Here at U277 headquarters we’ve received a few emails from folks over the last month or so wondering where the heck we are! Well some of you know, but for those who don’t I’m happy to let you in on the fact that U277 has been (collectively) on paternity leave for the last few months. Please join me in welcoming our two newest fans:

Isaac Scott Bendickson – born to Aaron & Sarah on April 2nd
Sophia Anne Moffitt – born to Mike & Katie on May 30th

Nevertheless, in the midst of expanding families, we have still been able to squeeze in some rehearsals, learn a few new tunes, and we have a show coming up this week! Come join us for a free outdoor concert in Bellevue on Thursday at noon when we appear as part of Downtown Bellevue’s Summer Concert Series “Live at Lunch.”

http://www.bellevuedowntown.org/events/liveatlunch/

We play from 12 noon until 1:30 pm at the Bellevue Galleria.
It’s outdoors, it’s family friendly and it’s free.

Hope you can make it.

-Aaron (aka The Edge)
www.U277.com
twitter.com/U277

Here’s the lineup:
Jes Raymond
Kate Graves
Cort Armstrong
Chris Blacker
Sean Bendickson
Judd Wasserman

Rendezvous–Jewel Box Lounge
2322 2nd Ave, Seattle (Belltown)
10pm
$5 advance
$10 @ door

If you’re interested in coming, shoot a message over to Sean and he’ll save a spot for you.

Who said there’s never anything useful in junk mail?

Here’s the recap…

A decent portion of the last several months was dedicated to the destruction and subsequent reconstruction of our detached garage. The old one was in sad, sad shape to be sure and with some help from our new neighbor/contractor a brand spanking new 400 sq ft garage now resides atop the forgotten remains of its predecessor. OK, so saying “with some help” is pretty much an exaggeration because Bobby did all the work and I just managed to somehow put together the cash to pay for it all. 

Here we are on the far side of summer, which seemed to rush by in a flurry of gigs and family gatherings. The family and I did manage to take 1 trip back to the ol’ homestead in MT but for the most part I was busy gigging or trying to do something constructive around the house. July and August were super busy months for U277, but things are settling down to a more manageable pace these days. One or two gigs a month is plenty for me (as opposed to, say, five). We’re starting to work on some more tunes and have the goal of performing the entire Joshua Tree album well in sight.

And speaking of gigs, we’re playing this weekend both Friday and Saturday night.  Gig details are on our website (www.U277.com).  If you’re not otherwise engaged, we’d love to see you there!

See you round the campfire.

-A

Mobile blogging… what’ll they think of next?

Occasionally I get comments on my Myspace page asking me where I’ve been, what I’ve been up to, and when I’m playing new shows. After all, I’ve been pretty bad lately at booking shows, sending out emails, updating my webpage, and the like.

No, I’m not dead.
I’m not slacking. (Ok, maybe a little.)
I haven’t given up music.
Actually, I’m really freakin’ busy these days. Drumming. Here’s a brief synopsis:

My longest running gig, and most consistent, is playing drums almost every Sunday morning in the house band for Seattle Unity Church. Located just on the north side of Denny Park. It’s a trip. David Loy plays the piano most Sundays, and Jason Lindgren plays bass. It’s exactly the type of all-encompassing church you would expect to find in the heart of Seattle. We get jazzy, funky, gospel-y, and sometimes a little klesmer-y. (Yup. It’s a word now.)

And to make up for all my churching, I also play pretty often with Skagit Valley band, Howlin’ Lane Fernando and the Angels of Sin. Oh, the stories I could tell you. Typically our shows involve a lot of songs about drinking, murder, death, drugs, heartache, drinking, lost love, and a gospel tune or two thrown in for good measure. Jason Lindgren plays bass in this group as well. The bastardly handsome Adam Bratman plays guitar (occasionally with his teeth) and Howlin’ Lane Fernando dances around in front of the band, mumbling into the mic from behind his mirrored aviator shades. Our tunes include selections from the repertoire of Hank Williams, Hank II, Hank III, Johnny Cash, Waylon Jennings, Elvis, Wilco, the Grateful Dead, The Band, The Byrds, Willie Nelson, Merle Haggard, the Carter Family, and Social Distortion (among others). It’s all interspersed with Lane’s own tunes and some good harmonies. When we play, people dance, dammit!
Upcoming shows:
November 17th 8pm @ the Swinomish Casino in Anacortes, WA
November 30th 9pm @ the Watertown Pub in Anacortes, WA
December 1st 8pm @ the Corner Tavern in Bow, WA

The Robin Moxey Trio, on the other hand, is a little more stripped down, a little more blues, a little closer to the ground, and requires a little more sweat. brother Aaron helps out on bass to back up the powerhouse that is the one and only Robin Moxey. We don’t mess around. Once a month you can find us making an appearance at my favorite Seattle venue, the Highway 99 Blues Club.
Upcoming shows:
November 21st, 8:30 pm @ the Highway 99 Blues Club in Seattle, WA
January 18th & 19th @ the Halftime Saloon in Gig Harbor, WA

U277 is a new band. Based on an old band. My good friend Stephen Minor, who has tried his whole life to keep from sounding like Bono, finally embraced it when he approached brother Aaron about starting a U2 tribute band. They asked me. Then they asked me if I knew any good bass players. So I asked Jason Lindgren (who happens to look a lot like Adam Clayton). We try to cover the entirety of U2’s catalog, and are always expanding our repertoire. With only a handful of shows already under our belt, this band has proven to be one of the most fun, best rehearsed, and best attended band shows that I’m involved in. My favorite moment of the whole set: during Bullet The Blue Sky, when the lights go down and Bono-Steve busts out his huge spotlight to scan the crowd while improvising on Bono’s iconic rant.
Upcoming shows:
December 6th, 9pm @ the Swiss in Tacoma, WA
January 11th, 9pm @ Station 56 in Tacoma, WA

About a month ago, my good buddy Phil O’Sullivan asked me if I would be interested in playing on his album. So I did, and it’s done now. We made a band, and started playing shows.
Upcoming shows:
November 15th @ Doyle’s Pub in Tacoma, WA
November 29th @ The Swiss in Tacoma, WA

Ok. Who else? Kristin Connell. Michael O’Neill. Jakob Breitbach. Jes Raymond. Rupert Wates. Michael Stillwater. Probably some more I can’t think of right now.

Oh, and also, I’m working on more original stuff. An album is due out in Spring or early Summer, so keep yer eyes and ears peeled. I’ll be posting sneak previews here. Sneaky. I know.

Some features of note include:

• Seperate subscriptions preferences… so if you wanna get info from seanbendickson.com but don’t really care about U277, you can specify that
• Subscribe and Unsubscribe links
• Multiple authors
• Other really geeky stuff that I won’t bore you with here

But don’t just take my word for it. Head on over to the mailing lists page and see for yourself.