“Do it on Hewitt!” »Live music is back! back! back! in downtown Everett
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EVERETT – Local couple Amber and Alex Vincini grew up watching their dads perform in punk shows on Hewitt Avenue.
At the time, Bumpin ‘Uglies and Bigtop were part of a thriving music scene north of Seattle. Decades later, sitting at their new location, Lucky Dime at 1618 Hewitt Avenue, the artist duo said they set out on the same mission their fathers had: to make Everett heard loudly.
After a year and a half of hibernation, Hewitt becomes noisy again. The downtown Everett music scene now features a trio of venues hosting shows within a two-block radius. Each offers a distinct ambience.
And if you want, you can jump in between the three any weekend, as two Daily Herald reporters did on a recent Saturday night. You can catch a jam group at Lucky Dime; mosh at a punk show at the recently revitalized Black Lab Gallery and Bar; then dive into a psychobilly at Tony V’s longtime garage.
When Black Lab got too big and moved to the streets, the Vincinis feared that a less culturally rich business, “like a bonding place or something like that,” might take over.
âI cried on my roof thinking about what might happen to the place,â Amber Vincini said.
They rolled the dice on it. The checkered floor of Lucky Dime glowed a cherry red as groups flocked to the Halloweekend.
Just down the street, Black Lab owner Isabella Valencia stood in her new cocktail bar, wearing a steampunk mask.
“Do it on Hewitt!” She proclaimed.
Upstairs, a rainbow of flashing lights bathed the stage in front of floor-to-ceiling windows, as locals gathered, wearing feather boas, fangs and spooky makeup.
“Who’s ready for death punk?” Shouted musician Julio Palomino into a microphone. A crowd of over 50 cheered as he leapt off the stage in a skeleton costume. A hi-hat shock echoed off the walls.
Starring at the Black Lab was Seattle pop-punk band The Cascadian Divide.
Jared Clay, the band’s drummer, has been playing pop-punk beats for over 20 years. Seattle resident Clay said it was his first time playing a show at Everett. He thinks the city’s art scene has so much potential.
âThis place is badass,â Clay said after the show. “I love it.”
Valencia envisions Hewitt Avenue turning into a creative district.
âArt is the soul of any city,â said Valencia. âWithout it, we are empty.
She wants to “raise the bar” for downtown Everett and foster a community of musical, literary and visual artists.
âWe have a lot of cool sports bars in Everett,â she said. âWe don’t need it anymore. We need something different.
Black Lab opened earlier this year in its new location at 1805 Hewitt Ave. Valencia wants this to be an intimate space where locals can see newcomers, like when she heard Alice in Chains in Seattle, before their big break.
âI mean, I could touch them,â she said.
Downstairs at the Black Lab, patrons enjoyed drinks at the bar with teal booths, moody lighting, and tables painted by local artist Missy Dahl.
Valencia had been eyeing the new space for three years. She said it was home to the second oldest tavern in town. When it became available this year, she jumped on it.
In the 90s, Black Lab was located in the Ballard neighborhood of Seattle.
When asked how it was at the time, Valencia gestured around and said, “An aspirant to be that.”
Decades ago, Valence always wanted a bar in its hall. But all she could afford was a coffee cart. Today, Sol Food plans to open a kitchen serving tapas and desserts. The restaurant will share the building but will operate separately.
Valencia said Tony Verhey of Tony V’s Garage was a big fan.
That night, Verhey was putting on a show at his joint across the street at 1716 Hewitt Ave.
Tony V’s – with chain-link fences near the stage and a twisted painting of Dr. Seuss’ “Sneetches” above pool tables – came to life to the sound of psychobilly: a mess of mutton chops and sunglasses. 80s style sun and swinging standing basses.
On stage, The Brainiax roared a maniacal laugh over double-beat grooves, drawing a crowd into the mosh pit.
A tattooed Santa Claus bringing down a burger motioned to Verhey from across the bar to get his attention.
âHey, Tony! cried the man with a smile.
Verhey said he has been bouncing, reserving and occupying tables in the building since he was 19, long before it was Tony V.
âI did everything here,â he says.
Verhey also remembers when the Vincini fathers played here.
The hard part of making music in this city, he said, is getting the bands out. Everett is Seattle’s âMarket Bâ – always has been.
But that can change, he argued.
âPeople have to come out of the house,â Verhey said. “That’s it.”
Kirsten Norheim was a person who came out. In Lucky Dime, she approached a punk Beetlejuice after the show to tell him how much she had shredded.
Beetlejuice, aka Mac Rettig, lead singer of punk duo Mr. Dinkles, was scheduled to perform in Seattle that night. When that gig fell through, they found themselves at Lucky Dime for the first time: screaming, hitting toms, and yes, shredding.
âIt’s so cute,â Rettig said. âIt’s such a nice little inclusive place.â
The other half of Sound Off 2020! the semi-finalists, drummer Gretchen Elliot, lived here years ago. Back then, they said, âYou can play in an alley if you’re a small group, and that’s it. ”
These days, small groups mingle at Lucky Dime while the Vincinis hand out canned beer. Bathrooms – one with a taxidermized cat face – are covered in graffiti, courtesy of the 13-year-old child of a member of the Oliver Elf Army group. Every now and then the Vincinis leave out a spare Sharpie by the sink, knowing that bar bathrooms often inspire artistic genius. (As the late singer-songwriter and influential poet David Berman once sang, “I know a lot of what I say has been taken from the walls of men’s rooms.”)
Outside, fans hung out with the members of The Moon Is Flat, smoking and drinking some fresh air between sets. The Everett group may not yet have had its big success in the United States, but it can be said that it is big in France. They recently made a 750 page encyclopedia called “The Stoner Freaks Anthology”. They have a hard copy, in French.
âWe are the black sheep of this town,â singer Kirk Rutherford said.
Not quite punk, not quite psychedelic, not quite a jam band.
Bassist Matt Wysocki describes their sound as “stoney-psych-rock”. He leaves out “stoney” if the family is there.
The Moon Is Flat performed in all three of Hewitt’s venues. Maybe they don’t fit perfectly into a genre, but they fit in here.
Ellen Dennis: 425-339-3486; [email protected]; Twitter: @reporterellen
Claudia Yaw: 425-339-3449; [email protected]; Twitter: @yawclaudia
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