Corrosion of Conformity, Whores, and Crobot at the Crocodile

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Corrosion of Conformity, Whores, and Crobot played a metal worshipers dream bill in front of a sold-out Crocodile in Seattle Thursday night. While COC was the headliner and clearly the main draw, all three bands delivered solid sets that met with full throated approval from the diverse multigenerational audience.

While I go back a ways with both COC and Whores, this was my first time experiencing Crobot. The Pennsylvania 4 piece calls their sound ‘dirty groove rock’ and I wouldn’t take exception to that description. Back in the day we would have labeled them ‘hard rock’ and called it good. Front dude Brandon Yeagley is the band’s center of attention with his Steven Tyler meets Chris Cornell slinky dance, seemingly effortless command of impressive upper register metal yowls, and playful exhortations to the audience to keep the party firing at all costs. Yeagley and his bandmates won the audience over from the drop and were rewarded with a commendable ovation at the conclusion of their set.

I last caught Atlanta’s Whores at Substation some years back and was suitably impressed by their uncompromising wall o’ feedback assault and the sheer brutality of their of their stage presence. Having experienced the fist to the face that is Whores live show, I wasn’t entirely sure how their trip would be received, sandwiched at they were between two more conventional metal acts. My concerns proved to be unfounded as they amped crowd was onboard from the first loud notes of their cathartic set. Guitarist Christian Lambach produces wave upon wave of insanely loud feedback and is matched blow for blow by bass player Casey Maxwell and drummer Douglas Jennings Barrett. The band wastes precious little time with the usual ‘are you ready to rock?!?!’ stage patter, preferring to focus on delivering a blistering, bordering on overwhelming sonic blast. I truly love this band and the crowd seemed to share my joy.

Corrosion of Conformity has been at it since 1982 and while lead guitarist Woody Weatherman is technically the sole remaining member of the band’s first lineup, guitarist and vocalist Pepper Keenan has been onboard since the late 80’s and is widely considered a key ingredient in the band’s most beloved (and what I would consider ‘classic’) lineup. COC leans hard on the foundations forged by metal forefathers such as Black Sabbath and Judas Priest while injecting their own touch of punk attitude and aggression to add an appealing edge to the proceedings. They are currently touring behind their excellent new long player ‘Good God/Baad Man’ and mixed new tunes from that album with COC staples such as ‘Albatross’ and ‘Clean My Wounds’. I crossed paths with Weatherman before the show and was struck by how excited and passionate he remains 40 plus years down the heavy metal highway. Watching these now elder statesmen of heavy metal bring life and enthusiasm to their extensive catalog onstage at the Crocodile was tremendously satisfying and inspirational.

Photos: Boys Like Girls w/IDKHow & Arrows In Action @ the Moore

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Boys Like Girls w/IDKHow & Arrows In Action @ the Moore – 5/10/26
Photos by Charitie Myers

Boys Like Girls‘ Martin Johnson – photo by Charitie Myers

Boys Like Girls, the great rock quartet from Massachusetts, performed a Seattle date for the spring 2026 leg of their Soundtrack of Your Life” tour. It’s been 20 years since their debut (wait, what????) and to commemorate, they played two albums: the 2006 self-titled debut and their second release, Love Drunk. How cool is that to do two albums in their entirety? The tour kicks up again in August, by the way. With them were IDKHow (I Don’t Know How but They Found Me,) plus Arrows in Action, who have their own headlining tour starting in September. The October date in Seattle is already sold out. You can join the waiting list for that show here.

Boys Like Girls – photos by Charitie Myers

Dallon Weekes of IDKHow – photo by Charitie Myers

IDKHow – photos by Charitie Myers

Victor Viramontes-Pattison from Arrows in Action – photo by Charitie Myers

Arrows in Action – photos by Charitie Myers

Review: Bebe Stockwell’s Volume 1

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Bebe Stockwell‘s Volume 1
Review by Louise Geri

Bebe Stockwell in the Volume 1 photoshoot – photo by Katherine Goguen

The most shocking thing about Bebe Stockwell’s second album Volume 1 might not be her bold claim that when love is right, you just know it, or her preference for the more temperate New England climate over the always warm Los Angeles climate. Rather, your biggest surprise might be learning that Stockwell is 24 years old.

Stockwell’s voice provided great company as I sewed while listening to the album for the first time. Because of her lower-pitched voice leaning surprisingly far into classical singing style for a commercial artist, I automatically assumed she was middle-aged.

But no, Stockwell is just really good at placing the Joni-Mitchell-Joan-Baez-Noah-Kahan Americana-folk sound into the mouth of an old soul. The opening track, “When You Know, ”reminds me of “The Story” by Brandi Carlile, “Whole Lotta Little” by Emily Ann Roberts, and “California” by Joni Mitchell. It feels like a letter from a wise elder to whom you ask for advice on whether you’re marrying the right person.

Bebe Stockwell playing Bumbershoot last August, – photo by Kirk Stauffer for Guitar Girl Magazine

“Wild Love,” upon opening, makes me think of the Highwaymen. Following a humming intro that could be construed as either ominous or adventurous, Stockwell sings about a lover reminding her of an animal – albeit a slightly inappropriate one, “You took the lead then showed me your teeth, said the sex we have is incredible.” Music in the Americana genre is known for being the home of a lot of protest music, particularly in the 60s and 70s. In a way, this slightly rash line pays homage to the Beat generation rejection of politeness culture.

Stockwell brings Wesley Schultz in for “Ant Farm.” The lyricism is stunning, “I was jealous of the dreams that kept you alive.” The song is full of nostalgia for a rural childhood love, reminiscent of many old country songs.

“Hard to Find,” while sweet and harmonious, is a little too happy-go-lucky. When the chorus kicks in, driven by oohs, I shamefully find myself imagining a Windex commercial. The lyrics are not lacking, however. “Undress my secrets, kiss my ugly” is a lovely moment of personification.

I’m transported to Noah Kahan’s “Maine” and “Stick Season” upon hearing the intro of “New England Regret.” Stockwell mourns her upbringing in the northeastern US. Her discussion of wholesome small-town details like everyone knowing each other’s names screams Stars Hollow. It makes me laugh, as someone west coast-born and raised, when she understandably frowns upon the passive aggression common in my neck of the woods.

“Going to the Country” feels like a moment out of Kacey Musgraves’ 2024 Deeper Well album. Stockwell has the energy of a wood nymph, “I’m sick and tired of feeling like nature doesn’t exist.” The song joins modern ways of life with the human need to be grounded, using, “My job, it is remote” to justify leaving for somewhere quieter.

Bebe Stockwell playing Showbox SoDo last October, photo by Kirk Stauffer for Guitar Girl Magazine

Stockwell leans into pop-country with “Adeline,” sharing a general topic with “Jolene” by Dolly Parton, and similarly being in a minor key. The song even contains a hint of bluegrass (high lonesome harmonies, perhaps?) The lyricism is blunt and strong, “You don’t love me like you used to, though you say you do/tell me that and look me in the eyes.” She almost wails “Adeline” as she riffs the name in despair over the possibility of another woman.

Singer/songwriter Grace Enger, known in the Gracie Abrams-sphere of pop, joins Stockwell for the closer, “Look At Us Now.”Enger’s more commercial voice provides an interesting complement to Stockwell’s classical. I wish the entire song would keep up the more stable melody of the pre-chorus, but Stockwell instead continues the ooh-ing in the choruses, which has lost the power it held in earlier songs, having already appeared in “Hard to Find” and “Going to the Country.” Thankfully, this is a genre where lyricism is prioritized and therefore effective no matter your melodic preferences. The hook (which is just the title) is heartwarming. The final verse touches on the dangerous humans-are-machines mentality, “Oh, tired Sophie, do you have to work two jobs? Your back’s all tied in knots, I swear to God you work too hard.” It’s a sweet way to close the record.

Volume 1 is the perfect title for this album. There’s no groundbreaking message, merely a feeling. It feels like a collection of old folk tales with the overarching theme of a foggy morning in the rolling hills, sipping tea and watching goats roam a pasture. Listen to Volume 1 by Bebe Stockwell on all streaming platforms now.


Bebe Stockwell in the Volume 1 photoshoot – photo by Katherine Goguen

Kurt Vile & the Violators with Ryan Davis & the Roadhouse Band at the 5th Avenue Theatre

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Kurt Vile & the Violators and Ryan Davis & the Roadhouse Band played a show to warm the cockles of the most jaded guitar freak at Seattle’s beautiful 5th Avenue Theatre Friday night. While the music ran the gamut from slacker noise rock to surrealist honky tonk, blazing guitars and harmonious feedback were the twin unifying themes of the evening. It was a night to tempt the shyest of air guitarists to strap on their game face and strike their most valiant pose.

Philadelphia’s Vile first came on my radar 20ish years ago as lead guitarist of the War On Drugs. A founding member of that band (along with Adam Granduciel), Vile struck out on his own in 2008 with his first solo effort, ‘Constant Hitmaker’. 18 years and 12 albums later (not counting his outstanding collaboration with Courtney Barnett, ‘Lotta Sea Lice’), the ever laconic master of tuneful guitar mayhem released ‘Philadelphia’s been good to me’ a couple months ago. The collection is a high point in a remarkably consistent catalog of releases and holds up well to repeated listenings (as I can happily attest). The guitarist and bandleader drew heavily from the new album during his set Friday and I found the tunes to be even more effective and compelling in a live setting.

Friday’s set dove straight into the new album with the wistful instrumental ‘Red Room Dub’ before dropping into one of my favorite cuts, ‘Zoom 97’. Vile took a brief detour to 2022’s ‘(watch my moves)’ for the joyful ‘Hey Like a Child’ before coming right back to his most recent effort for the lovely ‘Rock o’ Stone’. Vile conveys a slightly goofy yet utterly amiable presence onstage, half wide-eyed, naive child and half shuffling stoner. Both his recorded work and live show ebb and flow comfortably between shimmering pastoral folk rock to harder edged, heavily Crazy Horse influenced electric workouts. The Violator’s set was on point from the first note to the last and was received enthusiastically by the large crowd. The moment that will stick with me going forward occurred during the set closing finale ‘Waken On a Pretty Day’. I had drifted to the back of the hall where there was a bit more elbow room for me to get my old guy shuffle on as Vile and his band mates tucked into a heavy guitar jam that would not have been out of place at a Neil Young & Crazy Horse show. As the band began to soar (with the crowd responding in kind) I found myself viewing the proceedings onstage between the upraised ‘devil horn’ hand gestures of the clearly blissed out hesher dude immediately in front of me. It was an image that perfectly captured my feelings during the most memorable moments of a great set.

Friday’s show was opened by an act with whom I was not previously familiar, Ryan Davis & the Roadhouse Band. Suffice to say, I went to the gig expecting to love Kurt Vile and the Violators (and I did!) but it was Ryan Davis that delivered the welcome surprises of the evening for this music fan. Davis and his outstanding band exist in a unique and unlikely space that somehow combines authentic honky tonk cred with ironic, bordering on surrealist/existentialist lyrics, and caution to the wind, almost Sonic Youth-esque (or, at least, Wilco-esque) guitar freakouts. A friend who I ran into between bands described them as “George Jones meets Sun Ra”. If that description doesn’t entirely nail Davis’ vibe it certainly nods toward his mix and match approach to creating a sound and form that borrows from disparate elements to create a unique sound and experience. I’ve since backtracked to familiarize myself with the band’s most recent release, ‘New Threats From the Soul’ and I’m now a newly minted and enthusiastic fan of Ryan Davis & the Roadhouse Band. I will absolutely be in attendance the next time they visit the Pacific Northwest.