Stranger Suggests: Popular Music, Miranda July, Syttende Mai, Belle & Sebastian, SIFF at Home
One really great thing to do every day of the week.
by Audrey Vann
Popular Music, Style King of the Week, Pseudo Saint
(MUSIC) If the name Parenthetical Girls means anything to you then you’re going to want to be at the Rabbit Box Theatre tonight to witness Popular Music, Zac Pennington’s post-Parenthetical Girls project with Australian composer Prudence Rees-Lee. Their 2023 full-length Minor Works plays out like a dramatic, haunting film score. Pennington’s evocative vocals paint pictures of doom—a doomed relationship (“Sad Songs”), a doomed city (“Bad Actors”), a doomed world (“Revelations”). But, just like Hollywood’s best movies, even the sad ending is beautiful. Minor Works is lush with contributions from fellow former Parenthetical Girl Jherek Bischoff and Russia’s 17-piece Opensound Orchestra. It’s the kind of record you listen to while wandering around at night to watch the city—which is on the verge of crumbling or coming back together, it’s too soon to say—play out in front of you. (The Rabbit Box Theater, 94 Pike St #11, 8 pm, $12-$15) MEGAN SELING
Fisherman’s Village Music Festival 2024
(MUSIC) Now in its 11th year, Fisherman’s Village Music Festival will fill downtown Everett with live music and vendors, reminding us that Everett is more than just a rest stop on the way to someplace cooler. Headliners include Southern rock phenoms Drive-By Truckers, blue-eyed soul singer Allen Stone, indie folk duo Shovels & Rope, and indie pop singer-songwriter Courtney Marie Andrews. There will also be plenty of PNW talent, with Seattle-based rapper Sol, Portland’s country rock gems Jenny Don’t & the Spurs, and indie rock artist Jenn Champion representing the region. (Downtown Everett, May 16-28, $24.72, 21+) AUDREY VANN
Norwegian Constitution Day Celebration & Parade
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(COMMUNITY) Today, Syttende Mai (literally “17th of May”), Norwegian Constitution Day celebrations will take over Ballard, Seattle’s Scandinavian-influenced neighborhood. The National Nordic Museum is hosting a luncheon gala and free family activities like “Fjord Horses” and a Nordic express train in the parking lot all day long. Or check out an all-star lineup of Nordic talent at Bergen Place in the afternoon before securing your spot along the parade route. Celebrating its 50th anniversary, the parade will start at Northwest 62nd and 24th Avenue Northwest, then head south past the Leif Erikson Lodge and Bergen Place before coming to an end near the Walrus and the Carpenter. (Downtown Ballard, Ballard Ave and Market St, free, all ages) SHANNON LUBETICH
Book Signing: The Paris Novel by Ruth Reichl
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(FOOD/BOOKS) As a restaurant critic for the New York Times in the 1990s, legendary food writer Ruth Reichl gained renown for her acerbic observations and penchant for donning disguises to maintain her anonymity in restaurants. She went on to become the editor-in-chief of the now-defunct Gourmet magazine and has since penned five best-selling memoirs, a cookbook, and a novel, won six James Beard Awards, and is still known for her warm voice and fierce advocacy of home cooking. In her latest fictional work, The Paris Novel, she tells the story of Stella, a woman who receives a one-way ticket to Paris after her estranged mother dies. Of course, Reichl’s cozy ode to the City of Light is full of sparkling descriptions of decadent French cuisine, vintage fashion, and dazzling art, making it a perfect escapist romp for when you’re consumed by wanderlust. (Book Larder, 4252 Fremont Ave N, 2 pm, $32.75, all ages) JULIANNE BELL
(MUSIC) Belle & Sebastian have one of the greatest band origin stories: Back in 1994, Stow College students Stuart Murdoch and Stuart David recorded a few demos for a school project with their music professor Alan Rankine (formerly of the Associates). After one of their singles was picked up by the college’s record label Electric Honey, the label offered to release their debut album, Tigermilk, which went on to shape the genre of indie pop as we know it. Eleven albums and nearly three decades later, Murdoch still fronts the legendary twee ensemble, bringing their delicate indie rock around the globe. Don’t miss the band as they play tracks from their 12th album, Late Developers, which sounds just as fresh as their debut (seriously, Murdoch’s voice has not aged). Canadian folk band the Weather Station will open. (Moore Theatre, 1932 Second Ave, 7 pm, $39.50, all ages) AUDREY VANN
(FILM) This year SIFF celebrates the festival’s 50th anniversary in theaters and online. While in-person screenings wrap up May 19, the fun keeps going May 20-27, with several festival selections available to stream at home. A few standouts from our collection of SIFF reviews include 399: Queen of the Tetons, a beautiful nature documentary about a mama grizzly bear living in Grand Teton National Park; Bonjour Switzerland, a “wacky comedy” with a happy ending; Memories of a Burning Body, a dramatic Spanish film that masterfully navigates heavy subject matter including sexual assault and domestic violence; and Seagrass, an almost-ghost story starring former Seattleite Ally Maki. If you want to make the experience as authentic as possible, here’s the recipe for Cinerama’s famous chocolate popcorn. (See the full streaming schedule and buy passes at siff.net) MEGAN SELING
Miranda July with Laurie Frankel: A Novel of Alluring Adventure
See Miranda July at Town Hall Tuesday, May 21. Author photo by Elizabeth Weinberg
(BOOKS) Miranda July, a strong candidate for the coolest person ever born in Vermont, is also a novelist to be reckoned with—if you’re into her vision at all, you’ve probably picked up The First Bad Man, No One Belongs Here More Than You., or It Chooses You already. The heroine at the center of July’s latest novel, All Fours, is a 45-year-old artist staring down the rest of her life. I am not 45, but I am already anticipating the barrage of thoughts on monogamy, domesticity, bodily autonomy, and despair that one might face at that age. July tackles it all with her thrilling, freaky, and subtly comical voice. She’ll be joined in conversation by novelist/essayist Laurie Frankel. (Town Hall, 1119 Eighth Ave, 7:30 pm, $5-$25, all ages) LINDSAY COSTELLO
The Stranger
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