Turkey Day has passed and you’re starting to hear the familiar strains of holiday songs coming out of the speakers of every store, shopping mall and restaurant around town. Now, don’t get me wrong, I love holiday music, but I don’t think I’m alone when I say that hearing some of those songs over and over can sometimes make me want to ram a candy cane in my eardrum.

Basically, I’m a music snob. So, when picking out holiday concerts for you, my faithful readers of The Mid-Week Beat, I thought I’d try and find events that stray away from the typical holiday concert and are certain to appeal to your discerning tastes. You won’t find any Nutcrackers in this list, no Christmas Carols and certainly, no Messiah‘s. Instead you get a psychedelic music festival in Seattle, Christmas songs as done by The Who, a choir composed entirely of indie rock songstresses from Brooklyn and much, much more. The one common thread: they all center around music and they all attempt to bring something fresh and new to the age-old “holiday concert” concept.

Of course, if you’re a traditionalist, we have plenty of traditional fare on the site but why not go out and experience something a little different this year? You can always catch The Nutcracker next year.

Be sure to pick up tickets soon as all of these shows are sure to sell out.

Happy Holidays!

Friday, December 6 I Psychedelic Holiday Freak Out – Seattle, Washington

FunkFarm, a Seattle-based imprint, has announced the Psychedelic Holiday Freak Out — a 2 day, 38 band music festival taking place on Seattle’s Capitol Hill. With stages for rock and hip-hop, the festival will bring top West Coast talent to the city to play alongside a collection of rising local artists.

The event was conceived during a hung-over drive between Portland and Seattle. “We saw the dreariness out the window and decided that Seattle needed a late-fall festival to shake things up before winter really set in,” said organizer Nate Leonard-Berliner. “We originally wanted to cater to fans of psychedelic music, but our scope quickly expanded when we saw the sheer variety of great acts interested in working with us.”

The lineup highlights top performers across a wide swath of genres, including sonic futurist Vox Mod, hip-hop fire spitters Kung Foo Grip and hard-driving garage rockers Fox and the Law. Individual stages will be hosted by legendary radio DJ Marco Collins, consummate sci-fi cowboy Brent Amaker and local hip hop veteran Bishop I of Oldominion.

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