All the way from Osaka, Japan, Shonen Knife brought their sweet sounds to the Tractor Tavern on October 12, 2014. Original member Naoko Yamano is still in the band (awesome) and bassist Ritsuko Taneda is expecting a child (also very awesome!). For Shonen Knife’s Seattle show, they had Death Valley Girls, a Los Angeles quintet who is gaining tons of new fans. All photos by Tino Tran:
Shonen Knife
Death Valley Girls
Seattle venue Neumos had the Drums as headliners on October 9, 2014, with the Beverlys as openers. The Drums’ core band members, Jonathan Pierce and Jacob Graham, have done solo projects as well, but last year they got back together to create Encyclopedia. Toronto, Canada’s the Beverlys released three works last year – nice job! All photos by Simon Krane:
The Drums
The Beverlys
The Drums
The Beverlys
On September 25, 2014, Taking Back Sunday and the Used melded with their fans at Showbox SoDo. Apart from roaring in general, Taking Back Sunday featured one of the best album covers of 2014 with Happiness Is: hello panther!!! The Used saw a big change in their lineup after Quinn Allman decided to take a break in 2015, however, Saosin’s Justin Shekoski has joined the band All photos by Monica Martinez:
Taking Back Sunday
The Used
Taking Back Sunday
The Used
Blues singer-songwriter Janiva Magness and her band were in Seattle for a July 2014 appearance at Jazz Alley. The Detroit, Michigan native released her latest album, Original, also in 2014. An adoption activist, she is also a spokesperson for Casey Family Programs! All photos by Steve Campagna:
Janiva Magness
Still sounding amazing, The Moody Blues brought their Timeless Flight 2015 Tour to the Paramount Theatre last week for what was likely a sold-out show. Celebrating 51 years as a band, core members Justin Hayward, John Lodge and Graeme Edge are now joined by Norda Mullen, Julie Ragins, Gordy Marshall and Alan Hewitt. I’ve been a fan of The Moodies ever since first hearing them in 1968. . . their second album, the acclaimed Days Of Future Passed, was released the prior year. Since then, I’ve seen them nearly 20 times and being able to shoot their set was a real treat.
Still going strong after all these years, their voices sound as good as their original recordings and they show no signs of slowing. During the second set, Edge got off his drums and took center stage to speak the beginning lyrics of “Higher and Higher” and mentioned that he was 74 years old. There are a few things The Moodies continue to do. Hayward and Lodge still do “the walk” (sans Ray Thomas) during “Story In Your Eyes,” and “Question” is still the last song and “Ride My See Saw” is still the encore. Traditions are great!
The Moody Blues