SIFF 2007

Bridget and I plan on seeing a lot of SIFF movies this year. I am going to attempt to keep track of all the movies I watch on the following IMDB list, and give the movies a simple 1 to 10 rating.

There are several SIFF movies I would like to attend this year, but have a scheduling conflict. This is where living so close to Scarecrow and having a region free DVD player is beneficial. Media-Babe posted a list of SIFF movies that are available at Scarecrow in her journal:

Aachi & Ssipak
After This Our Exile
Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves
Alive
Angel-A
Ballets Russes
The Banquet
Battle of Wits
Berlin - Symphonyt of a City
Big Combo
The Bothersome Man
Captian Blood
Confession of Pain
The Damned Don't Cry
Dasepo Naughty Girls
Day Watch
Exiled
Goya's Ghosts
Ghosts
Gunga Din
Hula Girls
Manufactured Landscapes
Max Havelaar
No Regret
Paris je'taime
The Perverts Guide to Cinema
Red Road
Remains of the Day
Sanctuary: Lisa Gerrard
Severance
Sway
Them
Tugboat Annie
Waiting for Happiness
Woman on the Beach
The Year of Living Dangerously
Yossi & Jagger

Also, here is a list of movies that plan to be in theaters soon after SIFF:

Knocked Up (wide) … … 1 June
Severance (Varsity) … … 1 June
Paris Je T’Aime (Seven Gables) … … 1 June
Paprika (Landmark) … … 8 June
Surf’s Up (wide) … … 8 June
Crazy Love (Landmark) … … 15 June
Eagle vs. Shark (Landmark) … … 22 June
Golden Door (Landmark) … … 22 June
La Vie en Rose (Landmark) … … 22 June
Day Watch (Landmark) … … 22 June
Angel-A (Landmark, perhaps Varsity) … … 22 June
Red Road (Landmark) … … 22 June
Death at a Funeral (Landmark) … … 29 June
Evening (Landmark) … … 29 June
Rescue Dawn (Landmark) … … 13 July
Introducing the Dwights (Landmark) … … 13 July
Broken English (Landmark) … … 13 July
Lady Chatterley (Landmark) … … 13 July
Manufactured Landscapes (Landmark) … … 13 July
Vitus (Landmark) … … 20 July
Cashback (Landmark) … … 20 July
Black Sheep (Landmark) … … July?
Goya’s Ghosts … … Not yet set
The King of Kong … … 17 Aug
Rocket Science … … 17 Aug
Dans Paris … … Not yet set
Retribution? … … (not confirmed)
Fido? … … (not confirmed)

Mr. Tickets

Recently Phuong Cat Le from the Seattle PI asked me a few questions about how to get tickets for the article, Bummed you didn't get tickets? Try these tricks.

I shared with him a bunch of info, but here what was printed:

"Join the band... Well, not exactly. But signing up on the e-mail list of your favorite bands can help. Brian O'Neill wasn't able to get tickets to see the Strokes at the Crocodile last year, but on the day of the show he got a call from the Strokes fan club offering to put him on the guest list."

Thanks to my friend Nate Lepely (who lives in Japan) for the find...

Sasquatch 2007

Sasquatch was both fun and miserable. We left before noon on Saturday morning to catch Neko Case at 3:30, but there was a car accident on the pass that caused some major delays and ended up an hour and a half behind schedule. When we finally arrived, we quickly set up our tent and walked the mile or two to the Gorge entrance. We had already missed both Neko Case and Visqueen (déjà vu’), and arrived just in time to see a half a song of Ghostland Observatory at the Wookie Stage before they had an unfortunate power outage. We decided to stake our claim on the grass at the mainstage while Citizen Cope was playing. I trekked off to go see Grizzly Bear while Bridget held the fort during The Long Winters. We then ate some food and listened to some of Beastie Boys “instrumental” at the Wookie Stage. We then headed back down to the mainstage during Manu Chao while some hippies rolled around in the grass in front of us promting us to find a better spot. We stayed put during Arcade Fire which were absolutely amazing and stayed for most of Bjork (we were getting cold). Bjork was also spectacular.

On Sunday we woke up early and spend some of the morning driving around, which was nice. It took us about an hour to get through the entrance line for Sunday Sasquatch, which is something that really annoyed me. When we arrived we sat on the grass and watched Minus the Bear and Helio Sequence at the Yeti Stage. Part of that time was also spent sleeping and getting a little sun burnt… I went to see was The Polyphonic Spree at the Mainstage while Bridget went to see Tokyo Police Club at the Wookie Stage. However, the wind started to pick up during The Polyphonic Spree and the stage lights were blowing around like crazy. I started to worry about the bands safety. The event managers ended up shutting down the Polyphonic Spree down for safety reasons. They said the needed to let “nature take its course”. Bridget made the hilarious comment that it wouldn’t matter so much if the lights took out a couple members of the members of Polyphonic Spree because they would still be able to play (Note: the band consists of 24 members). I added that it wouldn't be hard for them to recruit some new members anyway (Note: they give off the impression of being a religious cult). I ran up to catch most of Tokyo Police Club as well as half of the Mainstage audience. Tokyo Police Club were good, but there ego must have grown huge because the crowd ballooned up (more than the Beastie Boys "instrumental" show the night before) once the Mainstage closed. I imagine Smoosh had a similar experience at their show.

The next several hours were spent undercover waiting to figure out if the main stage would reopen. From our location we were able to hear some of the Black Angels, which sounded more appropriate in the windy chaotic setting that it if they had played while sunny and cheery. Spoon finally went on about 2 hours late. I watched a little bit of the show (Bridget still undercover) but it was so cold and windy that we decided there was no point in being miserable and decided to drive home and miss Dandy Warhols (although they were playing while we were leaving and I did hear two of my favorite songs), Interpol, and Beastie Boys. I wonder how the show ever ended up.

It is two years in a row that we had to take off earlier than planned because of the miserable weather.

It seemed like Sasquatch was much more crowed than previous years and filled with way more annoying people. There were some improvements. The Wookie Stage was a much better stage this year and able to hold a larger capacity. The food and drinks were as pricey as always, but there did not seem to be any problems getting a cold beer or soda. It is probably the first year I ever bought a beer at the Gorge because there were no lines, the beer was cold, and you can actually bring the beer with you when walking around.

May 17th: Stuff Going On

Lots of great stuff going on here in Seattle this week. Here’s a look at some of the places I will try to be...
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Event: Miranda July @ Neumos FREE
Thursday, May 17th

Miranda July will be doing a reading at Neumos to promote her new book, No One Belongs Here More Than You.

If you have a few minutes, check out the promo site for the book.

This event is a Reading and Dance Party and also features Sarah Rudinoff, Becky Stark (of Lavender Diamond), “Awesome” and DJ Sam Rousso Sound System.

This event is FREE!
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Film: Once
Friday May 18th

On Friday we will be attending a special SIFF Screening of the film ONCE. I have been looking forward to seeing this movie.
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Music: Joy Wants Eternity
Thursday, March 17th @ Sunset Tavern
Saturday, March 19th @ Atlas Clothing

I heard the band Joy Wants Eternity playing a live on KEXP last week, and wanted to buy their CD immediately, however the CD had not come out yet.

Good news. They are playing a couple of CD Release shows this week.

They are playing Thursday, March 17th at Sunset Tavern and Saturday, March 19th at Atlas Clothing (I didn’t realize they had shows here!)

Highly suggested if you like bands like Explosions in The Sky and Mogwai. Look for them soon in the "Shoegazy Instumental Space-rock" section of your local record store.
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Event: U-District Street Fair
Saturday, May 19th and Sunday May 20th

The U-District Street Fair is this weekend. I have never been, but seeing that it takes place only 2 block from my house – I am definitely have to check it out. I don’t think we will move our car this weekend because parking is going to be crazy. I am not too excited about any of the performances, just looking forward to some good ole people watching and some foodies!
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Music: Ben Gibbard & David Bazan @ The Showbox
Sunday, May 20th and Monday May 21st

I am not a huge fan of singer/songwriter shows at the Showbox, but I am excited to see this show. I have a live recording somewhere of Ben Gibbard playing the 5th Floor Coffee house in Bellingham in 2001. I remember he played a Backstreet Boys cover.

We heart babies

My sister Laurie had her baby on Friday.

Apollo (middle name to be finalized) was born at 4:46 PM on May 11th. He weighed in at 8 lbs. and is 20.6 inches long.

First baby in the family. My parents are happy grandparents. I really couldn't top this Mothers Day present. Our annual "Mother Day Sizzler Extravaganza Brunch" was put on hold for this year. Maybe next year.

Speaking of babies, everyone and their sister is pregnant or having babies lately!

Sisters and Stuff

My sister Bridget came home this week after a long visit to Thailand and Vietnam. She must have been gone for a long time (about 8 months). It was great to finally see her.

She was initially going to stay in Vietnam for a few more months but she decided to come early. My parents have missed her like crazy... when she decided to come home early she wanted to surprise them. She showed up at the house last weekend, sat on the couch and waited for them to come home.

My parents just about had a heart attack when they saw Bridget. They thought they had seen a ghost or were going crazy or something.


Bridget's husband Josh will be coming back shortly as well (as soon as he can book a flight back to Seattle). Check out their travel blog on MySpace (Expedition Life).