A Great Get You Up To Speed Article About Seattle & Pearl Jam's Own Mike McCready & How He Spends His Down Time When P.J. Takes 5!!!

This Just In From Seattle Music History!!!                   By Christine Mitchell

Photos by Arlene Brown

Flight To Mars

Mike McCready’s UFO cover band Flight to Mars has been playing a benefit show for Crohn’s disease and Colitis research (specifically CCFA Camp Oasis and the Jennifer Jaff Center) for twelve years, now. And while the cause is a great one, I have to admit that I was rather skeptical: a group that plays covers of a lesser known ’70s hard metal band? Really? And people sell the benefit show out every year for this? I know it’s Mike McCready of Pearl Jam and all, but come on. In any case I did feel that I had to give them the benefit of the doubt and check the whole shebang out.     

We stood outside the bar next to the Showbox for half an hour so that we could wait two more hours and have first dibs on entry. There was a hefty crowd waiting to get in with us. We ended up positioned against the barrier on the right end of the stage. The show actually started about fifteen minutes early, which seemed freaky until I realized that the concert lasted nearly four hours.

The Young Evils are the punky little band that can. Vocalist Mackenzie Mercer sports a voice that combines elements of Debbie Harry and Carrie Akre into something a little nasal and sexy. She clung to her pink mike stand and/or danced, while lead guitarist/vocalist/songwriter Troy Nelson harmonized. Lyrics like “He doesn’t like my demons/ I thought I had them tucked away” and “They don’t like you anyway” bought darkness to the jumpy, upbeat tempo and throwback 80’s grooves…and then they covered Ozzy Osbourne’s ‘Crazy Train’. I saw a lot of folks pick up their current EP this night, although they are close to releasing a new album and most of the songs from the set are as yet unreleased. I’m holding out for the fresh stuff.

It was after The Young Evils that things began to complicate, as the revolving parade of musicians began. Danny Newcomb, former lead guitarist for Goodness and The Rockfords, came out to sing a couple of songs (he’s releasing an album on McCready’s label Hockeytalker soon). After this, Brad Sinsel and Rick Pierce of the late, great Seattle metal band TKO took the stage with McCready to perform the TKO song Sean Bates, who has been seen around town performing with Carrie Akre (Goodness connections abound), came on and performed a rousing version of Otis Redding’s “Try a Little Tenderness.” Covers of The Beatles’ “Hey Bulldog” and Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers’ “I Need to Know” followed, which were just okay and featured Tim DiJulio of The Glass Notes and (the sadly closing) Piecora’s New York Pizza. The backing band, which featured the likes of Chris Friel of The Rockfordson drums, did do a great job of working through the various songs, the best of which was Jimi Hendrix’s “All Along the Watchtower,” which involved most of the previous musicians on stage at once and also a pummeling drum solo by Friel. The “medley”part of the set ended with Neil Young’s “Hey Hey, My My” and tons of feedback. “Kill the Pain.”