So, it’s been six months since the Cafe Racer shootings. Seems like a lifetime ago and yet again, it seems like yesterday. We are playing two shows in December to raise money for the families and lone survivor of the shootings. I think right now, more than ever, these folks need our help and it gives us the opportunity to remember our friends, honor their memory and have a good time drinking and singing!
The first of these events is the Tom Waits Tribute Night where we’ll be playing two Waits songs alongside a bevvy of musical homies. I think we go on around midnight but the whole night should be great and it all happens at Conor Byrnes on Friday, December 7.
Tonight, The Bad Things will be headlining our favorite dive bar on Capitol Hill with the great Franz Nicolay, formerly of the Hold Steady and World/Inferno Friendship Society. Also on the bill will be some sweet orchestral pop courtesy of Seattle’s Exohxo. This is a show not to be missed and we can’t wait to see all your smiling, drunken faces! Bad Things go on around midnight….as it should be!
Franz is on tour for his new album “Do The Struggle.” Here’s a little sneak peak of what’s in store for you all this evening.
I was just sitting here putting together the set list for Monday’s show with Firewater and thinking how lucky I am to share the stage with a major musical influence for the second time.
Back when I was in A Midnite Choir, there weren’t a lot of gypsy punk or klezmer punk or steampunk or punk cabaret or whatever-the-fuck-you-want-to-call-them bands. There was some interesting stuff coming out of Denver like 16 Horsepower, the Denver Gentlemen and Devotchka, some cool stuff from Boston, mainly Reverend Glasseye and his Wooden Legs, a few great bands out of the South like the Pine Hill Haints, the collection of weirdness that was starting to assemble in the Pacific Northwest….and, of course, New York had Firewater!
The Bad Things have a show coming up on October 1st with the amazing band Firewater at the Crocodile. Don’t miss this show. These two bands couldn’t complement each other more, and the combined entertainment will prove a rare, and likely magical night. Tickets are $15 in advance, and available here.
I met with Jimmy “the Pickpocket” Berg, lead singer and accordion player for The Bad Things in Georgetown. I met him on his home turf to find out about how they are finding their way in the wake of two disasters. The Bad Things are post-apocalyptic depression era music. What they do crushes your heart and gives you a new one made out of whiskey. They’re high in the running for the most fun live show in Seattle any night they play. Though this past year has been fraught with tragedy, they are powering through with the help of the community. Continue reading →
So, we’re heading into the last two weeks of our Fire Fundraising Campaign on IndieGoGo and we’re pretty far from our goal. We still have lots of equipment to replace and an upcoming release on the horizon so we still need all the help we can get. In an effort to encourage more folks to contribute we are offering a couple great incentives.
First one is for our fans and supporters in the great city of New Orleans. Our friends in Freaksheaux to Geaux, a musical, vaudevillian, circus, magic, burlesque show have offered to help out by offering guest list spots to any NOLA-based or NOLA bound Bad Things fan who contributes to the IndieGoGo campaign. All you have to do is e-mail freaksheaux@gmail.com after you contribute and they’ll add you to the list of the show of your choice. Their upcoming show on Friday, October 26th will feature Bad Things co-conspirator La Petite Mort and dear friend Eliza Rickman. Here’s their list of other Coming Attractions and below is a little taste of their incredible show.
For all you Seattle based fans, we are offering seriously discounted tickets to our Halloween show, the 9th Annual Cabaret Macabre for all IndieGoGo contributors. How that will work is, once you contribute to the campaign, we will send you a discount code that you will enter on the ticket page to reveal the secret discounted price. This is only available until September 26th, when the campaign ends so get yours today. You can pick up tickets right over here.
And, to everyone that’s contributed so far, we love you and can’t express our appreciation enough.
Thanks to Tony Fulgham of Jackrabbit for the amazing artwork for Friday night’s show at the High Dive. I know it’s been hot Seattle, but it’s about to get much hotter! RSVP here.
Usually we take the month of August off. In fact, in the past, we’ve taken most of the summer off, but this summer kicked off with a bang….in a bad way…and we found ourselves playing a ton in June, which led to us booking a show in July, which led to us booking two shows in August, so no rest for the wicked or the bad….things that is.
We played Big Al Brewing in White Center last year as part of their Summer Concert Series and had an absolute blast so we were honored to be asked back. We’ll be gracing their stage this Saturday, August 4th. It’s just us all night, or at least until 10pm with things kicking off around 6:30pm. Because they are technically a tasting room, they can have kids there and adults can drink as well so it’s a great deal for south end parents: free show, all-ages, adult beverages, surly drunks with accordions and banjos on stage, food carts and Zippy’s Burgers down the street. Plus, we’ve been known to bump our favorite 60s and 70s ska, rocksteady and reggae classics between sets so it’s a guaranteed good time. Hope to see you all there.
Now, I know a lot of you don’t live in the south end and adhere to a later schedule and are adverse to the presence of children. Don’t worry, we understand. That’s why we were excited to get added to this last minute bill with our good buddies from Portland, Sassparilla at the High Dive on Friday, August 17. This will be your more typical Bad Things gig with us headlining in the wee hours after way too many PBRs, Jim Beams on the rocks and…ahem…herbal performance enhancements. It’s always tough to follow Sassparilla because they put on a kick-ass show. Plus, opening the night will be the really high-quality twang of Jackrabbit, who we are new to but already big fans of. So, despite having to weave through the Friday night douchebags in Fremont to get to the High Dive, this is guaranteed to be a kick-ass night of amazing drinking music. Check out this video of Sassparilla busking at Folklife last year and you’ll get an idea of what I’m talking about.
Thanks to our photographer friend Isaac Miranda for this truly chilling and moving slide show featuring the Bad Things’ classic “The Breaking.” Thanks man! We appreciate it.
So, it’s been six months since the Cafe Racer shootings. Seems like a lifetime ago and yet again, it seems like yesterday. We are playing two shows in December to raise money for the families and lone survivor of the shootings. I think right now, more than ever, these folks need our help and it gives us the opportunity to remember our friends, honor their memory and have a good time drinking and singing!
The Bad Things 