hot.
BREAKFAST MOUNTAIN sent over some music to tease the SSG readers, and it was a double edged sword! Not only does it tease us, but the song “Love Partner” contains the sighs and groans of a woman being teased to the point of unbearable, sexual torment. Wrapped in thick, pulsing beats, the listener isn’t made aware of the subject matter of the song directly. Tastefully done, industrial tones are dominant with a simple melody. The listener hears voices, but they at first occur as jungle-like noises. All of a sudden, you hear the exclamation “HIGHER!” Over and over it goes. Again, if the listener didn’t quite know what they were listening for, this would land as interesting, industrial infused electronica. The last 75 seconds of the song leave the listener with zero questions; the music is stripped away leaving the ambient sounds of the love partners laying bare. Give it a listen, and be sure to get to the show early tonight.
Do you remember this time last year when Mad Rad had their butt showing and Neumos decided that it was high time for it to be spanked? Headlines were filled with catchphrases about the Capital Hill feud, comments from Steven Severin confirmed that Mad Rad was banned from Neumos, Buffalo Madona of Mad Rad boasted that if the city closed the gates on them, they would create new keys.
And so those new keys have been created. Not only did Mad Rad torch the city with their brand of hotness, they have also managed to whittle their way back into Neumos! When I asked Steven Severin to comment on welcoming back Mad Rad to Neumos, Severin commented, “Mad Tad?”
From The Stranger
Out for Stardom and Neumos have declared their feud “Squashed!” In honor of the momentous event, everyone gets to party for FREE! Be there. Come tired, because I hear there is going to be lots of Red Bull on hand. – Nikki Benson
The thing about Macklemore, is that he is for real. There is a trend in hip-hop these days to try and gain some street cred by spinning tales about your gangster coated lifestyle. You won’t get any of that nonsense from Macklemore. His albums are full of songs about life, and they tackle it from every angle. Whether he is talking about the struggles of substance abuse, race issues, or just showing some love to his hometown and his roots, Macklemore’s lyrical content is always conscious and on point.
Backed in the studio by his producer Ryan Lewis, his music is a little more melodic than most other hip hop artists. The sampling, when done, is done thoughtfully and tastefully. On The vs. EP, the track “Otherside” is about the accidental overdose of another artist, channeling the idea of crossing over to another place after death. The track samples the bass line from the Red Hot Chili Peppers song “Otherside”. It is this kind of insight and forethought that sets Macklemore apart from a lot of his peers.
On stage Macklemore owns the space. The classic Emcee / DJ two piece set up can sometimes leave the stage feeling empty. But when this duo starts droppin’ their message, the energy comes through in waves. Macklemore uses every inch of the stage, and when that isn’t enough room to get his point across, he will stand on the main speakers, lean off the edge of the stage, or just jump right off. Whatever it takes to get closer to the crowd so they can feel it too. You can’t fake that kind of love for the music, and like I said, Macklemore doesn’t have to, he is for real.
Check out the official video for “The Town”, and get down to Neumos this Thursday and check him out. – Billy McManus
This was the first time I had ever flown anywhere to see a show. In actuality, it was something of a leap of faith as I had never even seen MONO live before. I was told from a friend who had seen MONO several times, “MONO is the only band whom I actually want an encore from when they complete. If they are going to play with a 24-piece orchestra, this could be the best show of a lifetime.” Good thing I listened because this was in fact, the best show of my life.
MONO played at the New York Society for Ethical Culture Concert Hall. That’s basically a whole bunch of words to say that it was a glorious cathedral. It was the perfect setting because this concert experience was spiritual. The audience sat in silent awe during every song. The acoustics in this room were incredible. Even though symphony etiquette seemed most appropriate for this sit down event, as the sound came roaring through the room people began to move–almost involuntarily. Spines began to move from front to back, shoulders, necks, heads … thrash. Sounds roared again as bodies jerked, shoulders, necks, heads … bang. Each sound was more astounding than the one before. It ended with a standing ovation, gratitude, and tears.
This show was amazing for lots of reasons. First, it was outdoors at the Bumbershoot Fisher Green stage; that in itself isn’t so amazing, but the fact that there were over a thousand people there and it was pouring rain, made it pretty epic. Macklemore didn’t disappoint the sopping, wet masses–he performed his butt off.
Debuting new materiel, Macklemore connected with the audience on a personal level. Macklemore’s lyrics expose his humanity with humility and elegance. He announced in the introduction to “Otherside,” “This song is about addiction. I just celebrated a year long of sobriety.” The audience roared. As Macklemore rapped the intimate details of his life, each member of the audience had their eyes locked on him as if he were speaking directly to them. As the rain continued to fall, it seemed as if the heavens were crying tears of joy for Macklemore’s triumph. It was a beautiful experience. I was honored to see it.
Haaay! Party weekend! Blue freaking Scholars are the freaking bomb. Blue Scholars were actually scheduled to play a three day event in December, 2008 but it was canceled due to snow. This three day event was sold out–this audience had been waiting for months for this party.
Blue Scholars have been playing shows for a very long time, and they know how to keep the audience entertained for hours on end. With Geologic’s smart lyrics and Sabzi’s unique beats, their songs could have been about social politics or strait up partying and the crowd lapped it up. Blue Scholars also debuted their “HI-808” video on Neumos’ gigantic backdrop, and those boys were looking phoine! “808 808 808 808.” There were some fan collage videos that were thrown in, and the crowed went wild. This was the first time I ever felt the Neumos floor move from people jumping up and down. Holler, Blue Scholars. “808 808 808 808!”
This was my first experience seeing Gary Jules, and frankly, I only knew him as the amazing talent who covered “Mad World” for the Donnie Darko soundtrack. Instead of being entertained by melodrama, Gary Jules was one of the most charismatic acts I’ve ever seen–it was nothing short of amazing. Jules told stories, played his acoustic guitar, and laughed and joked with the audience as if they were family. As far as singer/songwriters go, he’s someone to look up to and aspire to be like. He had the audience wrapped around his finger, and he didn’t have to struggle to be heard.
The experience of seeing Jules perform “Mad World,” is difficult to describe. In the interview we did following the show, he spoke about how people connect during somber moments. I’m sure millions of people grew up singing “Mad World” as if it was written for them. I was one of those people, and being able to see this song performed live was a landmark experience. Expectations for such a song being performed live would naturally be unrealistic, but lucky for everyone in the room that night, Gary Jules performed that song as if it were a dream. The room got so quiet you could hear every shudder in his voice. It was amazing, and Gary Jules is one of the most amazing artists I’ve ever met.
Being able to see Peter Broderick live was a gift. Broderick is one of the most naturally talented artists I’ve ever seen. He comes from a rich family line of musicians, and the ease of which his musical genius translated into song is astounding. Broderick doesn’t play show-off fancy music, but rather, he plays music as it flows through him. His vernacular ranges from the simplicity of a finger-picked acoustic song, to multi-instrumental songs that are beyond a dozen layers thick. I would venture a guess that no set is ever exactly the same, but the audience can count on a unique experience, as personal as family, every time they go to a Peter Broderick show. The below clip is from one such event. Enjoy.
Macklemore is humbly standing front row center in the hip-hop community right now. The love that he has earned in the hearts of Seattleites will not prove to be fickle; each fan that he has amassed will be a fan for life.
Macklemore is at the top of my list for a number of reasons. First and foremost is the quality of his lyrics. I’m not talking about, “And We Danced,” although that song is clever in it’s own right, I’m talking about songs like “Otherside” and “The Town” or even when he’s featured in the remix of “Something New” by Fresh Espresso. Macklemore never shirks an opportunity to speak from his heart, and what comes out is some of the most poetically moving material to be heard across all genres. Macklemore is touching, honest, spiritual, and humble. Through hard work, good support, and being one of the most driven artists in 2009, everything he has touched, turned to gold.
Another reason why Macklemore is at the top of my list is the quality of his shows. From drinking tea and Odwalla super-food before his sets, to having wigs and costume changes on standby, Macklemore puts everything that he has into his shows—every show, every venue, every time. He has a gaggle of support waiting in the trenches. Champagne Champagne, Grynch, and Xperience, usually frequent his shows as guest performers. He also has a big community investment in making his shows all ages whenever possible.
Macklemore is just an all-around good guy. He has what it takes, and he doesn’t take it for granted.
Grynch held it down in 2009. What do The Seattle Times, Seattle Weekly, The Stranger, and Billboard magazine have in common? I’m sure a bunch of things, but for the sake of this blurb, they were all lovin’ up on Grynch in 2009. He has earned every bit of their admiration. Grynch is one of the sickest rappers in Seattle right now. His combination of street and party rap is on point. His style has him in the company of rappers that cater more towards the old school, street style of hip-hop, and his lyrics and charming flavor keep the kids who just want to dance extremely happy.
We’ve all heard Grynch’s hit “My Volvo,” and have loved it. I look forward to seeing how far Grynch breaks out in 2010, and what good things he’ll keep on reserve for the locals.
Blue Scholars got Oofy in 2009! Being one of the pillars in Seattle hip-hop, all these guys have to do is step out of the house to be named favorites on everyone’s yearly lists. That being said, Blue Scholars did tear it up this year in more ways than one. They represented Seattle well at SXSW, they were heavily involved in the community with workshops at schools and secret shows for charities, and they tore it up when they released their most recent E.P. OOF! Showing community love, Blue Scholars played free shows at local venues that weren’t even designed for live music such as Caffe Vita, and Ohana’s. That’s pretty cool considering that they sell out three night events at $20 a ticket. Geologic is also very invested in others within the hip-hop community. He has shown his support but hosting shows on numerous occasions throughout the year.
D.Black is the bomb. This young rapper stands for strength, growth, love, honor, the community, and the children. D.Black took a stand this year that people who have voices need to be accountable for what comes out of their mouths. Many people think, “I wouldn’t want my kid listening to that!” but they don’t do anything about it. D. Black did something about it. He created an entire album, Ali’yah, in dedication to spirituality, growth, and family. He spoke out about his beliefs to anyone who showed that they were interested. Fortunately, people who showed interest were outlets like KUBE 93 and King 5, as well as all the local, independent support he has received. His shows were amazing, and with the help of his family at Sportin’ Life, D.Black made his mark in indelible ink in 2009.
I couldn’t complete the top 5 2009 list of hip-hop without including Mad Rad. This has been the band that only grew stronger with opposition. The more trouble they got into in the top half of the year, the more people were paying attention. Things quickly calmed down as far as their infamous ruckus was concerned, but Seattleites were far from finished with Mad Rad.
Mad Rad’s show at Sasquatch 2009 was one of the coolest things I’ve ever seen. P Smoov came out with his arms flexed, smiling, as if he were on top of the world. They roused the crowd to dance and scream their overheated heads off. Buffalo Madona, in his never-ending attempts to outdo his own tom-foolery, climbed on top of the freaking Yeti stage roof. He had to have been at least 75 feet in the air. “He’s going to kill himself!” someone in the audience screamed. Buffalo Madona singing “Quest Que Cest,” was pretty freaking epic. He stood atop of the Yeti stage, lurching, looking into the crowd with an avid warning on his lips as he sang, “We are sheep among wolves. All flesh is grass today. Be weary where you lay. Be strategic where you stray. This warning is for you. You can not look away. You see I leave a trail of blood. I’m talking to your DNA… Run away, run away, RUN away, RUN AWAY…” It was legendary.
Mad Rad also created the hip-hop community’s showcase GO Machine. I could go on and on about Mad Rad’s triumph over 2009, but I’ll just leave it at: They killed it.
So now that the feasting is over, it’s time to get back on the dance floor and work off all those calories. SSG would like to bring your attention to the following festivities!
Earlier this week, Nikki Benson caught up with Macklemore & Ryan Lewis to talk about tonight’s EP release party and working together.
Macklemore & Ryan Lewis are having an album release party on November 27th, and they are doing it in grand style. They are performing an all ages show, doors at 5:30 pm, and a 21+ show, doors at 10pm. The early show will feature Hella Dope, The Next Door Neighbors, Kung Foo Grip, DJ Sabzi, and will be hosted by Grynch, “the King of Ballard.” The late show will feature The Physics, Symmetry, Xperience, The Next Door Neighbors, DJ Terry Radjaw, and will be hosted by El Mizell, Seattle’s resident S**t talker.
Please enjoy the interview below with Macklemore & Ryan Lewis where they talk about the flavor of their new EP VS., and about the experience they had making it. After you’ve enjoyed that, please enjoy the extra special video of the second half of “Otherside” performed A Cappella, recorded and produced by Ryan Lewis.
Perhaps hip-hop isn’t your thing. If that’s the case, here is Nick Larzalere’s preview for The Lonely Forest; Seattle’s next big break out indie band.
For the past year, The Lonely Forest has been crushing it in the local indie scene. The Lonely Forest is likely going to be the next big alt band out of the area. Death Cab for Cutie’s Chris Walla, has been a huge advocate for the band, name dropping them on CNN and apparently at the premiere for the movie New Moon, and will even be producing the band’s next album.
With the release of their second album, We Sing the Body Electric, in April of this year, The Lonely Forest has been gaining the attention they deserve. Bumbershoot seems to have been the tipping point for national attention. At Bumbershoot, the EMP Sky Church was filled to capacity. People were lined up in the rain, waiting for their chance to hear the Anacortes band. “We Sing in Time” is probably the most memorable song off their new album, with its slow build into something that everyone can rock out to.
Be ready to rock out on Black Friday at Showbox at the Market, because this is The Lonely Forest’s first time headlining, and they are playing with another Chris Walla produced and local band, Telekinesis. Both bands are great, but The Lonely Forest is a must see, just to brag to your out-of-state friends that you saw them before they sold out.
In a climate of Independent hip-hop where subject matter is often kept to the flagrant, ostentatious, and vulgar, it is refreshing to have another Seattle spokesman who is using his candid life experiences to make a difference in others lives. Have you heard the groundbreaking song “Otherside“ off of the VS. EP from Macklemore & Ryan Lewis? Download “Otherside”, and if you want give it a listen while you read, please do.
In this song “Otherside,” Macklemore gets in deep about social drug use. Many people do it for fun without considering the long-term effects, or worse, the possible short-term effect—death. Macklemore takes a second person look at someone who didn’t think he had a problem with drugs. His girlfriend ended up finding him dead due to a mistaken overdose. Sobering thoughts followed by the words “We live on the cusp of death thinking that it won’t be us.”
Macklemore sang this song live for the first time at Bumbershoot 2009 in front of thousands of people. As he started the song, he held his head high and announced, “I celebrating one year of sobriety.” Whether the individual members of the audience were winning the same fight, still making the choice if they wanted to fight, or just respectfully looking on, everyone was touched, moved, and inspired. Macklemore might not ever know how many people’s lives, and the lives of their families, he’s effected by having the courage to use his own failures and triumphs as a beacon of hope so that others can do the same.
Ryan Lewis is not to be overlooked as the producer and other half of Macklemore’s most recent project. Ryan Lewis is the visionary when it comes to the music behind Macklemore’s words. Lewis is decisive about what direction they are going to go in, and he creates an immaculate product for Macklemore to rap to. If it weren’t for Lewis’ dedication to perfect production, Macklemore might be just another rapper with a GarageBand demo and an immense amount of potential.
Macklemore & Ryan Lewis are having an album release party on November 27th, and they are doing it in grand style. They are performing an all ages show, doors at 5:30 pm, and a 21+ show, doors at 10pm. The early show will feature Hella Dope, The Next Door Neighbors, Kung Foo Grip, DJ Sabzi, and will be hosted by Grynch, “the King of Ballard.” The late show will feature The Physics, Symmetry, Xperience, The Next Door Neighbors, DJ Terry Radjaw, and will be hosted by El Mizell, Seattle’s resident S**t talker.
Please enjoy the interview below with Macklemore & Ryan Lewis where they talk about the flavor of their new EP VS., and about the experience they had making it. After you’ve enjoyed that, please enjoy the extra special video of the second half of “Otherside” performed A Cappella, recorded and produced by Ryan Lewis.
From time to time, SSG will venture from standard concert speak. There are other avenues of the arts that speak to the SSG writers on a regular basis; when those voices are too loud to be silenced, the overflow spills onto the written page. This concert variance is to honor a local producer, Ryan Lewis. Not only does Lewis work with the beloved Macklemore, but he is also an independent producer, photographer, and short-filmmaker. He recently produced a piece entitled Fake Empire.
As soon as I saw Fake Empire, I had all sorts of questions. This piece has brash, yet understated denunciations aimed at social networking set to the tune of people singing “We’re half awake, in a fake empire.” If my natural reaction to seeing this film was being left in a state of query, it only seemed natural that others would also have questions. I would like to share Ryan Lewis’s work with the Seattle Show Gal readers, and if you are curious, please see the in-depth question and answer session regarding Fake Empire below.
Seeing Macklermore was the perfect way to start off Bumbershoot day #3. The rain was pouring down, but not a single person at the outdoor Fisher Green Stage was complaining.
Macklemore started off his set by relating to the audience with stories of thrift shopping. Then, he did a roll call on the 80’s and 90’s babies. Upon seeing that the majority of his screaming fans in attendance were under the age of 19, he let out a “DAMN!” and started the show.
Keeping the energy level high, he brought out Grynch and Xperience. Grynch, King of Ballard, was as entertaining as ever. Xperience charmed the crowd and added some soulful twists. Later he brought out Sir Tomas Gray and Pearl Dragon of Champagne Champagne; their masculinity was on fire.
As the rain poured down, Macklemore requested if the audience would mind if he shared something of himself on a more serious note – addiction. He stopped the music and told the audience how he was grateful to be performing at all, let alone at Bumbershoot. Only a year ago he was at the lowest point of his life. He played a new song telling about his rise out of the ashes to the sampled melody of How Long by Red Hot Chili Peppers. The mood that Macklemore created was so intense that it is difficult to put into words. The pouring rain felt like tears from the sky. We were all a bit teary eyed in celebration Macklemore’s victory over addiction.
Macklemore didn’t leave the crowed crying. He left the stage while another guest was performing to throw on one of his infamous costumes. He returned to the stage with a flashy shirt and wig on and gave us all a lesson in dance.
Being with Macklemore was incredible. Seattleites can hold their heads high with pride for one of our own.
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")
