Entertainment News : Thursday, April 01, 1999

first appeared in The Seattle Times
by Tom Scanlon
Seattle Times nightclub reporter


Damien Jurado and Pete Krebs can be called "folk singers for people who usually don't like folk singers."

Two of the Northwest's most promising musicians, these superb singer-songwriters create complex characters in slice-of-life settings, with moods ranging from whimsical to poignant.

Both dabbled with hard-edged rock before gravitating to acoustic, where they have blossomed.

The two have new CDs, released just a few weeks apart. Jurado's "Rehearsals for Departure" - his second Sub Pop release - and Krebs' "Sweet Ona Rose" are exceptional pop albums, likely to rank among the best of the Northwest's 1999 recordings.

Both have album-release shows this week. Portland's Krebs plays at the Crocodile Cafe on Friday, and Jurado, who has lived in Seattle since his high-school years, performs at the Tractor Tavern on Monday.

In mid-March, 800 bands, record company personnel and music critics gathered in Austin, Texas, for South by Southwest, the big industry showcase. Jurado's show was anticipated as "pick of the day" by a local publication, and many critics eagerly awaited his performance. And waited, and waited . . . Jurado never made it.

"I was stuck in Dallas," he says, sounding like one of his luckless characters. "I missed a connecting flight, and then I had personal problems at home. So I just went home."

Jurado shrugged it off and went back to work at the auto-parts store that has been his "day job" for the past few years - only to get into a heated argument with a co-worker. "I really want to quit. Today might be my last day," Jurado says, calling from the job.

Life has long been a struggle for Jurado. Critics are now praising his lean, powerful writing (the song "Rehearsals for Departure," which tells of a woman leaving her husband, is particularly devastating). Yet back at Shoreline's Shorewood High, he was hardly getting rave notices. "I barely got out of high school. I took two creative-writing classes and ended up getting an F in both of them."

Considering his background, it's easier to understand Jurado's philosophy on his music career: "I just sort of take things as they come. If I can make a living at songwriting, I'd do it. I'd love to go on tour and play big places with big people. And if that doesn't happen, it doesn't happen."

Krebs is similarly laid back about his career, more interested in playing guitar and writing sharp lyrics.

"Outside it's raining and cold once again/and her life is a drag and so are her friends," Krebs sings, on "Dressed to the 9's." His new album's title track jumps off with the lines "Silver wings and ginger-ale eyes/sparkle like stars whenever babies cry."

Krebs previously played guitar and sang for two bands, hard-rocking Hazel and bluegrass-leaning Golden Delicious. He's been enjoying the freedom of being on his own: "I'm not really having to deal with the democratic process and other people's schedules."

While many of his Seattle shows have been solo, at the Crocodile he will be backed by Gossamer Wings, the backup band that plays with him on his album. (Ben Shepherd, formerly with Soundgarden, plays bass on "Sweet Ona Rose," but will not play with Krebs at the Crocodile.)

Krebs drives from Portland to Seattle for shows several times a month, sometimes more. In the fall, the country-influenced singer played Sunday nights at the Owl 'n' Thistle. There, young ladies would arrive early for the best seats, then stare longingly at the singer with the slacker attire (black-frame glasses, unkempt hair, baggy clothes), self-effacing attitude and penetrating lyrics.

"For a while, I was playing Seattle a lot more than Portland," he says. "It got to the point where people were asking me if I lived up there."

In Seattle, he feels "a different kind of atmosphere. People up there


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