By MIKEL TOOMBS As he has since at least 1956, when Simon and Garfunkel first became a duo, Paul Simon ponders the mysteries of the…
Read Full ArticlePaul Simon returns to Seattle with new album ‘So Beautiful Or So What’
By MIKEL TOOMBS There may be 50 ways to leave your lover, but there are only two to see Paul Simon live in Seattle. You…
Read Full ArticleTractor Tavern celebrates spring with ‘engagingly quirky’ Olof Arnalds
By MIKEL TOOMBS Bumper sticker recently spotted in Seattle’s Phinney Ridge neighborhood: “FLEE BALLARD.” (That car hadn’t gotten far.) No matter how trendy it’s become,…
Read Full ArticlePearl Jam’s Eddie Vedder releases new album, launches solo tour
In support of his upcoming solo album, “Ukulele Songs,” Eddie Vedder will launch a short U.S. solo tour in June and July. Vedder’s tour kicks…
Read Full ArticleCONCERT PREVIEW: There’s a lot of living in Lauren Pritchard’s ‘Wasted’
By MIKEL TOOMBS You could call this show “Lauren in Ballard.” Lauren Pritchard, who performs Sunday, March 27, at the Tractor Tavern (she opens at…
Read Full ArticleQuirky Tomten wins tenth annual Sound Off! competition at EMP/SFM
Playing the final set of the night as a “wild card” band, Seattle baroque pop group Tomten won the tenth annual Sound Off! competition for…
Read Full ArticleThis Mountain Man doesn’t sport facial hair but plays ‘simply good folk’
By MIKEL TOOMBS You’d probably expect an act called Mountain Man to be a bearded guy in a flannel shirt. Well, the first thing you’ll…
Read Full ArticleCONCERT PREVIEW: Peter Himmelman bares his soul on a riveting new CD
Singer-songwriter Peter Himmelman received his first round of applause on the day he was born. His mother had chosen to have a natural childbirth without…
Read Full ArticleFleet Foxes hit the road this spring with a sophomore CD: ‘Helplessness Blues’
Seattle’s Fleet Foxes, which wowed us with its ethereal, self-titled debut album in 2008, will release its second album, “Helplessness Blues,” May 3 on the…
Read Full ArticleCD REVIEW: Seattle’s Barbara Ireland turns back time on delicious new disc
Seattle singer-songwriter Barbara Ireland’s new album is a world apart from the glam-punk she once performed as a member of The Fags and other bands.…
Read Full ArticleCD REVIEW: ‘Ain’t Nothin’ Like Christmas’ with Shelby Lynne
With the launch this year of her own recording label, Everso Records, Grammy-winning singer-songwriter Shelby Lynne was finally free to release a first-time Christmas CD…
Read Full ArticleCONCERT REVIEW: Deck the Hall Ball offers a raucous musical buffet
With surprise guests The Presidents of the United States of America, as well as such previously announced bands as Broken Bells, The Black Keys, Jimmy…
Read Full ArticleCharlie Louvin and Seattle’s Mark Pickerel share musical roots
By MIKEL TOOMBS There are at least two United States of Americana events to note this week. Just in time for Veterans Day, Charlie Louvin,…
Read Full ArticleSeattle meets Iceland in free Seattle City of Music Festival concert
Sister cities Seattle and Reykjavik, Iceland, are coming together for a unique showcase of live music at 8 p.m. Friday, Nov. 5, at the Crocodile…
Read Full Article