The first composite solid rocket fuel that eventually launched spaceships was made with asphalt, effectively paving the way to the moon. Dashboard Heat, the newest record by Seattle stalwarts Smokey Brights, embodies this funny little fact, using tough truths to slip the surly bonds of earth and, through hardship, touch the stars. Members Kim West (vocals/keys), Ryan Devlin (vocals/guitars), Luke Ragnar (bass/vocals), and Nick Krivchenia (drums) have crafted a ramshackle rocket of a record that touches upon cars, celestial forces, childhood homes, light and hope, darkness and grief. Produced by Andy D. Park in exchange for Ryan painting his recording studio, the album sees the band sonically shooting for the solar system while staying true to their grounded take on songcraft that has made them a mainstay of the Northwest scene.   The group released their first LP, Taste For Blood, in 2014, followed it up with Hot Candy in 2016, I Love You But Damn in 2020, and Levitator in 2023, with a constellation of EPs and singles sprinkled in between. While each successive release has garnered Smokey Brights more acclaim and attention – the Levitator LP and the Broken Too EP were ranked #50 and#81 respectively on KEXP’s Best of 2023 list – perhaps more important are the opportunities that have appeared as if by some musical magic. The group has four songs on the hit indie game Pacific Drive and recently recorded the soundtrack for the NPR podcast Let the Kids Dance! Along the way, they’ve racked up thousands of miles, both corporeal and cosmic, playing hundreds of shows locally, nationally, and internationally.   Smokey Brights have no intention of slowing down for the release of their fifth LP, Dashboard Heat. Their music video for “All in Who You Know,” directed by frequent collaborator Travis Trautt, features the band fresh off a performance at the Moscow Ren Faire, engaged in an epic quest for a mythical object of dazzling power. Recently, they filmed a stripped-down, sold-out two-night stand at Seattle’s Rabbit Box Theater,  debuting the new record in its entirety. Even the physical record of Dashboard Heat is ambitious, stretching the terrene boundaries of vinyl into the celestial. The cover art from Brazilian surrealist illustrator Bruno Cesar features an Easter Egg for every song on the record, while the accompanying lyrical comic book sees Cesar sending the band on a trip through the silver age stars. Smokey Brights will be supporting all this astral ambition with terrestrial touring, hitting both coasts, the Southwest and the Northwest in fall 2025.

If the Dirtbombs were read Our Band Could Be Your Life instead of bedtime stories when they were children, they might have turned out like Beverly Crusher. Alongside Max and Sam Stiles (on bass and drums, respectively), frontman Cozell Wilson sounds like a soul singer at the basement punk show, wailing heartfelt pleas after hydrating his throat with several cans of lukewarm beer. -Md  

It’s a stork! It’s a plane! No, it’s Black Ends! There’s Nikolle Swims on guitar/vocals. There’s Bent Swanson on bass. There’s Billie J Paine on drums. When they come together, Gunk Pop is born and born and born again! Gunk Pop is like mud you enjoy the taste of or a gentle kiss from a person with a rotting tooth or like bubblegum candy on the bottom of your decades used up adidas. It’s as if Nirvana were tamer and inspired by Jeff Buckley or Elliott Smith or Shudder to Think. It’s a fistful of heavy guitar pop melodies with a type of desperation you can’t really look away from. In the last couple of years, Black Ends has opened for Bikini Kill, Pretty Girls Make Graves, Lambrini Girls, and Otoboke Beaver. Their debut record "Psychotic Spew" was released in fall 2024 and since then, they’ve been making a pretty good name for themselves around the PNW. The record had some acclaimed write ups from Bandcamp Daily, KEXP, Seattle Times, Flood Magazine, Wash Magazine, and New Noise Mag. They were recently featured as an Artist to Watch in 2025 in Alt Press Magazine. BE also recently performed a KEXP session for the second time in their short time as a band.   “All we want is to make Rock and Roll music not stale anymore. For a kid to find our music who feels alienated in this world and for it to resonate and change their mind on the things this cruel world bashed into their head. We want rock music to mean something again, to stop kids from becoming boring bankers or giving their lives to a 9 to 5 meaningless job. We want music to say something again, to be something again, doesn’t everyone miss feeling alive? Maybe just maybe our music can bring just a little of that to the world - we’re just a single band but we’ve got a lot to say and a lot of music to give”    Listen to Black Ends. Go see a show. Keep music sacred. Hug your vinyl. Rock n Roll is here to stay.   BLACK ENDS IS GUNK POP