0 [BONNAROO 2010] The Moondoggies Rock Manchester, TN (Photos)

Words and Photos by Nik Christofferson

The Moondoggies | Photo by Nik Christofferson

I'm currently in recovery mode and still reeling a bit from our amazing weekend and the 4 day endurance test called Bonnaroo. We logged right around 50 hours in CenterRoo, rocking hard with showering and sleep an afterthought. It was also hot, very hot! We fought the heat anyway we could, but mostly just accepted the constant stream of sweat and never let it deter our trek from stage to stage which resulted in seeing over 55 performances.

One of my unbiased favorite performances of the weekend belonged to Seattle's own The Moondoggies, who rocked the Troo Music Stage at 5:40pm on Saturday evening. That particular stage was smaller and set up next to a cooling station, but none-the-less seemed to boast quite a few really fun performances from all sorts of relative unknowns over the course of the weekend.

I couldn't have asked for much of a better birthday than Saturday at Bonnaroo and damn if seeing The Moondoggies on a distant farm among a bunch of dirty like minded festival goers didn't make my 30th super special. I am also glad to say I wasn't the only person singing along. The smallish crowd on hand were stoked, and that made it all the better.

Caleb more than once announced they were from Seattle, which eventually drew humorous mocking from Kevin; proudly sporting his Easy Street records T-shirt. The set list was a typical "Don't Be A Stranger" foot stomper, but also featured a couple newish tracks like "What Took So Long", which will be included on their sophomore full length entitled, "Tidelands". Following the show, amidst the balmy 85 degrees, Kevin slipped back on his signature hat and flannel as the local folk rock fab four rode away in style on a festival supplied golf cart taxi.

This trip to Manchester, TN is only the begnning of a two week vacation that'll see me hitting Nashville, Savannah, GA, Columbia, SC, and finally New Orleans, LA before heading back to Seattle. I'll be posting what I can about Bonnaroo, but a majority will come when I return. For now enjoy these photos of The Moondoggies rocking Manchester, TN and Bonnaroo 2010, and keep an eye out for Moondoggies Bonnaroo videos as well.

The Moondoggies | Photo by Nik Christofferson

The Moondoggies | Photo by Nik Christofferson

The Moondoggies | Photo by Nik Christofferson

The Moondoggies | Photo by Nik Christofferson

The Moondoggies | Photo by Nik Christofferson

The Moondoggies | Photo by Nik Christofferson

0 [GIVEAWAY] Win a Copy of the Melvins' "The Bride Screamed Murder"!

We have a lot to celebrate in June, and so what better way than giving away some killer swag!

If you notice SRG has rolled out a brand spanking new look courtesy of GWISK design. This new webzine layout allows for the hard work and dedication of the SRG writers, photographers, and videographers to be more accessible without the constant post burial that comes with the typical blog format. It also makes it easier for you to stay up to date without having to spend a lot of time scrolling and searching through archives.

Also, SRG’s 1st anniversary is sneaking ever closer (officially June 19th), as is the annual 1-2 week celebration of myself that I like to call my birthday. This year I celebrate an age milestone by entering my “dirty 30’s”, and I’m doing it in typical rock guy fashion-- boarding a plane and flying to Tennessee for Bonnaroo 2010!

For 4 days I’ll be indulging in all that the ‘Roo has to offer or more specifically: The Melvins, Gwar, ISIS, The Black Keys, Stevie Wonder, Clutch, Ween, Japandroids, Against Me!, Baroness, and much much more, as well as bringing you full coverage of the festival in the form of photos, write-ups, and video diaries. It should be a grand time indeed.

In celebration of all these birthdays, the new-look SRG, and last week’s release of the much anticipated and heavy as fuck new Melvins record, “The Bride Screamed Murder”. SRG is giving away (2) copies of said album in CD format (Sorry no vinyl available yet) to our readers.

All you have to do is send an email to giveaways@seattlerockguy.com with “SNILVEM” in the subject and your name. The winners will be chosen at random and notified on Friday, the CD’s will be mailed via snail mail shortly thereafter.

Thanks for a great 1st year!

Cheers,

Nik and SRG Crew

0 [GREAT NEWS] The Moondoggies to Play Bonnaroo Festival!!

Photo courtesy: ©2009 Palmer Sather

I must say that even though I am predominately a metal and punk fan, and mainly choose to focus on harder edged music on SRG. I have a huge soft spot for a few local bands outside that realm that have not only made timeless records in recent times, but continue to amaze me live in concert. It's also not often you are in the right place at the right time, like in the case of the Moondoggies. I can say with certiantly that I was actually there from the beginning. Thanks to some ties from high school I was one of only a handful of witnesses to the Moondoggies' humble beginnings at multiple of those now legendary Blue Moon shows. The rest is an awesome story of record deals, sold out shows, local festival appearences, critical acclaim, and now a US Tour that I am thrilled to have been apart of thus far.

The saga of the Moondoggies only gets better as today the Bonnaroo Festival announced its Cafe Stage lineup, and guess who will be on the farm this June? Our very own Moondoggies!! Congratulations guys, such great news!! See for yourself here.

0 [SHOW ALERT] Melvins Return To Seattle in July + Other Stuff

The Melvins have been in studio completing their next record, and are already preparing for a descent sized tour of the US. Much of the tour will see the mighty Melvins sharing a bill with the mighty Isis, unfortunately that's not the case for the newly announced Seattle show on July 6th at Showbox at the Market. Do we really need Isis to play with the Melvins for it to be an awesome show? Nah. Just a nice to have.

The Melvins have also been confirmed to be taking part in this years Bonnaroo festival in early June along with Isis. I will be sure to bring you coverage from that sweaty pit in Manchester, Tennessee as well. There is no way I'm not gonna go balls out apeshit on that farm. You might end up seeing me on the Internet as one of those crazed mud people covered in Gwar blood, we shall see.

Below is the show info, a funny video of the SNIVLEM fucking around in the studio, a link to a killer video interview with Buzz (must watch), and the info on a recently released 12" EP.

That should get you up to date. Boink.

Showbox presents:

Melvins
w/ Totimoshi

Day: Tue, Jul 6, 2010
Days until show: 127
Doors open: 8:00 PM
Ages: 21 & Over
On sale: Sat, Mar 6, 2010 10AM
Ticket Prices*: $18.00 ADV-$20.00 DOS

Fun in the studio with the Melvins:

From The Nursery, artist/writer Bob Nickas' new label has just released a new Melvins 12" EP(as far as I know the label has no website). - "A limited edition three-track 12-inch EP from MELVINS featuring a long version of “Dies Iraea” and a remix of “It Tastes Better Than The Truth” on the A-side (performed by the line-up of KING BUZZO, DALE CROVER, JARED WARREN and COADY WILLIS in 2008), and a 9-minute version of The Wipers’ “Youth of America” on the flip (featuring Buzz, Dale and KEVIN RUTMANIS, recorded by TIM GREEN at Louder in 2000). None of these tracks have appeared on vinyl prior. Limited to 2,000 copies (with 1,500 for distribution) pressed on silver/gray vinyl, with artwork by STEVEN PARRINO. Named “Record of the Month” in the February, 2010 issue of Vice Magazine." Best place to get it right now is Midheaven.

Tracklisting:

1.Dies Iraea (long version)
2.It Tastes Better Than The Truth (remix)
3.Youth Of America

Also you must check out this awesome video interview with Buzz!