The Devil Wears Prada ravaged the main stage at The Gorge like few other bands at The Vans Warped Tour. This hard hitting Christian Metalcore band made no bones about their religious convictions and performed like it was their last performance. I really appreciated that as a fan of music.
Performer: The Devil Wears Prada
Photographer: John Rudolph
Admittedly, it did feel just a bit awkward arriving at Seattle’s beautiful Paramount Theater without a small child in tow to see international children’s music and TV stars The Wiggles perform. This time, I only brought my camera as my youngest child, a rabid fan of The Wiggles in her youngest years, was off to summer camp. I had been to see The Wiggles years ago with her when she was around 2 years old in a huge arena, driving an hour there and back because she liked them that much. This is what parents do, just to see a few moments of wonder and happiness on those little faces.
So this time as I waited for the show to start, I just watched as gently smiling parents carried in their infants or herded their toddlers to their seats, many of the little girls outfitted in pretty little dresses for the event. The entire feel was calm and mellow, which is something you might not expect when you gather a bunch of very small children together into a confined space. But perhaps that has something to do with the very nature of The Wiggles themselves. In many ways, The Wiggles continue the legacy of “Mr. Rogers’ Neighborhood,” in their very positive, very gentle, and deeply respectful take on both entertaining and educating the youngest in our society. They construct simple but very clever songs that children can easily sing along to: fun, silly, interactive, and upbeat. The four Australians that make up the 2011 Wiggles are original members Anthony Field (blue) and Murray Cook (red), and Sam Moran, who replaced Greg Page a few years ago (yellow) and understudy Brad Carroll filling in for Purple Wiggle Jeff Fatt, who is recovering from heart surgery.
The Wiggles – photos by Marianne Spellman
Virgin Islands (Photo by April Brimer)
Seattle band Virgin Islands have perfected the nearly lost art of urgent, angular post-punk intertwined with lyrics as razor-sharp as they are eloquent. Front man Michael Jaworski has always worn his convictions on his sleeve in bands like The Cops; with newest project Virgin Islands, he’s perfected the language of poetic unrest with a mighty sound genetically linked to the spirit of bands like The Clash. In a world that feels increasingly alienating, it’s rare for a band to cut through the static and say something that sounds like a manifesto- if you’re paying attention.
Recently Michael Jaworski, front man of Virgin Islands and founder of Mt. Fuji Records, took a few minutes from his hectic musical schedule to chat with me about everything from his sharp-shooting lyrics to the appeal of island life.
Back Beat Seattle: What have you been up to this summer…didn’t you just return from a tour?
Michael: We just did a two week tour of the west coast, which was pretty great. It was our first time outside of the NW and we had some great shows. The Bay Area loves Virgin Islands! Also, the weather in California was spectacular and it was a nice break from the crappy Seattle summer we’ve been having so far. We just had a great Block Party show and played the KEXP BBQ on August 6th. Other than that, we’re working on new songs and plotting our next moves.
Can you tell a little about the story behind the song and album title Ernie Chambers v. God?
Michael: Ernie Chambers is a politician from my birthplace of Omaha, Nebraska. He was a state senator for around 40 years who represented a predominantly black neighborhood in Omaha and was probably the only black state senator in Nebraska for a majority of those years. He was one of the only progressive politicians in the state and he stood up for the minorities and other disenfranchised groups. He was a major pain in the ass to all of the conservative senators because he’s an extremely smart dude who fought them tooth and nail on so many social issues. He filed a lawsuit in the Nebraska Supreme Court against God seeking relief against natural disasters, destruction and terror in the wake of Hurricane Katrina. He was real punk rock politician.
It’s refreshing to hear a band that has some very up front socio-political convictions these days, it almost seems to be a lost art. Writing this way seems to be a piece of punk rock DNA that has always been your natural writing state. Do you find that people pay attention and ask you questions about your lyrics? Is it something you consciously do?
Michael: I do think people pay attention to the lyrics I write and it does come up in interviews. Both of which are flattering and encouraging. I definitely feel like politics is life and art should reinterpret and comment on the important parts of our life. I also believe that artists have a responsibility to inspire people to think about questions and issues that are bigger than the day to day trappings of regular routines. Hopefully my lyrics inspire people to dig a little deeper and encourage people to ask questions beyond the status quo. I think that punk and hippie artists are cut from the same cloth in a lot of aspects. We both want the world to be a better place.
I’m thrilled to share photographer Lydia Goolia‘s photos of The Melvins‘ May show at the Crocodile. In a disaster all photographers can relate to, Goolia’s computer suffered a few hiccups, but lucky for us these photos (plus some of Trentemøller and J Mascis – those will be posted soon) were retrieved! Enjoy King Buzzo!
Bands like Arctic Monkeys, bands that ram into the world and actually influence their own generation and the one right behind them, come around every 20 years or so. They’d also rightly influence musicians who have been on the scene longer, and with their fourth album, Suck It And See, they’ve shown again why they are a revered yet riotous band. Singer/guitarist Alex Turner has maintained his momentum as one of the key voices and keen lyricists of his time, and his delivery of those lyrics on Wednesday evening was spot-on. Arctic Monkeys’ music is intricate – though never convoluted – with changes in tempo, mood, lyrical meaning all within a single song. When you let yourself just go within their music – you are just that – gone and become one with it.
