Category Archives: Shows

Kicking 2026 Off With A Bang!

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How is it 2026 already? Feels like 2025 flew by in a horrible, dystopian flash. Here’s hoping 2026 is a little more….hopeful?

Good news is, we are going to be playing a ton in the first half of the year. We’re kicking things off on Sunday, January 18th with a Bad Things Trio (accordion/banjo/upright bass) show at Ballard’s Old Stove Gardens. It’s an all ages, afternoon show and we’re going on around 6pm PST, so great news to all the old timers.

Then, on Saturday, February 14th, yes, Valentine’s Day, we’re going to be hosting an epic cabaret night featuring us, The Party Cats, burlesque by Jenny Penny and Jimmy the Pickpocket (aka DJ Pickpocket) will be spinning weird and wonderful love songs from his extensive 45 collection. The Bad Things set will feature love songs from throughout our career and many we haven’t played in over a decade. We’re talking: “The Breaking,” “Bonnie To My Clyde,” “Can’t Get Enough of Love,” “Twilight,” and even a cover of our old buddy Drew’s epic “Zorno’s Waltz” as performed by Circus Contraption and God’s Favorite Beefcake. After the “love” set, Jenny will do some more burlesque and we’ll finish off with a short set of Bad Things “classics.”

It’s at Tim’s Tavern in White Center. They have been going through some tough financial times, so be sure to support them by buying tickets to this show and donating to their fundraiser here. They are a valuable asset to the south end’s live music scene so we got to be sure we don’t lose them.

Tickets go on sale at 10:00AM PST today, so pick yours up here.

We’ll be returning to Portland in early March for a full band set, and we’ll be back to Carnation and Ballard with our “For Shane” tribute nights to The Pogues and Shane MacGowan, just in time for St. Patty’s Day.

2026 is shaping up nicely. Get those tickets, save Tim’s and we’ll see you out there. Cheers!

Back To Our Busker Roots – Walk Don’t Run Festival This Saturday!

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Back in the day, like 2001/2002, it was a common sight to catch me and Mad Wilcox playing our songs in the Pike Place Market by the gyro stand. Our first band Midnite Choir also busked regularly and in those days, if you weren’t in the market, you’d get driven off by business owners, security and police. That never deterred us as it was a great way to test out new songs and see which ones actually got folks to stop and listen.

Well, this Saturday, we return to those roots, sort of. Unlike the Seattle at the turn of the century, downtown has become much more of a cultural hub. Buskers are regular sights, even outside the market and there are festivals like Walk Don’t Run, that attempt to inject art into every nook and cranny of the downtown corridor.

Hosted by the folks at Shunpike, a long-running Seattle arts institution, WDR is an “arts marathon,” meaning folks purchase a free ticket and walk along a pre-determined path through downtown with arts experiences activated as you continue down the path. It starts in Pioneer Square at noon and ends in Belltown at 6pm. We will be closer to the beginning at the Norton Building Plaza. Our set will run from 1pm to 3pm. We will be lightly amplified but it will still be a return to our sidewalk days. We have tailored our set to songs that work best in a busking environment, so expect some covers, some oldies and some newer songs we’ve been working on. Check us out but stay all day, walk the marathon and marvel at all the talent that resides in our Emerald City.

Punk! Folk! Rock & Roll! Coming to The Tractor on August 17.

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2025 has been light on shows as we’ve been hyper-focused on finishing the fifth Bad Things album. But, after a kick-ass show at The Clock Out Lounge last weekend, our live show is back and better than ever. So, we are excited as hell to announce our next show on Sunday, August 17 at The Tractor Tavern in Ballard with The Drowns and Danbert Nobacon opening!

As most of you know, we’re GenX-ers and all of us were raised on punk rock in the 80s and 90s. Punk is core to our sound and attitude and we’ve always considered ourselves a “punk folk” band, though the definition has morphed over time. Danbert Nobacon and Chumbawamba were certainly one of the first bands within the anarcho-punk scene that incorporated folk influences so they started me down the path of discovering rebel songs throughout history.

The Drowns may not incorporate folk, but folk imagery runs deep in their lyrics with references to Woody Guthrie in their ode to Seattle, “Battery Street.” Honestly, as an old fart in his 50s, there’s very little contemporary punk that gets me excited like the old records did, but The Drowns are an exception and nothing if not exciting. They mine some great eras of rock and roll, mixing the pub rock/proto-punk of bands like Dr. Feelgood and Rose Tattoo, with the singalong choruses of 70s/80s street punk like Cock Sparrer and The Business and a little Chuck Berry thrown in for extra measure. It’s high energy, melodic and they rock the fuck out of it live. They joined us for our Shane MacGowan tribute, and I found out they were long-time Bad Things fans. We’ve been itching to collaborate ever since, so here we go. Also, this is their only Seattle show this year!

Tickets go on sale today at 10AM PST, so get yours now before they’re gone!

cheers,

Jimmy the Pickpocket

The Bad Things Vaudeville Show Returns in 2025!

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What a strange, dystopian year we’ve had here in America. Doesn’t even feel fun to joke about the apocalypse when it feels so damn close. But, those of us in the thick of it still find time to dance, drink and celebrate. Human nature suggests we enjoy partying while everything burns around us.

In the spirit of hopeless revelry in the face of doom, we proudly present the return of The Bad Things Vaudeville Show! We did this first in partnership with Chaotic Noise Marching Corps last fall at Miller’s in Carnation. We decided we needed to bring it to our favorite venue in Seattle, The Clock-Out Lounge and they were gracious enough of have us. Joining the madness will be The Black Hearts Society, Leslie Rosen and our old partner in crime Miss J9 Fierce.

This is our first show in Seattle in 2025 and actually our first show period since being holed up in the studio all winter recording our forthcoming new record. We’ll be featuring some of these songs alongside Bad Things classics and a couple songs with Chaotic Noise. Point is, it’ll be a night to remember and you’d be an idiot to miss it. Don’t be an idiot!

Get your tickets here before they’re gone. We will also have a fresh new batch of Bad Things accordion-logo t-shirts and every t-shirt order gets a free Bad Things CD of their choice! What a deal. See you soon kiddies.

Last Bad Things Show of 2024 Will Be in Portland!

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It’s been about a year since we last played the Rose City. Before that it had been years, so it’s exciting to be visiting Portland frequently again. A few years back, Bad Things co-founder Mad Wilcox moved to Portland and joined a great band, The Bone Saints. Definitely in the same spirit as The Bad Things with acoustic-based folk-ish music and dark subject matter. They formed during the pandemic and brought along all its feelings of loneliness, desperation and fear. Can’t think of a better opening act.

This will be our first time at the White Eagle and we got an hour plus set in store for you. Our focus has really been on our new material and we’ve added a female vocalist since our last Portland visit so come see Bad Things 3.0. We head into the studio in early 2025, so next time we visit, hopefully we’ll have a new record in tow.

Space is limited so get your tickets here before they’re gone. Can’t wait to see all our Rose City friends this weekend!

The Bad Things and Slim Cessna, Together Again! This Saturday.

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Ah, that Denver sound. Enraptured me in the late 90’s. Those first couple of 16 Horsepower records, Devotchka’s first records, the Denver Gentlemen, Tarantella and of course, the great Slim Cessna’s Autoclub. Like us, in a category all to themselves. Like some sort of fucked-up cult revival, that also feels earnest and genuine. Excellent songwriting chops and unparalleled live. We will be taking the middle support slot THIS SATURDAY, October 19. Get your tickets here. We will be playing a short set of mostly new songs to get you warmed up.

We’ve opened for them many times but it’s been six or seven years and we’re excited to hear how they’ve evolved, because they are always evolving. Also, first time playing The Clockout Lounge, a venue that has been impressing me with their bookings lately.

Don’t forget that we will be playing a longer set, two in fact, at The Swedish Club on Friday, November 1st. This show is free, all-ages, full bar for 21+ with ID and hosted in a mid-century modern time capsule with a panoramic view of Lake Union and downtown. Plus, three giant free parking lots…on Queen Anne! Not to be missed. Donations gladly accepted and dressing up seems like the right thing to do. We’ll be starting at 7pm and going until 9pm. See you there.

Last Seattle Bad Things Show Until November!

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That’s right, we’ve been hitting Seattle hard this year getting the new songs and band members up to speed but it’s time to take a break. We have another batch of songs we got to get ready before recording in early 2025, so it’s back to writing mode. But, don’t worry, we have a fun return to Seattle planned for November 1st at the legendary Swedish Club. Stay tuned on that.

The show at Tim’s is not to be missed though. Not only are we joined by our old friends and former practice space roomies The Jesus Chords and the always incredible Vito, but the show is all ages, meaning my kid can come and yours too if you have ’em. What better way to warp their young minds?

The show also has to be wrapped up by 10pm due to noise curfew in White Center so even better for us old folks. But that means we’ll be going on much earlier than normal. I would plan on us hitting the stage by 8:30pm or so.

Advanced tickets are only $10 so I would get those here.

We’re going to be focused on some other regional markets when we return in the fall so look for shows in Carnation, Portland and Tacoma, hopefully. Live outside of Seattle and want The Bad Things to come to your town? Let us know and we’ll try and make it happen.

Happy Summer everyone! Hope you can come party with us on the 15th.

P.S. We will have our amazing new stickers available to hand out. Please vandalize at will and spread the love. We are also going to have prints of Kathy Moore’s amazing poster art for sale. This one’s a framer for sure.

Back to the Market with the Rusty Cleavers – April 27th

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That’s right, we return to our birthplace, the Pike Place Market for a special night of junkyard cabaret and “queer-loving, Black Lives Matter proclaiming, progressive pickin’ from the heart of Tacoma” from The Rusty Cleavers. Here they are doing their bluegrass tribute to The Misfits.

We have a decades-old history with The Rabbit Box Theatre, having played our first shows there when it was Patti Summers Cabaret and then flexing our theatrical muscles in the aughts with the Can Can Castaways. Tonight we promise a night of new songs, favorite covers and timeless classics.

We will also have copies of the amazing poster art from Kathy Moore. These are definitely frame-worthy and continues our tradition of collectible posters for the Rabbit Box shows from Kathy. Get yours and get some Bad Things on your walls.

Tickets are $15 advanced / $18 day-of-show so get yours now at: https://givebutter.com/TheBadThings-April-27

For Shane!

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Tomorrow night we play tribute to a man that influenced this band probably more than any other. Shane MacGowan’s band The Pogues’ ability to sound like a traditional Irish band infused with punk rage and rebellion was exactly what I wanted to do with The Bad Things. It was too easy to stick a loud electric guitar in the mix to give it a “punk” feel….Shane did it all with words and attitude. He distilled Irish folk music down to its core and overlayed stories of excess (of all kinds), misery, romance and horror. We didn’t pick Irish music as our base but pretty much took everything else from what that late great London band taught us.

Tomorrow night we will be joined by an all-star cast of Seattle musicians and singers who will each pay tribute to this great man in their own way. We will be headlining the last part of the show and will have a host of guest singers and musicians joining us for our favorite Pogues tunes. Expect much singing and drinking….let’s make Shane proud.

This is looking like it will sell out so if you want to attend, we HIGHLY RECOMMEND BUYING ADVANCED TICKETS!

All proceeds will go to two charities that Shane raised money for and donated to:

One in Four – a charity organization that helps end the trauma of childhood sexual abuse in Ireland.

Childline – a 24/7 hotline that Irish children can use in crisis.

We’re Back! And in Georgetown!

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It’s gonna feel good to come home! Fifteen years ago, The Bad Things started making noise in a Georgetown factory and performing ramshackle live performances at the local watering hole, the 9LB Hammer.

Georgetown was a different place then but the Hammer remains true to the neighborhood’s original spirit. A spirit which birthed this band. A little punk. A little blue collar. A little weirdo. And a little old-timey.

It’ll be just us all night long so expect a night of dusting off old nuggets from the past, playing old favorites and throwing in a few covers here and there. As always at the Hammer, there is no cover so that means you have no excuse not to be there. We always seem to play well when we’re there. Feels like home.

This is also your only chance to see us this fall as we are not doing Cabaret Macabre this year. As sad it is to say, that event ran its course, had a good run but don’t worry, we’ll be doing more cabaret-themed shows in the future. We’re not that easy to get rid of.

See everyone on Saturday, September 23rd at the 9LB Hammer – 6009 Airport Way South. If you want, go ahead and RSVP on the Facebook page.