2022-06-11 Hardly Raining Vocalist Carrie Akre and her band performed at the Tractor Tavern in Ballard. Originally planned for August 2021, the show had been postponed due to a COVID exposure. Akre has fronted Seattle musical groups (Hammerbox, Goodness, The Rockfords) since the early grunge era. Her band at this show included Tim DiJulio (guitar, …
Carrie Akre (with Danny Newcomb) at Tractor Tavern Read More »
2022.06.08 Hardly Raining Orrin Evans and the Captain Black Big Band played the Royal Room for two nights, closing out the spring series of the recently formed Seattle Jazz Fellowship (SJF). Band members included Orrin Evans (piano), Mark Whitfield, Jr. (drums), Luques Curtis (bass), Caleb Wheeler Curtis (alto), Troy Roberts (tenor), David Gibson (trombone), Reggie …
2022-06-07 Hardly Raining Steel House performed at the Seattle Art Museum’s Plestcheeff Auditorium, in an event organized by Earshot Jazz. Personnel included Brian Blade (drums), Scott Colley (bass), and Cuong Vu (trumpet and electronics). Edward Simon (piano) was originally scheduled to play with the group but became ill, so Vu stepped in last-minute. The group’s …
Steel House: Brian Blade, Scott Colley, & Cuong Vu Read More »
2022-5-14 Hardly Raining Thousands gathered in Cal Anderson Park in support of abortion rights. Part of a Day of Action, the Seattle rally was one of 450 “Bans Off Our Bodies” events held nationally on May 14. The Planned Parenthood Action Fund and other reproductive-rights groups organized the events in response to a leaked U.S. …
2022-05-28 Hardly Raining After two years of a virtual-only festival format, the Northwest Folklife Festival returned in person at Seattle Center this Memorial Day Weekend. The theme of the 51st annual event is “Metamorphosis: in with the old, in with the new.” Across 16 stages, the in-person festival features music, dancing, film, visual art, buskers, …
Northwest Folklife Festival Returns to Seattle Center Read More »
2022-04-22 Hardly Raining U.S. President Joe Biden visited the Pacific Northwest for the first time during his presidency. After a stop in Portland yesterday, Biden continued on to Seattle to attend private fundraisers and sign an Earth Day executive order for the protection of old-growth forests. In the student union building of Green River College in Auburn, …
2022-04-14 Hardly Raining The Holden family carries a three-generation legacy in Seattle’s jazz scene. Although “Patriarch of Seattle Jazz” Oscar Holden has passed, the musical tradition continues through his descendants. Those include Oscar’s son, Dave Holden Sr., and Dave’s daughter, Darelle Holden. Both toured for decades, but they had never performed together—something Darelle regretted. That …
Continuing a Seattle Jazz Legacy: Dave and Darelle Holden Perform at Calluna Read More »
2022.03.05 Hardly Raining Hundreds of Seattleites marched and rallied yesterday in support of Ukraine. Sponsored by the Ukrainian Association of Washington State, the event included rallies at Seattle City Hall and Seattle Center, and a march through downtown along Fourth Avenue. At City Hall, organizers held a flash mob and called for air support in …
2021-12-05 Hardly Raining Thievery Corporation returned to Seattle for two nights at the Showbox Market, after a couple of pandemic years away. (See a review of their 2018 show in Back Beat Seattle.) Founded in 1995, Thievery Corporation offered a precise and high-quality show, with an endearing genuineness and a felt sense of joy in …
2021-09-23 Hardly Raining Negativland and SUE-C finally made it to the Clock-Out Lounge on September 23, 2021, a year and a half later than originally scheduled due to COVID-19. Negativland is an experimental Bay Area collective that includes founding members Mark Hosler and David Wills (AKA The Weatherman), as well as Jon Leidecker (AKA Wobbly). …
Negativland + SUE-C (with Blevin Blectum) at Clock-Out Lounge Read More »
