All That Was Built Here - Ten Years At The Old Fire House

If you grew up in the greater Seattle area and attended all ages shows during the era that this blog covers, chances are you spent some time at the Old Fire House teen center in Redmond. Today's offering is the Old Fire House benefit compilation that was released in the early 2000's and features 24 blasts of nostalgic noise. The track listing features pretty much every amazing local band I remember seeing there in those days: The November Group, Pretty Girls Make Graves, Sicko, Botch, Gas Huffer, Teen Cthulhu, Undertow, Waxwing, Akimbo, Automaton, Murder City Devils...etc

All That Was Built Here

Shoplifting - Cassette EP

Arthur has already posted some Shoplifting material in the past, but to get you up to speed, they were an art-drenched post-punk influenced band that was basically a rebranding of the original Chromatics. As Adam Miller took the reins of what had been his side project while in Soiled Doves, Devin Welch, Hannah Blilie, and Michelle Nolan recruited Chris Pugmire for vocals and some occasional bass work for the songs Michelle sang on. This is the CD-R "reissue" that was briefly available at shows. The original cassette, which announced their arrival, was passed around before their first show, and maybe available at that first show, in a Georgetown warehouse. I was at their second show, and many after that. They were instantly my second favorite band in town, moving up to the top spot when Display split up. 

Formed in 2002, the unpredictable nature of Shoplifting's early shows always kept them exciting. Once they passed out [optional] blindfolds to everyone, once they were joined by the local punk marching band The Infernal Noise Brigade. One time at the Vera, they didn't play any of their songs, but instead performed a Glenn-Branca-like improv set, where Hannah's drum kit was in the middle of the room, and everyone else, plus Jim Paschall and Jeremy Cooper from Display, played guitar from a different corner of the room, creating different blends of sound as you walked through the space. 

Eventually, Michelle moved out of town, and was replaced by Melissa Lock, who came up all the way from Australia. The band split up in (I think) 2006, when Hannah was asked to join the Gossip, then Chris and Mel moved to Australia, where they've started a family and a new band, New War. Devin has kept busy, starting now-defunct Past Lives with his old Blood Brothers buddies, as well as the not-defunct experimental dub project Flexions. Now a card-carrying Portlandian, he recently joined Vice Device.

Download the full EP with front and back scans here.

Vade - Self-titled cassette

Vade was the band that most of the members of The Blood Brothers were in prior to starting that band. They had three releases that I know of: a 7" called Saturn, a 12" split with Jough Dawn Baker and this here Self-titled cassette tape released on Henry's Finest. I lost my original copy of this thing years ago and had been searching for a replacement copy ever since. Thankfully though, last year someone let me know they were auctioning off a copy on ebay and I was able to get my grubby little hands on it.
So, here ye be:
Vade's 4 song Self-titled cassette (with cover and lyric sheet scans)

Sharks Keep Moving / The Kentucky Pistol - Split 7"

Download (in wav format with front & back cover scans)

The Blood Brothers / Stiletto - Split 7"

Today's download is the 1998 Home Alive benefit split featuring Stiletto and The Blood Brothers. The Blood Brothers provide two blasts of hyperactive screamy hardcore, backed by two tracks in the indie rocker, riot grrrl-ish vein by Stiletto.

Split 7" (in wav format with cover and insert scans)

The Vogue - s/t 7"

Today's post is The Vogue's self titled 7". I had originally included these files in with the As Brass and Satin posting but forgot to include them when I re-upped that record last year. So here you go, more artsy no wave goodness from one of the many Blood Brothers related side projects, now complete with cover art.

The Vogue 7"

Shoplifting - Body Stories

Shoplifting arose from the ashes of the first incarnation of Chromatics, who themselves had risen out of the remnants of The Vogue & Soiled Doves. Composed of members Hannah Blilie (drums/vocals), Melissa Lock (bass), Chris Pugmire (guitar/vocals) & Devin Welch (guitar/keyboards), Shoplifting pick up the post punk torch left behind by their former bands, though Shoplifting definitely has a more dance feel than Soiled Doves or Chromatics ever had. They released one album, Body Stories, and one EP before the members moved on to other projects such as The Gossip and Past Lives.

Body Stories

Waxwing

I've been a fan of Rocky Votolato, the frontman of Waxwing, since 1995-ish when I saw him with the band Run Away Laughing. A year or so later he was fronting Lying On Loot. After Lying on Loot, and either after or during a stint drumming for the band Kentucky Pistol, came Waxwing... and there are not enough words in existence for me to be able to sufficiently express my love for Waxwing. Their shows, like their music, always contained an amazing blend of both beauty and chaos. Rocky's voice has this pained quality that made it so their mellow tunes came across with the same raw intensity as the harder tracks. Waxwing were beyond great and in my opinion they were one of the best bands of the whole late 90's/early 2000's Seattle music scene and I know many other people who feel the same way. Alright, I'm done gushing.
Here is one of their early releases:
Self-titled 7" (with front & back cover scans)

An early Waxwing demo can be found here at Pukekos.

Neon Blonde

When I was in high school, The Blood Brothers were one of the more popular up and coming bands in the area. I had all their 7"s and must have seen them live a dozen or more times before they even put out an album. My love for them was strong enough that over the years, I not only continued to follow their career but I've also followed all of the side projects the guys have been in as well. From Head Wound City to Champagne Champagne, I've found something to like in all of these projects... except for one. For some reason the output of Neon Blonde, the duo of Johnny Whitney & Mark Gajadhar, has continued to baffle me over the years despite repeated listens. I will admit that I enjoy some electroclash music, Hell, I even like listening to Jaguar Love's Hologram Jams sometimes when I'm running on the treadmill. But when I listen to Neon Blonde my brain screams "DOES NOT COMPUTE". To me they just sound like a boring version of Soiled Doves with occasional synth and drum machine. That's not to say they're bad, I just don't really dig them. But you might...

So here it is:

Neon Blonde's Discography

Soiled Doves

Soiled Doves is the name that The Vogue started going by after their keyboardist left the band (see earlier post: The Vogue). Soiled Doves broke up in 2001, their album "Soiled Life" came out posthumously on GSL in 2003. The picture above is taken from the Soiled Doves 7" which contains two tracks from the aforementioned album. As Johnny Whitney began to focus more on Blood Brothers, Soiled Doves mutated into the band The Chromatics, who then morphed into Shoplifting.
Soiled Life (*re upped with bonus track taken from the GSL 50 comp)

Vade

Vade was a band that featured future-Blood Brothers, Johnny Whitney, & future Gossip member Hannah Blilie. (I don't know who else was in the band so please send me some info if you've got it). I got to see them once, when I was 12 or 13 years old, either with Lying on Loot or Run Away Laughing. I remember thinking they were very cool because all the members were only around 15/16 years old at the time & they had a girl in the band, which was pretty rare in the high school age band scene in the area at the time. In the mid nineties, Vade, along with Jough Dawn Baker & Karp, were among my favorite screamo/hardcore bands. Vade released a split 12" with Jough Dawn Baker, a 7" and a demo cassette. Johnny & Hannah also played together in the bands The Vogue & Soiled Doves a few years after Vade (see earlier post - The Vogue).
Saturn 7"
Vade side of the split w/ Jough Dawn Baker
Self-titled cassette

The Vogue - As Brass & Satin

The Vogue are most famous for being a side project of members of The Blood Brothers and featured Adam Miller, Hannah Billie, Johnny Whitney, Casey Wescott and Devin Welch. Johnny Whitney & Devin Welch were both in Blood Brothers - though Devin left Blood Brothers before their first album came out. Johnny & Hannah Blilie had previously played together in the awesome hardcore/screamo band Vade. Hannah is also the twin sister of Jordan Blilie, the other vocalist in Blood Brothers. The Vogue released a self titled 7" and an album called As Brass & Satin (both on Made In Mexico Records) before eventually becoming the band Soiled Doves after the departure of their keyboard player. Soiled Doves broke up in 2001, their album Soiled Life came out two years later on GSL. Since then, Devin Welch & Hannah Blilie played together in the band Shoplifting, Hannah also now drums for the band The Gossip. Devin is currently in the band Past Lives with Jordan Blilie, Mark Gajadhar & Morgan Hederson, all ex members of Blood Brothers. Johnny Whitney is currently in the band Jaguar Love with Cody from Blood Brothers & Jay from Pretty Girls Make Graves
As Brass & Satin

The Vogue's 7" Ep can now be found here