Capitol Hill
Gas prices may be up, but the music is going down close to home this weekend — at the Capitol Hill Block Party.
No worries, no driving. No need to head to The Gorge or Marymoor Park or any other distant venue. It’s right here in Seattle’s backyard — perfect for a rock ‘n’ roll “staycation.”
The indie- and underground-rock event is Friday and Saturday in the hot nightclub district along East Pike Street between 12th Avenue East and Broadway.
Destination rock festivals have proliferated across the country in recent years. But Block Party is a smaller version of such behemoths as the Sasquatch! Music Festival at The Gorge, the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in Indio, Calif., and Lollapalooza in Chicago.
“To me, it feels a little bit like the small cousin of a Coachella or something,” said David Meinert, who co-produces the festival with Seattle club owner Marcus Charles.
“It doesn’t have a big Rage Against the Machine or Prince or anything like that, but as far as the cool, more independent, up-and-coming bands, it’s a pretty good showcase.”
That’s an understatement.
Among the cool national acts are Vampire Weekend, Girl Talk, The Hold Steady, Chromeo and Denver-based quartet DeVotchKa.
“I’ve been trying to book them for years,” Meinert said of DeVotchKa, “and we got them when they’re the biggest they’ve ever been. This is like the fourth year in a row that we’ve tried to book them. I’ve been a big fan of theirs for years.”
DeVotchKa, which takes its name from a Russian word for “young girl,” started out as the backing band for Dita Von Teese’s burlesque troupe before scoring the soundtrack for the movie “Little Miss Sunshine.” The group has been blowing up since the album “A Mad and Faithful Telling” was released in March and recently was featured on the cover of Pollstar magazine, which tracks concert tours.
The foursome incorporates violin, horns, stand-up bass, accordion, bouzouki, sousaphone and theremin into a sound that blends Greek, Slavic, bolero, mariachi and Romani music styles with blazing American punk.
One of Block Party’s strengths is its focus on local bands, among them Fleet Foxes, Thee Emergency, Natalie Portman’s Shaved Head, Zeke, Voyager One, U.S.E., Feral Children and New Faces. The festival will be an education for anyone interested in hearing the hot new bands on the local scene.
The festival includes more than 50 bands on four stages: the Main Stage (all ages), Vera Stage (all ages), Neumo’s Neumos (21 and over) and King Cobra (21 and over). Havana will feature shows, as well, on both nights. Nearly a half-dozen food concessions supplement local restaurants. A beer garden is located near the Main Stage.
Neumo’s features “Sing Sing After Parties” at 11:30 each night. Friday’s lineup includes Pase Rock, Paul Devro and Pretty Titty, while Saturday’s lineup features Chromeo (performing a DJ set), Fourcolorzack and Pretty Titty.
Block Party lands smack-dab in the middle of an extremely busy summer for area music festivals. The event follows the Sasquatch! Music Festival, Northwest Folklife Festival, Georgetown Music Festival and SP20 (Sub Pop Records’ 20th anniversary concert bash).
Still to come are the KEXP Summer BBQ Aug. 9 at South Lake Union Discovery Center and the massive Bumbershoot festival Aug. 30 to Sept. 1 at Seattle Center.
“It’s crazy,” Meinert said.
Block Party is thriving at a time when the city seems to be cracking down on entertainment.
“I think we’re living in an unfortunate time in Seattle where the city government seems to be decidedly anti-night life and anti-entertainment,” Meinert said.
A portion of the proceeds from the festival will go to two nonprofit organizations: Home Alive, aimed at violence prevention, and the Vera Project, an all-ages music venue and recording studio run by youths.
IF YOU GO
Here’s the schedule for the Main Stage at 10th Avenue East and East Pike Street:
FRIDAY
Common Market, 4:30-5:15 p.m.
U.S.E., 5:30-6:15 p.m.
Menomena, 6:30-7:15 p.m.
Girl Talk, 7:45-8:45 p.m.
Les Savy Fav, 9:15-10:15 p.m.
Vampire Weekend, 10:45 p.m.-midnight
SATURDAY
Kay Kay and His Weathered Underground, 2-2:45 p.m.
The Cave Singers, 3:15-4 p.m.
Kimya Dawson, 4:30-5:30 p.m.
Fleet Foxes, 6-7 p.m.
Chromeo, 7:30-8:30 p.m.
The Hold Steady, 9-10 p.m.
DeVotchKa, 10:30 p.m.-midnight
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