Seattle music scene plays on despite ‘constant roller coaster’

It's been a rough couple of years for the live music scene in Seattle. The pandemic ground just about everything to a halt for a long time. Then just as things were getting more normal, delta hit, and then omicron.

KUOW’s Kim Malcolm reached out to Seattle Times writer Michael Rietmulder for an update on the area music scene, news about a revamp for Bumbershoot, and suggestions for upcoming concerts.

Rietmulder says most venues are open, but more tours are canceling, and some local bands are pulling out of shows over Covid concerns. Overall, he says the music scene is in much better shape than before vaccines arrived, but no one in the sector is breathing easy yet.

Bumbershoot reboots

A newly formed group is taking the reins. They're called New Rising Sun. I think they really want to make Bumbershoot a little funky again, bring back some of the Bohemian spirit to the event that some folks have said they've lost. They also want to elevate the arts component, because this is a music and arts festival. And they are trying to drastically lower ticket prices by soliciting corporate and philanthropic donations. The big Labor Day festival will not be back this year. Folks will have to wait until 2023 for that, but the new group is planning more year-round events.

L.A. Witch at Tractor Tavern

This Los Angeles garage rock band is no stranger to Seattle music fans. They’re signed to a Seattle label, Suicide Squeeze Records. They’re a power trio with very thick desert rock riffs, and a little psychedelic. It's a very Friday night band, if you will.

Seattle Symphony marks the 80th anniversary of Executive Order 9066

This Benaroya Hall concert commemorates the 80th anniversary of the order that authorized the incarceration of thousands of Japanese Americans during World War II. The performance will open with a symphony from Seattle composer Paul Chihara, who as a child spent several years in the internment camps with his family. Then Kishi Bashi, a very adventurous violinist/multi-instrumentalist who was born in Seattle, will join the symphony to perform his Improvisations on EO9066.

Listen to the interview by clicking the play button above.