I MADE YOU A CHILDREN'S BOOK NOT FOR CHILDREN: "IS TED PARANOID?" (NSFW)


"ANOTHER ONE BITES THE DUST!" -- PHOTOS & MORE FROM THE LAST BIG HURRAH AT CHOP SUEY, SEATTLE, WA. 1/18/15

It was coming, and we knew it was coming for months, but that didn't really make it any easier. The buyout, closing, and rebranding of one of the few remaining small clubs for Seattle's "musical misfit" community, Capitol Hill's Chop Suey, is a personal punch to the gut. Booker Jodi Ecklund worked her ass off to not only bring in awesome national and international bands to Chop's stage, but was and is a true champion of local music, multi-cultural awareness, and charity. All the punks, funks, queers, geeks, freaks, thrashers, bashers, moshers, paraders, and even geriatric suburban moms like me were welcomed with open arms, never judged, and always entertained. The shaggy old Chinese dragon hanging from the ceiling greeted you upon arrival, and didn't say anything if you left after a show covered in beer and sweat, smiling from ear to ear.

So be it. Change is here, and we will figure out a new home one way or another. But it was important to have one last big show honoring Jodi and all the good times we had together. "Another One Bites The Dust!" quickly sold out with a stellar and super-fun local lineup: Blood Drugs, Childbirth, Sashay, Chastity Belt, Deep Creep, Kithkin, Universe People, wimps, Pony Time, and Tacocat, with DJ Dave Hernandez keeping it all grooving between sets. I wasn't sure if I was going to be able to go -- a major illness has kept me on the low n' slow side for the last month, and has also affected my eyesight to where I can't drive nor take photographs (my peepers should be back to normal within a month, whew) -- but DAMMIT, I HAD TO BE THERE so got there for the last few hours of the event. Talk about a lovefest! Just about everyone I know in town was there, hugging, laughing, talking, dancing, moshing, and remembering. A few tears here and there, but the vibe was still so positive, and nearly every person left that night for the last time covered in beer and sweat, smiling from ear to ear.

My dear pal and fellow Wisconsinite Jerkaminski offered to photograph the show for me for most of the earlier hours, which was SO NICE and then got even nicer when I got there and she brought me SNACKS! I tell you, I'm one lucky punk. Bring it on, Clint Eastwood, bring it on. Please to enjoy her images right now!



YOU CAN'T STOP THE MUSIC: PHOTOS & A FOND FAREWELL TO SEATTLE'S CHOP SUEY

Do you know what the buyout of Capitol Hill's beloved music dive Chop Suey means to me and a whole lot of funky punky sorts? It may be hard to understand that in the context of some of the realities of the ol' joint, dark and dim with a weird layout and bathrooms that never smelled so great, hosting a lot of crazy-ass weirdos, bands and patrons alike. But if you are part of the Chop Suey community, you know -- another one of our dwindling musical "homes" is likely to be making some major changes. I'm not averse to change, mind you, but like in so many cities across the nation now, small alternative venues like Chop Suey are closing, replaced by luxury condos, big box stores, frou-frou gastropubs, or mindless EDM venues. Artists and musicians are struggling to live and work on negligible pay while seeing the character of their neighborhoods corporatized and diluted. I know this pattern is not new, I know all the creatives will eventually find and form new and supportive communities and/or rally to keep the scraps that remain, but it's at times quite disheartening.

This Sunday, January 18th, fierce and fabulous booker Jodi Ecklund has put together one last bash to celebrate all the glorious times we've had at Chop Suey, "Another One Bites The Dust!" The show, which begins at 4PM with (very awesome) DJ Dave Hernandez, will feature the coolest, and MOST DAMN FUN local bands we have: Tacocat, Kithkin, wimps, Pony Time, Chastity Belt, Universe People, Deep Creep, Childbirth, Sashay, and Blood Drugs. If you have not purchased your tickets yet, STOP READING THIS RIGHT NOW and GO HERE -- best ten bucks you'll ever spend, Seattle.



SIXTEEN MORE WEIRD RECORD COVERS FROM VALUE VILLAGE AND GOODWILL THRIFT STORES TO START OUT 2015!

Have you ever thought, "Gee, I wish I could have had a musical career -- that would have been super cool!" and kicked yourself for never following through with it? Here's something to cheer you up: you very well could have spent years of your life crafting your songs and image, secured a record contract, recorded what you felt was your life's master work, and then your album could have been discovered by me years later, discarded, dirty, and unloved, in a thrift store. Count your blessings, my friends. Please to enjoy this latest batch of weirdoes!

Well. Hmm. I...I...um...I am confused. Like, in every way possible. I have no answers, so just look.


PEOPLE TAKE PICTURES OF EACH OTHER: MY FAVORITE CONCERT PHOTOS THAT I TOOK IN 2014!

Do you know WHAT?

Taking live music photographs is REALLY FUN. Even when it's miserably hot, you have beer thrown all over you and your camera gear, get elbowed in the kidney, or have to face strobe lights that feel like a nuclear blast, grabbing images of fast-moving, ever-changing stage situations while grooving to great music is a professional and personal delight. I hope to continue doing it for a long time, and I hope you like that hope of mine.

For a variety of reasons, I did not shoot a large number of concerts this year (less than 40 different musical acts), but I genuinely enjoyed each and every one. From Seattle's pretty Volunteer Park to the big ol' Bumbershoot Festival, from my favorite funky glam club in Miami to my favorite funky punk club a few miles from my house, from brand-new bands to those that have more than 50 years in the biz, I had plenty of opportunities to ROCK OUT, always trying to bring you cool photographs and improve my skills each time I take another crack at capturing magic. My selections here only had only one factor: do I love it? Not "like," not "OK," not "is-this-a-big-band," not "these-are-my-pals" -- just "is this beautiful?" So, please to enjoy, and I will work very hard to get up and running for more in 2015! Thank you for looking at my work, which is also my joy.

FEBRUARY 2014

Tacocat, Chop Suey, Seattle, WA. 2/17/14

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