Lonesome Shack will be performing at the 2013 Doe Bay Festival on beautiful Orcas Island

http://www.doebayfest.com/artists/

Hattie's Hat in Ballard will host the GravelRoad and Mystery Ship joint listening party where we will spin the new records from these bands that we will release in July.  Get an early listen to these two amazing new records and throw back a few cold ones with the bands and the Knick Knack Records crew.  We'll be giving away records, t-shirts, stickers, cd's and more.  

The Equal Ground has given Half Light's new album 'Things To Figure Out' 3.9 out of 5 stars.  Here's what they had to say about the album:

"melodic sensibilities that remind me of artists like Bjork or Sonic Youth. Things to Figure Out is a portrait of a cohesive band with a clear focus on their identity, constructing elaborate, yet instinctive layers of sounds and striving to create a beautiful contrast with the simple, driven rhythm section and the embracing textures built with guitars and synth. "

-Matt Jenson, The Equal Ground

click here for the full text

GravelRoad will be joining Kenny Brown, Scissormen, Robert "Wolfman" Belfour, Robert Kimbrough and many more at this year's Juke Joint Festival in Clarksdale Mississippi on April 13, 2013 

http://www.jukejointfestival.com/musicians.php?perf_id=409

Here are some photos from the Festival:

Brian Snider runs a blog in Seattle.  It's called Secretly Important.  He conducted this interview with Lonesome Shack in March of 2013.

http://www.secretly-important.com/interview-with-lonesome-shack/

Half Light creates psychedelic dream pop in the Emerald City. “Things to Figure Out” is the follow up to 2008’s “Sleep More, Take More Drugs, Do Whatever We Want,” which was described as "a unique and memorable sound collage,” (Three Imaginary Girls) and as “a charming debut” that managed to, “bring many different genres together to create gorgeous landscapes,” (Is This Music). Half Light’s sound has been compared to Mazzy Star, The Cranes, Portishead, The Dandy Warhols, and Acetone.

Half Light did in fact figure some things out during the making of “Things to Figure Out.” On this mature, cohesive collection of psychedelic dream-pop vignettes there is a focus on showcasing rather than piling on layers. The vibe of the recording lets the listener really explore the moods of people getting by in the Northwest.

The central theme to “Things to Figure Out” is an exploration of light and dark, possibly because the band’s original follow-up to “Sleep More...” was lost in the Australian Outback or because the album is rooted in the moody Northwest. Side one starts out with “Mesa,” a slightly sinister, politically inspired tune that portrays a dark grind and sense of hopelessness. Next is the single-worthy track “The Deep End,” which has a mesmerizing cello hook and a message of hope. “Idaho,” and the Half Light theme song “Nothing At All,” explore what it feels like to be human in an overwhelmingly alive and beautiful landscape. Psychedelic textures and lyrically headier arrangements are found on “Arizona Pines” and “Dream About Simple.”

Half Light enlisted the talents of renowned producer and PopLlama founder Conrad Uno to record and mix “Things to Figure Out,” a choice that resulted in a quality recording with a distinct vibe. Compared to the band’s previous home-recorded efforts, working with Uno provided a more relaxed environment which put the band’s focus on playing.

Uno’s mix gives “Things to Figure Out” a vibrant, live sound supported by the strong foundation of singer/bass player Dayna Loeffler’s lush, dreamy vocals and the intertwining, complex dual guitar lines of Brian Ackley and Scott Muhlbeier. Adding to the texture is subtle, focused rhythm section work by Dayna and drummer Jeff Baars. Since the release of “Sleep More...” cellist Barb Hunter joined the band as a full-time member. Her playing adds a traditional cello sound to the overall texture while her use of a variety of effects brings sounds to the recording that may be mistaken for a keyboard, another bass or an additional guitar.

Dreamy textures, soaring landscapes, heady lyrics and the vibe of rainy Sunday afternoons will give fans both old and new much to explore on Half Light’s “Things to Figure Out.”

The first single GravelRoad's new album is 'Monkey With A Wig' and we're premiering the video produced by No-Brow productions right here:

Here's some video from The Foghorns recent performance at Columbia City Theatre.

The other night I was cleaning up the dump folder on my laptop and came across an image I’d titled, “Dad – cancer – the good times.jpg”. I probably stared at it for 20 minutes thinking about how absurd “cancer” and “the good times” being coupled seemed. Truth is, there were some good times post surgery but they were short lived, and only good when juxtaposed up against the inevitable outcome.

Not to get all livejournal and shit on y’all but needless to say, 2012 was a heavy year for me and the year, instead of letting up in the final month, just tightened the screws.

What does any of that have to do with a record? Little to nothing, but it does set the stage for one. I’ve said on numerous occasions that, for me, a good show can serve as Prozac or something along the lines. While watching Treme season 2 last month, I kept getting the feeling that I needed to find a bar that is too small, that has too many people in it for the air conditioning to keep up, and an over sized sound system battling a blues band that has every intention of pushing it to its limits.

Unfortunately, these do not exist in St. Petersburg, so Lonesome Shack, a beer from the fridge and some Bose Noise Cancelling headphones crackling under the pressure have served a worthy substitute….

- Nine Bullets.net

click here for the full text