Scene and Unheard: Prince Rama, Lee Gamble, Childbirth, Jaill and more!

On any given weekend in Seattle, there are a million amazing shows to see - from jazz sets at coffee shops and orchestras at theaters, to a grunge shows in DIY spaces and major touring acts at any of our larger venues. Maybe this weekend you want to try something new; maybe you heard one song by this small electronic, folk, grunge group that you heard on Audioasis or from a friend; or maybe you’re just tired of what you’ve been previously listening to. Luckily for you, the PNW is ripe with local acts who perform in our city every day. Because we love the amazing diversity of venues, art spaces, producers, bookers, musicians, and talent, we’re going to make a few suggestions. This week we recommend Prince Rama at Rendezvous; Lee Gamble with Heatsick and Phine Gage at ETG; Gothic Tropic and Childbirth at Cairo; and Briana Marela at Heartland. 

 

Wednesday July 3rd:

Taraka and Nimai Larson were raised in a Hare Khrisna community, but the sounds of Prince Rama have little to do with happy hippie sunny days. The sisters are more interested in bending the ever breaking boundaries of music performance, ritual, and art. On their most recent album, Top Ten Hits From The End Of The World, the Larsons riff on 80s synth pop music by inventing 21 different bands and recording a song for each. Prince Rama's shows are a thick mire of occult chants and spiraling diffusive experiments that are as much the result of costuming as they are synth playing. They'll be joined by Estatic Cosmic Union, featuring Seattlite Aubrey Nehring's knee-deep wanderings through the trance inducing caves of psychedelia, as well as cabaret trip-hop trio Dionvox. More info here. Jewelbox Theatre, 9pm, 7$, 21+.

• Prince Rama:
• Estatic Cosmic Union:
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• Thursday July 4th:
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• On 4th of July, you could watch fireworks, or you could spontaneously combust due to internal heat from the amazing line-up at Electric Tea Garden. Berlin based label PAN has three underground electronic artists headlining this show: Lee Gamble, Heatsick, and NHK'Koyxen. I'm not even sure how, or where, or when to begin to describe the music you might encounter at this show. It will all be the kind of heavy electronic that draws not from the petty achievements of dubstep or mainstream success but from the kind of deep down rhythms that induce spectre-filled nightmares and booty shaking daydreams. Expect low light and haunting visuals, at least from the PAN artists above. These are already established electronic artists - and they will be joined by two of Seattle's established producers Phine Gage and Phaedrus. All in all, it'll be a chance to see some seriously almost historic music from a group of people who are as familiar with obscure synth classification as they are with a room full of bobbing heads. More info here. ETG, 10pm, 10$, 21+.
• Lee Gamble:
• Heatsick:
• Phine Gage:
• Phaedrus:
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• Friday June 5th:
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• Afro-carribean influenced, garage-twinged trio Gothic Tropic will be performing - probably barefoot from accounts of other shows - alongside Seattle's recent maternity ward escapees Childbirth and the heavy-hitting killer duo Haunted Horses - at Cairo. I mention the lineup because it's so great. Childbirth might represent the best of garage/pop rock with its trifecta of members from local bands Ponytime, Chastity Belt, and Tacocat, and while Haunted Horses might be a bit less socially anxious than gothic, the two supporting bands seem to blend the feelings of the headliner perfectly. Nicely curated as always, Cairo. More info here. Cairo,
• Gothic Tropic:
• Childbirth:
• Haunted Horses:
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• Saturday June 6th:
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• Last time I wandered into Hollow Earth (following a friend whose music taste I trust) on a Sunday night, I was so pleasantly surprised to encounter Briana Marela. She quietly set up her various pedals and board alongside her laptop in the front of the room, and then, bathed in gold lights from the twinkle lights around her, she began her set. Unafraid to take a moment to tune her voice - in fact this seemed to part of the show - she eased the audience into an underworld of overwhelming looping recollections and dreams. In the middle of her set, I had disappeared. As easily as she makes you fall under her compositional spells, she leads you out. Her lyrics crystallize through the haze until the web is broken. For this show, she'll be supported by the creator of Adventure Time' "Island Song", Ashley Eriksson, plus Olympia via Arizona multi-instrumentalist Stephen Steinbrink and Filardo (iji and BOUQUET). More info here. Heartland, 8pm, all ages, no booze no bullies!
• Briana Marela:
• Ashley Eriksson:
• Stephen Steinbrink:
• Filardo:
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• Sunday June 7th:
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• "Jaill is a lot like other bands," proclaims Sub Pop - and though they indeed are, I can't think of anything funner than hanging out making fun of their pillowcases alongside members of pop-outfit Dude York and Chastity Belt, both of whom I have been sitting on the edge of my seat waiting for new material from. Jaill will bring the scrappy enthusiasm, Cosmonauts got that young edge old enough to shred vibe, paired with always excellent Seattle's finest ladies in Chastity Belt's (is that a club?) and the chill happy sarcastic hilarious Dude York - we've got a party. More info here. Heartland, 8pm, $5 (donation), all ages, no booze no bullies!
• Jaill:
• Cosmonauts:

 

Honorable Mention:

In the mood for moody rampant storming metal? The Body and Subservient Fuck will be absolutely annihilating it at Black Lodge on Wednesday, July 3rd, at 8pm. Heartland will also host Pets, Japanese Guy and Slashed Tires on Friday, July 5th, if you're feelin' weird and silly and no booze no bully-in'. If you find yourself wondering what to do this Sunday, definitely hit up the two-years-going-strong awesome ArtAche Market at Chop Suey for some excellent vintage finds as well as tunes from Chris Cheveyo of Rose Windows.