There are two reasons why I wanted to highlight a recent article from Seattle Met magazine. One is pure, selfish, hey, lookit me! Quoted in print. Yeah, yeah, whatever, you don't care about that.
More importantly than that little bit of vanity is the fact that the Kindiependent collective in Seattle, beyond the energy and coordination benefits it provides to its members, merely by existing provides another hook for someone to write about them. And the article itself goes a little deeper (or at least gives more details about the individual artists) than the typical "they make music for kids?!?" article. Worth a read if you're not familiar with the Seattle kindie scene (which really is awesome), or even if you are and think that your own area might merit similar coverage -- check it out here.
Ah, Recess Monkey, look what you've done now. You've proven beyond all doubt that Mayor Monkey is indeed your secret weapon. Clearly the slightly bumbling and affable nature of Hizzoner is just a front, judging by the cover of the band's upcoming release FLYING!. That's a great photo, boys. (The rest of the album art is from Jarrett Krosoczka, creator of the Lunch Lady comics).
Tracklisting for the Tor Hyams-produced album, due out June 21 -- along with the listing of a gazillion guest stars -- is after the jump.
The latest video from Seattle's Not-Its crams in a little chit-chat, primping, driving, and gratuitous slo-mo mugging at the Seattle Center before wrapping up one of 2010's hardest-rocking kindie songs. Takes barely 2 minutes - perfect for even the most short-attention-spanned amongst your family.
The Not-Its - "Green Light, Go!" [YouTube]
Attention rest of the country, Seattle's Kindiependent collective has just raised the bar again. I'd heard that Caspar Babypants, Recess Monkey, and the Harmonica Pocket jammed one recent Sunday. The result - "Vagabond Worms" - is even better than I anticipated. Update: Download the track at the Kindiependent website!
Caspar Babypants, Recess Monkey, The Harmonica Pocket - "Vagabond Worms" [YouTube]
The time is at hand for the KidVid Tournament 2010 Championship. From the beginning, this has been a very Seattle-focused tournament, like those years when the Big East or ACC gets a bajillion teams into the tournament and 3 teams into the Final Four for the NCAA basketball championships (or the WCHA in the Frozen Four). Except those teams generally don't cheer for or even assist their conference mates, as many of the Seattle bands did when they weren't actually competing against one another. As they are today.
This matchup pits a couple Seattle artists against each other for the right to be called KidVid Tournament 2010 Champion -- Caspar Babypants and his "Itsy Bitsy Spider" video from More Please! against Brian Vogan and "That's How a Pumpkin Grows" from his Little Songs album. That title and $3.75 will get you coffee at Starbucks, I suppose.
Feel free to leave your thoughts in the comments below, but the official results are based on the poll at the bottom of the page. One vote per person, please. One vote per person! (Please note, however, that I've got the IP monitoring cranked up on high so if you vote at a company and someone else there votes first, your IP may be blocked. Sorry for the inconvenience.) Votes due by noon tomorrow (Tuesday) East Coast time (or 9 AM Seattle time).
Finally, I'm happy that so many fans of both artists are voting, but please remember to keep your comments respectful, and, heck, watch both videos. They're both entirely different (simplicity, style, song type), but each quite effective. You might just find a new artist worth following.
Caspar Babypants - "Itsy Bitsy Spider" [YouTube]
Brian Vogan - "That's How A Pumpkin Grows" [YouTube]
I mentioned a few weeks back the Bumbershoot offspring Youngershoot, and now it's here. The Seattle fest features Central Services Board of Education hitting the stage in about a half-hour, with Recess Monkey tomorrow, but here for your viewing pleasure is The Not-Its from Saturday's set playing one of the best tracks from their We Are the Not-Its! debut, "Shadows." Besides the fact that the brought their horn section to the show, I love the fact that the female trumpet player also donned a poofy skirt to blend in.
The Not-Its - "Shadows" (Live at Bumbershoot)
There are two reasons why I wanted to highlight a recent article from Seattle Met magazine. One is pure, selfish, hey, lookit me! Quoted in print. Yeah, yeah, whatever, you don't care about that.
More importantly than that little bit of vanity is the fact that the Kindiependent collective in Seattle, beyond the energy and coordination benefits it provides to its members, merely by existing provides another hook for someone to write about them. And the article itself goes a little deeper (or at least gives more details about the individual artists) than the typical "they make music for kids?!?" article. Worth a read if you're not familiar with the Seattle kindie scene (which really is awesome), or even if you are and think that your own area might merit similar coverage -- check it out here.
Ah, 
