Handing me his business card outside Seattle’s Showbox venue, Dougie said to me “So, while you’re in town, how about we go for a drink?” I’d just haggled him down the price of a ticket to see a band I love, The Foals (a sold out gig) and here he was, offering me his card, and clearly the full service from Charm Central.
Since when did ticket touts have business cards though? Only in America, I thought as I suggested that I mention him in any articles I write from my trip, so that he may gain some PR. “Hehe. no don’t do that, lady,” he told me, a slightly panicked look in his eyes.

I was in Seattle for a few spring days to explore the ‘arts’ side of the city, and I was looking forward to trying out some of the musical and cultural offerings that Seattle was renowned for.

Out of politeness, I stashed Dougie’s card into my jeans pocket before saying goodbye and heading into the Showbox to find a good spot for the gig. I’d already missed some of the supporting act – The Naked and The Famous – another of my favourites bands, but luckily I had seen them earlier in the UK.

Getting my beer stamp

As I tried to get on the platform where the bar was, bright light flashed in my face and, startled like road kill, I looked up to see a stern-faced security man pointing his torch in my eyes. He asked for my ID. This was the last thing I was expecting, seeing as I’ve waved my thirties behind, but this was the second time in two days, so I should have known better than to leave my passport back at the hotel.

Thankfully, my shocked declaration of age, and my British accent, meant he gave me that much needed hand stamp to reach the bar. Though apparently, if you can’t show your ID or it’s expired, even if you are 90 and look it, then they’re not supposed to legally let you have alcohol in Seattle.

Hard-gained beer in hand, I settled in on the platform and found myself standing next to a couple who were friendly and happy to keep me company throughout the performance. And from there, I enjoyed watching the Foals do their thing, my place here secured by my bargained down, touted ticket entrance.

Funnily enough, I ended up back at the Showbox the following night, as Two Door Cinema Club were playing. For this gig, I just bought my ticket the old-fashioned way at the box office – obviously they weren’t quite as well-known or popular as The Foals.

Still, this was Seattle’s music scene on a Monday and Tuesday night. I was pretty impressed.

Wham, bam, thank you SAM

I suppose a city famous for music, being home to Nirvana, ‘grunge’, and Jimi Hendrix, couldn’t fail to have a full-on gig listings for the week, or maybe I was just lucky that some of my most-loved bands were playing while I was in town.

But Seattle is also famously home to the poetry slam – and performance poetry I’m very familiar with, being something a poet myself and fond of the exceptionally cool poetry scene back home in Manchester.

There are several places to catch poetry events around town, but for slams in particular (I’ve never been brave enough to want to ‘slam’, much preferring the warm fuzzy glow of ‘we love everyone’ open mic nights) then Re-Bar on Howell Street is a popular venue with a weekly slot. I was intending to go here but didn’t make it.

A local tip for the poetically inclined – try checking out the website of Karen Finneyfrock, an established Seattle-based poet, as she does performances around the city regularly. I did send Karen an email before I went off to Seattle and she happily responded and let me know about what was going on during my visit.

Back to the daytime though, I discovered Seattle to be stuffed full of arty distractions for the culturally-minded. And first stop has to be SAM – or Seattle Art Museum, world renowned for its collections of period art from across the globe as well as its contemporary collections.

Indeed, I was fortunate enough to visit when the museum was exhibiting the work of Nick Cave – that’s not Nick Cave of the Bad Seeds, but Nick Cave the artist who produced the incredible ‘Soundsuits’. Sadly, I wasn’t allowed to take pictures, otherwise they’d be plastering this post.

This exhibition was pretty stunning, to say the least – the colourful and imaginative ‘soundsuits’ displayed in their glory were a feast for the eyes. I couldn’t get enough of all the fiddly bits interwoven in them, or watching the looped film of people dancing in them. Sort of like big, hairy Sesame Street characters.

The art of walking…

There’s a surprising amount of art you can see in Seattle on foot.

Attached to SAM is of course the Olympic Sculpture Park, which is open from dawn until dusk and free to wander. The park is a twenty minute walk northwards from the museum, better done on the promenade, and has several permanent pieces on display – including the ‘eye benches’, which you can sit on.

Seattle is awash also with independent art galleries owned by local artists that are worth checking out. I wasn’t in the city on the first Thursday of the month and therefore couldn’t participate in the First Thursday Art Walk, when the galleries open their doors to introduce their new exhibitions and artists.

However, having experienced something similar the previous week in Portland, Oregon, I can imagine it would be just as much fun. It starts in Pioneer Square between noon and 8pm, and art walk enthusiasts will hand out maps and provide details.

A sucker, for sure

Not wanting to leave Seattle without trying its iconic Cinerama movie theatre, I trundled off to Belltown to buy a ticket for the only film showing. Unfortunately, that was ‘Sucker Punch‘. Wow, I really can’t express just how bad this film is, or understand how anyone could make a film this bad without intending it to be! Still, I endured it in order to experience, well, the experience.

Seattle Cinerama, opened in 1963, is one of only three cinemas in the world capable of showing three-panel Cinerama films (a process which works by simultaneously projecting images from three synchronised 35 mm projectors onto a massive, deeply-curved screen – but don’t ask what this means when I’m drunk), and though I couldn’t really tell the difference, it was good enough to be sat watching a ‘movie’ in a landmark building eating proper American popcorn.

And, oh, the popcorn! The sweetness of it entering your nostrils as you enter the building? Sublime.

So Seattle – home of the ticket tout who gives lone lady travellers his ‘business card’, and home of the poetry slam and Hendrix, you really do pack a punch (and not a suckered one), when it comes to your cultural offering. You’re definitely worth the trip.

See Visit Seattle for more information on the city.

Photos by Andrea