James Atkins, bassist for Hammerbox and longtime fixture of the Seattle music scene, sadly passed away on Saturday, February 27th after a battle with esophageal cancer. He was surrounded by friends and his favorite music, including AC/DC, Motörhead, Soul Asylum, and The Replacements.
Formed in 1990, Hammerbox were another casualty of Seattle's "grunge" popularity, signing to major label A&M Records for their 1993 album, Numb, and breaking up shortly thereafter. Since then Atkins has played in several bands, including Anodyne (with Hammerbox guitarist Harris Thurmond and That Petrol Emotion’s Steve Mack) and Softy (with Coffin Break’s Peter Litwin).
Carrie Akre, James’s bandmate in Hammerbox, said, “James deeply loved his rock ‘n roll and adored his Pacific Northwest friends. He moved back over a year ago and to him, he was coming home. We are privileged to have known and played music with him.”
Portland band Battleme are lovers not fighters. Frontman Matt Drenik may have fueled his project's perpetually punchy new LP with hard-hitting beats and muscular rhythms, but Habitual Love Songs is Battleme's billet-doux to '70s-steeped power-pop and glam guitar rock, populated with characters from…
In a wonderful example of "you never know unless you ask," powerhouses Neko Case, k.d. lang, and Laura Veirs are teaming up for a collaborative album, titled case/lang/veirs, out June 17th via ANTI- Records. Check out their first single "Atomic Number" below, as well as an album trailer. A few yea…
Every year, EMP's Sound Off! competition showcases emerging stars in the all-ages music scene. Previous winners have included The Lonely Forest, Dyme Def, Sol, Kithkin, Brothers from Another, Manatee Commune, Fauna Shade, Schoolyard Heroes, Tomten, and Brite Futures, just to name a few. COSMOS took…
Iggy Pop and Josh Homme have shared "Sunday", a new track from Iggy's upcoming album Post Pop Depression (out March 18). Next month, both Iggy and Homme will be embarking on an extensive world tour to support the album. On March 28, they'll land in Seattle at the Paramount Theatre. [CoS]
