The Andy Aupperlee Explosion 5000

The fifty degree weather of clouds and rain that plagued Seattle through May seems long behind us. Atmospheric conditions in the Pacific Northwest are nearly perfect right now. Seattleites don rain jackets and pour coffee down their throats during the winter because they know life in July, August and September is unrivaled anywhere else.

Throughout much of the year, The Puget Sound withholds its beauty; only occasionally does it allow un-overcast glimpse of mountains, water and sky. About a week ago, I drove along 10th Avenue in Capitol Hill on my way back to Wallingford from Volunteer Park. The view looking west was striking: Lake Union, The George Washington Bridge, Gas Works Park, Queen Anne, Ballard and The Olympic Mountains. Expansive vistas like these boldly contrast with the limitless gray endured during the winter.

I decided to return to the 10th Avenue vantage point with my camera on a clear night to catch the sunset. Unfortunately, there weren’t too many clouds in the sky to play with the light, but this image conveys the absolute wonderful climate we are experiencing here in the corner of the country. Let me know when you’ll be visiting.

San Fransisco’s The Dodos descended on Neumos late last month. Sharat, Julie and I met up in Capitol Hill to catch the show. For several days prior to the concert I had been blasting Visiter in the Explorer. “Walking,” “Red and Purple,” and “Jodi” had become fast favorites. Although I got pretty rowdy playing drums along to The Dodos on my Ford-logo’ed steering wheel (no disrespect, Alan), I had no idea what I was in for at Neumos.

Last Tuesday, Sharat and I ventured out to Seattle’s Capitol Hill neighborhood to see Lightspeed Champion at Chop Suey. This was my first time at the Asian inspired club. Originally I became aware of this concert because The Explorers Club were supposed to be on the bill. The Explorers Club are band from Charleston, South Carolina that has been on my radar for a few years. Since they basically sound like Pet Sounds, I was very eager to hear them perform live. While checking MySpace at work (let’s say it was on my lunch break) I saw that the band posted a bulletin with some dire news.