Aaron Guest has been a prominent personality in the Bellingham music scene for a decade or more at this point. His band, Polecat, earned local renown in the 2010s for its high-energy blend of traditional folk, country and driving rock.
Since 2015, when Polecat recorded its final album at Michael Iris’ Bell Creek Studio, he and Iris have worked together on several projects, with Petty or Not standing as probably the most well known. Now they are preparing to release a collaborative album dubbed “Gueris.” The title comes from mashing their names together.
Recorded in fits and starts during the last four years, the album is one of the most artistically ambitious works I’ve heard come out of the Bellingham scene in quite a while.
The “Gueris” LP will be coming out on vinyl, which makes sense because it’s packed full of the sorts of carefully sculpted sonic details that will be best appreciated if you give it your full attention. The music is languid and spacey at times, but still sufficiently grounded by solid backbeats and bluesy vocals to keep it from drifting away.
Over the course of eight songs, Guest and Iris throw in everything but the proverbial kitchen sink — from Middle Eastern percussion to analog keyboards, bird calls and synthesized sitars. Actually, I wouldn’t be surprised if there was a kitchen sink in there somewhere. Vocalists Stephanie Walbon and Keri Jioras are featured on a few songs each, but otherwise Guest and Iris played everything themselves and Iris handled engineering and mixing.
Drums and percussion are mostly samples and loops. Iris’ soaring slide guitar work highlights several of the songs. Despite the formidable technique on display, there’s nothing show-offy. Every bit of the instrumentation is there to serve the feelings and atmospheres of the songs.
Befitting a release with such an unusual story, the album release show they have planned for Saturday, Oct. 8 at the Bellingham Circus Guild promises to be an equally creative experience. First, they’ve assembled a top-notch band of versatile musicians to fill out the sound. Guest and Iris will be joined by Christian Casolary on drums, David Lofgren on percussion, Steven Blair on bass and Stephanie Walbon on vocals.
Beyond the great musicians, a trio of acts from the Bellingham Circus Guild will take the stage during the course of the night’s entertainment. This level of interdisciplinary artistic collaboration should make it a night to remember. An important thing to note is that they currently have no plans for this to be a regular-performing project. If you want to hear this music performed live, you should assume this show is your one chance.
A previous version of this story misstated that members of the Bellingham Circus Guild would be performing during each song. The night’s entertainment will only include three circus acts. This story was updated at 2:30 p.m. on Oct. 5. Cascadia Daily News regrets the error.
Live music listings
Wednesday, Oct. 5
Boundary: 6 p.m., Aaron Guest on piano
Foundation Lounge: 7:30 p.m., Open Mic
Honey Moon: 8 p.m., Open Mic
Shakedown: 8 p.m., Johanna Warren, Book of Shred, Boris Budd (rock)
Stones Throw: 6 p.m., Tender Pile Smile Aisle
Thursday, Oct. 6
Blue Room: 8 p.m., Jennifer Knapp, Rae Du Soleil (singer-songwriter)
Birdsview: 6 p.m., Uncle Doug
Farmstrong: 6 p.m., Wes Jones & Friends
Honey Moon: 8 p.m., Jazz Jam
Shakedown: 9 p.m., Wild Powwers, SAVAK, Cat Valley (rock)
Thirsty Badger: 7 p.m., Open Mic
That’s What I Like: 6 p.m, J.P. Falcon and Friends (folk/rock)
Wild Buffalo: 9 p.m., TVBOO, Ahee, PANDAmonium, Keags (electronic)
Friday, Oct. 7
Aslan: 8 p.m., BJ Block Trio (jazz/funk)
Beach at Birch Bay: 6 p.m., Michael Dayvid (acoustic covers)
Birdsview: 6 p.m., Frasier Green
Blue Room: 8 p.m., Perfect by Tomorrow, Tractor Beam, Jackie (reggae/rock)
Brown Lantern: 9 p.m., Ebb Slack & Flood (reggae/rock)
Fireside: 7 p.m., Carr Parker
Honey Moon: 8 p.m., Traesti Darling
Mount Baker Theatre: 7:30 p.m., Griffin House (singer-songwriter)
Shakedown: 9 p.m., Service, Gonzo’s Attic, Lipstitch (rock)
Skylark’s: 8 p.m., Electra (singer-songwriter)
Wild Buffalo: 9 p.m., Babe Rainbow, seventies tuberide (rock)
WinkWink: 7 p.m., Smooth Kiwi, True Stars (rock)
Saturday, Oct. 8
Aslan: 4 p.m., Garland
Beach at Birch Bay: 4 p.m., Anti-Shock, Paper Hearts (alt-rock covers)
Big Stick BBQ: 6 p.m., Naughty Blokes Trio
Blue Room: 6 p.m., Bham Vs. The World (hip-hop showcase)
Circus Guild: 7 p.m., Gueris
Conway Muse: 8 p.m., Levi Ware
Eagle Haven: 6 p.m., Budapest West
FireHouse: 7 p.m., Tango Cowboys (tango/Western)
Fireside: 3:30 p.m., Singers’ Saturday
Honey Moon: 8 p.m., Hot Tomatoes (jazz)
Lincoln Theatre: 7:30 p.m., Chris Eger Band, Eric Heatherly
Main Street: 9 p.m., Dad Company (BadCo tribute)
Menace: 3 p.m., Evan Ingalls (folk)
Rockfish: 7:30 p.m., Jim Basnight Band (rock and roll)
Shakedown: 9 p.m., Ceremony East Coast, Tremours, Spider Ferns (rock)
Skylark’s: 8 p.m., J.P. Falcon Grady
Station 49: 4 p.m., Wicked Timing
Wild Buffalo: 8:45 p.m., Ayla Nereo, Marya Stark, guests (folk/pop)
Sunday, Oct. 9
Culture Cafe: 7 p.m., Open Mic
Kulshan: 5 p.m., E. Pruitt
Main Street: 6 p.m., Open Mic
Old Edison: 5:30 p.m., The Davanos
Station 49: 3 p.m., Jimmy Wright Band
Monday, Oct. 10
FireHouse: 3:30 p.m., Cheryl Hodge (jazz/blues)
Tuesday, Oct. 11
Aslan: 8 p.m., Jazz Night
Beach at Birch Bay: 6:30 p.m., Open Mic
Boundary: 6 p.m., Paul Klein on piano
Ranch Room: 8 p.m., Michael Dayvid
Before heading out to listen to live music, check with individual venues to make sure the event is still taking place as scheduled.
Jesse Stanton’s music column, The Beat Goes On, runs Wednesdays. Email: jsbhammusic@gmail.com or Twitter: @JSBhamMusic.
