0 GUEST VOCALS: Jake Vice of Smooth Sailing Tells Us About His Favorite Place to Rock the Fuck Out

One of the things we are going to be trying out here on SRG in 2013 is to open up the dialogue a little bit within the heavy music community of Seattle.  You know, get the opinions and feedback about this scene from people other than Nik, Jerry, and I (Jake).  We recently asked Jake Vice, of the endlessly entertaining Smooth Sailing, if he wanted to give some love to one of his favorite venues in town, and boy did he have something to say about it!  Hopefully, we all have this much fondness for one place in town or another.  This one in particular has been very supportive of the local scene, even releasing an amazing comp of many of the bands that have blown out its walls.  Enjoy!

What makes a city great? Cultural champions are hard to quantify. Guide books help. Museums rule. Local cuisine, a worthy quest. Rick Steves, a godsend. That being said, when I roll into a new city, foreign or domestic, I am looking for the Kraken Bar & Lounge of whatever town I am in.

The U-District staple the Kraken Bar & Lounge, formally the Galway Arms, has long been an ardent supporter of underground music (and I don't just mean that they will give anyone a chance and serve stiff goddamn drinks, although both are true). What I mean is that they have always had a very generous relationship with bands. All door money is split between the bands. Bands receive copious free drinks. They are extremely accommodating to weirdoes, socially inept customers/band members, and your stupid friend who always gets WAAAAAAY too fucked up.

Speaking of taking things for granted, many of us feel better giving a dollar to a Real Change seller than just any homeless person. Similarly, we can be guilted into paying $40 for a KUOW mug. We do these things because we like getting something, anything, for supporting a cause we believe in. Enter The Kraken: All Hands Lost benefit compilation.

This compilation, conceived by husband and wife team Ryan and Megan Murphy-Koreski, features 30 bands spanning the western United States. Obviously Seattle heavy, the bands represented come from as far away as Montana, San Diego and beyond! The Kraken has become a go to place for awesome local shows and a successful stop for touring bands who aren't yet selling out the Showbox or Tacoma Dome.

Haven't you ever wanted to support something, but you didn't because you were a cheap bastard who always has to feel they are getting the upper hand? Now's your chance! $5 dollars snags you thirty tracks that are a snapshot of current underground music. This is like a "NOW! That's What I Call Music 84" only awesome.

Make no mistake, the Kraken is a for profit business. But guess what? Business ain't easy folks. Your booze hound friends literally make it possible for you to keep playing in public. In that spirit, all the proceeds from this comp go straight to the Kraken. It's sort of like a bribe or kickback to keep them being as awesome as they are. Maybe it will help them buy a new PA system. Regardless, it will help ensure you can still set up that show for your friend's band from Omaha that no one has ever heard of.

But Jake, isn't this a punk and garage rock/beer metal bar that mostly helps those genres you may ask?. I answer, "No, dummy. Those are simply the pedigree of an amazing venue." Recent shows by Guns of Barisal, Into The Storm, Grenades, Evangelist, Smooth Sailing and more show that the Kraken is down to get down in the most delightful way.

Peep the comp at: http://thekrakencomp.bandcamp.com/album/the-kraken-all-hands-lost-a-compilation

Socially like the Kraken at: facebook.com/kraken.bar

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Be sure to check out what Smooth Sailing have to offer at their website: http://www.smoothsailingtheband.com/

And like them on facebook: https://www.facebook.com/#!/smoothsailingtheband?fref=ts