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~ Nautilus Concert ~
Deep in the depths of the ocean, Captain Nemo and his brave crew pilot the Nautilus onward to a strange and wonderful grotto, filled with the siren sounds of steampunk music, "The Nautilus Concert"! Join us under the bubble chandeliers in your best sub-mariner attire for an undersea concert not to be missed. Headlining our magnificent show will be the phenomenal Vagabond Opera. Opening is our fan favorite, the gorgeous and talented siren, Unwoman. Next up will be the wondrous Clockwork Dolls. It will be a memorable musical evening! (Tickets to this event will go on sale prior to the convention. Watch for details.)
 European Dark Cabaret! Gypsy Americana! Balkan Belly Dance. Bohemian Operatic Steampunk! Old World Yiddish Theater! The seven piece, Portland, ORE based music ensemble Vagabond Opera is described by the Washington Post as “a band of ceaseless charisma, boundless energy, impeccable musicianship and more than a little touch of both the naughty and exotic,” and by NBC as “an eclectic musical phenomenon.”
The group delivers passionate offerings of Bohemian gypsy cabaret for young and old. Featuring four singers (two operatically trained) two cellos, saxophone, clarinet, accordion, double bass, drums, mandolin, vaudevillian and absurd theatrics, and sometimes dancers, the Bohemian neo-cabaret gypsy rock ensemble plays a combination of cabaret, burlesque, tango, Balkan beats, Klezmer, rock, Arab music , Parisian hot jazz, and, yes, opera that'’ll leave your head spinning.
Vagabond Opera is at the vanguard of a growing popularity in the Neo-cabaret steampunk phenomenon, and through their theatrical performances and eclectic repertoire bring the eclectic artistic spirit of Portland, ORE to the world.
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 Allison Curval and Helene de Fer began The Clockwork Dolls in 2007 with an idea: To create music that serves not only as a means of the listener's recreation, but also as the means of a story's narration; To be a group of writers and actors, bringing the magic of the theatre and the opera back into live musical performance; To become storytellers like the days of old.
The duo combines Allison Curval's fusing of traditional classical music, contemporary musical scores, and modern electronic music with Helene De Fer's passionate and poetic lyrics and detailed story writing. Together, they paint the epic musical picture of an elaborate and strange world as they tell the familiar tale of a young noble woman and her best friend battling against the odds for the freedom to be themselves. It is a world filled with pirates, dark saloons, airships, and the technology of both past and future. It is a story filled with drama, bravery, tragedy, and adventure.
These are the stories of dreamers, the stories of warriors, the stories of freethinkers. These are the tales of people who fly.
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 Unwoman (aka Erica Mulkey) is a San Francisco-based cellist-singer-songwriter. She performs often in the Bay Area and has been featured at steampunk, goth, and sci-fi-related events all over North America. In addition to her prolific solo career, Erica toured with Voltaire as part of his Skeletal Orchestra. Prior to that she performed in Rasputina at Convergence 12 in New Orleans and in part of their June 2006 US tour, in which she also opened solo. She currently plays cello with Stripmall Architecture (formerly Halou) and Vernian Process, and has also shared the stage with HUMANWINE, Attrition, Jill Tracy, Falling You, and improvised aural alchemy with Paul Mercer's The Ghosts Project.
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The unsinkable Mister Bodewell found himself lost on a seemingly deserted island, but wait! What’s this? It seems to be inhabited by very talented musicians and entertainers. Huzzah! Steamcon III is proud to invite you to enjoy “The Mysterious Island Lounge” both Friday and Saturday evening in the Bellevue Hyatt Regency’s Cedar Ballroom. Performers from near and far will be on hand to delight and entertain you in this tropical locale. (This event is included in your membership to Steamcon III.)
~Aeon Now~
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Aeon Now is a cabaret chameleon changing from deep shades of jazz, to speeding punk, to glimmering gypsy with theatrical flair. Accordion bellows, drum beats, and big brass paint a dream from the depths of boom-chank that awaken to a fanfare of dramatic triumph.
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~Curtis Eller~
 Curtis Eller, the wild eyed vaudevillian known as "New York's angriest
yodelling banjo player", is one of the contemporary acoustic scene's most
eccentric and individual performers. Detroit born and circus raised Eller
has built a strong following in the UK based on full throttle live shows
where slapstick and silent comedy meets the urgency of an early David
Byrne. However, despite the Groucho moustache, braces and baggy trousers,
this isn't the sideshow that it may at first appear. Eller is a gifted
writer raised on Randy Newman, The Band and Tom Waits. His often
melancholy, often angry songs describe a dream like view of American
history where all points in time have collapsed into one. Elvis Presley
can rub shoulders with Abraham Lincoln against a backdrop of circus
disasters, assassinations, corruption and chain gangs. To top it off he
has the smoky voice of a man lost in the desert without a flask and
performs every song as if his life depended in it. Not to be missed.
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~ Gunstreet Glory ~
 It’s a foggy night in Seattle.
Flickering neon reflects off the damp and glistening cobblestones of a hushed Pike Place Market. A haunting, lonely twang blends with the smoky mist in the air. You follow, drawn down a narrow alley toward the melody. One dim light bulb illuminates a nondescript door. A Gypsy Vagabond creaks open the slab of wood and you descend a narrow staircase. As you part the crimson velvet curtain, your senses are filled with a lyrical longing for what must have been. The smell of absinthe mixes with creosote and salt air, sweetened by a hint of perfume. Where am I? Who am I? Relax, have a drink and rest assured that, for tonight, you’re experiencing a Gunstreet Glory."
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~Professor Gall~
 'A Tincture of Junkyard Folk and Steampunk Jazz'.
Professor Gall seeks to uncover the contradictions of an ambiguous and native-less society, 'dreaming the existentialists' dream', while at the same time pleading for individualism, peace, and more fun at funerals.
The Portland, Oregon conglomerate starts with Drew Norman on vocals, guitar, percussion stomp box, and banjo, who brings his theatrical experience to the musical stage and is responsible for the initial musical and lyrical embellishments. Drew’s recent side roles include the ‘Husband’ in the stage and movie version of Sally Tomato’s TOY ROOM (Severe Enterprises), a rock opera that won awards from The Heart of England Film Festival, among others. He is also commissioned by other musical luminaries on stage and in the studio from Chris Robley’s Fear of Heights Orchestra (Cutthroat Pop Records) to Jeff Hanson (Kill Rock Stars Records). Scott Johnston heads up the first chair position for the horn section, arranging charts and providing his saxophone alchemy. Rounding out the ensemble is Monte Skillings on trombone, Todd Burba on clarinet and accordion, Sean Hudson on stand-up bass, Jake Pegg on tuba, and Andrew Clarinet on the.…ahem…clarinet.
Critical acclaim for their first full length CD ‘Intravenous Delusion’ has enabled Professor Gall to become a regional favorite, sharing the stage with semi-national/national acts like The Devil Makes Three, Eric McFadden Trio, Slim Cessna's Auto Club, Billy Nayer Show, Vagabond Opera and Sleepytime Gorilla Museum. The band released in March of 2010 their sophomore release entitled ‘The Psychology of Booze and Guilt’ to rave reviews. |
~Fein and Dandee~
Ladies and Gentlemen, you are listening to WKZO Dallas. It's time for The Fein and Dandee Hour with your hosts and partners in crime Mr. Chuck Dandee and Mr. August Fein. Long time friends, Charles "Chuck" Dandee and August Huxley Fein, met one evening at a Biergarten in Dallas, TX in 1927. Discovering a mutual knack and admiration for rubber chickens and kazoos, the two quickly fell into music making--involving typewriters, pots and pans, and fencepost. Eventually, Dallas' own WKZO approached the two and offered them a lucrative deal for a radio program. By fall 1930, The Fein and Dandee Hour was a reality, streaming via vacuum tubes into at least five homes. This deal also brought them to the bassist Louis Luvleigh, a good ol' midwestern chap from Ohio...along the way they discovered Kazuhiro Ito, the most famous musician to ever from South Ukelasia (trust me - you don't want to see the folks from North Ukelasia)...So if you are in the mood for a little bit of tango and a little bit of twang...go grab a drink, put on a smile, but whatever you do don't touch that dial...
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~Timur and the Dime Museum ~
 Formed in 2010 for America’s Got Talent appearance, following their collaboration with the Klaus Nomi songwriter Kristian Hoffman, the dark glam opera band Timur and the Dime Museum fuses pop, indie & vaudeville sounds, creating a rich amalgam of sensibilities with Bjork fierceness, Rufus Wainwright sensitivity and David Bowie theatrical sparkle. Recently profiled in LA Weekly's BEST OF PEOPLE Issue 2011, the band’s stunning intensity brings flourishing and heart-breaking songs to cure the new depression with imagination and a bohemian attitude. Already winning a strong following in Los Angeles and praise from fellow artists, such as Amanda Palmer, Nick Urata of Devotchka and Sondre Lerche, the band always strives to create unconventional sounds in familiar and new songs, combining Timur's unique voice with electric guitar, upright bass, accordion, bass clarinet, cello, viola and drums."The charismatic tenor" (LA Times) Timur Bekbosunov, a noted Kazakh-American interpreter of contemporary and cross-cultural music, and the members of the band, are graduates of California Institute of the Arts, and individually, have performed in countless major projects, productions, festivals and venues around the world. |
~ The Bad Things ~
 In 2002. The Bad Things were formed out of the ashes of A Midnite Choir, a cult favorite in the, then burdgeoning, Seattle underground cabaret scene.
Upon the demise of the Choir, members Jimmy the Pickpocket (accordion, vocals) and Mad Wilcox (upright bass, musical saw) began playing new songs on the wet, Seattle sidewalks under the "Bad Things" moniker (a name taken from the Midnite Choir's ode to alcohol DT's "Physical Withdrawals"), eventually growing into the 6-piece ensemble that you see today.
They recorded their first CD with the legendary local producer Kearney Barton (The Sonics, The Ventures, The Kingsmen, etc.) which was released on their own label Silent City Records. The Bad Things quickly gained a reputation for "drunken debauchery" and "feverish dancing" at their live shows, and their theatrical aesthetic sealed their reputation as Seattle's premier "Junkyard Cabaret" band.
The Bad Things have been highly in the rich Seattle cabaret scene providing soundtracks to dozens of theatrical, burlesque, aerial, and cabaret shows at popular local cabaret venues like The Triple Door, The Can Can, Showbox At the Market, The Moore Theater, and the Columbia City Theater including "The Breaking" - a live theatrical production based entirely on The Bad Things' music performed by The Can Can's Castaways and directed by Armitage Shanks of Circus Contraption. They recently provided the soundtrack for a documentary about the Seattle burlesque scene as part of MTV.com's $5 Cover web series.
They also recently released a collaboration with the co-founder of UK anarcho-pop legends Chumbawamba, Danbert Nobacon called "Woebegone" which was released this fall on Nobacon's Verbal Burlesque Records. |
~Toy-Box Trio~
 Founded in 2007 by classical composer Harlan Glotzer, the Toy-Box Trio is devoted to helping audiences experience through-composed music in an entirely different way. The pairing of concertina, toy piano, and double bass is reminiscent of the classical piano trio - a staple in chamber repertoire - but able to extend into the 21st century by creating a sonic landscape evocative of dusty old music boxes and haunted carnivals. According to Michael Upchurch of the Seattle Times, "A circus atmosphere dominates the trio's sound, but it's spiced with baroque touches, minimalist nods and a strong gypsy flavor." Toy-Box Trio is committed to approaching time-worn ideas and concepts from unexpected, non-traditional, and rarely-used angles. "Their music is somewhere between classic Klezmer and three-ring circus, but there is a modern edge to it that brings it directly into the 21st century, and even more so, into the vein of all things Seattle", writes Dustin Schisler of City's Best Seattle. The Toy-Box Trio is at home in venues ranging from concert halls to cabaret clubs to street corners, and performs for a diverse audience including families, steampunks, and symphony-goers. Previous performances include Seattle's Town Hall, the Seattle Art Museum, Steamcon, Seattle International Cabaret Festival, and Gallery X17, as well as various venues throughout the Puget Sound region. Aside from stage performances, the Toy-Box Trio has been featured on KEXP's " Sonarchy Radio" and has made a live television appearance on the Seattle Channel's " Art Zone with Nancy Guppy". Sepiachord has commissioned two separate pieces from Toy-Box Trio for the CD compilations The Sepiachord Companion and The Sepiachord Passport. Music from the trio's self-titled EP creates the backdrop for Philadelphia's Olde City Sideshow and provides the soundtrack for various films including My Lucy Charm and Back Ally. In 2010, the Toy-Box Trio released their first full-length album, Miniature Menagerie. The disc features concertina, toy piano, and tuba, and includes works that incorporate the sounds of cello, typewriter, and virginal. |
 Cellist and Singer, Ashia Grzesik is a three-ring slyph, a vaudeville dervish, a woman after our own hearts. Aptly entitled Bison Rouge (her new EP), it ranges from parlor popular to European avante garde. Her siren voice calls and dismisses whirling into your ears and down into your heart and out into the aether. It is beautiful.” Seattle Pi. She has performed with Cirque du Soliel's "O" production, received a Drammy, 2010, for her original compositions for Third Rail Theater's, "The Gray Sisters", and performs her solo act extensively as well as with Vagabond Opera and The Portland Cello Project. Her songs and compositions reflect her longing for her Slavic roots with Chopinesque and gypsy musings and the blues, rock, and open harmonies of the New World, as well as classical infused Chamber Pop. Her style as described by Portland Monthly: “…one can’t help but hear a collage of influences. Grzesik can certainly give Joanna Newsom a run for her whimsy, she possesses the old-world charm and quirky dramatics of Regina Spector and the cello-punk instincts of Bonfire Madigan, and her voice vacillates between the throaty alto of Amanda Palmer and the ethereal soprano of Maria Callas. Simply put, she’s got a little bit of everything.
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 A group of eclectic individuals who attempt to embody the style and integrity (well… maybe not integrity) of depression era ragtime, blues and jazz. Native to the wetlands of the Pacific Coast Region, they can usually be found in the small dark corners of various establishments across the greater Seattle area, but there have also been reports of them congregating on street corners and other various "unsavory" environments.... Although generally regarded as a fairly docile species, there have been rare cases of biting, territory marking, and other aggressive behaviors. Approach at your own risk. |
 Eric Stern has appeared on NPR and performed at the Kennedy Center,The Great American Music Hall, Joe’s Pub in NYC in San Francisco, throughout the Northwest, and internationally from Portland to Paris to Poland.
Eric Stern is best known for being the founder and artistic director of Vagabond Opera, an ensemble that has achieved worldwide success. Vagabond Opera was created in 2002 by U.S. and European-trained opera singer and composer Eric Stern. He is passionate about Bulgarian accordion and has studied with Milen Slavov and Kalin Kirilov. He has also returned to his Jewish roots and is a passionate lover and advocate of the Yiddish Language. Stern is fluent in a variety of genres from jazz piano to Balkan accordion, to Opera.
Eric Stern appears on the Decemberist’s album Her Majesty and also performs as a soloist or with the Eric Stern Trio.
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