Skating Polly by Trey Marez
I caught a four-band show on Friday night at Funhouse. The bill was packed with local talent, starting with Seattle band, Salt Lick, who played a couple of songs off their album, at a peak of animal magnetism. Newly formed, they have the potential to become a great live band as they gain more performance experience. The next act introduced themselves as “Don Forgetti, we are Don Forgetti. I’m going to say it one more time so it sticks, we are DON FORGETTI” and they played an unforgettable set. Lead vocalist, Miiko Valkonen hypnotized the audience with his floral shirt and incredible control of his voice as he mixed soft vocals with intense bouts of melodic shouting. Don Forgetti are also from Seattle and have another show on January 16th at Chop Suey! If you’re into kind of menacing but also really appealing music, I’d recommend checking them out!
Miiko Valkonen of Don Forgetti by Trey Marez
In the opinion of many, great Rock ‘n’ Roll requires blood, sweat, and tears. Starcrawler brought that golden trio to Seattle after Don Forgetti warmed the crowd up for them. The extremely tall band took the stage and built their way up to the climax of their set with “I Love L.A.”, “Ants”, and the epic “Let Her Be” along with other tunes from their upcoming debut album Starcrawler, which will be out on January 19th. Musically, Starcrawler is very talented and possess a 70s-punk sound, but their on-stage antics are what truly set them apart from other modern-day bands. Dressed like regular British glam-rockers, Henri Cash, lead guitarist, and frontperson Arrow de Wilde went back and forth commanding the audience’s attention. Cash was so lost in his instrument that he didn’t stop strumming for the entire show, leaving him drenched in sweat five minutes into their set. Even more impressive was Arrow’s seizure-like movements paired with the blood that suddenly dripped from her mouth as her eyes rolled back into her head as she sang and gyrated on stage. Someone I talked to after the show told me that the blood had scared her so badly that she ended up crying in the bathroom. Blood, sweat, and bringing the audience to tears seems to be pretty normal for Starcrawler. But, just for good measure, de Wilde decided to make her end-of-set exit via the row of tables and booths that lined the wall at Funhouse. She looked like Gollum from Lord of the Rings as she hurdled over the obstacles with wild eyes and dried blood on her chin. At one point, she stumbled and grabbed my friend, Trey, to gain her balance so she could continue on her frenzied way. Trey later described this as one of his top concert experiences, which proved that maybe Starcrawler isn’t for everyone, but their raw energy and pushing of social boundaries will be found and widely accepted by seekers of the weird and wonderful.
Starcrawler by Trey Marez
Arrow by Trey Marez
Closing out the night was Tacoma-based Skating Polly, who played Funhouse the first time they ever played Seattle, back in 2013. Kelli Mayo described being back at the same venue as feeling very “full circle”. The sibling trio launched into classics “Pretective Boy” and “Nothing More Than a Body”. They then debuted “Louder in Outer Space” from their most recent release, New Trick and “Queen for a Day” which was written by Exene Cervenka and will be featured on their upcoming 2018 full-length release. The majority of the set switched between fan-favorites like “Morning Dew” and new material like “Hail Mary”, which Kelli jokingly prefaced as a “Tupac cover!” because of the shared title with another certain “Hail Mary” by a Mr. Shakur, although there was no relation between the two.
Kelli and Kurtis Mayo by Trey Marez
In addition to non-stop touring and rehearsals, Kurtis Mayo’s new presence on the drums has only improved the band. This lineup had the ability to fill the entire room with their music and not only drown out any side conversations, but totally monopolize the crowd’s attention, which made small talk fall by the wayside. Kurtis kept the girls entirely on tempo and played loud but with skill. This addition has brought out what Skating Polly had all along, but gives Kelli and Peyton a bigger opportunity to shine upfront. But that doesn’t mean they’ll find themselves stuck in fixed roles. When the band played “Black Sky”, Kelli switched from bass to guitar and Peyton took over bass duties. Peyton interacted less with the crowd, but she never hesitated to display her lush, deep voice, complimented by her sister’s much higher tune. For their final song and encore, Kurtis moved up to guitar and Peyton made her way back to the drum kit for “Alabama Movies” and the scalding, “They’re Cheap, But I’m Free” which will be on the new album. The flexibility that Skating Polly demonstrates is one of the many things that makes them one of the most exciting up and coming bands right now. They have years of performance experience under their belts and yet are still so young, which means the best is yet to come.
Skating Polly by Trey Marez
I loved this show because I felt something during each set. I wasn’t just watching another show by professional musicians who have played thousands of shows and never make mistakes. These bands were filled with kids who go on stage every night and play their hearts out and break their fingers and blow out their vocal chords and fall off tables. The audience fully supported whoever was on stage giving it their all and everyone was very respectful. All ages venues give young artists an opportunity to connect with their young audiences and gain a much bigger following, so make sure you support all-ages venues and the wild artists they give a space to!
Check out the bands on social media: Skating Polly | Starcrawler | Don Forgetti
*If you liked these pictures, feel free to stalk Trey’s Instagram and give him a follow!
HALEY PARSONS | Tupac is still alive and he loves Skating Polly | KXSU Music Reporter