The Royal Sea, Bellingham's contribution to the surf-tinged pop boom, just put out their first album, The Royal Sea.  Timmy Sunshine and Jettie Lovette started playing their brand of beach jams together last summer and have recently rounded out the lineup with Evan Kuykendall on bass. This is music for the summer, so check it out before the rain starts again.  

This year's edition of Decibel Festival hits Seattle bars and live music establishments from September 28 until October 2.  The electronic music celebration is in its eighth year, and the recently announced lineup does not disappoint.  Big name acts are playing, such as Amon Tobin, Ladytron, Moby, and buzz-drenched mystery UK producer Zomby, playing one of his first dates on American soil.  Local acts include Truckasaurus, Beat Connection, Nordic Soul, Grym, and Jon McMillion, whose "Climbing Out" features below. Bring some earplugs!

Click on the cover (or HERE) to get to the pdf file - enjoy!

The four-piece is fronted by lead singer, songwriter, former fashion designer and writer Daniel Blue along with collaborators Buddy Ross, Brantley Cady and Forrest Mauvais.  Glitch-folkers Motopony have been selected to have their song "King of Diamonds" featured as the Starbucks iTunes Pick of the Week. Starting today, "King of Diamonds" will be offered as a free download at Starbucks locations in the United States. On July 29, the group kicks off their big summer tour sharing dates with Those Darlins and Daniel Johnston. The guys will also be performing at Bumbershoot Festival (9/5) and DeLuna Festival (10/16).

Seattle legends Blue Scholars dropped by KEXP's studios yesterday to record a few tracks from their new album Cinemetropolis.  The duo, consisting of George Quibuyen and Saba Mohajerjasbi, have been a keystone of the local hip hop scene for over a decade, combining proficient, fresh beats with a deft lyrical style that is socioeconomically/politically hyper-conscious, and always infectious.