Archive for January, 2012

From jazz fan K. C. Sulkin: Bellingham jazz sax player Thomas Harris, who’s currently honing his jazz skills at Berklee College of Music in Boston, will be joined by Julianne Thoma, piano; Lyman Lipke, bass; Austin Riche, drums; and Matt Van Den Heuvel, guitar (aka the Thomas Harris quintet) in two recording sessions, from 7 to 10 p.m. this Friday and Saturday, Jan. 13 and 14 at the Blue Horse Gallery, 301 W. Holly St, in Bay Street Village. Harris has been selected to play in Phil Wilson’s prestigious Rainbow Big Band this semester and is also playing in other Berklee ensembles that include Chicago Blues, New Orleans and the music of Charles Mingus. Finally, there are plans in the works for a farewell party/jam session at the Blue Horse on Jan. 20 before Harris flies back to complete his spring semester at Berklee. Harris’ appearances at the Blue Horse Gallery often sell out so advance reservations are definitely recommended. Cover is $5; free for kids.

Here’s a video from soul singer Allen Stone’s performance earlier this year on Conan O’Brien’s late-night talk show. Stone is in Bellingham tonight for an all-ages show in the Multipurpose Room (better known as MPR) in Western Washington University’s Viking Union. Bellingham locals Kris Orlowski and Eclecticity open (click for links to their Facebook pages). Day of show ticket prices are $10 for students (with Western ID) and $14 for community members.

You can read more about Allen Stone in this interview on the website “Sound on the Sound,” where his humble nature as a singer and songwriter really shines.

Lindsey McGuirk, digital marketing and publishing manager at Village Books, just gave me an update on this event: it’s now been postponed. Stay tuned for details  about the national event taking place  at bookstores across the country. At exactly the same date and time, bookstores across the country with Espresso Book Machines® will print an inaugural title to be made available from HarperCollins, and Village Books will be one of them.
HarperCollins is one of the major six publishers, the fifth one to sign on to a partnership with On Demand Books, the company behind the Espresso Book Machine® (EBM). This latest addition marks another victory in the partnership between publishers and independent bookstores. Village Books already has access to more than four million public domain and publisher-permission titles through the EBM database, and the Harper deal adds another 3,500 to 4,000 titles. McGuirk, the EBM operator and head of Village Books’ self-publishing program, will  still be on hand to print the HarperCollins title and answer questions about the print-on-demand service. Call her at 360-733-1599 with questions.

The internationally-known RAC (Remix Artist Collective) is putting on quite the show tonight at the Wild Buffalo. The musicians — André Allen Anjos of Portland, Ore., and Portugal, Andrew Maury of New York City and Karl Kling of Portland, Ore. — create dance/electronic remixes for a variety of bands, including Ra Ra Riot, Tokyo Police Club, Block Party, Chromeo and Phantogram. Click here for a remix of “Houdini” by Foster the People.

PNBA just announced the winners of the 2012 Pacific Northwest Book Awards. A committee of independent booksellers selected these six books from this year’s Shortlist, which was announced in November.
Read committee comments at PNBA.org and original essays from the winning authors each week at Northwest Book Lovers, beginning next Wednesday, January 11.
2012 Award Winners:
“The Sisters Brothers” by Patrick deWitt (Portland, OR).
“Feathers: The Evolution of a Natural Miracle” by Thor Hanson (Friday Harbor, WA)
“Habibi” by Craig Thompson (Portland, OR)
“The Chronology of Water” by Lidia Yuknavitch (Portland, OR)
“West of Here” by Jonathan Evison (Bainbridge Island, WA)
“Shards” by Ismet Prcic (Portland, OR)

The Saltwater Octet and Thomas Harris gig from 5 to 9 p.m. Sunday, Jan. 8, has been changed into a fundraiser for The MacGregor Family of Happy Valley, who were all injured during a house fire on New Years. I looks like everyone is improving but the house and contents are lost. Please go to https://www.facebook.com/pages/Help-support-The-MacGregor-Fa…mily-in-Bellingham-WA/326913730666275 for updates. The door charge is still $10 but we encourage people to contribute more. All will go to the MacGregor Family.

Bellingham’s favorite swing big band bring it at their new home, The Blue Horse Gallery. Lots of room for dancing, food, beverages.

Door $10, All ages, kids under 12 free

Alyssa Jones, VISTA Project Coordinator at Western Washington University’s Center for Service-Learning sent me an email about the annual Read-In Celebration for the Martin Luther King, Jr. Day of Service. “Local children are invited to gather at Village Books to hear stories from around the world about tolerance, the civil rights movement, and diversity in honor of Martin Luther King, Jr. Day. Sponsored by WWU’s Center for Service-Learning, Village Books and Western’s AS Bookstore, the annual Martin Luther King, Jr. Day Read-In and Book Drive will take place on Monday, Jan. 16 between 10:30 a.m. and 2 p.m.
Western Washington University student volunteers will celebrate King’s dream of equality and hope by engaging with children through literature, games and dialogue along these themes. Community members are encouraged to bring children ages 3 to 8 to Village Books, 1200 11th St. any time during the event hours. Parents are welcome to participate.Village Books and Western’s AS Bookstore will offer books for purchase to be donated to local elementary school libraries, spreading the positive impact from this event throughout our county. Look for displays and drop boxes at Village Books and the Western Associated Students Bookstore through Jan. 20.”
If you are interested in finding out more about the Center for Service-Learning or the Read-In, please call 360-650-7520 or visit http://www.wwu.edu/csl.