AltWeeklies Wire
James McMurty's Quixotic Questnew
Never-quite-was is more like it, as James McMurtry, the son of famed novelist and screenwriter Larry (Lonesome Dove) McMurtry, has yet to live up to the "next big thing" status bestowed on him when he burst out of the gates with his debut.
Seattle Weekly |
Mike Seely |
02-22-2010 |
Profiles & Interviews
Patti Smith on Christ, Cobain and Robert Mapplethorpenew

Twenty years after the death of her friend and lover, photographer Robert Mapplethorpe, punk-rock pioneer Patti Smith has released Just Kids, her memoir of the couple's bohemian, hardly-fed days in late-'60s New York City.
Seattle Weekly |
Chris Kornelis |
01-25-2010 |
Profiles & Interviews
Tooth & Nail’s Latest Cover Boy, a Grammy-Nominated Seattleitenew

Rural Appalachia is not generally regarded as a breeding ground for the arts, but it was in a house on a hillside in the West Virginia woods that Jordan Butcher cut his teeth as a rock-'n'-roll designer.
Seattle Weekly |
Brian J. Barr |
01-25-2010 |
Profiles & Interviews
Tags: Jordan Butcher, Tooth & Nail
Former Seattle Weekly Editor Aja Pecknold’s a Fleet Foxnew

As the paper's former clubs editor, Aja Pecknold churned out blurbs for The Short List, maintained her "Behind the Scenes" column, and penned some lively features. She now serves as point person for all things Fleet Foxes.
Seattle Weekly |
Brian J. Barr |
01-04-2010 |
Profiles & Interviews
Q&A: Jay Farrar on Kerouac, 'Big Sur'new
Son Volt frontman Jay Farrar has been reading Jack Kerouac since he was a teenager. But writing the music and lyrics for the soundtrack to One Fast Move or I'm Gone, a documentary about Kerouac's semi-autobiographical novel Big Sur, provided plenty of firsts for the songwriter.
Seattle Weekly |
Chris Kornelis |
12-07-2009 |
Profiles & Interviews
No Subject is Sacred for Vic Chesnutt, Including JFK's Sexploitsnew
All great artists are misunderstood in one way or another. When Vic Chesnutt is considered at all, it's often as a tragic figure whose past missteps continue to haunt him. But throughout his work a salty sense of humor can be found alongside much tenderness, rage, and self-doubt.
Seattle Weekly |
Brian J. Barr |
11-30-2009 |
Profiles & Interviews
Kenny G on Weezer, Barack Obama and 'Wayne's World'new
Kenneth Gorelick, the man who has moved more than 48 million records -- one of the most satirized men in pop culture -- recently gave us a call from Puerto Rico before a gig.
Seattle Weekly |
Chris Kornelis |
11-16-2009 |
Profiles & Interviews
Tags: Kenny G, smooth jazz
The Cave Singers Craft Songs Underground, After Cereal, in Seattlenew
"Living together makes it so we can play music together more than most people in bands probably do," says guitarist Derek Fudesco. That sense of ease and unhurriedness is the glue that holds the Cave Singers together as a band, and can be heard on their latest record, Welcome Joy.
Seattle Weekly |
Brian J. Barr |
10-19-2009 |
Profiles & Interviews
Tags: Welcome Joy, Cave Singers
Seattle Rapper D. Black Trades Rhymes for Religionnew
Most musicians with a brand new album would probably spend a Friday night at clubs or music venues, either playing a show or promoting their record. But Black isn't interested in any of that. In fact, he's ready to give up rap entirely.
Seattle Weekly |
Jonathan Cunningham |
09-14-2009 |
Profiles & Interviews
The Blue Scholars are Turning the Artist-Label Relationship On its Headnew

Seattle hip-hop group Blue Scholars have brokered a deal in which New York hip-hop label Duck Down Records signed to them. Whether that's the most accurate way to put it is debatable, but the message is clear: things are changing.
Seattle Weekly |
Jonathan Cunningham |
08-10-2009 |
Profiles & Interviews
The Stark Folk of Tiny Vipers is Not for Everyonenew

Jesy Fortino writes dark, contemplative songs that require serious focus from a listener. Actually, these songs (which she records under the moniker Tiny Vipers) don't require focus so much as they slowly entangle the listener like tentacles, pulling you in tight 'til you're left with no choice but to pay close attention.
Seattle Weekly |
Brian J. Barr |
07-20-2009 |
Profiles & Interviews
Shane Tutmarc Heads South to Search for His Soulnew
With his pencil-thin mustache and bowler hat, Tutmarc looks like he could be the star of a 1930s European film. But when he opens his mouth to sing, out comes a brass twang halfway between Dwight Yoakam and a young Steve Earle.
Seattle Weekly |
Brian J. Barr |
06-15-2009 |
Profiles & Interviews
Ziggy Marley's Family Businessnew
The reggae heir tapped the likes of Willie Nelson and Jack Johnson for a record aimed at toddlers, tykes, and their 'rents.
Seattle Weekly |
Jonathan Cunningham |
06-08-2009 |
Profiles & Interviews
Seattle Hip-Hop Act Merges Old-School Swagger with New-School Appealnew

Dyme Def lives on that thin line between cockiness and confidence. They fully embrace rap's boasting tradition, but they're comical enough with their punch lines and prose that it works.
Seattle Weekly |
Jonathan Cunningham |
04-27-2009 |
Profiles & Interviews
Branford Marsalis: King of Kingsnew
A revered jazz saxophonist's life with Leno, Sting, and a decade-old quartet.
Seattle Weekly |
Jonathan Cunningham |
03-23-2009 |
Profiles & Interviews