the Music Lounge by Albert Rodriguez - SGN A & E Writer

Radiohead, Jason Mraz, Pemberton Festival, Moby, B-52s and Whitley

by Albert Rodriguez - SGN A&E Writer Back-to-back interviews with The Blakes and Bob Mould meant I had very little room to discuss anything else related to music in the past two weeks, so let's get caught up on what's happening music-wise. First up, Radiohead. Everyone wants to see this show, and I've been given a date of August 20 at White River Amphitheatre. You heard it here first. Tickets are tentatively scheduled to go on sale the last week of April. Jason Mraz has completed work on his first recording in three years entitled We Sing. We Dance. We Steal Things. He's already announced a batch of concert dates, including sold-out West Coast outings in San Francisco and West Hollywood. But before you book a flight to California - which I seriously thought about doing, too - know that Mraz has Seattle scheduled on the second leg of his upcoming tour. I expect he'll announce a show here in either May or July. He loves Seattle, he loves his Seattle fans, he loves me (he's told me so), and he'll definitely pay us a visit in the foreseeable future. Incidentally, his new album will be sold as a full-length and as three separate EPs. Visit www.jasonmraz.com to purchase his EPs and pre-order the album. The inaugural Pemberton Festival on July 25-27 boasts a stellar lineup that includes Coldplay, Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, Nine Inch Nails, My Morning Jacket, Matisyahu, Jay-Z, The Secret Machines, and Seattle's own Death Cab for Cutie. Early bird tickets are completely sold-out already. Three-day passes for $259.50 (CDN) are now available. No information on single-day tickets is available at this time. Ticket price does not include the $60 camping fee. For the complete festival lineup and details, visit www.pembertonfestival.com. Pemberton is a small mountainside town about 20 minutes from Whistler, BC. If your idea of roughing it, like mine, is a nice hotel room with a hot shower, flatscreen TV, swimming pool and nearby restaurants, then I recommend staying in Whistler. Visit www.tourismwhistler.com for a list of area hotels. More on the Pemberton Festival coming soon. Moby, man of mystery (straight? Bi? asexual?), has just put out his sixth studio album, Last Night. The dance-electronic artist rose to fame in 1999 with his audacious recording Play - you couldn't find a club then not spinning "Bodyrock." After trancier projects, primarily 2005's Hotel, Moby returns to the world of house and electronica with sensational cuts like "257.Zero," "Alice" and the trip-hop number "I Love to Move in Here," which pairs him with Grandmaster Caz (co-penned the notorious "Rapper's Delight"). On "Disco Lies," Moby pays homage to the underground dance scene in San Francisco during the early '90s, while he seriously gets down to business on "The Stars," an all-out floor sweeper. The instrumental, synth-heavy "Sweet Apocalypse" is what you'd hear blaring out of loudspeakers at a dark lounge on the LA or Vegas strips - it has a sexy, late-night ambiance to it. The song I'm most impressed with is "Everyday It's 1989," a fast-paced track driven by a zippy piano background and beefy gospel-style vocals. Mixed by Dan Grech (Scissor Sisters, Radiohead), Last Night is one of the best CDs I've listened to thus far in 2008. Grab a copy or download Last Night and give your sneakers a good spin. Funplex is the title of The B-52's just-released album, featuring the hot single "Pump." Two other standouts are the futuristic-boppy "Love in the Year 3000" and the bouncy "Eyes Wide Open." Overall though, I found the CD a bit flat. I wanted to love it and squeeze it tight, yet it didn't muster up the energy and quirkiness that The B-52s are known for. That said, it shouldn't take away from the fact that this Georgia-based quartet is a hoot in concert. Definitely make plans to see them live at The Showbox (Market) on May 6 or alongside Cyndi Lauper in the "True Colors Tour" on July 1 at WaMu Theater. You'll hear "Pump," as well as classics like "Rock Lobster," "Roam," and my personal favorite, "Song for a Future Generation." Finally, I want to introduce you to a brand-new artist named Whitley. The young Australian opened for Tristan Prettyman last week at Chop Suey. A strong tour schedule this year and a very impressive CD entitled The Submarine should lift his exposure. I'd describe him as a mix of Simon and Garfunkel, Jeff Buckley, Bread, Jim Croce, and the better days of Cat Stevens. Two songs I can't get out of my head, which immediately were uploaded on my iPod, are "More Than Life" and "All is Whole." The latter has a haunting tone, and I've pondered the thought of it being about death, yet it's also beautifully written and arranged. Rolling Stone already tagged him as one of 10 artists to watch in 2008. Whitley and I were supposed to meet before his gig while he was here in Seattle, but a series of unfortunate circumstances prevented it from happening. However, he was sweet enough to call me the following day and sincerely apologize for missing our "date." He promised to do whatever it takes to make it up to me. Hmm& he's really cute. I'm seeing an underwear shopping trip on his next Seattle swing-through, which looks to be soon with a talented American-based singer-songwriter (my lips are sealed).